#8 Irish Blank RPI, 3-0, For Sixth Straight Victory

Coach Jeff Jackson Post-Game Press Conference
Dylan St. Cyr Post-Game Press Conference

NOTRE DAME, Ind. — The eighth-ranked University of Notre Dame hockey team, propelled by a 33-save shutout by goaltender Dylan St. Cyr, claimed a 3-0 victory and weekend sweep over Rensselaer Saturday night at the Compton Family Arena (4,228).
 
Cam Morrison, Colin Theisen and Dylan Malmquist each netted goals for Notre Dame, who outshot the Engineers (4-9-0, 3-3-0 ECAC) 41-33 in the game.
 
The Irish (10-4-1; 4-2-0 B1G) have now won six straight contests and seven of their last eight.
 
Notre Dame opened the scoring just under five minutes into the game as Morrison netted his second goal of the series off a pass from Mike O’Leary. He surprised RPI’s goaltender Owen Savory with a shot from the left circle, sliding the puck under his right pad to put the Irish up 1-0.
 
The second period saw solid chances for the Irish, who fired 17 shots on goal while holding RPI to seven. Freshman Alex Steeves, who came into the night with three goals in his last two games and two in Friday night’s win, saw the best chance of the middle frame as he fired a shot on the rush into the glove of a sprawled out Savory. Neither team was able to capitalize on an opportunity in the middle frame and the score remained 1-0 heading into the final period.
 
Although RPI had the edge in shots in the final 20 minutes of play, the scoreboard saw only Irish as Theisen and Malmquist both scored to give the Irish the eventual 3-0 win. After RPI hit the post with eight minutes left in the game, the Irish carried the puck down the other way and peppered Savory with shots before Theisen was finally able to break through, giving the Irish a two-goal lead.
 
Malmquist rounded out the scoring with an empty netter at 17:14, outskating the defense for a clear shot at the net to put the game away.
 
St. Cyr notched his second career shutout by stopping all 33 shots he faced, including 17 in the final period. Savory finished with 39 saves on 41 shots for the Engineers.
 
Neither team was able to convert on the man-advantage, with the Engineers going 0-for-3 and the Irish going 0-for-2.
 
Up Next
The Irish will return to Big Ten play to close out their first semester slate at sixth-ranked Penn State next weekend (Dec. 7-8). Puck drop for both contests is slated for 7 p.m.
 
Notre Dame Goal Descriptions
1-0 | Notre Dame took a 1-0 lead at 4:40 of the first period when Cam Morrison fired home his second goal in as many nights from the low slot, beating Owen Savory low. Mike O’Leary made a quick backhanded pass from the halfboards that sprung Morrison in on net, with Michael Graham also earning an assist on the play.
 
2-0 | Holding the puck in the offensive zone for nearly a minute, the Irish tested the RPI defense who turned aside multiple shots before Colin Theisen buried one to put Notre Dame up 2-0 with 6:24 left in regulation. Morrison sent the puck around the boards to Jake Pivonka, who picked it up and passed it to Theisen in front of the net. Savory stopped his initial shot but Theisen was able to pick up the rebound and sneak it, five-hole, into the net.
 
3-0 | With an open net at the opposite end, Cal Burke won the faceoff to St. Cyr’s right and Matt Hellickson fired it around the boards to Dylan Malmquist. The senior sped past all the red jerseys and tapped the puck into the empty net to give the Irish the 3-0 victory.
 
Notes

  • The Fighting Irish improved to 8-4-0 all-time against RPI and to 4-2-0 at home against the Engineers.
  • Dylan St. Cyr recorded his first shutout of the season and the second of his career (first since a 4-0 win over Alabama Huntsville on Oct. 7, 2017).
  • With a goal and an assist, Cam Morrison moved his point streak to three-games (2-1-3) and he has a two-game goal scoring streak.
  • With an assist, Cal Burke moved his point streak to four games (3-1-4).
  • With his third period goal, Colin Theisen moved his point streak to a career-long four games (2-2-4).
  • Dylan Malmquist is also on a four-game point-streak (2-2-4) and a two-game goal-streak (2-0-2).
  • The Fighting Irish finished up a stretch of three home games in five nights and are now in the midst of five games in 12 days to close out the semester.

— ND —