Atlantic Hockey Weekly Award Winners for Games Through December 19

Atlantic Hockey Co-Players of the Week

Steve Cameron - Mercyhurst
Senior, Forward, Mission, British Columbia

Scott Pitt - Mercyhurst
Senior, Forward, Ottawa, Ontario

Pitt and Cameron tallied two goals and three assists apiece as the Lakers swept non-conference foe Alabama – Huntsville by the scores of 8-3 and 4-3 in overtime this past weekend at the Mercyhurst Ice Center.  Both players achieved milestones in each game, with Pitt scoring his 100th career point in the 8-3 win, and Cameron cracking the century mark for points in a career and scoring his 50th career goal.  In Thursday’s 8-3 win, Pitt became the 13th player in the Mercyhurst Division I era to score 100 points in a career when he found the back of the net early in the second period. He later added a pair of assists to finish the night with three points and match Cameron’s output.  Cameron then achieved the same milestone as Pitt did on Friday, but in dramatic fashion, as he added the secondary assist on the game-winning goal by Pitt with just 28 seconds elapsed in overtime to give the Lakers the sweep. Earlier in the game he scored his 50th career goal to put the Lakers ahead, 3-2, in the third.

Atlantic Hockey Goaltender of the Week

Brooks Ostergard - Robert Morris
Junior, Goaltender, Chagrin Falls, Ohio

Brooks Ostergard continued Robert Morris stretch of even-strength dominance. Ostergard made 40 saves and only allowed one goal and it came on the power-play for Colgate. The junior made a majority of his saves in the third period stopping 16 shots. The Colonials have only allowed one even-strength goal in their four games. Ostergard picked up his 10 win of the season Sunday becoming the first AHA netminder to reach double digit wins, no other goalie in the conference has more than seven wins. the junior ranks second in the Atlantic Hockey Association in winning percentage and eighth nationally.

Atlantic Hockey Goaltender of the Week

Ben Lynch - RIT
Freshman, Forward, Blaine, Minn.

Lynch dished out two assists and was on the ice for all four Tiger goals in a 4-1 win over Canisius on Friday.  Lynch tallied the secondary assist on Mike Janda’s game-winning goal with 8:23 left in regulation, then drew the primary assist on Andrew Favot’s second goal of the game with 3:40 to play that made it 3-1 Tigers.  Lynch now has nine assists in 17 games this season.

Atlantic Hockey Honor Roll

Dan Morrison - Canisius (Junior, Goaltender, London, Ontario) - Morrison carried the Griffs against RIT during the weekend, recording 46 saves against the Tigers. Morrison recorded at least 15 saves in all three periods to keep the Griffs in the contest against the first-place Tigers. Included in his performance was a save on a penalty shot, recording the first save for a Griffs goaltender on a penalty shot since Feb. 14, 2009.

Max Strang - Mercyhurst (Junior, Goaltender, Gilbertsville, Pa.) - Strang earned his first career win at Mercyhurst in Thursday’s 8-3 romp of Alabama – Huntsville. He stopped 25 shots and allowed twoeven-strength goals in his second start of the season. He is now 1-0-0 after earning a no-decision in his first start at then-No. 4 Michigan Oct. 2.

Denny Urban - Robert Morris (Senior, Defenseman, Pittsburgh, Pa.) - Denny Urban ranks first in the nation in points per game by a defenseman and ranks second in the Atlantic Hockey Association in points with 25. The senior sits just three points shy of becoming the first Colonials defenseman with 100 career points and from breaking his own school record for point in a season by a defenseman. Urban picked up an assist on Nathan Longpre’s game-winning goal in overtime Saturday and dished out two assists Sunday. Urban is currently on a six game point streak but saw his goal streak end Sunday at three games.

Andrew Favot - (Senior, Forward, King City, Ontario) - Favot tied his career with two goals and added an assist in RIT’s 4-1 win over Canisius on Friday.  Down 1-0, Favot tipped in a shot by Tyler Brenner 2:14 into the final period.  He then scored his second goal of the game with 3:40 left, making a great move to deke Canisius goaltender Dan Morrison to give RIT a 3-1 lead.  Favot then assisted on Tyler Brenner’s goal with 47 seconds left to complete the scoring.  Favot leads RIT with 23 points (6-17-23) in 18 games this season, and has 15 points in 12 AHA games.

Shane Madolora - RIT (Sophomore, Goaltender, Salinas, Calif.) - Madolora stopped 18-of-19 shots in helping lead the Tigers to a 4-1 win over Canisius on Friday to improve to 7-0-1 overall this season.  He is 7-0-0 in AHA play with a 1.56 goals against average and .944 save percentage.

Atlantic Hockey Team Notes

American international:  AIC will be off until heading to Minnesota State January 7-8, 2011 for a pair of non-conference games to start the New Year. The Yellow Jackets entered the holiday break with a record of 4-9-0 (4-8-0 AHA). The first half of the season featured AIC’s first-ever win over Air Force, a 5-3 decision October 22, and the Yellow Jackets’ first-ever win and weekend sweep at Mercyhurst November 26 (5-2) and 27 (3-0). AIC also split a weekend series with RIT, earning a 6-2 win in game-two. Sophomore forward Adam Pleskach leads the team in scoring with seven goals and seven assists for 14 points, putting him on pace to easily surpass his 24 points (15 goals, nine assists) from last season. Sophomore netminder Ben Meisner has been in goal for each of the Yellow Jackets’ four wins this season while sporting a 3.62 goals against average and a .908 save percentage.

Army:  The Black Knights were idle this past weekend and will return after a short break to a busy schedule ... Army will return to action on Dec. 28 with an exhibition contest against the Russian Junior All-Star Team at Tate Rink at 7:05 p.m. ... The “Red Stars,” are comprised of players from Russia, Latvia and Belarus who play in the Russian Junior Hockey League, a 29-team development junior league organized by Russian professional hockey clubs playing in the Kontinental Hockey League. The majority of the players are between the ages of 19-21. Alexander Semak is the coach ... Army will then host Merrimack in a non-conference game on Dec. 30 at 7:05 p.m. before traveling to Vermont for the Catamount Cup. Army will play Ohio Harvard on Jan. 1 and Ohio State the next evening. 

Canisius:  Canisius lost its lone game of the week, falling at RIT, 4-1. The Griffs enter the holiday break with a 6-7-4 record and 5-6-4 mark in Atlantic Hockey.  In Friday’s contest, senior Cory Conacher scored the lone goal for the Griffs. The senior moved into a tie for third in the program’s Division I history with his 48th career goal, matching the mark of Chris Duggan (1998-02). Conacher is now just one behind David Deeves for second in school history (49 goals) and two behind Jason Weeks for first (50 goals). Conacher also raised his career point total to 123 points, just nine shy of Josh Heidinger for the most in school history.  Junior Dan Morrison recorded 46 saves against the Tigers, stopping at least 15 shots in all three periods. During the second frame, Morrison recorded a save on the first collegiate penalty shot that he faced. It was also the first penalty shot the Griffs faced since Andrew Loewen made a stop against AIC on Feb. 14, 2009.  The Griffs return to action on Dec. 29, playing at Notre Dame. The two teams are meeting for the first time with both programs at the Division I level.

Connecticut:  UConn will host the 18th Annual Toyota UConn Hockey Classic after the holiday break on December 29 and 30... Bowling Green and Princeton will play in the opening game on Wednesday, December 29 at 4:05 with UConn facing Holy Cross at 7:15... The Consolation Game is set for 4:00 on the 30th while the Championship Game will be played at 7:15... All games will take place in Mark Edward Freitas Ice Forum... UConn is looking for its fourth UConn Hockey Classic Championship and first since 2003... The Huskies own a 14-18-2 all-time record at the UConn Hockey Classic... This year marks Bowling Green’s second appearance... The Falcons won both games in 2005... Holy Cross will be competing for the seventh season with a 4-8-0 mark in the tournament all-time... Holy Cross won the inaugural UConn Hockey Classic Championship in 1993... Princeton will be playing in the tournament for the first time. 

Holy Cross:  Holy Cross will play the Russian Junior United Team in an exhibition game at the Hart Center on Monday, Dec. 27 at 7:00 p.m. The Red Stars consist of players selected from different teams in the Russian Junior Hockey League. Admission to this game will be free to the public. Then on Dec. 29-30, the Crusaders will compete at the Toyota UConn Holiday Classic in Storrs, Conn. Holy Cross will play an Atlantic Hockey game versus UConn on Dec. 29, while it will take on either Bowling Green or Princeton on Dec. 30.  The Crusaders have a 5-3-2 Atlantic Hockey record after 10 games. The Crusaders are off to their best Atlantic Hockey start since they were 6-4-0 in the 2006-2007 season.  The Crusaders have been outstanding on the road as they are 5-2-2 on their opponents’ home ice this season. Last season, Holy Cross compiled a 6-12-1 record on its opponents’ home ice. So far this season the Crusaders are undefeated when scoring the first goal of the game. Holy Cross is 6-0-1 when its scores the first goal of the contest.  This season the Crusaders have netted 47 goals through the first 15 games as they are averaging 3.13 goals per game. Last season Holy Cross had scored 33 goals through the first 15 games averaging 2.20 goals per contest.  The Crusaders have responded well after losing a game this season. Holy Cross is 3-2-1 so far following a loss.  Sophomore Rob Linsmayer is tied for the team-lead with six goals, while he is second in points with 14 and is tied for third with eight assists. Over the last 10 games he has recorded six goals and seven assists for 13 points. For his career he has 10 goals and 23 assists for 33 points in 52 games.  Senior Everett Sheen leads the team with 15 points, while he is tied for first with six goals and nine assists. He now has 41 goals and 43 assists for 84 points in 126 career games. His 41 goals are ninth on the all-time Holy Cross Division I list, while his 13 career power play goals are tied for 10th. 

Mercyhurst: Mercyhurst (7-9-1) completed its second series sweep of the season by defeating Alabama – Huntsville 8-3 and 4-3 in overtime last weekend at the Mercyhurst Ice Center. Thursday’s game marked the first win over the Chargers since a 9-3 win Oct. 29, 1993…The Lakers are now 4-4-3 all-time against Alabama – Huntsville…Seniors Scott Pitt and Steven Cameron both achieved milestones in the wins. Pitt became the 13th player in the Mercyhurst Division I era to crack the century mark for points in a career with his second-period goal in Thursday’s 8-3 romp. Cameron joined him the next night, adding the secondary assist on Pitt’s game-winner in overtime. Cameron also scored his 50th career goal in the third period to give theLakers a 3-2 lead at the time. Both players scored two goals and three assists in the series. Former Laker and current Mercyhurst women’s hockey assistant coach Louis Goulet holds the all-time MC Division I record with 157 points…The Lakers now boast two 100-point scorers for the first time since the 2006-07season, when Ben Cottreau and Scott Champagne skated under the direction ofhead coach Rick Gotkin…Redshirt sophomore Phil Ginand scored his first career hat trick as part of a four-point performance on Thursday…Junior Max Strang earned his first career win at Mercyhurst with 25 saves in the 8-3 victory on Thursday…Mercyhurst has now scored four power-play goals in its past five games after scoring five through its previous 13…The Lakers have the next 10 days off before returning to action Dec. 30-31 for the Ledyard Bank Classic, hosted by Dartmouth. MC faces hostDartmouth in the first game and will either play Boston College or Colgate in the second…The Lakers have never faced the Big Green in the 24-year history of the program…MC has faced Boston College once (0-1-0) and Colgate six times (1-5-0).  

Niagara:  Niagara doesn’t play again until it kicks off January against Holy Cross on Jan. 7 and 8...The Purple Eagles return home to host Sacred Heart on Jan. 21.  

Robert Morris:  Robert Morris holds the nation’s longest unbeaten streak at six games, one short of the school record. The Colonials five-game winning streak sits tied for the longest in school history. Robert Morris holds an unbeaten record in non-conference play (5-0-0). The Colonials are off to the program best 18 game start with a record of 12-4-2. Robert Morris has not allowed an even-strength goal in 200:21. Denny Urban sits just three points shy of becoming the first Colonials defenseman with 100 career points and from breaking his own school record for point in a season by a defenseman. Urban picked up an assist on Nathan Longpre’s game-winning goal in overtime Saturday and dished out two assists Sunday. Nathan Longpre’s assist on Adam Brace’s third-period goal Sunday moved his point streak to six games, a career long. Robert Morris remains unbeaten when Adam Brace records a point (10-0-1). The consecutive sweeps for the Colonials are the first for Robert Morris since Jan. 16 when the Colonials finished a sweep of Alabama-Huntsville. The five-game win streak matches the school record for consecutive victories. Robert Morris’ six-game unbeaten streak is one short of the school record. 

RIT:  RIT moved into first place in Atlantic Hockey play after defeating Canisius, 4-1 on Friday before a sellout crowd at Ritter Arena.  The Tigers scored four third period goals in the win and fired a season-high 50 shots on goal, out-shooting Canisius, 50-19.  Andrew Favot scored two goals and added an assist, while Tyler Brenner scored a goal and dished out a pair of assists.  Mike Janda scored the game-winning goal for RIT.  RIT is 51-14-1 all-time against the Golden Griffins and have won six straight against them.  Goaltender Shane Madolora made 18 saves to improve to 7-0-1 this season and 7-0-0 in AHA play.  He has a sparkling 1.56 goals against average and .944 save percentage in conference play.  Madolora is one of two Division I goaltenders (Ryan Rondeau of Yale) who have played enough minutes to qualify for the national leaders without a loss this season.   Madolora is 10th overall in goals against average (2.01) and save percentage (.926) nationally.  Favot is tied for fourth nationally with 17 assists, while Brenner is tied for seventh with 12 goals.  The Tigers, who had allowed 24 goals in the third period in their first 15 games, have not allowed one in the last three games, out-scoring foes 8-0 in the final period during that span.  The Tigers lead the nation, averaging 20.8 penalty minutes per game.  RIT has a 12-game unbeaten streak (11-0-1) at Ritter Arena dating back to Feb. 19, 2010.  RIT has sold out four of the six games at Ritter Arena this season, with the two non-sellouts coming while the students were on break.  They are averaging 1,974 fans per game this season.  Cameron Burt did have his eight-game point-scoring streak snapped on Friday.  He was also awarded RIT’s first penalty shot since Nov. 2, 2007, but was stopped by Canisius goaltender Dan Morrison.  The Tigers return to action on Thursday, Dec. 30, as they travel to the brand new Consol Energy Center in Pittsburgh, Pa. to face Robert Morris at 3 p.m.  The game is part of a doubleheader, which celebrates the 2011 Bridgestone Winter Classic that will played two days later between the NHL’s Washington Capitals and Pittsburgh Penguins at Heinz Field.  The Hershey Bears and Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins will play the second half of the doubleheader that evening at 7:30 p.m.  Tickets range from $15.50-$35.50 and can be purchased at ticketmaster.com.  RIT also hosts No. 17 Merrimack in a non-conference contest at Ritter Arena on Jan. 1 at 7:05 p.m.  RIT defeated Robert Morris in an overtime thriller, 3-2 at Ritter Arena on Oct. 29.  Adam Mitchell scored with 1:19 in overtime to give RIT the win, which was their first of the season.  RIT and Robert Morris are 1-2 in the Atlantic Hockey standings.  The Tigers hold a one-point lead over the Colonials.