The No. 6 ranked Grand Valley State University Division III men’s hockey team split consecutive home and away matchups against the No. 1 ranked Hope College Dutch. After losing 4-2 on the road at Hope on Friday, Jan. 31, GVSU returned to Griff’s Georgetown Ice Arena on Saturday, Feb. 1. At home, the Lakers shut out the Dutch 3-0 and broke Hope’s nine-game winning streak.
Waves of orange and blue filled the stands, as both teams’ friends and family members gathered around for the puck drop. The energy in the building was contagious, awaiting the intense local battle, as GVSU and Hope are no strangers to one another.
With a short recovery period entering Saturday’s game, the Lakers were forced to use their home advantage to secure a win and eliminate penalties. During Friday’s game, the Lakers had six penalties for 12 minutes in the box. Struggling all season with penalty minutes, the Lakers identified the issue in the hopes of learning from it.
“We really stressed that we want to stay out of the box tonight,” said senior defenseman Sam Gorno. “It’s a rivalry, so we let some things get to our head, and it sets us back.”
The Lakers backtracked on their game objective, as they received the first penalty of the night for roughing, only 53 seconds into the game. Vengeful from the previous night, the penalty was just the beginning of a competitive match. Eager to take the lead, junior defenseman Sam Molin banked a shot at 12:04, assisted by senior captain Jack Myers and sophomore forward Noah Foucha. GVSU had possession of the puck for the majority of the time, seeking to eliminate any chances for the Dutch. Keeping up the momentum, the Lakers dominated the offensive zone, allowing junior assistant captain Steve Myers to bury the puck in the back of the net at 9:48, assisted by Molin and freshman forward Jackson Hare. After the second goal, the Lakers laid out defensive hits and focused on the back-check. Both teams had quick releases and scrambled for the puck in the neutral zone with a lot of back-and-forth play.
GVSU’s sophomore goaltender Bobby Masters made seven saves, with a perfect shot percentage in the first period. The Lakers’ offense produced six shots on goal, two of which placed the Lakers ahead, 2-0 at the end of the first period.
Steve Myers noted that it was a challenge to play back-to-back games, especially against the No. 1 ranked team in the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA).
“Every time we go to Hope, they bring a whole student section, so it is a really tough place to play,” said Steve Myers. “We just didn’t get the right bounces yesterday (in terms of momentum and the puck), but tonight, that was a whole different story. The (crowd) was the most packed I’ve ever seen it and that helped.”
Entering the second period, the Lakers carried over the high intensity from the first period, as their first shot was on goal. Five minutes into the period, both teams received penalties, which generated 4-on-4 hockey, but it didn’t produce a goal on either end. The Lakers’ worst enemy in the period was the penalty box, as the team had three additional penalties, which almost closed the gap. At 3:05, Hope rushed GVSU’s defensive zone. The puck found the back of the net, but it was called off for a high stick tip in the goal. With a lucky break for the Lakers, the Dutch were antsy to close the margin. With only five seconds left in the period, junior forward Braden Nielsen buried the Lakers’ final goal, assisted by Steve Myers.
Down 3-0, Hope entered the third period hot and heavy by testing GVSU’s defensive zone. Each team traded penalties, but Hope was unable to break down the Lakers’ penalty kill. With puck possession at the last minute of play, the Lakers were rewarded with the crowd’s roar and a victory.
After 60 minutes of play, Hope outshot the Lakers 22-19 but were unable to come out on top, due to GVSU finding the back of the net. However, despite the Lakers’ objective to stay out of the box, the team had seven total penalties to Hope’s six.
GVSU is currently ranked No. 6 in ACHA’s Division III league and continues to climb the rankings. The team focuses on certain game aspects, such as penalty minutes, overall chemistry and holding each other accountable.
“What we can work on is (that) sometimes we love each other too much, and we’re afraid to hold each other accountable,” said Jack Myers. “We’ve had a couple of games earlier this year that have been shaky, but this past weekend, we were able to pick it up, which I’m not surprised (by considering) the group we have.”
The GVSU men’s Division III hockey team is more than halfway through the regular season, and boasts a 14-5 record. The Lakers will host Michigan State for their last home game on Feb. 7.