ROCHESTER, NY – The Elmira College Men's Ice Hockey team opened the 2021-22 season with a 4-2 win on the road against the Golden Flyers from Nazareth on Friday evening at the Bill Gray's Iceplex. Despite early shots not finding the back of the net, Elmira outshot the opposition 42-18.

The momentum of the game changed drastically after Elmira was awarded a five-minute power play on a major penalty from Nazareth, in which EC scored a pair of quick goals in the third period as part of a 4-0 run.

JUST THE BASICS:
SCORE: Elmira 4, Nazareth 2
LOCATION: Rochester, NY
TEAM RECORDS: Elmira (1-0-0, 0-0-0 NEHC), Nazareth (0-1-0, 0-0-0 UCHC)

HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Golden Flyers found the back of the net in the 14^th minute of play in the first period as Matt Lakus was fed a pass from Nick Charron to give the home squad an early 1-0 lead. The Soaring Eagles held the advantage in shots with nine in the first compared to seven for Nazareth, with Chris Janzen '21 making six saves in the opening frame.

After Nazareth found the back of the net once again just five minutes into the second period, the Flyers extended their lead to two as Joseph Schaefer found Mitch Culver for the score.

The Soaring Eagles continued to press on the offensive end, totaling 27 shots on net through two periods of play in the books. With under five minutes remaining before the second intermission, Jordan Gonzalez '24 was able to find Shawn Kennedy '24 for the score on a power play opportunity. The goal marked the for Kennedy in his short career with the Purple & Gold.

In the period, Elmira was on the power play for seven minutes compared to zero for the opposition, who clung to a 2-1 lead headed into the final break.

Heading into the final period, the Soaring Eagles wasted no time taking advantage of the remaining time in the five-minute Nazareth major. Just 51 seconds into the period, Gonzalez added a goal to his line on assists from Jared Smith '24 and Shane Haviland '24. Still remaining on the power play, the Soaring Eagles scored 39 seconds later to take the lead, and three unanswered goals, as Marty Kapoian '22 found the twine on assists from Janis Vizbelis '24 and Nicholas Domitrovic '24.

In the 8^th minute of the third, the Soaring Eagles cushioned their lead as Vizbelis notched his first goal of the season on assists from Amedeo Mastrangeli '24 and Daniel Dimon '24.

In all, Elmira held the advantage in power play opportunities, converting on 4-of-7 on the night while taking advantage of 26 Golden Flyer penalty minutes. Janzen made 16 saves in net for the Purple & Gold as the keeper now sits at 700 saves in his EC career. 

UP NEXT:
The Soaring Eagles return home against Oswego State for their home-opener tomorrow evening at the Murray Athletic Center. Puck drop is set for 7:00 PM on Hockey Night in Elmira.