The first two periods of Syracuse’s season opener against Colgate were dominated by penalties.

SU faced two five-on-threes. But each time the Orange had to kill one off, it came out unscathed.

“Our PK (penalty kill) was what won the game for us, absolutely,” head coach Paul Flanagan said.

The Orange (1-0) was eight-for-eight killing penalties Thursday night in Tennity Ice Pavilion while allowing Colgate (0-1) only 10 shots on goal during the Raiders’ power play opportunities. SU blocked 11 shots, many of which came from diving penalty killers, as it defeated the Raiders, 2-1.

The SU penalty kill was tested early when defender Akane Hosoyamada was whistled for checking only 20 seconds after forward Julie Knerr was called for holding. Syracuse faced a five-on-three for not only the first time in a game, but also overall this season, as Flanagan said his team has yet to practice being two men down.

But the team proved up to the test, allowing only two shots on goal.

“They were doing a good job of staying in shooting lanes so they couldn’t shoot it and they had to pass it back out, move it around and I think we frustrated them,” Flanagain said.

SU got its own five-on-three soon after, and Flanagan said he joked to his players after the period that he asked the referees to give each team a five-on-three so his players could practice.

At the end of the first period, Colgate had another power play, but SU gave up just three shots, one of which was blocked before it reached the net.

“(Blocks) make my job a lot easier, obviously, keeps the shots down and shows me my team is out there to support me,” said goalie Jenn Gilligan, who made 20 saves.

The second period proved no different as forward Jessica Sibley took a crosschecking penalty 11 seconds in. This time, the Raiders shot eight times but SU defenders were able to block three, including an impressive one from forward Allie LaCombe.

Playing closest to the blue line, Colgate forward Cat Quirion fired a shot as LaCombe laid out for the block. As the puck went wide, LaCombe stretched out and stopped it with her head.

“If you stop the puck, it’s almost like scoring, stopping the puck from going in,” said Knerr.

The Orange had trouble retaining possession in the first half of the second period. The first penalty came early, just when the team was starting to gain momentum. Two more came less than 40 seconds apart.

LaCombe was called for tripping and forward Emily Costales for checking, giving Colgate another five-on-three opportunity. Knerr recorded two diving blocks and Gilligan only had to make three saves as the penalty was killed yet again.

The final two Colgate power plays of the night offered only one shot on goal, which Gilligan saved.

“When they were moving the puck down to the half boards or down to the wall, our players were shooting out, staying in shooting lanes,” Flanagan said.

And while SU enjoyed the success on the penalty kill, the team had committed a lot of penalties to put it on the kill in the first place.

“First game, (we) weren’t expecting the whistles to go so much,” Hosoyamada said. “We wanted to use our bodies, we wanted to protect the puck.”

Flanagan said he wasn’t too concerned about the number of penalties, either, citing a quick whistle from the referees and inexperience. Four of SU’s penalties were committed by freshmen.

And the outcome of the penalties provided a positive for the Orange in its opening win.

“There was one five-on-three when I’m not sure if they even got a shot on net,” Flanagan said. “That’s just good, hard work that’ll carry a long way.”

Published on October 3, 2014 at 1:27 am