OPENING FACE-OFF: After playing a pair of games against nationally-ranked Nebraska Omaha at home, Colgate returns to the road to square off with another nationally-ranked foe in UMass-Lowell, Friday evening at Tsongas Arena. Opening face-off is set for 7 p.m. This single-game meeting will be 17th time the two institutions have played one another. The Raiders will be in search of their first win in Lowell since 1990. It will be Colgate's first non conference game in Massachusetts since it last travelled to Lowell back in 2004. After the game with the River Hawks, Colgate rests one day and then will host its second exhibition of the year as the US National Under 18 team comes to Starr Rink for a Sunday afternoon contest. This is the first time on record NTDP U18 will compete against the Raiders.
MEET THE HEAD COACH: Don Vaughan is in his 17th year at the helm of the Colgate Raiders. The 1984 graduate of St. Lawrence enters the campaign as the program's all-time winningest coach with a 270-254-61 mark. On February 16, 2008, he became the all-time winningest coach with his 252nd victory as Colgate blanked Union 8-0. On November 11, 2007, the President of Colgate, Rebecca S. Chopp, announced the creation of the Donald F. Vaughan Endowed Coaching Chair for Men's Hockey.
SERIES RECORD: UMass Lowell holds a 9-7-0 all-time advantage in the all-time series dating back to the 1988-89 season. Colgate will attempt to snap a five game winless skid against the River Hawks in Lowell. After winning 6-4 on October 26, 1990, UMass-Lowell has won five straight over the Raiders in its home barn. Colgate has had the upper hand though in recent years in winning the last two meetings 6-2 in 2005 and 2-1 last year. The River Hawks have outscored the Raiders by a combined score of 70-62. Colgate is 2-3 against UML in one goal games and the two have gone into overtime twice in the all-time series, both prevailing once in a multi-overtime affair. On December 28, 1990, the River Hawks, known as the Chiefs back in the day, downed Colgate 4-3 in four overtimes – one of the longest games in Raider history. Colgate returned the favor four years later with a 4-3 win in double overtime. Both overtime games were played in Syracuse.
THE OPPOSITION IN BRIEF: UMass Lowell is 1-1 on the young season and ranks 13th in the most recent USCHO poll. The River Hawks, who were idle last weekend, split their two games at the UNO Icebreaker – beating St. Lawrence 3-0 in the opener and then falling to UNO 4-3 in the title game. UMass-Lowell, which has its top seven scorers back from a year ago, was picked second in the Hockey East Preseason Poll behind Boston U. After two games, UML has five players who have scored goals. Kory Falite (2-2-4) and Maury Edwards (1-2-3) are the top two point producers thus far. Carter Hutton (1-1, 2.03 gaa, 43 saves) has played every minute in net thus far. Lowell is coached by Blaise MacDonald. He is in his eighth year at the helm of the program and has a career mark of 107-122-32.
ABOUT US NATIONAL UNDER 18: The U.S. National U18 Team entered its game at Utica College Friday evening with a 2-4-1 record overall. The roster is comprised of 22 players, 16 of them have given verbal commitments to eight different schools for the 2010-2011 campaign and beyond. Three of the squad members hail from the Empire State, including one from down the road in Ithaca. Six members of last year's squad were drafted among the first two rounds, including one first rounder – Kyle Palmieri, who went 26th overall to the Anaheim Ducks. NTDP U18 has its USHL schedule along with 18 games against NCAA Division I and III institutions. So far, it has downed Bowling Green 7-2; lost a tight game to Boston U 3-2 and dropped 4-2 and 6-3 decisions to Michigan and Boston College. US U18 played will play at Cornell Saturday. Brandon Saad leads the team in scoring after seven games with seven points (three goals, four assists), while Jon Merrill is second with five points (two goals, three assists). Kurt Kleinendorst coaches US Under 18. The native of Grand Rapids, Mich., took over the program after serving three years as head coach of the Lowell Devils of AHL. Kleinendorst was a Hobey Baker finalist his senior season and the ECAC Player of the Year in 1983 at Providence College. Since the 1999 NHL Draft, the program has produced 33 first round selections, including three first overall – Rick DiPietro (NY Islanders), Erik Johnson (St. Louis Blues) and Patrick Kane (Buffalo Sabres). David Tanabe was the first player chosen in the first round by the Carolina Hurricanes back in 1999. NTDP has also generated 38 second rounders over the years.
COLGATE CONNECTION: Brandon Saad of US National Under 18 and Colgate's Christian Long played together during the 2008-09 season with the Mahoning Valley Phantoms of the USHL. Long saw action in 14 games with the Phantoms before returning to the Brockville Braves of the CJHL.
LAST YEAR AGAINST UMASS LOWELL: Colgate opened the 2008-09 season with a 2-1 victory over the River Hawks. David McIntyre scored the game winning goal with 13 seconds remaining in the second period and goalie Charles Long saved 23 shots in the victory. Wade Poplawski scored the first goal of the season with a blast from out top on the power play at 9:18 of the second. Making his collegiate debut, Austin Smith posted assists on both Colgate goals.
ON THIS DATE (October 23): Colgate is 1-2 all-time in games played on October 23 and both losses came against Northeastern. The Huskies downed the Raiders 2-0 in the 1998-99 season opener and then posted a 4-3 win in overtime in 2004. The win came at seventh-ranked Colorado College as Kevin Johns tallied a three-point evening with two goals and an assist and Shep Harder saved 32 shots as the Raiders upset the Tigers 3-0 at the Broadmoor World Arena. Four players from that game went on to play in the NHL and all four are still playing – Colgate's Andy McDonald and Cory Murphy as well as CC's Tom Preissing and Toby Petersen.
LAST WEEKEND RECAP: Colgate went 0-1-1 versus #15 Nebraska-Omaha at Starr Rink to open up the 2009-2010 home slate. The Raiders tied the Mavericks 1-1 Friday evening and then fell 4-1 on Saturday. Colgate rallied from a 1-0 deficit in the second period as freshman Kurtis Bartliff lit the lamp. Alex Evin turned aside 23 of 24 shots in the draw. UNO scored all four of its goals in the final period in the second game. Colgate broke out on top in the second period with its first power play goal of the year from Christian Long. Thomas Larkin and Matt Firman assisted on the goal. The Mavericks posted their goals in the span of 8:24 in the victory. Charles Long made 32 stops for Colgate.
AGAINST THE NATIONALLY RANKED: Colgate is 0-1-1 against nationally-ranked programs this year following its two-game set against #15 Nebraska-Omaha. The Raiders were 2-6-3 against ranked opponents last year, however, both wins came on the road. Colgate blanked then #19 Dartmouth 1-0 on Valentines Day at Thompson Arena on February 14 and then skated by Yale 3-2 in overtime in front of a national TV audience on March 1 at Ingalls Arena.
FEELS LIKE THE FIRST TIME: Three Colgate players either tallied their first collegiate goal or assist in the two-game series versus Nebraska Omaha. In the first game, Kurtis Bartliff tallied his first collegiate goal of his career, while the second game saw Christian Long notch his first goal and point of his career. Sophomore Matt Firman figured in on the Long goal and received his first collegiate helper.
EVIN STEVEN: Sophomore netminder Alex Evin is off to a strong start to the 2009-2010 season. After two games, he is 1-0-1 and he has saved 52 of 55 shots thus far for a .945 save percentage, which ranks 13th in the country. Evin opened the season with a 29-save effort in a 3-2 victory at RIT in front of a crowd over 7,500 at the Blue Cross Arena in Rochester. It was his first victory since his collegiate debut the second game of the 2007-08 season against Bentley. Evin followed it up with a 23-save effort in a 1-1 tie versus #15 Nebraska Omaha, last Friday evening.
ANOTHER STREAK SNAPPED: When Nebraska Omaha defeated Colgate 4-1 Saturday evening at Starr Rink, it snapped an amazing streak of consecutive games decided by one goal or less. The last 11 games of the 2008-09 season and the first three of the 2009-2010 campaign were decided by one or fewer goals. The last Colgate game that was determined by more than one goal was a 4-2 defeat at St. Lawrence, January 31, 2009. Colgate went 6-4-4 during this stretch. Twenty five of Colgate's games in 2008-09 were determined by one or fewer goals – Colgate went 9-9-7 overall in those types of games.
The Streak
2/6 Princeton L, 2-3 (ot)
2/7 Quinnipiac W, 3-2 (ot)
2/13 @ Harvard L, 2-3
2/14 @ Dartmouth W, 1-0
2/20 Union T, 2-2 (ot)
2/21 Rensselaer W, 2-1 (ot)
2/27 @ Brown T, 3-3 (ot)
3/1 @ Yale W, 3-2 (ot)
3/6 @ Quinnipiac L, 2-3 (ot)
3/7 @ Quinnipiac W, 5-4 (ot)
3/8 @ Quinnipiac L, 3-4 (ot)
10/9 @ Niagara T, 4-4 (ot)
10/10 @ RIT W, 3-2
10/16 UNO T, 1-1 (ot)
FIRST REGULATION VICTORY IN A WHILE: When the final horn sounded at the Blue Cross Arena in Rochester, Colgate had won its first game in regulation since its 1-0 victory on Valentines Day (February 14, 2009) at Dartmouth's Thompson Arena.
A RECAP OF THE OVERTIME STREAK: Colgate entered the 2009-2010 campaign having played seven consecutive overtime games which dated back to the end of 2008-09 season. The Raiders went 3-2-2 down the stretch in these games – the two losses coming to Quinnipiac in a best of three series in a first round ECAC Hockey Tournament clash in Hamden, Conn. The streak began at home with a 2-2 tie versus Union on February 20. Colgate would go on to beat Rensselaer (2-1); tie Brown 3-3 in Providence and then upset #11 Yale (3-2) in front of a national TV audience in New Haven all before the meetings with the Bobcats. Quinnipiac won the opener 3-2; then Colgate rallied from a two-goal deficit late in the game for a 5-4 victory to force a third game. The Bobcats prevailed 4-3 in the final game of the series. The Raiders stretched the streak to eight with a 4-4 tie at Niagara last Friday evening, but was broken the following night in a 3-2 regulation victory at RIT.
SHOULD OVERTIME HAPPEN: If it happens, eyes need to focus on two of Colgate's best ever goal scorers in overtime in David McIntyre and Austin Smith. McIntyre is tied for second all-time with three over-time game winners. He needs one more to tie Jon Smyth for first. One of McIntyre's goals lifted Colgate by Clarkson in the third and final game of an ECAC Hockey quarterfinal as the Raiders advanced to the Final Four as the seventh seed. Smith is tied for sixth having scored two overtime winners as a freshman last season versus Lake Superior State and Quinnipiac. McIntyre has six overtime points (3 goals, 3 assist) and five of them came last season. The only game he didn't record a point in a game winner was Colgate's 5-4 victory over Quinnipiac in the second game of the three-game series.
David McIntyre (6 points on 3 goals, 3 assists)
Ethan Cox (3 points on 3 assists)
Austin Smith (2 points on 2 goals)
Brian Day (2 points on 2 assists)
Francois Brisebois (1 point on 1 assist)
Kevin McNamara (1 point on 1 assist)
PK OFF TO STRONG START: Colgate's penalty kill surrendered one goal in 22 attempts in the first four games last year. Nebraska-Omaha's power play goal in the second game ended a stretch of 23 consecutive successful penalty kills dating back to last season. The Raiders are ranked sixth nationally in penalty kill (.955). Only Alaska (13-13), Boston U (4-4), Michigan (9-9) and North Dakota (15-15) haven't allowed a power play goal this season.
BACK TO BACK MULTI GOAL GAMES: Colgate got a pair of two goal games at Niagara and RIT in the form of Brian Day and Austin Smith respectively. Last year, the Raiders received multi-goal games in back to back outings twice. Day scored twice in a 4-1 victory over Bentley (10/17) and then posted his first hat trick versus Robert Morris (10/24). David McIntyre and Jason Fredricks duplicated the feat in early January as McIntyre netted two against Vermont (1/3) and Fredricks lit the lamp twice versus Lake Superior State (1/8).
A NICE WELCOME BACK FROM WADO AND KMAC: Both Kevin McNamara and Wade Poplawski returned to the Colgate's lineup after sustaining season ending injuries last year. The duo combined for the Raiders' fourth goal to force overtime at Niagara as Poplawski netted his fourth career goal – first since the season opener to the 2008-09 season versus UMass Lowell. It was McNamara's first point since assisting on David McIntyre's game winner in double overtime as Colgate upset Clarkson in a three-game series to advance to the ECAC Hockey semifinals.
HAVE A NICE DAY: For the third consecutive season, Brian Day is off to another strong start. The junior posted his 15th-multi point game and sixth-career multi-goal game in the season opener with a two-goal performance versus Niagara and then followed it up with a goal in the first 22 seconds in the win at RIT. He has three goals in his first four games. As a freshman, he opened the season with five goals in five games and then had five goals in the first three games last year.
AUSTIN TEXAS RANGER: Austin Smith posted his first two points of the year, both on goals in the victory at RIT. It was his eighth multi-point and fourth multi-goal game of his career. The short handed goal with close to seven minutes remaining was his third of his career. It also was his third game winning goal in two years.
CLOSING IN ON 100: With one assist in the two-game series against UNO, David McIntyre is within five points of reaching the century milestone at Colgate. His assist on Kurtis Bartliff's goal in the first game was his 50th of his career. When he reaches that plateau, he would become the 48th player in the program's history to reach that barrier.
PRESEASON HONORS: David McIntyre has been named a pre-season first team all-ECAC Hockey honoree by the coaches and media. In addition, the senior has been named as a preseason first team all-American by Inside College Hockey and once again named to the all-College Hockey News first team. In 2008-09, McIntyre finished with 21 goals and 43 points, both ranked among the leaders nationally. His point total was the highest for a single season since Andy McDonald's 58 in 1999-2000. He was a first team all-league honoree; a finalist for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award, a first team AHCA/Reebok Eastern All-American, a first team all-American by Inside College Hockey and was a selection to the all-College Hockey News team. In addition, McIntyre is one of 20 candidates for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award for men's ice hockey.
GETTING DRAFTY: Colgate has six NHL draft picks on its 2009-2010 roster. David McIntyre was drafted in the fifth round of the 2006 Draft by the Dallas Stars. Last year, his rights were traded twice in two months and now stands property of the New Jersey Devils. Corbin McPherson (New Jersey, 3rd, 2007), Brian Day (New York Islanders, 6th, 2006), Austin Smith (Dallas Stars, 5th, 2007), Jeremy Price (Vancouver Canucks, 4th, 2009), and Thomas Larkin (Columbus Blue Jackets, 5th, 2009) round out the Raiders' draft picks.
BLUELINE SHUFFLE: Colgate will have a revamped defense for the 2009-2010 season. Don Vaughan's squad lost five defensemen to graduation that combined to play close to 600 collegiate games. With the return of Corbin McPherson, Wade Poplawski and Kevin McNamara, the Raiders have 132 games of collegiate experience. Newcomers will need to make an impact on the blueline this season.
OH BROTHER: Charles and Christian Long are the first set of brothers to play for Don Vaughan at the same time. They hail from Cleveland Heights, Ohio and played junior hockey for the Brockville Braves of the CJHL. Charles and Christian have played three years together at different levels including helping St. Edwards High School to an Ohio State High School title.
MORE ON OVERTIME: Colgate took the University of Minnesota out of the record books in one category – overtime appearances in a single season. During the 2007-08 season, the Gophers broke a then national record with 16 overtimes in 45 games. Fast forward a season later, Colgate bested U of M's mark by three. The Raiders tied the record on March 1, 2009 with a 3-2 overtime victory at 11th-ranked Yale. In the first game of the opening round of ECAC Hockey Tournament, Colgate eclipsed the record in a 3-2 loss at Quinnipiac. All three games versus the Bobcats went longer than the prescribed amount. The previous single-season overtime record at CU was 10 set twice, most recently in the 2007-08 season. The Raiders had six overtime victories, which tied the NCAA Division I record for a single season.
