Dutchmen to open season on Oct. 9

The following story was originally published on May 31, 2015.

by Ryan Fay

Fans of the Union College men's hockey team will see the Dutchmen early and often during the 2015-16 regular season.

The Dutchmen will open their 25th season as a Division I program with seven consecutive home games. The season will get underway on Oct. 9 when Sacred Heart makes its first trip to Messa Rink in five years to the day. Overall, Union's 34-game schedule (below) features 18 home dates, the most since 2010-11.

Other scheduling highlights

A first time for everything
Traditional powerhouse programs Boston University (Oct. 10) and Michigan (Oct. 23) are making their first-ever trips to Messa Rink.

Route 7 Rivalry
Union opens ECAC Hockey action on Oct. 30-31 with a pair of tilts against RPI. Union hosts RPI on Oct. 30 before going to RPI the following night. The non-conference Mayor's Cup game is slated for Jan. 23 at the Times Union Center.

December home games
Union didn't have a home game in December last year, which contributed to a 62-day stretch without any home dates. There won't be such a drought this year, thanks to December home dates against Harvard (Dec. 4), Dartmouth (Dec. 5) and former ECACH rival Vermont (Dec. 20).

Ledyard Bank Classic
The Dutchmen will travel to Dartmouth on Jan. 2-3 to take part in the Ledyard Bank Classic. Union will play Merrimack on Jan. 2 and either Dartmouth or Robert Morris the next day. The meeting with Merrimack will mark the second non-conference date between the schools next season. Merrimack will host Union on Nov. 28.

Wrapping it up
The regular season concludes on the road as Union travels to Cornell on Feb. 26 and Colgate a day later. The contest at Colgate will mark Union's final regular season visit to Starr Rink as the Raiders are opening a new facility in 2016-17.

OCTOBER
10/9 vs Sacred Heart, 7
10/10 vs Boston University, 7
10/16 vs Maine, 7
10/17 vs Maine, 7
10/23 vs Michigan, 7
10/24 vs New Hampshire, 7
10/30 vs RPI, 7*
10/31 at RPI, 7*

NOVEMBER
11/6 at St. Lawrence, 7*
11/7 at Clarkson, 7*
11/13 vs Brown, 7*
11/14 vs Yale, 7*
11/28 at Merrimack, 4

DECEMBER
12/4 vs Harvard, 7*
12/5 vs Dartmouth, 7*
12/11 at Massachusetts, 7
12/20 vs Vermont, 4

JANUARY
1/2 vs Merrimack, 4 (at Dartmouth - Ledyard Bank Classic)
1/3 vs Dartmouth or Robert Morris, 4 or 7:05 (at Dartmouth - Ledyard Bank Classic)
1/8 at Quinnipiac, 7*
1/9 at Princeton, 7*
1/15 vs Colgate, 7*
1/16 vs Cornell, 7*
1/23 vs RPI, 7:30 (at Times Union Center - Mayor's Cup)
1/29 at Yale, 7*
1/30 at Brown, 7*

FEBRUARY
2/5 vs Clarkson, 7*
2/6 vs St. Lawrence, 7*
2/12 at Dartmouth, 7:05*
2/13 at Harvard, 7*
2/19 vs Princeton 7*
2/20 vs Quinnipiac, 7*
2/26 at Cornell, 7*
2/27 at Colgate 2:30*

MARCH
March 4-6 - ECAC Hockey first round
March 11-13 - ECAC Hockey quarterfinals
March 18 - ECAC Hockey semifinals - Lake Placid, N.Y.
March 19 - ECAC Hockey final - Lake Placid, N.Y.
March 25-27 - NCAA Regionals (Albany, Worcester, Cincinnati, St. Paul)

APRIL
April 7-9, Frozen Four - Tampa, FL.

* denotes ECAC Hockey game
All times eastern

Follow @UnionHockeyBlog