No. 3 Ranked Flames Score 10 Against Delaware To Keep Undefeated Record

Kirk Handy, head coach for Liberty’s Division I men’s hockey team, had previously dubbed his players the “cardiac kids” due to their slow starts in games. That was not the case Oct. 8 at the LaHaye Ice Center.

The No. 3 Liberty Flames exploded for five goals in the first period, steamrolling the No. 24 Delaware Blue Hens in route to a 10-1 win.

Early in the first period, freshman Jackson Vercellono made a pass to fellow freshman Aleksandr Charin. He went to the boards to collect the puck before taking a big hit. Still, the hit was too late, and Vercellono passed it off to Charin, who slotted it past Delaware goalie Corbyn Gustafson. 

The early goal energized the Flames. Less than a minute later, the Flames were able to score on the power play as junior Brett Gammer cut in on the wing, working his way around Gustafson to double the Flames’ lead on the night. 

Just over a minute later, Gammer was able to get his second goal with 16:03 remaining in the first period. Gammer fired a pass into the center of the ice, but it deflected off Delaware defenseman Jay Luce into the net. With 16:03 left in the first period, the Flames were already up 3-0.

Later in the period, Vercellono was able to net a goal, largely in thanks to Colin Baird. Baird fired a missile towards the Delaware net, which Vercellono was able to deflect past Gustafson. 

Delaware’s penalty-kill was abysmal in the game. Matt Bartel capitalized on Liberty’s power play with 3:28 left in the first period by intercepting a pass and breezing past Delaware’s defense to score, putting the Flames’ first period tally to five. 

Blue Hens Head Coach Todd Mittelmeier admitted that his team’s penalty kill was struggling, saying that “we need to be better” after the game. 

Misery continued for the Blue Hens early in the second period. Sophomore forward Jason Foltz was able to finish a puck that was put into the crease for the score.

The Blue Hens were able to prevent Liberty’s shutout, however. Freshman Luke Dosen was the recipient of a beautiful pass, which put him through on goal. Dosen was able to get by Flames’ goalie Hunter Virostek to cut the deficit to 6-1. 

Afterwards, the second period was a toss-up for who performed better. Liberty seemed to be in cruise control, and Delaware was unable to generate consistent chances. Apart from another Flames goal scored by DJ Schwenke, neither team looked particularly impressive. 

In the third period, Delaware shot themselves in the foot. A five-minute major resulted in three Flames’ goals, courtesy of Kam Ottenbreit, Vercellono and Bartel with Bartel making it a double-digit score for the Flames with 11:15 to go. 

Liberty let off the gas, and the 10-1 score lasted for the rest of the third period through the final whistle.

It was the first time the two teams had played each other since February 2020. Despite being conference rivals until this season, Delaware did not play the 20-21 season due to COVID-19. 

Now, they are no longer conference rivals. After seven seasons in the Eastern States Collegiate Hockey League (ESCHL), Liberty opted to leave the conference to become an independent. Handy said this was to play stronger teams throughout the year and to better prepare them for ACHA Nationals. 

The two teams squared off the following evening Oct. 9. It was a much closer contest with the Flames winning 3-0.

Next, the Flames travel to North Dakota to play four games in five days against Minot State and Jamestown. Liberty lost to Minot State last season in the Frozen Four, and Minot went on to lose  in the national championship against Adrian College. 

Handy wants the Flames facing stiff competition to prepare for the postseason.

“Part of the reason we set up this way is we want to simulate what’s going to be at the end of the year in the national tournament,” Handy said. 

The Flames play Minot State Friday, Oct. 15 at 7 p.m.  

Randle is the sports editor. Follow him on Twitter at @lukerandle02.