Pawtucket, R.I. – The Westfield State University men's ice hockey team played to a 3-3 draw with Johnson and Wales University in a physical non-conference matchup Tuesday afternoon in Pawtucket, R.I.
JWU's Connor Bechtel got the scoring started early when his shot at the second minute of the game got past Westfield State goalie Thierry Messervier (Montreal, Quebec).
The second period belonged to the Owls as they got goals from Samuel Gagnon (Ille-Bizard, Quebec) and Rob Neuwirth (Zlin, Czech Republic) in the fourth and 17th minutes, respectively, to take a 3-1 lead into the third period.
The Wildcats' offense came alive with goals from Graham Day and Matt Bernot just two minutes apart to pull even with 8:28 left in the game.
Two of Westfield State's three goals came on the power play while the Wildcats were 0-of-4 with the man advantage.
With the tie, Westfield State moved to 1-0-1, while Johnson and Wales moves to 0-1-1.
Messervier had 31 saves on the afternoon for the Owls, while Mike Rockwell contributed 28 for the Wildcats.
The Owls open up conference play on Thursday, as they travel to Salem State for a 7:00 p.m. puck drop.
Johnson and Wales resumes play on Friday, November 9th, when they travel to Southern Maine for their first NEHC action of the season.
(Story courtesy of Michael Smoose, JWU SID)