HAMILTON — A late goal by Northern Michigan gave the Wildcats a 3-2 win over Colgate on Friday at the Class of 1965 Arena.
Pierson Brandon and
Matt Verboon each scored for the Raiders, while
Alex Young tallied an assist on both goals.
The Wildcats sealed the deal with 15 seconds remaining after AJ Vanderbeck scored his second of the game on a power play to put Northern Michigan ahead 3-2. NMU scored earlier in the period to tie the game up. Artem Shlaine found the back of the net off passes from Michael Colella and Joey Larson to knot it up at 2-2
Verboon put the Raiders ahead just two and a half minutes into the final period.
Nick Anderson played a pass to
Alex Young in the left faceoff circle, who played the puck across the ice to Verboon for a one-time shot he put past the Wildcats' goalie.
The Raiders picked up two penalty kills in the third behind some big stops from goalie
Carter Gylander. The junior recorded 27 saves in the game.
Brandon scored at the 10:50 mark of the second period to tie the game up at 1-1.
Alex Young played a short pass to his brother
Colton Young who played the puck ahead to Brandon. The junior captain skated down the right side of the ice and slotted a shot into the goal.
Colgate also had another power play opportunity in the second, but it could not capitalize. The Raiders dominated the middle period, outshooting NMU 17-6.
In the first, the Raiders had two man-up opportunities that they could not take advantage of. Colgate also went on the penalty kill for the first time in the opening period and held strong as the Raiders successfully killed it off.
The Wildcats opened the scoring with three minutes remaining in the first on a shorthanded goal. Vanderbeck stole the puck from a Raiders player, skated up the ice, and fired a shot past Gylander to put NMU up 1-0.
Colgate finished with the advantage in shots at 33-30. The Raiders also won the battle in the faceoff circle going 34-30.
FROM THE SOURCE
Head Coach Don Vaughan
"It was a hard-fought game tonight. I felt the teams were evenly matched and our guys competed hard. Both goalies played extremely well and Northern got the break with the late penalty call and found some puck luck for the game-winner. It's early and we need to tighten some things up, especially in our own end. There was a lot of good from our guys tonight. We have a chance tomorrow to grow as a group and be better. It's a process and a long season and we're all about getting better every day."
UP NEXT
The Raiders are back it Saturday as they face off against the Wildcats again at 4 p.m. at the Class of 1965 Arena.
