Rams take down Oswego State twice
The University of Rhode Island Men’s Ice Hockey team opened up their season against Oswego State in a two-game series at home.
While they came away with the sweep, the two games were only a starting point for the Rams this season.
According to Rhody freshman Tim Crane, the team thought the weekend was a good start, but that it left room to grow.
“Felt pretty good, I mean obviously getting two wins is a great thing,” Crane said. “Great start to the year, but we just gotta clean some things up defensively, but other than that it was good to get two wins.”
Game 1 of the series and of the season kicked off on a quiet note until junior Matt Tetreault broke through and scored off of a rebound for the Rams midway through the first period, giving them the 1-0 lead.
Throughout the second period both teams would send their penalty kill squads out; however, no one was able to take advantage of these opportunities.
What looked like a scoreless period soon changed when junior James Belleavoine scored on a tightly defended shot from the right side of the offensive zone midway through the period, extending the Rams’ lead to 2-0 heading into the third.
Early into the third period, senior Dylan Weichselbaumer lit the lamp for the Rams’ third goal of the night, as they took a commanding 3-0 lead. Junior goaltender Curtis Briggs stood tall whenever there was a breakdown on defense, saving all 28 shots he faced, securing the opening night shutout in the win.
Game 2 involved more offensive scoring in a dominant win where seven different Rams scored. Ethan Cordeiro got things started for the Rams, scoring within the first two minutes of the game, followed by Belleavoine less than a minute later, making the game 2-0 after the first.
The second period started off with Kevin Kanaczet scoring on an Oswego tripping penalty. The Lakers fought back, bringing the game to 3-2 after Jonathon Murphy and Brennan Mccarthy scored in the first half of the second period.
A Lakers interference penalty presented URI with another powerplay opportunity, and they cashed in on it when senior Luke Judge got the puck past Oswego’s goaltender.
Dennis Engelson tacked on another goal for the Rams before the end of the second, bringing the lead to 5-3.
URI continued the onslaught as Jackson Shelvin and Kanaczet red five minutes into the third period. Kanaczet got his second goal of the night merely a minute later. Dylan Weichselbaumer got the final goal of the night and his fourth point of the series on two goals and two assists.
Sophomore goaltender Callum Burgess secured the win for the Rams, saving 25 of 28 shots in an 8-3 win.
While the team was happy about the wins, they’re already focused on their next series and improving further to build on the win.
“It’s always nice to start at home, wins are obviously a big importance, definitely wanna start the season off on the right note, that’s one way to start it off,” Weichselbaumer said. “Just moving forward we gotta work on things and progress.”
The team travels to the University of Pittsburgh in a two game series against the Panthers on Friday and Saturday. Coach Joe Augustine knows the team has lots of things to clean up, but thinks they have a chance to perform well.
“They’re really, really good,” Augustine said. “Been in the nationals the past few years, everybody can score and lots of good offensive players. It’ll be an early test, a really early test, so we’ll see.”