ORONO, Maine — Shorthanded goals are hard to come by, and when a shorthanded goal is scored, it can create a huge momentum shift.
There are only two players in Division I who have scored as many shorthanded goals as University of Maine junior right winger Blaine Byron over the last two seasons, including this one.
Byron has five shorthanded goals during that span. He shared the national lead with three players a year ago, and he has two this season, including a critical one in the 5-4 win over the University of Massachusetts on Saturday night.
Maine had seen a 3-0 lead dwindle to 3-2 in the second period, and UMass went on the power play just 19 seconds into the third period.
But Cam Brown, Byron’s penalty-killing partner, dove to get the puck to Byron, and Byron swatted in his own rebound after hitting the post on a breakaway.
That took the momentum away from UMass, and even though the Minutemen cut the lead to one on two occasions later in the period, they couldn’t get the equalizer.
The only player with more shorthanded goals than Byron is Robert Morris senior right wing Zac Lynch, who has seven, including five this season. North Dakota senior left wing Drake Caggiula is tied with Byron with five over the past two seasons.
Byron also assisted on Brown’s shorthanded goal in a 4-1 win over Vermont on Nov. 21. Brown has assisted on all five of Byron’s shorthanded goals.
“The way we both think the game is a little more offensive than defensive. Sometimes, if we see a chance, we’ll try to jump on it and attack,” Brown said.
“Watching Byron and Brown on the penalty kill is something special,” said Maine sophomore left wing Nolan Vesey. “I don’t how they do it, but they’re good at it.”
“The players have a real good chemistry,” said Maine senior defenseman Conor Riley.
“Power plays don’t expect guys to make a rush on the penalty kill. They both have high skills, and they’ll make plays down low. That opens up a lot for them,” he said.
“We just let it happen,” said Byron. “We read the play so we can sometimes force them to make a mistake, and that can lead to an odd-man rush. Cam and I play very well together on the kill so we’re able to get lots of opportunities.”
Byron had a goal and two assists in the Saturday win over UMass. That gives him three goals and six assists in his current five-game points streak. He is the team’s scoring leader with 21 points on eight goals and 13 assists.