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Friday, December 31, 2010

Pathfinder Bank Oswego Hockey Classic Finals

The Hamilton Continentals and the Hobart Statesmen will play for the Pathfinder Bank Oswego Hockey Classic Championship today at 1pm at the Campus Center Ice Arena on the campus of SUNY Oswego. The host Lakers will play UW Stevens Point at 4pm in the third place game. Hamilton comes in to the championship game with a convincing 5-1 win over the Lakers on Thursday and Hobart took care of UW Stevens Point in the other game on Thursday to reach the Championship game.

Oswego's Sports Information Department will take care of the stats for each game today and WNYO-FM 88.9 will take care of the play by play action from the Port City.Stats and audio for the games can be reached by clicking on the links below.

LIVE STATS

LIVE AUDIO

Thursday, December 30, 2010

Oswego LOSES in Pathfinder Tournament, Plays UW Stevens Point Friday at 1pm


The Oswego State Lakers suffered a 5-1 beat down tonight at the hands of the Hamilton Continentals at the Campus Center Ice Arena in Oswego, NY. Hamilton's victory has them playing the Hobart Statesmen at 1:00 pm New Years Eve and the host Lakers will play in the third place game at 4:00 pm against UW Stevens Point.

The Lakers saw its 25-game home winning streak come to an end on Thursday in front of an estimated crowd of 2300. Hamilton stormed out of the gates in the first period capitalizing on an Oswego State boarding penalty midway through the frame. Bryan Kelly carried the puck up the left side of the rink before being checked off the puck. Anthony Ruberto picked up the puck and laced a pass through the slot to Joe Houk, who was crashing to the net. Houk slid the puck under Laker goaltender Andrew Hare to give Hamilton a 1-0 lead at the 10:03 mark.  The score stood at the first intermission. 

Midway through the second period, Oswego State's Joe Hall  ripped a shot that clanged off the pipe and crossbar.  The rebound went to the Continentals, who created an odd-man rush the opposite direction.  Thomas Williams and Nick Anderson had a 2-on-1 opportunity as Williams fed Anderson for his third goal of the season at 12:24 in the frame to put Hamilton ahead 2-0.  Anderson added another goal in the final two minutes of the stanza to make the score 3-0 with 20 minutes remaining.

The Lakers got on the scoreboard at 5:13 in the third period when Ian Boots crashed the net for a loose puck. Hank Van Boxmeer and Paul Rodrigues were awarded assists on the goal.  However, the Continentals quickly responded with a pair of goals in under 30 seconds in the ninth minute of the frame to bring the score to 5-1.Hamilton's Scott Hefferman registered 27 saves for the victory.  Oswego State's Andrew Hare suffered the loss with 26 saves in 48:45, while Dan Jones posted three saves in the final 11:02.

The loss marked the first time that the Lakers suffered a home loss since February 21, 2009 when they fell to Potsdam, 4-2.The loss also marks the first time that the Lakers suffered losses in back to back contests since that weekend in February 2009 as they lost to both Potsdam and Plattsburgh.

story courtesy of Oswego State Sports Information

Petty's Point: Bad play all night and spending most of the time in the pelenty box. Oswego spent 22 minutes in the sin bin including a ten minute misconduct pelenty. Also, the Lakers were 0-5 on the Powerplay. Sloppy play in their own end and sloppy passes led to this pathetic loss tonight. 


Syracuse Orange wins Pinstripe Bowl



Syracuse (8-5) amassed an SU bowl record 498 yards total offense to defeat Kansas State, 36-34, in the inaugural New Era Pinstripe Bowl on Thursday afternoon at Yankee Stadium. SU improved its overall bowl record to 12-9-1, while securing its eighth overall victory and sixth road win, the most since 1992. It marks the first bowl victory for the Orange since it captured the Insight.com Bowl title with a 26-3 win against K-State in 2001. The Orange is now 2-1 against K-State and 4-2 against Big 12 Conference opponents in bowl games.


Oswego State Hosts Pathfinder Bank Oswego Hockey Classic

The PathFinder Bank/Oswego Hockey Classic enters its fifth edition already steeped in a tradition of providing one of the most entertaining tournaments in Division III ice hockey.  Since its inception in 2007, three of the four previous Classic Champions have gone on to reach the NCAA Division III Frozen Four, including two national champions (Oswego State, 2007 and St. Norbert, 2008). Defending Champions Oswego State went to the Frozen Four last season in Lake Placid.

The four teams in this year’s tournament field – Hamilton College of the New England Small College Athletic Conference, Hobart College of the ECAC West, the University of Wisconsin at Stevens Point of the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association, and host Oswego State – would like to continue this tradition of post-season success.


Laker Athletics Wheel
The Lakers, who are the defending Classic champions, enter as the nation’s top-ranked team as garnered by US College Hockey Online (USCHO) on December 13 with an overall record of 12-1-0.  Oswego State started the season winning twelve straight decisions before falling to Hobart, 5-2, on December 11 in the final contest for both squads before the holiday break.  More importantly, the Lakers finished the first half of the season with a conference record of 8-0-0, which is five points ahead of the second-place squad.

Oswego State’s early season success can be attributed to contribution up and down the lineup as eight different skaters have recorded game-winning goals.  The Laker offense ranked 13th in scoring in NCAA Division III on December 18, averaging 4.08 goals per game.  The Lakers are paced by senior Justin Fox who has tallied 17 points on eight goals and nine assists.  He is followed closely by linemate Ian Boots at 16 points (five goals and 11 assists). 

Special teams have also played an important role as Oswego State has the sixth-ranked power play in the country, converting 28.6 percent (20/70) of its opportunities with Fox scoring six power-play goals.  On the penalty kill, the Lakers sit tied for 12th in Division III at 87.3 percent (62/71).

Another reason for Oswego State’s success has been the goaltending efforts of junior Paul Beckwith and sophomore Dan Jones, who have combined for a goals against average of 1.62, which ranks fifth in the nation.  Beckwith is 11-0-0 on the season with a 1.37 goals against average and a .949 save percentage, but suffered an injury early in December that will likely keep him from playing during the Classic.  Jones appeared in his first collegiate contests in the final two games before the break posting a 1-1-0 record.  His win came against 12th-ranked Utica in a 2-1 decision where he made 27 saves.   

Hamilton
The Lakers will be tested immediately in the opening round when they face Hamilton College (4-3-0).  Each of the Continentals’ four victories have been by two or more goals, but have not been able to replicate their offensive production on a consistent basis as they average 3.29 goals per game, which is 36th in Division III.  Sophomore defenseman Joe Houk paces the squad with five goals, while forwards Anthony Scarpino and Anthony Ruberto are tied for the team lead in points with seven on two goals and five assists each.  Defensively, Hamilton is tied for 30th in goals allowed at 2.86 with senior goaltender Scott Hefferman posting a 2.50 goals against average in six appearances.  Execution on special teams will be critical for the Continentals as they rank 38th in the country on the penalty kill at 81.2 percent (26/32) and 58th on the power play at 14.6 percent (6/41).

UW-Stevens Point
This year’s West Region representative comes to Oswego State from the University of Wisconsin at Stevens Point with an overall mark of 5-8-0.  The Pointers started the season 4-1-0 and was ranked as high as 10th in the USCHO.com Poll on November 8, but suffered a seven-game losing streak before recording a 3-2 win over then 14th-ranked UW-Eau Claire.  Seven of UW-Stevens Point’s losses have been by two or fewer goals versus four ranked opponents.  The Pointers have a balanced offensive attack with no player tallying more than four goals, but have struggled to score goals as the 53rd-ranked offense in Division III at 2.84 goals per contest.  Sophomore goaltender Nick Graves has logged the majority of minutes between the pipes with a 2.34 goals against average to keep UW-Stevens Point in contests.  The Pointers have a solid penalty kill unit that ranks 22nd at 84.3 percent having killed off 59 of the 70 power plays they have faced.

Hobart
UW-Stevens Point will square off against Hobart College in Thursday’s first matchup.  The Statesmen enter the Classic on a high note riding a three-game win streak after handing Oswego State its’ lone loss of the season on December 11 in a 5-2 win on their home ice.  Hobart has played particularly well against SUNYAC teams having posted a 3-1-1 record with the loss coming at the hands of Geneseo (5-2) and the tie versus Cortland in a 2-2 stalemate.  The Statesmen rank in the top 20 in goals scored and goals allowed.  Offensively, Hobart ranks 16th in scoring at 3.85 goals per game behind 12 points from senior Matthew Wallace and junior Greg Ciciola.  Both have also provided a spark to the 16th-ranked power-play unit (13/54 at 24.1 percent), as the skaters have combined to record seven of the team’s 13 power-play goals.  Defensively, the Statesmen have gone to sophomore Nick Broadwater in goal all season.  Broadwater carries a 2.33 goals against average and a .927 save percentage.  

There is live Stats and Oswego's Student run station, WNYO-FM has all the action live from the Campus Center Ice Arena on the campus of the State University of New York at Oswego.

Picture and story courtesy of Oswego State Sports Information

Oswego State Auctions Game Worn Jerseys for Saves For a Cure

The Oswego State Lakers Men's ice hockey team will be auctioning off gold jerseys that will be worn during the January 8 contest against Curry to help support Saves For A Cure.  Saves For A Cure is a non-profit organization founded by former Brockport Men's ice hockey Goaltender Todd Sheridan aimed to help children with their battle against cancer in the Rochester, New York area.


Minimum bids start at $50.  Bids begin Thursday, Dec. 30 and will be accepted through Sunday, Jan. 10 at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT with the winners announced on Monday, Jan. 11 at 9 a.m./ET on the Oswego State Athletics website.

Bidding Site

Saves For A Cure Website


Courtesy of Oswego State Sports Information

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Kid Bored in Buffalo?????


Team USA's Emerson Etem (pictured left) is not finding much to do in Buffalo and took to Twitter to let everyone know about it. The California-native tweeted that the Queen City:

"...is a ghost town!! the worst city ever, it makes medicine hat look like paradise, never thought ide say that"

 
 
The tweet has since been deleted from Etem's account.  He and his teammates earned a 3-2 overtime win over Finland on Sunday night, and get back to action on tonight at 8:00 pm against Slovakia at HSBC Arena. 

Monday, December 27, 2010

Gamenight in Calgary

The Buffalo Sabres take on the Calgary Flames tonight at the Scotiabank Saddledome. Here is Buffalo's projected forward line chart against the Flames (according to WGR 550 in Buffalo)

Thomas Vanek - Rob Niedermayer - Tyler Ennis
Drew Stafford -  Jochen Hecht - Jason Pominville
Mike Grier - Paul Gaustad - Cody McCormick
Nathan Gerbe - Luke Adam - Pat Kaleta


Goalie Match-up: Ryan Miller vs Mikka Kipprusoff

Buffalo's road trip will continue tomorrow night in Edmonton against the Oilers before coming home for a New Years Day date with the Boston Bruins at HSBC Arena before going back on the road to conclude the western road swing with stops in Colorado, San Jose and Phoenix to kick off the 2011 part of the schedule. 



Knighthawks Announce 23 Man Roster

The Rochester Knighthawks’ 23-man roster offers fans and media outlets some interesting storylines for the 2011 National Lacrosse League season, which is scheduled to open on Saturday, January 8th in Minnesota against the Swarm. It is a roster that Owner and General Manager Curt Styres has confidence in with three weeks until opening weekend. “We had many difficult decisions. The changes will benefit the Knighthawks,” said Styres. “Compared to last year, we are going to compete every game instead of just showing up for them.”
Here are some storylines for the 2011:
Dirty Dozen: The roster includes 12 new players with the addition of Mike Accursi, Troy Bonterre, Tyler Burton, Jarrett Davis, Colin (Joe) Hall, Pat McCready, Ian Rubel, Josh Ruys, Matt Vinc, Matt Zash, Chase Williams and Cody Jamieson.

Double Trouble: Opponents will think they are seeing double with four pairs of players sharing the same last name. Rochester has Chase and Shawn Williams, Jordan and Colin (Joe) Hall, and Pat and Joel McCready, and Scott and Shawn Evans.

All in the Family: For the first time in team history, an uncle and his nephew will play on the Rochester Knighthawks. There have been many brother combinations, but never this rarity. Pat McCready returns to play for Rochester for the first time since the 2001 season, while his nephew Joel enters his third season with the Knighthawks.

A Perfect 10: On Friday, Cody Jamieson, who was the 2010 No. 1 overall pick, inked a league-record 10-year deal. Jamieson played two seasons at Syracuse University and scored the overtime game-winner in the 2009 National Championship game. In 2009, he was named the winner of the Jim Murphy Award as the Major Series Lacrosse MVP, the Gene Dopp Award as outstanding rookie and the Buck McDonald Award as the league’s top scorer with 48 goals and 48 assists for 96 points. It was the first time in MSL history anyone has won all three awards in the same season.

We’re No. 1: Rochester has three of the last four No. 1 picks on its roster: Jamieson (2010), Sid Smith (2009) and Jordan Hall (2007). Hall was the first overall pick of the New York Titans, while Smith was chosen last year by the Knighthawks.

Draft produces key additions: Rochester has three draft picks from this September’s NLL Entry Draft on its roster with Jamieson (No. 1), Jarrett Davis (No. 5) and Josh Ruys (No. 12) making the 23-man roster.

from Knighthawks.net

PS: The 2011 Rochester Knightawks home opener is Saturday January 15th at 7:35 as they host the Toronto Rock at the Blue Cross Arena at the War Memorial.

Friday, December 3, 2010

Its Game Night in Brockport

The number one ranked team in the country according to the latest USCHO D-III polls, the Oswego State Lakers are at the Tuttle North Athletic Complex in Brockport, NY for a SUNYAC match-up against the Brockport Golden Eagles. Oswego earned 17 out of the possible 20 first place votes in the latest USCHO poll which was released this past Monday.

Oswego comes into the game at The College at Brockport with an overall record of 9-0-0 and a perfect 6-0-0 in Conference play.  Offensively, the Lakers are lead by Senior Justin Fox (6 G 8 A = 14 points) and Junior Transfer Ian Boots  (5 G 8 A = 13 points). Over the six conference games so far this season, Oswego has put 41 goals into the net setting up one of the most potent offenses in all of Division III Men's Ice Hockey. Oswego's defense and goaltending are key to their fast start so far this season. The Lakers have given up the fewest goals in conference this season with 13 with Paul Beckwith between the pipes. Beckwith has a Goals Against Average (GAA) of 1.45 and a save percentage of .947

Brockport comes into tonights home contest with an overall record of 0-9-1 and a conference record 0-6-0. The Golden Eagles last contests took place in the Rutland-Herald Invitational at Castleton State with Brockport getting a tie out of Tufts College 3-3 and losing the next night to host Castleton 5-1.  The Golden Eagles have only scored a total of 22 goals in conference this season while giving up the most goals in conference with 54. On offense, Brockport is lead by Junior Right Winger James Cody (7 G 7 A = 14 pts.) and Junior Ian Finnerty with 8 points (3 G 5 A). Between the pipes for the Golden Eagles, Oliver Wren has gotten much of the load as he has a GAA of 5.42 and a .875 save percentage. Also, Freshmen Joe Reagan has played a handful of games and has a GAA of 4.84 and a save percentage of .885

Student media for both teams will be carrying coverage of this SUNYAC match up. Oswego fans, listen to WNYO-FM 88.9 as Countdown to Faceoff will begin at 6:30 with play by play underway at 7:00. For Brockport's call of the game, 89.1 the Point (WBSU-FM) will be having coverage underway tonight at 6:45.

Thursday, December 2, 2010

SU Playing in the Pinstripe Bowl

It was just announced that the Syracuse Orange Football Team has agreed to play in the Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx on December 30th.





photo courtesy of SUAthletics.com 

NHL WINTER CLASSIC FEATURES THROWBACK JERSEYS AGAIN


The Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic set for New Year's Day will take place at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, PA as two of the biggest superstars in the game today will go at it in their conference match-up outdoors as Alex Ovechkin will lead his Washington Capitals against Sidney Crosby and the host Pittsburgh Penguins.

In the previous three years, each of the teams participating have worn their throwback uniform. The Buffalo Sabres, who hosted the first ever Winter Classic at Ralph Wilson Stadium in the Buffalo subarb of Orchard Park wore the old school blue and gold uniforms that they used to be seen in at the Aud. The visiting Penguins wore their powder blue uniforms which they still wear to this day on different occasions. As seen in the picture, Sidney Crosby scoring the winning goal in the shootout to give the Pens a 2-1 win over Ryan Miller and the Sabres. The announced crowd at the Ralph was 76, 000.


In the 2009 season, the Winter Classic was played at historic Wrigley field in Chicago as the Blackhawks hosted their division rivals, the  Detroit Red Wings, who happened to be the defending Stanley Cup Champions at the time. Detroit would get the better of the battle of the Original 6 teams as the Wings won the contest 6-4 in front of just about 41, 000 people. Detroit would go on and play for the Stanley Cup but would lose to Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins.





Last season, the Winter Classic was played in another historic ball bark as Fenway Park in Boston hosted the contest between the Philadelphia Flyers and the Boston Bruins. A Fenway Park sell out of 38,112 saw Marco Sturm score the game winner in Overtime to give the Bruins the win. Boston would go on and lose in the playoffs while Philadelphia played in the Stanley Cup Finals and lost in six games at the hand of Patrick Kane and the Chicago Blackhawks.

In each season of the Winter Classic, one of the two teams have eventually gone on and play for the greatest trophy in all of professional sports, the Stanley Cup. So who will we see playing in June? Crosby and the Pens or Ovi and the Caps? Only time will tell.