BABSON PARK, Mass.— The Babson College men's ice hockey team wrapped up the regular season by skating to a 0-0 overtime tie against top-ranked Hobart College in a New England Hockey Conference (NEHC) contest on Saturday afternoon inside the Babson Skating Center.
Babson winds up the regular season at 13-10-2 overall and 11-8-1 in the NEHC, while Hobart put the finishing touches on its fourth straight regular season crown and heads into the playoffs at 23-1-1 overall and 18-1-1 in conference play.
Junior
Nate Mueller (Rogers, Minn.) made 34 saves in goal for his third career shutout for the Beavers, while junior Mavrick Goyer (Ste-Sophie, Que.) stopped 22 shots for his sixth shutout of the season for the Statesmen.
After a scoreless first period when Babson had an 8-6 advantage in shots on goal, both teams had power play opportunities stifled in the second period. Hobart opened the period with the man advantage to no avail, and each team had a power play for about a minute between the sixth and ninth minutes of the period. Hobart had a 18-8 shot advantage but the teams were still scoreless through 40 minutes.
The visitors turned up the pressure in the third period, outshooting the hosts 10-4, but Mueller went toe to toe with Goyer, who leads Division III in goals against average (1.00) and ranks second in save percentage (.948). The Beavers had a power play opportunity with 2:20 remaining in regulation but could not break through despite two shots on goal. Hobart had a 6-2 advantage in shots in the five-minute overtime but the game ended in a scoreless draw.
Hobart finished with a 34-22 advantage in shots on goal and both teams finish 0-for-2 on the power play.
The Beavers will be the No. 3 seed in the NEHC Tournament and will host sixth-seeded New England College next Saturday at 4 p.m. at the Babson Skating Center. Top-seeded Hobart will host eighth seeded eights-seeded Albertus Magnus next Saturday at 7 p.m.
GAME NOTES
• Babson is 12-11-6 all-time against Hobart in a series that dates back to the 1987-88 season.
• The Beavers are 1-5-1 in the last six games against the Statesmen, who were ranked No. 1 in Division III in all seven contests.
• The Green and White held the Statesmen scoreless for the first time since January 10, 2020, when Hobart and Babson finished 0-0 in an overtime affair in Geneva, N.Y.
• Babson was shut out in its second straight game for the first time since falling at Norwich (2-0) and at Curry (1-0) back on December 3 and 8, 2016.
• The Beavers head into next week's home playoff game with an 8-3-1 record at the Babson Skating Center this season.
