It was a big weekend for the Amherst men’s hockey team, as the Mammoths took on conference rivals Wesleyan and Trinity. Both games went into overtime, and Amherst came away from the weekend with two ties and now boasts a record of 2-1-3 overall and 0-0-3 in the NESCAC.
Saturday’s matchup against Wesleyan was physical and fast-paced from the opening whistle. The Mammoths accrued 10 penalties over the course of the game while the Cardinals recorded seven, and each team managed to earn a penalty shot. Though Amherst outshot its Little III rival 41-18, the momentum constantly shifted throughout the 65 minutes.
Senior captain Thomas Lindstrom put the Mammoths on the board late in the opening period during an Amherst power play. Receiving a pass from Patrick Daly ’20, Lindstrom ripped a first-time shot over the shoulder of Wesleyan’s Tim Sestak to notch his second goal of the season. The Mammoths held onto the 1-0 lead until the end of the second period, when Jordan Jancze capitalized on a turnover in Amherst’s defensive end to knot the score at 1-1.
Only 46 seconds into the third period, Dylan Holze gave the Cardinals the go-ahead goal. Tyler Wyatt sent a beautiful pass to Holze at the left post, and Holze had an easy tap in. Five minutes later, Walker Harris increased Wesleyan’s lead to two, firing a shot from the top of the left circle for his first goal of the year.
Keeping Amherst in the game, PJ Conlon ’20 scored on a penalty shot seven minutes into the period. Conlon deked to his forehand to beat Sestak and cut the Cardinals’ lead in half. Late heroics from senior captain Patrick Mooney sent the game into overtime. Getting a quick shot off from the point, Mooney rocketed the puck into the bottom left corner to tie things up with just under six minutes remaining in regulation. After playing out the rest of the third period and five minutes of overtime, the score remained knotted at 3-3, and both teams walked away with a tie.
On Sunday, the Mammoths took on national powerhouse Trinity, which has been to the DIII national title game twice in the past three years. Outshooting Amherst 42-30, the Bantams managed to come back from a three-goal deficit in order to preserve their undefeated record. Goaltender Connor Girard ’19 was outstanding for the Mammoths, making 39 stops against the potent Trinity offense.
David White ’18 notched Amherst’s first goal of the game with just under four minutes remaining in the first period. Converting on the power play, White tipped in a wrist shot from Phil Johansson ’19. Trinity continued to create quality chances throughout the period, but the visitors struggled to capitalize.
Lindstrom doubled the Mammoths’ lead in the second period as he pounced on a pass from White just seconds before the second intermission began. Rounding things out for Amherst, Johansson recorded his third goal of the season a mere 16 seconds into the third period.
The junior defender found the puck off a faceoff and fired a shot past Trinity’s Alex Morin.
Only one minute after Johansson’s goal, the Bantams began their comeback. Goals from Anthony Sabitsky and Charlie Zuccarini brought Trinity within one of the Mammoths. With 1:27 remaining in regulation, the Bantams pulled their goalie to have six skaters on the ice, a move that paid dividends.
Finding the top left corner of the net with 8.9 seconds to play, Barclay Gammill notched the equalizer to force overtime. After a scoreless period of overtime, the game ended in a tie.
Next up, the Mammoths will face historic rival Williams at home in Orr Rink on Friday, Dec. 8 at 7:30 p.m.
