HAMDEN, CT – Freshman Andrew Buote (Grande Prairie, AB) netted his first collegiate goal midway through the third period to give Union College its first ECAC Hockey victory of the season, a 4-3 win over Quinnipiac at the TD Banknorth Sports Center. The win snaps a seven-game winless streak for the Dutchmen (3-5-2, 1-2-2 ECAC Hockey).

 

Buote deflected a Lane Caffaro (Slave Lake, AB) slapshot midway through the final period to give Union the 4-3 lead. Caffaro stopped a clearing pass along the left boards before turning to wind up from the point. Buote got his stick on it at 10:45 for his first career goal and collegiate point.

 

Union held the Bobcats without a shot on a late 6-on-4. Quinnipiac pulled goaltender Bud Fisher after a Union penalty at 16:58 in the final period. The Union defense cleared the puck several times, and powered its way into the Bobcats' zone. Caffaro looked to nab an empty-netter, but his high shot was deflected by Brandon Wong.

 

Quinnipiac had won the previous six meetings, including five wins last season. The Bobcats defeated the Dutchmen in the first round of the ECACHL playoffs with 3-1 and 5-4 (OT) victories at the TD Banknorth Center.

 

Union jumped out to a 2-0 first-period lead, with Mike Schreiber (Sherwood Park, AB) netting a wrister from the top of the right circle just 1:05 into the game. Stephane Boileau (Blainville, QC) won the puck in the right corner before sending it out to Schreiber at the point. The sophomore walked the puck in a bit before sending his shot under the pads of Quinnipiac netminder Bud Fisher.

 

Torren Delforte (Shortsville, NY) gave Union a two-goal lead at 12:27 with his team-leading fourth goal of the season. On the power play, John Simpson (Boxborough, MA) sent the puck from the point down the right boards to Adam Presizniuk (Calgary, AB), who skated the puck to the crease from below the right circle. Presizniuk slid the puck across the crease to Delforte, who knocked it in at the left post.

 

The Dutchmen held the Bobcats without a shot for the first seven minutes of the game, and killed off three penalties in the first period. All six of Quinnipiac's first-period shots came on the power play, while Union registered 13 overall in the frame.

 

Union found itself down a man just three seconds into the second period, but the Dutchmen killed the two-minute penalty off. The Bobcats, however, struck during their next power play.

 

Brandon Wong roofed the puck just inside the right post from below the right circle at 6:06. Jake Bauer won the puck in the corner and his pass deflected off a Union defender before finding its way to Wong.

 

Union answered back just over a minute later to retake a two-goal lead at 7:22 when Mario Valery-Trabucco (Montreal, QC) scored his third goal of the season. Presizniuk dug the puck out of the corner and chipped the puck up the boards to Boileau as Trabucco skated into the high slot. Boileau slid the puck to the sophomore, who fired his shot just under the crossbar.

 

Jean-Marc Beaudoin scored a pair of late goals to knot the game at 3-3 headed into the second intermission. Beaudoin first threw the puck at the net from the right corner at 17:55 for a short-handed tally, then collected the draw from Wong at 19:42 and fired a low shot that squeezed under Union goaltender Corey Milan's (Great Barrington, MA) pads.

 

Milan made 29 saves in his first career win. Fisher made 26 saves in the loss.