NOTRE DAME, Ind. — The University of Notre Dame hockey team battled back Saturday night to top the Minnesota Golden Gophers, 3-2, behind a late third period goal by Danny Nelson. The Irish scored two unanswered goals to storm back and clinch the victory after trailing the contest, 2-1, halfway through the third.
After the Irish seemed to dominate possession early with a series of shots narrowly missing the net, it was the Gophers who struck first again when a shot from the slot beat Nicholas Kempf glove side in the Irish crease. Despite trailing 1-0 after the Minnesota tally at 6:21 of the first, the Irish continued to pressure the Gophers’ end as Henry Nelson ripped a shot on net from the point just 30 seconds later. However, his shot was denied by Luca Di Pasquo in the Minnesota net to keep it a 1-0 contest.
A collision in the Irish crease left Kempf slow to get up but play continued as the Irish looked to clear the zone without a whistle to stop play. The Gophers regained possession deep in their end but the Irish had managed to give their netminder enough time to regain his position and settle back into the net halfway through the first.
A rebound attempt from Sutter Muzzatti at 14:57, after Jimmy Jurcev’s initial shot rang wide, sent the game to its second media timeout of the night with the Irish still down by one.
The Gophers’ goal was the difference maker through the first 20 minutes of play despite the Irish posting seven shots on goal in the opening frame.
The second period stayed relatively quiet until a delayed penalty on the Irish led to a scrum at the next whistle.
Notre Dame evened the tally at 14:22 of the second period as Sutter Muzzatti and Cole Knuble connected shorthanded to make it a 1-1 game.
The score would hold until a last minute goal by the Gophers gave them the 2-1 edge at 19:09 of the second. The Irish challenged the goal for offsides but after a lengthy review the goal stood and the Irish were trailing by a goal once more.
The Irish penalty kill unit was tasked once more before the end of the second stanza after a cross-checking call went against the home team with 38 seconds remaining.
Entering the third, the Irish saw 1:22 left on the late second period infraction. The Irish allowed just two shots on goal during the remainder of the kill and returned to full strength with 18:38 to play in regulation.
At the 8:23 mark of the third, Notre Dame saw its first powerplay action of the night after a tripping call against the Gophers. The team’s top powerplay unit managed a series of chances in their 99 second shift but Muzzatti’s shot with 21 seconds left froze the puck and the second unit came onto the ice.
Cole Brown net the equalizer just 14 seconds later to draw the teams even at 2-2 with 9:43 to play in regulation and the score would hold as time wound down on the period and a second-straight overtime session with the Gophers loomed.
At the 19:09 mark, captain Danny Nelson’s dump towards the net found the back of the net as Brennan Ali provided a screen on the Minnesota netminder for the go-ahead tally with. The Gophers challenged the play for a potential offsides but the goal was upheld and Minnesota opted to pull their netminder with 51 seconds left to play.
In the waning seconds, and with an extra Gopher attacker on the ice, the Irish jumped in front of four shots deep in their zone to keep Kempf untested in the crease as they hung on for the 3-2 victory.
GOALS
- Sutter Muzzatti and Cole Knuble connected on a shorthanded tally Saturday night to get the Irish on the board partway through the second period. Jaedon Kerr picked off a Minnesota skater and fed a pass up to Muzzatti who created a one-on-one chance the opposite way up the ice. With the defender on his tail, Muzzatti centered a pass to Knuble who buried his shot in the slot to even the contest at 14:22 of the second stanza.
- The lone Irish powerplay opportunity of the night came at 8:23 of the third period after a tripping call against the Gophers. After the first special teams unit peppered the Gophers net in shots during their 99 second shift, the second unit hopped the boards for the next faceoff with 21 seconds left on the man-advantage. Cole Brown buried a one-timer from the far circle to knot things up with 9:44 to play in regulation.
- In the final minute of regulation, Danny Nelson sent a puck towards the Gophers’ net where Brennan Ali stood as a screen on the goaltender. The puck trickled past the right skate of Luca Di Pasquo in the crease for the 3-2 tally at 19:09 of the frame.
KEY STATS
- Nicholas Kempf stopped 23 shots in the contest, including seven in the final frame to record the win Saturday night.
- The Irish were perfect on the special teams in the win, with Cole Brown netting the lone powerplay goal in the contest, on the team’s one opportunity on the man-advantage, while posting two kills on the night. Additionally, the Irish net a shorthanded goal off the stick of Cole Knuble to get Notre Dame on the board Saturday.
- The Irish registered 14 blocked shots in the contest en route to the win, including four in the final 26 seconds with the Gophers opting for the extra attacker.
UP NEXT
The Irish will have a shortened week as they travel to East Lansing, Michigan for a pair of tilts against the top-ranked Spartans of Michigan State, Feb. 19-20. Both games at MSU are set to be aired on Big Ten Network with a 7:30pm puck drop Thursday before a 6pm start on Friday to close out the series.