Union beats SLU to go to ECAC Championship Game

Who would have picked Union to be in the ECAC Championship game in the beginning of the season? Not many. The Dutchmen were picked to finish sixth in both the Coaches and Media Poll prior to the season. But, with last night's barn-burner Union will face Cornell to decide who will take home the ECAC crown.

Last night's atmosphere was incredible. I don't think I've ever seen so many Union fans in one place! The Union faithful took up about four to five sections at the TUC. The fans were also extremely loud and easily drowned out the SLU fans with their chants. They even found ways to make the SLU cheers into Union cheers. Dutchmen fans will have to be even louder tonight as Cornell has a tremendous and loyal following and has a great cheering section.

The Dutchmen did not play a great game as they seemed to not have enough jump and were fighting the puck a little too much. Luckily, Keith Kinkaid was stellar in net for Union as he made 29 saves on the night, including 13 in the final period. He was great positionally as he was able to catch almost every outside shot in his chest. It looks like the Coach of the Year made a "Coach of the Year" decision. Even though the Dutchmen missed the net on some good opportunities, they were still opportunistic. On only eight shots in the final 40 minuets, Union was able to score two goals.

On other notes, Kelly Zajac got hurt for the second game in a row. After separating his shoulder last weekend, he seemed to sustain another arm/shoulder injury. But, he returned in the second period and played the rest of the game. Now that's what I call a hockey player. As an old hockey friend of mine used to say, "Just Tape It Up." Also, with an assist on last night's game-winning goal, Jason Walters in now the all-time leading scorer with 115 points. But, Mario Valery-Trabucco is right on his tail.

For more on last night's game check out Union Athletics.com, USCHO.com, Ken Schott's Blog, Daily Gazette.com, and other literature you can find on the Extra Frame Blog.

Tonight's game against the Big Red will be a tough one for the Dutchmen as Cornell is one of the most fundamentally sound teams in the nation. Oh, and have I mentioned that they have one of the nation's best goaltenders? Ben Scrivens has been lights out all year and is near the top in every statistical category in all of Division I college hockey. He is tied for first with a .935 save percentage, second with a 1.83 GAA, fourth with 20 wins, and tied for first with six shutouts. He was recently named First Team all-ECAC and is a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award. Scrivens leads the second best defense in the country that has only allowed 1.91 goals per game. Besides Scrivens, Cornell's strength is its' special teams. The Big Red sports the ninth best power-play in the country (20.7%) and the third best penalty kill in the country (87.4%).

So, the keys tonight for the Dutchmen are to stay out of the penalty box and to be opportunistic. It was only two games ago that Union did not have to kill any penalties, and if they do that again they will be in good shape. Also, if they go on the power-play they're going to have to screen Scrivens and pounce on any loose pucks.

If the Dutchmen are able to come out on top tonight it will probably be by the score of 1-0 or 2-1. In their past five games, Cornell has not allowed more than one goal and have only allowed one goal in their three playoff games. Scrivens and the defense brings their shutout streak into tonight's game as they have shutout Harvard and Brown in back-to-back games. Cornell has not allowed a goal in over 170 minutes. The game will be a great battle between high-flying offense (Union is fifth in the nation in scoring) and stifling defense (Cornell is second in the nation in team defense).