MIDDLEBURY, Vt. – The Plattsburgh State men’s ice hockey team notched its signature win of the season to open up the 20th annual PrimeLink Great Northern ShootOut, topping defending NCAA Division III national champion and nationally-ranked No. 6/7 Norwich University 4-1 on Friday afternoon at Middlebury College’s Chip Kenyon ’85 Arena.
Norwich is ranked at No. 6 in the D3hockey.com Men’s Top-15 Poll and No. 7 in the USCHO.com Men’s Division III Top-15 Poll.
Junior forward Cam Owens (Wilmington, Mass./Islanders Hockey Club) was a key factor in the victory for Plattsburgh State, scoring a goal and adding two assists. Sophomore forward Joe Drabin (Rochester, N.Y./Wenatchee Wild) doled out a pair of assists as well.
The Cardinals rise to 3-4-0 overall with the win and play the winner of the 7 p.m. contest between host Middlebury and Lawrence University tomorrow in the championship game at 7 p.m. The Cadets fall to 4-3-1 overall with the loss and will play the loser of the Middlebury-Lawrence game tomorrow at 3 p.m. in the consolation game.
Senior forward Payton Baldillez put Norwich on the board just 2:36 into the contest, as he received a pass that sophomore forward Taeron Lewis sent from behind the net and went top shelf with the shot.
Plattsburgh State leveled the score with 1:48 left in the second period, as senior defenseman Ayrton Valente (Woodbridge, Ontario/Mississauga Chargers) scored his first goal of the season shorthanded. Owens picked up a loose puck along the boards in the Cardinals’ defensive zone and skated down the left wing on an odd-man rush. Owens sent a centering pass over to Valente, who beat the Norwich goaltender glove side.
The Cardinals took a 2-1 advantage 3:07 into the third period, as Owens found twine for his first goal of the season. Drabin forced a turnover in Plattsburgh State’s defensive zone after Norwich killed off a penalty, and he brought the puck down along the left boards. He sent a short pass to junior forward Ross Sloan (Oakville, Ontario/Oakville Blades), and Sloan slid the puck to Owens in the high slot. Owens then ripped a shot that beat the Cadet goalie glove side once again.
Junior forward Pat Egan (Rochester, N.Y./Lone Star Brahmas) staked Plattsburgh State to a 3-1 cushion with 9:48 gone in the third period. Drabin played a loose puck to junior forward Cole Stallard (Atlanta, Ga./New Hampshire Jr. Monarchs) inside the right face-off circle, and Stallard sent a pass across the slot to Egan, who ripped a wrist shot into the net glove side.
Finally, Plattsburgh State put the game on ice with an empty-net goal scored by sophomore forward Antoine Desnoyers (Quebec City, Quebec/Cégep de Saint-Laurent) with 53.3 seconds left in regulation. Despite colliding with a Norwich student-athlete, Owens sent a feed to Desnoyers. Desnoyers skated up to the blue line and fired the puck into the unmanned net to seal the game’s fate.
The Cardinals finished with a 27-24 edge in shots and went 42-for-64 on face-offs. Both teams were unable to convert on the power play, with Plattsburgh State going 0-for-5 and Norwich going 0-for-3.
Freshman goaltender Lawson Fenton (Medina, N.Y./Coquitlam Express) stood tall in the win, making 23 stops to rise to 2-1-0 for the season. Fenton made several acrobatic saves in the third period to keep Plattsburgh State ahead. Senior goaltender Braeden Ostepchuk turned aside 23 shots in the loss for Norwich.
