October 26, 1996

Miami Rallies To Defeat Notre Dame

Oxford, Ohio -- Notre Dame junior goaltender Matt Eisler extended his shutout streak to more than 120 minutes, but Miami University scored twice early in the third period to come back and defeat the Irish 2-1 in Central Collegiate Hockey Association action Saturday at Goggin Arena.

Notre Dame (2-1-1 overall, 1-1-1 CCHA) surged ahead late in the second period when junior Steve Noble converted on the power-play, off feeds from senior teammates Brian McCarthy and Tim Harberts. With the score, the Irish snapped out of a power-play slump that had seen them convert on just one of 21 attempts prior to Noble's goal.

Miami (6-1-0, 5-0-0) scored twice in the first two minutes of the final period to claim the lead behind goals by Joe Bodnar and Ryan Brindley over a span of 54 seconds.

That one-minute stretch also featured an apparent goal by Irish sophomore Aniket Dhadphale, but the linesman ruled that Dhadphale directed the puck into the net with his skate. Lyle Andrusiak initiated the chance down the left side and crossed the puck to Dhadphales at the right side of the crease.

The Irish had a golden opportunity late in the opening period after penalties to Miami players Randy Robitaille and Adam Copeland but could not convert on the power-play, including a 28-second stretch in which Notre Dame owned a two-man advantage.

The Irish nearly took a 1-0 lead into the first intermission but Dhadphale's shot with five seconds left went wide right.

NOTRE DAME COACH DAVE POULIN: "There certainly were a lot of positives tonight. There was a breakdown on Miami's final goal. That was a heck of a good chance in the closing moments. We'll learn a lot from tonight."

Score by periods
Notre Dame     0   1   0   -- 1
Miami          0   0   2   -- 2


Scoring
Second period:
15:47, Noble (ND) 2; McCarthy, Harberts
Third period:
 :59, Joe Bodnar (MU) 3; Buzzell, Harrold
2:16, Ryan Brindley (MU) 1; Buzzell, Bodnar

Shots on Goal
Notre Dame   18
Miami        23
Penalties
Notre Dame   7 for 14:00
Miami        8 for 16:00
Power Plays
Notre Dame   1 for 7 (.144)
Miami        0 for 6 (.000)
Saves
Eisler (ND)  21
Prior  (MU)  17
Attendance: 2,285