Hamden, CT — Last year, the Quinnipiac men’s hockey team went 32-4-7, and went all the way to the National Championship game, where they fell to North Dakota. They were one of the dominant teams last season, cruising to the ECAC regular season and tournament championships. However, they lost a lot of guys to graduation and to the pros. Sam Anas (AHL’s Iowa Wild), Devon Toews (AHL’s Bridgeport Sound Tigers), Travis St. Denis (Bridgeport), and Michael Garteig (Vancouver Canucks) all graduated. A lot of people predicted a drop-off for the Bobcats heading into this season. While they haven’t been considerably as dominant as last season, they still have been excellent. Currently sitting at #4 in the country, they’re off to an 7-3-1 start, thanks to the young guys.
This transition from a senior-laden lineup last year to a young one this season has primarily been led by sophomore defenseman Chase Priskie. He’s off to a fantastic start this season, with 8 points (1 goal, 7 assists) in 9 games. Around him, they have another defenseman putting up serious numbers, and he’s only a freshman. Brogan Rafferty is second on the team with 9 points (2 goals, 7 assists). Sophomore forward Craig Martin has 7 points, and freshman blue-liner Karlis Cukste has 6. We can’t forget about the old guys, though. Senior forward Tim Clifton leads the team with 11 points and 6 goals, and junior Landon Smith has played very well too, with 8 points. The Bobcats present a really balanced offense, as well. 11 skaters have tallied at least 5 points, and 18 of their 22 rostered skaters have at least 1 point this season. Lots of people were a little worried about what the goaltending might be like as well, following the departure of goalie Michael Garteig, who just dressed for his first NHL game on Thursday night with the Canucks. However, both tenders have been good, and the fort is being held down, you could say. Junior Chris Truehl has seen a majority of the playing time, appearing in 8 of their 11 games. He has posted a .919 save percentage, and a 2.36 goals-against-average. Backup Andrew Shortridge has been good as well (.903 save %, 2.34 GAA).
As a lot of people would expect, they’ve struggled at times, namely in their 4-3 overtime loss at Maine on October 14th, and in the 2-0 loss to St. Lawrence on November 5th. However, this is hockey, and it’s a lot more unpredictable than most sports. Still, though, the Bobcats have looked really solid, especially after a weekend sweep over Dartmouth and #11 Harvard last weekend. The Harvard win was especially big, because it can really convince a lot of fans that this team is still for real. They may have a lot of new faces, but the goal of a National Championship is still the same, and it’s still in reach.
Dylan McGlynn is the College Hockey editor at 518 Sports – @DMCGSidelinesÂ
