Box Score

ST. CLOUD, Minn. (12/8/06) – Colgate junior goaltender Mark Dekanich (North Vancouver, B.C.) made 38 saves but was unable to get the win as No. 8/8 St. Cloud State outscored the Raiders 3-1 on Friday, Dec. 8, at the National Hockey Center. With the win, the Huskies (9-3-3) tied their school record, extending their current unbeaten streak to 10 games. Colgate is 7-9-2 on the year.

Colgate sophomore Joe DeBello (Oswego, Ill.) left the game after taking a major hitting from behind penalty 4:02 into the game, putting the Raiders on a five-minute penalty kill early. It became a 5-on-3 power play for the Huskies 1:28 later when junior Ben Camper (Rocky River, Ohio) went off for holding. St. Cloud capitalized on its good fortune by scoring its first goal with two seconds left on Camper’s penalty, at the 7:26 mark. From the left side of the crease, freshman Ryan Lasch passed the puck up to junior Aaron Brocklehurst at the left point. Brocklehurst sent it down to freshman Andreas Nodl on the right side of the goal, and he banged it in off Dekanich’s skate.

The Huskies sustained their pressure on the Raider goal, finishing the opening period with 15 shots to Colgate’s four. St. Cloud hit the pipe four times in the first 20 minutes, but also hit twine twice, getting its second goal at the 15:34 mark. Dekanich made a save on a shot by senior Gary Houseman, but the rebound popped out to sophomore John Swanson on the right side. With two players from each team grappling for position in front of the cage, Swanson slipped the puck through the forest of skates to classmate Dan Kronick on the left side, where he scored backdoor.

The Raiders’ first goal was nearly credited as a shorthanded at the 9:31 mark of the second period. With Colgate on the penalty kill, senior captain Liam Huculak (Lethbridge, Alta.) came over the boards and stormed into the play to force a Husky skater to turn the puck over to senior Alex Greig (Pickering, Ont.). Greig broke Huculak out of the zone, and he streaked down the left side, with junior assistant captain Jesse Winchester (Long Sault, Ont.) trailing on the opposite wing. A Husky defenseman was two steps behind Huculak when he rifled a shot that beat SCSU freshman goalie Jase Weslosky stick-side for his first goal of the year. The assist was Greig’s first point of the season, and the goal came just as freshman Sean Carty (Glen Ellyn, Ill.) stepped out of the box.

Colgate buzzed around St. Cloud’s goal for much of the third period, including putting a half-dozen shots on Weslosky during one shift. However, a late power-play opportunity for the Huskies gave them the chance at a two-goal cushion. Junior Nate Dey passed the puck to senior Justin Fletcher, who banged a shot off the right post. The puck went directly onto the stick of Nodl, who swept it in for his second goal of the game.

Weslosky posted 26 saves in the Husky win as his team outshot Colgate 41-27. St. Cloud finished the game 2-for-4 on the power play, while the Raiders received just two extra-man opportunities.

Colgate and St. Cloud State play the second game of their weekend series on Saturday, Dec. 9, at 8:07 p.m., Eastern time.