Knuble continues to shine and so does goalie Say as No. 17 Irish beat LIU, 4-1
By JOHN FINERAN
SOUTH BEND – If the No. 17 Notre Dame hockey team expects to be a factor this season in the Big Ten Conference, winning ugly, as the Fighting Irish did in a 4-1 non-conference victory over visiting Long Island University, isn’t going to cut it.
“That’s two games in a row where we haven’t been as sharp as we need to be,” Irish coach Jeff Jackson said after the 4-1-0 Irish rebounded from their 1-0 home loss last Saturday against Alaska thanks to a four-point effort by sophomore center Cole Knuble and a 38-save performance by junior goaltender Owen Say.
“If we’re going to make a statement this year, we’re going to have to be a lot sharper with the puck,” Jackson continued. “That’s where we get ourselves in trouble, not doing a good job with the puck. And they outbattled us on the walls, too. We lost wall battles especially on the breakout. Last weekend we couldn’t win ugly. Tonight we did.”
For the game, coach Brett Riley’s Sharks (1-4-1) had a 39-24 edge in shots against the Irish, who were frustrated by LIU netminder Daniel Duris, a freshman from Slovakia who stopped the first five shots he saw from the Irish in the first 19 minutes of the scoreless game. Halfway through that final minute, Knuble got the puck over to junior defenseman Michael Mastrodomenico who then sent a knuckleball pass across the ice to junior blueliner Axel Kumlin. Kumlin, a Swedish standout who played last year at Miami, quickly fired a 35-footer off the near post and behind Duris with 30.8 seconds remaining in the first period.
“Taking those two penalties early put us on our heels a little bit,” said Knuble, who now has five goals and 10 points in five games. “That was a big goal at the end of the first period.”
Knuble then made it 2-0 at 6:57 of the second period when he was set up by linemate Ian Murphy before adding assists on sophomore center Danny Nelson’s power-play goal at 15:57 of the second period and graduate right wing Murphy’s first goal at Notre Dame with 11:50 gone in the final period. The final two assists came against LIU sophomore goalie Noah Rupprecht, who came in at the 12:17 mark of the second period after Duris suffered a severe knee injury that required him to be helped to the locker room.
“That save he made when he got hurt was unbelievable,” said Murphy, a transfer from Princeton who also likes playing on Knuble’s line with speedy senior left wing Justin Janicke. “It’s a lot of fun playing with Cole and J.J. They are two of the fastest guys I’ve ever played with. It makes my job pretty simple – I just try to get them the puck and then head for the net.”
Jackson likes what he sees from the 5-foot-10, 191-pound Knuble, who has added muscle.
“He’s playing in the dirty areas of the ice,” the Irish coach noted. “That’s why he’s getting rewarded. He’s playing inside the dots, he’s making plays inside the dots and getting scoring chances inside the dots. He’s been a real positive.”
So. too, has Say, who has surrendered a single goal in each of his three starts and now leads the nation with his .969 saves percentage.
“Goaltending has not been a problem,” Jackson said, knocking on the wood of the interview table twice. Say will spend Saturday night watching freshman Nicholas Kempf try to rebound from his 1-0 loss last weekend when the series with the Sharks concludes at 6 p.m. at the Lefty Smith Rink in the Compton Family Ice Arena.
What has been a problem for the Irish is staying out of the penalty box. After being assessed 49 minutes in penalties in the loss to Alaska, including a five-minute major to senior defenseman Ryan Helliwell, who was benched by Jackson Friday, the Irish received 13 minutes on five penalties, one a five-minute high-sticking penalty to sophomore defenseman Henry Nelson, who was benched afterward.
Helliwell and Nelson are expected to be back Saturday night, but the Irish coach was pleased with the work of 6-foot-4 Jaedon Kerr and 6-foot-5 Jimmy Jurcev, his freshmen defenders. Senior Zach Plucinski and sophomore Paul Fischer also played more minutes and steadied things when they were needed after the Irish took their 1-0 lead.
After Say made two saves with Mastrodomenico off for his second interference penalty of the game early in the second period, Murphy set up Knuble, who skated into the faceoff circle to Duris’ right and beat the LIU goalie at 6:57 for a 2-0 Irish lead.
Duris made perhaps his best save at the night at 12:17 when he robbed Blake Biondi’s close-in bid with the Irish on a power play. But as he did so falling backwards, the freshman severely injured his left knee and left the ice with the help of his teammates.
Ruppreccht replaced Duris and made four saves to help the Sharks kill off the penalty. But he wasn’t as fortunate on Notre Dame’s next power-play opportunity. The LIU goalie stopped Knuble’s initial shot but both Biondi and Danny Nelson poked at the rebound before Nelson finally slid it home at 15:57 for a 3-0 Irish lead.
Less than a minute later, Henry Nelson received his five-minute major for high sticking, but his teammates killed off 3:14 before the second period ended. The Sharks finally solved Say 31 seconds into the third period when Carter Rapalje fired a backhander at the Irish goalie. Say made the initial save but the puck went up into the air and hit the goalie on his back before going into the net.
Say finished with 13 saves (and 38 for the game) in the chippy third period that saw Notre Dame sophomore center Jayden Davis, playing in his first game after injuring an ankle in the exhibition opener against the U.S. Under-18 team, take a vicious high hit from LIU’s Chad Muller in front of the Sharks’ bench. Davis struggled to get to the ice and then to the Irish bench where he was escorted to the locker room and did not return. He is questionable for Saturday’s finale.
NOTRE DAME 4, LONG ISLAND U. 1
At Lefty Smith Rink in Compton Family Ice Arena, South Bend, Ind.
Long Island U. 0 0 1—1
Notre Dame 1 2 1—4
First Period—Scoring: 1. Notre Dame, Axel Kumlin 1 (Michael Mastrodomenico, Justin Janicke) EV 19:30. Penalties: Long Island 0-0, Notre Dame 2-4.
Second Period—Scoring: 2. Notre Dame, Cole Knuble 5 (Ian Murphy) EV 6:57; 3. Notre Dame, Danny Nelson 3 (Blake Biondi, Cole Knuble) PP 15:57. Penalties: Long Island 2-4 (2-4), Notre Dame 2-7 (4-11).
Third Period—Scoring: 4. Long Island, Carter Rapalje 3 (Isaiah Fox) PP 0:31. 5. Notre Dame, Ian Murphy 1 (Justin Janicke, Cole Knuble) EV 11:50. Penalties: Long Island 1-2 (3-6), Notre Dame 1-2 (5-13).
Shots on goal: Long Island 39 (12-13-14), Notre Dame 24 (6-10-8). Goalie saves: Long Island (20), Daniel Duris 7 (5-2-dnp) and Noah Rupprecht 13 (dnp-6-7); Notre Dame, Owen Say 38 (12-13-13).
Power-play opportunities: Long Island 1 of 6, Notre Dame 1 of 3. Faceoffs won: Long Island 22 (8-7-7), Notre Dame 45 (18-10-17). Blocked shots: Long Island 23 (11-11-1), Notre Dame 18 (6-7-5).
Referees: Jonathon Sitarski, Barry Pochmara. Linesmen: Riley Bowles, Justin Cornell. Records: Long Island University 1-3-1, Notre Dame 4-1-0. Attendance: 4,194 (4,852).
BIG TEN STANDINGS: 1. Ohio State 2-0-0, 5 points (4-0-1 overall); 2. Wisconsin 0-2-0, 1 point (1-4-0 overall); 3. TIE, Notre Dame 0-0-0, 0 points (4-1-0 overall); Michigan State 0-0-0, 0 points (4-1-0 overall); Minnesota 0-0-0, 0 points (4-1-0 overall); Penn State 0-0-0, 0 points (3-1-0 overall); Michigan 0-0-0, 0 points (3-2-1 overall).
Friday’s results: Notre Dame 4, Long Island U. 1; Minnesota 7, St. Thomas 1; Penn State 3, St. Lawrence 2; Michigan State 3, Canisius 0; Ohio State 3, Bowling Green 1; Denver 4, Wisconsin 2; Michigan 5, U.S. Under-18 Team 4 (OT) (exhibition)
Saturday’s schedule: Long Island University at Notre Dame, 6 p.m.; St. Lawrence at Penn State, 4 p.m.; Michigan State at Canisius, 7 p.m.; Ohio State at Bowling Green, 7 p.m.; Wisconsin at Denver, 8 p.m.; Minnesota vs. St. Thomas at Saint Paul (Xcel Energy Center), 9 p.m.
TEAMS IN USCHO.com MEDIA POLL AND RESULTS FROM FRIDAY:
1. Denver (NCHC) (5-0-0) beat No. 20 Wisconsin Friday, 4-2; Saturday vs. Wisconsin.
2. Boston College (Hockey East) (2-1-0) vs. No. 14 Western Michigan Saturday
3. Boston University (Hockey East) (3-1-0) lost at No. 7 North Dakota Friday, 7-2; Saturday at North Dakota.
4. Michigan State (Big Ten) (4-1-0) beat Canisius Friday, 3-0; Saturday at Canisius.
5. Minnesota (Big Ten) (4-1-0) beat St. Thomas Friday, 7-1; Saturday vs. St. Thomas at Saint Paul, Minn.
6. Maine (Hockey East) (4-0-0) beat Northeastern , 4-1; Saturday at Northeastern.
7. North Dakota (NCHC) (3-1-0) beat No. 3 Boston University Friday, 7-2; Saturday vs. Boston University.
8. Cornell (ECAC) (0-0-0) vs. Toronto Saturday (exhibition).
9. Colorado College (NCHC) (2-0-0) at Alaska-Anchorage Friday, late; Saturday at Alaska-Anchorage.
10. Michigan (Big Ten) (3-2-1) beat U.S. Under-18 team Friday, 5-4 (OT) (exhibition).
11. Quinnipiac (ECAC) (2-2-0) beat New Hampshire Friday, 8-2; Saturday vs. New Hampshire.
12. St. Cloud State (NCHC) (5-1-0) beat Augustana Friday, 4-3; Saturday vs. Augustana.
13. Providence (Hockey East) (3-1-0) beat Vermont Friday, 3-2 (OT); Saturday at Vermont.
14. Western Michigan (NCHC) (3-0-0) at No. 2 Boston College Saturday
15. Massachusetts (Hockey East) (3-2-1) tied Connecticut Friday, 3-3 (OT) (UMass won shootout 2-1); Saturday at Connecticut.
16. Omaha (NCHC) (2-3-0) lost at No. 18 Minnesota State Friday, 4-3; Saturday at Minnesota State.
17. Notre Dame (Big Ten) (4-1-0) beat Long Island University Friday, 4-1; Saturday vs. Long Island University.
18. Minnesota State (CCHA) (4-3-0) beat No. 16 Omaha Friday, 4-3; Saturday vs. Omaha.
19. Ohio State (Big Ten) (4-0-1) beat Bowling Green Friday, 3-1; Saturday at Bowling Green.
20. Wisconsin (Big Ten) (1-4-0) lost at No. 1 Denver Friday, 4-2; Saturday at Denver.
Others receiving votes:
Augustana (CCHA) (3-2-0) lost at No. 12 St. Cloud State Friday, 4-3; Saturday at St. Cloud State.
UMass Lowell (Hockey East) (3-1-0) at Merrimack Saturday
Penn State (Big Ten) (3-1-0) beat St. Lawrence Friday, 3-2; Saturday vs. St. Lawrence.
Northeastern (Hockey East) (1-3-0) lost to No. 6 Maine Friday, 4-1; Saturday vs. Maine.
Harvard (ECAC) (0-0-0) is idle
Michigan Tech (CCHA) (2-1-0) lost to Clarkson Friday, 4-1; Saturday vs. Clarkson.
New Hampshire (Hockey East) (1-1-1) lost at No. 11 Quinnipiac Friday, 8-2; Saturday at Quinnipiac.
Minnesota Duluth (NCHC) (2-4-0) beat Stonehill Friday, 5-1; Saturday vs. Stonehill.
Dartmouth (ECAC) (0-0-0) is idle
Arizona State (NCHC) (2-4-1) beat Northern Michigan Friday, 3-1; Saturday at Northern Michigan.
Connecticut (Hockey East) (3-2-1) tied No. 15 Massachusetts Friday, 3-3 (UMass won shootout 2-1); Saturday vs. Massachusetts.
RIT (Atlantic Hockey) (2-4-0) lost to Colgate Friday, 5-4; Saturday vs. Colgate.
Clarkson (ECAC) (4-2-0) beat Michigan Tech Friday, 4-1; Saturday at Michigan Tech.
Sacred Heart (Atlantic Hockey) (1-3-1) lost to Holy Cross Friday, 2-1 (OT); Saturday vs Holy Cross.
St. Thomas (CCHA) (1-2-1) lost at No. 5 Minnesota Friday; 7-1; Saturday vs. Minnesota at Saint Paul, Minn.
Bemidji State (CCHA) (1-3-0) lost at Ferris State Friday, 4-1; Saturday vs. Bemidji State.
Holy Cross (Atlantic Hockey) (3-3-0) beat Sacred Heart Friday, 2-1 (OT); Saturday at Sacred Heart.
Union (ECAC) (5-1-0) beat Rensselaer Friday, 6-3; Saturday vs. Rensselaer.
Bowling Green (CCHA) (3-2-0) lost at No. 19 Ohio State Friday, 3-1; Saturday vs. Ohio State.
Brown (ECAC) (0-0-0) is idle
Robert Morris (Atlantic Hockey) (2-1-0) lost to Niagara Friday, 7-3; Saturday at Niagara.
St. Lawrence (ECAC) (4-3-0) lost at Penn State Friday, 3-2; Saturday at Penn State.
Other games
Tuesday, Oct. 22
Canisius 6, Mercyhurst 3 (Atlantic Hockey)
Friday, Oct. 25
Air Force 2, American International 1 (OT) (Atlantic Hockey)
Bentley 6, Army 3 (Atlantic Hockey)
Lindenwood 4, Miami 2
Saturday, Oct. 26
Air Force at American International, 1 p.m. (Atlantic Hockey)
Bentley at Army, 7 p.m. (Atlantic Hockey)
Waterloo at Princeton, 7 p.m. (exhibition)