Men's hockey loses in sudden-death OT

The Middlebury men’s hockey team ended its season in a heartbreaking overtime loss to the Plattsburgh Cardinals in the NCAA quarterfinals. The match, contested last Saturday evening in Kenyon Arena, marked the fourth time the Panthers have played Plattsburgh in the NCAA quarterfinals and the third time that the Cardinals have advanced to semifinal play. Middlebury came back from a 2-0 deficit to tie the game at 2-2 goals midway through the third period. The ensuing overtime period saw Plattsburgh score a goal off of a shot deflected by Middlebury goalie John Yanchek ’12, ending Middlebury’s postseason. The loss ends a superb season for the Panthers, who won back the NESCAC crown for the first time in three years and finished the year ranked fourth in the country with a record of 19-5-4.

The first period saw fairly even play, with Plattsburgh scoring early on a fluke goal in which a Plattsburgh pass from behind the net bounced off of Yanchek and into the goal, giving the Cardinals a 1-0 lead. Early in the second period, Middlebury saw Plattsburgh come out with a newly intense energy. The Cardinals dominated in the early minutes of the period, but after Middlebury called a timeout and regrouped, the team was able to even out the level of play. Nonetheless, Plattsburgh, outshooting Middlebury 32-to-23 in the contest, tallied another goal at 10:09. Middlebury stepped up later in the period, capitalizing on a 5-on-3 power-play and seeing Ken Suchoski ’11 score his 11th goal of the season on a rebounded Charlie Strauss ’12 shot.

The third period saw the puck in the Middlebury zone for the majority of time; however, the Panthers were able to tie the game on a power-play goal. Jak Knelman ’12 scored his fourth goal of the year on a backhand shot after Charlie Townsend ’12 saw his shot from the left circle deflected into the crease. Neither team scored for the remainder of the period, despite a Middlebury penalty with 3:43 to play in the contest.

Unfortunately for the Panthers, Plattsburgh scored the winning goal very early in the first overtime. The mood was somber in Kenyon Arena as the hometown faithful and the student body watched Plattsburg end Middlebury’s run toward the NCAA Division III hockey championship.

Middlebury’s stellar season wasn’t a product of luck. The hard work and dedication of all team members, led by captains John Sullivan ’10, Charlie Townsend ’10 and Bryan Curran ’11, was integral. Martin Drolet ’12 was a standout player in his sophomore season, leading the team with 36 points. Rookie Mathieu Dubuc ’13 wasn’t far behind, tallying 30 points on the year and a team-leading 16 goals. Yanchek and Max Kennedy ’10 both exhibited impressive performances in goal. The team next year will return many starters and will look to the classes of 2011 and 2012 to fill the shoes of graduating seniors.