Auiburn, ME - Despite a spirited rally the Central Maine Community College hockey team fell short in agonizing fashion on opening night at the Norway Savings Bank Arena on Friday night, with the Mustangs falling 5-3 to visiting University of New Haven.
It wouldn't take long for the Chargers to draw first blood. After several failed clearing attempts the Mustangs would fall into a 1-0 hole, with New Haven captain Brandon Argyos pushing a loose puck into a yawning cage after redirecting defenseman Tyler Robichaud's wrist shot past Mustangs goalkeeper Jacob Strout.
To the delight of a raucous crowd the response from the home side came nearly immediately. On an immaculate face-off win in the offensive zone freshman center Austin Taylor slid the puck to third-year forward Sean Coleman, who fired a wrist shot past Chargers goaltender Logan Cole from the top of the left circle to level the score at one after just 34 seconds.
The Mustangs would kill off an entire two minutes of a 5-on-3 after minors from Parker Springer and Trevor Olivier put the Mustangs at a two man disadvantage, with Strout making several key saves to keep the visitors at bay.
"I thought that penalty kill in the middle of the first period was crucial," said second year Mustangs head coach Matt Buotte, who is hoping to improve the squad from the 10-12-0 campaign from last season. "We had a couple of key blocks. It was awesome to see. It really felt like it could be a turning point in the game and we didn't let it get away from us."
Each side had a few good opportunities to end the first period but the score remained deadlocked at 1, with the Mustangs holding a 9-8 shot advantage through twenty minutes of play.
The Chargers would strike quickly to begin the second. After a Mustangs icing New Haven forward Tyler Paine pounced on a loose puck off of the subsequent offensive zone face-off, firing a shot under the crossbar and past Strout. Robichaud and Argyros registered assists on the play.
The game would ebb and flow throughout the second period with the Mustangs generating some quality chances. Shawn Sullivan was denied on the rush, then moments later Zac Brown fired a puck past a gaping net but the home team failed to find a tying goal. Then, at the 13:53 mark, the Mustangs comeback chances were dealt a staggering blow. With Warren Karlberg in box for boarding Tyler Robichaud would notch his third point of the night on his first goal of the evening, redirecting a Max Flynn wrist shot from the point.
Karlberg would immediately atone for the penalty, however, as the Mustangs continued to scratch and claw their way back into the game. Just over two minutes after being released from the box, Karlberg whizzed down the right wing before whipping a wrist shot past Cole to halve the Charger lead as the teams head into the 2nd intermission.
Central Maine showed remarkable consistency in allowing a quick goal to start a period, the third frame being no exception. Just 2:53 into the third, Tyler Paine would notch his second of the evening off of a feed from Brandon Argyros, who notched his third point of the night on the play. The goal seemed to be the final blow to the Mustangs until they got a jolt of momentum with 13:29 to play.
After a steal in the defensive zone and some slick puck movement Austin Taylor and Sean Coleman found themselves on a 2-on-0, sliding the puck back and forth before Taylor eventually lashed the puck into an open net to bring the Mustangs back to within one at 4-3.
"Those two [Coleman and Taylor]—that whole line, really, with Zac on the wing—they were awesome tonight," said Buotte. "They were buzzing, creating all night. Each guy on that line could've buried a couple, they created so many quality chances. They were a huge spark all night."
The Mustangs would finishing killing a Tanner Garand roughing minor with 3:41 left before mounting their final charge. The Mustangs would use their time out with 1:31 remaining and would leave Strout at the bench for an extra attacker. The team would get several quality chances, including a Noah Buiniskas opportunity that saw Cole hold his pad on the goal line in a frantic goalmouth scramble.
Unfortunately for the Mustangs faithful it was as close as they would come. After a lost face-off in the offensive zone Chargers forward Patsy Harris would put the final dagger in the Mustangs, sending a shot from just across the center line into an empty net to push the Chargers to a 5-3 lead in a game they never trailed.
"Overall, there are so many positives to take out of this," concluded Buotte. "When they made it 3-1 in the second, it could've gotten ugly. Last year's team would have rolled over and lost that game by five. There is something special in this group, they keep battling, they keep believing. I hope we can keep that positivity and go grab a couple of points from Dartmouth."
Big Green will host the Mustangs this coming Sunday, October 13th, at Thompson Arena in Hanover, New Hampshire at 6:30 p.m.. The Mustangs won the only meeting between the two clubs last season by a score of 9-7. The Mustangs next return home on Sunday, November 17th when they host Wentworth Institute of Technology at 4:00 p.m.
