ASU Hockey: Sun Devils tie for the second straight night, but win shootout against UWEC

In the final game of their NCAA schedule, the Sun Devils closed out a two game series against Division 3 Wisconsin-Eau Claire with a tie, their second straight tie of the season.

Unlike Friday night, the Sun Devils won the shootout on the last shot of their NCAA season. Michael Cummings was able to net the shootout-winner, the only attempt that found the back of the net.

Wisconsin Eau-Claire got on the board first via a goal by TJ Stunz, but it didn't take the Sun Devils long to get that goal right back. Just 43 seconds after, forward Ryan Ostertag received a pass in front of the Eau-Claire net and was able to rifle it past Blugolds goaltender Jay Deo.

The Sun Devils would take their first lead of the night less than three minutes later when Liam Norris put home a rebound on a power-play opportunity.

Shifts after a goal are very crucial, at all levels of hockey, and the Sun Devils were put to the test. Right after the goal, Ryan Stevens took a tripping penalty, giving the Blugolds a chance for a quick response. ASU was able to hold off the Blugolds attack, keeping the momentum from that Norris goal.

"Penalty kill was good tonight. We really focused on it, went over a ton of detail on it. We got a nice power play goal. So special teams tonight, I thought, were really good," Coach Greg Powers said.

The second period was a quiet one in terms of goals, with neither team getting on the board. The action was fast-paced, up-and-down the ice with both teams getting quality opportunities.

The biggest missed chance was by the Sun Devils when defenseman Liam McGing received a pass from Joe Lappin while they were short-handed. McGing received the pass and was behind the Blugolds netminder, but somehow put the puck just past the far post.

All the scoring that was missing from the second period, the third period had and then some. 56 seconds into the period, the Blugolds were able to erase the 2-1 defect with Luca Kohls goal. Joe Lappin, just like Friday night, would score in the third, putting the Sun Devils back in front about five minutes later.

No ASU home game would be real without it's share of drama, as Adam Knochenmus tied the game at three a couple minutes later, and for the second straight night overtime would be needed.

In a running theme from Saturday's contest, for the second straight night overtime wouldn't be enough either.

After six rounds last night, the two sides would go seven rounds tonight, with Cummings putting home the eventual winner. The team feels that they need to get better at finishing the job once they have a lead.

"It's big for us, we need to learn how to win games and we didn't put them away. We just have to figure out where we went wrong tonight and work from that point on," Cummings said.

The Sun Devils next game is next Saturday against ACHA Liberty at 7:30PM MST at Oceanside Ice Arena.