Box Score

STORRS, Conn. (12/30/06) – The fourth time was the charm for the Colgate men’s hockey team as the Raiders (9-10-2) defeated Connecticut 3-1 to win the Toyota UConn Classic on Saturday, Dec. 30, at the Freitas Ice Forum. Colgate junior goaltender Mark Dekanich (North Vancouver, B.C.) made 62 saves on the weekend to earn the title of tournament MVP.

The tournament was the Raiders’ fourth of the season, and the victory gave Colgate its first tournament title since it won the now-defunct Syracuse Invitational Tournament in 1999.

Joining Dekanich on the all-tournament team were sophomore defensemen Jason Fredricks (Eagle River, Wis.), who had three assists on the weekend, and Nick St. Pierre (St. Etienne, Que.), who had three goals, as well as junior forward Tyler Burton (Langley, B.C.), who posted two goals and an assist in Colgate’s semifinal win against Northeastern.

UConn opened the scoring with a goal 4:31 into the first period. The Huskies passed the puck around low in the zone, with senior Matt Scherer giving it to Trevor Stewart. Stewart shot on net, and Dekanich went down to make the save. While he was still down, UConn senior Scott McDougall picked up the loose puck and chipped it into the top left corner.

St. Pierre knotted the score at one-all with his third goal of the weekend 30 seconds into the second period. With the Raiders skating on a 5-on-3 power play, senior Marc Fulton (Vancouver, B.C.) wheeled around with the puck in the left circle, then passed it across to Fredricks. Fredricks spotted St. Pierre in the high slot, and St. Pierre sniped a shot past Connecticut freshman goaltender Beau Erickson.

The go-ahead goal for Colgate came at the 7:43 mark of the second period. Freshman Ethan Cox (Richmond, B.C.) gained the puck along the far boards and gave it to sophomore Tom Riley (Ottawa, Ont.), who carried it into the zone. Riley crossed the puck to senior captain Liam Huculak (Lethbridge, Alta.), who controlled it on his backhand, switched to his forehand, and knocked it in for his second goal during the month of December. The assist was Cox’s first collegiate point.

Riley scored a goal of his own with 3:34 left in the middle session. He picked up the puck in the neutral zone, skated over the blue line and went diagonally from the left point to the right circle before beating Erickson high. Fredricks and senior Mike Campaner (Thunder Bay, Ont.) assisted on the play.

Dekanich finished the game with 27 saves, including stopping all 17 shots he faced over the final two periods. Erickson, in just his fifth game of the year, made 33 saves for the Huskies.

 

Connecticut’s Scherer as well as Northeastern forward Ryan Ginand also earned spots on the all-tournament team. In the classic’s consolation game, Northeastern rallied from a 2-1 third-period deficit to defeat Holy Cross 7-2.

The Raiders return to Starr Rink to ring in 2007 with a non-conference game against Niagara on Friday, Jan. 5 at 7:00 p.m. In addition to reserved and general-admission tickets, the Colgate box office is offering Raider Family Packs for the game. Interested fans should call (315) 228-7900 to order before the day of the game.