By Abby Doperak · KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- The Tennessee Ice Vols ended the weekend with back-to-back home wins over the West Virginia Mountaineers. Both Tennessee and West…
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- The Tennessee Ice Vols ended the weekend with back-to-back home wins over the West Virginia Mountaineers.
Both Tennessee and West Virginia entered the weekend searching for their first wins of the season. The Ice Vols left with 2 wins added to their record while outshooting the Mountaineers 88-28.
On Friday, Sept. 19, Tennessee demonstrated major improvement in their offensive play, resulting in a 4-1 victory.
The Ice Vols opened the first period with energy and physicality. With 20 shots on goal compared to the Mountaineers’ four, Tennessee clearly displayed growth in puck control and offensive pressure.
Freshman defenseman Finn DeStefano scored his first goal as an Ice Vol at 18:14, giving Tennessee a 1-0 lead heading into the second period.
“The crowd was amazing, and I got to celebrate right in front of my mom,” DeStefano said. “It was something pretty special.”
Going into the second period with a lead, Tennessee used their ability to connect passes to stay in the offensive zone, holding West Virginia to zero goals.
The third period pace was slowed thanks to Tennessee's puck control, but West Virginia used their speed to generate more offense. Mountaineer winger Charlier Wogisch scored at 9:55, evening the score to 1-1.
Tennessee found their consistency and were able to score three back-to-back goals. Bryce Cooper started the trend at 18:45, followed by a Mitchell Spranklin goal at 19:03. Shortly after, with o nly 41 seconds left in the game, Henry Cohen concluded the run, securing the well-earned final score of 4-1.
Tennessee dominated offensively and defensively, finishing with 44 shots on goal while limiting West Virginia to 12.
“They were dropping really low, and we were being really aggressive outside of the paint,” DeStafno said. “We were just shooting all the time from up top.”
The Ice Vols carried that momentum into Sunday’s game, shutting out the Mountaineers 5-0.
Tennessee started the first period similar to their previous game against the Mountaineers. As they were able to control play throughout the period and spend the majority of the time in the offensive zone, defenseman Tyler Rose scored halfway through the first period with an assist from Bryce Cooper, giving the Ice Vols an early lead of 1-0.
Entering the second period with a 1-0 lead for the second time this weekend, intensity of gameplay increased. While the Ice Vols allowed for the Mountaineers to gain more control over the puck, Tennessee continued to lead in shots on goal 15-6. At 14:10, DeStafeno scored his second goal of the weekend, increasing the Tennessee lead to 2-0.
The Ice Vols entered the third period aggressively. Captain Connor Frazer scored his second goal of the season three minutes in, making the score 3-0. Will Hurlburt and assistant captain Kyle Stober each added goals, closing out the 5-0 shutout.
Despite more time spent in the defensive zone late, goalie Patrick Green preserved the shutout.
“It feels good. [We] don’t get many shutouts. It’s nice to steal one,” Green said. “With not as many shots, [I was] just trying to stay focused every time the puck entered our zone and staying consistent throughout the game.”
Returning home from a low-scoring road trip, Tennessee saw a major turnaround, producing 88 total shots on goal over the weekend and holding West Virginia to 28.
“We wanted it more than they did,” Green said. “The amount of shots on goal proved that. We outworked them every time on the ice.”
Looking ahead, Tennessee sees promising progress but knows improvement is still needed.
“We were moving the puck very well, and there was a lot of good team chemistry that was shown,” Green said. “We would like to score a little bit more. Looking at the first game, not scoring until the last two minutes is not necessarily ideal.”
After opening their home schedule with a sweep, the Ice Vols will travel to Virginia Tech for another road matchup on Friday, Sept. 26 at 7p.m.