January 26, 2012

Team Notes: No. 13/14 Union Returns to Messa Rink to Face Clarkson, St. Lawrence

SCHENECTADY, NY  - No. 13/14 Union men's ice hockey (13-6-6, 7-3-3 ECAC Hockey) will close out the month of January with games against Clarkson (11-10-5, 5-4-3 ECAC Hockey) and St. Lawrence (8-13-3, 4-7-1 ECAC Hockey), two teams that the Dutchmen have enjoyed success against in recent years. Union has won eight straight games against Clarkson and four in a row against St. Lawrence, including a North Country sweep to start league play in November. Union takes on Clarkson tonight after earning a 3-1 win on Nov. 5 at Cheel Arena in the first meeting between the two teams this season. In that contest, junior forward Kyle Bodie had a goal and two assists, senior forward Brian Yanovitch had a goal and an assist, and sophomore goaltender Troy Grosenick made 22 saves to lead the Dutchmen. Union has won the last five meetings at home against the Golden Knights by a combined score of 33-9.

Pacing the Dutchmen                                                            
Junior forward Jeremy Welsh has 15 points (11 goals, four assists) in the last 14 games and has scored a goal in nine of his last 14 contests. Welsh leads the team with 17 goals and enters the weekend as one of eight players in the nation with 17 or more goals. Sophomore defenseman Mat Bodie (six goals, 15 assists), has points in eight of his last 10 games (four goals, five assists). Sophomore forward Daniel Carr has points in eight of his last 10 games (six goals, four assists). Senior forward Kelly Zajac has points in seven straight games (goal, nine assists).
 
Grosenick Leading the Nation in Net                                                              
Sophomore goaltender Troy Grosenick, who entered the season with just one career start, is off to a fantastic start in net for the Dutchmen in 2011-12. Grosenick, who has started 20 of 25 games in net for Union, leads the nation in goals-against average (1.64) and save percentage (.937), and is tied for fifth in shutouts (3).

The Home Stretch                                                                      
Over the past two seasons, Union has made a habit of playing their best hockey in January and February, when Union traditionally has a lengthy stretch of ECAC Hockey contests. The Dutchmen will play nine of its final 15 games this season, all ECAC Hockey contests, at Messa Rink. Union is 4-1-1 in six games in the month of January. In 2010-11 and 2009-10 combined, the Dutchmen compiled a 13-3-1 record in January and February at Messa Rink in ECAC Hockey contests.

Home Is Where The Heart Is
Dating back to the beginning of last season, the Dutchmen have an impressive record (18-3-5) in their last 26 regular season home games at Messa Rink. Not including exhibition contests, the Dutchmen are 143-136-43 all-time at home.
 
The Union-Clarkson Series           
In a series that dates back to Jan. 23, 1923, the Golden Knights own a 27-18-5 advantage, including a 26-17-5 DI mark, over the Dutchmen. Union has won the last eight meetings, outscoring Clarkson 45-14.

Its last loss against Clarkson came on Jan. 23, 2009 in overtime at Cheel Arena.  The Dutchmen are 12-12-4 all-time against Clarkson at Messa Rink.

Scouting Clarkson                      
Clarkson, unbeaten in its last three games (2-0-1) earned a 4-3 win over rival St. Lawrence last Saturday to improve to 11-10-5 on the season.  

Senior goaltender Paul Karpowich has had a standout year in net for the Golden Knights. Karpowich (11-8-5, 2.10 GAA), is seventh in the nation with a .931 save percentage. Senior forwards Nick Tremblay and Louke Oakley lead the team in scoring, each with 11 goals and 12 assists. Tremblay has been hot of late, with eight points (two goals, six assists) in his last four games. Sophomore forward Ben Sexton, who did not play against Union in the first meeting, has 15 points (six goals, nine assists) in 14 games this season.

Clarkson is the most penalized team in the nation with 477 penalty minutes but has been solid on the penalty kill at 83.5% (23rd NCAA)  The Clarkson power play unit, which stuggled midway through the season, has gone 4-of-7 in the last two games and has converted at 17.7% (36th NCAA) this season

The Last Meeting                 
On Nov. 5, 2011, senior forward Brian Yanovitch had a goal and an assist and classmate Kelly Zajac recorded his 100th career point with an assist on Greg Coburn's third period goal to help lead Union to a 3-1 win at Clarkson in front of 2,678 fans at Cheel Arena.
Sophomore goaltender Troy Grosenick made a bid for his second consecutive shutout, but surrendered a third period goal at 12:24 of the third period to Clarkson's Julien Cayer, ending a shutout streak of 119:18. Grosenick finished the contest with 22 saves.

The Dutchmen got off to a fast start, with all of the damage coming at even strength from Union's third line. Yanovitch found junior forward Kyle Bodie out in front of the net from the corner. Bodie's initial shot was stopped by Karpowich, but he put his own rebound into an open net at 6:28 to give Union a 1-0 lead. Bodie led all scorers with a goal and two assists on the night.
Yanovitch gave the Dutchmen a two-goal advantage just over two minutes later. Bodie found Yanovitch along the left wall in the neutral zone, and the senior forward skated cut around the Clarkson defense, and beat Karpowich under the arm to put the Dutchmen up 2-0 at 8:55.

Coburn gave Union a 3-0 lead on the power play at 6:23 of the third period. With Clarkson's Nik Pokulok in the penalty box for boarding, Zajac fed Coburn, who cut into the slot and scored on a one-timer to give the Dutchmen a commanding lead.
 
The Union-SLU Series           
Since Feb. 22, 1929, the Saints have posted a 33-22-2 record against the Dutchmen with a 29-18-0 Division I mark. Friday's game will be the 58th meeting all-time between the two teams. Union has won the last six games against St. Lawrence, including a 2-0 win at Appleton Arena in November. Union is 11-14-2 all time against St. Lawrence at Messa Rink, but has won three of the last four meetings at home.

Scouting St. Lawrence               
Junior forward Kyle Flanagan is in the midst of his best season, despite missing eight games midway through the year with an upper body injury. Flanagan has 26 points (10 goals, 16 assists) in 16 games this season. Sophomore forward Greg Carey (seven goals, 14 assists) and freshman forward Chris Martin (eight goals, seven assists) have provided consistant scoring for the Saints

Sophomore goaltender Matt Weninger has played in all but three games this season, and is 7-11-3 with a 3.04 GAA and .899 save percentage.

The Saints are 0-5-1 in their last six ECAC Hockey contests, and 1-3-3 in their last seven contests overall. The Saints have allowed a power play goal in all but five contests this season and are 78.0% (47th NCAA) on the penalty kill. St. Lawrence is converting at 20.2% (20th NCAA) on the power play. St. Lawrence head coach Joe Marsh continues his leave of absence from the team to deal with a medical issue. Associate head coach Mike Hurlbut is behind the bench in his absence.

The Last Meeting                        
On Nov. 4, 2011, junior forwards Wayne Simpson and Jeremy Welsh both scored power play goals to help Union earn a 2-0 win over St. Lawrence in the league opener for the Dutchmen.

Union went a perfect eight-for-eight on the penalty kill, and sophomore goaltender Troy Grosenick stopped 27 shots for his second shutout of the season to help the Dutchmen earn the win. Union finished two-for-seven on the night with the man advantage.

With a 1-0 lead in the first period, the Dutchmen converted on a 5-on-3 power play late in the third period to take a commanding lead. Sophomore defenseman Mat Bodie fed cross-ice to Welsh, who fired a one-timer into the net at 11:51. Junior forwardWayne Simpson gave the Dutchmen a 1-0 lead on their second power play opportunity of the contest. With St Lawrence's Jeremy Wick in the penalty box for elbowing, junior forward Kyle Bodie won a faceoff back to Simpson.

Simpson stepped into the shooting lane and fired a wrist shot over the shoulder of Weninger at the 10:12 mark. The Dutchmen killed off three penalties in the first period, as Grosenick and the Union penalty kill unit were up to the task. St. Lawrence's Patrick Doherty appeared to tie the game at the 16:13 mark, but a video review confirmed that Doherty kicked the puck past Grosenick, and Union maintained its 1-0 lead. Union continued its solid play on the penalty kill in the second period, killing off a Kevin Sullivan interference call at 7:57 and a Cole Ikkala roughing call at 11:08, both on hits in the neutral zone.