Junior center Max Scott capped a University of Maine rally from a 2-0 deficit by scoring 32 seconds into the three-on-three overtime as the Black Bear hockey team beat Colgate 3-2 at the Alfond Arena on Saturday night.
UMaine snapped a three-game winless streak and improved to 3-2-1. Colgate is 2-3-1.
Colgate had beaten UMaine 3-2 in regulation on Friday night.
Scott, younger brother of former Black Bear center and leading scorer Harrison Scott, picked up the puck on the right wing side of the offensive zone and skated into the right circle before firing a low wrist shot that squeezed between the pads of Colgate goalie Andrew Takacs.
Colgate defenseman Michael Neumeier had lost his stick.
It was the Brown University transfer’s first goal as a Black Bear.
“It was pretty special. I was really proud of that moment,” said Scott, who was Brown’s leading goal scorer last season with 12.
Charlie Russell and Brandon Holt earned assists.
“Charlie Russell made a great play neutralizing their defenseman and making him lose his stick,” Scott said. “The puck squirted my way. I don’t know where their other guy was but I had a two-on-one with Holt and I ended up shooting the puck and it wound up going in.”
UMaine goalie Albin Boija finished with 17 saves while Takacs wound up with 31.
Colgate sophomore left wing Jack Brandt, the reigning ECAC Forward of the Week, opened the scoring on the power play at the 10:15 mark of the first period and he added an even-strength goal later in the period.
UMaine senior left wing Thomas Freel cut the lead in half with the only goal of the second period and freshman left wing Justin Poirier tied it 2:08 into the third period.
On Brandt’s first goal, he was able to get inside position on UMaine defenseman Frank Djurasevic at the top of the crease and tipped Isaiah Norlin’s pass past Boija. Ryan Sullivan also picked up an assist.
It was the sixth power play goal allowed by the Black Bears on 14 opportunities in three games.
His second of the period and fourth of the season came off a pass out of the corner by Sullivan.
Brandt slipped between two Black Bears and snapped a 20-foot wrist shot past Boija’s blocker.
Norlin also assisted.
Freel’s goal, his third of the season, came on the power play just 1:06 into the middle period.
Freel received the puck in the right wing corner off a pass from Holt and he whipped the puck to the net where it slipped past Takacs for his third of the season.
Poirier also earned an assist.
“It was a very ugly goal like most of my goals,” said Freel. “I knew Scott and [Owen] Fowler were at the top of the crease or at the back door and I tried to put it hard across the crease. It kind of fooled the goalie but, at this point, we’ll take whatever we can get.”
UMaine freshman left wing Poirier tied the game thanks to a fortuitous bounce.
Lukas Peterson’s dump-in down the right wing boards took a crazy bounce to the center of the ice where it landed on Poirier’s stick.
Poirier stickhandled around Takacs and deposited it into the empty net for his team-leading fifth goal of the season.
“Justin is an awesome kid and an awesome player and he is really, really buying in,” Freel said. “You see him throw hits left, right and center. I don’t know if that is normally his game but I love it. For him to get that goal and jack up the crowd and the whole bench was awesome. That gave us the juice we needed for the rest of the game.”
Freel called the lucky bounce an “Alfond bounce” courtesy of the home arena.
“I liked our effort tonight. The energy was good,” said UMaine head coach Ben Barr. “It was hard. They’re a good team and once they got the lead, they packed it in. It was hard to generate chances.”
UMaine was without standout right wing Josh Nadeau both nights due to a shoulder injury.
UMaine will open Hockey East conference play by hosting Boston University next Friday and Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. Colgate will entertain the Rochester Institute of Technology next weekend.
