NORTHFIELD, Vt.- The Norwich Men's Ice Hockey team delivered a commanding performance on Saturday night, shutting out UMass Boston 6–0 in front of a packed Kreitzberg Arena to complete the Little East Conference (LEC) semifinal sweep and punch its ticket to the LEC Championship Game.

Behind a balanced offensive attack and stellar goaltending from Sami Molu (Toronto, Ont.), the Cadets controlled the contest from start to finish. Linemates Ben van Waterschoot (Whitby, Ont.) and Zach Ophoven (Burlington, Ont.) each recorded three points, while fellow linemate Nick Cordeiro (Mississauga, Ont.) added two assists. Molu anchored the defensive effort with 30 saves, securing his second shutout of the season.

UMass Boston tested Norwich early, generating several quality looks in the opening minutes while holding the Cadets without a shot until the nine-minute mark. Molu stood tall through the early pressure, tracking pucks cleanly and turning aside the Beacons' early chances.

Norwich broke through with just over seven minutes remaining in the first period. Ophoven kept the puck alive at the blue line before Cordeiro tracked it down in the right corner. Cordeiro quickly centered the puck to van Waterschoot in the slot, and he buried the chance to give Norwich a 1–0 lead on the Cadets' second shot of the night against UMass Boston goaltender Connor McDonough.

Both teams traded chances through the remainder of the period before penalties to both sides resulted in four-on-four play carrying into the second period.
The parade to the penalty box continued early in the middle frame, but once the teams returned to five-on-five play, Norwich took firm control of the game.

Halfway through the period, the Cadets doubled their advantage. Boyd Stahlbaum (Peterborough, Ont.) recovered the puck below the goal line and moved it to Ocean Fancy (Orleans, Mass.) at the point. Fancy slid the puck across to defensive partner Matt Harvey (Fort Covington, N.Y.), whose wrist shot found its way through traffic and past McDonough to make it 2–0.

Just three minutes later, Norwich extended the lead again. Niko Benjamin (Surprise, Ariz.) forced a turnover deep in the offensive zone. He quickly fed Owen Sclisizzi (Milton, Ont.), who found Jed Brazo (Homer, N.Y.) alone on the doorstep for the finish. The goal pushed the lead to three and prompted a goaltending change, with Alex Koenig entering in relief of McDonough.

UMass Boston pushed back late in the period, generating a brief surge in the Norwich zone, but Molu remained sharp and preserved the 3–0 advantage heading into the second intermission.

The Cadets wasted little time adding to their lead in the third period. Just three minutes into the frame, Ophoven cleaned up a rebound off a Fancy point shot to make it 4–0.
Following a brief flurry from the Beacons, Molu turned aside, and Norwich capitalized on a two-man advantage. During a two-minute 5-on-3 power play, Ophoven struck again, finishing off the opportunity to extend the Cadets' lead to five.

Norwich capped the scoring midway through the third period during four-on-four play. Cooper Bertrand (Caledon, Ont.) jumped into the attack and buried the Cadets' sixth goal of the night, putting the finishing touches on the dominant semifinal performance.

With the victory, Norwich advances to the LEC Championship Game, where the Cadets will host second-seeded and nationally ranked Babson on March 7 at 7 p.m. at Kreitzberg Arena. The matchup will decide the conference tournament champion and the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament.