The tie marks the fourth in league play for the Dutchmen (12-10-5, 7-5-4 ECAC Hockey), matching the program record set in 1994-95 and reached again in 2005-06. The scoreless draw is the first since a February 26, 2005, home game against Princeton.

 

The teams played an evenly-matched first period, but it was Dartmouth (8-11-4, 3-10-3) that held the upper hand in the middle frame. Within the first five minutes of the stanza, Matt Reber slid a backdoor pass to Kyle Reeds in the slot to cap a three-shot flurry, but Milan was there for the glove save.

 

Milan came up big again midway through the frame with a sprawling stick save. Lane Caffaro (Slave Lake, Alb.) and Brock Matheson (Gananoque, Ont.) converged on Adam Estoclet as he skated into the slot, but the puck found Nick Johnson who was trailing. Milan poked the puck away from the crease, but Johnson collected it. The senior batted the puck toward the net, but Milan kept the Big Green off the board with his stick.

 

For the second consecutive night, Union came out firing in the third, this time holding a 20-12 shot advantage. Jason Walters (Renfrew, Ont.) set up Matt Cook (Belle Mead, N.J.) as he fired the puck across the crease, but Cook's redirect clanged off the post less than three minutes into the third.

 

John Simpson (Boxborough, Mass.) picked up the puck in the neutral zone on the penalty kill and skated it all the way into Dartmouth's zone before curling back from below the left circle. Simpson saw Mike Harr (Norwood, Mass.) as he crossed the blueline along the right boards and fed the defenseman the puck. Harr wound up and fired from just inside the zone, but Dartmouth netminder Mike Devine made the save around the nine-minute mark.

 

The Dutchmen had the final seven shots of the period, sparked by a Jason Shaffer (Eagle River, Alaska) slapshot from the left circle. Cook was on the doorstep for a pair of his six shots in the game, and Brendan Milnamow (Wilton, Conn.) also had a shot from above the left circle as time was winging down.

 

With 6.3 seconds left in regulation, Walters won the draw back to Mario Valery-Trabucco (Montreal, Que.), who slid it back to Caffaro in the high slot. Devine stopped Caffaro's slapshot as time expired.

 

Union held control for most of the overtime, as Harr got things rolling with a low-angle shot. Simpson followed with a slow roller from the high slot to cap a three-shot outburst before Dartmouth was forced to ice the puck.

 

With two minutes left, Reber's shot from the low left circle bounced toward Milan, but the freshman stayed up to easily handle the puck.

 

The teams played four-on-four for the final 31 seconds after matching contact-to-the-head roughing penalties to Milnamow and Evan Stephens. Dartmouth posted the final chance of the game when Jon Wolter sent an ice-length pass to Reeds, whom Milan denied at the left post.

 

Milan made 24 saves in the final two periods and two in overtime for his first career shutout. Devine stopped 40 Union shots, including four in overtime.

 

Union hits the road for a pair of ECAC Hockey games next weekend at Cornell and Colgate. The Dutchmen face off with the Big Red at 7 p.m. Friday night at Lynah Rink.