POTSDAM, N.Y.—The SUNY Potsdam men’s hockey team (5-1-1, 2-1 SUNYAC) scored three unanswered goals to defeat Plattsburgh State (2-4, 2-3) 3-1 on Saturday night. Senior assistant captain Dylan Vander Esch (San Jose, Calif./Hartford Wolfpack), freshman forward Jacob Juron (Latham, N.Y./South Shore Kings) and sophomore forward Vinny Guimond (Sorel-Tracy, Quebec/Gloucester Rangers) each scored for the Bears and Brendan McMenimen (Merrimack, Mass./Islanders Hockey Club) made 30 saves.
The Cardinals struck first in a tightly contested game. At 7:28, sophomore forward Noah Batis (Martinsville, Ind./New Hampshire Jr. Monarchs) tapped home a pass at the right post for a 1-0 lead. Plattsburgh outshot the Potsdam 10-6 in the first period.
The defenses controlled the play early in the second period until the Bears broke out. At 14:44, senior captain Kyle Thacker (Missisauga, Ontario/North York Rangers) broke up a Cardinals attempt to clear the zone and pushed the puck up the boards to senior forward Joey Gilhooly (Brooklyn, N.Y./New York Bobcats). He then fed Vander Esch in the slot. Vander Esch maneuvered around a Plattsburgh defenseman and ripped the puck past Cardinals freshman goalie Jimmy Poreda (Tonawanda, N.Y./Connecticut Jr. Rangers) to tie the score. Just 1:05 later, Juron received a perfect pass from senior forward Jake Martin (Montreal, Quebec/Concordia) and beat Poreda stick side for the eventual game-winner. Senior assistant captain Sean Kacerosky (Kendall Park, N.J./New York Bobcats) recorded the second assist on the play. McMenimen stayed sharp, stopping all nine shots he faced in the second to preserve the lead.
The Cardinals outshot the Bears 12-6 in the third period, but it didn’t matter. At 4:08, Plattsburgh turned the puck over to junior forward Ben Mariano(Harrisburg, Pa./Hartford Wolfpack) near the blue line and he found Guimond in the slot. Guimond looped the puck over Poreda for a 3-1 advantage. Plattsburgh pulled Poreda with 2:56 left and nearly pulled within one with less than a minute to go as senior defenseman Aryton Valente (Woodbridge, Ontario/Mississauga Chargers) rang the left post with a shot. The Cardinals didn’t get another chance as Potsdam closed out the win.
Poreda finished with 18 saves on the night. Plattsburgh outshot the Bears 31-21, but weren’t given a single power-play opportunity in the contest. Potsdam was 0-for-1 on the man advantage.
The loss was the third in a row for Plattsburgh. The victory was the Bears first over the Cardinals since a 4-2 win on February 15, 2008 in Maxcy Ice Arena, ending a 15-game losing streak.
Potsdam is back in action on Tuesday when the Bears head to Elmira College for a 7 p.m. battle with the Soaring Eagles.
