Lakers explode in exhibition, topple St. John Fisher 7-0
With eight new faces brought in and a brand-new head coach at the helm, the Oswego State menโs hockey team cruised to a 7-0 exhibition victory over St. John Fisher University on Saturday, Oct. 17.
The season-opening win saw two newcomers notch the first pair of goals, while veterans Colin Vassallo, Ryan Burke and a slew of others notched scores of their own. With four minutes to go in the first period, Rich Rucireto found the puck in a midst of chaos and struck a backhand past goalie Marcus Oulett.
After going up 1-0, the Lakers continued to put pressure on the Cardinals both offensively and defensively. Freshman Alex Payie used a swift move past his defender at the blue line, before sniping a long shot past a sea of red and into the back of the net. Setting the tone with even more offensive control, the Lakers closed out the first period strongly with a powerful one-time slapshot from captain Ryan Burke.
After allowing the visitors little-to-no breathing room throughout the first 20 minutes, the Lakers kept the same tone in the second period. Brendan Gillmore shoveled a pass to Colin Vassallo, who got Oulett off-position with a nifty move before elevating a backhand into the net.
The Lakers did notdidnโt take much more time to build upon their momentum, as alternate captain Travis Baker launched a forceful slap shot past multiple defenders and into the net, using efficient screens from teammates to put the team up 5-0.
Oswego tacked on two more goals en route to a 7-0 victory, firing on all cylinders in their first exhibition of the season. Under new head coach Jon Whitelaw after the departure of longtime bench boss Ed Gosek, the Lakers are set to welcome Nazareth University for their second exhibition on Saturday, Oct. 24.
