MARQUETTE — A slow start can hurt you in hockey and the Marquette Redmen got burnt early against Escanaba on Tuesday.

The Eskymos (1-3) forced a turnover in the Redmen zone in the first period and Grant Wickham made them pay as he fired a wrist shot past Marquette goalie Dylan Sibilsky at the 5:48 mark.

Wickham’s goal would hold up as the game-winner as Escanaba handed the Redmen (1-1) a 1-0 loss at Lakeview Arena.

“This was a close game,” Eskymos head coach Matt Hughes said. “We knew going in that we matched up well and both schools graduated quite a few players. It was a battle right to the end just like it has been the last couple of years.”

Marquette head coach Doug Garrow thought his team played well but felt that the first period was the difference maker.

“I thought we did well overall, but that first period was important,” he said. “I don’t think that we were ready to play and that we lacked some energy. I don’t think that we gave Escanaba the respect that they deserve.

“We threw everything we could at their goalie (Brodie Goddard), but he played really well.”

The frustrating thing for the Redmen is that after that goal in the opening period, they dominated the remainder of the game, outshooting Esky 35-16.

The Redmen had two good scoring chances in the first half of the second period as Aydin Frost’s shot was bobbled in the crease by Goddard before he covered it. The same thing happened with Brandon Campbell with 12 minutes remaining, but the Redmen couldn’t tap in the rebound.

“Brodie was huge for us,” Hughes said. “He made some big saves at key points in the game, especially when we were killing penalties.”

Meanwhile at the other end of the rink, Sibilsky made a huge save to keep the Redmen’s deficit at one goal. The junior goalie slid across the crease to make a save, but left a juicy rebound in front of a wide-open net. Fortunately for Marquette, Sibilsky recovered in time to make a sprawling save.

Marquette had three more good opportunities to tie the game in the third period. First, Tanner Phillips made some nifty moves on his way to the net with 14 minutes left, but he was denied by Goddard, and with 11 minutes remaining, Sean O’Connor collected a loose puck at the blue line for a partial breakaway, but Goddard again stood tall.

The Redmen’s best scoring chance came with a little less than three minutes left when a pass in front of the net went off of a stick, and appeared to go into the net. However, Goddard managed to cover the puck while falling backwards into the net to preserve the shutout.

“I was pleased with the last two periods,” Garrow said. “I challenged them after the first period and they came out and responded well in the second. We carried the play in the third, too, for the most part.”

Marquette (1-1) travels to Sault Ste. Marie to face Utica Eisenhower Friday.

Ryan Stieg can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 252. His email address is rstieg@miningjournal.net.