Dartmouth-Union game one postgame blog (with 4 videos)

Postgame videos are below or at the link.

by Ryan Fay

BOX SCORE

IN A NUTSHELL
Union defeated Dartmouth, 4-1, in game one of the best-of-three ECAC quarterfinals.

BIG WIN
Winning the first game of a best-of-three series is always important.

That wasn't lost on sophomore forward Daniel Ciampini, whose second period goal proved to be the eventual game-winner.

"It's huge," he said. "We've been itching to get going and dying to play. The guys have a lot of energy. Ask any of the guys in the locker room and they're up and ready to go. That was the case last week and all week this week in practice. It really showed tonight, especially in the first period. We came out guns firing."

In the opening 20 minutes, Union outshot Dartmouth, 15-7, and carried a 1-0 lead going into the second frame.

GROSENICK RETURNS
Following a one game absence with a lower-body injury, junior goaltender Troy Grosenick returned to action and piled up 31 saves in the winning effort.

Two of those saves were on breakways, one in the first period and one in the third.

"It was a weird bouncing puck that got through to [Dartmouth's Conor Dempsey]," Grosenick said of the first breakaway. "Breakaways are one on one battles and you have to have pride in that."

As for the second breakaway, Grosenick said Dartmouth's Tim O'Brien tried to beat him five-hole.

"That's a pretty smart play, actually," Grosenick said. "If you watch NHL breakaways, a lot of guys take quick shots and try to get it above the stick but below the pad and try to beat the goalie down."

"You talk about times of adversity and Troy came up big with two breakaway saves," Union head coach Rick Bennett said. "You're going to need that from your goaltender in the playoffs."

CONTROVERSY
Daniel Carr scored two goals on the night, his 13th and 14th of the season. The second of two, at 9:14 of the third period, was the subject of much controversy.

The goal was momentarily reviewed to see if Matt Wilkins was in the crease, but it was eventually allowed.

Dartmouth head coach Bob Gaudet didn't agree with the final verdict.

"There was a guy standing in the crease and it's clear," Gaudet opined after the game. "It's evident. It's a call I like to have reviewed. I had to call a timeout to get it reviewed. There was a guy in the blue paint when the puck went in."

Bennett wasn't as sure.

"Sometimes you wonder with the rules here," he said. "Was he in the crease or was he not? Was he pushed in? Was he not pushed in? Whatever happens, happens, and we're going to respond in a positive way."

HARD HIT
Carr was the recipient of a hard hit to the head in the third period courtesy of Dartmouth's Tyler Sikura, who was subsequently given a five minute major for contact to the head and a game misconduct.

After briefly staying down on the ice, Carr got up and returned to the game.

"I feel fine," Carr said after the game. "Hockey is a fast-paced game and stuff like that happens. I don't think it was anything personal. I just think it was part of the game."

"He's always battled through injuries," Bennett said of Carr. "He played with a broken bone in his wrist in his freshman year. That is one tough guy.  It's amazing how you get rewarded for stuff like playing through injuries."

Bennett admitted Carr was "banged up" but said his forward wasn't seriously injured and "is good to go" for Saturday's game two.

ADJUSTMENTS
Even though his club suffered a 4-1 loss, Gaudet isn't looking to make a lot of adjustments going into game two.

"We have to play the same way. We have to play hard," Gaudet said. "There's no secrets to this game. I've been a head coach for 25 years. The game is about winning battles, winning races, and getting pucks to the net. Every time we get a puck to the net, there are rebounds and we have to capitalize on those. It's a game of momentum."

PAIRWISE UPDATE
With all Friday games final, Union rose one spot to 15th in the Pairwise.

NOT SO SPECIAL TEAMS
Both teams posted 0-fers on the power play. Union went 0-4 while Dartmouth went 0-3.

IN THE BOX
Sophomore forward Sam Coatta had zero penalty minutes in 22 games this season entering game one. He must have been in unfamiliar territory when he made not one, but two, trips to the box on Friday. He was whistled for hooking at 10:28 of the third period and roughing at the 18:48 mark.

WHERE WAS EVERYONE?
The announced crowd of 1,641 was the lowest home attendance figure since a Tuesday night game against Harvard drew 1,624 on Jan. 22.

The previous five home games drew over 2,000 fans each, including 2,271 to see Dartmouth play on Feb. 1. That game was televised nationally on NBC Sports Network. Friday's game was not televised.

UP NEXT
The two teams meet again Saturday at 7 pm for game two. A win sends Union back to Atlantic City, New Jersey for the league semifinals next weekend. A loss forces a game three at Messa Rink Sunday at 7 pm.

THREE STARS
1. CARR, UNION - Scored two goals, one to open the scoring at 9:46 of the first period and the aforementioned controversial tally in the third.

“I just rolled around,” Carr said of his second goal. “Mat Bodie drove through and took everyone at the net. It was a good play by him, and a good play by Josh Jooris and Wilkins to get to the net. I just threw it at the net, and it went in.”

2. GROSENICK, UNION - Returned to action while looking 100%.

3. CIAMPINI, UNION - His second period tally was the eventual game-winner and his first since Jan. 26 vs RPI.

"I was just lucky to be in the right spot at the right time," Ciampini said of his goal. "I just got it high enough over his pad for it to go in."

POSTGAME VIDEOS

Union players Grosenick, Ciampini, and Carr



Union head coach Bennett



Dartmouth head coach Gaudet and forward Neiley



Union hits the ice for pre-game warmups

ECAC Hockey Power Rankings (and playoff schedule)

by Ryan Fay

Before we get to the power rankings, here is a look at the ECAC playoff schedule:

FIRST-ROUND (Friday, Mar. 8 - Sunday, Mar. 10 - Best-of-three games - campus sites)
No. 12 Harvard at No. 5 Dartmouth
No. 11 Colgate at No. 6 St. Lawrence
No. 10 Clarkson at No. 7 Brown
No. 9 Cornell at No. 8 Princeton

Quinnipiac, Rensselaer, Yale, and Union have first round byes.

QUARTERFINALS (Friday, Mar. 15 - Sunday, Mar. 17 - Best-of-three games - campus sites)
Lowest remaining seed at No. 1 Quinnipiac
Second lowest remaining seed at No. 2 Rensselaer
Third lowest remaining seed at No. 3 Yale
Fourth lowest remaining seed at No. 4 Union

SEMIFINALS (Friday, Mar. 22 - Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey)
Semifinal No. 1 - 4 p.m

Semifinal No. 2 - 7:30 p.m.

CHAMPIONSHIP/THIRD PLACE (Saturday, Mar. 23 - Boardwalk Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey)
Third-Place Game - 4 p.m.
Championship Game - 7 p.m.

Onto the power rankings -

1. QUINNIPIAC (24-5-5 overall, 17-2-3 ECAC) LAST WEEK (LW): 1
The Bobcats had a tremendous regular season, winning the Cleary Cup, finishing 10 points ahead of second place RPI, and racking up the most points in the regular season (37) since Cornell had 38 in 2004-2005. But don't assume Quinnipiac will go uncontested in the league playoffs. The Bobcats are only 3-2-1 over the last six games and have proven to be human after all.

2. RENSSELAER (17-12-5, 12-7-3) LW: 2
If anyone is going to knock off Quinnipiac, RPI isn't a bad choice. The Engineers went 9-1 over their final 10 league contests while outscoring opponents 35-14. Senior defenseman Nick Bailen closed his final collegiate regular season on a high note with two goals and five assists in the last three contests.

3. YALE (16-10-3, 12-9-1) LW: 5
After a five game skid, Yale ended the season strong, winning its final three games. Saturday's 2-1 win over Cornell was the most impressive of the three as Cornell came into the game riding a five game unbeaten streak. Senior forward Andrew Miller has been especially good lately with two goals and three assists over the final three regular season contests.

4. UNION (17-12-5, 10-8-4) LW: 9
Protecting its home ice is one reason why the Dutchmen ended up getting a first round bye. Union went 6-0-1 over its past seven home games, including beating the St. Lawrence and Clarkson by a combined 9-1 score at crunch time over the weekend. The arrow is pointing back up again.

5. BROWN (11-12-6, 7-9-6) LW: 4
The Bears split over the weekend, losing 4-1 to Cornell on Friday ahead of a 5-1 win over Colgate the next night. The split was good enough to give Brown home ice in the first round, something that hasn't happened since 2005. The Bears are 3-1-1 over their past five games at Meehan Auditorium.

6. ST. LAWRENCE (16-14-4, 9-9-4) LW: 3
St. Lawrence entered the weekend in the mix for a first round bye, but those prospects went out the door with a 5-1 loss at Union and a 4-1 setback at RPI. It marked the first time all season that St. Lawrence lost back-to-back road games. Getting Kyle Flanagan (appendectomy) back for this weekend's series with Colgate would only help, but they should advance anyway.

7. CORNELL (12-14-3, 8-11-3) LW: 6
The Big Red closed out the regular season with a 4-1 triumph over Brown and a 2-1 loss at Yale, the latter being their first defeat in three weeks. Sophomore Joel Lowry, who was drafted by Los Angeles in the fifth round of the 2011 NHL draft, is playing some of his best hockey of the year with three goals and three assists in the final six regular season games. Goalie Andy Illes has come on strong as well, not allowing more than two goals in any of his last seven starts.

8. HARVARD (9-17-3, 6-14-2) LW: 10
Harvard became the second ECAC team to beat Quinnipiac this year after the Crimson held on for a 2-1 victory on Friday. Despite playing much better hockey of late (two losses in past six league games), Harvard couldn't escape the league basement and enter the tournament as the 12th seed. The Crimson will take on fifth-seeded Dartmouth and I'll go out on a limb and say Harvard wins in three.

9. DARTMOUTH (13-11-5, 9-9-4) LW: 8
In order to win in the playoffs, you need to string wins together. But the last time Dartmouth won back to back games was way back in mid January. A lot is made of Dartmouth's home dominance (10-4-1 on the year) but the Big Green are just 2-3-1 in their past six games at Thompson Arena.

10. PRINCETON (10-14-5, 8-10-4) LW: 12
Getting home ice in the first round may not be the best thing for the Tigers. Princeton is 0-4 in its past four home contests, but hold a 3-0-1 mark its last four road games. Speaking of road games, Princeton went into overtime in both weekend road games, tying Dartmouth, 2-2, and prevailing, 2-1, over Harvard. In the latter game, Princeton pulled goaltender Mike Condon late in overtime, but Andrew Calouf netted an extra skater goal with 37 seconds left on the clock to win it.

11. CLARKSON (9-18-7, 8-11-3) LW: 7
If Clarkson has any chance to beat Brown, they're going to need to score some goals. It sounds simple enough, right? However, scoring goals has been far from simple for the Golden Knights lately. Clarkson enters the league playoffs with scoreless drought of 141:29, the second longest in program history (167:45, set in 2002). You can thank the Clarkson Hockey Blog for that stat.

12. COLGATE (14-16-4, 6-13-3) LW: 11
The Raiders are the definition of limping into the playoffs. Colgate has all of one victory in the past 10 games and they don't appear all that likely to be playing in two weeks. The Raiders drew St. Lawrence in the first round and will be going on the road, where they have two wins all season. The last time Colgate won a league game on the road was Dec. 1 at Clarkson.

ECAC hockey power rankings (2/25/13)

by Ryan Fay

It all comes down to this. The upcoming weekend marks the end of the regular season, but much is yet to be decided. Remarkably, the only lock is Quinnipiac finishing first. Just about everything else is up for grabs with many teams having a wide range of possible finishes.

Lets take a look at how the teams stack up as the regular season is set to close:

1. QUINNIPIAC (23-4-5 overall, 16-1-3 ECAC) LAST WEEK (LW): 1
Saturday's 3-3 tie against Brown will keep the #1/1 Bobcats from being the first ECAC team with 40 points since Harvard finished with 40 during the 1988-1989 campaign. Even with two wins to close out the regular season, Quinnipiac would max out at 39 points, which would rank as the highest single year point total in the league since Cornell racked up 39 in 2002-2003.

2. RPI (15-12-5, 10-7-3) LW: 2
RPI's eight game winning streak in league play came to an end with Friday's 4-1 loss at Cornell and the four goals allowed were the most given up by RPI in a single game since surrendering four at Princeton on Jan. 12. The weekend was salvaged when Matt Neal scored with ten seconds left in overtime to propel the Engineers to a 3-2 win at Colgate on Saturday. The second place Engineers remain in possession of a first round bye.

3. ST. LAWRENCE (16-12-4, 9-7-4) LW: 3
The Saints have a first round bye to lose and going on the road to conclude the regular season isn't the worst thing. With nine road wins, the Saints have the second most victories away from home in the league (Quinnipiac has 10). Additionally, St. Lawrence is the only team in the league with more road wins (9) than home wins (7).

4. BROWN (10-11-6, 6-8-6) LW: 6
Is there a peskier team in the league than the Bears? According to Dartmouth men's hockey SID Patrick Salvas, Brown has not lost a game to the eventual regular season champ last season (Union) or this season (Qunnipiac). The Bears went 2-0 against Union a year ago and are 0-0-2 versus Quinnipiac this season. On Saturday, the Bears used two late third period goals to tie the Bobcats, 3-3.

5. YALE (14-10-3, 10-9-1) LW: 5
The best news for #13/14 Yale over the weekend was the return of netminder Jeff Malcolm, who stopped 17-of-20 shots in Saturday's 4-3 triumph against Princeton. His return couldn't have come soon enough as the team lost all five games he missed. Another encouraging sign was scoring four goals on Saturday, which was as many as Yale had in the previous four games combined.

6. CORNELL (11-13-3, 7-10-3) LW: 11

That horrific stretch from late December through early February looks like a thing of the past. The Big Red are unbeaten in their past four games (3-0-1) and look like they could be peaking at the right time. Cornell handed RPI its first league loss in six weeks on Friday and used three early goals to take Union out of Saturday's game only 10 minutes into play. Greg Miller, who leads Cornell with 14 goals, has been particularly hot lately with six tallies in the past four contests.

7. CLARKSON (9-16-7, 8-9-3) LW: 7
Which team is tied with St. Lawrence for the second highest goals per game (GPG) average in league play? Quinnipiac? Nah, they comfortably top the list at 3.40 GPG. RPI? Nope, the Engineers are seventh at 2.60. It's Clarkson at 2.90 GPG. The Golden Knights wouldn't have been my first guess, either. According to USCHO.com ECAC columnist Brian Sullivan, Clarkson can finish as high as third and as low as 11th after next weekend. The Knights travel to RPI and Union to wrap up the regular season.

8. DARTMOUTH (13-10-4, 9-8-3) LW: 8
#19/RV Dartmouth is tied with Yale for the final first round bye and return home for a chance to solidify their positioning. The good news? The Big Green protect their home as well as anyone in the league, as evidenced by a 10-3 mark in games played at Thompson Arena this season. The bad news? The clubs coming in, Princeton and Quinnipiac, are 2-0 against Dartmouth this year.

9. UNION (15-12-5, 8-8-4) LW: 4
After two home wins last weekend, there was a feeling the team had righted the ship and looked poised for a strong finish. But this past weekend erased those thoughts. On Friday, the Dutchmen lost, 4-1, to a Colgate team which entered the game on a six game winless streak. The next night, Union essentially lost the game in the first ten minutes after falling behind 3-0 at Cornell. There were some strong spurts later in the contest, but it was an inconsistent effort that left a desire for a full sixty minute effort. I don't think there are many people who know what to expect from #20 Union going forward.

10. HARVARD (8-16-3, 5-13-2) LW: 10
You want your best players to step up late in the season and that's happening for Harvard. Top scorer Alex Fallstrom has a point in six straight contests, his longest streak of the season, and Marshall Everson has scored seven of his 11 goals in the same six game run. In that span, the Crimson are 5-1.

11. COLGATE (14-14-4, 6-11-3) LW: 12
If Colgate has a run in them, it will come from their underclassmen. Five of the team's top seven point getters are either freshmen or sophomores. The top three goal scorers, Kyle Baun, Tylor Spink, and Darcy Murphy are all freshmen. Even if the rest of the season fails to yield desirable results, a nice foundation is in place in Hamilton.

12. PRINCETON (9-14-4, 7-10-3) LW: 9
The Tigers haven't had much roar lately. Princeton has lost its past four contests, and worse yet, all four losses have been at home. Before the slide, Princeton was beaten at home just two times in the first four-plus months of the season. Their regular season ends with trips to Dartmouth and Harvard.

ECAC Hockey Power Rankings (2/18/13)

by Ryan Fay

There are only two more weekends of regular season action. But there's a lot more yet to be decided. Lets see how the teams stack up right now:

1. QUINNIPIAC (22-4-4 overall, 15-1-2 ECAC) LAST WEEK (LW): 1

It finally happened. #1/1 Quinnipiac suffered its first league loss of the season after St. Lawrence held on for a 2-1 victory on Friday. There were some close calls earlier this season (i.e 1-1 ties against RPI and Brown) but it was Saints who finished the job. While the loss ruined a chance at an undefeated league season, it wasn't all that damaging. After Union knocked off Yale, the Bobcats clinched the Cleary Cup on Friday anyway. Concerns about a letdown performance on Saturday versus Clarkson were quelled with a 2-1 win.

2. RPI (14-11-5, 9-6-3) LW: 3

With all due respect to Quinnipiac, RPI may well be the ECAC team one would least want to face right now. The boys from Troy have fired off eight league wins in a row and have looked dominant in the process. RPI has allowed three goals or less in every game during the run with two shutouts mixed in. During the streak, the Engineers have outscored their opponents 30-10. You'd hate to be Colgate and Cornell this weekend.

3. ST. LAWRENCE (15-11-4, 8-6-4) LW: 4

If the Saints had any chance to beat Quinnipiac, they were going to need their best players to come up big. And that's what happened. Greg Carey, who leads the nation with 23 goals, scored both St. Lawrence goals on Friday. The junior has at least one goal in nine straight contests dating back to Jan. 19 at Clarkson. Currently tied with Union for third place, the Saints have a chance to solidify a first round bye with Dartmouth, Harvard, and Union coming up on the calendar. St. Lawrence is 3-0 against them this year.

4. UNION (15-10-5, 8-6-4) LW: 6

After starting the month on a three game winless streak, and losing grip on a first round bye, there was some concern the season may be starting to slip away from the two-time defending league champions. But the Dutchmen earned four huge points after beating #9/10 Yale 4-2 on Friday and blanking Brown 2-0 the next night. A week after getting yanked in consecutive starts, Troy Grosenick rebounded and accumulated 61 saves over the weekend. Currently tied with St. Lawerence for third place, Union once again has a first round bye to lose.

5. YALE (13-9-3, 9-8-1) LW: 2

This isn't the kind of stretch run the Bulldogs wanted to have. Yale is 1-5 over their past six games, including four straight losses. The team misses starting goaltender Jeff Malcolm, who is out for an undetermined amount of time. Backup Nick Maricic was pulled after letting up a couple soft goals against Union on Friday and third-stringer Conor Wilson allowed three goals on 21 shots in Saturday's loss at RPI. The offense isn't helping, either. Yale has scored five goals in the current four game skid. 

6. BROWN (9-11-5, 5-8-5) LW: 5

Brown's three game week began on a high note with a 1-0 blanking of Yale on Tuesday, but the weekend was a different story. A 5-1 rout at RPI preceded a 2-0 defeat at Union on Saturday. In the latter, the Bears were outhot 48-23. One concern with Brown is a lack of scoring depth. With 26 points, Matt Lorito has twice as many as any other player on the roster (Garnet Hathaway - 13). Lorito's 14 goals are more than double the next highest figure on the squad (Nick Lappin's six).

7. CLARKSON (8-15-7, 7-8-3) LW: 10

Clarkson handed Princeton just its third home loss of the season with Friday's 3-2 triumph. The next night, they hung tough with league-leading Quinnipiac, but dropped a 2-1 decision. He's no Greg Carey, but Allen McPherson has been on quite the streak himself. Of his nine goals this season, five of them have come in the past six games.

8. DARTMOUTH (12-9-4, 8-7-3) LW: 9

If you want to talk about a bad loss, #17 Dartmouth's 4-2 setback to Cornell on Friday would qualify. Not only did Cornell enter the game 1-10 over its last 11 games, the game was played at Dartmouth, where the Big Green were 9-2 on the season going into the weekend. Dartmouth rebounded on Saturday with a 5-4 win over Colgate and stand tied with Yale for fourth place.

9. PRINCETON (9-12-4, 7-8-3) LW: 7

The Tigers are a tough nut to crack. Last weekend, they picked up two wins on the road after entering that weekend with one road win all year. This past weekend, Princeton brought a 6-2 home record into home games with Clarkson and St. Lawrence. They lost both.

10. HARVARD (7-15-3, 4-12-2) LW: 11

Don't look now, but Harvard is unbeaten in its last four contests (2-0-2). It's certainly a welcome sight after the Crimson had a stretch with one win in 16 games. Harvard put up seven goals on Tuesday in a 7-4 win over #/11/13 Boston University in the Beanpot consolation game. The strong effort was followed by a 4-1 win over Colgate on Friday and a 2-2 draw with Cornell on Saturday.

11. CORNELL (9-13-3, 5-10-3) LW: 12
With a win and a tie, Cornell had its first league weekend with more than two points since picking up four points against Clarkson and St. Lawrence on Nov. 30-Dec 1. Cornell closes out the regular season portion of its home schedule this weekend against RPI and Union.

12. COLGATE (13-13-4, 5-10-3) LW: 8

With four straight defeats, the Raiders are sputtering to the finish line. The recent struggles can at least partly be blamed on a power play unit that has gone belly up after spending most of the season as one of the best in the conference. Over the past four games, the Colgate power play is 1-for-19.

ECAC Media Make Their Top 4 Picks

by Ryan Fay

While Quinnipiac has run away with first place, the other three first round byes remain just about anyone's to take. With only six points separating the team in second place (Yale) from the team in tenth place (Colgate), it's shaping up to be a wild final three weekends in the regular season.

I polled several ECAC media members and asked how they see the top four finishing up. I threw my two cents in for good measure.

For the consensus finishes, I added up each predicted finish. A first place prediction meant four points, a second place prediction meant three, a third place prediction meant two, a fourth place meant one point, and unranked meant no points.

The consensus top four is: Quinnipiac (1st, 36 points), Yale (2nd, 21 points), RPI (3rd, 14 points) and Dartmouth (4th, 11 points). Princeton and St. Lawrence, and Union finished with two points.

Individual ballots are below.

WHAT THEY SAID

USCHO.com ECAC correspondent Brian Sullivan on Quinnipiac: "The Bobcats need two points in their remaining six games to clinch the Cleary Cup. I'm almost positive my beer-league team could accomplish that. But only if we get to wear those yellow sweaters."

Sullivan on Yale: "I'm not putting any money on the Bulldogs to hold onto No. 2. In my eyes, that bet went sour with Yale's 1-0 loss at Brown on Tuesday. Goalie Jeff Malcolm is still out - not sure when or if he'll return this season - and the rest of Yale's game has gone all pear-shaped as well."

Anonymous ECAC broadcaster on RPI: "Surging at the right time and they have the right guy between the pipes. They should have gone to Jason Kasdorf much earlier.

USCHO.com ECAC correspondent Nate Owen on Dartmouth: "The Big Green have dealt with some injuries and inconsistency, but I think they'll have enough to hang on."

Anonymous ECAC broadcaster on craziness of league: "Pretty interesting to note that there's a decent chance that three of the top four from last year (Union, Cornell, Harvard, Colgate) could end up in the bottom four this year. And it's possible ALL four, but since Cornell/Colgate play Union, it would be pretty difficult for all three to end up 9 through 11."

KEN SCHOTT	SEAN MARTIN	MARK DIVVER	JASON KLUMP
1. Quinnipiac	Quinnipiac	Quinnipiac	Quinnipiac
2. Yale	Yale	Yale	RPI
3. Dartmouth	Dartmouth	Dartmouth	Yale
4. RPI	Princeton	RPI	Union

JOSH SEGUIN	BROADCASTER	NATE OWEN	BRIAN SULLIVAN	ME
1. Quinnipiac	Quinnipiac	Quinnipiac	Quinnipiac	Quinnipiac
2. RPI	Yale	Yale	Dartmouth	RPI
3. Yale	RPI	Dartmouth	Yale	Yale
4. Union	St. Lawrence	RPI	Princeton	St. Lawrence

AFFILIATIONS

Ken Schott - Daily Gazette
Sean Martin - Times Union
Mark Divver - Providence Journal
Jason Klump - ex College Hockey News / recent RPI radio fill-in
Josh Seguin  - College Hockey News
Anonymous Broadcaster - One of the ECAC teams
Nate Owen - USCHO
Brian Sullivan - USCHO
Me - Union Hockey News

Q&A with Dartmouth associate head coach Dave Peters

by Ryan Fay

#18 Union (6-4-3, 13-8-4) returns to action tomorrow night at 7:30 pm when #16 Dartmouth (7-5-1, 11-7-2) comes to Messa Rink for a nationally televised game on the NBC Sports Network.

The two teams enter tomorrow's game tied for third place in the ECAC with 15 points apiece. Union will be looking for their fourth in a row and both teams are aiming to solidify a spot in the top four with eyes on a first round bye in the league playoffs.

To get the other side of the story, I interviewed Dave Peters, the associate men's hockey head coach at Dartmouth. A college hockey veteran with over two decades of coaching experience, he's currently in his 14th season on the Big Green staff.

Peters offers thoughts on the game, what he saw from Union in November, and some of his players who could be factors.

UNION HOCKEY NEWS (UHN): If someone is seeing Dartmouth for the first time tomorrow, what type of team will they see?

DAVE PETERS (DP): We're a big team, we play hard, and try to keep the game simple. We try to get pucks deep, we try to get pucks to the net, and we try to get our forecheck going. We try to play really good tough defense and try to keep the puck out of our zone. We like to transition and get pucks behind the opposition's defense and work it low.

UHN: What were your impressions of Union when you beat them, 3-2, at your place on November 10th?

DP: We were very impressed with their team and have been the past few years. Union has a lot of talent, they're very well coached, and they have an excellent powerplay. Their whole defensive core is good, but the thing that impresses me the most is they have three defensemen who remind me of the "big three" on the Montreal Canadiens from way back (Larry Robinson, Guy LaPointe, Serge Savard). To have a defenseman on the ice at probably all times that can get you out of a jam, move the puck, control the play, and add to the offense is what sets Union apart.

Even though they lost Jeremy Welsh and Kelly Zajac, who were really good players, Union has a good group of forwards. Wayne Simpson, Kyle Bodie, and Daniel Carr have put up great numbers this year. They have a Hobey Baker caliber goaltender in Troy Grosenick. It's talent and depth at all positions and that's what is really impressive.

UHN: Your leading scorer, Tyler Sikura, was good as a freshman last year (25 pts, 33 games) but looks to be even better this year (25 pts, 20 games). What makes him dangerous?

Sikura (Dartmouth)

DP: He's a player you can play in all situations. He's killing penalties, he's on the powerplay, and he plays a regular shift. He's a very good offensive player and has an excellent hockey sense. Sometimes you have a playmaker who isn't a goal scorer, but he can also score. He has a tremendous release on his shot and his skating and strength have both improved over last year. That's given him a little more confidence.

UHN: How important is it to have a healthy Dustin Walsh (7 g, 6 a) back in the lineup?

Walsh, a senior, was a sixth round pick of the Montreal Canadiens in 2009 and has battled injuries throughout his Dartmouth career. He recently missed three games, but he returned last weekend and had two goals an assist.

DP: It's really important for us because he's such a talented player. What it does is give us another forward who can score goals and make plays. It takes pressure off Sikura, Matt Lindblad (9 g, 14 a), and Eric Robinson (team-leading 10 goals), who have led our team all year. To add Walsh to that group is another player who can help us offensively.

UHN: After losing a couple senior goaltenders last year (James Melo, Jody O'Neill), junior Cab Morris has stepped up and has a 1.99 goals against average and a .922 save percentage in 12 games. What can you say about his play?

DP: Morris has been very good and consistent. He has given us a chance to win almost every night out and has a tremendous work ethic. He's very prepared on and off the ice and he practices hard.

UHN: Freshman Charles Grant has also seen a healthy amount of time in goal (8 games) and has quickly posted solid numbers (2.61 GAA, .908 save %). How much of a luxury is it when you have two goaltenders  you feel comfortable starting?

DP: It's been good. With Melo and O'Neill playing so much throughout their careers, goaltending was a bit of an unknown for us going into the year. Grant has also done a very good job and has given us a chance to win when he has played. We feel like we have confidence in both goaltenders. We have a third goaltender, James Kruger, who hasn't had an opportunity to play. But we're high on him and feel like he's right there as well.

UHN: Are all your guys healthy going into the game?

DP: We lost Brandon McNally (6 g, 5 a) in the Brown game (January 18th). He's not going to be available for us this weekend.

UHN: How would you say your club has been playing leading up to tomorrow's game?

DP: We've been a little inconsistent. But we like our team and feel we've been playing solid hockey.

UHN: Your squad is the least penalized team in the ECAC, so how important is that considering Union's powerplay is best in the country?

DP: It's really important. You have to stay out of the box, play with discipline, and limit the powerplay opportunities. We've done a good job of that this year and hope to continue that.

UHN: What are a couple other keys to the game from your end?

DP: We have to play with confidence. We're playing in an opposing building, so we have to keep the game simple, play our system, and be good defensively. We have to get pucks behind their defense and play the game in their end. We need to get pucks and traffic to the net. That's what we call playing the right way, and if we do that, we should have a chance.

Can't make it to the game? Find your local NBC Sports Network channel.

Where Union is in the polls - 1/28/13

by Ryan Fay

It's Monday, which means its poll day.

How did the Dutchmen fare this week? Lets find out.

USCHO

After picking up a couple wins over Harvard (4-1, Tuesday) and RPI (3-2, Saturday), the Dutchmen (13-8-4) rose one spot to 18th in the latest USCHO top 20 poll.

ECAC-leading Quinnipiac (18-3-3) picked up 22 first place votes, but fell eight points shy of the top spot. WCHA powerhouse Minnesota (18-4-4) retained its place atop the rankings.

Other ECAC teams in the poll were Yale (8th, 12-5-3) and Dartmouth (16th, 11-7-2). Dartmouth comes to Messa Rink on Friday night for a nationally televised game on the NBC Sports Network.

Colgate (19 votes, 13-9-2) and Cornell (5 votes, 8-9-2) were in consideration but didn't make the cut.

USA Today / USA Hockey Magazine

The Dutchmen remain unranked in the USA Today / USA Hockey Magazine top 15 poll. Union did receive six votes, which is actually one less than last week despite picking up two wins.

Quinnipiac was slotted second with 11 first place votes but Minnesota again proved too much to topple for the highest spot. Yale was the lone other ECAC representative in the top 15, as they were ranked 7th.

On the outside looking in were Dartmouth (45 votes) and the aforementioned Dutchmen (6 votes).

PAIRWISE

Union has moved up slightly in the pairwise as they currently sit 18th.

Rk	Team	PCWs	W-L-T	Win %	Rk	RPI	Rk
1	Quinnipiac	28	18-3-3	.812	1	.5870	1
2	Minnesota	27	18-4-4	.769	2	.5724	2
3	New Hampshire	25	15-6-2	.696	4	.5672	3
4	Miami	25	15-6-5	.673	7	.5546	4
5	Yale	24	12-5-3	.675	6	.5538	5
6	Boston College	24	14-7-2	.652	8t	.5521	6
7	Western Michigan	22	16-6-4	.692	5	.5457	7
8	Mass.-Lowell	21	14-7-2	.652	8t	.5456	8
9	St. Cloud State	19	15-10-1	.596	16t	.5433	9
10	North Dakota	18	13-8-5	.596	16t	.5415	10
11	Boston University	17	13-9-1	.587	18	.5404	11
12	Alaska-Fairbanks	17	12-8-4	.583	19t	.5331	18
13	Denver	16	13-8-4	.600	13t	.5396	12
14	Notre Dame	15	16-10-0	.615	11t	.5384	13
15	Dartmouth	15	11-7-2	.600	13t	.5365	14
16	Minnesota State	13	16-9-3	.625	10	.5350	15
17	Niagara	12	15-4-5	.729	3	.5346	16
18	Union	10	13-8-4	.600	13t	.5259	19
19	Colgate	10	13-9-2	.583	19t	.5221	20
20	Northern Michigan	10	11-12-4	.481	32	.5123	23
21	Nebraska-Omaha	8	15-9-2	.615	11t	.5334	17
22	Ferris State	8	13-10-3	.558	24	.5183	22
23	Wisconsin	7	11-8-5	.562	23	.5210	21
24	Ohio State	4	10-11-5	.481	33	.5087	24
25	Providence	4	10-10-4	.500	28t	.5072	25
26	Robert Morris	4	12-9-2	.565	22	.5046	26
27	Cornell	2	8-9-2	.474	36t	.5044	27
28	Merrimack	1	10-10-5	.500	28t	.5022	28
29	Holy Cross	0	13-9-2	.583	19t	.5021	29

Pairwise information via collegehockeynews.com.

Union Drops In The Polls

This past weekend at Messa Rink, Union lost a huge game to Dartmouth 4-1, but came back in the third period to beat Harvard 2-1. The loss to the Big Green really hurt as Union dropped in the national rankings.

Here is where the Dutchmen stand:

USCHO: down one spot to #13
INCH: down one spot to #9
USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine: down two spots to 12th
PWR: 15th
RPI: 10th
KRACH: 12th

Union Has Up And Down Weekend

The reason why I have this title is because they won a game where they came back from behind in the third period for the first time this season (Harvard), but lost a game that they needed to win (Dartmouth).

Actually, if you really think about it this was a disappointing weekend for the Dutchmen. This was a weekend where they absolutely needed four points. With a win over Dartmouth, Union would have finally won that PWR game that they desperately needed and solidified themselves as a contender for the NCAA tournament. But, now they are back to being on the cusp of a tournament bid.

Here the question of the week: Are the Dutchmen ever going to win the PWR game? Maybe they will next weekend...

Here are some things I took away from the weekend:
- Dartmouth played really well. They jumped all over Union right from the drop of the puck with a hard hitting game plan.
- Ryan Carroll is excellent against the Dutchmen. I was pretty worried going into the third period down 1-0.
- I think Matt Hatch is the missing link on the Prezie-Zaj line. His past few performances have really proven that he belongs on that top line. He skates really hard and very fast and is always willing to fight for the extra inch and throw his body around. I've said it before, but he really looks like an upperclassman out there.
- Good articles about the team might actually affect the team. Coach Leaman said that there might be a hex around feature stories on INCH, as most ECAC teams that get featured end up losing the following weekend. So, players DO NOT read the papers or any other coverage... I'm just kidding. But, it was interesting how Leaman mentioned that after the Dartmouth game.

Here are some recaps of the games:

Dartmouth
Union Athletics.com
USCHO
INCH

Harvard
Union Athletics.com
USCHO
Times Union.com

Go to the "Official" Union Hockey Blog for post-game quotes for both games.

Also, check out this feature on the Simpson Brothers from the Boston Globe.

Tonight's Lineups vs. Dartmouth

#16 Kevin Sullivan

Union
Carr - Welsh - Jooris
Presizniuk - Zajac - Hatch
Buote - Pallos - K. Bodie
Sullivan - J. Simpson - W. Simpson

Forgaard- Julseth-White
Coburn - Stuart
M. Bodie - Matheson

Notes: Kyle Bodie is back in the lineup after being replaced by Luke Cain last Saturday. I assume Cain was inserted into the lineup against Cornell because of his size. Cain is the feature story of this week's game program.

#24 Evan Stephens

Dartmouth
Estoclet - Fleming - Reber
N. Walsh - Jones - Robinson
D. Walsh - Owsiak - Reeds
Smith - Goodship - Lee

Stephens - Stejskal
Keenan - Goggin
Gaudet - Boldt

Mello
O'Neill
Morris


Players to Watch: Estoclet (8g-8a-16pts), Fleming (8g-12a-20pts), Reber (4g-12a-16pts), Stephens (2g-6a-8pts). Estoclet, Fleming, and Reber are all on the same line. Matt Lindbald leads all Big Green freshman with six goals and eight assists, but is not in the lineup tonight.

Here is a great comparison of the Dutchmen and Big Green courtesy of College Hockey News.

Where Is Union In The Polls?

This past weekend the Dutchmen swept their trip to Central New York for the first time since 1998. They beat Colgate 2-1 and then destroyed Cornell 5-1. Here is where Union stands after a solid weekend:

USCHO: up two spots to 12th
INCH: up two spots to 8th
USA Today/ USA Hockey Magazine: up two spots to 10th
PWR: tied for 12th with Boston University
RPI: 10th
KRACH: 10th

Up next for Union is Dartmouth and Harvard. The Dartmouth game is especially important since the Big Green are ahead of the Dutchmen in the PWR.

Dartmouth and Union skate to 0-0 tie

Daniel Carr '14 vs. Darmouth

Sorry it took so long for me to post. It was a long day with the Devils and club hockey today.

This 0-0 tie brings back memories for me. The first year I had season tickets to Army hockey was in the 1994-95 season. Just a few games into the season the Black Knights welcomed in this team called Union and skated to a scoreless tie... I never saw one in any hockey game ever again. When I began looking at colleges during high school my Dad mentioned Union to me, and the first thing that came to my mind was that 0-0 tie in 1994.

As a Union fan you have to be pretty happy coming home with three points while only scoring two goals on the weekend. Harvard and Dartmouth are both tough team to play, especially on the road. Keith Kinkaid had another stellar weekend and is making a name for himself in the college hockey world. He currently leads all goaltenders with at least five starts in goals-against average with 1.67. Next weekend's home-and-home series with RPI and Allen York will be a battle for goaltending supremacy in the ECAC.

It looks like Coach Leaman is trying to find the right player to play on the top line with Adam Presizniuk and Kelly Zajac. Stephane Boileau, Cole Ikkala, and others have already played on the line, and this weekend Leaman tried Carr and Jooris. Neither produced much. So who should be the third guy? Jeremy Welsh? Wayne Simpson? Who knows what Leaman is thinking. I say give Welshie a try. That trio will definitely score a ton of goals, but could weaken the rest of the lineup.

Either way, it's a very good start to league play and hopefully they keep it rolling next weekend against RPI. Even though it's the weekend before finals I urge all Union students to attend both games. You will not be disappointed! You might also witness Prez make Union history! Also, the players have finals too!

For more on the Dartmouth game check out:
Union Athletics.com
Ken Schott's Blog

Dartmouth Videos and Tonight's Lineup

Last night the Dutchmen squeaked out a 2-1 at Harvard. Adam Preszniuk had two assists in the game to tie Jason Walters on Union's D-I all-time scoring list with 115 points. Also, he is now tied with Joel Beal '05 on the all-time assists list with 74. Maybe Prezie will break these records tonight.

For more on the game go to:
Union Athletics.com
Ken Schott's Blog
Times Union.com

Union takes on Dartmouth tonight for their second ECAC game. Here are two videos that pertain to Big Green Hockey. The second is highlights from Union's come-from-behind 5-4 win at Dartmouth last season.





Here is Union's lineup for tonight's game. It looks like Coach Leaman is trying to find the right guy to play with Prez and Zaj. Carr received the chance last night, and tonight Jooris gets a turn. Others to play on the top line this season include Boileau and Ikkala. Also, Buote is not in the lineup tonight. Ken Schott says that he has a lower-body injury.
Presizniuk-Zajac-Jooris
Carr-Welsh-W. Simpson
Cain-J. Simpson-Boileau
K. Bodie-Pallos-Hatch

Forgaard-Ingoldsby
Coburn-Stuart
M. Bodie-Matheson

Kinkaid
Milan
Grosenick

Union opens up ECAC play at Harvard and Dartmouth

Union hits the road this weekend to begin ECAC play at Harvard and Dartmouth. This is when the important games begin because the easiest way to make the NCAA tournament is to win your conference. Recently, the Dutchmen have not been good in ECAC openers. They have not begun ECAC play with a win since a 6-5 win against St. Lawrence on Nov. 5, 2004. Over this period Union has gone 0-3-2.

Let's take a look at the Crimson and Big Green:

Harvard
Last season they finished 10th in the ECAC going 7-12-3 in league play and 9-21-3 overall. But, they swept the Dutchmen in 2009-10. In the first game the Crimson won 4-1 behind 47 saves from Ryan Carroll. It was a one-goal game before Harvard scored to empty-netters late in the game. The second game took place at Harvard where the Crimson jumped out to a 4-0 lead, but the Dutchmen scored three goals in the last 5:30 to make it a one-goal game. Union was unable to tie the game. This season's game will be Harvard's home/season opener.

Sophomore Danny Biega

Harvard lost their leading scorer from last season, freshman Louis Leblanc, to the NHL's Montreal Canadiens. This will be a big hit to them since he was definitely their best player on the ice.

Players to Watch:

Conor Morrison: as a freshman was second on the team with 10 goals.

Michael Biega: the senior led the Crimson with 15 assists last season.

Daniel Moriarty: only scored six goals last season, but four them came on the power-play.

Danny Biega: was the youngest of the three Biega brothers on the team last season, and led all Crimson defensemen with five goals. He has a very bright future ahead of him.

Prediction: Union 4, Harvard 1

Dartmouth
Finished 9th in the ECAC last season (7-12-3) and 10-19-3 overall. They played Quinnipiac very tough in a three-game series in the first round of the ECAC playoffs. The Big Green and the Dutchmen were very well matched last season. Dartmouth took the first game at Union 3-1, but the Dutchmen won at Dartmouth with a come-from-behind 5-4 win. In the game, Darmouth went up 4-0 after one period where Keith Kinkaid made only one save. But, Union scored three goals in the second, and two in the third including Kyle Bodie's game-winner with 2:45 left in regulation. Corey Milan made 14 saves in relief, and James Mello made 38 saves for Dartmouth. The Big Green opened up their schedule last weekend at the Ivy Shootout where they beat Princeton 2-1, but fell to Yale 7-3.

I picked Dartmouth as my sleeper team this season. The main reason being that they return their top seven scorers and ten out of their top 11 scorers. I actually picked them to finish in 3rd place, ahead of Union. Also, they showed a lot of promise towards the end of the 2009-2010 regular season. The ECAC Coaches and Media picked them to finish sixth in the conference.

Players to Watch:

Senior Scott Fleming

Scott Fleming: the senior led the team with 22 goals (10 PPG) and 39 points last season. He should be up for First Team All-ECAC at the end of the season

Adam Estoclet: Fleming's partner in crime who led the team with 24 assists and was second with 36 points. I picked him as a pre-season All-ECAC selection.

Evan Stephens: led all Big Green defenders with six goals, 14 assists, and 20 points last season. The Coaches picked him as a pre-season All-ECAC selection.

James Mello: split time in between the pipes with Jody O'Neill last season. He played in both games against Union in 2009-10 where he made a combined 77 saves.

Prediciton: Union 3, Dartmouth 3... picking ties is weird (haha).

Union
The Dutchmen come off of two 3-3 ties against Connecticut and RPI. While it wasn't an awful week, it was not the way they wanted to head into league play, especially the tie against UConn. The Dutchmen have been able to jump ahead early in the game, but have allowed their opponents to jump back in the game this season. Let's see if they can change this around this weekend.

Sophomore Keith Kinkaid

Players to Watch:

Keith Kinkaid: he had an awful game in his last outing at Dartmouth. Let's see if the second time around is a better performance.

Mat Bodie: the freshman has had some difficult growing pains of late, but came up big late in the game against RPI. Maybe he'll get out his funk during ECAC play.

Stephane Boileau: "The Professor" has been playing on the top line with Kelly Zajac and Adam Presizniuk lately. Let's see if he'll be able to produce and create chemistry with these guys.

For more about the game with Harvard and Dartmouth check out Union Athletics.com.

Union stages epic comeback against Dartmouth

Going down four goals on the road 7:20 into a game is not the way you want to start out, but scoring five unanswered goals... that's character, and last night's game proves that this team has a ton of character. This is the type of game that the Dutchmen will look back on in the playoffs, and say that they can do anything. Granted they were playing an 11th placed team, but a four goal deficit at any level of hockey, no matter who you are playing, is a difficult one to make up.

The really great thing about last night's victory is how the freshmen skaters stepped up when their team needed them. Each Jeremy Welsh, Shawn Stuart, and Kyle Bodie scored a goal, and Wayne Simpson had two assists. It's also important that Union's big players showed up when they need them. The Mario-Wally-Prez line connected for a huge power-play goal in the second period, and Prez and Mike Schreiber picked up assists in the third period. You also can't forget Andrew Buote, who picked up two assists on the night. He is one of the hardest working players on the ice for the Dutchmen every game. And last, but definitely not least, Luke Cain scored the game-tying goal late in the third as he tipped a shot past the Dartmouth goaltender. He has scored a goal in five of Union's last six weekends. Cain is another hard-working player, and it was nice to see him make a huge impact in his return to Thomspon Arena after his horrific injury two years ago. The offense has been clicking lately as they have scored 20 goals in the past three games.

Keith Kinkaid had a very rough night last night, but luckily Corey Milan was able to come in and hold down the fort. Maybe Keith is suffering from some fatigue, so don't be surprised to see Milan in the net tonight against Harvard.

The Dutchmen need to take advantage of the Cornell- Yale matchup tonight as one of these teams has to lose, or they can tie so neither team could pick up two points. There is a very good chance that after tonight there will no longer be a three way tie for first place.

For more on last night's game check out Union Athletics.com, Dartmouth Sports.com, Daily Gazette.com, Times Union.com, and Ken Schott's Blog.

Union to travel to Dartmouth and Harvard

It's the last three regular season weekends of the season, so every game is crucial. This weekend the Dutchmen need to prove that they just ran into some hot goaltending in their last meetings with the Big Green and Crimson. There is also opportunity for Union to separate themselves from Cornell and/or Yale as they play each other this weekend. Let's see if the scoring touch holds up. Also, look out for 'Super' Mario and Wally inching closer to record for most points in a season. Check out Concordy.com and Union Athletics.com for notes on the games. Also be sure to read clips on USCHO.com, Times Union.com, Daily Gazette.com, and another article by Ken Schott.

Union loses to Dartmouth for second loss in a row

What a disappointing weekend! As I said earlier in the week, this was a weekend where the Dutchmen should get four points, but they couldn't even get one. But hey, the Dutchmen are still in first place in the ECAC and Jason Walters extended his point streak to 15 games. But, Union has now dropped from #7 t o#19 in the PWR. This makes next weekend's road trip even more important.

You can read about the game on USCHO.com, Union Athletics.com, Daily Gazette.com, and Times Union.com. Also, check out Ken Schott's blog and video.

Dutchmen to face Crimson and Big Green this weekend

Union fans should expect the Dutchmen to take four points a way from this weekend considering both Harvard and Dartmouth are in the lower half of the ECAC standings. Harvard has been on a nice winning streak lately so they could be dangerous, especially with freshman standout Louis Leblanc starting to heat up. The game against the Crimson should be the tightest game of the weekend but you should still favor the Dutchmen. The Dartmouth game should not be that close. The Big Green are currently second to last in the ECAC standings and do not have the offensive talent to keep up with Union's high flying offense. Also, Dartmouth goaltender Jody O'Neill has not put up the prettiest numbers this year. If everything goes as it should the Dutchmen should still be undefeated in league play and on top of the ECAC standings.

You can read some clips about the Dutchmen on Concordy.com, Union Athletics.com, Times Union.com, and Daily Gazette.com.

Be sure to also read Brian Sullivan's ECAC Midseason Report on USCHO.com where he names Mario Valery-Trabucco MVP and Top Forward, and Coach Leaman as Top Coach. Sullivan also names Union as a team most likely to take a tumble.

Union Hockey News: January 18th

• Union stays at #13 in the USCHO.com national rankings and the USA Today poll.
• The Dutchmen move up three spots to #11 in the INCH rankings.
• Read about RPI Coach Seth Appert saying that he doesn't believe the Dutchmen are better than his team on Troy Record.com.
• Read an interview with Jason Walters on Times Union.com.
• Harvard topped Dartmouth 4-1 tonight. The Crimson and Big Green will be traveling to Schenectady this weekend to take on the Dutchmen. You can read the game summary on USCHO.com.