Sam Majka celebrates his breakaway goal. (photo by Roisen Granlund '17, Gustavus Sports Information)
ST. PETER, Minn. – The Gustavus men’s hockey team completed the series sweep over Bethel Saturday at Don Roberts Ice Rink with a 3-0 shutout victory. The win marks the first shutout for the Gusties in two seasons and first sweep since Feb. 2014. Gustavus improves to 4-15-4 overall and 3-10-1 in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, while the Royals drop to 2-19-2 overall and 1-11-2 in the league.
Players clear the ice after the Teddy Bear Toss.
Tim Donohue (Jr., Bloomington, Minn.) scored what proved to be the game winner at the 12:59 mark in the first period on a power play, assisted by Drew Aspinwall (Sr., Maple Grove, Minn.) and Jake Bushey (Jr., Duluth, Minn.). Immediately after the score, hundreds of Teddy Bears and stuffed animals flooded the rink for the inaugural Teddy Bear Toss. After discussing the play at length, the officials confirmed the goal as players and workers cleared the ice. All of the of Teddy Bears and stuffed animals were donated to Gillette Children’s Specialty Healthcare and Partners for Affordable Housing. The Gusties led 1-0 at the first intermission.
On the second power play opportunity of the night, Donohue tallied his second score of the night and fourth of the season on a redirected shot by Aspinwall; Bushey was also credited with the assist. With time winding down in the period, Sam Majka (Sr., Wayzata, Minn.) took advantage of a breakaway and backhanded a shot past the left shoulder of Bethel goalie Aaron Furlano, giving the Gusties a 3-0 lead with 12 seconds remaining in the frame.
Neither team could find the back of the net in the final period as the Gusties picked up the shutout victory. Gustavus controlled play for the majority of the contest, outshooting the Royals 47-16, just one shot shy of its season high. The 16 shots allowed marks the fewest this season.
Aspinwall finished with a hat trick of assists for the first three-point game of his career. Chris Amsden (So., St. Peter, Minn.) recorded his second career shutout (first shutout victory) after making 16 saves. Special teams was the key of the night as the Gusties went 2-for-3 on the power play and killed all three opportunities by the Royals.
Gustavus concludes the season next weekend with a series against Hamline.