After an early bye week, the No. 11 Quinnipiac Bobcats (3-2-1 overall, 0-1-0 Eastern College Athletic Conference) are looking to get back in the win column against the Colgate Raiders (3-2-4 overall, 0-0-1 ECAC) tonight. Quinnipiac opened ECAC play last night with a 2-1 loss to Cornell. Colgate travels to Hamden coming off a scoreless tie at Princeton yesterday. Here’s what you need to know to be prepared for game day.
Players to Watch
Quinnipiac – Tanner MacMaster
A 5-foot-9 senior out of Calgary, Alberta, MacMaster has been a big part of Quinnipiac hockey for the past four years. After a slow start, MacMaster has been hard to stop in recent games. All six of his points, including two goals, have come in his last three games. As Quinnipiac’s top line center, MacMaster should be an active player in this contest.
Colgate – Bobby McMann
Colgate has 17 underclassmen on its team, and McMann is one of its top young guns. McMann is off to a fast start – he leads the Raiders in goals and points, is second in shots, and fourth in assists. He was one of the top rookies in the ECAC last year, and was invited to NHL Development Camps by the Buffalo Sabres and Columbus Blue Jackets. McMann will certainly be a player to keep an eye on in the ECAC for years to come.
Keys to the Game
Quinnipiac – Cut down on penalty minutes
It is tough to win hockey games when a team is averaging 10.8 minutes in the penalty box per game. The Bobcats have had a hard time staying out of the penalty box, and sport a 81.4 penalty kill percentage. Colgate doesn’t have a tremendous power play, but those 10 minutes spent in the box are 10 minutes spent mostly in the defensive zone, not producing offense. Rand Pecknold’s squad needs to do a better job staying out of the box to give his team the best chance to win.
Colgate – Keep on blocking shots
One thing the Raiders excel at is blocking shots – they average 15.9 blocks per game. Quinnipiac comes in averaging a healthy 30.2 shots per game, including 46 in their most recent contest. If shots do trickle through, they’ve got a brick wall in sophomore goalie Colton Point. Point was named the ECAC co-goalie of the month and won the ECAC goalie of the week award last week. But given that Quinnipiac likes to shoot from any angle they can, reducing Point’s workload and frustrating the Bobcats with well-timed blocks could go a long way in helping the Raiders win the contest.
The Game
Be sure to check out @QBSN’s broadcast of Cornell vs. Quinnipiac at the TD Bank Sports Center in Hamden, Connecticut at 7 p.m. Mike Dalton and Tom Krosnowski will be on the call for this matchup. Follow them on Twitter here: @MikeJDalton5 and @Tkro42.
