The Massachusetts men’s club hockey team earned a convincing 4-1 victory over Bentley Saturday night, taking full control from start to finish. The No. 7-ranked Minutemen (17-8) dictated the pace of the contest early, limiting the No. 19-ranked Falcons (7-14) with disciplined play.
UMass’ biggest test came while up 2-0 within the first minute of the second period. Bentley center Dillon Benoit slipped behind the net, won a fight for the puck and snuck a shot in behind Minutemen goalkeeper Nick Hubbard to attempt a comeback for the road team.
However, now up just one, UMass did not waver. Minutemen forward Dom Boccelli responded four minutes later with a score of his own to go back up two goals, punching in a shot off a ricochet that bounced off the pads of Falcons goalie Jake Schunke. To close the second frame, UMass’ Matt Carrara corralled the puck in a cluster of black uniforms and quickly turned to rifle a snapshot past the goaltender for another score.
“It’s a matter of [us] trying to focus on playing smart hockey … good fundamentals all of the time,” head coach Skip Welch said. “The energy is going to ebb and flow throughout a game, but you have to play smart the whole game.”
The Minutemen entered Saturday’s game looking to recover after a loss to No. 13 Boston University, emphasizing discipline and consistency after letting momentum slip away in that matchup.
“[It was] a good bounce-back win,” Welch said. “We had [Boston University] … [that game was] a hard-fought battle. Unfortunately, we came out on the short side of it, so it was good to come back tonight.”
UMass started slow on offense in the first period, posting a shot on goal disparity of five to Bentley’s 12 halfway through the frame. As the opening period progressed, its offense simply couldn’t slip the puck past the Falcons’ defensemen to create scoring opportunities.
Despite the stall, the Minutemen remained resilient, and Sam Lally eventually put UMass on the scoreboard. After receiving a pass across the ice from Ethan Porter, the forward, positioned laterally from the side of the goalpost, delivered a wrist shot that bounced into the net off Schunke’s backside. Minutemen forward Elias Holunga followed with a goal two minutes later, slipping the puck between a defenseman’s skates and releasing a snapshot above the goaltender’s left shoulder to put UMass up 2-0.
“Bentley never gave up, and so we just had to continue to play our brand of hockey,” Welch said. “It’s tough to play us when we’re firing on all cylinders.”
Welch continuously mentioned the Minutemen playing their “brand of hockey,” which seems to be the recipe to the team’s success. To the head coach, that brand is a “very aggressive” play style, where players forecheck hard, control the puck exceptionally, cycle low and play fierce.
That identity was evident in the second period, with three penalties being assessed to each team during that frame. The physical stretch of play tested UMass, but the Minutemen penalty-kill unit successfully suppressed all three Bentley power plays.
“[The penalty kill unit is] stellar,” Welch said. “They’re very aggressive, they’re smart and they read plays. Unfortunately, they’ve had a lot of work and a lot of practice this season, so they’ve [become] very good.”
Early in the outing, the Falcons had a chance to take an early lead, but Hubbard made an eye-popping play, extending his left pad on a one-on-one breakaway to block a Bentley shot attempt. The save prevented the Falcons from establishing control early on.
The goalkeeper, who the team calls “Hub,” is new to the roster as of this spring semester with only a couple of practices under his belt, according to Welch. His head coach labeled his play Saturday night as “outstanding” and “fantastic”.
Hubbard’s performance solidified a complete effort for UMass, who maintained control and closed out a convincing victory that sets the tone for the remainder of the season.
The Minutemen will travel on the road to face off against No. 4 Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute on Sunday, Feb. 1 at 12 p.m., before returning to the Mullins Center Community Rink on Feb. 6 against No. 8 Connecticut College. UMass fell 3-2 to RPI back in November.
Andrew Guindon can be reached at [email protected] and followed on X @NestPgs.
