By Brian Brashaw
Shot total has meant little to the Maverick hockey team this year.
UNO has been outshot by every opponent so far this season, except Colgate, yet the Mavericks remain .500 so far as they split this weekend with a 6-4 loss to No. 6 Boston University and a 3-2 overtime win over UMass.
In the game Friday, Boston doubled UNO’s shot total, yet the Mavericks were in the game until the very end.
In fact, UNO scored three power play goals and skunked the Terriers on-the-man advantage, despite giving nine power plays, including two 5-on-3 opportunities.
“I will field no questions about our power play,” Terrier Coach Jack Parker wittingly said. “In general, that’s the type of game we’ve got to play as far as shot opportunities – controlling the other team in our zone and doing a good job of getting the other team out of our zone.”
Justin Meiser started the game scoring, giving Boston a 1-0 lead midway through the first period. Gregg Johnson then scored on a penalty shot, “The most exciting play in sports,” to put the Terriers up 2-0. It was the first penalty shot taken against UNO since Jan. 20, 2001.
Scotty Turner scored UNO’s first power play goal with just a minute left in the first period.
Boston took a 4-1 lead in the second period on goals by David Klema and Matt Radoslovich. UNO then decided it needed to wake up.
Maverick co-captain Greg Zanon rifled in a shot on a UNO two-man advantage and Mike Lefley registered his first college hockey goal, a power play lamp lighter at 13:42 of the second period to pull UNO within one after two periods.
Then, just 1:28 into the second period, UNO tied the game. Mike Gabinet fed Aaron Smith for the tying goal. By then, the Mavericks had all but exhausted themselves.
Though the Terriers didn’t score a power play goal, with UNO forced to kill so many, Boston took advantage of their fatigue.
John Laliberte scored the game-winner for Boston less than a minute after Smith’s goal and Brian McConnell added a shorthanded insurance goal for the 6-4 final.
“We obviously took a lot of unnecessary penalties – you’re killing close to half a game; you’re killing 25 minutes,” Kemp said. “Even though they didn’t score a power play goal, you’re wearing out the same people killing penalties, and all of a sudden you get to five-on-five situations and you’ve gassed them in the special teams situation. It’s very difficult to overcome that.”
UNO flirted with overtime again and scored to earn a 3-2 win over the University of Massachusetts at Amherst Sunday to salvage a road split.
David Brisson wasted no time scoring just 18 seconds into free hockey, giving him three points on the weekend.
UNO was outshot 23-21 in the game. Stephen Werner opened the scoring for UMass early in the first period. Then UNO’s Aaron Smith scored two power play goals, one in the first period, one in the second, to put the Mavericks up 2-1.
Matthew Anderson notched a power play goal for the Minuteman to tie the game and eventually send it to overtime.
Brisson struck, game over. Simple as that.
Andrew Wong assisted on Brisson’s game winner, giving Wong four assists on the weekend, which continued his reputation of being a feed man. Wong tallied four assists on the weekend, giving him seven total on the year. He led the team with 29 assists last year.
UNO will get beck to Central Collegiate Hockey Association action next weekend as it travels to Kalamazoo to take on Western Michigan.
