After trailing for most of the game, Northeastern tied the game with just under seven minutes to play and scored the game winner with 56 seconds to play in overtime. Sophomore defenseman Josh Manson assisted on the game-tying goal and his first career goal won the game for the visitors.
Bryan Mountain came on to start the third period replacing Chris Rawlings who had another rocky outing. Mountain picked up the win shutting out UMass in the final period and in the extra session.
Freshman forward Mike McMurtry who was centering Kevin Roy and Vinny Saponari had a big night, tallying three assists. Senior Robbie Vrolyk also was a key contributor for the Huskies, scoring twice and adding a helper.
Both teams scored twice on the man advantage. The Minutemen went two for four while the Huskies went two for five on the the power play.
The win for Northeastern narrowed the gap between them and a playoff spot. The Huskies are now within reach of a playoff spot, just two points behind UMass. For the Minutemen, it was a missed opportunity at two points. UMass now has a huge series with Maine this weekend while the Huskies have a home-and-home series with Providence.
Jeff Cox covers college hockey for SBNation. Follow him on twitter @JeffCoxSBNation.
On a crucial Hockey East Sunday afternoon, a pair of ties kept things level in the conference standings. Merrimack came back with a shorthander to tie Providence, while UNH and Boston College combined for eight goal scorers in a 4-4 tie.
The Vermont Catamounts pulled off a weekend sweep of the Northeastern Huskies at Matthews Arena with a 3-1 win on Saturday. Senior Chris McCarthy scored twice for UVM in victory.
The Huskies and Catamounts return to Matthews Arena for the closure of their Hockey East season series on Saturday night at Matthews Arena. With Friday's 2-1 win, UVM has a five-point lead on the Huskies as it sits in eighth place.
Sophomore Connor Toomey scored the game-winning goal in overtime to lift Merrimack over Boston College and into sole possession of first place in the league. Elsewhere, Vermont and UMass-Lowell took road wins, while BU salvaged a tie in Maine.
The Vermont Catamounts picked up their third win in four games, but their first on the road in 2013, edging the Northeastern Huskies by a 2-1 score on Friday at Matthews Arena. Ben Albertson scored the winner in the second period.
The Vermont Catamounts scored just over halfway through the second period, entering the intermission with a 2-1 lead over the host Northeastern Huskies at Matthews Arena. UVM held true command with a 14-5 edge in shots on goal in the stanza.
After scoring an early power play goal, the Northeastern Huskies surrendered one of their own at the midway point of the first period as the Vermont Catamounts entered the locker room in a 1-1 tie after 20 minutes at Matthews Arena.
Northeastern and Vermont meet in a key Hockey East series this weekend at Matthews Arena. Entering Friday's opener, the Huskies and Catamounts are separated by just three points in the bottom half of the league standings.
Several of this weekend's Hockey East match-ups will be key for positioning in the league standings. On Friday, BC and Merrimack will meet with sole possession of first place on the line, while UVM and Northeastern lock in a key lower-half match.
