In a back-and-forth game, the St. Thomas men’s hockey team tied St. Olaf 2-2 Friday night at home.
The majority of the first period was a heated battle for the net and good ice position. Harder hits ensued, as each team seemed determined to put the other on the ice.
The physical play continued in the second period as the Tommies kept pressuring the Oles. St. Thomas fired shot after shot at the Oles’ goalie and kept St. Olaf away from the Tommies’ net. The Tommies outshot the Oles 43-24 in the game.
Coach Jeff Boeser stressed hard work as a recipe for success.
“We have to get pucks deep, and we can’t have turnovers,” Boeser said.
Limiting the turnovers paid off for St. Thomas when junior forward Robbie Phillip found senior captain Andrew Kappers for a second-period goal.
“It started with a good breakout,” Kappers said. “We made a good pass, and I just drove the net hard.”
Kappers’ seventh goal of the season gave St. Thomas some momentum, and a strong penalty kill led to several scoring chances even while short-handed. The period ended with the Tommies amassing 25 shots on goal compared to the Oles’ 15.
In the third period, Oles’ junior Peter Rohn and senior Isak Tranvik fed sophomore Ross Trousdale in front of Tommie goalie Tyrone Simcoe for an early score. The goal led to another tussle that took place in front of the St. Thomas student section.
St. Olaf junior Austin Wetmore continued the big period for the Oles, scoring at the 10:08 mark in the third period to put the Oles up 2-1.
With time running out, Tommie sophomore Riley Horgan scored an unassisted goal on a breakaway to tie the game at 2-2.
The Tommies and Oles were unable to find the net for the rest of the game and left the ice with the score stuck at a stalemate.
Boeser said they will use the same strategy for the Saturday night rematch in Northfield.
“We don’t change for any team,” Boeser said. “This is our style, the way we play.”
The Tommies are 11-9-2 on the season and 6-5-2 in the MIAC, and are in third place in the conference. The Tommies’ regular season ends Feb. 12.
Drew Landon can be reached Land7305@stthomas.edu.