DULUTH, Minn. (
csssaints.com) – The St. Scholastica men's hockey team has a key divisional matchup this weekend when it travels to face second-ranked and North Division leader St. Norbert College (Wis.) for a two-game Northern Collegiate Hockey Association (NCHA) series.
Where:
Cornerstone Community Center – De Pere, Wis.
When:
Friday at 7 p.m.
Saturday at 4 p.m.
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St. Scholastica Saints
Stats
Record: 12-8-1, 10-5-1 NCHA
Northern Collegiate Hockey Association: Standings | Stats
Last Action: For the second straight weekend, the Saints split a NCHA series dropping the first game to Concordia University Wisconsin 3-2 in overtime on Friday and responding to defeat the Falcons 5-3 on Senior Day Saturday … In Friday night's loss to the Falcons the Saints led for almost the final 30 minutes of the contest, until CUW scored the tying goal with 32 seconds left and then scored the game-winner with five seconds remaining in overtime … In Saturday's win, five of CSS' eight seniors recorded a point and senior goaltender
Peter Megariotis (Anaheim Hills, Calif./Canyon HS (Adrian)) earned the win.
No Power-Plays: In Friday night's loss against CUW, the Saints did not have a single power-play opportunity … That is the first time that has happened since a game at Northland College on January 30, 2015 where remarkably neither team committed a penalty.
Who's Streaking: Senior forward
Josh Hansen (Chilliwack, British Columbia/Unity Christian School (Chilliwack-BCHL) ) has recorded four goals and five points in the last four games, since missing four games due to injury … Junior defenseman
Mark Whiteley (Surrey, British Columbia/Holy Cross HS (Marian University)) has three points in the last four games … Whiteley is tied for second among NCHA defensemen with 15 points in conference play … Freshman forward
Brett Radford (Campbell River, British Columbia/Athol Murray College of Notre Dame (Canmore-AJHL)) has 10 goals in his freshman campaign, becoming only the fifth St. Scholastica freshman to record at least 10 goals in a season since 2001 … Radford is among NCHA freshmen with 15 points in league play.
Millin Leading: Senior
Brandon Millin (Port Moody, British Columbia/Heritage Woods HS (Notre Dame Hounds-SJHL) ) had a goal and an assist in Saturday's win over Concordia … He is now tied atop the NCHA with 27 points … He is second in the conference with 13 goals and tied for fifth with 14 assists … He has 13 points on the power-play, which tied for the second in the conference and tied for third with three game-winning goals
Need to Win Close Games: The Saints are 9-2 this season in games decided by two goals or more … However, they are only 3-6 in one-goal contests … Friday's loss to Concordia was the first time they lost when leading after two periods of play this season.
Where They Stand: With four conference games remaining, the Saints have already clinched a NCHA Harris Cup playoff spot … CSS is four points behind first place St. Norbert in the North Division and six points ahead of third place Northland College … The North Division winner earns a first round bye into the Harris Cup semifinals, while second place will host the third place team in a quarterfinal on the Wednesday preceding the semifinal.
Upcoming Opponents
# 2 St. Norbert Green Knights
Record: 16-4-1, 12-3-1 NCHA
The Green Knights are coming off a series sweep of Northland College last weekend … Prior to that, St. Norbert was swept by Concordia University Wisconsin … The Green Knights feature the top scoring defense in NCAA Division III, allowing only 1.57 goals per game … St. Norbert also ranks second in the nation on the penalty-kill with 92 percent success rate … Goaltenders T.J. Black and Tony Kujava have a lot to do with both of those numbers … Black, a sophomore, leads the country with a 1.15 goals-against-average, while Kujava, a senior, ranks seventh at 1.77 … Black also has a nation-leading four shutouts and ranks third with a .944 save percentage … Offensively, the Green Knights have a balanced attack with 11 different players recording at least 10 points thus far, but no one over 20 points … Junior Tanner Froese and senior Noah Nelson each lead the squad with 18 points … Froese has a team-high 11 goals, while Pijus Rulevicius has a team-best 13 assists … St. Norbert has out-scored teams 29-9 in the first period and are 13-1-1 when it scores the first goal.
Series Record: St. Norbert leads 50-13-4
(Last Meeting: 2-2 Tie – 2/13/2016)
Series History: This weekend will be the 24
th and 25
th times the Saints will face St. Norbert team that is ranked in the top three nationally since 2004 … Since 2009, the Saints are 7-13-2 against the Green Knights with six of those wins coming at either St. Norbert or at a neutral site.
Looking Ahead: The Saints wrap up the regular season with a two-game series at Adrian College (Mich.) on February 17 and 18.
