UVM hockey: Primeau, No. 14 Northeastern too much for Vermont

BOSTON, Mass. - The Northeastern Huskies again rode the goaltending of Cayden Primeau to victory over the University of Vermont as the Huskies dealt the Catamounts a devastating 4-1 Hockey East defeat Friday at Matthews Arena

The UVM loss came on a night when the Catamounts could have gained on the two teams directly in front of them in the HEA standings. Maine rallied to tie Merrimack, 3-3, while Boston University lost 3-2 in overtime to Connecticut. The Black Bears and Terriers each have a six-point edge over UVM and UConn, which caught the Catamounts with its win.

“We played fantastic for two periods and credit Northeastern in the third, although I felt we shot ourselves in the foot in the third,” UVM coach Kevin Sheddon said.

“It’s disappointing because I thought we were the better team for 40 minutes,” he said. “It’s disappointing.”

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In November, the Huskies (18-9-1; 10-7-1 HEA) nipped the Catamounts (12-15-2; 5-12-2) 1-0 on the goatending of Cayden Primeau and an early third-period goal.

Friday evening, Primeau saw his shutout grip on UVM end at 87 minutes, 1 second, but he blanked Vermont the rest of the way. His teammates rallied behind him, pulling ahead 2-1 in the early minutes of the third period before securing the victory.

Great first; no reward

The Catamounts played the game’s first 20 minutes with a fierce intensity, dominating the Huskies for lengthy stretches. But by period’s end, their 16-5 edge in shots translated into a 0-0 score.

The Huskies appeared to be still basking in Monday’s Beanpot championship win and Vermont swarmed them repeatedly in the NU end. Primeau rejected everything, including a snatch of Derek Lodermeier’s shot off the goal line and a smother of Jake Massie’s breakaway.

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“Primeau mad some big-time saves. He showed why he’s one of the best goaltenders in the league and unfortunately we didn’t solve him,” Sneddon said.

“It would have been nice to get one in the first. It might have changed the complexion of things," said Sneddon, who added, “We did a lot of things well in the second, too.”

UVM goaltender Stefanos Lekkas (19 saves) faced little NU activity except for jarring hit from NU’s Lincoln Griffen, drawing a 2-minute minor for charging.

Beating Primeau … just once

Vermont finally broke through against Primeau 7:01 into the second when Alex Esposito sent Liam Coughlin’s 2-on-1 pass into the Huskies’ net. It was the only UVM shot of 33 on goal to elude Primeau, who posted a 26-save shutout at Gutterson Fieldhouse in November.

The Catamount lead disappeared at 13:33 on Ryan Shea’s goal.

For the first 30 minutes, Lekkas had enjoyed an unusually quiet night. After the game’s mid-point, he provided several sterling saves to keep UVM in the game.

Disastrous third

In the third, though, the previously tight Catamount defense cracked and even Lekkas couldn’t patch the lapses.

Just 4:21 into the third, Matt Filipe deposited Northeastern’s second goal, shoving UVM into a 2-1 deficit. John Picking converted a 2-on-1 for the crusher at 17:13. Griffin cashed in an empty-netter at 18:52.

“It was just a poor defensive play on their second goal and on the 2-on-1 goal to give them the sealer, as it were,” Sneddon said.

“I know Stef felt bad about the third goal. He overplayed the pass but a turnover at mid-ice gave them the 2-on-1; that’s where the mistake was,” Sneddon said.

On to Saturday

With only five games remaining in the regular season, the Catamounts need a strong rebound Saturay night (NESN).

“We need to finish our chances on the power play and 5-on-5,” said Sneddon. UVM went 0-for-3 — as did Northeastern — on the power play Friday.

“We need to do a better job defending for 60 minutes,” Sneddonn said. “Actually all 3 (NU goals) were really bad defensive plays.

“We have to make them earn their offense and we have to do a better job generating."

Correspondent Ted Ryan covers UVM hockey for The Burlington Free Press. Contact him at TedRyanVT@aol.com and follow him on Twitter at @TedRyanVT.