HARTFORD, Conn. – Tufts University's Tyler Sedlak scored midway through the second period and Peyton Durand made 45 saves in the Jumbos' 1-0 win against the Hamilton College Continentals in a 2024 NESCAC Men's Hockey Championship semifinal inside Koeppel Community Sports Center on Saturday, March 2.
Season Update
- No. 4 seed Hamilton (17-8-1 overall) had won its last four games going into championship weekend. The Continentals, who received votes in this week's USCHO.com Division III Top 15 poll, were trying to reach the conference final for the first time since 2017.
- No. 3 seed Tufts (14-9-3) advances to the NESCAC final and will play No. 1 seed Trinity College on Sunday, March 3 at 2 p.m.
How It Happened
- Sedlak's goal came with 7:30 left in the second period and Max Resnick and Jack Hughes had the assists. Resnick won a faceoff for the Jumbos four seconds before the goal.
- Hamilton went on the power play just eight seconds after the opening faceoff and James Philpott '25 hammered a shot off the post a few seconds later.
- The Continentals received another power-play chance at 6:08 of the first period and put four shots on goal during their two-minute opportunity.
- Hamilton came out with a vengeance at the start of the third period. The Continentals had seven shot attempts in the first 70 seconds, capped by a Max Bulawka '26 shot that rang off the post.
- Hamilton had its third and final power play with 6:29 remaining, but it seemed to help Tufts more than the Continentals. The Jumbos had four shots to Hamilton's two including two breakaways where a Tufts skater got behind the Continentals' defensemen.
- Hamilton pulled its goaltender for a sixth skater with more than two minutes to go. Durand stopped eight shots in the final two minutes and secured the shutout.
Notes
- Jack Grant '24 was equally fantastic in goal for the Continentals as he turned away 37 shots. Grant finished the season with a 2.71 goals against average, a .918 save percentage and 9-6-0 record in 15 starts.
- The Jumbos blocked a staggering 23 shots and won 43 of 79 faceoffs.
- Hamilton's last seven games were all decided by one goal.
- In the two previous matchups this season, the Continentals rallied from a three-goal deficit to tie Tufts 3-3 at home on Jan. 13, and Hamilton edged the Jumbos 3-2 in overtime on Feb. 10 in Massachusetts.
