Box Score HOOKSETT, N.H. – Freshman Kyle Valliere (Goffstown, N.H.) tallied his first career hat trick, but Franklin Pierce University overcame a four-goal deficit in the third period to salvage a 6-6 tie with Southern New Hampshire University in Northeast-10 Conference ice hockey action at the Ice Den on Tuesday. The Penmen move to 9-11-2 overall and finish 3-7-1 in league play. The Ravens are now 3-17-1 and 2-5-1 in the NE-10.
After Brett Oldaker gave Franklin Pierce a 1-0 lead 3:23 into the first, senior Dane Caracino (Belmont, Mass.) responded just over 10 minutes later. Caracino gathered a loose puck on the leftwing boards and carried it into the Ravens' end. He threw a shot on goal and after Tom McGuckin made the initial save, the rebound bounced off a Franklin Pierce defender and into the back of the net to make it 1-1.
The Penmen grabbed the lead late in the opening period when Valliere potted his first of the night. Freshman Kevin Lorcher (Rouen, France) worked the puck loose in the right corner of the offensive end before senior John Humphrey (Charlestown, Mass.) kept the puck in the zone. Humphrey then found Valliere in the slot, and he buried his seventh of the year with 45 seconds left before intermission to give Southern New Hampshire a 2-1 edge.
Valliere opened up the second by doubling the Penmen lead. Senior Joe Danilchuk (Medford, Mass.) corralled a loose puck in the neutral zone a sent a pass up to Lorcher at the Franklin Pierce blue line. Lorcher dropped a pass off for Valliere, and the rookie walked in, toe dragged a defender and rifled a shot to the top corner to extend the lead to 3-1, 1:47 into the period.
Sophomore Jay Sylvia (Acushnet, Mass.) made it a 4-1 game midway through the second when he collected his 10th of the season. After Lorcher kept the puck in at the blue line, he fed Valliere at the leftwing faceoff circle. Valliere fired a shot on goal, and Sylvia crashed the net and punched in the rebound. Less than two minutes later, Valliere gave Southern New Hampshire a 5-1 advantage when he banged home a loose puck to complete his hat trick.
Jonathan Huan brought the Ravens to within three at 5-2 with 4:42 remaining in the second stanza before Humprey regained the four-goal lead 21 seconds later. Junior Joe Collins (Mansfield, Mass.) intercepted a clearing pass at the top of the Franklin Pierce zone and slid a pass over to Caracino. The senior captain one-timed the pass to the far-side post, where Humphrey was waiting to tip it to the back of the net, making it 6-2 at the end of two.
In the third, the Ravens scored four-straight goals to force overtime. Brendan Glynn started the run 6:01 into the final frame before Oldaker trimmed the Penmen lead to a pair 3:29 later. After Matt Batis made it 6-5 with 8:33 to go in regulation, Oldaker tallied his third of the night to even things up with eight seconds to play.
Valliere finished with three goals and an assist to lead Southern New Hampshire. Humphrey added a goal and a pair of helpers and Lorcher chipped in with three assists in front of freshman Matthew MacInnis (Arlington, Texas), who registered 27 saves in goal for the Penmen.
Oldaker matched Valliere with four points on three goals and an assist, while Taylor Fletcher and Evan Marek dished out two assists apiece. McGuckin and Kyle Moran combined to make 30 saves between the pipes for Franklin Pierce
Southern New Hampshire returns to the ice on Saturday when it hosts SUNY Canton at the Verizon Wireless Arena at 6:30 p.m. The Ravens resume their schedule on Thursday when they welcome Stonehill College to Jason Ritchie Ice Arena at 7 p.m.
Don't miss Penmen ice hockey at the Verizon Wireless Arena on Saturday, February 14 at 6:30 p.m. For the latest on Southern New Hampshire University athletics, follow the Penmen via social media on Twitter, Facebook, Youtube and Instagram. Sign up to receive text message alerts and email newsletters about your favorite Penmen teams here:http://www.snhupenmen.com/list-signup
