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In the second half, Syracuse’s leading goal-scorer Tucker Dordevic charged to the side, stopped on a dime, and spun back the other way. The dodge created separation from his defender, and Dordevic fired a side-arm shot for his fifth goal of the afternoon.

Last year against Stony Brook, Syracuse used a 9-0 run to take the lead against the Seawolves, who couldn’t work their way back into the game after that. This year, on the road, neither team led by more than a goal in the first half. But eventually, Syracuse pulled away behind a 8-0 run in the second half.

Here are some observations from Syracuse’s (3-4, 0-1 Atlantic Coast) 14-9 win over Stony Brook (5-3, 1-0 America East):

SU plays good man-down defense…

Near the beginning of the second period, Stony Brook had a two man-up opportunity. But SU didn’t let the Seawolves capitalize on it, holding them without a goal during the near two minute period.

It started when Owen Seebold was called for a slashing penalty on the ride, and then Landon Clary was called for interference just moments afterward. Goalie Bobby Gavin made a save, and SU’s defense forced Stony Brook into a tight-angle shot later in the two man-up opportunity.

Later, Syracuse’s defense jarred the ball loose and Brett Kennedy was there to scoop up a ground ball to kill Stony Brook’s man-up opportunity, one that stemmed from Jakob Phaup’s third first-half faceoff violation.

The Seawolves had a 30-second man-up moment into the second half, but they missed the shot wide. Late in the game, Stony Brook scored a man-up goal to cut SU’s six goal lead to five, which padded the stats slightly. SBU finished 2-of-7 on man-up opportunities.

SU capitalizes on man-up offense

On the other end, Syracuse went 2-of-4 on its offensive man-up chances. The crucial stretch came during the third period, when Syracuse used a 5-0 run to establish its first comfortable lead of the game. Before that, neither team led by more than a goal.

Dordevic and Brendan Curry both scored unassisted, but SU increased its cushion via man-up offense. Dordevic had plenty of space on a man-up opportunity, so after he received a pass from Curry, he set his feet and unloaded a step-down shot.

Then moments later, Syracuse earned another man-up opportunity and Dordevic did the same thing. This time, a pass from Pete Fiorini landed in Dordevic’s stick. He again had space, and again fired it home.

Syracuse goes back to Bobby Gavin, again

Gavin was back in net as SU’s starter on Saturday afternoon against Stony Brook.

Gavin was the starter for the first four games of the season, but he was pulled for Harrison Thompson at the end of the first quarter of the Army game. From there, head coach Gary Gait leaned on Thompson for the last two games until Saturday, where he switched back to Gavin.

The change seemed successful. In the first half, Gavin had eight saves and five goals allowed, and he finished with 13 saves. He made a routine save against Mike McCannell to begin the game, and then another one against a high shot from Matt DeMeo. He kept the ball out of Syracuse’s net after a point-blank range shot from a Seawolves attack, stopping a goal in transition.

In the second half, Noah Armitage drove past his man and shot toward Gavin, but the SU goalie was there to make the stick-side save. He stopped Dylan Pallonetti, Stony Brook’s top goal-scorer, from scoring midway through the third period.

Both teams clear the ball with ease

Clearing issues have hurt SU this season. Five failed clears against No. 2 Virginia proved costly, and so did another five against No. 12 Army. SU had four failed clears last week against Johns Hopkins.

Saturday afternoon, SU finished 24-of-28 — an improvement. Its 24 clears were the most of the season. Stony Brook also cleared with ease, regularly sprinting across the midway line without much pressure from Syracuse.

Jakob Phaup’s stronger second half

Phaup started just 4-of-13 at the faceoff X. He had three faceoff violations in the first half, leading to an extra-man opportunity that Stony Brook couldn’t capitalize on.

But in the second half, Phaup went to work. He finished 12-of-26 overall, winning eight straight faceoffs in the second frame. In the first half, he was winning the initial clamp against Renz Conlon, but he couldn’t come up with the ball. In the second half, he did both.

He won the clamp and tripped as he sprinted out of the faceoff circle in the third quarter. Yet Phaup got up, kept the ball, and then dished a pass to Dordevic as he got laid out.

Phaup laid motionless for a few moments, even as Dordevic finished the chance with a straightforward goal. Then he got up, trotted back to the faceoff X, and kept the momentum going for the Orange.

Published on March 19, 2022 at 5:43 pm

Contact Roshan: [email protected] | @Roshan_f16