Returning home after a rough weekend at then-No. 5 Denver, Michigan Tech looked to rebound against a struggling Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks squad. Instead, it was the Mavericks who righted their own ship, snatching up a late win Friday night and a second win on Saturday despite not having top forward Matt White available for the weekend.
Friday
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The Huskies looked tentative in the opening 20 minutes, falling behind 7-2 in shots. Despite a better start to the second period, the Mavericks’ Zahn Raubenheimer made a tremendous individual play to stifle the Huskies’ momentum. Huskies’ center Tanner Kero scored the lone Huskies’ goal on a rebound.
The Huskies had three power plays in third period, including one that started with 2:39 remaining, but they could not capitalize on any of them. Raubenheimer’s second of the night came during that final man advantage.
“Their guy made two real good individual plays to beat us,” said Huskies’ head coach Mel Pearson. “It’s tough. They’re all tough, you know, when you are not having some success.”
Scoresheet
Coverage
- Raubenheimer robs a winner – Daily Mining Gazette
- Forward slick with stick to lift Mavericks – Omaha World-Herald
- Omaha Tops Tech 2-1 on Late Third Period Goal – Michigan Tech Athletics
- Raubenheimer Boosts Mavs Past Tech, 2-1– Nebraska-Omaha Athletics
Saturday
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Saturday night, the Huskies looked to make amends for four straight losses, and nearly did so with several scoring opportunities in the opening frame alone. Unfortunately, most of their shots missed the net entirely. One shot they did get on net led to winger David Johnstone’s first goal of the season. The first period buzzer came at the worst time it could have for the Huskies.
The second and third periods belonged to the Mavericks. The visitors picked up two more goals from Raubenheimer and two more on mistakes by freshman goaltender Pheonix Copley en route to the 5-3 loss. One bright spot for the Huskies was the play of winger Blake Pietila. He tied for the team lead in goals with his rebound goal midway through the middle frame. Winger Alex Petan added a late power play goal to cut the Mavericks’ lead to two.
“We haven’t played with the lead that much in the last five games,” said Huskies’ head coach Mel Pearson. “I thought it was good for our team to get the lead. I thought it would give us some confidence.”
Scoresheet
Coverage
- Second-period scoring flurry helps UNO top Michigan Tech– Omaha World-Herald
- Michigan Tech Falls to UNO 5-3 on Home Ice – Michigan Tech Athletics
- Mavs Complete Sweep of Huskies, 5-3 – Nebraska-Omaha Athletics
Stick Salute
Kevin Genoe gets the stick salute this weekend. Getting his first start in three weeks Friday night, Genoe stopped 26 of 28 Mavericks shots in the loss. On Saturday, he was called upon to give the Huskies a chance to rebound in the third period. He made 15 stops, making up for defensive lapses as the Huskies struggled to find their feet in front of him.
