DURHAM, N.H. - Junior forward Angus Crookshank (North Vancouver, British Columbia) scored two goals to lead the University of New Hampshire men's hockey team to a 6-2 victory over Maine on Saturday at the Whittemore Center. The Wildcats improve to 1-0-1 (1-0-1 HEA) and the Black Bears fall to 0-1-1 (0-1-1 HEA).
Junior forward Jackson Pierson (Zionsville, Ind.) and senior captain Charlie Kelleher (Longmeadow, Mass.) also turned in multi-point performances, while freshman Cam Gendron (Hampstead, N.H.) and sophomore Joe Hankinson (Hopkins, Minn.) both scored their first career goals and also recorded assists.
UP NEXT: Wildcats will return to action on Friday and Saturday,
UNH will host Merrimack on Saturday, Dec. 19 at 6 p.m. at the Whittemore Center on NESN+ and College SportsLive.
Score: New Hampshire 6, Maine 2
Records: New Hampshire (1-0-1, 1-0-1 HEA), Maine (0-1-1, 0-1-1 HEA)
Location: Durham, N.H. (Whittemore Center)
Date: Friday, December 12, 2020
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Maine got off to a fast start scoring 4:50 into the game on the power play when Jacob Schmidt-Svejstrup wristed one glove side from the top of the slot.
- Crookshank evened the score with 9:18 left in the first period on the power play from just above the crease. Sophomore defenseman Kalle Eriksson (Leksand, Sweden) and Kelleher notched assists on the goal.
- Senior assistant captain Benton Maass (Elk River, Minn.) gave UNH the lead after he had drawn a penalty and while the referee's hand was in the air, Matthew Thiessen kicked a rebound out to the left circle where Maass was there to bury it. Sophomore Lucas Herrmann (Lancaster, N.Y.) and Hankinson posted assists on the goal.
- UNH increased its lead to 3-1 just 46 seconds later on the power play when senior assistant captain Patrick Grasso (Ankeny, Iowa) found a loose puck sitting on top of the crease and flipped one over Thiessen's shoulder. Kelleher and Pierson received assists on the goal.
- After the first period, UNH outshot Maine 12-9. The Wildcats were 2-2 on the power play and the Black Bears were 1-1.
- Maine made it 3-2 after Emil Westerlund scored off of a rebound on the power play with 12:52 left in the second period. Schmidt-Svejstrup and Brad Morrissey were credited with the assists.
- Senior goaltender Mike Robinson (Bedford, N.H.) made a string of important saves on a Black Bear power play in the back half of the second period.
- At the end of two periods, Maine had outshot UNH 22-20. The Black Bears' power play was 2-5, while the Wildcats were 2-3.
- Crookshank potted his second of the game as he caught a pass from Pierson and sped around the Maine defense along the right wing, cut towards the net, and flipped one past Thiessen to make it 4-2 UNH with 16:36 remaining in the third period. Freshman defenseman Nikolai Jenson (Cold Spring, Minn.) was also credited with an assist.
- Gendron netted his first career collegiate goal after he laid a hit on a Maine player, found the puck and let one rip from the bottom of the right circle short-side top shelf with 8:07 left in the third period.
- Hankinson scored an empty net goal for his first career goal with 1:36 remaining in the third period.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
- Robinson made 32 saves and improves to 1-0-1, while Matthew Thiessen posted 27 saves and stands at 0-1-1.
- Maine outshot UNH by a 34-33 margin.
- The Wildcats went 2-4 on the power play and the Black Bears finished 2-6.
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE
- Gendron and Hankinson both recorded their first career collegiate goals.
- Jenson's assists marks the first point of his career.
- Crookshank's two goal game stands as the fifth of his career.
- Five different Wildcats posted two-point efforts.
- Ten different UNH players appeared on the score sheet with five different goal scorers.
