Moon Township, Pa. - The RMU men's hockey team fell to ASU, 1-4 in the first game of the series. RMU is now 4-12-3 overall on the year. Arizona State moves up to 12-3-4 in the 2023-24 campaign.
1st PERIOD
- Through the first 20 minutes, both teams battled to a scoreless draw.
- Each side received a power play chance in the opening period. On ASU's chance, Veltri stopped five shots. RMU recorded one shot on goal during their man-advantage opportunity.
2nd PERIOD
- Early into the middle frame, the Colonials were shorthanded. Veltri provided another five saves to keep the game 0-0.
- Later on, in the period, RMU was called for two quick penalties, back-to-back. With the 5on3 advantage, the Sun Devils cashed in for the first goal of the night.
- Before the end of the second period, with 21 seconds left, Matthew Kopperud netted in his second PPG of the game, giving the visitors a 2-0 lead heading into the locker room.
3rd PERIOD
- The Colonials responded on their first shift in the final period. Starting the transition,
Walter Zacher dished the puck into open space, finding his line mate
George Krotiris entering the offensive zone. Krotiris quickly fed
Cameron Garvey down the right side, unleashing a shot into the back of the net to bring the score within one.
- Halfway through the third, the Sun Devils cashed in for their first even strength goal of the game, extending their lead, 3-1.
- With about two minutes left,
Chad Veltri was pulled from goal. ASU's Ty Murchison finished off the empty net goal, giving Arizona State a 4-1 victory.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Individually,
Walter Zacher and
Rylee St. Onge each registered a team-high seven shot attempts. Defenseman
Cade Townend led the Colonials with shots on goal, posting five. On the defensive end,
Trevor LeDonne and
Thomas Haynes blocked three shots each. The freshmen first line of Garvey, Zacher and Krotiris produced RMU's one score. Garvey owns three goals in his career now. Zacher has produced seven points (1-6--7) this season and Krotiris holds six (2-4--6). In the blue crease, graduate goaltender
Chad Veltri paced for 39 saves. For the 12th time this season and fifth game in a row, the veteran netminder finished the game with over 30 saves. Collecting 209 saves during the past five games, Veltri is averaging 41.8 saves a game in that time frame.
QUOTABLE
"I thought we played very well and we looked like a solid hockey team that did a lot of good things in the game. If we don't give up power play goals and one empty netter, it's a 1-1 game."
- Head Coach Derek Schooley
"Since the Sacred Heart series where we played well, we went to RIT and battled hard on the road and then had a great week against Niagara. It's been a challenging stretch for us but we're growing and improving. We're appreciative of Arizona State honoring to return here and play us a couple years later. It was a great crowd tonight and a good hockey game."
- Head Coach Derek Schooley
UP NEXT
RMU and ASU will conclude the series tomorrow at Clearview Arena. Puck drop is scheduled for 5:00 p.m.
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