By Reece Bastien – Contributor

The BU men’s club hockey team left Lennoxville early on Saturday, Nov. 4 to Burlington, Vermont to face off against the University of Vermont (UVM). Two and a half hours later, the team arrived at the Gordon H. Paquette Arena at Leddy Park. Puck drop was at 12:30 p.m.

After a slow start, Fred Nicolas got the team on the board late in the opening period with a beautiful goal assisted by Ryan Massicotte and Marc Lagacé. It did not take much time for UVM to answer the first score. Vermont took advantage of a missed delayed icing, tying the game up 1-1 heading into the second period. 

The second period proved to be very defensive as neither team was able to score and break the tie. UVM got out to an early start in the third period, scoring and taking a one-point lead on Bishop’s. It took about five minutes for Bishop’s to return with Marc Lagacé, who beautifully fed in a low slot by Liam Llewellyn. 

Momentum started shifting in favor of Bishop’s. It seemed as though they could do no wrong. If Vermont ever had any chances, Andrew Delage made sure to shut them down at the net for Bishop’s, making a couple of great saves. With approximately five minutes left, both teams had taken a penalty, making it four-on-four hockey. 

Leighton Geraghty had control of the puck in the opposing zone. After finding rookie Harris Ruttan with a beautiful pass, Ruttan directed a shot from the point towards the net and Graydon Hartley managed to get a stick on it, tipping the puck into the top right corner of the net. This made it 3-2 in favor of Bishop’s.

Fred Nicolas buried an empty netter to seal the game for Bishop’s. Trevor Gnall picked up his first win as head coach behind the bench for Bishop’s. Though the “player of the game” title could have been rightfully awarded to most of the players, it was given to Harris Ruttan for his key assist on the late game-winning goal.

BU club hockey is set to play their first home games of the season on Nov. 18 and Nov. 19 at the Jane and Eric Molson Arena. Both games are set to be against the powerful Stonehill College from Massachusetts. Bishop’s played against Stonehill in their first season game, ultimately losing 6-5 in a shootout. Be sure to show up with all your friends for the games.