DULUTH, Minn. (blugolds.com) – The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire men's hockey team was back on the road Saturday evening for another nonconference matchup. The Blugolds looked to bounce back after an overtime loss the night before as they faced the College of St. Scholastica Saints. UW-Eau Claire scored four times in the first period to help them secure a 6-3 win away from home.
It took less than three minutes for Eau Claire to find the opening goal of the game as Devlin McCabe (Fr. – Hugo, Minn./St. Paul Academy) scored his first collegiate goal to make it 1-0. Peter Jacobs (So. – Carlsbad, Calif./Lewis Palmer) and Jordan Randall (So. – Maple Grove, Minn.) received an assist on McCabe's first tally as a Blugold to help spark some early momentum. Less than four minutes later, St. Scholastica found their first goal of the game to tie things at 1-1. Both teams found an even amount of chances through the first as shots were tied at 11-11 after 20 minutes of play.
Despite an even number of shots on goal, UWEC was able to capitalize three more times before the first intermission. Sammy Martel (Jr. – Bolingbrook, Ill.-Neuqua Valley) put Eau Claire back in the lead at the 12:06 mark with his second goal of the season. Kyle Oleksiuk (So. – Winnipeg, Manitoba) received the lone assist on the tally, making it 2-1. Just four minutes later, Conner Couet (Fr. – Saint Michael, Minn./MTS Minnesota Connections Academy) scored his first collegiate goal as a Blugold to make it 3-1. UWEC wasn't done there as Austin Becker (So. – Amery, Wis.) scored the eventual game winning goal at 17:34 of the opening frame. Jordan Randall recorded his second assist of the night on Becker's tally to give Eau Claire a 4-1 lead heading into the first intermission.
The second period was opened with a Jordan Randall goal at 4:09 to increase the lead to 5-1. Peter Jacobs earned his second assist of the evening as Eau Claire kept control of the game. The Saints found their own scoring chances later in the period as they cut the Blugold lead to 5-2 at the 9:17 mark. The Saints then found their third goal of the game at 9:45 of the third period to put a sense of hope back into the home crowd. The momentum for a comeback was kept at bay as Eau Claire outshot the Saints 14-13 in the final frame and Kyle Oleksiuk fired home an empty net goal from behind the Blugold goal line to seal the 6-3 victory.
Max Gutjahr (Fr. – Appleton, Wis./Kimberly) stopped 33 of the 36 shots he faced to earn his 10th win of the season. Gutjahr is now 10-6-0 on the year.
The Blugolds (10-6-0, WIAC 3-3) will return home for Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) play on Friday, January 20th when they host UW-Superior. Puck drop from Hobbs Ice Arena is scheduled for 7PM.
Follow the Blugolds all season long at Blugold Game Day or on our app, UWEC Blugolds.
