SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The Skidmore College men's hockey team secured home ice in next weekend's quarterfinal with a 5-3 victory over Norwich University on Friday night.

• The Thoroughbreds improve to 11-8 in the New England Hockey Conference (NEHC) with 33 points and 13-11 overall. Skidmore can finish anywhere from second to fourth pending Saturday's results.
• Ryan Waltman led the charge for Skidmore with three points on two goals, including the game winner, and an assist.
• Danny Magnuson, after missing four games, returned emphatically with a goal and an assist.
• Evan Brown became the first Thoroughbred to reach the 10-goal plateau with his empty netter that made it 5-2 late in the third. He also had an assist earlier in the night.
• Oscar Worob scored the other Skidmore goal.
• Waltman opened the scoring at the 4:52 mark on his own rebound. Kaeden Patrick and Will Dow-Kenny assisted.
• Then, after a 39-minute delay due to a rink issue, Norwich tied it up with 5:3 left in the opening period. Colin Elliott was the goal-scorer for the Cadets.
• It remained tied through the second period and until Worob kicked off the wild third period with his fourth of the season at 5:30 of the period. Linemates Matthew Franzoi and Jaden York had the assists.
• Then, Skidmore scored twice on the power play in a three-minute span to take a comfortable 4-1 lead. Magnuson ripped one inside the bar making it 3-1 at 7:22 before he set up Waltman's second tally at 10:25.
• Bryan O'Mara got one on the power play for the visitors with 3:18 left to cut the Norwich deficit to two.
• Brown then scored with assists from defensemen Sam Saccone and Mitchell Floccare 30 seconds later on Norwich's empty net.
• Cooper Bertrand wrapped the crazy third period of scoring with the last goal of the game in the final minute for Norwich for the 5-3 final. Six of the game's eight goals were scored in the third.
• Skidmore held Norwich under 10 shots in each of the three periods. The Cadets finished with 18 shots on goal to Skidmore's 30. Joshua Seeley turned aside 15 shots. Sami Molu made 25 saves for the Cadets.
• Freddie Ilias and Jacob Zwirecki helped keep the Norwich shot total low both with three blocks.

UP NEXT

• Longtime conference rivals Skidmore and Norwich will play their final contest as conference opponents Saturday at 4 p.m. with conference seeding on the line for both squads.