Wildcats Battle No. 1 Cornell In Weekend Series
This story was written by NMU Sports Information
ITHACA, N.Y. — Top-ranked Cornell (13-1-3, 8-1-1 ECAC) snapped the No. 17 Northern Michigan University Wildcats' (13-8-3, 11-5-0-0 WCHA) undefeated streak with a 3-1 decision on Saturday night at Lynah Rink. Junior Adam Roeder tallied the lone goal for the Wildcats in the loss.
The Big Red were the first to get on the board, tallying their first of the game with a quick deflection just 64 seconds into play. Roeder tied the game at one a piece later in the first while the Wildcats went on a 12-0 shots on goal run and ended the period with the 17-8 advantage on net.
The second period was virtually the opposite, with Cornell posting 17 shots while allowing just six for the 25-23 edge after two and the 2-1 lead.
The Wildcats peppered the Big Red netminder in the third but were unable to break Galajda for the 3-1 final.
Nolan Kent came up with 26 total saves on the night, including 16 in a demanding second period.
Freshman Michael Van Unen skated the puck into the Cornell zone where he faked out Cornell netminder, allowing Adam Roeder to secure the puck and fire it home from the top of the slot to knot the game at 1-1 with 5:34 remaining in the first period.
The Wildcats held the slight advantage in shots on net, 30-29 while Nolan Kent picked up 26 saves in the loss.
Kent's record moves to 9-3-1 in 2019-20 and holds a .916 save percentage. His .731 win percentage now ranks sixth among all goaltenders in 2019-20 and second in the WCHA.
The Wildcats were perfect on the penalty kill Saturday night and allowed just one power play tally on nine kills over the two game series with Cornell.
With 17 total blocked shots for the Wildcats, freshman Tanner Vescio led the team with four solo blocks while Rylan Yaremko and Ben Newhouse both jumped in front of three.
Two Wildcats posted five shots on goal with Joseph Nardi and Philip Beaulieu leading the way in the category. In overall shot attempts, AJ Vanderbeck recorded a team-high eight, including three on net.
Their 3.33 goals per game puts the Wildcats among the top-10 offenses in the nation (10th).
The Wildcats head to the opposite side of the country as they fly to Fairbanks, Alaska for their regular season finale with the Nanooks, January 24-25. Puck drop on Friday night will be at 11:07 p.m. ET before a 9:07 start the following night.
Earlier this season the two teams split a weekend series in Marquette with the Wildcats taking the first game before dropping a close one Saturday night to Alaska.
FRIDAY GAME RECAP
ITHACA, N.Y.---The No. 17 Northern Michigan University hockey program (13-7-3, 11-5-0-0) skated to a 2-2 tie with top-ranked Cornell (12-1-3, 8-1-1 ECAC) Friday night at Lynah Rink.
The Wildcats opened the scoring at 12:20 of the first period when Ben Newhouse found the back of the net with a quick shot from the top of the circle, beating Big Red goaltender Galajda for the 1-0 tally. Cornell would answer a few minutes later as the two teams headed to the first intermission knotted at one.
Vincent de Mey put the Wildcats back on top late in the second period with his fourth goal in the past two games but the Big Red would find the back of the net once more in the third stanza to force extra hockey.
Cornell led in shots on goal Friday night, posting 33 to NMU's 26 while Nolan Kent stood tall in net to record 31 saves and improve his season record to 9-2-1.
Ben Newhouse tallied his third goal of the season when he picked up Brandon Schultz's pass through the offensive zone and fired one home from the top of the far circle. The assist was Schutz's first career point while Andre Ghantous was also credited with a helper for his seventh of the year.
Vincent de Mey cut to the middle at 17:09 in the second period, firing the puck short-side to give the Wildcats the 2-1 lead. Garrett Klee and Ty Readman both picked up assists on the play, to extend their point streaks to four and two games, respectively.
The goal was de Mey's fourth in his last two games and he now rides a four-game point streak (4-2-6).
The No. 17 Wildcats improve their undefeated streak to six games, owning a 5-0-1 record since their final game of 2019 and have gone 3-0-1 against ranked teams during that stretch.
Heading into Saturday night, the team is 1-1-1 against top-ranked opponents, having previously split with then-No. 1 Minnesota State to end the first half of the season.
With 13 goals on the season, Vincent de Mey ranks 19th overall in goals per game (0.57).
Joseph Nardi (four) and Ben Newhouse (three) combined for seven blocked shots on the night to help the Wildcats earn the 2-2 tie at Cornell.
With five shots on goal, and six attempted shots, de Mey led his team in both categories.
Nolan Kent backstopped the Wildcats to 31 saves on the night, improving his season save percentage to .918 and a 9-2-1 record. In his last eight starts he owns a 6-0-1 record.
With a 9-2-1 record, Kent's win percentage of .792 falls fourth among all goaltenders in 2019-20.
Averaging 3.43 goals per game, the Wildcat offense is 10th in the nation in scoring while their 0.65 scoring margin is 15th.
Ty Readman's +2 on-ice rating led all NMU skaters.
Owning a 5-0-1 record in their last six games, the Wildcats' six game unbeaten streak ranks second longest in the nation.
The two teams close out their series tomorrow night with puck drop set for 7:07 p.m. at Lynah Rink. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
Following their trip out east, the Wildcats head to the last frontier as they make their lone trek to Alaska this season with their regular series finale in Fairbanks against the Nanooks.
