Northeastern Edges UMass Lowell, 3-2, To Win Hockey East Tournament

Junior forward Zach Aston-Reese posts game-winning goal and assist for Huskies



Junior forward Zach Aston-Reese had a goal and an assist for the Huskies Prd Time Team Score Type Scored By Assists 1st 1:12 NOE 1-0 EV Adam Gaudette (12) Mike McMurtry/22, Dylan Sikura/18 1st 3:25 UML 1-1 EV John Edwardh (4) Joe Gambardella/27, Tommy Panico/10 1st 6:30 NOE 2-1 PP Nolan Stevens (19) John Stevens/24, Zach Aston-Reese/29 2nd 13:34 UML 2-2 EV Adam Chapie (16) Jake Kamrass/5, Dylan Zink/13 3rd 11:03 NOE 3-2 PP GW Zach Aston-Reese (14) John Stevens/25, Nolan Stevens/22 Scoring 1st 2nd 3rd Final Northeastern 2 0 1 3 UMass Lowell 1 1 0 2 Shots on Goal 1st 2nd 3rd SOG Northeastern 8 8 8 24 UMass Lowell 7 11 5 23 Team Stats and Records PP PIM SHGF Northeastern (22-13-5) 2/3 3/6 0 UMass Lowell (24-9-5) 0/2 4/8 0 Northeastern Goaltending MIN GA 1 2 3 Saves Ryan Ruck (W, 20-10-4) 60:00 2 6 10 5 21 UMass Lowell Goaltending MIN GA 1 2 3 Saves Kevin Boyle (L, 23-9-5) 58:02 3 6 8 7 21 Empty Net 1:58 0 View full box score

BOSTON-- A third period power play goal by Zach Aston-Reese (Staten Island, N.Y.) lifted sixth-seeded Northeastern to a 3-2 victory over fourth-seeded UMass Lowell in the title game of the 32nd annual Hockey East Championship in front of 14,018 fans at TD Garden Saturday evening. Northeastern (22-13-4) picked up the Lamoriello Trophy as the Hockey East champion, its first title in 28 seasons, when they won the 1988 crown.

BONUS LINK: Final Game Packet - Includes Notes and Quotes (PDF Format)

The conference championship capped a tremendous turnaround for Northeastern, who started its season 1-11-2 and league play 0-7-2 before turning it on down the stretch. NU won its school-record 13th straight game Saturday and is 20-1-2 in its last 23 contests. The sixth-seeded Huskies also became the lowest seed ever to win the conference crown.

Aston-Reese snapped a 2-2 tie with his power play goal 11:03 into the third. John Stevens (Sea Isle, N.J.) misfired on a shot from the point and Aston-Reese rapped it home from the low slot for the eventual game-winner. Deadly with the extra-skater, the Huskies went 2-for-3 on the power play in the title game and 7-for-20 (35%) over the six games in the tournament.

Adam Gaudette (Braintree, Mass.), opened the scoring for the Huskies just 1:12 into the contest, beating UMass Lowell goaltender Kevin Boyle (Manalapan, N.J.) on his team's first shot on goal. Quick passes in the attacking zone by Mike McMurtry (Greely. Ontario) and Dylan Sikura (Aurora, Ontario) found Gaudette alone in front. UML answered 2:13 later on a goal by John Edwardh (Calgary, Alberta) to tie it at 1-1. A shot from the point by Tommy Panico (Wall, N.J.) went wide and bounced to the crease. Joe Gambardella (Staten Island, N.Y.) couldn't direct it on goal but Edwarth did, sneaking one up high inside the near post.

On the first power play for either team, the Stevens brothers teamed up to make it 2-1 at 7:30. Nolan Stevens tipped a drive from his brother John Stevens (Sea Isle City, N.J.) that popped high in the air and off a UMass Lowell defender and past Boyle. Aston-Reese also picked up an assist on the goal.

The River Hawks turned up the offense in the middle period outshooting Northeastern, 11-8, and they picked up the equalizer, the only goal in the second at 13:34. Adam Chapie (Oxford, Mich.) rapped one at goalie Ryan Ruck (Coto de Caza, Calif.) during a goalmouth scramble that Ruck initially saved but rolled down his back and in the goal. Jake Kamrass (Atlanta, Ga.) and Dylan Zink (Madison, Wisc.) added helpers on Chapie's 16th of the season.

Nolan Stevens had his second straight goal-assist effort and was one of three Huskies on the 2016 All-Tournament Team, having eight points in the tourney (3-5-8). Senior captain Kevin Roy (Lac-Beauport, Quebec) led all tournament scorers with five goals and nine points and defenseman Colton Saucerman (Colorado Springs, Colo.) was also an all-tourney selection.

Boyle, a senior, picked up the William Flynn Tournament MVP Award, the first from a non-champion since 2003. He stopped 21 shots in the title game capping a strong tournament where he posted a 1.24 goals against average in six games. Joining him on the All-Tournament Team were defenseman Zink and forward C.J. Smith (Des Moines, Iowa).

Northeastern had a narrow 24-23 advantage in shots in the game with Ruck making 21 saves. UMass Lowell went 0-for-2 with the extra skater as only seven penalties were whistled in the hard-fought contest.

The River Hawks fall to 24-9-5 with the loss but are in strong position to earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. It would be UMass Lowell's seventh appearance in the NCAAs, its fourth in last five years. The NCAA Selection Show will be Sunday at noon on ESPNU.

Notes: UMass Lowell is the fourth program to reach the title game in four straight years. Maine did it a record seven times from 1987 to 1993 ... The line of Aston-Reese and the Stevens brothers accounted for on two goals and four assists on the night ... Smith and Gambardella each had five points in the tourney to lead the River Hawks.

