The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Cool ’Cats
Quinnipiac rallies past UConn, wins second straight CT Ice title
HAMDEN — An assortment of trophies can come to a college hockey team over a season: regular-season championships, playoff championships, and obviously the big one in April if you’re the last team standing.
The Connecticut Ice championship trophy isn’t, you know, that one. But to the Quinnipiac men, it’s an important one. The Bobcats came from behind on their home ice in the third period to beat UConn 4-3 at M&T Bank Arena on Saturday night to win the all-Connecticut tournament for the second year in a row.
“It’s probably one of those things you don’t want to look too far ahead, but it’s something at the beginning of the year, we want to win it,” Quinnipiac senior centerman Skyler Brind’Amour said.
“Obviously, last year, we knew the feeling. It’s pretty special, and doing it on our home ice was really special.”
Bridgeport hosted the tournament in 2020 and 2022. It moved to campus sites this year beginning with Quinnipiac with the intention that it will rotate among the schools in the future.
“We’re excited to be a part of this tournament. I thought the atmosphere was outstanding both days,” Bobcats coach Rand Pecknold said. “I hope we stay in this tournament for many years.”
Attendance was 3,625 on Friday, and though Saturday’s number wasn’t immediately available, it was another standing-room crowd.
Goals just over a minute apart late in the second period gave the No. 12 Huskies (16-8-3) their first lead of the night. But Ethan de Jong’s second goal tied it on the rush, the second power-play goal for the Bobcats (203-3), ranked third in one poll and fourth in the other. The first power-play goal had opened the scoring, a de Jong shot that caromed in off Brind’Amour.
Defenseman Jake Johnson scored the game-winner through a screen with 4:31 to go. But to UConn coach Mike Cavanaugh, the difference between the two teams was simply Quinnipiac’s two power-play goals on three chances to UConn’s 1-for-3.
“That was two good teams battling hard. That’s what it came down to,” Cavanaugh said.
The stretch run begins here in February with a month to go before the playoffs. For UConn, it’s six Hockey East games plus a Feb. 23 visit to Storrs from Alaska Anchorage. Quinnipiac has eight ECAC games.
“(This tournament) will help us down the stretch,” Cavanaugh said, “because it stings to sit there and watch someone else get a trophy, it does. I think you’ve got to remember that feeling, use that to fuel your February and March.”
For the Bobcats, who lost two
games last weekend, going into the locker room down after two periods was a good bit of adversity to overcome.
“It’s a confidence booster, especially after the past weekend,” said de Jong, who was named the tournament’s outstanding player.
“It’s tough, but I think it’s necessary. It’s a good learning experience. We can’t get too confident. We’ve got to stay humble, play to our identity and know what happens when we stray away from our game.”
Sacred Heart won the consolation game 4-3 over Yale (3-14-4). The Pioneers (13-10-2) scored two goals in the last two minutes of the second period to take a 3-1 lead and held on, with Neil Shea blocking a shot near the blue line in the final seconds to preserve the win.
Sacred Heart won the inaugural 2020 edition of this tournament and has won the consolation game the past two seasons.
The Pioneers’ Hunter Sansbury, Yale’s Ian Carpentier, the Huskies’ Justin Pearson and Hunter Schandor, and Quinnipiac’s Collin Graf and Zach Metsa (three assists Saturday) were named all-tournament.