BOSTON — After a back-and-forth affair resulted in a 2-2 tie Friday night, Northeastern and No. 11 Providence met for the second leg of a home-and-home series Saturday, with the Huskies hungry to pick up their first Hockey East victory of the season.
In a game which featured 41 total penalty minutes, seven power-play goals, and the Huskies’ third trip to overtime in as many games, Providence left Matthews Arena as the victor by a 6-5 scoreline.
Entering the matchup, concerns about the Northeastern power play loomed in the air. Successful in just 1-of-17 spells with the player advantage, the Huskies faced a considerable challenge against a Providence penalty kill that began Saturday’s contest as the 14th-best in the nation.
Those concerns would be quelled, however, when junior winger Cam Lund deposited a puck from the high slot just 7:42 into the first frame. Jack Williams’ win off the draw sent a skittering puck from the right-side faceoff circle before Lund ripped it high above graduate student goaltender Zachary Borgiel’s glove, cashing in on Northeastern’s first PP of the night and opening the scoring early.
With the goal, Lund extended his point streak to six games, and Northeastern continued its trend of scoring first early.
Not long after, Providence responded with a power play goal of its own. Graduate student center Logan Will tapped home his fourth goal of the season, a marker stuffed in from the crease with helpers from freshman winger Trevor Connelly and junior defender Austen May.
Inching toward the end of the period, Northeastern’s early momentum appeared to be slowing down yet again. However, it was the speed of freshman winger Joe Connor that provided a spark for the Huskies late in the period.
Darting behind the red line as Borgiel appealed to the officials for an icing call, Connor’s aggressive work on the forecheck allowed sophomore winger Dylan Hryckowian to swoop in behind the net and locate Connor on a looping turn. The freshman made no mistake, rifling a wrist shot high to the open side of the cage, scoring his second goal in as many days and reclaiming the lead for Northeastern with 16 seconds to play in the first period.
Four minutes into the second, momentum continued to build for a Northeastern team hungry to claim its first win since October 12th. Lund wove from his own end before ushering a shot into the Providence crease, where Hryckowian swatted a backhand hack at the loose puck to move it over the line.
Ambitiously, Providence head coach Nate Leaman motioned to junior goaltender Philip Svedebäck to replace Borgiel, the reigning Hockey East Goaltender of the Week, with more than half of regulation remaining.
If Leaman was searching for a turning point with the tactical change, his efforts were only helped just moments later. Northeastern junior winger Nick Rhéaume was involved in a collision behind the Providence net; an incident initially called for a minor penalty that was upgraded to seven penalty minutes with a major and a game misconduct for contact to the head that ended Rhéaume’s night.
Despite sophomore goaltender Cameron Whitehead ranking second among Hockey East goaltenders in save percentage and flashing a dramatic snare of the glove to deny early Providence attacks, the major penalty proved to be too much for the Huskies.
Reigning USHL Rookie of the Year John Mustard highlighted the strength of the young Providence core as the freshman winger laced an unassisted goal beyond the blocker of Whitehead. Three minutes later, it was fellow freshman winger Will Elger — who entered Saturday’s game with an impressive .364 shooting percentage — who fired home the equalizer. Elger clanged a shot off the post and in, recording his eighth point in as many games to continue his hot rookie campaign.
After two power play goals in quick succession, Northeastern conceded another early lead.
“We’ve taken three major penalties this year,” said head coach Jerry Keefe. “A team that’s desperate to win hockey games, that’s putting themselves in situations to win hockey games, and then to do that to yourselves is really, really disappointing.”
For Providence, a third goal heavily shifted the odds in its favor: entering Saturday, the Friars had accumulated a 222-24-25 record under Leaman when recording three or more goals.
In what became a theme for the remainder of the game, another player took their seat in the penalty box when Providence found itself on the penalty kill mere moments after Northeastern limped through the major.
Inspired by the spark provided by its first goal of the year on Friday, the Northeastern power play unit continued its charge when Williams drove in a one-timer from the left-side faceoff circle to capture the lead once again. For hopeful Husky fans, it appeared as though a tenacious, gritty Northeastern team might finally turn the corner and fight back.
But when the third period began, that hope was found to be short-lived. Connelly, Providence’s crafty freshman, produced an impressive individual effort 3:37 into the period as he wheeled around the high slot and rippled the twine beyond Whitehead’s outstretched right pad.
After leveling the game at four, special teams factored in once more. Graduate student center Chase Yoder completed a cross-ice tic-tac-toe sequence when he buried the go-ahead goal from the edge of the Northeastern goal crease. In a matter of minutes, the Friars shifted the needle and took the lead for the first time all game.
Clawing for an equalizer, Northeastern found its answer with 2:41 left to play through junior defender Joaquim Lemay. Lemay, a transfer from Nebraska Omaha who has had extensive ice time since making his return from injury, floated a loose wrister above Svedebäck’s shoulder to force overtime. The goal marked his first as a Husky.
Despite an offensive resurgence and several promising opportunities for Northeastern, it was the lack of discipline characterizing the game that quelled any momentum the Huskies carried into the overtime period.
When senior winger Christophe Tellier picked up a penalty in the Providence zone, the man advantage was all Providence needed to seal the deal. Completing an emphatic back-and-forth night, Connelly called game by roofing a distant wrist shot past Whitehead to record his fifth point of the night on yet another power play.
With a slow start to conference play, the Huskies have a glaring penalty issue to address.
“It’s gonna be a pretty stern message,” Keefe said, reflecting on the numerous penalties and power play goals. “It has to be.”
After holding the lead for the majority of the game, Northeastern saw it slip away in the third period in a narrative it has found all-too-familiar as of late. When all was said and done, a promising quick start amounted to another missed opportunity to collect three points in Hockey East.
Northeastern returns to action on Friday, as they travel to Durham to take on the UNH Wildcats. WRBB will have live coverage from Matty Wasserman, Amelia Ballingall, and Zach Lyons from the contest on WRBB 104.9 FM. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m.