The UMass hockey team couldn’t have asked for a better start. In the first period of the Fargo Regional final of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday against Western Michigan, the Minutemen scored first and limited the Broncos, who average four goals a game, to just five shots.

Sophomore Dans Locmelis slotted UMass’ opening goal versus Western Michigan as the Minutemen’s second forward line of Locmelis, sophomore Aydar Suniev and freshman Daniel Jencko furthered their spectacular play. In UMass’ 5-4 overtime win over Minnesota on Thursday, the Minutemen’s second line registered three of UMass’ final four goals during its comeback victory.

As what often happens in the game of hockey though, UMass’ fortune in the game and ultimately, its season, changed in an instant.

A major boarding penalty assessed to Suniev in the waning minutes of the second period — the Minuteman forward’s second boarding infraction of the frame — resulted in a five-minute power play for the Broncos, plus Suniev’s ejection from the contest.

Western Michigan would go on to score twice on the ensuing man-advantage, which extended into the third period, in what proved to be the deciding factor in a game with a trip to the Frozen Four in St. Louis on the line.

“It’s funny you get into the NCAA Tournament and five-minute penalties are everywhere,” UMass head coach Greg Carvel said. “We hadn’t taken a five-minute penalty all year, all year. We took one back in October. We hadn’t taken one all year and you get here and they hand them out like candy.

“It’s unfortunate because 5-on-5 we had a really good game plan and the kids were executing and the kids believed because we had been winning a lot,” Carvel added. “You get to that point where whatever you tell them to do they’re just doing it.”

The Broncos threw 11 shots toward Minutemen goalie Michael Hrabal during their seven total minutes of time on the power play, scoring on strikes from Liam Valente and Tim Washe.

Western Michigan executed on high-low passes very well during its man-advantage opportunities, spreading the puck out in UMass’ defensive zone while creating open looks for its skaters both in-tight and out by the blue line. Valente’s goal was a one-timer from the top of the faceoff circle while Washe tipped-in a point shot while standing right in front of Hrabal.

“The power play this time of year has got to be able to decide the game,” Washe said. “It did that for us tonight. We were able to score two, that was big.”

The Broncos not only used the long power play to go ahead on the scoreboard, but also to take over the final shot tally as they outshot the Minutemen 25-17 in the final 40 minutes. UMass led in shots, 12-5, following the first period.

“Well I thought the momentum was heading our way,” Western Michigan head coach Pat Ferschweiler said. “I thought we started to win some puck battles. I thought we started to dig in. I thought we started to impose our speed and will on them a little bit. Some of that, I believe, is what caused that major, then after the major, of course, any goal lifts your team. You got to get that first goal and then we really started to believe. To come out in the next period and score that next one was obviously big for us as well.”

Not to be forgotten, Suniev’s first boarding penalty came less than three minutes before his untimely hit-from-behind on Broncos star forward Alex Bump in the corner. Despite killing off the intial two-minute Western Michigan man-advantage, Carvel admitted having to be on the kill for essentially seven-straight minutes was draining for his team.

“It was such a momentum-changer,” Carvel said. “When we get the one kill, then five minutes, right after that, then they scored [quickly] into the power play...to me that was the whole game. They were better in special teams, we were better in 5-on-5 [play].”

Making matters even worse for UMass was it got its own chance with a five-minute power play about four minutes into the third period, but never really tested Broncos goalie Hampton Slukynsky during the potentially game-changing sequence. The Minutemen managed only two shots on goal during the man-advantage stemming from a major elbowing penalty from Western Michigan’s Iiro Hakkarainen.

“Their power play is good, really good” Carvel said. “That was the whole game to me. We get a five-minute [power play] and we don’t really muster anything so to me, that was the whole game.”

The Minutemen (21-14-5) entered the NCAA Tournament as one of the strongest teams in the nation on the power play, yet went 0-for-5 across both games of the Fargo Regional.

Mercuri joins Lightning

Senior captain Lucas Mercuri signed an entry-level contract with the Tampa Bay Lightning on Sunday, after the Carolina Hurricanes traded his rights for a 2025 sixth-round pick.

Mercuri will report to the Lightning’s AHL team, the Syracuse Crunch, and will play on an amateur try-out deal with the Crunch for the rest of the 2024-25 season. Mercuri’s NHL contract doesn’t kick-in until the 2025-26 season.

In 148 games across four seasons with the Minutemen, Mercuri registered 28 goals and 85 points.