By KEVIN OKLOBZIJA
HENRIETTA, N.Y. — Whether Rochester Institute of Technology will be able to score enough goals to be a top-tier team in Atlantic Hockey is yet to be determined.
Through the first six games, the Tigers have scored just 11 goals, and in all four losses, they found the net just once.
Definitely not a recipe for success.
“We’re one and done in the offensive zone way too much,” coach Matt Thomas said after Friday’s 4-1 loss to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute at the Gene Polisseni Center.
Thomas can, however, feel even better about the Tigers’ goaltending depth after what he saw on Friday.
First-year goalie Zach Bowen, who arrived in Henrietta this fall after playing four major junior seasons in the Ontario Hockey League, made his NCAA debut and was solid. Not a standout, but solid for his first collegiate game.
He stopped 23 of the 26 shots he faced, allowing two goals off two-on-one fast breaks and another on a breakaway.
“Obviously you want saves every time they shoot it,” Thomas said. “But I thought he was great.”
The Tigers already know their starter, junior Jakub Krbecek, is going to give them a chance to win every night. A second-team all-AHA selection last season, Krbecek is capable of being the difference most nights.
But the Tigers coaching staff would rather not play him every night. That’s why Bowen was given the start on Friday against the Engineers (4-1).
“We need to see what we’ve got,” Thomas said. “Last year I felt we wore ‘Kuba’ out by overplaying him.”
Bowen, 21, posted a 3.14 goals-against average and .899 save percentage in 47 games last year with Brampton of the OHL. He spent the previous two seasons with Peterborough after playing his rookie OHL season of 2022-23 with London.
Thomas said they were interested in Bowen because of his size (6-foot-3, 210 pounds) and compete level.
“He was a highly regarded goalie coming out of minor hockey into junior hockey and got caught up in a couple trades (during his four years in the OHL),” Thoms said. “(RIT goalie coach) Shane Madalora thinks if he grabs a couple things and anchors his game around it, he’s going to be a really good goalie at our level.”
Of course, if the Tigers don’t start scoring goals, they could have Connor Hellebuyck in goal and it wouldn’t matter.
“We waste a lot of good offensive opportunities trying to make one more play,” said Thomas, whose team is back on the ice at the Gene against RPI at 7 p.m. Saturday. “We need a lot of people to step up.”
That list starts with players who have proven they can score. Senior left winger Matt Wilde is back at RIT after a trying season with UMass. He scored 18 goals for the Tigers as a sophomore. He scored his first of the season last night, staking RIT to a 1-0 lead 7:35 into the first period.
Senior right winger Christian Catalano has 26 goals in his Tigers career, including 10 last year. He has been blanked through six games.
Sophomore right winger Evan Konyen produced 12 goals as a freshman. He, too, has zero.
The task won’t get any easier, either. Junior defenseman Tristan Allen, a key component on the power play, suffered an upper body injury early in the second period and will very likely miss significant time, Thomas said.
They produced enough chances against RPI but goalie Nate Krawchuk, also an import from the OHL, was terrific (31 saves).
Trailing 1-0 after the first period, the Engineers tied it on Rainers Rullers goal, a one-timer off a two-on-one. They then took the lead 7:48 into the third period on Filip Sitar’s goal, also off a two-on-one as he roofed an in-tight shot over Bowen’s left shoulder.
The game-breaking goal came just 2:57 later, when the Tigers botched defensive coverage and Jordan Gavin went streaking down the slot to score on a breakaway.
“We’ve just got to get better,” Thomas said.
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