Brady Risk and Connor Mylymok were back on the ice for the Nanooks but the University of Alaska Fairbanks fell 3-2 Saturday in their second matchup against Northern Michigan in Marquette.
Risk and Mylymok had been suspended for one game by the NCAA for their role in the melee that followed the Nanooks’ loss at the University of Nebraska-Omaha on Oct. 23.
Both teams lit the siren early, trading power plays and power-play goals within the first six minutes of play.
A tripping call on UAF (4-5-1) sent Peyton Matsui to the penalty box giving NMU a power play, which they converted into the first goal of the game by Josh Zinger just 30 seconds later. A.J. Vanderbeck and Andre Ghantous assisted.
It was a short 1-0 lead as Reily Funk of the Wildcats drew a holding call, providing the Nanooks with their own man-up advantage. A mere 11 seconds into the 2-minute upper hand, Harrison Israels sunk the puck into the net, assisted by Garrett Pyke and T.J. Lloyd.
Northern Michigan went ahead for good with a pair of second-period goals. A.J. Macaulay of the Nanooks drew a penalty for interference at the 6:20 mark, handing the Wildcats their second power play of the evening. Zinger once again shot past UAF goaltender Matt Radomsky, giving the Wildcats a 2-1 lead at the 7:25 mark.
The Wildcats extended their lead to 3-1 with an even-strength goal when Alex Fyre took the puck out of a faceoff and passed it to David Keefer who shot past Radomsky with 3:04 to play in the period.
The Nanooks’ biggest opportunity to draw within one came 3:16 into the third period when Nathan Butler was tagged with a five-minute major for boarding. Though they managed to get four shots on goal during that stretch against Beni Halsz, none of them found the net.
With Radomsky was taken out of goal with 3:41 remaining in the game, Israels scored his second goal of the night with 1:07 left on the clock. But that was all UAF could muster.
The 26 shots on goal were consistent with what coach Erik Largen has been seeking from his offense, but Halasz stopped all but four. In contrast, the Nanooks’ defense only allowed 15 shots for the night, but three got past Radomsky.
The Nanooks will have two weeks of practice ahead of them before they fly back to the Lower 48 for a Nov. 18-19 series at Rensselaer Polytechnic in Troy, New York, and two games on Thanksgiving week (Nov 22-23) at Penn State.
