FAIRFIELD, Conn. - On a night dedicated to honoring their graduating class, the Sacred Heart Men's Hockey Team delivered a performance worthy of the occasion. With nine "seniors" playing their final regular-season game, the Pioneers capped off the season with a 2-0 victory over Bentley, securing the No. 2 seed in the upcoming AHA playoffs.
The elder statesmen ensured Bentley wouldn't spoil their night, contributing three of the six registered points. Defenseman Hunter Sansbury recorded his 300th career blocked shot, becoming the first Pioneer and just the 10th player in NCAA history to reach the milestone, before assisting classmate Matthew Guerra in setting up senior Tyler Ghirardosi for the game's second goal.
"It was a big night for our seniors and grad students, so it was nice that we all got a touch on that goal," said Ghirardosi.
Ghirardosi's sixth goal of the season proved to be the back-breaker in one of the Pioneers' most complete performances of the year. The victory marked their 19th win of the season (second-most in program history) and their 16th in AHA play (tied for third in program history).
The 3,733 fans in attendance got a glimpse of what March hockey might bring. The Pioneers and Bentley, two of the AHA's top teams, fought through a scoreless opening frame, with just 10 shots on goal and only one penalty.
Bentley controlled possession for much of the second period but failed to capitalize. Its best chance came at 11:16 when Peter Kramer found himself open at the right hash, but freshman goaltender Ajeet Gundarah denied him with a brilliant kick save. Gundarah was stellar once again, finishing with 18 saves and earning his third shutout of the season, the most by an NCAA freshman this year.
The Pioneers then seized the momentum. John Jaworski connected on a cross-ice pass to Felix Trudeau, who carried the puck along the boards and patiently waited for his teammates to join. Trudeau found Reid Pabich in stride through the middle, who fed the puck back to the blue line for Mikey Adamson. Adamson's wrist shot navigated through traffic and slipped past Connor Hasley for his 11th goal of the season (his sixth in the last eight games) giving the Pioneers a 1-0 lead at 10:32.
"After the first period, we just wanted to get more pucks on net," Adamson said. "We had a pretty good line rush there, Pabich ended up getting up top and I got a one-timer quick to the net. Got a great screen from Jaworski, and luckily it went in."
The Pioneers came out firing in the third period, with a chance to capitalize when Jaworski maneuvered around two Bentley defenders and drew a tripping penalty at 15:19.
The Pioneers' second power play unit took control during the latter half of the man advantage, generating two Grade A chances. Ghirardosi found Sansbury below the left faceoff circle and quickly sent it back to the point for John Driscoll. With Jake Bongo and Sansbury positioned along the hashes, Driscoll connected with Bongo, who returned the pass to Driscoll. Driscoll then set up Sansbury, whose one-timer was denied, but the rebound trickled in front. Guerra pounced on the loose puck and got a shot off amidst a net-front scrum, but it was Ghirardosi who buried the rebound, tapping it in at 14:05.
"Sansbury had a great look on the one-timer; I was fortunate that there was a rebound," Ghirardosi said. "Guerra and I were digging away at it, and I was able to poke it in."
The rest of the period was a defensive clinic from the Pioneers, who recorded 11 blocked shots in the final frame. Overall, the Pioneers blocked 25 shots on the night, the second-highest total of the season.
"We love all our seniors and fifth years, so we wanted this win for them," said Adamson. "We battled for them all night long. They're amazing teammates, and we stuck together tonight."
What's Next?
The Pioneers enter the playoffs as the No. 2 seed, earning a bye to the quarterfinals, where they'll host an undetermined opponent from March 7-9.
