Great Lakes Wire

Scoreless with four minutes remaining in the third period, the Sun Devils were given their fifth power play of the evening. The special teams capitalized on this opportunity, securing a late go-ahead goal before adding another on an empty net to conclude the game at 2-0.

"I thought that was the best game we've played this year," said head coach Dave Shyiak during his post-game press conference. "We competed hard, we made it difficult for them to generate plays off the rush, we had some more time of possession... we did everything to win the game except put the puck in the net."

Ryan Ouellette performed exceptionally well, making 36 saves for a .973 save percentage, including several from dangerous areas in the slot. The Wildcats' penalty kill continued its success, going 4/5 on penalties during the match.

"The penalty kill was outstanding, Ryan Ouellette was really good and gave us a chance to win," Shyiak added.

Jesse Tucker and Jakub Altrichter excelled in faceoffs for the Wildcats. Tucker won 17 out of 21 (80.9%), while Altrichter secured 13 out of 17 (76.5%).

Sun Devil goalie Gibson Homer achieved a shutout with 22 saves, marking his second career shutout. Ryan Kirwan scored both goals and led his team with 11 shots on target.

The Wildcats now stand at a record of 1-5-0 as they finish their challenging non-conference schedule. They aim to regroup ahead of next weekend when they host the Huskies at Berry Events Center on Friday, November 1.

"We talked about continuing to use these games as building blocks for next week when we start conference play," Shyiak noted. "To me, conference play is like the start to a new season, and we'll get back to work on Monday."

The first period saw numerous penalties with eight minutes spent shorthanded by the Wildcats but managed to keep it scoreless after killing all four infractions. In a balanced second period, both teams exchanged chances without scoring; however, Arizona State eventually broke through in critical moments during their final power play opportunity.

With just four minutes left in regulation time and tied at zeroes due largely thanks due diligence defensively shown throughout much earlier stages too - things took turn when officials called boarding penalty against 'Cats which resulted into pivotal man advantage favoring opposition side instead who quickly converted upon receiving pass across crease leading eventual winner followed up later by insurance tally via empty-netter effort ensuring victory sealed firmly within grasp once more ultimately proving decisive factor determining outcome overall here today!