Henry Hoff scored a hat trick to lead the UAH club team to a 7-4 win over Georgia Tech in Atlanta on Friday night to clinch a spot in the College Hockey South Division 2 playoffs.
The Chargers (9-8-1 overall, 7-4-0 CHS) scored four power-play goals, with three in the second period to pull away from the Yellow Jackets (4-17-1, 2-8-1).
UAH’s season continues next week in the conference tournament, which will take place at the Ice Sports Center in Huntsville from Feb. 16-18.
Keegan Goodell put Georgia Tech up 1-0 in the first five minutes, but UAH responded with three goals in the first period.
Josh Corrow’s 10th goal of the season tied the game halfway through the frame, then UAH took the lead two minutes later on Elijah Howard’s second. Hoff made it 3-1 four minutes later.
The Yellow Jackets got a quick goal by John McEvilly to start the second to cut UAH’s lead to 3-2, but UAH responded with three power-play goals by Tyler Trombly, Hoff, and Bradly McDonald. The Chargers were 4-for-6 with the man advantage.
McEvilly scored with four seconds left in the second for Georgia Tech’s third goal, and Goodell notched his second with 4:11 remaining in the third for the Jackets’ fourth.
But Hoff’s third goal of the game and 11th of the season with 2:09 to go was the exclamation point for the Chargers. He also had two assists for a five-point night.
Despite the power-play advantages, UAH was actually outshot by Georgia Tech 47-35. Cameron Crawford kept the Yellow Jackets at bay with 43 saves.
UAH and Georgia Tech finish the regular season Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. Central Time.
Pictured: Henry Hoff against Middle Tennessee earlier this season. Photo by Jamie Crawford/JC Sports Photography