Déjà vu: Men’s Hockey Shuts Out JWU, 1-0, Again

PAWTUCKET, R.I. – For the second time in as many meetings and nights, Suffolk men's hockey snuck by Johnson & Wales by a 1-0 margin. The shutout completed a Conference of New England home-and-home series sweep of the Wildcats and was behind the lone goal by Ryan Webb and a 17-save effort by CJ Hapward.  

THE BASICS
SCORE: Suffolk 1 | Johnson & Wales 0
RECORDS: Suffolk (6-4-2, 3-4-1 CNE) | Johnson & Wales (4-6-1, 2-6-1 CNE)  

HOW IT HAPPENED
After a scoreless first period, Suffolk broke through in the second. Webb potted a power play puck with help from Michael McEachern and Nick Liotino to give the Rams the 1-0 upper hand at the 4:43 mark. 

The Rams managed to maintain that margin the rest of the way thanks to Hapward's perfection in net. Following Webb's goal, Hapward denied all 12 shots he faced to preserve the shutout.  

NETMINDER NOTES

• Hapward had 17 saves in the victory. 
• Jake Inzirillo notched 34 stops in the setback.  

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

• Webb netted the lone goal of the night. 
• McEachern and Liotino recorded one assist apiece. 
• Suffolk outshot Johnson & Wales, 35-17. 
• The Rams went 1-for-4 on the power play. 
• Suffolk skated off three penalties.
• The Wildcats won the face-off battle, 34-28.  

NOTEWORTHY

• Suffolk defeated Johnson & Wales in back-to-back battles for the first time since stringing four wins in a row from Feb. 10, 2018-Jan. 24, 2020. 
• The Rams are now 10-23-3 all-time against JWU. 
• On the road, the Rams are 6-10-2 versus the Wildcats. 
• Suffolk is undefeated against JWU in the Shawn McEachern era. 
• The Rams have shutout the Wildcats in back-to-back battles for the first time. 
• Suffolk kept JWU off the scoreboard for the second time in program history and in as many meetings. 
• Including tonight's decision there has been five cleansheets in the all-time series dating back to 2001. Suffolk is now 2-3-0 in such decisions. 
• Hapward had his third shutout of the season and fourth of his Suffolk career. 
• Webb has produced a point in three straight games. IN that span he has three goals and one assist. 
• McEachern has logged appoint in back-to-back games. He has notched one goal and one assist in that stretch. 
• Liotino dished out his third assist of the season.  

WHAT'S NEXT?
Suffolk will rest for finals and the holidays before it flies to the Sunshine State for the Tampa College Hockey Invitational Jan. 3-4. The Rams are scheduled to  open the tournament versus Albertus Magnus Friday at 4:30 p.m. at the AdventHealth Center Ice.