(12) Clarkson @ (5)SLU
d 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).
l probably have to happen.
s 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.
Matt Cook, a co-captain for the Dutchmen last season, has been featured in a Quad Cities Publication. Cook is currently playing for the Quad City Mallards of the IHL. The article focuses on his family and how he is a perfect combination of athletic talent and brains. You an access the article here.
Freshman goaltender Keith Kinkaid has been named the ECAC Goaltender of the Week for the second time this season. He made 35 saves against Princeton on Friday night and 22 saves against Quinnipiac the following night.
After wins over Princeton and Quinnipiac this weekend this is what has happened to the Dutchmen in the polls:
No one could have scripted last night's game any better. It had the perfect storyline and the perfect ending. You knew this was going to be a memorable night from the moment when five seniors were announced in the starting lineup to having the senior class honored at the end of the game. There were so many moments in the game that would get the sports fan choked up:
play he scored a big goal and assisted on another. Christo deserves a lot of credit for sticking with the team for four years, and for working hard throughout his time with the Dutchmen. As soon as he scored Union's third goal I instantly thought of Rudy. What a way for the senior to go out.
eiber sprinted towards his mother who was jumping up and down on the carpet laid down on the ice. It was also great that Schreiber and Wakita thanked basically everyone that has to do with Union Hockey. The ceremony was all wrapped up when Union Hockey's #1 fan Will Friedman (aka Union Hockey Maniac for those of you on the USCHO.com forums), who is also a senior, started a "Let's Go Seniors" chant. I personally feel Will should have been honored in some way as he has been the most dedicated Dutchmen fan by far throughout his four years. He has traveled to almost every rink in the ECAC and has helped promote the home games and sell the 7th Player t-shirts. When I ran into Will at the end of the game I asked him why he wasn't at his fraternity's formal. He responded by saying something like, "some things are just more important" (or something like that).Well, I'm done with the cute stuff and on to some meaner stuff because I thoroughly dislike the Quinnipiac Bobcats. I have always held a grudge against them since my freshman year because my girlfriend goes there. But, after watching the Bobcats for the past three seasons I have come to hate their brand of hockey. I hate them even more after Eric Lampe's actions last night. Seriously, what a moron. Once Lampe challenged the Union bench I just wanted to see Wakita jump off the bench and knock him out cold. I feel that the Bobcats are a gutless, self-centered team. It seems that all they want to do out there is dangle and make the big hit. Basically, it seems that they're just having a tryout for the minors. I don't understand how a team with seniors as talented as Brandon Wong, Greg Holt, Mike Atkinson, Lampe, and Jean-Marc Beaudoin can just settle for mediocrity. The Bobcats should have a Top 5 offense with this group. It wouldn't surprise me to see this team drop out of the Top 8 in the ECAC next weekend and get swept in the first round of the playoffs.
Now back to some hockey stuff. With last night's win the Dutchmen can't finish any worse than third in the ECAC. They are now tied with Cornell for second place after their surprising loss to Dartmouth last night, which makes Friday's game that more important. The Dutchmen still only trail Yale by two points for top spot in the ECAC as well. As everyone predicted, next weekends games will be the most important of the season. Also, look out for some more records to be broken next weekend.
Last night in the press box I was told that in order for the Dutchmen to clinch a first round bye in the playoffs they would have to win tonight against Quinnipiac. Well, I just found out this morning that that was wrong and Union has already clinched a first round bye in the ECAC playoffs. So, my article on USCHO.com is incorrect. Just don't pay attention to the fourth to last paragraph haha. For more detailed information about how the Dutchmen clinched the bye check out the Extra Frame Blog.
aking the program's Division I single season point record.
Union:
Once again, John and Wayne have been featured in an article. This time it is the New England Hockey Journal. The two have played on the same line for most of the season, but have been separated a few times. Heading into this weekend John has accumulated four goals and 14 assists in 29 games, while Wayne has tallied five goals and 12 assists in 30 games.
Union:Princeton:
Quinnipiac:
n top of his game he is one of the most lethal players in the ECAC. Wong is the go-to guy on the power-play as he has scored 11 goals on the power-play. But, lately he hasn't been so stellar. In his last 13 games he has tallied only six points where he has only scored three goals, only one of which came against an ECAC opponent. 
According to Chris Heisenberg, forward Max Novak has committed to join the Dutchmen. Novak currently plays for The Hill School. I don't know much about this guy, but ADK11 from the USCHO.com forum gives a good assessment on him:
According to Ken Schott, freshman defenseman Greg Coburn got hurt in today's practice and will miss a significant amount of time (possibly the rest of the regular season and playoffs). He suffered a lower-body injury after being tangled up with senior forward Jason Shaffer in today's practice. This is a huge blow for the Dutchmen as Coburn has been a very solid defenseman this season and has also helped on the offensive side of the puck. Coburn has tallied two goals and 14 assists this season. His 14 assists and 16 points is second most for Union defenseman this season (Mike Schreiber has eight goals, 18 assists, and 26 points). Defensemen like sophomore Nolan Julseth-White and freshman Ryan Forgaard will now have to step up and produce every game.
at
t Cook won the award in 2008 and Mike Harr won it last season. Both of these players were from the United States, so maybe the trend of Americans winning this award will keep up. There are 10 players from the United States on this year's team, including all three goaltenders.
Union remains at #16 in the USCHO.com National Rankings
he Dutchmen have let up the first goal of the game. Even though Union found a way to comeback and win three of these games, this is not the way you want to play hockey. Playing from behind leads to frustration and sloppy play. It is great to see that the Dutchmen have the ability to mount huge comebacks, but as we saw last night it will not always work. Scoring first is an essential aspect of winning games, and the Dutchmen need to figure out how to do this before the playoffs start.
"If you look at the standings, Union needs four more points to wrap up a Top 4 finish. If Colgate loses to Cornell, four points gets them no worse than 3rd. If Colgate and Cornell tie on Tuesday night, it will depend on the tiebreaker with Colgate for 3rd, assuming Union gets four points and Colgate gets all eight of the points available to them over the last two weekends. Union won their first meeting. If Colgate wins the second meeting, it will come down to this tiebreaker formula. Besides Colgate, the only teams below them that can catch them if they get four more points are RPI and St. Lawrence. They swept both RPI and St. Lawrence, so they hold the tiebreaker against each of them. They need to get the four points next weekend so that they are only playing for positioning in the Top 4 during the final Cornell/ Colgate weekend." (Thanks Dad!) 
altenders needs to get hot. This biggest thing to have in the playoffs is hot goaltending because the goaltender is the only player on the ice who can steal a game for your team, and as of right now neither Keith Kinkaid or Corey Milan has proved they can do this. Keith has had some nice stretches, but then falters after a while, and Corey has received his chances but has been prone to allowing the weak goal. The Dutchmen and their fans better pray for hot goaltending if they want to go somewhere in the post-season. Just see Jean-Sebastien Gigure's performance in the 2003 NHL playoffs to see what a hot goalie can do for a team.
xpect Mario, Wally, and Schreiber to have big weekends.
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.
cond 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.
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.
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.
Inside College Hockey has picked Union forward Mario Valery-Trabucco as the top player in the nation last week. You can read about it on INCH.com.
Union in the National Polls:Dutchmen honored by ECAC:
On Thursday night I said: "Things haven't been going well for our Dutchmen... The main cause of this problem has been the lack of scoring... meaning that their top scorers need to start scoring... Mario along with is linemates, Jason Walters and Adam Presizniuk, need to put the offense on their backs and carry it. They are one of the most dynamic and lethal lines in the ECAC and need to play like it every game."
combined 12 assists. Also, the line had their hand in nine of the 15 goals this weekend. In the six previous games the Dutchmen put up only 12 goals. It was also nice to see leaders such as Mike Schreiber and Brock Matheson and freshman such as Kyle Bodie and Wayne Simpson help with the offense this weekend.
now the Dutchmen have to keep it rolling into next weekend when they hit the road to take on Dartmouth and Harvard, both of whom came into Messa Rink and beat the Dutchmen a few weeks ago. Also, the Dutchmen are now in a three way tie for first place in the ECAC with Cornell and Yale and are ahead of fourth place St. Lawrence by three points.
hat every shot on the Clarkson net went in. Clarkson is a miserable team considering the injuries, illnesses, and the sexual misconduct charges earlier this year. They were missing some defenseman, but hey 11 goals is 11 goals. If you're a Division I hockey team you should not be letting up 11 goals to any league opponent. That being said, Paul Karpowich is not a good goaltender. I remember thinking last season after the three times I saw him that he was not a good goaltender. He seems to be out of place way too much, which leaves big openings where players like Mario can snipe the net easily. I guarantee that will not be the case tonight as St. Lawrence goaltender Kain Tisi is 100 times better than Karpowich. Statistically, Tisi is one of the top netmidners in the ECAC. The matchup with the Saints will be a good and important game.
ck, freshman Kyle Bodie on his four point night, and Rich Sillery on his first action this season. I've been hoping that Sillery would see some action this season, and it really made my night that he did. Oh, and a special shout out to #1 fan Will Friedman. It was fun celebrating the win with you last night... haha. Also, if you were wondering who the extra guy behind the bench was last night it was Jason Oshins (second from left), who is a "Coaches Level" donor to the Garnet Blades. For being a "Coaches Level" donor you get the chance to be on the bench for a home game. Oshins is a Board of Trustees member, and is the founder of the Upsilon Sigma chapter of the Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity at Union College.
Things haven't been going to well for our Dutchmen lately as they haven't won since January 16. The main cause of this problem has been the lack of scoring. In Union's past four games they have only scored seven goals, meaning that their top scorers need to start scoring. One example is Mario Valery-Trabucco, who hasn't scored since January 9th at Quinnipiac and has only picked up two assists in his past five games. Mario along with his linemates, Jason Walters and Adam Presizniuk, need to put the offense on their backs and carry it. They are one of the most dynamic and lethal lines in the ECAC and need to play like it every game. Each Mario, Wally, and Prez have only scored two goals since returning for winter term on January 8th. In the past seven games the Dutchmen have scored 19 goals, and Mario, Wally, and Prez have only scored six of them.
St. Lawrence
sFormer Union defenseman Mike Harr '09 has been traded from Rio Valley to Missouri (CHL). He has totaled nine points on the season. Read more about this on ECAC Hockey.com.
