RYE, N.Y. — The Manhattanville men's ice hockey team opened another weekend of home play at Playland Ice Casino on Friday night, taking on the Chatham University Cougars in a hard-fought match up defined by grit, competitive play, and determination. The Valiants ultimately fell, 3–1. Despite the loss, the night was highlighted by Emil Grinsvall's (Gothenburg, Sweden/Maja Beskow) first collegiate goal, helping Manhattanville avoid the shutout.
Chatham struck early, scoring just 23 seconds into the contest to take a 1–0 lead. Manhattanville responded with steady pressure throughout the opening period, generating a strong wave of scoring chances, including multiple shots from Mitchell Watson (Calgary, Alberta, Canada/Canmore Eagles (AJHL)) and Johno Hoins (Telluride, Colo./The Frederick Gunn School / Notre Dame Hounds (SJHL)). The Valiants continued to push the pace and out shot the Cougars for most of the period before tying the game at 3:47 when a feed from Ryan McKenna (Spokane, Wash./Sheridan Hawks (NA3HL)) and Zach Choueiri (Montreal, Quebec/Renfrew Wolves (CCHL)) found Grinsvall in position, and the freshman buried the opportunity to record his first collegiate goal.
Both teams continued to battle for momentum in a physical, high-tempo first period, combining for a flurry of shots at both ends. Manhattanville held a 15–11 edge in shots during the stretch, but Chatham regained the lead late in the period to take a 2–1 advantage into intermission.
Early in the second period, McKenna and Justin Fernet (Sherbrooke, Quebec/Taft School) continued to generate high-quality scoring opportunities before Chatham earned a power play following a high-sticking penalty. The Cougars capitalized on the man-advantage just moments later, extending their lead to 3–1.
Manhattanville continued to create chances throughout the remainder of the period, applying pressure and working to break through the Chatham defense. The Valiants added to their shot total with attempts from Watson, Tristan D'Elia (West Chester, Pa./Philadelphia Little Flyers (EHL)), Lucas Baksay (Fairfield, Conn./Connecticut Roughriders (EHL)), and Hoins, but were unable to close the gap, heading into the period trailing by two.
In the final period, Manhattanville continued to battle relentlessly, producing additional shots from Corey Popowcer (Parkland, Fla./Vermont Lumberjacks (EHL)), Hoins, Watson, Grinsvall, and Choueiri. The Valiants also recorded six blocked shots in the period, while junior goaltender William Billequey (Montreal, Quebec/Vermont Lumberjacks (EHL)) made 12 saves in the period to keep Manhattanville within reach. Despite the consistent effort from the Valiants, the contest concluded 3–1 in favor of Chatham.
Up Next:
The Valiants return to Playland Ice Casino for a double-feature of Manhattanville hockey, with the men facing Chatham at 2 PM and the women taking on Albertus Magnus at 5:30 PM.
