The Northeastern men’s hockey team (2-7-0, 0-7-0 HE) played back-to-back games against No. 12 University of New Hampshire (5-2-1, 3-1-1) last weekend, falling to the Wildcats 4-2 at home Nov. 17 and 4-0 on the road the next day. This marked the seventh straight loss for the Huskies, the first time the team lost its first seven conference games in program history. 

Despite outshooting the Wildcats 28-23 in Friday’s contest, the Huskies struggled to connect.

The first period in Friday night’s home game opened with early wide shots from both teams. Freshman goalie Cameron Whitehead made several saves after facing multiple attempts at the goal in the first few minutes. The teams went back and forth across the ice until an opportunity came for Northeastern midway through the period. 

An elbowing penalty from Wildcats senior defender Luke Reid brought the Huskies into a two-minute power play. Senior forward Gunnarwolfe Fontaine and sophomore forward Cameron Lund both took shots but missed wide or were blocked by the Wildcats. As the advantage came to a close and Reid returned to the ice, Northeastern failed to take advantage of the power play. 

Neither team could find the net the rest of the period, but Northeastern looked strong and gained confidence going into the second period as the score stood at 0-0.  

Both teams took early shots to open the second, and three minutes in, Northeastern finally connected.

Freshman forward Andy Moore passed the puck to senior forward Alex Campbell, who followed it to the left side of the net and shoved it in, flying right past New Hampshire sophomore goalie Tyler Muszelik. 

But the Wildcats didn’t let Northeastern have the lead for long; it took less than a minute for them to even the score as junior defender Jack Babbage scored his first collegiate goal. 

Sophomore forward Morgan Winters came from behind the net and passed the puck to Babbage, who took a long shot that made its way past a screen and Whitehead, tying it up 1-1.  

The Huskies got an opportunity to reclaim the lead after a Wildcat penalty for tripping started another two-minute power play for Northeastern in the fifth minute. But once again, the Huskies needed help to get everything going, with blocked or missed shots flying left and right. 

In the 11th minute, the Wildcats took the lead. Sophomore forward Kristaps Skrasitins stole the puck from the Huskies and made his way down the ice before passing it to sophomore forward Cy LeClerc, who found the back of the net for a shorthanded goal. Whitehead was left alone as the Huskies’ defense struggled to regroup down the ice after Skrasitins’ move, putting the Wildcats up 2-1. 

Just two minutes later, LeClerc earned his second goal of the night after getting the puck on a short pass from sophomore forward Stiven Sandarian. The Wildcats led 3-1. 

Northeastern tried to get something going with seven minutes left in the period, but a tripping call on graduate student defender Patrick Dawson put the Huskies down a man once again, allowing New Hampshire to put another point on the board in the 18th minute of the second frame. 

Freshman forward Ryan Conmy shot the puck long from just outside the neutral zone, and it made its way into the net to give New Hampshire a 4-1 lead going into the final period. 

After allowing four goals through 40 minutes, Whitehead was pulled for graduate student Connor Hopkins. 

The third period went back and forth; neither team could get a solid shot at the net. A charging penalty and game misconduct on the Wildcats gave Northeastern a massive advantage with a five-minute power play beginning in the ninth minute. The Huskies put up shot after shot, but could not bury the puck until junior forward Justin Hryckowian made a final goal at the buzzer to bring the game to a close, losing 4-2. 

When Northeastern traveled to New Hampshire for Saturday’s match, they again outshot the Wildcats 21-19, but could not tally a single point. Hopkins earned his first career start, but the Huskies faced a rough 4-0 loss. 

This upcoming weekend, Northeastern will take on Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute on the road on Saturday, Nov. 25 and Sunday, Nov. 26, with both games starting at 3 p.m.