Box Score
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| Nick Balboa scored his second of the season to get the Jumbos started |
MALDEN – The Tufts men's hockey team opened up their second semester schedule on Wednesday night, hosting Daniel Webster College and picking up their first win on home ice this season. The Jumbos used goals from three different players to earn the 3-1 at the Malden Valley Forum.
With the win the Jumbos move to 3-4-3 this year, and have a three-game unbeaten streak. The Eagles are now 3-10 on the season with the setback.
The two teams played a pretty even first period, with both the Jumbos and the Eagles possessing the puck and having some scoring chances, but neither team able to get onto the scoreboard. The Jumbos finished the first period with a slight advantage in shots, 14-11.
Tufts dominated the second period, but wasn't able to find the back of the net for most of the period. It looked like they were going to take the lead when the Eagles keeper, Ben Gagnon, was handed a delay of game penalty and the Jumbos were awarded a penalty shot. Sophomore Chad Goldberg took the shot for the Jumbos, but Gagnon made the save to keep the Jumbos off the board.
With just under five minutes remaining, rookie Nick Balboa scored his second goal of the season to put the Jumbos on the board. Balboa's slap shot sailed right past the right shoulder of the Eagles' goalie into the top left corner of the net to give the Jumbos the 1-0 advantage. Sophomores Brian Brown and Dan Kelly were credited with the assists.
Just under seven minutes into the third period the Jumbos made it 2-0 with junior Matt Pugh getting the puck past a diving Gagnon into the bottom left corner of the net. Senior Dominic Granato and senior co-captain Brian Ouellette were handed helpers on the score.
That goal woke up the Daniel Webster offense, as the Eagles got on the board just under two minutes later when Ryan Murray scored an assisted goal to bring the visitors within one with over half the period left to play.
Gagnon was solid in net for the Eagles the entire evening, including making a stellar save on a shot from the stick of Brown with just under 6:30 remaining in the period to keep the score in the Jumbos advantage by just one goal.
The Jumbos made it 3-1 with a goal from Goldberg 14:57 into the third period. Gagnon stopped a shot off the stick of senior co-captain Stewart Bell, but Goldberg found the rebound and got it past the keeper to give the Jumbos the 3-1 advantage. Bell and sophomore Oliver Takacsi-Nagy picked up assists on the goal.
The Eagles had a chance to come within one with just over three minutes to play in the period when Daniel Bellafiore rifled a shot that Pulde was able to stop. The rebound landed right in front of another Eagle player in front of the net, but Balboa was able to get his stick on it to move it out from in front of the goal and keep the score locked at 3-1.
The Jumbos dominated possession of the puck for the remainder of the contest, and the Eagles weren't even able to posses the puck long enough to pull their goalie in the final minutes.
Tufts finished with the advantage in shots 48-27. Neither team was able to convert on the power play tonight as the Eagles were 0-for-4 with the man advantage and the Jumbos were not able to score on five power play opportunities. Gagnon finished with 45 saves for the Eagles, while his Jumbo counterpart, junior Mason Pulde picked up 26 saves in the win.
The Eagles will be back on the ice on Saturday when they play at Lebanon Valley at 7 pm. The Jumbos will make a trip to Endicott on Saturday for a 4 pm puck drop.
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