c/o Wesleyan Athletics
The men’s hockey team’s season came to an end on Sunday, Feb. 27 following a tough loss to Hamilton in the NESCAC quarterfinals by a score of 3–2. The Cards had wrapped up their regular season the previous weekend poorly with two losses to Trinity College.
In the first of the two games against Trinity, Wesleyan lost 3–2 in overtime after blowing a 2–1 third period lead. Against the Bantams at home, the Cardinals jumped out to a first period lead as Go Uemura ’23 scored with a little over three minutes to go in the period, giving the Red and Black a 1–0 lead into the first intermission. Trinity responded in the second period before Wesleyan retook the lead with a little over three minutes left on a shorthanded goal from Owen Sweet ’25. The Cardinals maintained the 2–1 lead until Trinity tied it up with just six minutes to go. Trinity took advantage of starting the period that eventually went into overtime on a power play and scored just after the penalty expired to win the game. On the stat sheet, the Bantams outshot the Cards 35–19, but goalie Marc Smith ’24 made a career-high 32 saves to hold the Trinity offense to the three goals.
Following the overtime loss, Wesleyan headed up to Hartford to play the second of the two games against Trinity and, once again, the Cards fell to the Bantams, this time by a score of 6–3. Just like the first game, the Red and Black got on the scoreboard first with a goal from Uemura, putting the Cards up 1–0 in the first period. The Red and Black then doubled their lead as Danny Sorabella ’22 scored shorthanded on a breakaway to extend the lead to 2–0 just over halfway through the period. Trinity soon cut the lead to one right before the intermission. In the second period, the Bantams made a goalie change and carried over the momentum from before the intermission to score three unanswered goals in the second, taking a 4–2 lead into third. Trinity then extended their lead to 5–2 early in the third period before Uemura scored his second of the game, cutting it to 5–3 late in regulation. The Bantams added a sixth goal five minutes after Uemura’s goal and closed out the 6–3 victory. Trinity outshot the Cardinals 33–24 for the game, while goalie Erik Voloshin ’24 made 27 saves.
The Red and Black finished the season with a conference record of 8–7–3 (11–10–3 overall), earning them the fourth seed in the NESCAC and the right to host a quarterfinal game versus the fifth-seeded Continentals.
Against Hamilton, Wesleyan surrendered the first goal for the first time in three games as Smith uncharacteristically let a shot get by him from practically center ice just over two minutes into the game. The Cards bounced back from being down early in the game, drawing level right before the intermission on a goal from Wiggle Kerbrat ’23. In the second period, the Continentals scored in just under five minutes to take a 2–1 lead. The Cards once again battled back as Uemura scored, tying the game up at two with just under seven minutes to go in the second. The deadlock was short-lived, however, as Hamilton scored to take a 3–2 lead just two minutes later. Wesleyan pushed to tie it up during the remainder of the game, but could not find the back of the net, bringing their season to an end. On the stat sheet, the Cardinals outshot Hamilton 28–16, and Smith made 13 saves in the losing effort.
Overall, despite the tough stretch of games to end the season, defenseman Liam Donelan ’23 was pleased with the team’s effort.
“The last three games of the season certainly foreshadow a promising 2022–2023 season,” Donelan said. “Despite the results of those games, I felt that our team showed…strong character.”
Donelan added that even though it may have ended not they way they wanted, there are a lot of positives to take away from the season.
“Earning the third home playoff game in Wesleyan men’s hockey history was an exceptional accomplishment,” Donelan said. “Our team grew tremendously throughout the season, learning how to play in close games, and battle through adversity, which was impressive for a team with so many playing their first year of college hockey.”
Looking forward, Donelan says the key to success is to continue to work to improve as a team to take a step forward next season.
“Going into next year, it’s going to be important to be confident in both our individual and team play,” Donelan said. “Continuing to improve on our play in all three zones will make us a more balanced and complete team.”
David Gottlieb can be reached at dgottlieb@wesleyan.edu.