Quinnipiac men’s ice hockey dropped a tough 2-1 exhibition game against Providence College Sunday afternoon, struggling immensely to maintain consistent offensive fire power for a full 60 minutes.
At the beginning of the game, neither team sustained significant possession in the offensive zone, with both Providence and Quinnipiac relying heavily on transition plays to facilitate puck movement.
The Bobcat’s first goal would come as such, when a clearance by freshman forward Ethan Wyttenbach skittered between the legs of Providence freshman defenseman Alex Rybakov. Freshman Ben Riche quickly scooped up the loose puck before the Providence defense. Although slightly fumbling the puck, Riche still tucked the puck five-hole on senior goaltender Phillip Svedebäck, giving the Bobcats its only lead of the game.
The quick scoring on the Quinnipiac side wouldn’t deject the Friars. The Providence offense would settle down quickly, maintaining possession and mounting pressure with two straight powerplays.
Although Quinnipiac would successfully kill them off, the momentum had already swung in Providence’s favor.
That momentum swing would culminate in junior forward Clint Levens winning a puck battle at the corner boards, finding Friar’s sophomore forward Aleksi Kivioja behind two Bobcat defenders.
Initially, Providence dominated offensively. Later in the first, Providence would nearly score again, ringing its first of three shots off the post. After intermission, two tough penalties on Quinnipiac would give Providence the opportunity to score on special teams.
The second infraction, an errant tripping call on senior forward Alex Power, would be the difference maker. A mere 10 seconds into the man-advantage, sophomore forward Logan Sawyer would fire a shot through net-traffic, beating junior goaltender Matej Marinov on the blocker side. Sawyer, a draft pick of the Montreal Canadiens, would be the difference maker, with this power play goal becoming the game-winner.
In the third, Quinnipiac’s offense finally began to revitalize after its lackluster middle period. Strong performances by both goaltenders would placate both offenses for the majority of the final frame. The Bobcats would pepper Providence College’s only senior with shots, doubling Providence’s five shot tally.
Ultimately, Svedebäck’s 0.967 save percentage against the Bobcat attack would prove all that the Friars needed, even as the quality of Bobcat shots returned to its first period form.
As the clock ticked down, urgency mounted regardless of the continued execution struggles. The Bobcat powerplay was especially indicative of the mounting frustration.
In the final period, Quinnipiac would be given three straight opportunities to score a man up. The final chance, coming with just about five minutes remaining, was accompanied by head coach Rand Pecknold pulling Marinov for an extra skater.
Even with the two-man advantage and nearly continuous possession for the final moments of the contest, Quinnipiac’s offensive efforts weren’t enough. Despite nine shots, Quinnipiac’s failure to execute on any of its five power play chances would be the difference maker, making the second straight matchup where they failed to convert on special teams.
Quinnipiac will travel to Tempe, A.Z. to participate in the Ice Breaker Tournament Oct.10 through Oct.11. Its first matchup is against the University of Alaska-Fairbanks Nanooks on Oct. 10. Puck drop is set for 5 p.m.
