AMHERST – An assertive first period pointed at an upturn for the UMass hockey team.

The Minutemen doubled New Hampshire’s shots in the first period Sunday and controlled 61.5 percent of the faceoffs. Not just a goal, but several goals appeared inevitable.

That promise never produced more than possibility. UMass never led, as the Wildcats tucked away goals early in the second and third periods, wrapping up a 3-1 win at the Mullins Center with an empty netter. 

“The first period was as good as we’ve played in a long time,” UMass coach Greg Carvel said. “Obviously we needed to find a way to put a couple of pucks in the net. The goals that we did give up, I felt like were breakdowns by us. We just couldn't find a way to muster enough offense.”

The No. 19 Minutemen did put the puck in the net in the first period. Josh Nodler tapped in a backhanded rebound with 9 minutes, 30 seconds left, but a premature whistle ended the play before it reached his stick.

“Things happen. The ref apologized. At that point, the way we were playing, you think that's alright. We’ll find ways to score,” Carvel said. “We’ve got to find ways to put pucks in the net.”

The Wildcats (7-16-1, 2-11-1 Hockey East) broke the scoreless deadlock 1:12 into the second. UNH’s Cy Leclerc beat UMass goalie Henry Graham with a backhand flip in transition. Damien Carfagna passed him the puck, and Will Margel started the play.

Michael Cameron responded for UMass 6:22 later. He ripped in a one-timer from the slot after Scott Morrow worked the puck below the goal line and fed it back to him. Elliott McDermott also received an assist on the tying goal. Cameron extended his point streak to five games.

“He's found a way to get points, and his speed is very effective. He's kind of a Swiss Army Knife player, wherever I have him in the lineup, I put him in and he usually makes that line better. Speed’s a big factor,” Carvel said. “He's been probably the biggest pleasant surprise this year. He's a great kid, and I knew he had speed, but I didn't think he would score as consistently as he has. That's good for us going forward.”

UNH regained the advantage 2:15 into the third after Kristaps Skrastins slammed home a Stiven Sardarian pass in transition. UMass lost the puck in a change, and the Wildcats converted a 2-on-1.

“That's our biggest win of the year,” UNH coach Michael Souza said. “We haven't had many, but that certainly felt good.”

UMass pulled Graham (21 saves) with three minutes left and generated some pressure, but Alex Gagne put the game away with an empty netter with 1:25 remaining.

The Minutemen (9-10-3, 3-8-1) have lost three games in a row and are 0-4-1 in their last five Hockey East games. They’re ninth in the league standings with two games against No. 11 UConn on the horizon next weekend.

“The most important thing for us is not hitting the panic button. We're just trying to take it day by day. We evaluate video every day, see where we're making mistakes and we're trying to make improvements that way,” UMass captain Eric Faith said. “I think if we're just throwing in the white flag and everybody's getting all worried, that's not gonna help us out, so we're trying to stay calm, stay the course and stick to our process.”

Kyle Grabowski can be reached at kgrabowski@gazettenet.com. Follow him on Twitter @kylegrbwsk.]]>