PITTSBURGH, Pa. - The Robert Morris University men's ice hockey team dropped the opening game of their Atlantic Hockey Tournament matchup against Holy Cross 2-0 Friday night at Colonials Arena.
Despite putting 31 shots on goal, Robert Morris could not crack Holy Cross keeper Matt Radomsky as the Crusaders earned their first win at Colonials Arena since 2013. RMU keeper Justin Kapelmaster stopped 38 of 39 shots in the loss.
"We talked about controlling momentum, and they controlled it tonight," head coach Derek Schooley said. "They got a big penalty kill on a 5-on-3 and came down and scored right after it. They were pumped up and that's the momentum of a hockey game.
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RMU did a good job early of making life difficult on Radomsky, crashing the net and creating a number of goal-mouth scrambles on the opening few shifts as they searched for a greasy goal to kick off their 2020 post-season run.
A point blank stop on Daniel Mantenuto produced the best opportunity for the Colonials to cash in off this early chaos, however the freshman net minder looked sharp as he denied the senior in tight.
A turning shot from Aidan Spellacy in the low slow near the ten minute mark of the opening frame produced the another quality look, however the sophomore pushed his effort just wide of the cage. He nearly put the Colonials ahead again three shifts later, however his backhander in the crease was gloved by Radomsky to keep things tied.
With neither side content to play run-and-gun, the game settled into a physical, grinding rhythm for the remainder of the frame. Despite a 14-9 advantage in shots, the Colonials could not slip one past the first-year goalie in Radomsky.
A nice save at the other end from Kapelmaster on a Connor Jean stuff attempt book-ended a spirited but otherwise uneventful first 20 minutes.
"We had our chances in the first period to bury pucks and we didn't," Schooley said. "It's been the story of our season so far, we wasted a great performance from Justin Kapelmaster in goal."Â
Both squads would get an opportunity for a jump-start from special teams to open the second.
A Nick Jenny hook sent the Colonials to the kill just 2:39 into the second, however a few clutch saves from Kapelmaster as well as huge blocks from from Nolan Schaeffer and Alex Robert in the slot helped the Colonials PK get the job done.
A power play of their own would follow shortly after the kill, however they failed to convert after a Mantenuto one-timer was swallowed up in the crease.
Two more kills including a 16-second 5-on-3 kept the Colonials from rolling four lines and establishing any kind of consistent forecheck as the middle frame wore on, relying on the likes of Mantenuto and Jake Coleman to spark the team with defense instead of goal scoring.
Despite going a perfect 3-3 on the kill, a late push from the Crusaders at even-strength put RMU back on their heels as they ran out the second. A pair of point-blank saves from Kapelmaster as well as a savy clear on a bouncing puck through the crease helped the Colonials keep things scoreless.
Despite the PK looking sharp through two, RMU continued to live dangerously, putting the Crusader man-advantage one the ice for a fourth time to start the third.
Though the puck did cross the line on a stuff attempt at the right post on Kapelmaster, a quick review determined he was shoved by a pair of Crusaders and quickly over-turned the ruling.
"We had a great first, but in the second our discipline got away from us," Schooley said. "We've got to make sure our discipline is better, we can't kill seven penalties every game."Â
The game tilted on what would end up being a critical three-minute stretch for Robert Morris. A pair of Holy Cross minors gifted RMU a 5-on-3 for nearly two full minutes, however the Colonials failed to produce a single shot on the golden opportunity.
The Crusaders finally broke the stalemate 27 seconds after the penalty expired when Neil Robinson flipped a loose puck in the crease over Kaplemaster's shoulder, giving them the first lead of the night with just over 14 minutes left in regulation.Â
Another glorious chance passed for Robert Morris as Spellacy's shot from the slot rang off the pipe, the closest RMU would come to hearing the goal horn on Friday. Â
One last, fruitless power-play proved to be the final nail for RMU. Holy Cross buried the empty netter with 10 seconds left to seal the win and take game one of the series, 2-0.
Both teams return to action tomorrow for game two at 7 p.m. at Colonials Arena.
""This is a resilient group. I've got faith in this group, I believe in this group," Schooley said. "We don't have a choice, we either get the job done tomorrow or our season is over."Â
