Jeff Vanderlugt scored twice and turned a potential blowout into a one-goal game, but 11th-ranked Notre Dame pulled away for a 5-2 win over UAH in the Shillelagh Tournament in South Bend on Friday.
The Chargers, still looking for that elusive first win, take on Western Michigan in the consolation game Saturday at 3:05 p.m. Central Time. The game can be seen online at WatchND.tv. Northeastern defeated Western Michigan in a shootout after a 1-1 tie.
Notre Dame struck quickly at 4:08 of the first to take a 1-0 lead. Just 17 seconds after a hooking call on Graeme Strukoff, Andy Ryan scores a power-play goal, putting in a rebound off of Matt Larose after a blast from T.J. Tynan.
Tynan then scored himself, down low at 10:19. Stephen Johns increased the Irish lead to 3-0 just 23 seconds later.
UAH cut the lead to 3-1 with 21 seconds left in the first. Brandon Carlson’s shot from the right point reached Vanderlugt, who collected the puck in the slot and beat Notre Dame goaltender Chad Kutanar. It was Vanderlugt’s second goal of the season, assisted by Carlson and Doug Reid.
The goal came on the Chargers’ fourth shot, compared to 16 for Notre Dame in the first period.
UAH stepped it up to start the second, and closed to within a goal. Vanderlugt notched his second goal of the game as he redirected a Jack Prince shot past Kutanar to make it 3-2 with 9:03 left. Steve Koshey got the other assist.
But Notre Dame soon regained their three-goal advantage to end the second. Mario Lucia’s shot from the left side was missed by Larose to make it 4-2, and then Robbie Russo made it 5-2 with a shorthanded tally.
No goals and no penalties in the third period while Notre Dame continued to dominate possession. The Irish outshot the Chargers 44-15 for the game.