This weekend brings a slightly different challenge for the SLU men than it does for the women. Four crucial ECAC points are still on the line, but the Saints will host Harvard and Dartmouth, rather than squaring off against the Golden Knights.
They'll host #8 Harvard on Friday night in the more challenging of the two contests, though underestimating Dartmouth is exactly what helped the Big Green beat Yale last year in the ECAC tournament in their ride to Lake Placid.
This will be a new edition of the Crimson, who enter with a 6-2-1 record, the first that will not see Jimmy Vesey and Kyle Criscuolo suit up for Harvard since I began covering college hockey. I'm not quite sure what to expect from Ted Donato's squad, but to say they lack talent would be a gross understatement. They still have Merrick Madsen in net, Alexander Kerfoot is unquestionably one of the three best centers in the ECAC, if not the best, and Ryan Donato is getting a chance to shine in a 1st line role. Rookie d-man Adam Fox is also a stud, though still a bit vulnerable in his own zone.
Sean Malone, Tyler Moy and Lewis Zerter-Gossage provide ample scoring depth while Wiley Sherman and Clay Anderson are the veterans on a defense that can still move the puck quite well. All that talent translates into 4.22 goals per game for the Crimson, who seem to have not lost a step without their former captains.
The defense however, can be a tad suspect. 2.33 goals against per game overall isn't terrible, but it won't be good enough for Harvard against top teams, especially the Saints, who haven't allowed more than two goals in a game since the loss to Wisconsin, (their last loss) and have three shutouts over that nine game stretch, in which they've gone 6-0-3.
The Saints are halfway through their season, while the Crimson are seven games short of the Saints 16 games played, so the systems are well in place for SLU at 5-on-5, but as the power play continues to struggle, and the Saints continue to take penalties in bunches, special teams may become the deciding factor in this important ECAC matchup.
Harvard's power play is humming along at 25.5%, but their PK is lackluster at 79.7%. Meanwhile, the Saints are decent on the PK at 85.6% but the power play still can't seem to find the back of the net, clicking just 9.2% of the time. If the Saints get into penalty trouble, even if the PK has a good night, they're likely to concede a power play goal. With the teams fairly even at 5-on-5, if SLU can't get at least one goal on the power play, and statistics say they'll get about 16 minutes worth of power play time, they have a strong chance of ending up on the losing end.
That task will be made more difficult by the absence of Nolan Gluchowski, who is suspended for Friday's game after a hit in the game against UMass-Amherst. This shifts the makeup of the power play, as it likely means a forward will be relocated to the point with Sweetman, and another will be required to fill that empty spot. Who that player is (hopefully Ryan Garvey, who I think needs more ice time to start scoring the goals he's capable of) could be the difference between scoring a power play goal and not.
They'll host #8 Harvard on Friday night in the more challenging of the two contests, though underestimating Dartmouth is exactly what helped the Big Green beat Yale last year in the ECAC tournament in their ride to Lake Placid.
This will be a new edition of the Crimson, who enter with a 6-2-1 record, the first that will not see Jimmy Vesey and Kyle Criscuolo suit up for Harvard since I began covering college hockey. I'm not quite sure what to expect from Ted Donato's squad, but to say they lack talent would be a gross understatement. They still have Merrick Madsen in net, Alexander Kerfoot is unquestionably one of the three best centers in the ECAC, if not the best, and Ryan Donato is getting a chance to shine in a 1st line role. Rookie d-man Adam Fox is also a stud, though still a bit vulnerable in his own zone.
Sean Malone, Tyler Moy and Lewis Zerter-Gossage provide ample scoring depth while Wiley Sherman and Clay Anderson are the veterans on a defense that can still move the puck quite well. All that talent translates into 4.22 goals per game for the Crimson, who seem to have not lost a step without their former captains.
The defense however, can be a tad suspect. 2.33 goals against per game overall isn't terrible, but it won't be good enough for Harvard against top teams, especially the Saints, who haven't allowed more than two goals in a game since the loss to Wisconsin, (their last loss) and have three shutouts over that nine game stretch, in which they've gone 6-0-3.
The Saints are halfway through their season, while the Crimson are seven games short of the Saints 16 games played, so the systems are well in place for SLU at 5-on-5, but as the power play continues to struggle, and the Saints continue to take penalties in bunches, special teams may become the deciding factor in this important ECAC matchup.
Harvard's power play is humming along at 25.5%, but their PK is lackluster at 79.7%. Meanwhile, the Saints are decent on the PK at 85.6% but the power play still can't seem to find the back of the net, clicking just 9.2% of the time. If the Saints get into penalty trouble, even if the PK has a good night, they're likely to concede a power play goal. With the teams fairly even at 5-on-5, if SLU can't get at least one goal on the power play, and statistics say they'll get about 16 minutes worth of power play time, they have a strong chance of ending up on the losing end.
That task will be made more difficult by the absence of Nolan Gluchowski, who is suspended for Friday's game after a hit in the game against UMass-Amherst. This shifts the makeup of the power play, as it likely means a forward will be relocated to the point with Sweetman, and another will be required to fill that empty spot. Who that player is (hopefully Ryan Garvey, who I think needs more ice time to start scoring the goals he's capable of) could be the difference between scoring a power play goal and not.
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| Eric Sweetman will have a new partner on the power play on Friday |
Players to watch:
Carson Gicewicz: After a start to his college career that saw him centering the top line, Gicewicz (and really all the forwards) have bounced around lines as Morris tinkers with the lineups. I had really liked what I'd seen out of him so far, but he wasn't being rewarded with points, but a goal against UMass could the turning point that sees him start putting more points on the board.
Sean Malone: The Buffalo Sabres prospect has been maligned by injuries for most of his career, but looks healthy right now, as evidenced by his seven goals through nine games. His career high came lat year, where he found the twine 10 times in 27 games, and is close to eclipsing that mark in a third the games. Eight career power play goals, three career shorthanded goals and four career GWG's show that Malone can score in any way, at any time. Ironically, both Gicewicz and Malone are alums of the Nichols School, though different classes.
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