North Dakota penalty shot tips UM

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ORONO – The University of Maine lost just one home game all of last season but the University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux have already dealt them one this season.

Sophomore left wing Drew Stafford converted a penalty shot with 2:02 left in overtime to give UND coach Dave Hakstol a successful debut, 4-3 before a sellout crowd at Alfond Arena.

A mixup behind the Maine net in which Maine goalie Jimmy Howard and freshman defenseman Tim Maxwell collided and fell left a wide-open net and a Maine player knocked the net off its moorings which resulted in the penalty-shot call.

Stafford calmly skated in on Howard, who came way out to challenge him, and snapped a 20-foot wrist shot over Howard’s pad and under his blocker.

“I knew the ice was bad so I just wanted to get a shot off,” said Stafford. “Luckily, it went in.”

“It was a nice shot. It’s tough to stop it where he put it,'” said Howard.

Howard said the mixup behind the net was a “lack of communication.

“No one said anything so I went behind the net to play the puck. Timmy [Maxwell] had nowhere to go,” said Howard.

Fighting Sioux junior defenseman and captain Matt Greene said Stafford was the right choice to take the shot.

“He’s a pure sniper,” said Greene.

It was North Dakota’s opener while Maine fell to 1-1. The teams play again tonight at 7.

Senior center Rory McMahon staked the Fighting Sioux to a 1-0 lead just 1:42 into the game but Derek Damon equalized on a five-on-three power play 8:12 later.

Maine had a 9-7 shots-on-goal margin thanks largely to five power-play chances, including a two-minute five-on-three. North Dakota had three power- play chances with the third one spanning into the second period.

Josh Soares gave Maine its first lead of the game with a fluky goal off a weird bounce off the boards but North Dakota answered with goals 5:17 apart from Andy Schneider and Brady Murray.

Maine killed a couple penalties later in the period to stay within a goal and Damon notched his second 4:13 into the third period.

McMahon opened the scoring by finishing off an impressive sustained forecheck involving linemates Mike Prpich and Rylan Kaip.

Prpich’s shot from the top of the right circle was saved by Howard but the rebound squirted across the slot and McMahon deposited it into the half-empty net.

Damon tied it up after Kaip was called for obstruction-interference and McMahon received a five-minute major for elbowing.

Ben Murphy, positioned behind the net, passed it to Damon at the top of the left circle and his wrist shot beat the screened Jordan Parise to the glove side.

Soares’ second-period goal resulted when his clear-in hit the boards in the corner to Parise’s left and bounced crazily into the high slot.

Parise was trapped behind the net as he expected to play the puck and couldn’t quite get back into position as Soares snapped a wrister past him.

Schneider tied it with a blast from the right point that beat Howard to the blocker (far) side. Robbie Bina gave Schneider a point-to-point pass.

A perfectly-executed two-on-one involving Colby Genoway and Murray led the Murray goal. Rastislav Spirko moved the puck to Gennoway who held it until the last second before sending it over to the far post to Murray, who tapped it in.

Damon tied it early in the third after Tom Zabkowicz partially fanned on a one-timer.

Damon picked up the loose puck and took a wrister from a difficult angle that glanced in off a Sioux player who was behind Parise.

Both teams had power-play opportunities to break the tie but neither could convert.

Maine had a golden opportunity just before the end of regulation as Jon Jankus’ power play point shot was saved by Parise and the sophomore goalie smothered a couple in-close rebounds.

“He kept us in the game,” said Greene.

North Dakota had the better of the play in five-on-five situations over the first two periods although there wasn’t much five-on-five play.

Maine had the better of the play in the third period.

“We played well in the third period but you’ve got to play 60 minutes to beat a team like North Dakota,” said Maine senior defenseman Troy Barnes.

“They played well. It was a good game. It was the type of game everybody expected,” said Maine senior center Ben Murphy.

Parise finished with 23 saves and Howard had 25.

FIGHTING SIOUX 4, BLACK BEARS 3 (OT)

North Dakota (1-0) 1 2 0 1 – 4

Maine (1-1) 1 1 1 0 – 3

First period – 1. UND, McMahon 1 (Prpich, Kaip), 1:42; 2. Maine, Damon 1 (Murphy), 9:54 (pp). Penalties: UND, Fuhrer, hooking, 2:18; Maine, Murphy, interference, 3:27; Maine, Damon, hooking, 6:49; UND, McMahon, elbowing, 9:32; UND, Kaip, obstruction-interference, 9:32; Maine, Moore, roughing, 11:11; UND, Greene, roughing, 11:11; UND, Jones, cross checking, 12:58; UND, Murray, tripping, 16:16; Maine, Leveille, hooking, 19:15

Second period – 3. Maine, Soares 2 (unassisted), 2:30 (pp); 4. UND, Schneider 1 (Bina, Fylling), 4:27; 5. UND, Murray 1 (Genoway, Spirko), 9:44. Penalties: UND, Greene, hooking, 2:06; UND, Smaby, delay of game (served by Marvin) and 10-minute misconduct, 2:30; Maine, Zabkowicz, obstruction-holding, 3:20; UND, Genoway, hooking, 7:07; Maine, Zabkowicz, unsportsmanlike conduct, 13:03; Maine, Barnes, tripping, 15:53

Third period – 6. Maine, Damon 2 (Zabkowicz, Hopson), 4:13. Penalties: Maine, Jankus, charging, 9:05; Maine, Hamilton, roughing, 9:05; UND, Prpich, roughing, 9:05; UND, Stafford, hooking, 10:34; Maine, Damon, hitting after whistle, 12:39; Maine, Soares, hitting after whistle, 12:39; Maine, Ronan, hitting after whistle, 12:39; UND, Stafford, hitting after whistle, 12:39; UND, Greene, hitting after whistle, 12:39; UND, Jones, hitting after whistle, 12:39; UND, Smaby, holding the stick, 12:59; Maine, Mushaluk, interference, 16:30; UND, Greene, contact to the head-elbowing, 19:25

Overtime – 7. UND, Stafford 1 (penalty shot), 2:58. Penalties: none

Shots on goal: UND 7-10-8-4-29; Maine 9-9-8-0-26

Goaltenders: UND, Parise (26 shots-23 saves); Maine, Howard (29-25)

Power-play opportunities: UND 0 of 8; Maine 2 of 10

Attendance: 5,641