HAMDEN — In a Friday night ECAC matchup, Quinnipiac put on a show of steller hockey against RPI, defeating the Engineers 3-1.
While it was no blowout of a game, the Bobcats displayed everything they lacked against Cornell at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 30. Let’s break it down.
Play the full 60 minutes
Playing 60 minutes of hockey has been a struggle for the Bobcats in their last couple of matchups, with plays getting lazy or inconsistent across the board, hurting their chances of making a comeback or holding a lead.
However, from the opening puck drop, it was clear the Bobcats wanted this win. The Bobcats were all over the Engineers, not giving them any time or space.
“I thought we were pretty good, guys were locked in,” head coach Rand Pecknold said. “We struggled in the first with some of our details, got better in the second and found a way to win a game.”
Quinnipiac’s ability to lock in for a whole game on home ice goes a long way. This season, the Bobcats have lost four of five matchups in Hamden, a complete 180 from last season when they only lost three games on home ice, all in overtime.
Stand strong on penalty kills
Penalties are always costly no matter how much of a lead a team has. Whether a team is up by one, two or three goals, penalties can take a team’s momentum and crush it.
Remaining on par with its average penalties, Quinnipiac only took three against RPI. And while penalties are known to slow down a team’s momentum, the Bobcats were not halted by their mistakes.
The Bobcats used their coordination and hockey sense to shut down RPI from gaining any momentum. The Bobcats played some of their best penalty kill hockey of their season so far.
“Penalty kill was great tonight,” Pecknold said. “We were jumping pucks, rotations were good, we were killing plays.”
Quinnipiac played intelligent and strong on its end of the ice during the penalty kill, so much so that it had the chance to generate opportunities into RPI’s zone.
Senior forward Jack Ricketts capitalized on RPI’s messy power play, using open ice in the neutral zone to create a breakaway, sending the puck over the right shoulder of RPI graduate student goaltender Noah Giesbercht.
Use the points and stack
Using the points as a defenseman is game-changing for a team.
When forwards utilize their points, they create space below and inside the dots, as the opposing players shift up and toward that point with the puck.
This simple, yet strategic play is key to winning games. Passing to the points allows forwards to stack in front of the opponents’ goaltender, screening his view of the puck. This allows for defensemen to fire shots in that area of the ice, not always looking for the goal but rather a rebound in front.
Against RPI, Quinnipiac fired 30 of its attempted 57 shots from above the circles. While goals were not always a result of this play, it got the puck moving for Quinnipiac and opportunities being created. This gave the Bobcats the momentum they needed going into the second and third periods to put goals home.
Play smart hockey
While it is easier said than done, playing smart hockey is the core of having good hockey sense. Smart hockey comes in various ways such as smart passes, communication, clean breakouts and more.
The Bobcats were able to capitalize on smart hockey, giving them the advantage over RPI. Not every smart hockey play is a guaranteed goal but it brought the Bobcats closer to opportunities, like sophomore forward Andon Cerbone’s goal.
“We were running a set breakout, Marcellus did a good job bringing the puck with speed and it was a nice pass to Pennington to get it going,” Cerbone said. “He saw me drive to the net and ripped it at me, it just happened to bounce right in front with an open net to tap it in.”
Every aspect of creating Cerbone’s goal is the perfect definition of smart hockey. From the breakout to skating with speed to the timing of the pass right on Cerbone’s stick, it demonstrates how smart hockey builds on plays, creating opportunities.
Silverstein saves
On the back end, freshman goaltender Dylan Silverstein has played like a brick wall for the Bobcats.
Despite only being a freshman, Silverstein has a .921 save percentage, as well as a GAV of 1.92. He has played nine games for the Bobcats this season with a record of 5-4-1.
The Calabasas, California native has become the starting goaltender for Quinnipiac and will continue to be a key aspect for his teammates for the remainder of the season.
“It’s huge to have a big-time goalie behind you,” Cerbone said. “You play with more confidence on the offensive side of things.”
Quinnipiac stands third in the ECAC as of Friday, taking on Union Dec. 7 in Hamden at 4 p.m.
