#15 Union vs Princeton

Friday, March 9, 2018 • Schenectady, N.Y. • Messa Rink • 7 p.m.

Saturday, March 10, 2018 • Schenectady, N.Y. • Messa Rink • 7 p.m.

Sunday, March 11, 2018 • Schenectady, N.Y. • Messa Rink • 7 p.m. (if needed)

Television: N/A • Radio: N/A

Live Stats: UnionAthletics.com  •  Web Audio: TeamLine.cc

Live Video Streams

Friday  |  Saturday  |  Sunday

Weekend Preview

Union Game Notes • Princeton Game Notes

Press Conference: Bennett, Vidmar, Maier, Supinski

This Weekend
The No. 15 Dutchmen begin playoff action this weekend, March 9-11, hosting Princeton for a best-of-three series at Messa Rink. The winner will advance to the semifinals in the ECAC Hockey Tournament held in Lake Placid, NY, next weekend.

Media Coverage
Matt Dubrey and Brian Unger will have the call this weekend and fans can listen for free at TeamLine.cc. Live stats for all of the games will be available at UnionAthletics.com. Live video streams for all of the ECAC Hockey Quarterfinal games will be available through ECACHockey.com. Video feeds can be purchased for $9.95 per game.

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
Three Union skaters enter the weekend having recorded a point in at least the previous two games: Ryan Scarfo (5 games - 4g, 1a); Cole Maier (3 games - 1g, 2a); and J.C. Brassard (2 games - 1g, 2a). 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 vs Colgate - Feb. 23 - Messa Rink
Union Goals: Ryan Scarfo
Colgate Goalie: Colton Point (T) - 21 saves, 1 goal against
Union Goalie: Jake Kupsky (T) - 24 saves, 1 goal against
Power Play: Union 0-3, Colgate 0-3
Noteworthy: In a mostly defensive game, Colgate forced its way back and scored in the final minute of regulation to force a 1-1 tie. Ryan Scarfo scored in the first period for Union, but the Raiders ended up outshooting Union, 25-22, by the end of the game. Jake Kupsky kept his undefeated streak alive with 24 saves in the contest.

Union vs #2 Cornell - Feb. 24 - Messa Rink
Union Goals: Ryan Scarfo (PP), Cole Maier (PP), J.C. Brassard (PP), Brett Supinski
Cornell Goalie: Hayden Stewart (L) - 32 saves, 4 goals against
Union Goalie: Jake Kupsky (W) - 21 saves, 3 goals against
Power Play: Union 3-3, Cornell 1-2
Noteworthy: The Dutchmen went out with a big win on senior night, defeating No. 2 Cornell, 4-3, in front of a sold-out crowd at Messa Rink. Union went a perfect 3-for-3 on the power play while Jake Kupsky made 21 saves to move his undefeated streak to eight games.

vs Princeton
Union enters Friday's contest on a 20-game unbeaten streak against the Tigers. The last time Princeton defeated Union was on March 15, 2009 in the third game of the ECAC Quarterfinals. Overall, the Dutchmen own a 34-19-8 record against the Tigers, including an 18-6-5 mark in games played at Messa Rink.

The last time the two teams met, the Dutchmen had one of their best starts to a game this season, in a 4-1 win at Princeton on Feb. 17. 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 in net for the Dutchmen, making 28 saves for his sixth-consecutive win.

Among current players, junior Brett Supinski is the leading Dutchman scorer against Princeton, having tallied four goals and seven assists through eight career games against the Tigers.

Scouting the Tigers
Princeton has the highest-scoring offense in ECAC Hockey, averaging 3.71 goals per game, and the Tigers also lead the league with a .293 mark on the power play. However, the Tigers are conceding 3.19 goals per game, which ranks ninth in the league. Princeton also ranks ninth in the league with a .792 mark on the penalty kill.

Forwards Ryan Kuffner and Luke Keenan earned weekly accolades from ECAC Hockey for the performances in their first-round series last weekend against Brown. Kuffner is second on the Tigers with 28 goals and 20 assists. Fellow junior forward Max Veronneau leads the Tigers with 50 points, stemming from 15 goals and 35 assists.

In net, freshman Ryan Ferland has played 30 games this season for Princeton. He enters the weekend with a 14-10-4 record with a .911 save percentage and a 3.04 goals-against average.

The Second Season Begins
The Dutchmen begin the postseason having posted a 21-13-2 record this season, with 16-5-2 mark in ECAC Hockey play, finishing second overall in the league standings.

The 16 wins in conference play are also tied for the second-most during coach Rick Bennett's career. Union has also advanced on to the NCAA tournament in each of the past four seasons in which the team has posted more than 20 wins in a season.

Killin' It
Since the new year, Union has posted an .891 efficiency on the penalty kill, which ranks second in the ECAC during that span. In the 15 games played since Jan. 1, Union has only conceded five power-play goals in 46 chances.

Junior Leadership
Union is seventh in the country for junior class scoring, having produced 46 goals and 84 assists this season. Six junior skaters have recored at least eight points this season. Cole Maier leads the class with 10 goals and 22 assists.

If You Ain't First, You're Last
The Dutchmen hold a 16-4-1 record this season when scoring the first goal. On the flip side, Union has only won five games when the opponents have scored first (5-9-1).

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 19-6-0, and is almost perfect, 14-1-0, when scoring four or more goals.
 
Fashionably Late
Of the Dutchmen's 110 goals scored this season, the majority of them (44) have come in the third period, and Union is currently sixth in the nation in final-period goal production.

February Saves
After posting an undefeated record in February and helping the Union College men's hockey team secure a second-place finish, junior Jake Kupsky was named ECAC Hockey's Goaltender of the Month for the month of February. Kupsky led ECAC Hockey with six wins in the month and was the only starting goaltender to post an undefeated record, going 6-0-1 in that span. He was also second in the league in both save percentage (.952) and goals-against average (1.41).