NIAGARA UNIV., N.Y. – After watching two 2-0 leads slip away last weekend at Holy Cross, the Niagara ice hockey team made sure not to surrender such an advantage a third time. Derian Plouffe scored the first hat trick of the season by a Niagara skater, and the Purple Eagles never trailed in their 6-4 win over the Bentley Falcons Friday night at Dwyer Arena.
Plouffe opened the scoring with two goals in the final 1:29 of the first period, and he finished the night with three goals and one assist. It was the first hat trick for a Niagara player since Nov. 15, 2013, and it was the second four-point performance from a Niagara skater this season after Nick Farmer’s four-assist game against AIC on Nov. 20.
Dan Kolenda (1+1), Sam Rennaker (1+1), Vinny Muto (0+2), and Stanislav Dzakhov (0+2) also added multiple points in the win, and TJ Sarcona capped the game with an empty-net goal. Joe O’Brien chipped in 20 saves in net for Niagara’s second victory of the season.
“It’s big for the locker room,” head coach Dave Burkholder said of the victory. “Going back to last Saturday night, we played an almost-perfect game and then lost in overtime. As hard as these guys have worked, it’s starting to come together, but they needed something to feel positive about and they should feel good going home tonight.”
Niagara struck first at the 18:34 mark of the first thanks to a hard forecheck from Dzakhov to keep a puck in at the Bentley blue line. The puck squirted free to Plouffe, who broke in on net and fired a wrist shot to the top corner. Plouffe doubled his scoring total on a power play with three seconds left in the opening period. Luke Edwards and Kolenda won a battle low in the Bentley corner, and Plouffe again sent a wrist shot over Bentley goaltender Gabe Antoni.
Derek Bacon got Bentley on the board six minutes into the second period, but after the conclusion of a Niagara power play, Kolenda returned the two-goal lead to Niagara. Three minutes into the third period, Plouffe then completed his hat trick with a strong tip of a pass from Muto that beat Antoni on the blocker side, giving Niagara a commanding 4-1 lead.
“It’s good for [Plouffe] to bust out,” Burkholder said. “He’s pretty gifted offensively, and he’s always around the net. It’s a big night, and he’s been on the verge so it’s good for him to bust out for us.”
Bentley came back throughout the third period, as their top forward line of Andrew Gladiuk, Max French, and Kyle Schmidt combined for three goals in the last 20 minutes. French tallied just 29 seconds after Plouffe’s third goal of the night, and then added a second consecutive one five minutes later to pull Bentley within one. Rennaker picked up his third goal of the season, as he fired a low shot towards the net and the puck banked off a body in front and into the Bentley goal for the eventual game-winner.
With 5:26 left to play, Schmidt capitalized off a Niagara turnover at their blue line to pull back within one, but with the Bentley goal empty in favor of the extra attacker, Sarcona wound up for a shot at the Niagara blue line and lofted the puck all the way in for Niagara’s season-high sixth and final goal.
The Purple Eagles and Falcons square off once again Saturday night, as the weekend series returns to Dwyer Arena at 7:05 p.m. Tickets are available at the Dwyer Arena ticket office or by phone at (716) 286-TIXX (8499).
Stay connected with the Purple Eagles through social media. Follow Niagara Athletics on Twitter @NUPurpleEagles and follow Purple Eagles hockey on Twitter @NiagaraUHockey. Check in with the Purple Eagles on Facebook.com/PurpleEagles and on Instagram @NUPurpleEagles.
