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RIT men's hockey players
Nicholas Cornish
2
Niagara NIA 10-18-4, 10-12-4 AHA
3
Winner RIT RIT 18-12-4, 14-8-4 AHA
Niagara NIA
10-18-4, 10-12-4 AHA
2
Final
3
RIT RIT
18-12-4, 14-8-4 AHA
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 OT 1 F
Niagara NIA 0 2 0 0 2
RIT RIT 1 0 1 1 3

Game Recap: Men's Hockey |

Men's Ice Hockey earns 3-2 OT comeback win over Niagara; clinches Atlantic Hockey top-4 seed

ROCHESTER, N.Y. – RIT senior defenseman Adam Brubacher (Elmira, Ontario/Powell River Kings) tied the game with 47 seconds left in regulation and won the game 1:06 into overtime as the Tigers defeated visiting Niagara, 3-2, in Atlantic Hockey action, Saturday.

The victory clinched no lower than the fourth seed for next month's Atlantic Hockey Tournament. The top four seeds earn a first-round bye and a home quarterfinal series (March 13-15). for the tournament.

HOW IT HAPPENED

  • RIT opened the scoring with 10:12 left in the first period. Freshman forward Andrew Rinaldi (Pierrefonds, Quebec/Wellington Dukes) took a long Brubacher outlet down the left boards and ripped a slap shot off Niagara freshman goalie Chad Veltri's pads that deflected to a charging sophomore forward Jake Joffe (Toronto, Ontario/Toronto Jr. Canadiens) on the right wing. Joffe scored on a tough-angle, one-timer inside the right post.
  • Niagara scored the lone goals of the second period to take a 2-1 lead. Senior forward Ben Sokay took a drop pass and scored on a wrist shot in the slot with 18:45 on the clock before freshman forward Ryan Naumovski turned a Tiger turnover into a goal with 6:28 on the clock.
  • The Purple Eagles held of RIT until the final minute of regulation. RIT skated, 6-on-4, in the final seconds of a Niagara slashing penalty with junior goalie Logan Drackett (Calgary, Alberta/Calgary Canucks) pulled for an extra skater. Freshman forward Elijah Gonsalves (Scarborough, Ontario/Wellington Dukes) sent a puck from the left corner to the front of the Purple Eagle goal where junior forward Jake Hamacher (Corona, CA/Dubuque Fighting Saints) back-handed a puck to Brubacher in the right corner for an equalizing wrist shot with 47 seconds on the clock.
  • Brubacher won it just over a minute into overtime after freshman forward Caleb Moretz (Fairbanks, AK/Flin Flon Bombers) skated the puck into the Niagara zone and found Hamacher in the left face-off circle. Brubacher took a drop pass from Hamacher and beat Veltri with a stick-side wrist shot to clinch the victory.

GAME NOTES

  • Brubacher moved into a tie for 11th place on RIT's career scoring list (Division I era) with 104 points (25 goals, 79 assists). Gabe Valenzuela (Brampton, Ontario/North York Rangers) '19 graduated last year with 104 points (38 goals, 66 assists).
  • RIT locked up an Atlantic Hockey Tournament second-round home series for the first time since going on to win its most recent championship in 2016.
  • Drackett finished the game with 28 saves, including 13 in the second period.

WHAT'S NEXT

RIT closes the regular season hosting Air Force next Friday and Saturday (Feb. 28-29). Face-off both days is set for 7:00 p.m. at the Polisseni Center. The Tigers could move up to the third seed with a pair of victories.