Black Knights' Kassel Tabbed Atlantic Hockey Goaltender of the Week (11/6/06)

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Atlantic Hockey Rookie of the Week

Pierre-Luc O'Brien - Sacred Heart
Senior, Forward, Nicolet, QUE 

O'Brien had a breakout weekend, tallying eight total points, five goals and three assists, in the Pioneers weekend sweep of Mercyhurst. He figured on five of SHU's six goals in Friday's win including scoring the eventual game winner. Saturday night, his hat trick propelled the Pioneers comeback from a four goal deficit in the final four minutes of the third period. O'Brien scored Sacred Heart's first goal with four minutes left, scored a second with 1:30 left, and then would tie the game with just 13 seconds left in regulation. It was the first hat trick for a Pioneer this year. With his big weekend, O'Brien has taken over the team scoring lead with six goals and four assists for 10 total points on the year.

Atlantic Hockey Rookie of the Week
 
Carl Hudson - Canisius 
Freshman, Defensemen, Smooth Rock Falls, ONT

Hudson led the team with two goals and tied for the team lead with four points on the weekend. Both of his goals came in Friday night's game and were on the power play, giving the freshman five goals on the season - all on the power play. Hudson had his first three-point game in the 5-4 loss.

Weekly Honor Roll

Matt Fairchild, Air Force (Fr., F, Ashburn, Va.) - Scored AFA's first goal of the game on Friday on the power play in the second period...His goal was the eventual game winner, the first GWG of his career...AFA's top scoring freshman with three goals and four points.

Josh Frider, Air Force (So., F, Moorhead, Minn.) - Career-high two goals in Saturday's game...First-career game-tying goal on Saturday...Scored the game-tying goal with an extra skater on the ice with 39 seconds left to force overtime and eventually give the Falcons one point in the standings...Career-high seven shots on goal on Saturday...Skated with a new line on Saturday...Frider had two goals on Saturday after not scoring a point in the first nine games of the season.

Ian Harper, Air Force (Jr., G, Colorado Springs, Colo.) - First career shutout came on Friday as he stopped all 24 shots he faced...24 saves were a season high and his most since making 34 saves against Colorado College last season...Started Saturday's game but was pulled 15 minutes into the game after giving up two goals on seven shots...However, bounced back by starting the third period and shutting out RIT for the final 25 minutes (including overtime).

Luke Flicek, Army (Jr., F, Burnsville, Minn.) - He scored his team leading sixth and seventh goals of the season in Army's two game sweep of AIC. His goal on Friday night tied things at 1-1 early in the third period, while his goal Saturday proved to be the game winner. Flicek also collected an assist in Saturdays win.

Ray Jean, Bentley (Sr., G, Randolph, Maine) - Made 37 saves while allowing one goal in Friday's 3-1 win over Connecticut, then made 35 saves on Saturday at Connecticut.

Pat Percella, Bentley (So. F, Bayonne, N.J.) - Scored a goal and assisted on the game-winning goal in Friday's 3-1 win over Connecticut.

Josh Heidinger, Canisius (Fr., F, Buffalo, N.Y.) - Heidinger tied for the team lead in the two games against Holy Cross with four points - all of which were assists. He had his second three-assist game of the season in Friday night's loss to the Crusaders. The Buffalo, N.Y. native has recorded 10 points in five conference games, recording a point in each game.Jon Anderson, Connecticut (So. G, Vadnais Heights, Minn.) - Anderson went 1-1-0 over the weekend as the Huskies split a home-and-home series with Bentley. Over the weekend, Anderson tallied 38 saves and posted a 2.52 goals against average.

Matt Scherer, Connecticut (Sr., F, Seattle, Wash.) - He totaled three points on two goals and one assist in helping the Huskies to a weekend split with Bentley. He opened the weekend by scoring the lone goal in a 3-1 loss at Bentley Friday night. Although the goal didn't change the outcome, it proved to be noteworthy as it was his 47th career goal, catapulting him into first place all-time on the school's goals scored list since becoming Division I. Scherer then went on to pick up an assist on UConn's first goal and later scored the game-winning goal in a 6-2 win over Bentley Saturday night. With his total of three points, Scherer has now tallied at least one point in every game this season.

Jon Landry, Holy Cross (Sr. D, Lexington, Mass.) - Landry scored four goals and had two assists for six points in the two wins over Canisius. He scored a goal and added two assists in the 5-4 victory on Friday night, while he netted his first career hat trick in the 6-3 win on Saturday afternoon. Landry has recorded at least one point in the last four games and in six of Holy Cross' seven games. He has five goals and five assists for 10 points on the season, while his 1.43 points per game by a defenseman are ranked second in the nation.

James Sixsmith, Holy Cross (Sr. F, Alexandria, Va.) - Sixsmith tallied seven points in the two victories over Canisius. In the 5-4 win on Friday night, he scored a goal and added an assist, while he registered a career-high five assists in the 6-3 win on Saturday afternoon.
Sixsmith has at least one point in six of Holy Cross' seven games. He has three goals and a team best 12 assists for 15 points. Sixsmith's 2.14 points per game and 1.71 assists per game are ranked first nationally.

Scott Champagne, Mercyhurst (Sr., F, Cornwall, ONT) - Scored three goals and added an assist in two games at Sacred Heart.

Brent Alexin - R.I.T. (Fr., F, West Seneca, N.Y.) - Alexin recorded his first career goal and assist in RIT's 4-4 tie against Air Force on Saturday night. He assisted on RIT's second goal late in the first and gave the Tigers a 3-2 lead early in the second, slamming home a rebound in front of the Falcons net.

Matt Gordon - Sacred Heart (Fr., F, Lynnfield, Mass.) - Gordon scored his first career goal in the Pioneers' win over Mercyhurst on Friday. The goal came midway through the second period and opened up a three goal lead for Sacred Heart in the game.

Team Notes

Air Force: Friday's shutout win was AFA's first ever Atlantic Hockey shutout...The shutout was AFA's first since blanking Alabama-Huntsville, Feb. 18, 2006 (5-0 at home)...Theo Zacour and Josh Schaffer each scored their first goals of the season on Friday...AFA had a season-high 19 shots in the first period of Friday's game...AFA had 18 shots in the second period of Saturday's game...Senior winger Brian Reese played in his first game of the season and scored a goal on the power play. His 11th career goal eight on the PP... AFA had a season high 45 shots in Saturday's game...AFA's tie was the first of the season and the first since a 2-2 tie with RIT last season at Cadet Ice Arena...Sophomore Brent Olson had a career-best three assists in the series...Eric Ehn entered the series as the nation's leader in goals and points. He was held to just one assist in the series...AFA's top line of Andrew Ramsey, Eric Ehn and Mike Phillipich have combined for 19 of the team's 33 goals and 45 of the 96 points...AFA travels to Canisius next weekend. The Falcons and Griffs have never played each other.

American International: AIC killed 17 of 19 Army power play opportunities in a two-game set this past weekend, including all seven Black Knight extra man chances on Friday night.

Army: Army is off to its best 10 game start since the 1995-96 season when they opened 8-1-1, then finished the year 24-9-1...Army extended its league unbeaten streak to six games, marking the longest such string in school history at the Division I level...The Black Knights remain atop the Atlantic Hockey league standings with its weekend sweep over AIC, latest point in a season that Army has been in first-place of their conference at the Division I level.

Bentley: The Falcons extended their unbeaten streak to four on Friday night before having it snapped on Saturday to equal Bentley's longest unbeaten streak in the Division I era ... Bentley scored short-handed goals in both games this weekend, with Dain Prewitt notching one on Friday and Jeff Gumaer tallying one on Saturday ... Gumaer is now the Falcons' career leader in short-handed goals at the Division I level with four, followed by Prewitt with three ... Gumaer has two short-handed goals this season, tying him for second in the nation in that category ... Anthony Canzoneri has a five-game point-scoring streak with one goal and five assists in that span ... This weekend, Bentley hosts Army for a two-game series at Ryan Skating Arena ... Last season, the Falcons and Black Knights were quite evenly matched, skating to three ties, while Bentley won the remaining regular season matchup and won an AHA quarterfinal meeting in double overtime ... Army has not won at Ryan Skating Arena since Oct. 24, 2003.

Canisius: Canisius opened the road portion of its Atlantic Hockey schedule with two losses at defending champion Holy Cross. The Golden Griffins had six power-play goals on the weekend in 15 attempts. In the month of November under Dave Smith, the Griffs have gone 18-for-55 (32.8 percent) on the power play. Josh Heidinger had four assists on the weekend, including his second three-assist game of the season. Heidinger has 10 points in five conference games, recording a point in all five of those contests. Last season the Griffs had four players record conference point streaks of five games or longer. Billy Irish-Baker has recorded a point in four-straight conference games. Joey Coccimiglio recorded a point in each of the games against the Crusaders, including his first goal of the season. Coccimiglio has tallied a point in the last eight games in the month of November stretching over the past two seasons. Kyle Bushee returned to the Canisius lineup and had two points in the 5-4 loss. Freshman Alec Wright tallied his first career goal and freshman Dave Cianfrini had his first career assist. The Canisius freshmen continue to lead the team with the top four scorers being freshmen and 36 of the team's 53 points (67.9 percent) and 13 of the team's 19 goals (68.4 percent) coming from the first-year players. Three of the team's freshmen rank in the top 34 nationally in points per game among rookies. Carl Hudson has five power-play goals on the season, which ties him for second nationally and his 1.00 points per game average has him tied for 11th nationally for points per game among defensemen. Heidinger ranks 17th in the country with his 1.11 assists per game average and fourth with his 1.33 points per game average among rookies. The Griffs return home next weekend with two games against the Air Force Falcons - the first-ever meetings between the teams.

Connecticut: The University of Connecticut men's hockey team posted a 1-1-0 overall record this weekend after splitting a two-game series with Bentley. The Falcons took game one, 3-1, after scoring pair of second period goals while tacking on a third en route to a two-goal victory. UConn senior captain, Matt Scherer, scored the Huskies' lone goal when he connected with his seventh goal of the season and 47th career goal. With the goal, Scherer became the school's all-time leader in goals scored in the Division I era, surpassing former UConn great, Ron D'Angelo. The goal was also his team-leading forth power-play goal of the season. The following night, the Huskies notched their first home win of the season with a convincing 6-2 win over Bentley at the Freitas Ice Forum. The Huskies netted two goals in each period and cruised to a four-goal victory. Scherer struck for his eighth goal of the season, giving him at least one point in every game this season. Scott McDougall added a pair of goals in the win as well. UConn returns to the ice Friday evening by hosting American International before stepping out of conference Saturday for a battle at Yale.

Holy Cross: Holy Cross is 3-1 so far this season at the Hart Center and will host four of its next five games at home. Senior captain James Sixsmith scored a goal and had six assists in the wins against Canisius, including a career-high five assists on Saturday. He has three goals and 12 assists for 15 points in seven games this season. Sixsmith has at least one point in six of Holy Cross' seven games. His 2.14 points per game and 1.71 assists per game are ranked first nationally. For his career, Sixsmith now has 34 goals and 86 assists for 120 points as he ranks 28th all-time at Holy Cross in points. He is currently tied for second in assists on Holy Cross' all- time Division I chart. Senior defenseman Jon Landry scored four goals and had two assists for six points in the two wins over Canisius, including his first career hat trick on Saturday. Landry has recorded at least one point in the last four games and in six of Holy Cross' seven games. He has five goals and five assists for 10 points on the season, while his 1.43 points per game by a defenseman are ranked second in the nation. Holy Cross' first line of James Sixsmith, junior Dale Reinhardt and senior Sean Nappo was a part of eight of the 11 goals against Canisius. Senior Sean Nappo scored both game-winning goals against the Golden Griffins. Freshman goalie Ian Dams has played in four games this season with a 2-2 record, while fellow freshman goalie Tyler Chestnut has played in three games and is 2-1.
 
Mercyhurst: Sacred Heart has won five of the last six meetings with Mercyhurst and has jumped into a 12-10-2 advantage in the all-time series. Senior Jordan Wakefield made his first start between the pipes Saturday since a 6-3 setback at Yale last November, a span of 32 games. Sophomore Tyler Small had made 18 successive starts, dating to last season, before being rested Saturday. Sophomore forward Chris Trafford had the first 3-point game of his career Saturday with a goal and two assists. He had only two assists in five prior games this season. Mercyhurst will be idle until November 17 and 18 when it plays at long-time rival Canisius in the first of a home-and-home series. Although the Lakers won all five meetings between the teams last season, three of the games were decided by one goal and the other was decided by two goals, including an empty net. Mercyhurst leads the all-time series 28-12-4.

Rochester Instit. of Tech.: RIT was handed its first loss in Atlantic Hockey on Friday night. The shutout was just the second against RIT in Division I play. The Tigers held three separate leads in Saturday night's game before Air Force tied the game with 39 seconds left. Tiger netminder Jocelyn Guimond made 74 saves in two weekend games, 33 on Friday, 41 on Saturday. Freshman Brent Alexin scored his first collegiate points in Saturday's tie against Air Force.

Sacred Heart: The Pioneers made an early season statement, sweeping preseason Mercyhurst in a two game series over the weekend at the Milford Ice Pavilion. The Pioneers won 6-4 Friday night and then used a major comeback to win 5-4 in overtime Saturday. In Saturday's game, the Pioneers scored four goals in the final four minutes to tie it and then Alexandre Parent scored the game winner in overtime. Pierre-Luc O'Brien, who had five goals and three assists on the weekend, had a hat trick in the comeback, including the game tying marker with 13 seconds left in overtime. The victory was the first time the Pioneers had staged a third period comeback since winning at Army on Feb 8, 2005. It was the first overtime victory for SHU since winning at Holy Cross on Feb. 24, 2006. It was the first hat trick for a Pioneer since Bear Trapp scored three against UConn on March 3rd, 2006. With his big weekend, O'Brien has taken over the team scoring lead with 10 points, six goals and four assists. Freshman Matt Gordon scored his first career goal in Friday's victory. Sophomore Eric Giosa had a five point series (two goals and three assists) to draw even for second on the team with Parent who had a four point weekend (one goal and three assists). Both players now have nine points on the season. Giosa has four goals while Parent has lit the lamp three times. The Pioneer power play, which had struggled early on in the season, struck for six goals in 20 attempts with the man advantage in the series. SHU will take to the ice three times this week. The Pioneers travel to Springfield for a meeting with AIC Tuesday night and then will face Holy Cross in a home and home over the weekend. Sacred Heart and Holy Cross meet Friday night in Milford and then will rematch Saturday in Worcester. Coverage of Pioneer hockey can be hear Saturday night on WICC 600 AM.