Canton, Mass. (January 20, 2024) – After falling to Curry College 3-2 on Friday, the Golden Bears traveled to Canton, Massachusetts for a second game against the Colonels. Wilhelm Patriksson gave the Colonels a 1-0 lead in the first period of play. The Colonels then notched three goals during the second and two in the third to win the game 6-0. 

• Western New England: 4-12-2 (1-8-2)
• Curry College: 13-4-1 (8-3-0)

How it Happened:
With Anthony Aureliano and Shane Soderwall back in net for the Golden Bears and Colonels, respectively, the puck was dropped, and the game was underway. Eelis Laaksonen would win the opening faceoff for the Colonels. The first shot came from Gage Dill. Anthony Aureliano made the save. The teams traded shots for the first two minutes of play. Then, the Colonels had seven shots in a row without a Golden Bear answer. Four of those shots made it to Aureliano, who made the saves. The Golden Bears tried to answer with a couple of shots, but the Colonels countered with four more shots in a row.
The puck would travel back and forth from team to team for a little while. Both teams had opportunities, but neither could make the most of them. Towards the end of the first period of play, the Colonels would be the team applying more pressure, and with 4:29 left in the first, they would grab a 1-0 lead. Wilhelm Patriksson received a pass in front of the net from Austan Bellefeuille, who got the puck from George Vonakis in the corner. Patriksson moved the puck from right to left and sent a backhand shot over the goalie to give Curry College the lead. The Colonels were called for a penalty almost a minute later, and the Golden Bears were on the power play. The Golden Bears had four shots during the power play. Soderwall was forced to make one save. The Colonels had the final shot of the first that went wide of the net, and the teams went into the first intermission with the Colonels leading 1-0. The Colonels led 12-7 in shots on goal and 16-5 in faceoffs. The Golden Bears had more saves 11-7, power play opportunities 1-0, and blocked shots 6-2.
The second got started with a faceoff win for the Golden Bears by Nolan Dawson. The Colonels would start the second with a shot. That was followed by Matty Zdanowicz hitting the pipe on a shot for the Golden Bears. The teams would go back and forth, with Curry College having more of the possession and scoring opportunities. After multiple opportunities denied by the Golden Bears, the Colonels pushed through and got their second goal of the game. 8:06 into the second, Killian Rowlee would net the Colonels' second goal. Rowlee got the puck after intercepting a clearance attempt from the Golden Bears. On the left side of the goal, Rowlee sent a quick wrist shot past the goalie, and the Colonels led 2-0. The Colonels kept the pressure on the Golden Bears with five more shots in a row after the second goal. The fifth shot in that sequence was the third Colonel goal. Cole Weinger sent a shot wide of the net, which was grabbed by Tao Ishizuka, who passed it to Jesse Galassi. Galassi slapped a one-time shot past the goalie and into the back of the net. The Colonels led 3-0 9:47 into the second. The Colonels felt the momentum building more and more. They would turn that momentum into a fourth goal 42 seconds later. Tao Ishizuka would skate into the Golden Bear defensive zone and push the puck to Jesse Galassi on the boards. Galassi angled the puck to Eelis Laaksonen, who skated from right to left and fired a shot over the goalie's shoulder and into the net. The Colonels led 4-0. 
After the fourth goal, the Golden Bears had a couple of shots, but then the Colonels went back on the offensive push with five shots in a row. The Golden Bears were then called for a penalty, and the Colonels had a power play. The Colonels had three shots during the power play, with two shots on goal saved by Aureliano. The Colonels would have four of the next five shots on goal before the Golden Bears were called for a third penalty. To end the second period of play, the Colonels had two shots on goal during the power play. After two periods of play, the Colonels led by four. During the second, the Colonels sent 19 shots at the goal compared to the five from the Golden Bears. They also won 15 faceoffs compared to the six wins from the Golden Bears. Neither team had a power play goal during the second period of play. The Golden Bears trailed the Colonels 4-0. 
Nolan Dawson won the opening faceoff for the Golden Bears in the third period of play. The Colonels got one more shot before the power play ended. The Golden Bears got a shot on goal, which Soderwall saved. The Colonels had four shots in a row after that WNE shot. The Golden Bears would get a couple of shots off after that, before the Colonels would net a fifth goal. George Vonakis sent a pass to Tyler Drummond across the ice. Drummond would try to send the puck into the back of the net. Aureliano would make the save, but Taurin Haddon-Harris was there to send the puck into the back of the net.
The Colonels led 5-0 6:23 into the final period of play. A little bit later, the Golden Bears went on the power play. The Golden Bears had seven shots during the power play but were not able to get a goal. Soderwall made four saves for the Colonels during the power play. The Golden Bears would keep the pressure on with four shots in a row after the Colonels had a shot after the WNE power play. The Colonels would be called for another penalty after the fourth Golden Bear shot. The Golden Bears didn't have a chance to get a shot off during the power play. The Colonels were called for another penalty, and the Golden Bears had a 5-on-3 opportunity. They had three shots during that power play opportunity, but the Colonels stayed strong and did not let up a goal.
WNE had one more shot during their second power play but no goal. The Colonels would take over the game again after that with multiple shots on goal before a power play opportunity. They had four shots, with the fourth shot being a power play goal from Eelis Laaksonen. George Vonakis sent a pass to Matt Connor, who sent a shot toward the outside of the net. Laaksonen tipped the shot into the back of the net, and with 1:57 left in the game, the Colonels' lead was up to 6-0. The Colonels had one more shot after the goal, and the game ended. The final stats for the game showed 44 shots on goal for the Colonels and 21 shots on goal for the Golden Bears. The Colonels led in faceoff wins 44-16 and power play goals 1-0. The Golden Bears led in blocked shots 10-8 and saves 38-21. The Colonels beat the Golden Bears 6-0. 
Inside the Crease:

• Men's Ice Hockey hosted the Colonels in CCC conference play on Friday afternoon.
• Wilhelm Patriksson netted the game's opening goal 15:31 into the game. Austan Bellefeuille and George Vonakis had the assists. The Colonels led 1-0.
• Killian Rowlee notched the second goal for the Colonels. The goal was unassisted. The Colonels led 2-0 8:06 into the second period of play.
• Jesse Galassi scored the third goal for the Colonels. Tao Ishizuka and Cole Weinger were credited with assisting the goal. The Colonels led 3-0 after almost ten minutes of play in the second.
• Eelis Laaksonen had a goal at the 10:29 mark in the second period of play. Jesse Galassi had the assist, and the Colonels led 4-0. 
• Taurin Haddon-Harris scored a goal 6:23 into the third period of play. Tyler Drummond and George Vonakis had the assists on the goal. The Colonels led 5-0. 
• Eelis Laaksonen sent a sixth Colonel goal into the back of the net. Matt Connor and George Vonakis had assists on the goal. The Colonels led 6-0. 
• Anthony Aureliano made 38 saves.
• Shane Soderwall made 21 saves and earned a shutout win.
• The Colonels won the game 6-0.

Up Next on the Schedule:

• The Golden Bears will host their "Hockey Fights Cancer" night in their next game when they host the Wentworth Institute of Technology Leopards at the Olympia Ice Center in West Springfield, Massachusetts. That game will be on Friday, January 26, at 8:00 PM.
• The Colonels will travel to Biddeford, Maine, for their next game against the University of New England Nor'Easters. That game will be on Friday, January 26, at 7:00 PM at the Harold Alfond Forum.