SCHENECTADY, N.Y. – First-year Brayden Gillespie posted his second collegiate shutout and the Union College men's hockey team's fifth of the year as the Garnet Chargers skated past Brown University 4-0 on Friday night at M&T Bank Center.

Union's five shutouts are its most in a season since 2013-14 and the most in ECAC Hockey. Dartmouth has the second-most shutouts this season so far with three.

While the Garnet Chargers did earn their 12th game with four-plus goals, they were unable to get anything past Brown's goaltender Shea Brown in the opening period. The Bears' goalie entered play averaging over 40 saves in his last three games. While he did not eclipse 40 on Friday, he still finished with 37 saves and was called on to make 14 in the first period. Gillespie matched him with eight first-period saves of his own. However, both teams were unable to register a shot during their one power-play opportunity each.
 
Union broke through in the second period at the 2:24 mark, off the stick of first-year Troy Pelton. He notched his first collegiate goal off a rebound following a shot from sophomore Luke Buss. Sophomore Drew Sutton also earned an assist on Pelton's milestone goal after winning one of his nine draws. 

Sutton won 69.2% (9-13) of his faceoffs, and Union dominated the Bears in the circle all night going 41-61 (67.2%). Union entered play Friday with the 10th-best team faceoff percentage in the country. 

Gillespie finished the night with 25 saves, but none were more spectacular than his glove-side robbery with 13:42 left in the second. The Bears were on their third power play of the game when Brown's alternate captain Brian Nicholas dangled the puck in front of Gillespie going toward his left and tried to beat the first-year goalie glove high. While in a full split, Gillespie snatched the puck out of the air and denied Brown's most dangerous scoring chance of the night.

Brown finished the game 0-4 on the man advantage, improving Union's penalty kill to 90.9%.

Senior Parker Lindauer added to Union's lead shortly after with a power-play goal assisted by senior Brandon Buhr and first-year Alex Laurenza. It was Lindauer's first score since Nov. 15 against New Hampshire but his second game in a row with a point. He is third on the team in points with 22, one behind Buhr (23) and two behind junior Tyler Dunbar (24). 

Dunbar secured his team-leading 24th point after Brown pulled its goalie with 2:52 left in regulation. He found senior Nate Hanley at center ice, draped on either side by a defender. Hanley managed to get his shot off from the blue line despite being sandwiched by two Bears defenders and knocked to the ice. Hanley has two straight games with a point and five in his last five games.

Sutton put the game even further out of reach when he added a second empty-netter, solidifying Union's 4-0 win. First-year Ollie Chessler assisted on the play, earning his first collegiate point and becoming the 23rd Garnet Charger to tally a point this season. 

Union earned its first win on a Friday in conference play this season and can secure its first home series sweep in ECAC Hockey action since late-February 2023 with a win on Saturday. 

The Garnet Chargers take on Yale University at home on Saturday, Jan. 17 at 5 p.m.