The Quinnipiac Bobcats (10-4-2, 6-1-1 ECAC Hockey) look to win back-to-back games when they take on their conference rival the Union College Dutchmen (9-3-2, 5-1-1 ECAC Hockey) in their first meeting of the season.
After a win against St. Lawrence and a loss to the University of Vermont in the Friendship Four Tournament in Belfast, Northern Ireland, Quinnipiac returned home to face Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute last night. Quinnipiac got on the board first with a goal from Tanner MacMaster, who returned after five straight games due to injury.
RPI tied the game in the third period despite only having 11 shots on goal, but Quinnipiac quickly regained their lead with a goal from Tim Clifton on the power play. The Bobcats scored two more power play goals to cement a 4-1 win over the Engineers, outshooting RPI 51-15 in the game. Quinnipiac had 23 shots on their 10 power plays.
Union, like Quinnipiac, has been dominant in ECAC games so far this season. Last night, after a week off from games, the Dutchmen clobbered Princeton in a 7-3 win over the Tigers. Union had seven different players score a goal and 11 different players had at least a point in the game, including a goal and 2 assists from leading scorer Mike Vecchione.
Who to Watch
Quinnipiac: Landon Smith. Having only one point in his past five games after his hat trick against Dartmouth, he came out strong last night against RPI tallying three assists in the game. With 4 goals and 8 assists for 12 points so far, he’s looking to have another strong offensive season. Prepare for him to come out with some fire power again tonight and watch out for him throughout the game.
Union: Mike Vecchione. Who else? Once again, he’s off to a spectacular start to his season with 15 goals and 14 assists for 29 points in 14 games played. Last season, he had a total of 29 points in 34 games played. He’s on pace to set career highs in goals, assists and points. Not to mention he’s over a point per game in his 121 career collegiate games. Look out, everyone. This guy is the real deal.
Between the Pipes: Truehl vs. Sakellaropoulos
Quinnipiac: Although it’s a back-to-back situation, don’t be surprised if Chris Truehl starts this game. Truehl only faced 15 shots in last night’s game against RPI. He’s been extremely reliable so far this season with a 1.98 goals against average and a .927 save percentage. Plus, Union has a great hockey team, and the Bobcats are going to want their best goaltender in net for this battle.
Union: Expect their starter, Alex Sakellaropoulos, back in net after their backup stopped 26 of 29 shots against Princeton in a 7-3 win. Despite an 8-1-1 record this season, Sakellaropoulos’ stats are about average. With a 2.68 goals against average and a .907 save percentage, the Dutchmen need a solid game from their starter if they want to win this one.
Special Teams
For the Bobcats, the power play has been struggling throughout the season. However, they scored three consecutive power play goals against RPI on Friday night, showing some life. Union hasn’t been able to convert that often on the man advantage either, only scoring on 13 of their 94 opportunities. On the flip side, Quinnipiac’s penalty kill has been spectacular. They’ve only allowed nine goals while being down a man 89 times. The Dutchmen haven’t had the greatest of penalty killing allowing 12 goals on 65 power plays for the opposition. It’s not terrible, but not wonderful either. However, taking only 65 penalties shows they’re one of the more disciplined teams in the conference, so Quinnipiac will look to draw a lot of penalties throughout the game.
Previous Meetings
Quinnipiac and Union have played each other 30 times and the Bobcats hold a winning record against the Dutchmen (15-11-4 all time). In their last 15 meetings, Quinnipiac holds a 9-3-3 record against Union. Last season, the Bobcats shut out Union 5-0, then the teams held a 3-3 tie in the second meeting. To sum it all up, the Dutchmen want this game badly. Both teams have had a lot of control in the conference to start the season, so they’ll both be looking to come away with the win in their back pocket.
