ERIE, Pa. – Despite a massive lead in shots on goal, the Purple Eagles hockey team could not muster enough offense to knock off the Mercyhurst Lakers. A goal from Mercyhurst’s Jonathan Charbonneau halfway through the third period sent Niagara to a 3-2 loss Friday night at the Mercyhurst Ice Center.
The Purple Eagles finished the game with a 35-18 advantage in shots on goal and led 81-43 in shot attempts, but the effort fell narrowly short.
“This loss is a really tough one to handle,” head coach Dave Burkholder said. “We dominated the shot totals and tilted the ice in our favor most of the night. We give up just 18 shots and lose. We hope our guys stay with the process, because that was a pretty good effort.”
Keegan Harper and Stephen Pietrobon each picked up their second goals of the season for Niagara (3-14-2, 3-9-1 Atlantic Hockey) in the loss. Johnny Curran assisted on Harper’s goal to pick up his first collegiate point as a Purple Eagle. Ryan Kuhn and Sam Rennaker also added assists.
For the second straight game, the Purple Eagles fell behind in the opening minute. Mercyhurst’s Derek Barach snuck into the slot off the bench and ripped a shot off the pipe and past Teichroeb to give the Lakers the lead just 54 seconds in. Niagara found the equalizer with just 25 seconds left in the period. Curran led Niagara on a 3-on-2 rush, and patiently delivered a slick cross-ice pass to Harper for the tying goal.
It took just over five and a half minutes in the second period for Niagara to gain the lead. Sam Rennaker won an offensive zone faceoff towards the net, and Pietrobon’s initial shot was stopped by Carlson. The rebound was there for the taking, and Pietrobon took advantage. Niagara held a commanding 29-15 lead in shots on goal after 40 minutes, but entered the final period tied 2-2 after a long blast from Mercyhurst forward Kyle Dutra.
The Purple Eagles drew three power-play chances in the first 10 minutes of the third, but failed to score on any of them, finishing the night 0-for-7 on the man advantage. Mercyhurst failed to get a shot on goal in the first 10:56 of the third period, but the first shot they got proved to be the game-winning goal. Charbonneau buried a two-on-one pass from Dutra as the Niagara backcheck did not arrive in time. Despite a late flurry in the closing minutes with the goaltender pulled, the Purple Eagles could not find a last-minute goal to even the score.
Saturday night, the Purple Eagles and Lakers conclude the weekend series at Dwyer Arena in Niagara’s first home game of 2016. Tickets are available at the Dwyer Arena ticket office or by phone at (716) 286-TIXX (8499). The game is also being broadcast on 1340 AM WLVL, PurpleEagles.com/Watch, and LCTV.
