SOUTH BEND, Ind. — The University of Notre Dame hockey team got back in the win column with another convincing 4-1 Friday night victory, this time at home over Long Island University. The Irish and Sharks faced off in just their second-ever tilt Friday evening inside Compton Family Ice Arena with Cole Knuble’s four-point night lifting the Irish to the win.
Brennan Ali had a breakaway chance less than 90 seconds into play but his shot dragged a bit too long and was sent wide by the Sharks’ netminder. Zach Plucinski picked up the rebound attempt from atop the far circle but rang his shot off the pipe as the game remained scoreless early.
The Irish were called for the game’s first infraction, an interference call deep in the defensive zone. Notre Dame successfully killed off the call and returned to full strength in a 0-0 tie.
LIU dumped the puck from deep in their zone and a race to the puck resulted in another interference call against the Irish. Once again, Notre Dame was successful on the kill and returned to five-on-five hockey with the game scoreless.
Axel Kumlin gave the Irish the 1-0 lead in the final minute of the opening period after he fired a shot top shelf for his first in an Irish sweater.
The two teams came out firing in the second period but it was the Irish whistled with the first penalty of the frame, their third interference call against of the night. Again, the Irish were successful on the kill and allowed LIU just two shots on goal during the man-advantage.
Cole Knuble extended the Irish lead with his team-best fifth goal of the season at 6:57 of the second period.
The Sharks were called for their first penalty of the game, holding the stick, at 11:37 of the second stanza and the Irish powerplay unit saw its first opportunity of the night.
LIU killed off their first penalty of the night but were called moments after the kill for roughing and the Irish powerplay unit got right back on the ice. This time they took advantage of the man-up opportunity with Danny Nelson burying his third goal of the season to make it 3-0 Irish. The Sharks challenged the call on the ice but a brief review determined the goal stood, with assists to Knuble and Blake Biondi.
Less than a minute after the team’s third goal of the night, a tussle at the blue line sent an Irish defender to the box for a five-minute major. The Irish killed off the remaining minutes of action in the second to carry the 3-0 lead into the locker room for the second intermission.
With 1:46 left on the kill to start the third period, LIU capitalized just 31 seconds into the frame with a baseball swing behind the net that trickled into the net. The Irish managed to kill off the rest of the major infraction to keep the lead at two goals early in the final period.
Ian Murphy scored his first official goal with the Irish halfway through the final period of regulation to cap off the 4-1 victory for the Irish.
Notre Dame improved to 4-1-0 on the season while Owen Say registered his third consecutive 1.00 goal-against night to improve to 3-0 between the pipes. Stopping 38 of 39 shots faced in the contest, the junior netminder tallied his most saves in the crease with the Irish Friday night and improved his save percentage over three games played to .969.
GOALS
- Junior defenseman Axel Kumlin lit the lamp for the first time in an Irish sweater Friday night. His shot from atop the near circle sailed over the glove of Daniel Duris in the LIU net to give the Irish the opening goal. Michael Mastrodomenico and Cole Knuble each tallied assists on the play.
- Ian Murphy picked up a loose puck in the neutral zone and skated it into the zone where he found Knuble tagging back onside. The sophomore center then grabbed the puck in the offensive zone and backhanded a shot through the five-hole of the LIU goalie.
- Danny Nelson beat the LIU’s netminder Noah Rupprecht to the loose puck in the crease to make it a 3-0 Irish lead. The powerplay goal was assisted by Blake Biondi and Cole Knuble.
- Graduate forward Ian Murphy wrapped up the scoring with a wrister fired top shelf to make it a 4-1 content just over halfway through the third. His line mates Justin Janicke and Knuble were each credited with assists.
KEY STATS
- With a career-best four points Friday night of a goal and three assists, Cole Knuble is the first Irish skater to hit double digit points this season. His five goals and five assists in five games played is a team best across the board.
- The three assists for the sophomore center is also a career-best.
- Two Irish skaters net their first goals in a Notre Dame sweater Friday evening as Axel Kumlin opened the scoring at 19:30 of the first period before Ian Murphy closed out the scoring halfway through the third to give the Irish the 4-1 win.
- Owen Say stopped 38 saves Friday night against the Sharks, allowing just one goal against for a .974 save percentage.
- Graduate blueliner Zach Plucinski blocked a team high five shots in the contest, contributing to the team’s 18 blocked shots on the evening.
- With six shots on goal Friday night, Danny Nelson led the team in the category, capitalizing once on the powerplay for his third goal of the season.
- The Irish top line of Knuble, Janicke and Murphy led the team with a plus-three on-ice-rating.
- Notre Dame’s top-two line centers combined to go 30-12 from the faceoff dot Friday, including 18 draw wins from D. Nelson to give the Irish the edge in the circle. While shorthanded, the Irish won six faceoff draws to maintain possession.
UP NEXT
The Irish and Sharks close out the regular season series Saturday night with a 6:05pm puck drop. Fans are encouraged to arrive early and take part in the team’s annual Hocktoberfest celebration from 4-6pm on the front lawn outside Compton Family Ice Arena.