TEMPE – The No. 12 Arizona State ice hockey team (11-3-3) battled it out with Dartmouth (2-3-5) in a comeback effort to earn a 4-4 tie, the third tie this season and the first-ever in Mullett Arena. The Sun Devils ultimately went on to win the shootout with Lukas Sillinger's goal.
ASU grabbed the first goal of the tilt as Matthew Kopperud scored his 30th career power play goal five minutes into the game. Despite grabbing the early lead, the Sun Devils went down 3-1 to close out the opening period. Benji Eckerle helped shift the momentum in the second period when he bodied a Big Green player and still kept the puck in the zone to set up Cole Gordon's goal. Captain Tyler Gratton tallied the game-tying goal halfway through the third period.
Eckerle earned his second point of the night with a goal of his own in response to an early third period goal from Dartmouth to tie the game again.
"He (Benji Eckerle) was great. He put us on his back. We had a really good start. The first seven-to-eight minutes were really good, it felt like we were gonna play downhill and really get going and our defense just kept coughing the puck up. Benji pulled us out of it and made some big plays and just brought the energy we needed to get through and show the resiliency to tie it back up and get out of here," said head coach Greg Powers.
ASU goaltender TJ Semptimphelter shut down all three shootout attempts from Dartmouth to help complete the shootout win after Lukas Sillinger's goal. Semptimphelter also logged 20 saves on the night.
GAME NOTABLES
"I know our guys are in there and they feel like we lost because they don't like to do anything but win at Mullett and neither do I. So, we need to be better tomorrow. We will be better tomorrow. So will they, they played well tonight. They played hard and we're gonna have to be better to get a win," Powers continued.
ASU remains at No. 16 in the Pairwise rankings which determines the field of 16 teams for the NCAA Tournament.
The Sun Devils look to claim outright victory on Saturday, Dec. 9 at 5 p.m. MST at Mullett Arena to complete the two-game series against the Dartmouth Big Green.
GAME BREAKDOWN
First Period
ASU got an early advantage from an interference call on Dartmouth five minutes into the game. The special teams unit came out in full force with Matthew Kopperud scoring his 30th career power play goal with assists from Tyler Gratton and Lukas Sillinger. Despite the early lead, Dartmouth was able to find the back of the net three times to close out the first period with a 3-1 lead.
Second Period
Dartmouth came out hard to start the second period. While the Big Green thought they added a goal to their tally, the call was reversed due to goaltender interference. The Sun Devils were able to reset and steal momentum back, doubling their shot total from the first. Towards the final minutes of the period, Benji Eckerle laid out a Dartmouth defender to keep the puck in the zone and fought to get the puck towards the goal where he found Cole Gordon who slotted one past the goalie to make it 3-2. The Sun Devils went back on the power play advantage after two back-to-back penalties and Tyler Gratton lit the lamp off of assists from Lukas Sillinger and Tim Lovell to bring the score to 3-3.
Third Period
Despite Dartmouth striking first in the period to grab back the lead, Eckerle came down the left side of the ice to slot it through the five-hole to tie the game, 4-4, ultimately sending the game to extra minutes.
Despite outshooting the Big Green in overtime, the game remained at 4-4, sending the opening game of the series to a shootout. ASU found the back of the net on its third attempt with Sillinger. TJ Semptimphelter made his third consecutive stop to give the Sun Devils the shootout win.
ASU grabbed the first goal of the tilt as Matthew Kopperud scored his 30th career power play goal five minutes into the game. Despite grabbing the early lead, the Sun Devils went down 3-1 to close out the opening period. Benji Eckerle helped shift the momentum in the second period when he bodied a Big Green player and still kept the puck in the zone to set up Cole Gordon's goal. Captain Tyler Gratton tallied the game-tying goal halfway through the third period.
Eckerle earned his second point of the night with a goal of his own in response to an early third period goal from Dartmouth to tie the game again.
An assist AND a goal tonight?? ??@BenjiEckerle19 /// #BeTheTradition pic.twitter.com/RRePAlF9d0
— Sun Devil Hockey (@SunDevilHockey) December 9, 2023
"He (Benji Eckerle) was great. He put us on his back. We had a really good start. The first seven-to-eight minutes were really good, it felt like we were gonna play downhill and really get going and our defense just kept coughing the puck up. Benji pulled us out of it and made some big plays and just brought the energy we needed to get through and show the resiliency to tie it back up and get out of here," said head coach Greg Powers.
ASU goaltender TJ Semptimphelter shut down all three shootout attempts from Dartmouth to help complete the shootout win after Lukas Sillinger's goal. Semptimphelter also logged 20 saves on the night.
GAME NOTABLES
- ASU won its first shootout in Mullett Arena tonight. The team moves to 4-0-1 in overtime play in Tempe.
- The special teams unit came out strong with two power play goals and went five-for-five on the penalty kill.
- Ryan Alexander was dominant on the dot, winning 70.6 percent of faceoff opportunities. As a team ASU won 55 percent of the game's faceoffs.
- Brandon Tabakin is now +12 on the season, tied for 18th in the nation.
"I know our guys are in there and they feel like we lost because they don't like to do anything but win at Mullett and neither do I. So, we need to be better tomorrow. We will be better tomorrow. So will they, they played well tonight. They played hard and we're gonna have to be better to get a win," Powers continued.
Silly does it ??
— Sun Devil Hockey (@SunDevilHockey) December 9, 2023
ASU wins the shootout@lsillinger /// #BeTheTradition pic.twitter.com/6VF4nJu7FB
ASU remains at No. 16 in the Pairwise rankings which determines the field of 16 teams for the NCAA Tournament.
The Sun Devils look to claim outright victory on Saturday, Dec. 9 at 5 p.m. MST at Mullett Arena to complete the two-game series against the Dartmouth Big Green.
GAME BREAKDOWN
First Period
ASU got an early advantage from an interference call on Dartmouth five minutes into the game. The special teams unit came out in full force with Matthew Kopperud scoring his 30th career power play goal with assists from Tyler Gratton and Lukas Sillinger. Despite the early lead, Dartmouth was able to find the back of the net three times to close out the first period with a 3-1 lead.
Second Period
Dartmouth came out hard to start the second period. While the Big Green thought they added a goal to their tally, the call was reversed due to goaltender interference. The Sun Devils were able to reset and steal momentum back, doubling their shot total from the first. Towards the final minutes of the period, Benji Eckerle laid out a Dartmouth defender to keep the puck in the zone and fought to get the puck towards the goal where he found Cole Gordon who slotted one past the goalie to make it 3-2. The Sun Devils went back on the power play advantage after two back-to-back penalties and Tyler Gratton lit the lamp off of assists from Lukas Sillinger and Tim Lovell to bring the score to 3-3.
Third Period
Despite Dartmouth striking first in the period to grab back the lead, Eckerle came down the left side of the ice to slot it through the five-hole to tie the game, 4-4, ultimately sending the game to extra minutes.
Despite outshooting the Big Green in overtime, the game remained at 4-4, sending the opening game of the series to a shootout. ASU found the back of the net on its third attempt with Sillinger. TJ Semptimphelter made his third consecutive stop to give the Sun Devils the shootout win.