Offense: A-

While the Lakers only scored three goals, they came against one of the best goaltenders in all of Div. III. Jimmy Poreda ranks eighth in save percentage (.938), 13th in goals against (1.82) and tied for 11th in shutouts (3). The Lakers dominated the puck for a majority of the night and forced Poreda to make a couple of nifty stops. Oswego State took two more shot attempts on the night and tied Plattsburgh with 25 shots apiece. The top line of Joseph Molinaro, Mitch Emerson and Derek Brown was a three-man wrecking crew. They were extremely physical and forechecked to perfection. Their quick style of play forced a handful of turnovers and enabled the Lakers to generate scoring chances in waves. That trio was rewarded with just two points, however, as Molinaro scored on a two-on-none breakaway with Anthony Passero. Brown was credited with the secondary assist.

Speaking of Passero, he held the puck on his stick for most of the night. He was swift in his decision making and looked to make passes that only he can make. While some of those passes missed their mark, Passero made up for it with his strong backchecking presence. Passero’s linemate, Travis Broughman, showed up in a big way on the power play as he won a puck battle in the slot and found Josh Zizek on the back door for Oswego State’s second goal of the night.

Overall, the mantra of the night was quality over quantity just as head coach Ed Gosek eluded to earlier in the week. The team held possession of the puck for most of the game and was very patient with it. As a result, there were fewer shots but they were rather dangerous.

Defense: C+

While the Lakers only allowed two goals, it was mostly due to the play of David Richer. Oswego State hung him out to dry on several occasions, including on the first shift of the third period. It appeared to be Cam Owens who slipped behind the defensive coverage and had a breakaway in tight. The Lakers, also, gave up a handful of two-on-ones that turned into breakaways as the lone defenseman committed to the puck carrier too early. Despite this, the Lakers played a bend but do not break style of defense in which the Cardinals were able to sustain zone time, but no real ‘grade-A’ chances were had.

Oswego State’s defense was very active in the offensive zone which generated a lot of offense. This hurt the Lakers as the Cardinals used their speed as a form of counter attack. On the second goal by Pat Egan, Plattsburgh State was on a three-on-two as the backcheckers for Oswego State could not get back in time.

When in the defensive zone, the Lakers looked much more comfortable. They were sound positionally and protected the slot, something Oswego State struggled with early in the season. Its bigger bodies like Devin Campbell and Charlie Pelnik cleared the crease by slapping the puck away and left it for the other four skaters to control along the walls. Perhaps most importantly, the Lakers were strong along the boards. Unlike in last Saturday’s loss, Oswego State won the 50-50 pucks and battled hard. As a result, they were able to clear the zone and avoid extended defensive zone time.

Goaltending: A

While Richer’s save percentage was below his career average at .920, he was stellar when his team needed him the most. After giving up both Plattsburgh State goals, Richer remained poised and did not let the Cardinals pile on. As a result, he enabled the Lakers to battle and win the momentum back. The two goals he did give up are acceptable and understandable. The first was on the power play and Cam Owens was in tight all alone. On the second, Egan rifled a hard and heavy shot top shelf on a three-on-two.

Richer held his own in this battle and made several incredible stops. There were multiple breakaways from the Cardinals top scorers such as Stallard and Owens. Richer even made a few saves in tight by jamming his skate up against the goal post. The strength displayed on plays like these is very impressive at the Div. III level and a big reason as to why Richer received all-SUNYAC accolades last season.

Special Teams: B+

Winning the special teams battle is always crucial, however, being able to do so against the best penalty kill in the nation was spectacular. The Lakers went 1-3 on the power play and 4-5 on the penalty kill, with a short-handed goal as well.

The Lakers struggled a bit to stay out of the penalty box, something the team cannot accept in the SUNYAC final against SUNY Geneseo. Oswego State took three penalties in the second period and surrendered a power play goal. Despite the penalty count, the Lakers limited Plattsburgh State to just six shots on net. Oswego State was able to play aggressive on the man disadvantage by deploying three skaters in front of their blue line. This mock-neutral zone trap was very effective in forcing the Cardinals to dump it in instead of carrying the puck over the blue line. As a result, it took them several attempts to enter the zone.

The power play, on the other hand, battled hard for their chances. When it comes to facing an elite penalty kill, the Lakers had to win offensive zone faceoffs to generate offense and gain possession. On several occasions, Oswego State was able to do so. Many of these chances ended with a Michael Gillespie one-timer off a pass from Max Novick. While the Lakers did not score on these shots, it got the momentum in their favor. On the lone power play goal, the Lakers won a two-on-two battle for the puck in the slot. It was caught in the skates of a pair of Plattsburgh State skaters, and Broughman was able to get a stick on the puck. In the midst of battle, Broughman did an excellent job locating Zizek on the backdoor and finding him for the easy tap-in.

Overall: B+
The final grade would be higher had the Lakers been able to limit the odd man rushes against. Aside from this, the team showed an incredible ability to battle for a full 60 minutes. Through momentum swings and adversity, the Lakers battled hard and never seemed rattled. It was a game they jumped on early in the first period and never looked back. Despite deflating goals against, especially the Egan one just 17 seconds after Molinaro put them up by two, the Lakers had a confident swagger in their play.

Despite these high marks, the team did not play a perfect game. In comparison to the Whiteout game in December, the Lakers gave up a lot more quality chances. Although a run-and-gun style works against a team like the Cardinals, the Ice Knights of SUNY Geneseo are a different animal. The Ice Knights are much better at finishing on high danger chances and score in bunches. Oswego State needs to clean up their defensive assignments before they face SUNY Geneseo at the Ira S. Wilson Ice Arena next week.