Duluth, MN. – The St. Scholastica Men's Hockey team took on the Johnnies from Saint John's University this evening in their home opener at Mars Lakeview Arena. The Johnnies claimed the momentum throughout most of the contest, scoring four unanswered goals, as the Saints fell in tonight's action by a score of 4-1.
How it Happened
First Period
Saint John's began the game off firing, however, it was the Saints' defense that had a strong showing in the early moments, as both
Matej Palfy (Kosice, Slovakia/Gymnasium Trebisovska),
Emmett Wurst (Edina, Minn./Edina HS), and
Alessio Raso (Dollard-des-Ormeaux, QC, Canada/The Lawrenceville School) all recorded blocked shots.
The Johnnies were able to break the 0-0 tie at the 8:05 mark in the opening period, scoring an even-strength goal to take the early lead over CSS.
St. Scholastica was able to kill their first penalty kill of the night, as
Eino Rissanen (Sonvillier, Switzerland/Lycée Blaise-Cendrars) stopped all three shots he faced to hold the score at 1-0.
After the Saints shot attempts by
Evan Pahos (Parker, CO) and
Gavin Gunderson (Roseau, Minn) were denied, the Johnnies were able to score the second game of the night on a rebound to extend their lead over CSS to 2-0.
CSS killed off the second Saint John's powerplay in the closing minutes of the opening period, as the Johnnies took a 2-0 lead into the first intermission.
Second Period
CSS opened the second period as the aggressor, as early shots from Pahos and
Tristan Shewchuk (Saskatoon, SK, Canada/St. Joseph HS) were denied but the Saints were able to draw a penalty in the early minutes of the period.
On the powerplay, the Saints got shot opportunities from both
Aksel Jalojarvi (Lahti, Finland) and Issac Suppin but the Johnnies were able to shut down the Saints' offense.
After both teams were handed minor penalties, resulting in four-on-four hockey, shots from
Brodie Girod (Clavet, SK, Canada/Clavet HS) and
Hunter Hanson (Blaine, Minn./Blaine HS) were handled by the Johnnies to keep CSS off the board.
Rissanen was able to stop all nine shots he faced in the net in the second period, as the Saints outshot the Johnnies 14-9 in the second period.
Despite the shot advantage for CSS, the Johnnies were able to maintain their 2-0 lead into the second intermission.
Third Period
The Saints got the first opportunity to get themselves on the board to open the period, but their attempts would be for not as Saint John's was able to keep the Saints scoreless.
Michael Makarenko (Calgary, Alberta, Canada/Foot Hills Composite HS (Concordia University-Wisconsin NCHA)) had a trio of shot attempts denied at the net for the Saints, with the score still remaining 2-0 at the 5:37 mark.
The Johnnies added to their total at the 8:43 mark in the third period to expand their lead over CSS to a three-goal lead.
Minutes later, at the 12:21 mark in the period, Saint John's continued their success, scoring their fourth goal of the night, bringing the score to 4-0 in favor of Saint John's.
It wouldn't take long for the Saints to respond, as a little over a minute later, Pahos found the back of the net for the Saints' first goal of the night assisted by
Wyatt Wurst (Edina, MN), cutting the deficit to 4-1.
Both teams traded shifts on the powerplay throughout the middle stages of the period, but the Saints were unable to capitalize on any of those opportunities. ]
The Johnnie's were able to control the tempo and garnered momentum in the late stages of the final period, as Saint John's came away with a 4-1 victory over St. Scholastica in tonight's matchup.
Top Performers:
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Eino Rissanen (Sonvillier, Switzerland/Lycée Blaise-Cendrars) recorded 28 saves with a .875 save percentage tonight.
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Evan Pahos (Parker, CO) scored his first goal of the season for CSS, scoring the lone goal for the Saints tonight
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Wyatt Wurst (Edina, MN) notched his first points of the season with an assist in tonight's contest
Up Next
The Saints (1-2-1, 0-2-0 MIAC) will be back in action next Friday, November 15, where they will host the Yellowjackets from Wisconsin-Superior at Mars Lakeview Arena. The puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
