Local College Sports

2016-2017 ECAC Hockey preview

With college hockey just weeks away, the ECAC is beginning to send a team deep into the NCAA tournament once again this season. Here is the preview for the 2016-2017 ECAC hockey season with my preseason picks.

1: Quinnipiac Bobcats, 2015-2016 record: 16-1-5 conference, 32-4-7 overall, lost in National Final. Head coach: Rand Pecknold (23rd season). Coming off their first Frozen Four appearance in school history, the Bobcats of Quinnipiac may take a step back, but still remain the class of the ECAC for the 2016-2017 season. They had four big losses in this offseason, one being Travis St. Denis, who recorded 44 points on 20 goals last year, good for second on the team. They also lost Soren Jonzzon, who totaled 17 points last year and had a huge goal in the East Regionals. Maybe their biggest loss is goaltender Michael Garteig, who went 32-4-7 over 43 games, and had a .924 save percentage and a GAA of 1.91, making him one of the top goaltenders in the country, and later signed with the Vancouver Canucks last April. Finally, Sam Anas is not returning to college for his senior season, as he signed with the Minnesota Wild in April. He led the team in scoring last season, recording 48 points on 23 goals. As for returners, their top returner is Tim Clifton, who was named to the preseason all-ECAC team on Monday afternoon. He had 39 points last season, and will be in his senior season this year. His twin brother Connor, also on the team, was named to the all-ECAC team as a defenseman. Connor had 26 points last season. Quinnipiac will open up their season on October 7, taking on Northeastern at home. The first rematch of the 2016 ECAC finals will be on November 12, as they take on Harvard in Hamden, Connecticut.

2: St. Lawrence Saints, 2015-2016 record: 11-8-3 conference, 19-14-4 overall, lost in ECAC semifinals. Head coach: Mark Morris (1st season). This is a much-improved St. Lawrence team, and they showed flashes of it at the end of last season, taking Harvard to overtime in the ECAC semifinals before losing. This season, they will be under the guidance of first-year head coach Mark Morris, who will look to turn the team around and win their first conference title 2001, and make their first trip to the NCAA tournament since 2007. Morris spent last season as the head coach of the Charlotte Checkers, the AHL affiliate of the Carolina Hurricanes, and took over after the departure of Greg Carvel, who left to take over the same position at UMass. Fortunately for the “Skating Saints,” three of their leading five scorers from last season will return this season, including their top scorer, the now-senior Gavin Bayreuther, who led the team with 29 points as a defenseman last year. He was also named to the all-ECAC team. Drew Smolcynski, who had 28 as a junior last year, and Jacob Pritchard, who had 19 points last year as a freshman will look to improve on that number this year. Finally, goaltender Kyle Hayton will return, as he went 18-12-3 as a sophomore last year, to go along with a 2.04 GAA and three shutouts last year in 33 games. They will open up their season on October 6 against Penn State, and will open up conference play on November 5, facing Princeton.

3: Yale Bulldogs, 2015-2016 record: 14-5-3 conference, 19-9-4 overall, lost in East Regional semifinals. Head coach: Keith Allain (11th season). The 2013 National Champions will be solid once again, as they keep most of their core together for this season. They will hold onto their top scorer from last season into this season, as Joe Snively made an immediate impact as a freshman last season, leading the team in points with 28. Top goal scorer John Hayden will come back for his senior season after scoring 16 goals last year. Frankie DiChiara and Ryan Hitchcock, who combined for 27 points last season, will both be returning for the 2016-2017 season. Goaltender Alex Lyon, however, will not return to Yale for his senior season. He went 19-7-4 last year with a very low 1.59 GAA with a .938 save percentage, and recorded five shutouts last season. He signed with the Philadelphia Flyers in April. Another key loss for the Bulldogs is Stu Wilson, who was second on the team with 26 points last season. However, Keith Allain is one of the best in the business, and will figure out what to do to fill those voids once the season with a tilt with Sacred Heart with a late start to the season on October 29, as they will only have one non-conference game before the conference season begins just six days later on November 4, taking on local team Union in Schenectady.

4: Harvard Crimson, 2015-2016 record: 12-6-4 conference, 19-11-4 overall, lost in regional semifinals. Head coach: Ted Donato (13th season). The big offseason story for the Crimson is the graduation of Jimmy Vesey and his eventual signing with the New York Rangers in August after a bidding war across the NHL to acquire his services. He led the country with 46 points last season, and did so on 24 goals. He would go on to win the Hobey Baker Award, given to the top college hockey player in the country, He was also named as the ECAC Player of the Year twice for the 2014-2015 season as a junior and the 2015-2016 season as a senior. The Crimson will also lose Kyle Criscuolo to graduation, as he was third on the team with 32 points on 19 goals. These two were large parts of a very good Harvard team that reached the finals of the ECAC Tournament in Lake Placid, and they were in the NCAA tournament for the second consecutive time since 2005-2006. Key returners to the team will be headlined by preseason all-ECAC Alexander Kerfoot, who racked up 34 points as a junior last season. Ryan Donato, the son of head coach Ted Donato, picked up 21 points as a freshman last season, will also be returning. Luke Esposito, who became a big part of their postseason run, had 21 points as well last year and will return for his senior season. Now-junior goalie Merrick Madsen, who had a solid season last season, going 18-7-3 with a 1.99 GAA and four shutouts, will be back. Harvard will open up their season on October 28, taking on Arizona State for a two day,two game series.

5: Clarkson Golden Knights, 2015-2016 record: 10-9-3 conference, 20-15-3 overall, lost in conference quarterfinals. Head coach: Casey Jones (6th season). This is another improved team, as most of their core will stay together for this season. They had 14 players with 10+ points last season, and they were led by sophomore Sam Vigneault, who had 26 points on 12 goals. Jordan Boucher, who was second on the team with 23 points, will also be returning, as will AJ Fossen, who had 18. They only lost one of their top five scorers from last season, that being Jeff Di Niallo, who also had 18, joining Fossen. This program has not made the NCAA tournament since 2008 and has not won the conference since 2007, but don’t expect them to do so this year. They will be an improved team from last year, but they will still not be that high-quality, but they could make some noise in the conference. Their season begins on October 7, as they take on Vermont in a home-and-home series, playing in Vermont the next day.

6: Union Dutchmen, 2015-2016 record: 6-10-6 conference, 13-14-9 overall, lost in conference first round. Head coach: Rick Bennett (6th season). What the Union hockey program may be wondering is, “What happened?” They made the NCAA tournament every year from 2011-2014 with Frozen Four appearances in 2012 and 2014, and capped it off with a National Championship in 2014. However, they have struggled since then, going 19-18-2 in the 2014-2015 season, and had a season to forget last year, finishing under .500 overall for the first time since the 2006-2007 season. The freshmen on their National Championship team are now seniors, and they got bounced just one game into the conference tournament last March after finishing ninth in the conference. However, they have some good in this year, as they will return four of their top five point-getters this year, headlined by preseason all-ECAC forward Mike Vecchione, who recorded 29 points last season. Spencer Foo, who tied for the team lead in goals (12) and racked up 25 points overall, will return to school for his junior season. Freshman Brett Surpinkski had a very good campaign last year, recording 21 points, and is also returning. Their only big loss this year is Matt Wilkins, who had 21 points for the Dutchmen last season. Finally, goaltender Alex Sakellaropoulos will return for his senior year, as he went 11-11-7 with a 2.32 GAA with a .921 save percentage. The Dutchmen will open up this year in Ann Arbor, Michigan, taking on the Michigan Wolverines in a two-game series on October 7 and 8. Their home opener in Schenectady will be on October 21, taking on RIT. They will also have a very intriguing New Year’s Eve tilt with defending National Champions North Dakota in Schenectady. Their annual “Mayor’s Cup” game against RPI will be held on January 19 at the Times Union Center in Albany.

7: Cornell Big Red, 2015-2016 record: 8-8-6 conference, 16-11-7 overall, lost in conference quarterfinals. Head coach: Mike Schafer (22nd season). Things are looking up for the Big Red this season, as they will return all of their top five scorers for the 2016-2017 season. Jeff Kubiak will be returning for his senior year after racking up 27 points last season, along with Anthony Angello, who complimented him with 24 as a freshman. Mitch Vanderlaan also tacked on 19 as a freshman last season as well. They will also return goaltender Mitch Gillam, who famously scored an empty-net goal as a freshman in 2013. One would imagine he has focused on goaltending and less on scoring since then, going 16-11-7 with a 2.15 GAA and a .926 save percentage, to go along with seven shutouts; a very impressive number. On the offensive side last year, however, he did pick up an assist. Cornell should never be counted out, and with Mike Schafer behind the bench for his 22nd season, Cornell may be a sleeper team for this season who could make some noise. They open up their season on October 28, taking on Merrimack College. They will open up their conference schedule on November 4, taking on Ivy League rival Dartmouth.

8: RPI Engineers, 2015-2016 record: 8-7-7 conference, 18-15-7 overall, lost in conference quarterfinals. Head coach: Seth Appert (11th season). The Engineers may take a step back this season, losing three top players for this season. However, top scorer Riley Bourbonnais will be returning for his senior season, leading the team last year with 26 points. Fan favorite Lou Nanne will come back for his junior year, picking up 23 points last year as a sophomore. He was drafted by the Minnesota Wild in 2012. However, they will lose both Milos Bubela and Zach Schroeder to graduation. The pair combined for 36 points last year. Additionally, they will be losing goaltender, Jason Kasdorf, who went 12-12-5 with a 2.30 GAA and a .931 save percentage. However, backup goalie Cam Hackett filled in nicely last year as a freshman, winning six games in 10 starts, and 12 games overall. They will open up their season with a two game set versus Maine, and their home opener will be on October 21, taking on Niagara. They will open up their conference season a week later on October 28, taking on natural rival Union.

9: Dartmouth Big Green, 2015-2016 record: 11-11-0 conference, 18-16-1 overall, lost in conference semifinals. Head coach: Bob Gaudet (20th season). The Big Green will be taking a pretty substantial step down this year, primarily from the losses of Jack Barre, Brett Patterson and Nick Bligh, who accounted for over a quarter of the team’s points last season between the trio. They will also be losing goaltender Charles Grant to graduation, who picked up 11 wins in 22 games last season, as well as three shutouts. Backup goalie James Kruger also left in June, and he won six games in 11 appearances last year. The bright spots for Dartmouth this year will be Carl Hesler, who recorded 21 points as a sophomore last year, and Troy Crema, who added on 17 as a junior. They will open their season on October 29 versus Michigan.

10: Brown Bears, 2015-2016 record: 3-16-6 conference, 5-19-7 overall, lost in conference first round. Head coach: Brendan Whittet (8th season). This is a program that is in the midst of a 23 year NCAA tournament drought, and it is expected to turn the page to 24 years this spring. One of their bright spots last year was Nick Lappin, who averaged more than a point per game last year, with 33 in 31 games. However, he will not return this fall due to graduation. They also lose Mark Naclerio, who had 22 points last season. However, two freshman, Tommy Marchin and Max Gottlieb both did very well. Marchin had 27 points, second on the team, while Gottlieb added on 21. This a program that is still in rebuild mode, but if those two stay in the college ranks, the Bears could be in the running for an NCAA tournament bid by the 2017-2018 season or the 2018-2019 season, if things go to plan. They will open up their season on October 28, taking on Holy Cross before they take on in-state rival Providence in the Mayor’s Cup game on October 30.

11: Princeton Tigers, 2015-2016 record: 3-16-3, 5-23-3 overall, lost in conference first round. Head coach: Ron Fogarty (3rd season). This program was another that struggled mightily with age last year, as most of the team were freshman and sophomores. They were headlined by Ryan Kuffner, who led the team with just 20 points, and Max Veronneau, who had 17 points last year, also in his first collegiate season. Sophomores Max Robinson and David Hallisey had 11 points each, rounding out the top four point-recorders for the Tigers last season, and they didn’t lose many players to graduation last summer. Goaltender Colton Phinney will be returning for his senior season in front of the net, as he had a 2.86 GAA last year with a .924 save percentage. They open the season October 28, against the Spartans of Michigan State.

12: Colgate Raiders, 2015-2016 record: 6-14-2 conference, 11-24-2 overall, lost in conference first round. Head coach: Don Vaughan (24th season). This is a team that will be taking a major step back last year, losing all of their top four scorers because of graduation. That group of four is highlighted by the Spink brothers, Tyson and Tylor, who were first and second on the team, respectively. They combined for 71 points last year. Additionally, Mike Borkowski, who had 22 points and Darcy Murphy, who had 21, both graduated as well. This year’s squad will be another senior-heavy team, with Tim Harrison, Jake Kulevich and Brett Corkey, who are all seniors, recording the bulk of the scoring. They will also rely on junior Mike Panowyk to help out with scoring as well. They have now-senior goalie Charlie Finn back, as he went 10-23-1 with a save percentage of .899 and a GAA of 3.28. This a program that made the NCAA tournament just two years ago and is now in the cellar of the ECAC, and there is no end in sight. This slide may continue for Colgate. The Raiders open up their season on October 1, taking on Army.

Aidan Joly

Aidan Joly is Senior Managing Editor of The Upstate Courier. In the past, he has been a beat reporter covering Section II Athletics, Siena College men's basketball, the Tri-City ValleyCats, and the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League. In Aidan's current role, he oversees game coverage and content. Aidan is a native of Saratoga Springs and a graduate of Saratoga Springs High School.

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