MIDDLEBURY — The Middlebury College men’s hockey earned a tie vs. NESCAC foe Williams on Saturday, a day after losing a close game to the third-place Ephs (14-6-2, 10-4-2 NESCAC) on the road.
The Panthers are 8-11-3, 5-8-3 in the league and have done enough to earn at least a No. 7 seed for the upcoming NESCAC playoffs. They host fifth-place Hamilton on Friday at 7 p.m. and fourth-place Amherst at Saturday at 3 p.m. and have at least a chance of moving up to No. 6 if they fare well this weekend.
On this past Saturday Middlebury twice battled back from one-goal deficits to earn a 2-2 tie with Williams. The Ephs took the lead on Wyatt Glovers’ shorthanded goal at 10:40 of the first period. Thirty seconds later Kamil Tkaczuk scored on the power play, wristing a shot past Eph goalie Michael Pinios (27 saves) from the right circle, assisted by Jimmy McKee.
Panther goalie Brian Ketchabaw (24 saves) made several big saves before 13:39 of the second period, when Max Fuld pounding home own rebound from the side of the net.
Middlebury’s Connor tied the game midway through the third period with the first career goal, a slap shot from inside the blue line on a pass from Alex Heinritz. The Panthers pressured in overtime, but could not convert the game-winner.
On Friday, Middlebury outshot Williams, 32-28, but Pinios made 32 saves as the Ephs prevailed, 2-0. Evan Johnson scored at 17:39 of the second period to make it 1-0 by pouncing on a loose puck in the Panther zone, and Mike Armstrong added an empty-netter in the final minute. Ketchabaw made 26 saves for the Panthers. A first-period McKee bid proved to be the best Panther chance, although Middlebury pressured in the third period.