KALAMAZOO, Mich. – Western Michigan freshman goalie
Alex Aslanidis made 24 saves to earn his first collegiate shutout as the Bronco hockey team blanked No. 4 Minnesota-Duluth, 4-0, on Friday night at Lawson Ice Arena.
Senior forward
Josh Passolt had a season-high three points on two goals and an assist, while
Cole Gallant and
Ethen Frank also tallied goals. UMD outshot WMU 24-23 on the night but the Broncos held the Bulldogs to just five shots on goal in the final 20 minutes. Western Michigan held Minnesota-Duluth scoreless on five power plays, including a full two minutes of 5-on-3.
After a scoreless first period, Passolt gave the Broncos the lead at 5:46 in the second. WMU was on the power play and
Luke Grainger played the puck up to junior defenseman
Michael Joyaux at the center point. Joyaux fired a shot and Passolt deflected it into the net as he skated through the slot for his sixth goal of the season just before the power play expired. Joyaux picked up his seventh assist and Grainger tallied his fourth on the eventual game-winning goal.
Gallant made it 2-0 at 17:32 in the second period.
Aidan Fulp won the puck in the in front of the WMU bench and dished it out to Passolt. Passolt took it into the UMD zone and had a 2-on-1 rush with Gallant. Passolt passed to Gallant, who fired it into the net for his third goal of the season. Passolt picked up his 10th assist of the season and Fulp recorded his seventh.
Western Michigan's
Drew Worrad and Joyaux were both called for penalties at 18:04 in the second period, giving UMD a rare 5-on-3 for two minutes. Aslanidis made five saves during the two-man advantage to keep the Bulldogs off the board.
Passolt pushed the lead to 3-0 at 6:39 in the third period. Minnesota-Duluth had the puck in the WMU zone but
Hugh Larkin wrestled it off of Wyatt Kaiser and pushed it forward down the ice. Passolt won a race to the puck and fired it into the net on his first touch for his seventh goal of the season. The assist was Larkin's first of his career.
Frank added an empty-net goal with 1:35 to play after blocking a shot in the Bronco end.
The two teams battle for the final time of the regular season on Saturday at 4 p.m.
