Sophomore goaltender Drew Fielding’s 22 saves on 23 shots wasn’t enough for the St. Thomas men’s hockey team when it fell to Gustavus Adolphus 1-0 in a MIAC playoff semifinal game Saturday at home.
Despite the Tommies (13-11-2 overall, 10-6-1 MIAC) outshooting Gustavus (17-7-3 overall, 11-5-2 MIAC), they could not find a way to score against Gustavus, which has now won eight straight.
“It’s tough to win when you don’t score goals,” captain Rob Vannelli said.
St. Thomas took control early by commanding the play during the first shifts of the game, however Gustavus soon settled into a gritty, dump-and-chase style of play, attempting to overpower the Tommies with physical play.
Gustavus gained momentum midway through the first period as a result of a tripping penalty called against St. Thomas. Despite the constant pressure from the Gusties, Fielding stood tall in the net, allowing St. Thomas to counterattack and create most of its scoring chances in the first period.
The teams traded possession of the puck for most of the first period before finally reaching the first intermission tied 0-0.
The Tommies seemed to have broken the deadlock early in the second period after a St. Thomas power play pulled momentum in the Tommies’ favor. After peppering the Gustavus defense, the Tommies followed up with a shot that hit the post and slid across the face of the goal before careening into the corner.
The Gusties answered soon after, when a St. Thomas turnover near center ice resulted in a 2-on-1 rush for Gustavus, which was finished off by goal from forward Jack Walsh.
“I’d like to take back the goal. It’s just a huge mistake. We were tired. We should have got it deep, but we didn’t,” coach Jeff Boeser said. “We turned it over, and they capitalized.”
St. Thomas maintained pressure for a majority of the final two periods but could not break through the Gustavus defense. The Tommies outshot the Gusties 10-7 in the third period, with many more St. Thomas attempts being blocked by Gustavus defenders.
St. Thomas had a chance to tie the score midway through the third period after securing a 5-on-3 power play, but Gustavus thwarted the 85-second Tommie two-man advantage.
St. Thomas moved to 2-11-2 when it scored two goals or less this season.
“It’s just one of those things, I guess,” Vannelli said. “Everyone put their heart into it.”
With the loss, the Tommies are virtually eliminated from playoff contention in the NCAA postseason. With seven seniors on the roster, the St. Thomas men’s hockey team looks to its underclassmen to fill the void next year.
“We really like our young guys. They got some playoff experience,” Boeser said. “Hopefully they remember this moment.”
Fielding, who only allowed one goal in his last 215 minutes in goal, hopes the disappointment from this loss will motivate the team in the offseason.
“We have to use (the loss) as a motivation … to keep getting better,” Fielding said. “I’m going to become one of the upperclassmen; I’ll have to take on more of a vocal lead in the room.”
Jacob Sevening can be reached at seve8586@stthomas.edu.