The Lake Superior State hockey team completed the weekend sweep over the No. 12 Bowling Green Falcons with a 5-2 win on Saturday, February 13 and a 2-1 overtime win on Friday, February 12 at the Slater Family Ice Arena in Bowling Green, Ohio in a Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) game. Five different skaters scored goals in the game for the Lakers while Mareks Mitens stopped 28 shots in the game for his sixth win of the season.

The Lakers and Falcons played to a scoreless tie through the majority of the first period before the Lakers would take a 1-0 lead with 1:40 left on the clock. Hampus Eriksson scored his third goal of the season on a shot that beat Falcon goaltender Eric Dop on his blocker side. Junior forward Miroslav Mucha started the play in the neutral zone as he connected a pass to freshman defenseman Jacob Bengtsson. Bengtsson, who was able to gain the offensive zone, caught an edge along the boards but was still able to get the puck to Eriksson. The senior alternate captain’s wrist shot from the center of the circle would give the Lakers the game’s first lead.

With the two teams skating four-on-four, Pete Veillette would give the Lakers a two goal lead over the Falcons with his second goal of the weekend. Junior defenseman Jacob Nordqvist collected the puck behind the Laker goal and would carry the puck up the ice before entering the offensive zone alongside Ashton Calder. Nordqvist would feed the puck to Calder, and the Lakers leading scorer would find Veillette, who was trailing on the play, wide open in the slot. Dropping down to one knee to get off the shot, Veillette sent a quick shot right over Dop’s glove to put the Lakers ahead 2-0 at 4:42 of the second period.

Still skating four a side, the Lakers would extend their lead to 3-0 over the Falcons when Louis Boudon scored his second goal in as many games. Will Riedell would intercept a pass from Bowling Green in the Lakers defensive zone to start the play. Riedell skated up the ice on a two-on-one odd man rush with Boudon and would hit the Laker forward with a perfect pass for the team’s third goal of the night. Boudon was able to redirect the puck into the wide open net for his fifth goal of the season.

At 13:55 of the second period, the Lakers would score to take a 4-0 lead over Bowling Green. With coincidental penalties expiring seconds before the goal, Benito Posa joined Veillette and Calder for a three-on-two opportunity into the Falcons zone. With the puck rolling, Posa dropped a pass back to Veillette, who would then find Calder open. Calder sent the puck into the top corner of the net for his team-leading eighth goal of the season.

The Falcons would end Laker goaltender Mareks Mitens’ shutout bid in the game at 3:24 of the third period when Cameron Wright scored to get Bowling Green on the board. Wright’s goal was assisted by Adam Pitters.

Dustin Manz would score the Lakers final goal of the game at 12:36 of the third period as he notched his first goal of the season to put the Lakers ahead 5-1 over the Falcons. Senior captain Lukas Kaelble started the play in the Lakers defensive end and sent a stretch pass up the ice to Jack Jeffers. After Jeffers gained the offensive zone, he dropped a pass to Manz at the blue line. Manz sent a shot from the blue line that would beat Dop as the puck found its way through traffic to regain the four goal lead for the Lakers.

Bowling Green would cap off the game’s scoring as Wright scored his second of the night to make the score 5-2.

Mitens would finish the game with 28 saves bringing his weekend total to 61 saves of 64 shots against the Falcons. Dop stopped 19 of the 24 shots he faced in the game from the Lakers.

Game One (February 12)
Junior forward Pete Veillette scored the game winning goal :17 seconds into overtime for the win while Mareks Mitens stopped 33 shots.

At 12:12 of the first period, the Falcons scored the game’s first goal as Cameron Wright scored his tenth goal of the season to take the lead. The puck made its way out of the Bowling Green offensive zone after an LSSU skater fanned on a shot from the blue line. Brandon Kruse would win the race to the puck in the Lakers zone as he collected the puck along the boards and found Max Johnson open in front of the net. Johnson sent a pass to Wright, who was driving to the net on the play and was able to tap in the pass for a 1-0 lead.

With a Falcon skater in the box for roughing, the Laker power play was able to capitalize on the man advantage to tie the game at one. The Lakers spent the majority of the two minute power play in BG’s defensive zone. Jack Jeffers, who has been playing one of the point positions on the power play, traded a pass to Mitchell Oliver who was playing the other point for the Lakers. Oliver took a wrist shot from the blue line that found its way through traffic and Louis Boudon would deflect the shot to beat Bowling Green goaltender Eric Dop to tie the game with 13:10 left in the second period.

With neither team scoring in the third period, the game would go to overtime between the two longtime rivals.

Only 17 seconds into the overtime period, Veillette, who has proven to be a clutch player for the Lakers, would score the game winning goal. Bowling Green gained possession after the opening faceoff but Veillette would force a turnover at center ice in the seconds that followed. With no Bowling Green skaters back on the play, Veillette then skated into the offensive zone with Ashton Calder. Veillette and Calder would exchange passes, with Veillette netting the goal past Dop for the overtime victory over the No. 12 Falcons.

Mitens finished the game with 33 saves on 34 shots to record his fifth win of the season while Dop stopped 23 shots from the Lakers. In his 13 appearances this season, Mitens has allowed two or fewer goals in 11 games.

The Lakers will have a few days off before heading to Houghton, Michigan for a Tuesday, February 16 in an afternoon match-up with the Michigan Tech Huskies at 2:07 p.m at the John MacInnes Student Ice Arena. The game was originally scheduled for the weekend of January 22-23 but was postponed due to COVID-19 protocols.

Source: LSSU Lakers Athletics