Jackson scores in shootout to give Tech extra point vs. LSSU
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HOUGHTON -- When Michigan Tech and Lake Superior State went to a shootout on Oct. 14, Jake Jackson's name was called and he came up empty.
This time, the junior forward wasn't going to let that happen. When he took the ice, sporting a new set of stitches on the bridge of his nose -- thanks to a hit against Ferris State -- Jackson was locked in.
"I went in the shootout and had the same spot open as last time," he said. "But this time I went down, gave a little better fake and shot it low left."
The puck slid by Lake Superior State goaltender Mareks Mitens, and gave Tech a 4-3 shootout win and an extra WCHA point in the standings Saturday, at the MacInnes Student Ice Arena
The Huskies have gone 4-1-1 (Saturday's game counts as a tie since Tech didn't win in overtime action) in their last six games, but head coach Joe Shawhan was frustrated with their play this weekend.
"If individuals on each line are not completely there on the energy side of it, on the compete side of it, with their brains engaged, then we are just an average hockey team," he said. "We go back to what we were in games five, six, seven, eight, nine. This weekend's games to me were very similar to those games when we were trying to grow. It felt like it just wasn't clicking ... I think it was a little step back in overall team play."
To start play, Tech certainly didn't look like a team that has been playing its best hockey.
The Huskies turned the puck over in front of freshman goalie Robbie Beydoun and then Brendan McKay gave the Lakers a 1-0 advantage after 1:19 had expired.
LSSU controlled play early with a 5-1 shot advantage in the first four minutes. But as the period progressed, Tech became more aggressive and play evened out. Still, the Huskies couldn't net a goal, and with 7:28 left in the second, LSSU scored again.
In a bizarre play, J.T. Henke won a face-off by popping the puck up before it soared over the head of Beydoun and under the top bar to give the Lakers a 2-0 lead.
Tech continued to get opportunities, but Mitens was strong in the net with 34 saves, and his defense gave solid support. The Huskies struggled to get creative with the puck, something Shawhan has been preaching throughout the season.
"This weekend it felt like the coaches’ voice was a little too much, and by voice I mean our involvement trying to get a little bit more out of certain guys and trying to get those lines that have been playing well to continue to play well," he said. "It just seemed like we were having to coach too much and tell them exactly what we wanted them to do. That creativity was lost a little bit."
Creative or not, Tech eventually found a spark, and by the time the second period closed, the teams were locked in a 2-2 tie.
At the 5:54 mark Dylan Steman netted his second goal of the season when freshman Greyson Reitmeier flipped the puck back to Steman, who fired it past Mitens.
Then, with four minutes left in the period, Gage Torrel was cited with contact to the head after he took down Seamus Donahue. The freshman was slow to get up, kneeling on the ice with his head down, and several Huskies and Lakers went at it before being broken up.
Donahue eventually returned to the game and Torrel was penalized with a five-minute major. One minute later, Jackson was whistled for interference, and Tech and LSSU went into a 4-on-4 situation. The Huskies managed to score their second goal of the night when a face-off between Steman and Diego Cuglietta bounced to Dane Birks who fired a one-timer to even the score at 2.
"They're obviously not going to quit and pack it in," LSSU head coach Damon Whitten said. "They have won a lot of hockey games over the years, so they are going to keep pushing, and their speed challenged us and they took the momentum."
Tech eventually took a 3-2 lead in the third period when captain Brent Baltus scored his seventh goal of the season on an assist from Jackson.
But like Tech, LSSU refused to fold, and with 42 seconds left the Lakers emptied their net and Anthony Nellis scored to force overtime.
Neither team could score in the extra time, with both goalies coming up with big saves, but once the contest went to a shootout, Jackson knew it was in the bag. Beydoun saved all three LSSU attempts in the shootout.
"I know If we go to a shootout and Robbie is playing we are going to win," he said. "If we can put one in the net, we are going to win. We do a shootout every Thursday and it is hard to score against Robbie. I wasn't worried about Robbie, even in his first shootout, he was calm and composed."
After two weeks off, the Huskies (9-7-5, 7-6-5 WCHA) return to action on Jan. 1, at the GLI in Detroit against Michigan State. The puck drops at 2:27 p.m.
– – –
LSSU 1 1 1 0 0 -- 3
Tech 0 2 1 0 0 -- 3
First period
LSSU- Brendan McKay (Chase Gamelin), 1:19, 1-0.
Second period
LSSU- J.T. Henke, 12:31, 2-0.
Tech- Dylan Steman (Greyson Reitmeier, Justin Misiak), 2-1.
Tech- Dane Birks (Steman), 17:32, 2-2.
Third period
Tech- Brent Baltus (Jake Jackson), 15:54, 3-2.
LSSU- Anthony Nellis (Tyler Anderson, Ian Johnston), 19:18, 3-3.
First overtime
None.
Second overtime
None.
Shootout
LSSU- Lukas Kaelble: stopped.
Tech- Mitch Reinke: stopped.
LSSU- Henke: stopped.
Tech- Steman: stopped.
LSSU- Nellis: stopped.
Tech- Jackson: goal.
Saves
LSSU: Mareks Mitens 34; Tech: Robbie Beydoun 25.
Penalties
LSSU 5/21; Tech: 3/6.
Power plays
LSSU: 0/1; Tech: 0/3.