BURLINGTON, VT – Northeastern came into Friday night’s game against Vermont on the hunt.
Following a dominant win last Saturday over UMass, the Huskies were looking to continue building up momentum in a Hockey East conference that is as competitive top-to-bottom as ever — including a Catamounts squad that had few expectations entering the season, but recently climbing into the top 30 of Pairwise.
In a well-fought battle against UVM, Northeastern came away with a 2-1 victory behind a power-play goal by junior Nick Rheaume in the third period and junior Jack Williams’ overtime heroics.
Struggles within Northeastern’s offense highlighted the first 40 minutes of regulation. They had trouble breaking the puck out of their defensive zone and had difficulties maintaining control in the offensive end, with Vermont’s defense excelling at keeping the Huskies pushed to the perimeter. They weren’t connecting in transition, and their gameplay felt stagnant.
The slow first two periods were highlighted by some thrilling saves made by the Huskies’ sophomore goaltender Cameron Whitehead. As the game progressed, he grew in confidence, making sprawling saves across his crease to keep Northeastern competitive.
“You can tell he’s starting to get some swagger in there for us,” said Northeastern head coach Jerry Keefe. “When he’s on like that, I’ve said it before, he’s one of the top goalies in the country. He gave us a chance to win the game tonight.”
Northeastern’s special teams were the highlight of their evening, especially on the penalty kill. Heading into the game, the Huskies’ penalty kill sat third worst in Hockey East, only successfully killing off 76.2% of four-on-five chances — though the unit had an encouraging weekend against UMass.
Despite Northeastern’s five penalties taken, they were able to hold the Catamounts scoreless on the power play. And in the third period, the Huskies’ own power play had a big moment.
With just under 10 minutes left in the final period of regulation, UVM senior defender Luca Münzenberger was called for a tripping penalty and one minute later, senior forward Cristophe Tellier skated from the goal line to the right circle, sending a puck into the crease to a waiting Rhéaume, who easily tapped the puck past the Catamounts sophomore goaltender Axel Mangbo.
“You need the best players making plays in tight games,” said Keefe. “It was good to see Tellier do that. He’s a really good passer, and to see that play made, that was big time playmaking on the power play. And that’s how Nick Rhéaume is going to score goals.”
It was a breath of life for a Northeastern power play that is currently third worst in the nation in conversion, sitting at a measly 10.3% following Friday’s game.
The Huskies just needed to hang on to steal a road victory from UVM, but the Catamounts came back with late heroics to extend the game. After pulling Mangbo and going up on the six-on-five advantage, freshman forward Connor Kessler ripped a one-timer from the right dot past Whitehead to tie the game at one with just over one minute left in regulation.
The game headed into overtime, with the Huskies dominating possession from the jump. Three minutes into the three-on-three period, Williams picked the puck up at the blue line, skated around the left circle to get himself some space, and fired a shot over the left shoulder of Mangbo, sealing the overtime win for Northeastern.
It was a much needed win for a Huskies team that is searching for some success in conference play, gearing up for a difficult second half of their season.
“To come back and win in overtime, it was just resilient,” said Keefe. “When you’re on the road in Hockey East, they are always hard-fought games. It’s good to be on the right side of those and learning how to win these close games.”
The Huskies return to the Gutterson Fieldhouse Saturday night to close out the weekend series against UVM. Matty Wasserman, Luke Graham, and Daisy Roberts will have game coverage on WRBB Sports+ for puck drop at 6 p.m.