With last Saturday's 6-2 win over St. Lawrence, third-ranked Union clinched the top seed in the ECAC Hockey tournament for the third time in the past four years.
When Union clinched in 2011 and 2012, it was on the final day of the regular season. But this year, the Dutchmen sewed things up with two regular season games left on the docket.
That would seem to leave the Dutchmen with little to play for this weekend. They travel to 15th-ranked Yale (9-7-4 ECACH, 14-8-5 overall) tonight at 7 before a 4 p.m. matchup at Brown on Saturday to close out the regular season.
But despite already wrapping up the top seed in the ECACH tournament, Union (16-3-1, 22-6-4) has plenty to play for.
The Dutchmen will be looking to solidify their seeding for the NCAA tournament. The Dutchmen are a lock to return to the tournament for a fourth straight season. As of now, Union is projected to be the top seed in the East Regional in Bridgeport, Connecticut, where the Dutchmen captured the regional before advancing to the Frozen Four in 2012.
“It’s the NCAA picture,” Union head coach Rick Bennett said earlier this week. “That’s all the incentive that we need going forward here. We’ll evaluate our guys in practice, see where everyone is health-wise and we’ll have to come up with a lineup on Friday. The big picture is we can’t let up.”
Senior forward Daniel Carr, who leads the Dutchmen with 34 points, said it will be business as usual this weekend.
"I don't think anything changes. We always talk about sticking with the process," said Carr, an alternate captain. "We talked all year about setting the table, and [this] weekend is another chance to keep doing that."
Union hosted Brown and Yale at Messa Rink on Feb. 7-8, skating away with 4-3 victory over the Bears and a 5-3 win over the Bulldogs.
The Dutchmen enter the weekend on a seven-game unbeaten streak (6-0-1).
DeSimone named 1st Team OJHL All-Star
Buffalo Junior Sabres defenseman Nick DeSimone, an incoming men's hockey recruit, was named a 1st Team All-Star by the Ontario Junior Hockey League on Wednesday.
The 19-year-old ranked fourth on the Junior Sabres and second among all OJHL blueliners with 51 points (13 goals, 38 assists) in 52 regular season games.
He kept the good times rolling on Thursday, registering the eventual game-winning goal to help lead Buffalo to a 4-1 game one win over Mississauga in the quarterfinal round of the OJHL playoffs.
DeSimone's tally came on the power play at 18:42 of the second period to give Buffalo a 2-1 lead. The Junior Sabres tacked on two more goals in the third.
The best-of-seven series resumes Saturday at 8 p.m. at Mississauga's PC Arena.
Union hosted Brown and Yale at Messa Rink on Feb. 7-8, skating away with 4-3 victory over the Bears and a 5-3 win over the Bulldogs.
The Dutchmen enter the weekend on a seven-game unbeaten streak (6-0-1).
DeSimone named 1st Team OJHL All-Star
Buffalo Junior Sabres defenseman Nick DeSimone, an incoming men's hockey recruit, was named a 1st Team All-Star by the Ontario Junior Hockey League on Wednesday.
The 19-year-old ranked fourth on the Junior Sabres and second among all OJHL blueliners with 51 points (13 goals, 38 assists) in 52 regular season games.
He kept the good times rolling on Thursday, registering the eventual game-winning goal to help lead Buffalo to a 4-1 game one win over Mississauga in the quarterfinal round of the OJHL playoffs.
DeSimone's tally came on the power play at 18:42 of the second period to give Buffalo a 2-1 lead. The Junior Sabres tacked on two more goals in the third.
The best-of-seven series resumes Saturday at 8 p.m. at Mississauga's PC Arena.
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