For the first time since 2009, the Lakers fell in their “Whiteout Weekend” game against archrival Plattsburgh, falling 2-1 after getting behind early in the first.
Two first period goals by Plattsburgh set the Lakers back early and the two-goal deficit stood for most of the game. A goal in the third kept Oswego State in the game late, but the Lakers were unable to capitalize on any chances despite their strong offensive pressure late in the third.
Oswego State started off with strong play in the first period but it was matched in intensity by Plattsburgh. The teams exchanged penalties less than five minutes into the frame, resulting in a minute-long 4-on-4. Plattsburgh was able to capitalize on this opportunity and opened up the scoring at 5:10 of the first period.
Senior defenseman Paul Puglisi beat senior goaltender Andrew Hare with a slap shot from the point. Assists on the goal were credited to senior forward Jared Docking and sophomore forward Jake Mooney.
Following the play, Hare kept the score at 1-0 when he made a diving save to stop a strong Plattsburgh chance. The Oswego State defense showed strength when killing off two separate 5-on-3 opportunities for the Cardinals.
After successfully killing off those penalties, Oswego State got a chance of its own when Plattsburgh was called for too many men at 11:42 of the first.
However, it was Plattsburgh that scored the next goal despite it being the Lakers’ power play. An errant pass in the offensive zone by Ayotte resulted in a breakaway for Plattsburgh sophomore forward Alex Brenton. The shorthanded goal was scored at 13:00 of the first period and was unassisted.
With less than five minutes remaining, the Lakers missed a chance to score when senior forward Luke Moodie failed to score on a breakaway. Another chance for the Lakers came on the power play when sophomore forward Chris Carr tried to jam a centering pass by senior goaltender Mathieu Cadieux to no avail.
In the second period, several Plattsburgh penalties lead to some early power play opportunities, including two 5-on-3s for the Lakers. Despite having the man-advantage, Oswego State was unable to convert on any of its power play chances. The Cardinals successfully blocked many of the Lakers’ shots, only increasing the frustration of Oswego State.
One of the best chances of the period for the Lakers came when when senior forward Paul Rodrigues hit the post with less than three minutes left in the frame. Neither team was able to score in the period, and the shots became even by the end of 40 minutes with 15 for each.
The third period began with some back-and-forth play until 2:44 when a slew of penalties by both teams led to a power play for Plattsburgh. The Lakers were able to keep the Cardinals at bay during their penalty kill, but senior defenseman Jesse McConney was forced to take a penalty in order to stop a breakaway chance for Plattsburgh senior forward Patrick Jobb. Fortunately, Oswego State killed off the subsequent penalty.
Oswego State gained the man-advantage at 7:14 when Plattsburgh was called for hooking. After failing to score on that power play, a second hooking call was made and the Lakers stayed on the power play for the next two minutes as well.
The Laker offense started to heat up on this power play with the unit of Rodrigues, Moodie, Ayotte and senior forward Chris Muise generating multiple chances with the help of McConney at the point. After the Lakers were stymied by Cadieux on several shots, the Lakers got a good cycle going in the zone. With the crowd chanting and cheering, the Lakers continued to pound the net with shots, and finally, with only seconds remaining in the power play, Muise was able to bury a rebound off a shot from Rodrigues.
After an exchange of chances during the middle of the period, Oswego State started to turn up the offensive pressure again with five minutes remaining. The Lakers put heavy pressure on the Cardinals in their offensive zone, making it feel like a power play for the home team even though it was 5-on-5. Senior forward Kyle Badham hit a post and Moodie narrowly missed a shot with less than two minutes remaining, but no chance was able to beat Cadieux.
Despite strong pressure by the Lakers in the last few minutes, Oswego State couldn’t connect any of its shots and the Lakers’ efforts to tie up the game left were fruitless.
Hare finished the game with 24 saves and Cadieux registered and impressive 34 for the Cardinals.
The Lakers fell to Plattsburgh at home again after losing to the Cardinals in their last meeting in the SUNYAC Championship on Campus Center ice last spring. The last time the Lakers lost its “Whiteout Weekend” game to Plattsburgh was in the 2008-2009 season, when they fell 2-1.
