MALDEN, MA (November 22, 2024) - The Tufts University men's ice hockey team played their home opener Friday night, hosting the Middlebury College Panthers in a New England Small College Athletic Conference game, with the Jumbos coming out on top 7-3 after a barn burner at the Malden Valley Forum.
Right from puck drop, it was clear that the 260 fans in attendance would witness a thrilling 60 minutes. Each team was flying up and down the ice, the Jumbos (2-1-0, 2-1-0 NESCAC) were looking good on each end of the ice as their cohesion was on full display. The first 10 minutes saw Middlebury (2-1-0, 2-1-0 NESCAC) chasing the puck, as Tufts flew up the ice. The Jumbos attempted 15 shots in the first 10 minutes, before finding the back of the net to open the scoring. It was a devastating release from senior Tyler Sedlack, who corralled the cross ice feed from senior
Harrison Bazianos beautifully, firing in one sweeping motion to go top left corner on Panther goaltender Andrew Heinze to put the home side up by a goal.
Middlebury was anything but deterred, however, and began to fly up the ice just as the Jumbos had. Not even two minutes after the Jumbos went ahead, the Panthers found their equalizer. Dante Palombo worked down low to score from right on the doorstep of
Gustave Bylin's crease. There was nothing the junior netminder could do as the opposing forward knocked the puck in from point blank.
The ice had noticeably tilted Middlebury's way, as they were hemming the Jumbos in behind their own blue line. 22 seconds after their tying score, the Panthers took the lead, realizing their advantage and putting pressure on the Jumbos. The Panthers would score again to make it 3-1 with half a second in the first period, and Tufts was left with work to do as they hit the locker room.
When they left the locker room, it was clear that the energy had shifted in favor of the home team. They started to play with the same speed and precision that they had to open the first period. They drew a five minute major in the first minute of the second period, and immediately went to work on the powerplay. 32 seconds after the start of the man advantage, Bazianos struck the back of the net to chip away at the Middlebury lead. Junior
Cole Dubicki picked up the assist, and the Jumbos were off to a great start with their five minute power play.
The Jumbos scored again just before the man advantage expired.
Liam O'Hare worked down low onto the Panthers crease and scored a hard-working goal off of a centering feed from Dubicki.
Max Resnick picked up the secondary assist, and the Jumbos were right back even with Middlebury.
The tie lasted a grand total of 20 seconds, before the Jumbos took the lead off of a
Rory Andriole score. The freshman forward tipped home the point feed from fellow freshman
Maddox Lizotte, giving both their first points as a Jumbo. They had scored three times in the opening six minutes of the second period to come roaring back in front of the Panthers.
The one goal lead was not sufficient for the goal-hungry Jumbos, and they immediately launched their pursuit of a fifth goal. Eight minutes into the period, and that was exactly what they found. Sedlack ripped home his second goal of the game for his second straight two-goal game, and a much needed insurance goal for Tufts. Dubicki and O'Hare earned the helpers on the fifth goal for the Jumbos.
The Jumbos looked just as sharp through the remainder of the period, as the Panthers stopped reeling and finally began to pressure Tufts again. Freshman
Tade Carman, making his collegiate debut, was stellar between the pipes to keep Middlebury off the score board, making 10 saves in his first period of college hockey.
The third period began with each team looking to score, but neither would for over 10 minutes. An elbowing penalty against the Panthers gave the Jumbos another powerplay, and they converted the chance once again. This time it was sophomore
Trace Norwell who knocked home the pass from senior
Brennan Horn to give the Jumbos a commanding 6-3 lead. They made the result all but official five minutes later, when Norwell and Horn connected with
Jon Horn, allowing the sophomore forward to easily score on the Panther's empty net.
The Jumbos finished with an equally parts gritty and dominant 7-3 win over the Panthers, extending their streak of wins over Middlebury to eight games, stretching back to the 2021-22 season.
The Jumbos will play again Saturday, November 23 in Malden, hosting Williams College at 4:00 pm for the second NESCAC game of the weekend.
--JUMBOS--
