Lyon A Force in 2-1 Win

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Ted Hart's first career goal at UMass last month was an unforgettable moment for him. The freshman right wing's second might make him forget the original. Hart's laser wrist shot from the high slot hit the upper left corner in overtime to give the No. 12 Yale hockey team a 2-1 win over ECAC Hockey travel partner Brown at Meehan Auditorium.

Hart received the puck from Mike Doherty, who had taken a pass up the boards from Rob O'Gara and then skated through the neutral zone and over the blueline. Doherty sent a crossing drop for the rookie in the high slot and Hart did not waste any time letting it go to extend Yale's unbeaten string to six games.

"[Rob] O'Gara gave a pass to [Mike] Doherty up the wall and it turned to a 3-on-2. Mike had a lot of speed going up the boards. I saw him looking across so I tried to find a little space in the slot. He put it right on my tape and I just fired and it worked out," said Hart, who had not scored an OT winner since high school. "It feels pretty good, it's huge to get the four points out of the weekend, and I think we really needed that. It will help us moving forward and we'll use that momentum." 

The Bulldogs (10-4-3, 5-3-2 ECAC), who swept the weekend series with the Bears with a pair of one-goal decisions, erased a 1-0 deficit for the second straight night. The difference tonight was Yale outshooting Brown while dominating most of the play from the third period on. That included a 4-1 edge in OT shots.

The comeback may be the story most fans took away from the game tonight, but Alex Lyon was a rock in net all weekend. After a season-high 34 saves last night, he stopped 26 of 27 shots to frustrate another talented offensive opponent.

Both teams had great chances to find the net in a scoreless first period, but the Bulldogs had a 12-5 advantage in shots and got a few more grade-A chances.  

Ryan Hitchcock, Frankie DiChiara, JM Piotrowski and John Hayden each sent quality shots on net that required a better than average effort by Tim Ernst to prevent any from going in.

The Bears had the only power play of the frame, but did not get a shot on target. That didn't mean Lyon wasn't tested, especially in the next period when Brown reversed the shots total.

The home team got on the board at 2:50 of the second, but the Yale goalie thwarted numerous challenging situations. One was Tommy Marchin coming in alone in the left circle and looking to go top shelf. Another was Andrew Doane coming in with speed and trying to tuck it just as Lyon swiped the puck away like an angry shuffleboard player trying to clear the deck.

The Elis may have had only five shots on target in the second, but they clicked well enough to set up some nifty connections and near chances. Hitchcock, Joe Snively and Stu Wilson nearly connected on a pretty passing play that ended up under the Brown goalie. However, the Blue would break through before the second break.

Wilson has been masterful on face-offs most of this season. He won 10 tonight. Maybe his best draw to date this year got the visitors on the board with 37.5 seconds left in the second. The senior center took the drop of the puck in the left circle forward and then fired a perfect crossing pass to Hitchcock in front of the net. Hitchcock one-timed the feed off the right post before it popped up and over Ernst for his sixth goal of the season. The Eli sophomore got just enough of the inside part of the post to keep the puck from squirting to the boards.

"I put [Joe] Snively behind me, and looked at him to sell it a little bit," said Wilson. "I almost didn't do it because they had some good coverage in front. We just went ahead and did it. Luckily, I won it through. I thought about shooting for a second but then Hitchcock's stick poked through, so I threw it across and he did the rest."

The Yale fore-check took over from there. Relentless pressure, winning small battles and intelligent decisions with the puck led to quick transition, opportunities at the other end and the home team having to worry about what was happening in its own end.

"It's a good win for us," said assistant coach Ryan Donald '10, a former Yale captain. Playing an opponent twice in a row can be a challenge, and we played well. We got rewarded late in overtime with a nice shot by Teddy [Hart] after having the momentum we built in the last 20 minutes." 

Meanwhile, Yale was putting shots on net from every direction and angle, hoping for the one to make the difference. That didn't happen in the third, but the breakthrough wasn't far off.

A foreshadowing of the final shot came as the last second of regulation ticked off the clock. Hart had an open look from the right circle and fired into the stomach of Ernst. Hart can forget that chance now as well.

BULLDOG BITES

Brian O'Neill '12 and Brown graduate Bobby Farnham '12 are teammates on the New Jersey Devils… Katie Guay, a former Brown women's hockey player, served as one of the referees for tonight's game. She is believed to be the first female to officiate a Yale men's varsity contest… Former Yale hockey player Matt Deren was the game's attending physician…  Brown junior defenseman Tyler Wood is the son of former Eli and NHL star Randy Wood '86… Yale's career point leader, Jeff Hamilton '01, attended tonight's game… Yale suited up the same players from last night's game at the Whale… The Elis head to the North Country next week for games at Clarkson and St. Lawrence… Youth Day at Ingalls Rink is Jan. 30, the night the Blue hosts RPI at 7. Players and coaches will sign team posters that night after the game…  Yale's alumni hockey game is Feb. 6 at 3 p.m. before the Eli varsity takes on Harvard.

Filed by Steve Conn, Yale Associate AD & Sports Publicity Director