Men’s Hockey Holds Off Salem State, 7-5

EAST BOSTON – In a back-and-forth battle with Salem State, Suffolk men's hockey came out on the right side of a 7-5 decision Saturday afternoon at Louis E. Porrazzo Memorial Skating Rink. 

THE BASICS
SCORE: Suffolk 7 | Salem State 5
RECORDS: Suffolk (1-1-0) | Salem State (0-1-0)  

HOW IT HAPPENED
Both teams potted a pair of pucks over the first 20 minutes to keep things leveled at 2-all at the first intermission.  

Joe O'Brien lit the lamp first with help from Devin Lowe and Carter Schram on Suffolk's first possession 22 seconds into the action. The Vikings responded with two goals in a 43-second span less than four minutes later to force the Rms to play catch-up, which it did at the 11:08 mark when O'Brien set-up PJ Donahue at the midway point of the opening period. 

Out of the locker room, the Rams poured in four unanswered strikes over a 6:31 span. Lowe, Schram, Cody Sealey and Daniel McKiernan all supplied one goal in that Suffolk scoring frenzy. 

Salem State managed to take advantage of a power play thanks to Landyn Greatorex with 29 seconds left on the clock before the second intermission to cut the deficit down to 6-3.  

Momentum shifted in the Vikings favor in the third. The visitors struck twice -- first at the 6:20 mark with a shorthanded goal by Carson Whitman and again at the 14:55 mark with an unassisted goal from Luke Day -- to make things interesting and chip Suffolk's lead down to one with just over five minutes left in regulation.  

In a last-ditch effort to even things up, Salem State pulled Aaron Mercer from his post in net. Kannon Flageolle stood up to the challenge and his defense backed him up. The freshman goalie made a save and Lowe blocked an SSU shot down the stretch to maintain the advantage.  

To help preserve the victory, Schrawm put away and empty netter with 11 seconds remaining for the 7-5 final.

NETMIINDER NOTES

• Flageolle finished with 35 saves in the victory. 
• Mercer took the loss with a 32-save effort.  

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

• O'Brien produced four points on one goal and three handouts. 
• Schram (2g, 1a) and Lowe (1g, 2a) finished with three points apiece. 
• Sealey supplied two points with an evenly divided stat line of one goal and one assist. 
• Donahue and McKeirnan scored one goal each. 
• Berry, Havens, MacNeil and Milso had one assist apiece. 
• Salem State outshot Suffolk, 40-38.
• The Rams went 1-for-5 on the power play, while the Vikings put together a 2-for-6 power play effort. 
• Suffolk won the face off battle, 40-28.   

NOTEWORTHY

• The seven goals scored are the most in the Shawn McEachern era. 
• The seven goals are the most tallies for the blue-and-gold since it netted in eight tallies in an 8-4 triumph over Vermont State Castleton Jan. 11, 2020. 
• Suffolk won its fourth straight game versus Salem State. 
• The Rams moved to 4-2-2 all-time against the Vikings. 
• Suffolk is unbeaten, 2-0-0, against SSU under McEachern's guidance. 
• At home, Suffolk is 3-1-1 versus the Vikings. 
• Flageolle logged his first collegiate win in net. 
• Flageolle registered a career-high 35 saves in his first collegiate start. 
• Lowe tied a record-high three points. It is the third time in the graduate student's career he has racked up three points, first since a 3-assist effort in a 4-4 stalemate at Western New England, Jan. 26, 2022. 
• Lowe and O'Brien have contributed to the offensive output in both games this season.
• O'Brien found the back of the net for the first time in his collegiate career and dished out a career-high three helpers. 
• Berry (1a), Havens (1a), McKiernan (1g), Milso (1a), Schram (2g, 1a), Sealey (1g, 1a) recorded their first collegiate points. 
• MacNeil (1a) notched his first point of the season. 
• Donahue found the back of the net for the first time this season, second time in his career and first since a 3-3 draw with Curry Nov. 12, 2021. 

WHAT'S NEXT?
Suffolk starts its Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) calendar next weekend, Nov. 3-4, when it faces Salve Regina in a home-and-home series. The Rams will first travel to Middleton, Rhode Island, Friday for a 7 p.m., battle before hosting the Seahawks Saturday at 2:50 p.m.