This Weekend
After a few weeks off for the holidays, Union kicks off the second half of the regular season with a pair of afternoon games against the University of New Hampshire on Dec. 30 and Dec. 31. The Dutchmen will team up with the women's hockey team for a post-game skate after the conclusion of the game on Dec. 30.
After closing out the first half of the season with road losses to Princeton and #2 Quinnipiac, Union will put their 5-1-0 home record to the test against the Wildcats. The last time these two programs met was in Union's season opener in 2021, dropping both games at the Whittemore Center.
The series with the Wildcats marks the last non-conference series of the season. The last non-conference game on the slate is the annual Mayor's Cup game on Jan. 28 at MVP Arena in Albany.
The last time Union played a game on New Year's Eve was in 2016 when the team hosted #8 North Dakota. Union fell 3-1 in that contest. Union's last win on New Year's Eve was in 2010 at #19 Minnesota, a 3-2 OT victory in the Dodge Holiday Classic. Union is 1-2-0 on New Year's Eve.
Scouting the Wildcats
The Wildcats finished off the first half of the season with a split against Arizona State University, falling 4-1 on Friday, Dec. 9, before rallying for a 5-4 OT win on Saturday. UNH finished the 2021-22 campaign with a 14-19-1 overall record and a 8-15-1 record in Hockey East play.
Leading the Wildcats is first-year forward Cy LeClerc with 11 points (8-3-11) in 19 games. LeClerc has four power-play goals and one gamewinner so far.
Colton Huard is second on the team in points. The blueliner has 10 points (1-9-10) through 19 games.
Between the pipes, UNH has split time between senior David Fessenden and first-year Tyler Muszelik. Fessenden has made 12 starts and posted a 2-9-0 record with a .906 save percentage and 2.85 GAA. Muszelik is 2-5-1 so far with a .863 save percentage and a 3.93 GAA.
Alumni Watch
In the past week, David Carr '14 was named to Team Canada for the 94th Spengler Cup. In the opening game against HC Sparta Praha, Carr tallied the primary assist on Canada's first goal.
Jake Kupsky '19 was named to the 2023 Warrior/ECHL All-Star Classis roster. Kupsky will represent the Idaho Steelheads.In his fourth professional season, Kupsky has posted a 6-1-0 record with the Steelheads, a 1.15 GAA and a .955 save percentage. The Waukesha, Wisc. native made his AHL debut with the Abbotsford Canucks on Dec. 17.
Lead the Way
Just over two months into the season, 17 of 62 NCAA teams are led in scoring by first-year players. First-year
Nate Hanley leads the team in scoring with 15 points in 17 games.
Block Party
The Dutchmen have racked up 214 blocked shots through 15 games, averaging just over 14 blocks per game. In the win over Northeastern, the team blocked 21 shots. Sophomore
Cullen Ferguson leads the way with 21 blocked shots with first-year defender
Nick Young right behind with 20. Compared to the 2021-22 season, Union made 202 blocked shots in the same time frame.
Oh Captains, My Captains
On Nov. 3, head coach
Josh Hauge named seniors
Owen Farris and
Connor Murphy and junior
Ben Tupker as the captains for the 2022-23 season.
He'd Be Honored
First-year
Nate Hanley was named the ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Month for October. The last time a Dutchman earned Rookie of the Month honors was on January 5, 2016 when Sebastian Vidmar was recognized. Hanley leads all Union skaters in points (3-10-13).
No Place Like Home
Union has only played six of their 17 games so far at home this season, posting a 5-1 record on home ice. Union won all three games in October. Union's lone loss was against Harvard on Nov. 12.
Shut 'Em Out
Senior
Connor Murphy posted his first shutout of the season and fourth since transferring to Union in the Oct. 29 6-0 win over the Engineers. In Union's Division I era, they had not blanked RPI at home. The lone shutout was back on February 23, 1924, a 7-0 win.
Murph Keeps Climbing
Senior
Connor Murphy continues his climb up the Union record books. His fourth shutout at Union ties him with Keith Kinkaid '11 for sixth place in career shutouts. Murphy needs one more shutout to move into a tie for fifth place with Justin Mrazek '08. He's also only 44 saves away from tying Kinkaid in career saves with 1,500.
Scheerer Scores
Junior
Bram Scheerer scored his first collegiate goal against UMass. After losing his freshman season to the pandemic, he saw his sophomore season cut short only eight games in with a season-ending injury against Clarkson. To date, Scheerer has appeared in 20 career games and has six points (1-5-
6).
Mr. 100
Senior
Chris Theodore played in his 100th career game on Friday, Oct. 21. Theodore, a transfer from AIC, has played in all 17 games for Union this season and tallied seven points (1-6-7). The 2021-22 Atlantic Hockey Player of the Year has compiled 66 points (21-45-66) throughout his career.
Reigning Rookies
Union's first-year defenders are off to a hot start.
Nick Young was named the ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Week on Oct. 10 after scoring his first collegiate goal and blocking five shots against nationally-ranked UConn.
John Prokop earned the honor the following week after tallying an assist on five of Union's 10 goals between Oct. 13 and 15.
Cal Mell picked up his first weekly honor on Oct. 31.
Nate Hanley was named the Rookie of the Month after scoring a conference-leading nine points in 10 games.
Watkins Lights the Lamp
Junior
Tyler Watkins has already matched his goal total from last year. Watkins scored twice on the powerplay in the 5-1 win over Bentley and followed up with two goals at RIT. The junior tallied his team-leading third power-play goal on Saturday, Oct. 29 against RPI.
Powerplay Makes Statement
After a slow start to the season, Union's powerplay made a statement in a 5-1 win over Bentley, striking three times, including twice in the opening period.
Spread the Wealth
Through six games, Union has seen 19 of 23 skaters score at least one point. Seven of the eight first-year skaters all have at least one point.
On the Road October
October is the busiest month for the Dutchmen with 10 games on the slate. Of those 10, only three are at home.
New Kids on the Block
First-years
Nate Hanley,
Carter Korpi,
John Prokop, and
Cal Mell, as well as sophomore
Josh Nixon and senior
Chris Theodore all tallied their first points for Union in the opening weekend. In total, newcomers accounted for 12 of the 15 points scored (4-8-12).
New Bench Boss
Josh Hauge was named the 22nd head coach in Union hockey's history on April 15, 2022. Hauge was previously the Associate Head Coach at ECAC Hockey rival Clarkson University. Hauge earned his first coaching victory in Union's home opener, a 4-3 win over RIT on Oct. 1, 2022.
Transfer Commits
The coaching staff was active in the transfer portal this offseason, committing four student-athletes:
Chris Theodore (AIC),
Mason Snell (Penn State),
Josh Nixon (Lake Superior State) and
Ben Tupker (Cornell).
Rounding Out the Staff
Joining
Josh Hauge and Assistant Coach
John Ronan behind the bench is
Lennie Childs, who previously served as an assistant coach with the Des Moines Buccaneers of the USHL.
New Numbers
Josh Phillips and
Thomas Richter changed numbers this season and will wear 4 and 9, respectively.
Set Records
Senior
Connor Murphy made an immediate impact for Union in his first season. He set the program's new single-season save records with 1,060.
Looking to Surprise
Union was picked to finished eighth in the ECAC Hockey preseason coaches poll, earning 45 points. Local media were more optimistic, picking the Dutchmen to finish sixth in the preseason media poll.
NHL Bloodlines
Sophomore
Thomas Richter and junior
Mason Snell are sons of retired NHLers Mike Richter (New York Rangers 1989-2002) and Chris Snell (Toronto, Los Angeles 1993-95), respectively.
