CANTON, N.Y. – Sophomore Charlie Finn made 22 saves to record for his fourth shutout of the season and lead No. 17 Colgate to a 2-0 victory over St. Lawrence in ECAC Hockey action Saturday at Appleton Arena.
Finn made a second-period goal from junior Darcy Murphy stand up as he helped the Raiders pick up their fourth straight win and complete a season sweep of the Saints. The North Vancouver, B.C., product made 12 of his 22 stops in the third period to keep the Raiders in front before junior Tyson Spink added an empty net tally with 12 seconds remaining to determine the final outcome.
Freshman Kyle Hayton made 30 stops between the pipes for St. Lawrence.
Bottom Line
No. 17 Colgate 2, St. Lawrence 0
Won-Lost Records
– Colgate improved to 13-6-1 overall and 5-2-1 in ECAC Hockey action as it completed a season sweep of the Saints.
– St. Lawrence slipped to 9-10-2 on the year and 5-4-0 against conference competition.
How It Happened
– After a high-paced but scoreless first period, Murphy staked the Raiders to a 1-0 lead at the 5:38 mark of the second when he fired a snap shot from the right face off circle between the legs of Hayton on a 2-on-2 break for his fifth goal of the season. Freshman Mike Panowyk and junior Ryan Johnston picked up assists on the tally.
– Trailing 1-0 heading into the final period, St. Lawrence pressed for the equalizer, but Finn was up to the challenge, recording 12 saves during the final frame. Among his 12 stops in the third included a pair of point-blank saves on Saint forwards Tommy Thompson and Mike Marnell.
– Tyson Spink closed out the scoring with 12.2 seconds left to play, scoring an empty-net tally for his team-leading 10th goal of the season. Junior Tylor Spink and Kyle Baun picked up assists on the goal.
Inside The Box Score
– Colgate out-shot St. Lawrence, 32-22, during the contest. The Raiders held a 21-10 margin during the first two periods, but the Saints held a slim 12-11 edge in the third.
– There was just a total of two power play opportunities in the contest, both in the third period by St. Lawrence in the third period.
– Murphy led all players with four shot attempts while Thompson paced the Saints with three shot tries.
– St. Lawrence held a slim 22-20 margin in faceoffs in the contest. Senior John Lidgett led the Raiders by going 9-of-18 in the circle.
Key Raider Info
– Murphy picked up his ninth point in 10 career games against St. Lawrence. Seven of those nine points have come in the last three contests versus the Saints (4 G/3 A).
– Tyson Spink became the first Colgate player to score double-digit goals this season. He also extended his point-scoring streak to seven games (4 G/4 A) with the empty-net tally.
– With one point each in the contest, Tyson Spink (10 G/ 8 A) and Baun (8 G, 10 A) remained tied for the team scoring lead as both players now have 18 points this season.
– Tylor Spink recorded a point in his third straight contest. He now has points in four of five games this season (2 G, 2 A).
– Finn allowed one goal or fewer for the fourth straight game and ninth time this season as he moved to a perfect 9-0-0 in such contests.
– Finn’s fourth shutout of the season moved him into an eight-way tie for the national lead in that category. He is also tied for the league lead with Hayton and Quinnipiac’s Michael Garteig.
‘gate One Timers
– Colgate improved to 11-1-0 this season when scoring first.
– Raiders increased its record to 11-1-0 this season and 31-1-5 since the start of 2012-13 when leading after two periods.
– Colgate improved to 7-2-1 in 2014-15 when out-shooting its opponent.
– The Raiders lost the faceoff battle for just the third time this season, but improved to 3-0-0 this season when doing so.
– Colgate improved to 9-0-0 this season when allowing one goal or fewer in a game. The Raiders have held each of their last four opponents to one goal or less.
– Colgate moved to 8-2-1 this season when recording 30 or more shots in a game.
From The Source
Colgate Head Coach Don Vaughan
(on game)
“We came in after the first period and both (assistant coach) Mike (Harder) and myself just had big smiles on our faces. That’s the way the game should be played. It was up and down; very entertaining. The pace was incredible. I thought the officials did another great job tonight. They kept control, but let the kids play. It was just a heck of a game for both teams.”
(On second-period goal by Darcy Murphy)
“Scoring first in a game like this, when it’s so evenly matched and up and down, is a big goal, obviously. We were able to transition from a really good scoring chance they had in our end and just turned around the other way. Darcy (Murphy) has got a great shot. It was a really heavy shot he just put through (Kyle) Hayton. It was a heck of a goal.”
(On Charlie Finn)
“He saw it well tonight. He probably made a few saves that when we look at the tape were a little better than maybe they looked live. I think when he is seeing the puck like that he makes some saves look easy that are not. He’s very calming for us back there. Our guys really rally around him. Very happy that he got the shutout.”
(On weekend sweep)
“It didn’t’ happen very often before last year. It’s tough place to win, North Country. Both teams compete so hard. I really like both teams up here. They have been playing great. Both staffs have done a fantastic job and were just fortunate to get out of here with a couple of wins.”
Sophomore Charlie Finn
(on game)
“It was nice that they let us play. I was happy about that for sure. I think everyone was. The truth is, to win in this league you have to win close games like this because it’s just that tight and it’s that good of a league. There is a lot of parity between each team, so it’s not easy to get wins. Every time we do, we’re very happy.”
(On team’s performance)
“I felt we looked good. I thought we played well start to finish. It wasn’t a game that was littered with chances either way, but we were fortunate enough to capitalize on our chances and fortunate enough to play well on defense.
(On weekend)
“Obviously a huge weekend for us. We returned to ECAC play, so anytime you get two wins in league play its huge for the team, huge for the standings..”
(On third period)
“It’s to be expected when you’re up a goal going into the third you know the other team is going to give you a bit of a push back. The two penalties at the end were tough, but I was really impressed with how we were able to buckle down as a team and grind through those two power plays.”
Up Next
– No. 17 Colgate returns to action Jan. 16 when it faces RPI in a 7 p.m. contest at Houston Field House.
