EASTERN WASHINGTON GETS BY AGGIES IN OT
Gonzaga 0, USU 9
Dan Cornelius shut Gonzaga out of the goal net and USU cruised to a 9-0 win in the first game of its Washington road trip. Brendan MacDonald and Kent Arsenault led USU in scoring, MacDonald with six points, Arsenault with five. Defenseman Jordan Francom had a goal and an assist and said he was happy to be playing hockey again.????was he injured?????
“It’s a blast,” Francom said. “I’m just excited to be playing. I don’t know how to explain it. It’s amazing.”
An out-manned Gonzaga side presented little threat to the Aggies or their goalie, Cornelius, who only had to defend against 18 shots on goal all game.
“Shutouts are always good,” Francom said. “They might have gotten a few shots that challenged him a little bit, but he turned most of them away pretty easily.”
Also scoring for USU were Arsenault’s new linemate Matt Geer, who had a goal and three assists, and Walter Voisard, who popped in one goal.
“It went OK,” Francom said. “We could have played a little better, but it’s hard to get up for games that are against a lesser team. It’s expected to walk all over them.”
E. Washington 5, USU 4 (OT)
When Utah State plays another top team from the ACHA’s western division, as a rule, goalkeeper Greg Finatti has to be good for 50 saves or more. In Spokane, Finatti had 49 saves and the Aggies lost an overtime thriller, 5-4, to the No. 2-ranked Eastern Washington Eagles. How many shots did winning keeper Andy Pate face? Eighteen.
Finatti said part of the reason the Eagles get so many shots on goal is their style of play.
“They’re just a team that pounds you once they get the puck,” Finatti said. “They put three guys in front of the net and shoot at the top corners. They never quit. They just attack the whole game. We played UVSC and beat them when they were No. 2, but (the Eagles are) a real No. 2.”
The Aggies run a more methodical offense and wait for quality shots, sometimes to a fault. Arsenault and Geer were the leading scorers for USU, with three points apiece. Eastern Washington did its damage to USU with five different shooters. Eleven Eagle skaters scored at least one point, demonstrating the home side’s comfort level moving the puck on their NHL-sized ice rink.
“They have an advantage on their ice because they know how to play bounces,” Finatti said.
Mackenzie York, a new recruit, had two assists from his defenseman spot, Jay McFadden had one assist, and MacDonald scored USU’s fourth goal.
Francom said reducing the number of shots the Eagles are able to take on Finatti will be a point of emphasis as the Aggies prepare for another clash with the No. 2-ranked Eagles on Saturday.
“We’ll have to tighten up our defense,” Francom said. “Four goals for us in a hockey game should win it. Allowing 54 shots in a game is a little too many.”
Francom’s other key to the game is greater physicality from the Utah State side, he said.
“They play real physical. They finish all their checks,” Francom said. “We had a few guys be physical right back, but we need more of a team physical effort.”
Finatti is looking forward to getting another shot at Eastern Washington after the devastating overtime loss, this time on the larger international-size ice rink in the Eccles Ice Arena.
“It’s nice to get them on our rink,” Finatti said. “I think we have the team this semester that can give them their first loss.”
-graham.terry@aggiemail.usu.edu