SAINT PETER, Minn. – The Gustavus men’s hockey team is set to host St. Thomas at 7 p.m. Thursday for a MIAC matchup. Tonight’s game is the final meeting between the Gusties and Tommies at Don Roberts Ice Rink as the Tommies are making the jump to Division I next season. The Gusties are searching for their first win of the season, entering the game 0-3 overall and 0-1 in the MIAC, while the Tommies are 1-0 overall.
THE SERIES: Tonight’s game marks the 147th meeting between Gustavus and St. Thomas on the ice with the Tommies leading the all-time series 73-63-10. The Tommies ended the Gusties’ season last year with a 3-2 win in the MIAC quarterfinals. Brendan Payne and Masson Etter scored the two Gustie goals, while Robbie Goor made 26 saves in a complete game loss.
LAST TIME OUT: The Gusties led Saint Mary’s for most of Tuesday night’s home opener, but the Cardinals were able to tie the score late in the third period and netted the game-winner in overtime for a 5-4 decision.
Toby Sengvongxay (Sr., Luverne) got the scoring started 3:42 into the game with a power play goal, assisted by Stanislav Danaev (Fy., Moscow, Russia). Four minutes later, Connor Clemons (Jr., Savage) tallied his first goal of the season with a close one-timer from Caleb Anderson (Sr., Sioux Falls, S.D.) and the Gusties held a 2-0 lead at the first intermission.
Saint Mary’s was able to end the shutout 3:16 into the second period, but three minutes later Dylan Gast (Jr., Dellwood) was able to regain a two-goal lead for the Gusties with his first score of the season, assisted by Brendan Elliott (Jr., Marquette, Mich.) and Dan Sandvig (Jr., Savage). At the 14:14 mark of the middle frame, the Cardinals brought the score back to within one and the score remained 3-2 Gustavus after 40 minutes.
It took just 28 seconds into the third for the Cardinals to tie the score, but Elliott responded less than a minute later with a goal, helped by Tyler Rock (Sr., Savage) and Logan Norman (Sr., Luverne). SMU was able to tie the score for the second time at the 10:42 mark and neither team could find the back of the net for the remainder of regulation.
Gustavus had a couple good looks at the potential game-winner in overtime, but it was the Cardinals that took advantage of a rebound off the post and a shot for the sudden-death victory.
Saint Mary’s edged the Gusties in shots 29-27. Gustavus did well on special teams, converting on its one man-advantage opportunity while killing both Cardinal power plays.
Robbie Goor (Sr., Anoka) suffered the loss after making a number of impressive saves. He totaled 24 saves in nearly 62 minutes of action.
SCOUTING THE GUSTIES: Through three games this season, the Gusties are averaging 3.0 goals and allow 5.3 per game. They are outshooting opponents by an average of 31.7-25.0. On special teams, the Gusties are 2-for-8 on the power play and 5-for-8 on the kill. Caleb Anderson and Tyler Rock led the offense with three points apiece. Anderson has one goal and two assists, while Rock has three assists. Robbie Goor has spent the most time in the crease with a 5.93 goals against average and a .797 save percentage. He has 47 saves in two games.
SCOUTING THE TOMMIES: St. Thomas has played just one game, a 5-1 win against St. Schoalstica on Jan. 30, before shutting down for the past three-plus weeks due to COVID-19 test protocols. Joey Sofo led the Tommies in their win over the Saints with a pair of goals and an assist. Grant Loven added a goal and an assist. Henry Baribeau was credited with the win in net after making seven saves in nearly 30 minutes of action. Jacob Berger closed out the game with 16 saves and one goal allowed.