A three-goal surge in the second period earned the Sacred Heart Pioneers the title at the inaugural Connecticut Ice Tournament, where two definitive wins appear to have them back on track.

A 6-2 defeat of Yale, followed by a 4-1 championship win over No. 17-ranked Quinnipiac, should be enough to put the previous weekend’s 0-1-1 showing against Canisius in the rearview mirror.

?Congrats to Sacred Heart, champions of the inaugural Connecticut Ice Tournament!? pic.twitter.com/TnCKtSMU5V

— NCAA Ice Hockey (@NCAAIceHockey) January 27, 2020

While Army took over the top spot in Atlantic Hockey over the weekend — via a tiebreaker with Sacred Heart — both teams have eight conference games remaining (24 possible points) to make their push for the top seed in the conference tournament, including a head-to-head series slated for Feb. 21-22.

The tournament title was enough to earn Sacred Heart a national ranking, coming in at No. 20 in Monday’s latest poll. With the program enjoying its best season to date at 16-8-2, there is little reason to think the Pioneers aren’t capable of continuing their push for their first-ever trip to the national tournament.

Named the Gordie Howe MVP of the inaugural tournament, senior Jason Cotton scored the insurance goal to make it 3-1 just over halfway through the game.

“That completely changed the momentum,” Cotton told Shawn McFarland of the Hartford Courant. “We scored, and it’s just like a new life on the bench.”

Cotton came away with four points on the weekend, scoring a goal and an assist in each game to lead the Pioneers to the championship title and rejuvenation for the stretch run.

“It was a very important moment for this program,” head coach CJ Marottolo added to McFarland. “I was very proud of them. The work that they put in every day, to see them be rewarded, and to see them be excited and the smiles on their face, this is what you work for. You work to win championships.”

It is the first championship of any kind for the Pioneers, who have collectively worked hard to write the ongoing storybook season in Bridgeport. 

Cotton and fellow seniors Mike Lee and Austin McIlmurray are enjoying breakout seasons, leading the deep, relentless offense at Sacred Heart to second in overall goals (102) and goals per game (3.92) in the NCAA.

The trio has combined for 25 goals, led by Cotton’s 17, a mark which places him in a four-way tie for second place nationally, behind only Griffin Loughran of Northern Michigan, who has 19 goals on the season.

The path to the current season has been different for each of the three. Cotton left Northeastern University following an eight-game stint in 2015-16, finishing out his season in the USHL with six goals and 11 points in 28 games. He transferred to Sacred Heart, where NCAA rules forced him to sit out the entirety of the 2016-17 season.

Lee left the program at the University of Vermont following the 2016-17 season. He managed just six points (1 G, 5 A) in 51 games for the Catamounts. Lee had to sit out the 2017-18 season.

McIlmurray is in his fourth season with the Pioneers, where he has collected 41 goals and 75 points in 129 NCAA games. With eight games remaining, he has tied his career high in goals (14) and sits just five points back from eclipsing his career-high 25 points. 

Despite knowing each other since the start of last season, the trio’s storylines and chance at finally skating together has converged to bring the Pioneers to this point: an in-season tournament championship and a placement on the heels of an NCAA Tournament berth.

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