Vikings Outlast Men’s Ice Hockey; 3-2

Salem, Mass. – Salem State's Jason Pucciarelli (Newmarket, ONT) stopped 22 shots and Michael Chen (Rockville, MD) netted the game-winning goal in the third period as the Vikings edged the Rams of Framingham State 3-2 Saturday afternoon on Senior Day at Rockett Arena.

Seniors John Needham (Medford, MA), Brandon Platt (Pittsburgh, PA), Michael Chen (Rockville, MD), Ryan Doherty (Tewksbury, MA), Marcus Zelzer (Green Bay, WI) and Brad Jones (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) were all honored prior to the game as the group played their final regular season home game as Vikings.

The win pushed Salem State to 11-4-2 in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference and 12-9-3 overall. Meanwhile, the Rams dropped to 2-22 and 1-16 in the MASCAC.

Derek Makimaa (Swartz Creek, MI) wasted no time getting the Vikings on the scoreboard as he received a pass from a diving Dan Holland (Woburn, MA) in the neutral zone that gave Makimaa a clear lane to the net. After an initial wrist shot that was saved by Adam Calabrese (Philadelphia, PA), Makimaa scooped up the rebound for the easy goal to put Salem State ahead 1-0 with just under 18-minutes to play.

Framingham State knotted the game at 1-1 with just over six minutes remaining in the period as Jake McKinnon (Framingham, MA) tipped in a Derek Ridgway (Franklin, MA) shot from the point. The Rams took full advantage of the momentum swing as they added another goal to take their first lead of the day.

Tyler Colacchio (Bellingham, MA) dropped a back hand pass to the crease defensemen Chris Andre (New Bedford, MA) took care of the rest as he beat Viking goaltender Pucciarelli low glove side.

However, the Vikings would answer with the help of a Framingham State minor penalty that awarded Salem State a man advantage for two-minutes. Midway through the power play, Michael Casale (Stoney Creek, ONT) collected a rebound behind the net. Showing patience, Casale fed Needham on the weak side of the net where the senior forward buried a high wrist shot to knot the score at 2-2 before the first intermission.

The Vikings' late goal in the first gave the team some momentum for the second period as their offense came out guns a blazing as they out shot the Rams 32-16 after two periods. During the second, the Vikings were granted two power plays back-to-back after Aleksi Mustaniemi (Vihti, Finland) was tripped by Ridgway on a breakaway. Mustaniemi's defensive partner Jones, found Mustaniemi streaking behind the Rams' defense where Jones hit him with a perfect pass from the opposite blue line that led to the trip. Controversially, this did not lead to a penalty shot and the Vikings were awarded their second power play in four minutes.

Salem State was unable to convert on either power play due to the outstanding play in net by Framingham State's Calabrese. Needham and Casale almost connected for the second time of the day on a give n' go that resulted in Calabrese denying Casale at the doorstep with his blocker. The two sides remained scoreless in the period as they took a 2-2 tie heading into the final period.

After a hard fought second period where the Vikings came up empty on the scoreboard, Chen netted the go-ahead goal three minutes into the period after dangling through the neutral zone and picking the top right corner of the goal for his target. Leading with a lot of time left in the period, Pucciarelli and the Vikings' defense were forced to play flawless in their own zone for the remainder of the game. However, the Rams didn't pose any threat in the Vikings' end as they only got off eight shots in the period, which were all turned away by Pucciarelli.

Calabrese made an impressive 40 saves on the day, but his team couldn't find the equalizer on the other end.

Salem forward Casey Miller (Billerica, MA) led all skaters with two points as he collected two assists including the game-winning goal that came off of Chen's stick in the third period.

Salem State's run through the regular season ends on Feb. 21 when they travel to Worcester State to take on the Lancers at 8:30 p.m. The Rams will be in action on Feb. 21 as well when they host the Corsairs of UMass Dartmouth at 7:30 p.m. on senior night at Loring Arena.

*Release courtesy of Salem State sports information