Union Loses To Colgate In A Heartbreaker

Ok readers, I've been thinking about what to say here for a long time now. But, there really isn't much to say. Last night's loss and the weekend in general still hurts so much. I had such a hard time leaving the rink last night since this is not the way I wanted my last moment at Messa Rink to feel like. Everyone just feels so awful. After the game I talked to Mike Schreiber via Facebook for a long time. It was about 3am in Germany and he couldn't go to sleep. Alumni messaged me via Twitter... player's girlfriends were upset... students were shocked and angry... the list goes on. Just seeing the guys so upset in the post-game press conference was heartbreaking. Walking back to my house by myself after the loss was one of the worst feelings I've ever experienced at Union. On the way back I ran into Josh Jooris and we talked for a few minutes just trying to talk it out. I think everyone on campus is shocked and upset. I don't think anybody thought Union would lose two games at home in one weekend after only losing once at Messa all season.

Our boys played well for the first five periods of the weekend, and then all of a sudden everything was turned upside down. There really isn't much else to say besides that Colgate worked their butts off and deserved the series. Their big players (Mihalik, Day, Brisebois, etc.) really stepped up when they needed to and they should be commended. They are truly playing their best hockey right now, and are proving why many picked them as a Top 5 team in the league this year (I did). It must be pretty exciting to be a Raider fan now.

As a Union fan you just have to tip your hat to the Raiders and that's that. You can't blame the refs. Even though I didn't agree with a number of calls against the Union (and some of the non-calls against Colgate), that's hockey. The Raiders were opportunistic on the power-play, so you have to give them credit. You also can't blame any specific players. Yeah, the Welsh-Carr-Jooris trio was shut down for the most part and maybe Keith Kinkaid wasn't "lights out," but studs the Prezie-Zaj-Hatch line had a good weekend as well as Wayne Simpson. Even Andrew Buote produced well this weekend, scoring two goals to give him three on the season.

But, we have to look at the positives. In any other year in Union Hockey history the season would be over. But, we've accomplished so much this season that we will be playing in the national tournament (I guess it isn't officially confirmed, but the experts seem to believe that we're a lock). There is still more hockey to play, and we can avenge this weekend by making a run in the tourney (Yale did the same thing last season and there are other examples of this). I think we all need to refocus and begin to start thinking about the national tournament. Hopefully for the players, finals week will put their focus on something else for a few days and then they can start moving in a new direction.

I believe this team isn't done yet. This is a team of destiny, and as a student and fan I will support them to the end. Good luck on your finals guys, and I'll see you in the regionals.

For more on Game 3 check out:
USCHO
Ken Schott's Blog
Times Union - Mark McGuire
Times Union - Pete Iorizzo
Union Athletics
ECAC Hockey (Video Highlights)
Ken Schott's College Hockey Slap Schotts

Tonight's Lineups vs. Colgate (Game 3)

Luke Cain & Justin Pallos

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

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

Kinkaid
Grosenick
Milan

Notes: Kevin Sullivan replaces Kyle Bodie on the second line while Luke Cain replaces Stephane Boileau on the fourth line. It makes some sense to me since Bodie and Boileau didn't play much of a factor during their time on the ice. Also, it's probably a good idea to have rested guys out there during a Game 3. Hopefully Cain can bring a physical presence to the ice.

Chris Wagner

Colgate
Firman - Day - Prockow
Bartliff - Smith - Brisebois
Mayer - Wagner - Bourdon
Rivellini - McCann - Nasca

Poplawski - Larkin
Price - K. McNamara
Leidl - McPherson

Mihalik
Evin
Bessette

Check out Ken Schott's pregame report (click here).

Videos From Last Night

Here are some videos I took before, during, and after Union's disappointing 4-2 loss last night to Colgate in Game 2 of the ECAC Quarterfinals.

That third period last night was one of the most uninspiring periods I've seen Union play in my four years. Now it's down to one game. The Dutchmen better clear their heads because tonight is going to be a wild one.

We will have the weekend recap once the series is over (remember Justin and I have finals, but we're doing our best!).

Tonights Lineups vs. Colgate (Game 2)

Kelly Zajac

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

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

Kinkaid
Grosenick
Milan

Notes: Kyle Bodie replaces Kevin Sullivan on the Simpsons line tonight. Bodie usually plays with Buote/Pallos when Boileau is also in the lineup, but I guess Leaman liked the way The Professor played with Buote and Pallos last night.

Brian Day

Colgate
Firman - Day - Prockow
Bartliff - Smith - Brisebois
Mayer - Wagner - Bourdon
Rivellini - McCann - Nasca

Poplawski - Larkin
Price - McNamara
Sinz - McPherson

Mihalik
Evin
Bessette

Notes: Rivellini replaces the younger McNamara on the fourth line tonight.

Here's a video of the Dutchmen warming up about and hour and a half before the game starts. They were also yelling and throwing around a soccer ball to get ready.

Tonights Lineups vs. Colgate (Game 1)

Wayne Simpson

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

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

Kinkaid
Grosenick
Milan

Notes: Julseth-White is back in the lineup after sitting out the final weekend of the regular season with an injury... Kyle Bodie is not in the lineup tonight even though he seems to score in every game he plays lately.

Robbie Bourdon

Colgate
Firman - Day (C) - Prockow
Bartliff - Smith - Brisebois (A)
Mayer - Wagner - Bourdon
J. McNamara - McCann - Nasca

Poplawski - Larkin
Price - K. McNamara (A)
Leidl - McPherson

Mihalik
Evin
Bessette

Notes: Colgate has six NHL draft picks in the lineup tonight, while Union has none... Jack McNamara (freshman)  and Kevin McNamara (junior) are brothers.

Check out Ken Schott's pregame report (click here).

ECAC Quarterfinals vs. Colgate Preview

Finally, the playoffs have arrived in Schenectady! This weekend the Dutchmen host the Colgate Raiders for a best-of-three series after the Raiders upset fifth-seed RPI in Troy last weekend. Union had a bye last week and used the time to recover from injuries and get ahead (or maybe catch up) on their schoolwork.

While the Raiders have been hot of late (6-3-1 in last 10 games) and are probably the best last-place team in the country, the Dutchmen are absolutely on fire. They haven't lost in 11 games (10-0-1), which is tied for the nation's longest unbeaten streak with Holy Cross, and are 14-1-1 in the winter term. Union has also been almost unbeatable at home this season going 15-1-2.

I think the Dutchmen saw what Colgate is made of this past weekend at RPI and won't let them succeed in the Capital Region for the second weekend in a row. It will definitely be a tough series, but Union is great at home so I have confidence that they won't lose twice in one weekend at Messa Rink.

So Union students, put down your study guides, leave the lab, and take a break from your thesis and come see the best team in Union Hockey history in their final weekend at Messa Rink this season. YOU DO NOT WANT TO MISS THIS!!! Remember, the first 300 students get in free.

Here are some players to watch:

Colgate
Eric Mihalik: the freshman goaltender was outstanding in net last weekend at RPI where he made a combined 92 saves, including 40 saves in Game 3. He was named INCH's Player of the Week for his efforts. After going winless in his first 10 career starts, he's gone 6-3-1 in his last 10 starts. He was in goal for both losses to Union this year.

Francois Brisebois: the senior forward leads the team in scoring with 15 goals and 31 points, as well as power-play goals (6). He scored twice in Game 2 last weekend in Troy.
Austin Smith: led the Raiders with four points (1 goal, 3 assists) last weekend and has 10 career points in post-season play (6 goals, 4 assists). Smith it tied for the team lead with 20 assists and is second with 29 points. He currently has a four game point streak.
Robbie Bourdon: the sophomore is the only forward on the team besides Brisebois with double-digit goals (10). He scored the game-winning goal in double overtime in Game 3 last weekend, and has tallied a point in five of his past six games.

Union
Adam Presizniuk: in the playoffs your best player needs to play his best. Prezie is Union's best player and will be a major reason why Union advances or falls.
Keith Kinkaid: the same can be said about goaltending, which is arguably the most important thing in the playoffs. A hot goaltender can bring a team to a championship. Kinkaid is one of the best netminders in the country and if he catches fire who knows how far Union will go.
Daniel Carr: special teams is also extremely important in the playoffs. Carr is tied for the nation's lead in power-play goals, so he will be the go-to guy on Union's PP.

Andrew Buote & Justin Pallos: on the same note, penalty killing will be very important throughout the playoffs. Personally, Buote and Pallos are the two best penalty killers on the team and their leadership will be very important during the playoff run.
Mat Bodie: the younger Bodie is just one point away from breaking Mike Schreiber's '10 record for most points in a season by a defenseman (29).
Kelly Zajac: Zaj leads Union in scoring with 38 points, and has picked up 12 points (4 goals, 8 assists) in his past eight games. He will be featured in the game program this weekend (I wrote the feature story).

For more check out:
Union Athletics
Go Colgate Raiders.com
Daily Gazette - Ken Schott
Times Union - Sean Martin
Inside College Hockey

Taking A Look At The Rankings

Union had this past weekend off because of the first round bye. But, there were still college hockey games this weekend. The Dutchmen will play Colgate this weekend in the playoffs.

Here is where Union sits in the rankings:

USCHO: stay at 4th
INCH: stay at 3rd
USA Today/USAHM: stay at 4th
TCHB: stay at 3rd


PWR: tied for 6th with UNO
RPI: 4th
KRACH: 6th

This weekend the Dutchmen will host Colgate in the ECAC Quarterfinals. Last night the Raiders beat RPI at HFH in overtime in the decisive third game. This was the second year in a row that the Engineers were bounced from the first round of the playoffs. Last season they lost to 11th-seed Brown in three games.

You can read Jeffrey Haff's (Daily Gazette) observations from last night by clicking here.

I watched the post-game interviews with Seth Appert and Chase Polacek on YNN last night, and they were visibly upset. Even though I hate RPI (like most Union students and fans), I feel a little bad for Polacek and am a bit disappointed. Polacek is one of the best players I've seen in the ECAC in my four years, and he deserved to go out on a better note. He's probably my pick for the ECAC MVP. I was also looking forward to Union and RPI meeting up again one more time whether that were in the ECAC Final Four or the NCAA Tournament. The Engineers had a great season until they fell apart in the past few weeks. But, Polacek and York can only do so much. Besides those two stars and a few others, there really wasn't too much after that.

I admit that even a part of me last night wanted to see RPI win so we could play St. Lawrence instead of Colgate. I just feel SLU is a less dangerous team than the Raiders despite their upset of Princeton on the road (something I don't think anyone predicted).

Anyways, all of our focus is now on Colgate. The Raiders seem  to have hit their stride at the right time and have now proven that they can travel to the Capital District and win two games by close scores. Union has won both meetings with Colgate this season and have an outstanding record at home, but it's still very difficult to beat a team four times in one season. I still have the utmost confidence in our guys to win two games at Messa Rink.

SEEEE YA COLGATE - Union wins 6-3

Adam Presizniuk scored twice

Well my luck at Turningstone didn't go as well as I had hoped, but I still had a great time. Toby Keith and Eric Church rocked the place like I had never seen before, but of course as I was gettin' rowdy at the show, I kept checking my phone for Union hockey updates to see how we were doing against Colgate. I was very surprised and a bit nervous when I saw that we fell down 2-0 early but yet I was confident we would storm back. I had seen this all before in person at Princeton so I knew the boys in white had it in them.

Colgate would jump out to an early 1-0 lead when senior forward Brian Day beat Kinkaid with a low wrist shot at 10:09 of the first period. The Raiders would tack on another goal when sophomore defensemen Thomas Larkin would score on the power-play after a Professor Boileau clipping penalty.

Trailing 12-3 in shots and 2-0 on the scoreboard entering the second period, the Dutchmen score five unanswered, starting with Presizniuk’s first goal of the night. Freshman forward Matt Hatch cut into the zone and fired a shot on Colgate goaltender Eric Mihalik. Mihalik made the initial stop, but Presizniuk was there for the rebound at 6:10.

Union tied the game at 2-2 on an impressive individual effort by senior forward John Simpson. An extended period in the Colgate zone, allowed Union to change forward lines. With fresh legs on the ice, senior forward Stephane Boileau fed Simpson the puck, who jammed in his own rebound at 14:48.

With the game tied in the third period, junior forward Kelly Zajac found Presizniuk cutting into the zone for a breakaway. Presizniuk fired a shot between Mihalik’s pads that trickled over the goal line for a 3-2 Union lead at 6:15 of the third period.

Freshman forward Daniel Carr extended Union’s lead to 4-2 just 16 seconds later, redirecting a feed from freshman forward Josh Jooris at 6:31. Jooris would score one of his own on the power play at 10:01, firing a long rebound into an empty net off a shot from the point from sophomore forward Jeremy Welsh.

Colgate’s Kevin McNamara would score at 17:38 to cut Union’s lead to 5-3, but the Dutchmen would seal the game with an empty net goal from sophomore Wayne Simpson at 18:48.

Union finished the night 1-for-2 on the power play and 2-of-3 on the penalty kill, while outshooting the Raiders 36-27. Kinkaid (21-7-1) made 24 stops for his 21st win of the season.

The win was Union’s seventh in a row, tying a school record in the Division I era, set in January 2008. The Dutchmen also set a new school record for overall wins in the Division I era. They are also very close to securing a first round bye in the ECAC playoffs (I think the Magic Number is 1). The team will travel to the North Country next weekend to take on Clarkson and St. Lawrence.

Oh yeah, and those losers from Cornell defeated #8 RPI in overtime 3-2. Always great to see RPI take the dive! With two overtime losses suffered by RPI this past weekend, I expect us to move up to the #8 spot in the national polls. We will find out tomorrow afternoon so check in with us then!

Great weekend in Union hockey!! For more info on last night's 6-3 win over Colgate, please visit the links below:

Union Athletics
Ken Schott's Blog
Dan's USCHO Report
Times Union
Colgate Athletics

Thanks for reading!
-JZolot

CONTINUED...
Hey readers, it's Dan. I hope you're all enjoying Justin's posts. I think they're awesome and are a nice change of pace from my writing.

Anyways, just wanted to share some things about my experience from last night's game.

Once the Dutchmen went down 2-0 after the first period some people were nervous. I was not nervous and neither was team manager Phil Cohn. He texted me after the period saying that he expected Union to come back because the team responds well to bad periods. He was right!

Some of the biggest news of the evening came during a verbal altercation between the ECAC's director of officiating Paul Stewart and CHN's Jason Klump. It happened in the first period in the press box. Klump attended the RPI game and I guess said something that upset Stewart. When the two saw each other again at Messa Rink things got wore. I can't officially say what was said since I was trying to stay out the argument since it wasn't my business. Klump has been tweeting about the event all last night and today, and should have a story about it up on Without A Peer sometime soon.

Also, special thanks to Jeff Weinstein and Ken Schott for letting me use their voice recorders after the game for my USCHO recap after mine broke.

Check out some other interesting links I found:

Coach Leaman talks to TU's Mark McGuire about preparing for a weekend, and how more importance is placed on the Friday night game. (Times Union)

Check out what the probability is for each ECAC team winning the league championship. Union is currently at 24%. (Playoff Status.com)

See what the Magic Number for each ECAC team is. (ECAC Playoff Possibilities Script)

Here's a video from Union's third goal last night:

Tonight's Lineups vs. Colgate (2/12/11)

John Simpson

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

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

Kinkaid
Milan
Grosenick

Note: Kyle Bodie replaces Kevin Sullivan in the lineup. Stephane Boileau moves to the third line with the Simpson Brothers while Bodie plays left wing on the fourth line.

Francois Brisebois

Colgate
Bartliff - Smith - Brisebois
Bourdon - Wagner - Prockow
Firman - Day - Long
Rivellini - McCann - Nasca

McPherson - Larkin
Price - McNamara
Sinz - Poplawski

Mihalik
Evin
Bessette

Draft Picks: Smith (Dallas '07, 5th round), Wagner (Anaheim '10, 5th round), Day (NY Islanders '06, 6th round), McPherson (New Jersey '07, 3rd round), Larkin (Columbus, 5th round), Price (Vancouver '09, 4th round)

Take a look at the pre-game report on the Unofficial Colgate Hockey Blog and Ken Schott's Blog.

Players To Watch This Weekend/ Videos

Tonight the Dutchmen take on Cornell for the WHITEOUT! After a slow start the Big Red have picked it up lately as they've only lost once in their past 10 games (Union has also only lost once in their past 10 games). The one loss came against Union. They are now tied with Dartmouth for 4th place in the ECAC and are only one point behind third place RPI.

Tomorrow night Union welcomes in Colgate, who won their first ECAC game of the season last weekend with a 4-2 over Clarkson.

Cornell
Joe Devin: the senior forward was named last week's ECAC Player of the Week as he picked up three goals and two assists. He leads the team with 11 goals.
Greg Miller: the sophomore forward netted the game-winning goal in overtime against St. Lawrence last Saturday. He leads the team with 19 assists and 22 points.

Colgate
Francois Brisebois: the senior forward leads the team with 10 goals and 23 points. He's been very hot of late scoring a goal in three of his last four games and has picked up a point in seven of is last nine games. He accumulated a goal and assist in last week's win over Clarkson.
Kurtis Bartliff: the sophomore forward is tied for second on the team with 13 assists. He scored two goals against Clarkson.

Union
Keith Kinkaid: last weekend marked the first time this season where he allowed a combined six goals on back-to-back nights. Let's see how he responds.
Mat Bodie: the younger Bodie has been overshadowed by the success of Josh Jooris and Daniel Carr, but he has put together a very solid freshman campaign accumulating five goals, 19 assists, and 24 points. He is in the Top 5 of the ECAC in assists.

For more on the weekend check out:
Union Athletics.com
Cornell Big Red.com
Ithaca Journal.com
Go Colgate Raiders.com

When you get to the game be sure to pick up a game program. This week's feature article in the program is about John Simpson. Read it because I wrote it! Also, tonight I will be freelancing for the Ithaca Journal, which should be interesting. So, you can read my game recap in the Ithaca Journal with a Cornell twist.

Check out this music video made by some players from Cornell last season, and a feature on Cornell fans:

Union Sweeps Central New York Trip

Keith Kinkaid

The Starr Curse? OVER! Lynah Rink? SILENCED! This is the first time Union can say that since they swept the Central New York trip in 1998.

Friday night the Dutchmen were able to pull out a 2-1 victory at Colgate despite a poor effort. But, winning games that you really shouldn't win is a sign of a good team. Wayne Simpson and Josh Jooris scored for Union, and Keith Kinkaid put in one of his best performances of the season with 24 saves. After the game Coach Leaman said, "if it wasn’t for Keith I don’t think we win that game."

They were not discouraged or intimidated by Cornell the following night as they convincingly beat the Big Red 5-1 just one night after RPI lost at Lynah by the same score. It didn't look good for Union at first as they went down 1-0 early, but finished the game with five unanswered goals. Daniel Carr scored two power-play goals, Brock Matheson scored his first goal of the year, Kevin Sullivan picked up his second goal in as many weekends along with two assists, and Wayne added an empty netter. Kinkaid made 16 stops. The Dutchmen completely dominated as they outworked the Big Red and out shot them 42-17.

On a side note, it must have been weird to go from playing in front of under 800 people at Colgate to playing in front of a sold out crowd at Cornell. The atmosphere in the two rinks are complete opposites. Maybe that's why Union's had so much trouble during this road trip in the past.

Also, Keith Kinkaid has allowed four goals in his past four games. He is third in the nation with a 1.91 GAA among goalies with at least eight games played, and is tied for second with 14 wins. Kinkaid leads Union's defense, which is tops in the nation with 2.00 goals allowed per game.

Daniel Carr

With his two power-play goals against Cornell, Daniel Carr now has nine power-play goals on the season. Not only does this tie a Union D-1 record (Chris Ford 1993-1994), but is second most in the country. At season's end I'm sure Carr, along with Jooris and Mat Bodie, will be in serious contention of the ECAC Rookie of the Year.

Up next, Union hosts Dartmouth and Harvard. Both games (as usual) are extremely important, especially the Dartmouth game.

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

For more on the Cornell game check out:
Union Athletics.com
Cornell Big Red.com
Ken Schott's Blog
Ithaca Journal

Oh, and Union's Club Hockey team opened up their winter term schedule with a win over Mohawk Valley CC 7-3.

Union Travels to Two Tough Buildings This Weekend

Prior to the beginning of the season I thought that the trip to Colgate and Cornell would be one of the most difficult one's of the year. I thought both of these teams would be competing for an ECAC championship (and so did the Coaches and Media). But, both the Raiders and Big Red have struggled to begin the ECAC season as both are in the bottom half of the standings with Colgate being in dead last. While I am more confident about Union's chances this weekend there are still reasons to worry. I do think Union will pick up two wins this weekend, but I would not be shocked if they lost one or both of these games for these two reasons:

Starr Rink

1. The Starr Curse: The Dutchmen have played 22 games at Colgate's Starr rink and they've only picked up ONE WIN going 1-20-1. The last time Union won a game at Colgate was in 1998 when Trevor Koening was in net (Check out Ken Schott's article about the win here). No player on Union's current roster has ever won a game at Starr. There is really no rhyme or reason to this trend, but the Dutchmen will have to find a way to break the curse... and this would be the perfect time to do so considering the Raiders have only won one game in their past 16 (1-14-1), including a seven game losing streak (three loses in OT).

Lynah Rink

2. Lynah Rink's atmosphere: Maybe a reason why Union has had so much trouble at Colgate is because they are looking ahead to playing at Cornell the next night, which is a pretty daunting task. Cornell's Lynah rink is the toughest building to play in the ECAC and one of the toughest in the country. The Big Red fans always pack the place and are extremely loud. They have some of the best fans in the country as they have a great pep band and entertaining chants. If you come out without alive without a loss at Cornell, you've done a good job. Cornell might be down as of this moment, but they are extremely dangerous. They just beat Quinnipiac and Princeton on the road.

Here are some players to look out for this weekend:

Colgate:
Austin Smith (forward): leads team with 12 assists and 17 points. He was named All-ECAC this preseason.
Francois Brisebois (forward): second on the team with 16 points.
Brian Day (forward): leads the team in goals (8), power-play goals (4), and penalty minutes (28). I picked him as All-ECAC this preseason and predicted that he would have a huge year.

Cornell:
Nick D'Agostino (defense): leads the team with six goals, tied for second with five assists, and is second with 11 points... AS A DEFENSEMAN! This actually comes as no surprise to me since I picked him to my Preseason All-ECAC team.
Greg Miller (forward): leads team with 10 assists and 12 points.
Joe & Mike Devin (forward & defense): the two senior brothers are big powerful players. Joe is tied for second on the team with five goals and is thrid with 10 points, wile Mike leads the team with 24 penalty minutes. Their younger sister Molly-Kate is a sophomore on Union's Women's Hockey team.

Union:
Kyle Bodie (forward): played very well last weekend as he picked up four points and was named the ECAC Player of the Week. Let's see if he can follow it up with another good performance and solidify his spot in the lineup.
Andrew Buote (forward): was a healty scratch for the first time in a long time last Saturday against Clarkson. Leaman says he's "challenging the seniors," so let's see how he responds.
Adam Presizniuk (forward): he finally broke the all-time points record last weekend, which was probably nice to just get out of the way. This weekend is his third weekend back since returning from his thumb injury. Now with the record out of the way and his thumb feeling better let's see if Prezie goes on a tear.

For more on the games check out:
Union Athletics.com
Go Colgate Raiders.com
The Unofficial Colgate Hockey Blog
Ken Schott's Blog --> He has tonight's starting lineups
Cornell Big Red.com

Also, Union Assistant SID Jeff Weinstein will be live chatting tonight from Starr Rink. To access the Live Chat click here.

The Starr Curse Lives On

After last night's 5-2 loss at Colgate the
Dutchmen are now 1-17-1 at Colgate. Surprisingly this year's seniors have not won a game at Starr Rink, which is the least intimidating rink in the ECAC. The crowd is always dead and no one even goes to the games. Maybe the problem is going from Lynah to Starr and how different the environments are. Either way losing two games in a row is not how you want to head into the playoffs, but the Dutchmen have a bye which will give them some time to think everything over and get their heads on straight.

Once again, congratulations to Mario Valery-Trabucco on his program record 21st goal of the season. Mario is the MVP of the team this year and is one of the top forwards in the ECAC (along with Chase Polacek, Brock Little and Sean Backman just to name a few). He is a legitimate Hobey Baker and All-American candidate. Also, Mario's linemate Jason Walters is one point away from tying the program's career point record (114, Jordan Webb).

This weekend does bring up some concern for the playoffs. First and most importantly is goaltending. Keith Kinkaid has not stepped up when he has really needed to. He, nor Corey Milan, have stolen a game for the Dutchmen even though they have had some very good games. Goaltending is the most important factor for any playoff teams as hot goaltending will prevail above everything in the playoffs. This also brings up another concern which is the amount of breakaways allowed by the Union defense. It seems like almost every game the opposition gets at least one breakaway opportunity. Also, even though there is no official statistic, it seems like Kinkaid has trouble with breakaways. Finally, it is a bit worrisome that 'Super' Mario scored two of Union's three goals this weekend (the other goal coming from Kyle Bodie). Union played two Top 4 ECAC teams this past weekend and were only able to score three goals. Offense is the strength of this team and will have to continue to be if they want to be successful in the playoffs.

We now have two weeks for Union Hockey to return, and I'm sure it will feel longer than that. Hopefully this extra time will give the Dutchmen some time to relax and tie up some loose ends. If all the top seeds win their first round playoff games Union will face RPI in the quarterfinals, which will be a very energized and exciting series. I'm not excited about this potential matchup because it is very difficult to beat a team five times in one season, especially a rival. Also, all of the regualr season games this season have been extremely tight and could have gone either way.

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

Dutchmen finish regular season at Cornell and Colgate

As everyone expected, the seeding for the top spot in the ECAC playoffs has come down to this weekend. Tonight's game at Cornell is a huge one as both the Big Red and Dutchmen are tied for second place. Colgate is also looking to get a first round bye so expect them to come out flying on Saturday night. Here are some players to keep a tab on this weekend:

Mario Valery-Trabucco (Union): he's only one goal for breaking Union's all-time goals record. Mario is also currently leading the online voting for the Hobey Baker Award.

Jeremy Welsh (Union): the big freshman has scored four goals in his past six games. Cornell has very big defensemen so maybe Welsh will be able to neutralize them.

Riley Nash (Cornell): the junior has registered a point in his past five games, four of which have been multi-point games. In these five games he has tallied three goals and eight assists for 11 points.

Blake Gallagher (Cornell): the senior forward leads the team with 17 goals and 32 points. He has also registered a goal in his past five weekends, including one on a Tuesday night game against Colgate.

Colin Greening (Cornell): this other senior forward has been carrying a hot stick of late as he has scored a goal in five of his past six games. Over this six game span he has totalled six goals and three assists.

Ben Scrivens (Cornell): the senior goaltender is the top goaltender in the ECAC and is one of the top five, statistically in the nation. He sports a 2.07 GAA and a .928 save percentage.

David McIntyre (Colgate): the senior captain is second on the team with 34 points and is tied for first with 24 assists (second in ECAC). McIntyre has registered a point in eight out of his last 10 games, including a point in each of his last five games. Last season he was one of the top players in the ECAC with 21 goals and 22 assists.

Brian Day (Colgate): leads the team with 20 goals (third in ECAC) and is currently riding a four game goal scoring streak. He has also picked up three assists in that span.

It should be a fun and exciting weekend. For more on the games check out: Concordy.com, Union Athletics.com, Daily Gazette.com, and INCH.com.

Union-Colgate game was "uninspiring"

In Ken Schott's post-game thoughts he harps on how dead the Union faithful were tonight and how it carried over to the ice. I can just picture Mr. Schott right now standing in the press box being absolutely livid when no one sang Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline" with him.

Here's Ken Schott's feelings on the game from his blog: http://www.dailygazette.com/weblogs/schott/2009/dec/05/union-colgate-postgame-report/

Stephane Boileau blamed the lack of energy to overconfidence, but I know from experience that it is hard to get pumped up for a game in your own building when no one is there or excited. And the reason why there was no energy or excitement tonight was because of the Union students being on winter break. The students truly are the "7th Man" and get the Union players amped. I'm sure the only student dedicated enough to make the trek to Schenectady during their winter break was the team's #1 fan Will Friedman. So, this bring up the question of who and why schedule an ECAC home weekend during the school's winter break? I'm sure it wasn't Coach Leaman's doing because he has said in many conversations that I've had with him how much his team responds to the student section and how they have played their best hockey at home in front of a loud and energetic crowd. This is the first time in recent memory (or at least since I've been at Union) that there was an ECAC game at Messa Rink during the winter break.

I almost feel bad that I did not attend the game, but not that bad considering I went to Nets-Bobcats game where the Nets won their first game of the season. The crowd was really into it and the tickets that I bought were 75 cents (so can you really blame me?). But, I will be making the trek up to Troy on Wednesday to see the Dutchmen take on the Engineers for the third time this season.

This scheduling problem also brings up the question of why is the Union-RPI game at RPI that counts towards league standings on a Wednesday night? This makes no sense to me considering it's a rivalry game. What would be the problem with putting this game in the same weekend when RPI travels to Schenectady on Saturday, Janurary 16th? It's the only game the Dutchmen and the Engineers have that weekend. Someone in the ECAC scheduling office has some explaining to do.

Union 3, Colgate 1

With a shorthanded first period goal from Mario Valery-Trabucco, a power-play second period goal from Stephane Boileau, and a even strength third period goal from Jeremy Welsh along with solid goaltending from Keith Kinkaid the Dutchmen were able to top the Raiders 3-1. Kinkaid made 31 saves in the game giving him a 4-0-1 record on the year. Jason Walters also kept up his point streak with two assists.

The win extends Union's unbeaten streak to seven games and leaves them as the only undefeated team in the conference. Heading into Saturday's game with Cornell (who beat RPI 2-1 Friday) the Dutchmen sit tied in fourth place in the ECAC with Yale. They trail Quinnipiac (who lost their first ECAC game Friday 7-4 to Yale), Cornell, and Colgate, but each of these teams have games in hand.

It's great to see the team pull out a win against Colgate because no matter what happens against Cornell this will be a successful weekend considering heading into the weekend each Colgate and Cornell were ahead of the Dutchmen in the standings. Maybe this will put less pressure on Union for Saturday's game. And personally I am happy to see Presizniuk back with Wally and Mario, and Yanovitch back with the Simpson brothers. I feel that this combination will give the Dutchmen their best chance to win. Maybe Coach Leaman reads my blog and took my advice... but I highly doubt it haha.

The Cornell matchup will be a tough test for the Dutchmen as Cornell is one of the hottest teams in college hockey and have one of the best offenses in the nation. This offense is led by Blake Gallagher and Colin Greening who each scored in their team's 2-1 victory over RPI on Friday.

Check out the game recap from UnionAthletics.com: http://www.unionathletics.com/news/2009/12/4/MICE_1204094112.aspx

Colgate and Cornell preview

After winning the RPI tournament last weekend and going undefeated in the month of November, the Dutchmen will now try to take care of more important business as they face Colgate and #7 Cornell this weekend at Messa Rink. Both teams are ahead of Union in the ECAC standings, but have three games in hand. If the Dutchmen want to make their presence known in ECAC they must take at least two points this weekend.

Colgate: Even though the Raiders hold an advantage in the all-time series, the Dutchmen have had the upper hand recently having gone 3-1-1 in the last five match-ups. Last season the Dutchmen fared well against the Raiders as they went 2-0-1, including the victory at the championship game of the Governor's Cup. The last time Colgate beat Union at Messa Rink was February 2007.

The Raiders got off to a hot start this year having gone unbeaten in their first six games, but have cooled off lately as they have gone 1-2-0 in their past three games. They last played on November 24th in a loss to Cornell, so they should be fully rested.

Colgate is led by a usual suspect: David McIntyre. Last season McIntyre was first team all-ECAC, a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award, first team AHCA/Reebok Eastern All-American, a first team all-American by Inside College Hockey, and was selected to the all-College Hockey News team. He hasn't stopped this season and has lived up to his preseason first team all-ECAC and preseason first team all-American (INCH) selections. This year the senior has tallied four goals and a team-high 14 assists. He also leads the team in penalty minutes (26) and shots (64). David leads all current Raiders with two goals and three assists all-time against Union. McIntyre is joined on top of the Colgate scoring list by sophomore Austin Smith. Smith, a Dallas Stars draft pick, leads the Raiders with eight goals and a .242 shooting percentage. Other Raiders to look out for are Brian Day and Francois Brisebois. Day has registered 12 points (9 goals (4 PP), 3 assists) this season in 12 games this season including a team high +9 rating, while Brisebois has tallied six goals and four assists.

The Colgate goaltending duties have been shared this season between senior Charles Long and sophomore Alex Evin. Long has gone 4-2-2 this season with a 3.09 GAA and a .902 Save Percentage, while Evin has gone 2-2-2 in seven starts with a 3.45 GAA and a .887 Save Percentage. Long started all three games against the Dutchmen last season.

Cornell: The Big Red are one of the best teams in college hockey today, and has one of the most rabid followings of any college hockey team in the nation. Don't be surprised if there are more Cornell fans at Messa on Saturday considering there will be no students because of winter break. Cornell comes off of a 3-3 tie to defending national champion Boston University last weekend in front of a sold out crowd at Madison Square Garden. The Big Red have dominated the Dutchmen owning a 27-12-5 record in the series, and having won the past four games against Union. Under Head Coach Mike Schafer Cornell has gone 18-8-4 against Union. The last Union victory over Cornell came on February 15, 2008.

Over the past few years Cornell has been the type of team that had minimal offensive production and would beat you with their stellar defense and get their 1-2 goals off of power-play opportunities. This year the defense (ninth in the nation with 2.22 goals allowed per game) and power-play unit (top in the nation with 31.9% conversion rate) is still the same, but the offense has caught fire as they are the third highest scoring offense in the nation with 4.00 goals per game. The Big Red offense is led by senior Blake Gallagher (9 goals (6 PP), 6 assists in 9 games), who is second in the nation with 1.67 points-per-game. His nine goals is a team high. Gallagher isn't the only senior forward who is lighting up the score sheet as Ottawa draft pick Colin Greening is fifth in all of college hockey with 1.56 points-per-game with 4 goals (3PP) and a team-high 10 assists. Also be aware of the Devin and Nash brothers. Forward Joe Devin has tallied four goals and six assists, while his brother Joe is a force to be reckoned with on defense. Junior forward Riley Nash is a play maker on offense having tallied 2 goals and 7 assists on the young season, while his older brother Brendon has been productive from the blueline with a goal and eight assists.

Senior Ben Scrivens has been the constant for the Big Red having been the starting goaltender for the past three seasons. Scrivens has been regarded as one of the top goaltenders in the ECAC and in the nation and has the statistics to prove it. Last year he was 22-10-4 with 1.81 GAA and a .931 save percentage, and this year has kept up the pace having gone 6-2-1 with a 2.10 GAA and a .925 save percentage while playing every minute this season.

If you can't make it to the game you can listen to it on 89.7FM WRUC, follow it on Live Stats (go to UnionAthletics.com), or watch it on Time Warner Sports Channel 3 in the Capital District.