AMHERST, Mass. - The UMass Hockey team (2-6-3) used a three-goal second period to skate past the Quinnipiac Bobcats (7-6-1) on Saturday night at the Mullins Center. The Minutemen received four of their five goals from defensemen, including two from Adam Phillips and Conor Allen's first collegiate tally. Paul Dainton made 25 saves for Massachusetts, who will be back in action next Saturday when the Mass Attack will play host to sister school UMass-Lowell at 1:30 PM.
Quinnipiac held a close 27-25 edge in shots, while the Minutemen won 32 of 55 faceoffs on the night. Massachusetts went 2-for-9 on the power play and the Bobcats went 1-for-5.
Although the Bobcats held a slight 12-9 shot advantage through the opening 20 minutes of play, it was the Minutemen who skated away from the first period with a 2-0 lead on goals from defensemen. Doug Kublin got the Mass Attack rolling when he netted his second goal of the year off a turnover in the neutral zone.
Danny Hobbs picked up a loose puck near center ice and quickly turned and headed towards Hartzell. Hobbs skated down the right side, then spotted Kublin streaking into the slot joining the rush. Hobbs threaded a pass through a Quinnipiac defender to Kublin, who one-timed it through Hartzell for the score.
Adam Phillips made it 2-0 Massachusetts with 4:25 to play in the period when he fired a shot from the point that appeared to redirect off a body on its way to the net. Conor Sheary began the play with a hard pass out to Phillips on the blue line, who then fired it on goal for his second score of the season.
Hobbs nearly made it 3-0 Minutemen with 2:01 left in the frame when he rocketed a shot from the left faceoff dot that rang off the crossbar, triggering the goal judge to turn on the red light. The goal was immediately reviewed to see if the puck had crossed the line, but the referees' call on the ice stood as no goal.
UMass continued its offensive efficiency throughout the second period, scoring three goals on just eight shots. Phillips potted his second of the night just four minutes into the frame when he took a pass from Joel Hanley and belted a shot from the blue line that confounded Clarke and got by the junior goalkeeper with the Minutemen on the power play.
Hobbs gave the Mass Attack a commanding lead five minutes following Phillips' score when he netted his first goal of the season and UMass' second power play tally of the evening. T.J. Syner held the puck below the goal line before sending a pass to Michael Pereira, who had previously completed a quick stick change with equipment manager Josh Penn, along the hashmarks. Pereira then passed the puck to Hanley at the point, who fired a slap shot that Hobbs got a piece of on its way past Clarke.
The Bobcats got on the board near the midway mark of the period when Connor Jones took a pass from Zach Hansen following a neutral zone faceoff and skated in on Dainton, throwing a wrist shot on goal that beat the UMass goalkeeper. The Minutemen regained its four-goal lead two and a half minutes later when Conor Allen scored his first collegiate goal on a shot from the blue line that found its way through traffic and into the lower left corner of the cage.
Quinnipiac tried to claw its way back into the game into the third period, outshooting the Minutemen 10-8 and scoring the lone goal of the period 51 seconds into the frame. Scott Zurevinski netted his fifth goal of the year when he followed a rush from Jones and cleaned up the mess with a wrist shot into the back of the net.
The Bobcats pulled Clarke on several occasions, including with 6:54 remaining in regulation and Quinnipiac on the power play, to try to make it a two-goal game, but Dainton continued to stifle the Bobcat attack to preserve the win.