This Weekend
The Dutchmen look to snap a five-game skid this weekend with games against Atlantic Hockey's RIT and Niagara. Union takes on the Tigers first on Friday at 7:05 p.m. (ET) at the Gene Polisseni Center. Union finishes the weekend against the Purple Eagles on Saturday at 7:05 p.m. (ET) at Dwyer Arena.
Media Coverage
Matt Dubrey and Brian Unger will have the call for the games this weekend. The audio feeds can be accessed for free through TeamLine.cc. RIT will provide live stats for Friday's game through its website, RITathletics.com, while a live video stream will be provided at RIT.edu/sportzone. Niagara will provide live stats for Saturday's game on its website, PurpleEagles.com, while a live video stream will be available at StretchInternet.com/niagarahockey.
Local Coverage
Friday's contest will air live in the Rochester, NY area on CW Rochester. There will also be local radio broadcasts available on Rochester's WITR 89.7-FM and WHTK 1280-AM. Saturday's game will air live in the Niagara Falls, NY area on LC TV. The game will also be on Niagara Fall's local radio station WLVL 1340-AM.Â
Social Media
Receive real-time updates during all Union men's hockey games by following the team's official Twitter account @UnionMHockey. Additional in-game updates and commentary will be provided by assistant sports information director
Ross LaDue via his Twitter account @RLaDue.
Last Time Out
Union vs Massachusetts - Oct. 13 - Messa Rink
Union Goals:
Ryan Walker,
Anthony Rinaldi (PP),
Brendan Taylor,
Brett Supinski (EA)
Massachusetts Goalie: Ryan Wischow (W), 22 saves, 4 goals against
Union Goalie:
Jake Kupsky (L) - 26 saves, 4 goals against
Power Play: Union 1-5, Massachusetts 12-3
Noteworthy: Massachusetts scored twice on three power-play opportunities to spoil Union's home opener. The Minutemen scored an empty net goal to go up 5-2, before
Brendan Taylor and
Brett Supinski scored two goals in the final 1:15 of play, resulting in the empty-net goal also counting as the game-winner for UMass.
Union vs Vermont - Oct. 15 - Messa Rink
Union Goals:
Ryan Scarfo (PP),
Brett Supinski (EA)
Vermont Goalie: Stefanos Lekkas31 (W), 26 saves, 2 goals against
Union Goalie:
Jake Kupsky (L) - 18 saves, 3 goals against
Power Play: Union 1-5, Vermont 0-5
Noteworthy: The game was the second time this season that Union has out-shot an opponent and failed to win. It was also the first game this season that the Dutchmen kept their opponents from scoring on the power play, killing off all five Catamount power plays.
Brett Supinski scored his second-consecutive extra-attacker goal  in the final minute of play to bring the final score to 3-2.
vs RIT
The Dutchmen own an all-time record of 4-0-1 record against RIT. The last time the two teams met was on Oct. 22, 2011 in Rochester. Union went on to a 5-0 victory over the Tigers in that contest.Â
RIT enters the weekend coming off a 3-3 tie with Northeastern last Saturday, Oct. 14, in Rochester. The Tigers jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first period, but Northeastern used two goals in the third period to force a 3-3 tie.Â
Junior forward Erik Brown scored two of the three goals for RIT in the game against Northeastern, while five other Tigers also recorded a point in that 3-3 tie. Freshman netminder Logan Drackett got the nod and made 41 of 44 saves in his collegiate debut.
vs Niagara
The Dutchmen own an all-time record of 4-0-2 record against Niagara. The last time the two teams met will have been exactly six years to the date of this weekend's contest, Oct. 21, 2011. In that game, Niagara and Union played to a 3-3 tie in Niagara Falls.
The Purple Eagles enter the weekend with a 1-1-0 record, having dropped their season opener to Colgate on Sept. 30 to Colgate, 5-1, and defeating conference opponent Robert Morris, 4-3 in overtime, on Oct. 6.Â
Five skaters each have two points for the Purple Eagles, with senior forward Derian Plouffe leading the group with two goals. Niagara played a different goalie in its first two games. Freshman Brian Wilson played in the 5-1 loss to Colgate, making 28 saves, while junior Guillaume Therien earned the win against Robert Morris with 31 saves.
Extra Goals
Forward
Brett Supinski currently leads the nation in extra-attacker goals. The junior from Collegeville, PA scored with an empty Union net in back-to-back nights last weekend, Oct. 13-15. Both of his extra-attacker goals were scored within the final 15 seconds of regulation.
Milestone Watch
Bennett - 2 wins shy of passing Nate Leaman as Union's all-time winningest coach (138)
Leading By Example
Bennett was tabbed as ECAC Hockey Coach of the Year for the second time in his career (2011-12) after guiding the Dutchmen to a share of their fourth Cleary Cup title with a conference record of 16-4-2 in 2016-17.
Already Spoken For
The Union College hockey team features three student-athletes who have been drafted by NHL teams.Â
Welcome to Union College
The Dutchmen welcome nine new student-athletes to their ranks this season, including five forwards, three defensemen and one goaltender.
Newest Pros
Over the summer Union College had six members of its 2016-17 team sign professional contracts with North American organizations.
Rising Stock
Vidmar (14g, 27a) ranked in the top five of the biggest point increases in Division I from the 2015-16 season to the 2016-17 season, adding 31 more points (8g, 23a) during his sophomore campaign.Â
