AMHERST — It wasn’t until Thursday that Marc Del Gaizo decided he would be able to play this weekend against Maine.
The sophomore defenseman missed the first four games of the season while recovering from offseason shoulder surgery. His return to the ice lasted less than a period before being sidelined by an ankle injury and his subsequent return to the lineup lasted just one game. But he was back to his usual self Friday night against the Black Bears, inserting himself into the play often and showcasing the offensive ingenuity that made him a dynamic defenseman last season.
He also made a dent in the scoresheet, hammering home the last goal of a three-score first period as No. 11 UMass cruised to a 5-1 win over Maine at the Mullins Center.
“When you come back from surgery then you get a high ankle sprain then you try to stay positive and you get another high ankle sprain, it was great to get that goal,” Del Gaizo said. “I knew Maine was going to be a tough team to play against so I had a little bit more pep in my step and try to prepare for it knowing what they’re going to bring and it paid off.”
The barrage of goals in the first period was exactly what the Minutemen needed after they struggled to start games well in recent weeks. The first few minutes were a bit shaky for UMass (10-4-1, 5-3-1 Hockey East), but it all changed about five minutes into the game when Jake McLaughlin found Oliver Chau in stride with a stretch pass and the junior forward sniped a wrist shot over Jeremy Swayman’s blocker.
Less than two minutes later, John Leonard won a puck battle off a faceoff and barrelled in on Swayman before deftly sliding a pass to Bobby Trivigno for a two-goal lead. The score prompted a quick timeout from Maine coach Red Gendron, but the Black Bears (8-6-3, 4-5-2 HEA) relented again as Del Gaizo scored on a delayed penalty with the Minutemen already on the power play.
It was the ninth three-goal period of the season for UMass, but the first time it had scored that multiple first-period goals since the fourth game of the season when it scored twice in the opening 20 minutes against Union.
“We’ve talked about (fast starts) a lot, but the main focus this week was less talk, more action,” Leonard said. “That’s exactly what we got in the first.”
The quick start was also energized by the return of two other veterans to the lineup in addition to Del Gaizo. Junior center Jake Gaudet returned after missing five weeks with an injury and senior captain Niko Hildenbrand also came back after missing three games due to injury. Their additions sparked a different energy within the Minutemen’s lineup and gave UMass a more veteran presence on the ice, which was noticeable.
“To get (Del Gaizo), Gaudet and Niko back, that’s a lot of experience for our young team,” Carvel said. “That’s a sophomore, a junior and a senior, throw them back in the lineup and that’s a lot of experience that you can tell makes a big difference. … As a coach, you always feel better with experienced players on the ice and the guys that Gaudet, Niko and Marc replaced, they replaced freshmen, so that’s a huge swing when you get three experienced guys and take three freshmen out of the lineup.”
Perhaps spurred on by the return of the three injured players, UMass also received major contributions from some of its experienced players who hadn’t contributed much thus far this year. Chau’s goal was just his second of the season and he added an assist on Ty Farmer’s goal for his multi-point game in more than a month. Philip Lagunov also played one of his better games of the season as the top-line center between Chau and Mitchell Chaffee.
“The guys that we needed to step up, stepped up (Friday),” Carvel said. “Oliver Chau, Phil Lagunov, Gaudet, those are guys we needed them this year to be important players and tonight they were all really strong. Especially Oliver, that was Oliver’s best game. He had the beautiful goal in the first, but he was quick, he was nimble, he possessed pucks, he was a very effective player for us.”
MAKAR RETURNS – UMass hosted former defenseman Cale Makar before Friday’s victory and raised a banner in honor of Makar winning the Hobey Baker Award last season. The Colorado Avalanche rookie defenseman was in town because the Avalanche playing the Bruins on Saturday night in Boston, and he was able to eat lunch with many of his former teammates before Friday’s game.
“It was definitely a special night,” Leonard said. “A couple of us were able to grab lunch with him today at the dining hall. Obviously, we wanted to put on a good performance for him, and he wasn’t staying the whole game so we had to come out strong.”