This Weekend
The No. 19 Dutchmen finish off the regular season with a pair of home games this weekend, Feb. 23-24, hosting Colgate on Friday night and No. 2 Cornell on Saturday for senior night. Both games are slated for 7 p.m. (ET) start times.
Media Coverage
Matt Dubrey and Brian Unger will have the call this weekend and fans can listen for free at TeamLine.cc. Both games will be streamed live on UnionAthletics.tv, while live stats for the games will be available at UnionAthletics.com.
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.
Current Streaks
Five Union skaters enters the weekend having recorded a point in at least the previous two games:
Liam Morgan (4 games - 4g, 1a);
Ryan Scarfo (3 games - 2g, 1a);
Brett Supinski (2 games - 2g, 1a) ;
Greg Campbell (2 games - 1g, 1a); and
Connor Light (2 games - 0g, 2a).
Cole Maier recently had a career-best 12-game streak in which he recorded 13 points (5g, 8a) between Nov. 20-Jan. 6.
Last Time Out
Union at Quinnipiac - Feb. 16 - Frank Perrotti Jr. Arena
Union Goals:
Greg Campbell (PP),
Ryan Scarfo,
Anthony Rinaldi,
Sean Harrison,
Brett Supinski (SH)
Quinnipiac Goalie: Andrew Shortridge (L) - 12 saves, 3 goals against / Keith Petruzzelli - 6 saves, 2 goals against
Union Goalie:
Jake Kupsky (W) - 37 saves, 2 goals against
Power Play: Union 1-4, Quinnipiac 0-3
Noteworthy: Despite being outshot 39-23, Union posted a 5-2 win at Quinnipiac last Friday to claim the regular-season sweep over the Bobcats.
Jake Kupsky made 37 saves in the contest, including 17 in the second period alone to help lead the Dutchmen to victory.
Union at Princeton - Feb. 17 - Hobey Baker Rink
Union Goals:
Liam Morgan,
Ryan Walker,
Jack Adams,
Brett Supinski (EN)
Princeton Goalie: Ryan Ferland (L) - 39 saves, 3 goals against
Union Goalie:
Jake Kupsky (W) - 28 saves, 1 goal against
Power Play: Union 0-2, Princeton 0-1
Noteworthy: The Dutchmen had one of their best starts to a game this season, in a 4-1 win over Princeton last Saturday. Union outshot Princeton 35-16 through the first two periods and jumped out to a 3-1 lead before the third period.
Jake Kupsky was back in net for the Dutchmen, making 28 saves for his sixth-consecutive win.
vs Colgate
Union enters Friday's contest trailing in the all-time series against Colgate 21-35-3, which includes a 14-15-1 mark against the Raiders at Messa Rink. In recent years Union has fared better, and has won the last three games against Colgate.
Earlier this season, Union earned just its fifth win in Hamilton, defeating Colgate, 3-1, at the Class of 1965 Arena on Feb. 3. The Raiders' Josh McKechney scored first, but Union scored three unanswered after the first period for the win.
Scouting the Raiders
Colgate enters the weekend with a 13-14-5 overall record with a 9-9-2 mark in ECAC Hockey competition. The Raiders sit in sixth place in the league standings, but enter the weekend without having secured home ice for the first-round of playoffs.
Colgate ranks third in ECAC Hockey with a 2.31 goals-against average, but ranks just ninth in offensive production with 2.28 goals scored per game. Sophomore Bobby McMann leads the Raiders with 26 points on the year, stemming from 14 goals and 12 assists. Goaltender Colton Point leads the league with a .946 save percentage and is second with a 1.74 goals-against average.
vs Cornell
Union trails in its all-time series against the Big Red, 20-34-8, which includes a 9-14-5 record in games at Messa Rink. The Dutchmen have not defeated Cornell in the past six meetings, with the last Union victory coming on Feb. 26, 2016 by a score of 5-1 in Ithaca.
Earlier this month, Union lost a close-fought 4-3 game in Ithaca on Feb. 2. After facing a 2-0 deficit to start the second period, union battled back to force a 3-3 tie to start the third, but a power-play goal in the final minutes of the game would give the Big Red the win. The loss has been the only blemish in the past 10 games for the Dutchmen.
Scouting the Big Red
Cornell enters the weekend with a chance to clinch an outright claim to the regular-season championship, needing just one point from either game this weekend against RPI and Union to do so. The past six games have all been closely contested for the Big Red, as their last four wins have all come by one-goal margins, and the other two games include a one-goal loss to RPI and an 0-0 tie against Clarkson.
Junior Anthony Angello leads the Big Red up front with 23 points, stemming from 12 goals and 11 assists. Senior forward Trevor Yates is close behind with 11 goals and 10 assists. In net, freshman Matthew Galajda has posted a league-leading 1.47 goals-against average through 24 games.
Somebody Say Playoffs?
The Dutchmen clinched a first-round bye in the ECAC Hockey playoffs after earning wins against Harvard and Dartmouth two weeks ago.
Union enters the weekend in second place in the conference standings, and can still claim a share of the regular-season championship, but to do so, Union needs to win both games this weekend and needs Cornell to lose to RPI on Friday night. Even a tie by Cornell on either night this weekend, will give the Big Red an outright claim to first place.
Killin' It
Since the new year, Union has posted an .902 efficiency on the penalty kill, which ranks third in the ECAC. In the 13 games played since Jan. 1, Union has only conceded four power-play goals in 37 chances.
The Dutchmen also enter Friday's contest against Colgate having killed 14-consecutive penalties. The last power-play goal Union conceded was on Feb. 2 to Cornell during the third period.
Junior Leadership
Union is fourth in the country for junior class scoring, having produced 44 goals and 82 assists this season. Six junior skaters have recored at least eight points this season. Coel Maier leads the class with 9 goals and 21 assists.
If You Ain't First, You're Last
The Dutchmen hold a 16-4-0 record this season when scoring the first goal. On the flip side, Union has only won four games when the opponents have scored first (4-9-1).
Spreading the Wealth
A total of 22 skaters have recorded at least one point for Union this season, including 21 who have more than one, and 20 who have scored goals.
Magic Number
Three seems to be the magic number for Union this season, as the Dutchmen have only won two games this season when scoring two or fewer goals. When scoring at least three goals, Union is 18-6-0, and is almost perfect, 13-1-0, when scoring four or more goals.
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Fashionably Late
Of the Dutchmen's 96 goals scored this season, the majority of them (42) have come in the third period, and Union is currently tied for third in the nation in final-period goal production.
Best of the Week
Junior netminder
Jake Kupsky earned his second Goaltender of the Week honor from ECAC Hockey on Feb. 6. He led the league's goaltenders over the Feb. 2-3 weekend with a .960 save percentage and a 1.00 goals-against average, helping Union earn its fifth win in six games with a 3-1 victory at Colgate on Feb. 3. Kupsky stopped 24-of-25 shots in the contest to help Union move into third place in the league standings.
Senior
Ryan Scarfo picked up his second, and the team's third, weekly honor of the season, being named Player of the Week on Jan. 9 for his efforts at Dartmouth and Harvard. Scarfo had a four-point outing, scoring a goal and tallying an assist in both games.
Posting an undefeated weekend at No. 3 North Dakota, junior netminder
Jake Kupsky was named ECAC Hockey's Goaltender of the Week on Nov. 28. Kupsky made a total of 64 saves over the weekend to help Union earn a 4-1 win and a 2-2 tie at Ralph Engelstad Arena. On the weekend, he posted a .955 save percentage and a 1.44 goals-against average.
With five-point weekend over Oct. 20-21,
Ryan Scarfo led all ECAC Hockey skaters in scoring, and earned Player of the Week honors for his efforts. In the first outing of the weekend, Scarfo put up two assists against RIT in a 6-1 win. Against Niagara, Scarfo scored twice, including the game-winner, and added an assist for a career-tying best three-point night. The weekly honor was the first for the Dutchmen this season.
Extra Goals
Forward
Brett Supinski is tied for the nation's lead in extra-attacker goals. The junior from Collegeville, PA scored with an empty Union net in back-to-back games, Oct. 13-15. Both of his extra-attacker goals were scored within the final 15 seconds of regulation.
Apple-trick
Junior captain
Cole Maier set a personal best on Oct. 21 at Niagara, recording three assists against the Purple Eagles. He registered an assist on the game-winner, and had an assist in each of the three periods.
Brett Supinski recorded Union's second 'apple-trick' of the season, tallying three assists in the 4-1 against No. 16 Quinnipiac on Nov. 11. It was also the second three-assist game in the junior's career.
What a Debut
First-year goaltender
Darion Hanson made his collegiate debut on Oct. 20 against RIT. Hanson made 24 saves in the 6-1 win, including 14 in the third period, seven of which were made while shorthanded. He followed up his debut with second win, helping Union defeat Niagara 5-1, with the only goal conceded coming on a Purple Eagles' power play.
Winning
With a 5-1 win over Niagara on Oct. 20, 2017, head coach
Rick Bennett became the winningest hockey coach in Union hockey's Division I history. Bennett owns a career record of 142-75-30, surpassing Nate Leaman's record of 138-127-35.
Already Spoken For
The Union College hockey team features three student-athletes who have been drafted by NHL teams.
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.
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Team |
League |
Date |
| Nick DeSimone |
Jr |
D |
San Jose |
NHL |
March 30 (FA) |
| Spencer Foo |
Jr. |
F |
Calgary |
NHL |
June 27 (FA) |
| Michael Pontarelli |
Sr. |
D |
Quad City |
ECHL |
July 27 |
| Alex Sakellaropoulos |
Sr. |
G |
Fort Wayne |
ECHL |
July 20 |
| Jeff Taylor |
Sr. |
D |
Pittsburgh |
NHL |
March 26 |
| Mike Vecchione |
Sr. |
F |
Philadelphia |
NHL |
March 31 (FA) |
