The men’s hockey squad recorded their first win of the season in their home opener Saturday night at the Houston Field House with a victory over the nationally ranked Wildcats of New Hampshire. Marc Cavosie scored twice and helped on another one, while Danny Eberly offered a goal and two assists in the 6-4 decision.
The Engineers opened the scoring, with the power play after Referee Scott Hansen called UNH Right Wing Jim Abbott for tripping 6:55 into the game. Once RPI gained the zone, they executed a rehearsed play that sent Carson Butterwick to the net free of defenders. Butterwick slid the puck past Goalie Michael Ayers for the 1-0 lead.
Nearly one minute later, Cavosie scored unassisted from his knees with an amazing shot that buzzed by Ayers’ mask and into the netting, just below the cross bar.
With 5:37 remaining in the first period, New Hampshire’s Joshua Prudden slipped one past RPI Netminder Kevin Kurk to pull the Wildcats within one, but Troy native Matt Murley returned the two-goal lead to RPI with his second goal of the season.
Lanny Gare and Sean Collins tallied before the end of the second period with an even strength and power play goal, respectively, to tie the game.
Eberly broke the tie with 13:22 left in regulation. As the final minutes approached, Nolan Graham was penalized for hitting a player from UNH while his back was turned, and the Wildcats looked to even the score. It was Cavosie, however, who added to RPI’s tally on the play. While killing off the penalty, the puck came to Cavosie and he skated down the ice. Because of his speed, he was able to get a slow-moving puck on net, which found Ayers’ five-hole and crossed the goal line.
The Wildcats did not give up, scoring from behind the goal line off the back of Kurk’s pad, but an empty-net goal by senior Jim Henkel sealed the victory for the Engineers.
With the win, RPI ascended into 15th place in the U.S. College Hockey Online Poll for their first national ranking of the season. Meanwhile, the Wildcats (2-1-0) dropped from sixth to 10th in the rankings.
