Huskies hockey sweeps Nanooks to improve to 5-1
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HOUGHTON -- With a 3-0 shutout win Friday and a 4-2 win Saturday, the No. 14 Michigan Tech Huskies hockey team swept the visiting Alaska Nanooks this season at the MacInnes Student Ice Arena.
With the wins, the Huskies improved to 5-1 overall, and finished with non-conference play until the Great Lakes Invitational in December.
Huskies 4, Nanooks 2
Just 4:37 into the third period, the Nanooks jumped ahead 2-1, and the Huskies had to dig deep. Two goals from sophomore defenseman Luke Shipley changed the course of the game, and the Huskies emerged with a 4-2 victory.
"Just really proud of the resolve today," said Huskies coach Bill Muckalt. "We found a way. The maturity, when maybe things aren’t going our way, or maybe not getting a call that we want, we just stuck with it, and just stayed focused. The resilience of this group, the maturity and growth in this group, just says a lot about the buy-in.
"To be down 2-1 in the third period, and to not quit. We finally get an opportunity and a power play. We bury it. Go up 3- 2, and then find a way to close it out at the end."
Muckalt felt that Alaska gave the Huskies everything they could handle.
"Give them credit," he said. "I thought their goaltender played great. He made some big stops in the second period. They’re a competitive group, but these games stack up at the end of the year with the NPI, and non-conference.
"The sweep in college, it’s hard. It’s a big deal."
Trailing by a goal, the Huskies were awarded a third-period power play and took advantage when Shipley got a pass at the right point from junior forward Giovanni Morneau. Shipley backed along the blue line until had a straight shot to the net and wristed a shot that beat Nanooks' goaltender Tyler Shea at 7:05.
"I think I got the puck from 'G' (Morneau), and our plan on the power play has been to kind of shoot and shoot often," said Shipley "I think we had a good screen. I haven’t seen it, (but) I think there was a good screen in front. I made a good shot and the goalie didn’t see it."
Shipley, who scored two goals as a freshman last season at Massachusetts-Lowell, scored his second for the Black and Gold just over seven minutes later when he drove to the net and buried a wrist shot off a pass from sophomore forward Matthew Van Blaricom at 14:11.
"I think I was all around it tonight," Shipley said. "I think I hit the post in the second, and gave it a couple other good looks in the second. So, I think it was building. I think I’ve had my chances coming, and it finally went in.
"I think I just needed to break the seal, and hopefully there’s more to come."
Alaska pulled Shea with 3:32 remaining in the contest, and the Huskies had a pair of looks a the empty net that they did not bury before sophomore forward Carson Birnie sealed the win from center ice with a wrist shot into the empty net at 19:22.
The Huskies scored first at 14:51 of the opening period when sophomore forward Noah Reinhart scored on a wrist shot from the slot. He had gotten the puck in the left corner from sophomore forward Teydon Trembecky. Reinhart fed the puck to co-captain Max Koskipirtti, but Koskipirtti could not get the shot he wanted, so he fed it back to Reinhart, who buried it.
The Nanooks evened things at 11:55 of the middle period when Jack Rogers scored. Then, early in the third, Rylen Roersma gave Alaska its only lead of the weekend.
Shea finished with 29 saves in the loss for Alaska. Alternate captain Owen Bartoszkiewicz made 30 saves for the Huskies.
Huskies 3, Nanooks 0
The Huskies shut out Alaska 3-0 Friday. Bartoszkiewicz stopped all 30 shots he faced for his first shutout of the season and the fifth of his career.
“We played really well over the last two periods, and the penalty kill was big for us tonight--especially on the major,” Muckalt said. “Their goaltender played well, and we had to work for our goals tonight.
“We need to have a better start to the game tomorrow and manage the puck better. We also have to be a little bit more patient on offense, but we played well throughout the lineup tonight.”
Van Blaricom opened the scoring 13:17 into the first period with his fourth of the season--all at the Mac. Morneau chipped it off the boards to himself and found Van Blaricom alone on the goaltender. He made a quick move to his backhand to get the crowd of 3,358 on its feet. Junior forward Tom Leppa also assisted on Van Blaricom’s sixth career goal.
The Huskies were buzzing early in the second period and then had to kill off a 5:00 major. Immediately after the penalty, Tech continued the offensive pressure, and junior forward Conner Roulette made it 2-0 with his second of the season. Sophomore defenseman Kalem Parker sent the puck towards the net, and co-captain Isaac Gordon got a stick on it, before Roulette tapped it in at the side of the net.
In the third, junior defenseman Tyler Miller ripped in his first of the season for a 3-0 lead at 8:02. Freshman defenseman Morgan Brady--in his first NCAA game--worked the puck down to Reinhart. He moved it out to the point to Miller for a quick wrist shot and his fourth career goal.
Bartoszkiewicz stopped 11 shots in the first, eight in the second, and 11 in the third. Tyler Shea made 36 saves on the other end of the ice.
Both teams were 0 for 2 on the power play. Tech held a 25-23 edge in faceoffs.
Hall of Fame
The 2026 Michigan Tech Sports Hall of Fame class was introduced on the ice during the first intermission Saturday night.
Former hockey players Colin Murphy, Darcy Way, and Wayne Weller were inducted Friday evening in a ceremony at the Memorial Union Building.
Up next
The Huskies hit the road to open their CCHA schedule this weekend. They will face Ferris State in Big Rapids.