Quinnipiac goaltender Michael Garteig accomplished three things Friday night in the Quinnipiac men’s ice hockey teams(14-0-2, 5-0-2 ECAC) 3-0 victory over the Yale Bulldogs (5-3-2, 3-2-2 ECAC).
One, he defeated arguably one of the best goaltenders in the country in Alex Lyon. Two, he extended his shutout streak and hasn’t allowed a goal in 159 minutes. Three, he won his 60th game as a Bobcat, setting a program record.
“He really did it in three years. He only played one game his freshman year, I’m proud of him he plays hard and I say it all the time we feed off of him his battle level is phenomenal,” Quinnipiac head coach Rand Pecknold said after the game.
The Bobcats struggled Friday night to carry the puck consistently through the neutral zone and past the Bulldogs’ blue line. Consequently, Yale was able to stifle Quinnipiac’s offensive firepower for the majority of the game holding it to 25 shots.
“I think every game is different and you just kinda have to go with it and do what you can and work your hardest,” Quinnipiac forward Landon Smith said.
Smith tallied his third goal of the season just thirteen seconds into the third period giving the Bobcats a two nothing lead. Smith glided into the offensive zone on a two-on-one with Sam Anas and fired one past Lyon.
“Lando does what he does well and rips one under the bar,” Pecknold said. “He’s a goal-scorer.”
The last nineteen minutes and forty seven seconds mostly belonged to Yale. After the goal, Yale bombarded Garteig with shots as it held possession in the offensive zone for at least just under two minutes, but could not break through.
“I thought we handled it the best we could, weathered the storm a little bit,” Garteig said.
Yale blitzed Garteig with ten shots and at least five grade-A scoring chances in the third period. The senior goaltender has been the difference maker for the Bobcats this season. He owns an eye-opening 1.20 goals against average and .949 save percentage.
“He’s good, he’s really good his numbers prove it,” Pecknold said.
Garteig and Quinnipiac remain unbeaten on the season, but visit the Brown Bears tomorrow. A team the Bobcats have struggled with in the past.
“It’s a tough one, every time we play the Saturday Brown game it’s tough, we got to travel up there we have a tough time in that rink, Pecknold said. “We got to have a good first period.”
Puck drop Saturday is set for 4 p.m. up in Providence, R.I.
Extras:
Penalties:
The Bobcats lost offensive momentum in the second period after committing four penalties, two each from Connor Clifton and Tanner MacMaster. Yale was able to generate quality chances as a result, but Garteig proved to be too much.
Tim Clifton:
After scoring the opening and game-winning goal Friday night, Tim Clifton is now tied for first on the team in goals scored. Clifton has already tied his goal total from last season and is just four points shy of tying his total from last season. Rand Pecknold noted that Clifton’s skating has improved this season giving him more leverage in front of the net and on scoring chances.
