For the third consecutive season Union has clinched
home ice in the first round of the ECACHL playoffs by defeating Yale and tying
Princeton in the last weekend of regular season play. The Dutchmen finished eighth in the standings,
one point ahead of Clarkson for the final home ice spot, and will now host the
Golden Knights for the second straight time.
Union looks to avenge last season's first round exit at the hands of
Clarkson when the best of three series begins on Friday, March 4th at
7:00 p.m.
Union concluded its
regular season with an overall mark of 12-20-2 and an 8-13-1 record in ECACHL play. Senior assistant captain Joel Beal (Brantford,
ONT) scored the game winning goal for Union in
Friday's 3-2 win over Yale for his 100th career point. Junior Jonathan Poirier (St.
Jerome, QUE) scored the other two goals for the
Dutchmen, both of which came on the power play.
The next night freshman goaltender Justin Mrazek
(Regina, SASK)
made 16 saves in his first shutout of the season to give the Dutchmen one point
in the standings and break a tie with Clarkson for the eighth and final home
playoff spot.
In the regular season Union
split with Clarkson as each team picked up a win at home. In the first game the Dutchmen defeated the
Golden Knights 4-1 back on November 6th at Messa
Rink to open up their ECACHL weekend and spark a six-game winning streak. Clarkson then handed Union a
2-0 setback on January 21st at Cheel
Arena.
Union is 7-21-4
all-time against Clarkson and 0-2 in the playoffs. The Dutchmen are 2-6-2 in their last 10 games
against the Golden Knights at Messa Rink, including
last season's two playoff losses. In the
last four of those meetings Clarkson outscored Union 15-12.
Captain Jordan Webb (Nepean,
ONT) closed out the regular season with a team high 16 goals and 27
points. Poirier and fellow classmate Scott
Seney (Silver
Spring, MD) both
finished with 25 points. Poirier
finished second on the team with 11 goals and tied for second with 14
assists. Seney
led the team with 16 assists and had nine goals. Freshman Michael Beynon
(Nepean,
ONT) led all defenders with 11 points and 10 assists. Webb has seven points (2-5) in his last five
games against Clarkson. Poirier has six
points (3-3) in his last five. Sophomore
Olivier Bouchard (Quebec City,
QUE) has five points (3-2) in the last five games against the Golden Knights.
Bouchard finished the regular season with 22 points (9-13).
Goaltenders Kris Mayotte (Pittsburgh,
PA) and Mrazek each finished the season with one
shutout to their credit. Mayotte
was 8-10-1
with a 3.34 goals against average and a .891 save
percentage. He is 2-3 all-time against
Clarkson with a .864 save percentage and a 3.55 goals
against average. He has a 1-2 record at Messa Rink with a 3.92 goals
against average and a .840 save percentage.
Mrazek was 4-10-1 on the season with a 2.32 goals against average and a .905 save percentage. He
played in both games against Clarkson during the regular season for a 1-1
all-time record with a .960 save percentage and a 1.01
goals against average.
Union is 1-13 in the ECACHL post
season. The lone win came at Rensselaer back on March 11, 1994.
Ticket prices for this weekend's
games are; $10 Box, $8 Bleacher, $5 Students and Youth (12 and under) .
Students May use their Union ID to purchase tickets. Tickets may be purchased by students, faculty
and staff & general public beginning Tuesday morning. The Messa Rink Box
Office will be open Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 9 AM to 7 PM and Friday from 9 AM until game time.
All Union playoff games will also be
broadcast live on ESPN 1300 “The Team.”
Play-by-play commentator Matt DuBrey will be joined by color analyst
Brian Unger.