Jeffers forward Cage Osterman puts up a defensive battle against University Liggett’s Alexander Gould while on a power play in the third period of a game Saturday at the MacInnes Student Ice Arena in Houghton. (Eddie O’Neill/Daily Mining Gazette)

HOUGHTON — The Jeffers Jets hockey team suffered their first loss of the season on Saturday afternoon at the hands of the University Liggett Knights. It was a 3-2 win for the Knights – their second in the two days in the Copper Country.

On Friday, they beat the Calumet Copper Kings by the same score with a late goal. The loss puts the Jets at 5-1 early in the season.

“I am obviously happy with the win, but I thought we should have played better,” said Knights coach Colin Smith. “Perhaps the boys were worn out from playing a very high-energy game where we won with 15 seconds to go. We did everything right yesterday. Today, we kind of watched the game unfold before us.”

The two teams skated for much of the first with a shot here and there, but neither team could generate much. However, with less than 90 seconds to go in the first, the Knights’ Gary Story fired one in past Jets’ goalie Kasen Helminen to put a tally on the board.

“Despite that late goal, I thought the first was our best period of hockey,” said Jets coach Aaron Helminen. “We have been forcing teams into doing what we want them to do, and that has led to turnovers. That occurred more in the first than in the second.”

Five minutes into the second, the Jets evened the score thanks to a shot by Trayton Helminen, who was assisted by Brit Heinonen.

The Jets then took a 2-1 lead on a fluke goal. At around the 10-minute mark, one of the Knights’ players tipped a puck back to their goalie and it went in. The Jets weren’t complaining as Benton Rajala was credited with the tally.

The Jets carried that lead well into the third. Liggett, however, tied it at the 7:28 mark of the third as they were on a 5-3 power play. The Jets did a magnificent job of stopping the two-man advantage, and blocking the Knights’ shots, until they got out of position and the Knights were able to slip one in to tie it at two.

The goal was scored by Liggett’s Andrew Johnson, whom his coach called a bright spot on an otherwise weak game of hockey.

“Andrew was a bright light for us today,” added Smith. “He was getting pucks in and kept the game going for us.”

Liggett then won it with a third and decisive goal with less than three minutes to go in regulation as Kevin Vreeken popped a loose puck in for the 3-2 winner.

“It was one of those games where the puck did not roll our way,” said Helminen. “Those games are going to happen.”

UP NEXT

The Jets head to Calumet on Friday to face the Copper Kings at 7 p.m. at the Calumet Colosseum.