University of St. Thomas Athletics
Saturday, October 12
Mendota Heights, Minn.
6:07 p.m. Central
1-1-1
3
vs
1
Vermont
0-1-1
1
2
3
F
Vermont
0
0
1
1
St. Thomas (MN)
1
1
1
3
Team Stats
VER
UST
Shots
28
40
PPG
0
0
SHG
0
0
Penalties
4
3
Penalty Mins
8
6
Faceoffs Won
40
43
Game Leaders
Skaters
+/-
0
Goals
1
Sh
7
A
0
+/-
1
Goals
1
Sh
1
A
0
+/-
1
Goals
1
Sh
1
A
0
+/-
1
Goals
0
Sh
3
A
1
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Hockey
D
/ Men's HockeyF
/ Men's HockeyF
/ Men's Hockey
D
/ Men's Hockey
G
/ Men's HockeyF
/ Men's Hockey
F
/ Men's Hockey
G
/ Men's Hockey
Photo by: Kylie Macziewski
Men’s Hockey put the pieces together in 3-1 win over Vermont
10/13/2024 12:38:00 AM | Men's Hockey
The Tommies played a complete game with goals from three players and 27 saves from Aaron Trotter
MENDOTA HEIGHTS, Minn. – The St. Thomas Men's Hockey team (1-1-1 overall) had not led a second of a game to start the 2024-25 season, until Matthew Gleason's goal 38-seconds into the Toms' 3-1 victory over Vermont (0-1-1 overall) on Saturday night at Saint Thomas Ice Arena.
Gleason, Mason Poolman, and Cooper Gay (empty-net goal) were the three Tommie goal scorers. Aaron Trotter made his first start of the season in goal and stopped 27 of the 28 pucks he faced.
Recap
The Tommies had struggled to put all the pieces needed to win a college hockey game into place through their first two games of the season. They got strong goaltending and two solid periods of hockey against St. Cloud, but no goals to show for it. They had a flurry of offensive output in game one against Vermont but struggled with their defensive structure.
Saturday night, they played a complete game of hockey with phenomenal goaltending, strong structured defense, a stingy penalty kill, and timely goal scoring in route to their first win of the season.
It helps when you score 38 seconds into a game as well, and that's exactly what Matthew Gleason did. Caige Sterzer worked the puck down below the goal line after an opening face-off win and found Ryder Donovan for a one-time shot attempt. Donovan's shot bounced off the pad of Vermont goaltender, Keenan Rancier, and Gleason dashed in for the rebound and roofed the puck for a one-goal lead.
Gleason's goal was the only tally of the period despite two power plays for Vermont and three for the Tommies. In total, the Catamounts went 0-3 on the power play and St. Thomas finished 0-4 with nine shots-on-goal.
The Toms would not score again until Mason Poolman struck for the third time in the series at 7:59 in the second period. Alexander Tell won a battle on the boards and passed the puck to J.D. Metz who, in turn, passed it to Poolman across the ice to the far-side circle. Poolman wristed a shot hard enough to deflect off the right pad of Rancier and into the net for a two-goal Tommie lead.
Vermont made a hard charge in the remaining moments of the second period and into the third with a goal from freshman, Max Strand at 5:48. The Tommies took Vermont's staggering blow in stride and did not relent from their strong defensive posture. Cooper Gay scored an empty net goal from center ice at 19:27 to put the game away. Trotter assisted on the play for the cherry on top of his exquisite performance.
Top Tommies
First Time Since
Up Next
The Tommies do not play another hockey game until they match up with their crosstown rival Minnesota on Friday, October 25 at Mariucci and Saturday, October 26 at Xcel Energy Center.
Follow Along
For any and all information pertaining to the St. Thomas Men's Hockey team, follow along on Instagram and X (formerly known as Twitter) at @TommieMHockey.
Tickets
Single game tickets are still available for all Tommie Men's Hockey games at Saint Thomas Ice Arena. Click here for tickets!
The Tommies play Minnesota at Xcel Energy Center on Saturday, October 26. Get your tickets NOW!
Gleason, Mason Poolman, and Cooper Gay (empty-net goal) were the three Tommie goal scorers. Aaron Trotter made his first start of the season in goal and stopped 27 of the 28 pucks he faced.
Recap
The Tommies had struggled to put all the pieces needed to win a college hockey game into place through their first two games of the season. They got strong goaltending and two solid periods of hockey against St. Cloud, but no goals to show for it. They had a flurry of offensive output in game one against Vermont but struggled with their defensive structure.
Saturday night, they played a complete game of hockey with phenomenal goaltending, strong structured defense, a stingy penalty kill, and timely goal scoring in route to their first win of the season.
It helps when you score 38 seconds into a game as well, and that's exactly what Matthew Gleason did. Caige Sterzer worked the puck down below the goal line after an opening face-off win and found Ryder Donovan for a one-time shot attempt. Donovan's shot bounced off the pad of Vermont goaltender, Keenan Rancier, and Gleason dashed in for the rebound and roofed the puck for a one-goal lead.
Gleason's goal was the only tally of the period despite two power plays for Vermont and three for the Tommies. In total, the Catamounts went 0-3 on the power play and St. Thomas finished 0-4 with nine shots-on-goal.
The Toms would not score again until Mason Poolman struck for the third time in the series at 7:59 in the second period. Alexander Tell won a battle on the boards and passed the puck to J.D. Metz who, in turn, passed it to Poolman across the ice to the far-side circle. Poolman wristed a shot hard enough to deflect off the right pad of Rancier and into the net for a two-goal Tommie lead.
Vermont made a hard charge in the remaining moments of the second period and into the third with a goal from freshman, Max Strand at 5:48. The Tommies took Vermont's staggering blow in stride and did not relent from their strong defensive posture. Cooper Gay scored an empty net goal from center ice at 19:27 to put the game away. Trotter assisted on the play for the cherry on top of his exquisite performance.
Top Tommies
- The Tommies outshot the Catamounts 40-28. They have outshot each opponent to start the season.
- Aaron Trotter made 27 saves on 28 shots in his first game of the season. One goal allowed on 28 shots is the exact same line Jake Sibell posted against St. Cloud State last weekend.
- Mason Poolman's goal was his third of the season through three games. The program's record for goals by a defenseman in a single season is held by Trevor Zins (2021-22), Ethan Gauer (2022-23) and now Poolman at three. The sophomore has at least 33 more games to set a new program high this season.
- Poolman's goal was the first game-winning-goal of his career.
- Matthew Gleason's goal was the 17th of his career and 52nd career point. Caige Sterzer's assist on the goal was his first as a Tommie and Ryder Donovan's assist was his first point for the Tommies since his game-winning-goal in overtime against St. Cloud State on Oct. 7, 2023.
- J.D. Metz assisted on Poolman's goal for his first point in his first game of the 2024-25 season. Alexander Tell also assisted on the play for his first collegiate point in his first game.
- Cooper Gay's empty-net goal was his 30th career point.
First Time Since
- Aaron Trotter recorded a goalie assist for the first time since Jake Sibell tallied one on Feb. 9, 2024 at Augustana (246 days).
- Cooper Gay scored an empty-net goal for the first time since Matthew Gleason scored one against Michigan Tech on the road on March 1, 2024 (225 days).
Up Next
The Tommies do not play another hockey game until they match up with their crosstown rival Minnesota on Friday, October 25 at Mariucci and Saturday, October 26 at Xcel Energy Center.
Follow Along
For any and all information pertaining to the St. Thomas Men's Hockey team, follow along on Instagram and X (formerly known as Twitter) at @TommieMHockey.
Tickets
Single game tickets are still available for all Tommie Men's Hockey games at Saint Thomas Ice Arena. Click here for tickets!
The Tommies play Minnesota at Xcel Energy Center on Saturday, October 26. Get your tickets NOW!
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