What is Behind the Sabres Lack of Production in the Playoffs?

The Sabres are one game away from elimination after former Sabre Miro Satan scored the game winner in Double Overtime last night in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals at TD Garden in Boston. The Sabres led after 2 periods 2-0 on goals by Steve Montador and Tim Kennedy. But that was suppost to be all the support that Ryan Miller would need but in Buffalo playoff fashion, the Sabres blow the 2-0 lead in the first half of the third period when Boston scored two goals on the powerplay before netting in the game winner in the second Overtime period.

Where have the Sabres gone? Buffalo won the Northeast Division by putting the puck in the net, playing good defense and having the goalie that saves everything and then some. So far this post season the "real" Sabres have only been out once and that was in Game 1 back at HSBC Arena. Game 2 had its moments as well as Game 3 but the Sabres have failed to put the puck in the net and also fail to clear the puck away from the net. Some say that the reason behind the Sabres demise this post-season is due to the lack of offensive production and also the bad calls made by the referees. Lets talk about the refs for a minute... Yes Matt Ellis told the Buffalo media after Game 3 that the hit he took was a clean hit and yes it was to a point... the point being that his head was down and we know that when someone's head is down, you will be punnished for it... Just ask RJ Umberger after Brian Campbell hit him back in the 2005-2006 playoffs




So the hit was clean but the calls in Game 4 was absolutely terrible. I mean come on a bad call when Patrick Kaleta took Lucic to the boards and after Lucic fell to the ice, the refs called it boarding and as a result, Boston scored on the powerplay. And then the too-many men pelenty gave the Bruins the win in OT.

But lets move on to the lack of offensive production that is produced by the Sabres offense. The Sabres have scored 8 goals so far this postseason and that is not high enough to win a series and let alone, win a hockey game. The Sabres are averaging two goals a game and that is definitely not high enough to win a playoff game. Jason Pominville, Thomas Vanek, Derek Roy plus others have failed in my eyes to produce this postseason. If the goal productions are coming from Craig Rivet, Steve Montador, Tim Kennedy and Mike Grier, you are not going to win hockey games I am sorry. Buffalo needs a goal scorer who can put the puck in the net and they also need someone to stand infront of the net in order to get a rebound or two and that creates offensive opportunities and they need them in order to score and to win.

Teams have trailed 3-1 in a best-of-seven series a total of 220 times and have come back to win the series on 20 of those occasions or 9.1% of the time.  The last time it happened was back in 2004 as the Montreal Canadians came back in the Conference Quarters and defeat the Boston Bruins. So it can be done Buffalo sports fans but it is along road ahead and it starts with Game 5 Friday night at HSBC Arena.

Amerks in Complete Control after 6-1 Win

The Rochester Americans used another four-goal second period to cruise to a 6-1 win in Game 4 tonight over the Abbotsford Heat and take a 3-1 series lead in the best-of-seven North Division semifinals. With its third straight win, Rochester now needs just one more victory to win the series and advance to the second round (North Division Finals) of the 2010 Calder Cup Playoffs. The game was also the second of three straight this week from the Abbotsford Entertainment and Sports Centre.

Defenseman Jordan Henry scored twice, Jeff Taffe assisted on three goals and four others each tallied a goal and an assist as Tyler Plante earned his third straight win with a 46-save effort. Josh Meyers was the lone scorer for the hometown Heat and ex-Amerk David Shantz dropped his third straight game with 16 saves.

The Heat outshot the Amerks 47-22 in the contest, including 23-4 in the first period alone. Rochester, however, made up for it on the power-play, converting on four of six opportunities, while holding Abbotsford scoreless on its six man-up situations. For the second straight game, the Amerks scored four unanswered goals in the second and five straight as Rochester has now outscored Abbotsford 20-9 through the first four games of the series.

Despite being outshot 23-4 in the opening period, the Amerks were able to jump out to a 1-0 lead and maintain it throughout the frame. For the first time in the series, Rochester opened the scoring in the contest, on its very first shot, midway through the first period as Jamie Johnson beat Shantz low glove-side for his first of the postseason the power-play. Jason Garrison beamed his notorious slap shot from the center of the blueline into traffic, and after Shawn Matthias’ first attempt was denied, Johnson picked up the loose puck and tucked it just inside the far post at the 8:49 mark. With the assists, Garrison extended his point streak to four games and Matthias established his first three-game point string of the playoffs.

Abbotsford knotted the game at one courtesy of Meyers’ first of the playoffs at 4:14 of the second stanza. Mikael Backlund led his team into Rochester’s zone along the right-wing boards and found a breaking Meyers in the slot, who’s quick shot eluded Plante with enough force to slide past the goal line. The goal would stand as the only one for the Heat, as Plante was impenetrable for the next 35:46 of play.
The game remained tied for just a short period of time, however, as Henry potted back-to-back goals, including one on the power-play, 78 seconds apart to give the Amerks a 3-1 lead. His first at 7:03 gave him his league-leading third power-play tally before his team-leading fourth goal at 8:21. With the goals, Henry, who has four goals in as many games, now ranks second among the league’s top goal-scorers and moved into sixth in scoring among AHL defenseman.

Rochester quickly extended its lead to 5-1 with goals just 32 seconds apart from Garrison and Michal Repik. Garrison banked one off the post on the power-play at 18:22 and Repik scored his first career playoff goal at 18:50 from Evgeny Dadonov and David Brine.
The Amerks’ power-play struck again at 4:43 of the final frame as Chris Taylor collected a goal-mouth rebound and lifted it into the top of the net for his first of the playoffs. Repik picked up his second point of the night with an assist on the play, and Taffe tabbed his third helper of the game to help Rochester to a 6-1 cushion and its fifth straight goal.

Rochester looks to capture the series on Friday, April 23rd in Game 5 of the North Division semifinals at the Abbotsford Entertainment and Sports Centre. The 10:00 p.m. EST contest will be broadcast live on SportsRadio 1280 WHTK and FM 107.3, Rochester’s Sports Talk. The Amerks will return home to The Blue Cross Arena for Games 6 and 7, if necessary, on Sunday, April 25th and Tuesday, April 27th.

From the Rochester Americans 

Sabres Playoffs Videos

This video is played at every Sabres home game during the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs.



So this brings me back to the last Playoff video open that the Sabres had... 2007 Better Days

Amerks Try to Even Series at Home in Game 2

Tonight, the Rochester Americans remain home for Game 2 of their 2010 Calder Cup Playoffs North Division semifinals with the Abbotsford Heat. The 7:05 p.m. matchup will be broadcast live on SportsRadio 1280 WHTK and FM 107.3, Rochester’s Sports Talk. Fans can also tune in to watch live on Time Warner Cable SportsNet Channel 26. The Heat currently lead the best-of-seven series 1-0 following their 3-2 win Thursday night in Game 1.

The playoff series marks the Amerks’ return to the postseason for the first time in three years and the 40th playoff appearance overall in the 54-year history of the franchise. Rochester has been a part of 77 playoff series over the years, in which it compiled a 205-182 record in 387 games during that time. Rochester finished its season series with Abbotsford with a 1-3-0-0 record, including back-to-back losses at home against the Heat.

The 2009-10 regular season saw four different Amerks players reach the 20-goal plateau, a feat that was last accomplished by the 1996-97 team. Veteran forward Jeff Taffe finished with a team and career-high 28 goals, while team MVP Jamie Johnson came in a close second with 27. Second-year forward Michal Repik potted 22 goals for his first 20-goal campaign and two-time Calder Cup champ Graham Mink netted his 20th in the last game of the season.
Following his 71-point season, Johnson became the first player to reach the 70-point benchmark since Chris Taylor last accomplished the feat during the 2004-05 campaign.

The Amerks come into Game 2 looking to even things up at one game apiece before journeying cross-country for Games 3, 4 and 5 (if necessary) in Abbotsford. Veteran forward Mike York (1+1) and Mink (0+2) each collected two points in Rochester’s Game 1 loss, while goaltenders Alexander Salak and Tyler Plante combined for 26 saves. Plante stopped all 20 shots he faced in relief effort. Both of Mink’s assists came on the power-play, where he is presently tied for first. Defenseman Jordan Henry, coming off his most productive season in his three-year pro career, continued to showcase his offensive side with a power-play goal Thursday night. Defenseman Keith Seabrook led the Heat with a pair of goals, including the eventual game-winner on the power-play, to help his team take Game 1 and a 1-0 lead in the series. Seabrook, a rookie who hadn’t registered a single multiple-goal game during the entire regular season, currently sits second among league defenseman in scoring in the 2010 Calder Cup Playoffs. He also already ranks second in goals scored for the postseason. Staffan Kronwall notched two assists in Game 1, good enough for fourth in that category. Former Amerks netminder David Shantz earned his first win of the postseason, stopping 30 of 32 shots for his first AHL playoff victory.

Rochester saw several of its team members officially make their American Hockey League playoff debuts in Game 1 Thursday night, including Head Coach Benoit Groulx, while others entered the postseason for the first time in an Amerk uniform. Groulx led his team to a 44-33-2-1 record (91 points), a 25-point spike from last season, and his offense was the second best in the North Division, scoring a total of 253 goals. In fact, no current member of the Amerks active roster was on the 2006-07 team that played in the 2007 Calder Cup Playoffs. Johnson led the way offensively with a team-high 71 points and was one of just two skaters to play in all 80 games throughout the regular season. A three-time Amerks player of the month, Johnson performed at under a point-per-game pace, en route to earning team MVP honors and the Amerks scoring champion award. The seventh-year pro finished 12th among the AHL’s top scorers, while his 44 assists were 14th best in the league. Taffe paced Rochester’s offense with a team-high 28 goals, good enough for 14th in the AHL, and captured personal bests in that category. He also finished second among Rochester’s active roster with seven power-play goals. Veteran defenseman Clay Wilson, who made his Panthers debut this season, had the best offensive performance of his five-year professional career this season with the Amerks, one that earned him a spot on the 2009-10 AHL Second All-Star Team. Wilson captured career-highs in all offensive categories in goals (14), assists (46), points (60), penalty minutes (58) and games played (75), finishing second on the team and second among league blueliners in scoring. His 46 helpers were also a team-best. Further, he led the Amerks with 191 shots on goal and was fourth in the league with 24 power-play assists.
Salak completed his first professional season with a 29-14-0 record with a 2.89 goals-against average and a .910 save percentage in 48 games. The 2009-10 AHL All-Star finished his rookie campaign with 29 wins to finish fourth among league netminders. Salak also posted a career-best nine-game winning streak earlier in the season and was the recipient of three league awards. For his efforts, he was named the Amerks’ 2009-10 Rookie of the Year. Plante also had a banner year between the pipes for the Amerks, collecting a career-best in all goaltending categories in wins (12), saves (701), shutouts (3), goals-against average (2.66), save percentage (.914) and games played (27). He also finished 13th among league goaltenders with three shutouts and was named the AHL Goaltender of the Month for March.




Abbotsford, who finished the regular season as the third-seeded team in North Division with a 39-29-5-7 (90 points) record, earns its first trip to the postseason after only its first season as a member in the American Hockey League. Fifth-year pro Jason Jaffray led the Heat in every offensive category in goals (25), assists (29) and points (54), in addition to owning the team’s best on-ice rating with a plus-24 through 72 games. The 2010 AHL All-Star also finished the campaign first on the team and fourth in the league with four shorthanded goals. As a team, the Heat racked up a league-high 1,796 penalty minutes, including 267 from J.D. Watt, who finished the season first on the team and fourth in the league in that category. Shantz finished the season with a 15-10-4 record with a 2.75 goals-against average and a .908 save percentage in 32 games. His 15 wins were the most among Abbotsford’s goaltending depth chart. Second-year netminder Leland Irving saw the most time between the pipes, however, posting a 14-17-2 record with a 2.76 goals-against average and a .905 save percentage.

North Division Semifinal – Series “F” (best-of-7):
N2-Rochester Americans vs. N3-Abbotsford Heat
Game 1: Thursday, April 15th at 7:05 p.m. at The Blue Cross Arena (ABB Leads 1-0)
Game 2: Saturday, April 17th at 7:05 p.m. at The Blue Cross Arena
Game 3: Monday, April 19th at 10:00 p.m. (EST) at Abbotsford Sports and Entertainment Centre
Game 4: Wednesday, April 21st at 10:00 p.m. (EST) at Abbotsford Sports and Entertainment Centre
*Game 5: Friday, April 23rd at 10:00 p.m. (EST) at Abbotsford Sports and Entertainment Centre
*Game 6: Sunday, April 25th at 5:05 p.m. at The Blue Cross Arena
*Game 7: Tuesday, April 27th at 7:05 p.m. at The Blue Cross Arena

*if necessary
Story Courtesy of the Rochester Americans

Raceday in Fulton: Super DIRTcar Series 100

Round two of the Super DIRTcar Series is right on schedule at Fulton Speedway. Just ask second-year track owner John Wight as he anxiously awaits his headline ‘VP Racing Fuels Spring Fever 100’ slated for April 10 at the Oswego County clay oval.

“We’re set to run, wish we would’ve picked this weekend for our opener,” smiled Wight, alluding to the forecast of 70-degree temperatures predicted the first week of April. A special Test & Tune practice session for all classes will still take place April 3 at 12noon with pit gates opening at 11:30 a.m. “You just never know this time of year.”

“I live five miles from the track and know we had about 160 inches of snow this winter. The rain finally got rid of the last pile a week ago and we were able to dig up and grade the track over the weekend. I’m counting on the weather staying good, then we’ll have everything ready to go for all the fans and racers coming in,” Wight confirmed.

Wight will be smiling even more when all the stars from the Super DIRTcar Series converge on Fulton for round two of the annual tour, each looking for the $6,000 winner’s check in the much anticipated season-opener at the Route 57 speedplant. Not only is Wight the track owner, he presides over one of the top teams on the circuit today, and his first-string driver Billy Decker captured the recent Series lid-lifter at Hagerstown (Md.) Speedway in pursuit of a third overall Hoosier Tire-VP Racing Fuels Mr. DIRTcar Championship.

“I don’t think there’s any added pressure for Billy, he’s the kind of guy that wants to win every race no matter where he goes,” added Wight, whose Gypsum Wholesalers-Stadium International monikers join Quality Hardwoods on Decker’s no. 91 Bicknell entry. Teammates Larry Wight, Pat Ward and Ryan Phelps will be among the familiar sea of red Gypsum rides helping make up the stellar field on race day when Fulton stages the Central New York opener for Big-Block Modifieds.

Race time is 6 p.m., pit gates are scheduled to unlock at 3 o’clock with grandstands opening at 4. Warm-ups start at 5 p.m. followed immediately by time trials and the first heat race green-flagged at 6 o’clock. Modified teams are encouraged to arrive early as pre-race technical inspection will begin as early as 1 o’clock before the pits are initially cleared at 2:30 p.m.

Still in search of his first Fulton victory, all-time Series winner and defending Mr. DIRTcar champion Brett Hearn will make another visit attempting to hold off the Gypsum gang along with two-time and defending track tour winner Alan Johnson. With registered Series racers Jimmy Phelps, Michael Storms, Dale Planck, Tom Sears Jr. and Billy Dunn also ’09 Fulton regulars, the competition should be even stiffer when top travelers Matt Sheppard, Danny Johnson, Justin Haers, Gary Tomkins and Steve Paine are thrown in the mix on April 10.

Jim Witko, Chuck Bower, Mike Bowman and Mike Mahaney are more of the Fulton notables that will be in contention, joining several other invading race teams that are expected to take part in the special spring show at the home of the Fulton 200 presented by SUNY Canton in October.

When trucking magnate Wight and his wife Laura began a new era at Fulton Speedway last year, their first official order of business was to name former owner Harvey Fink as promoter. Joined today by GM Bob Connelly, Marketing Director Mike Fabery and most recently his son Larry Fink in charge of track maintenance, the elder Fink is back at the helm overseeing every aspect of the operation in 2010.

“Last year when John took over we had somewhere around three weeks to get everything in place,” recalled Fink, who sparked Fulton’s gradual climb back to prominence when he first took over the deed in 1998. Also beginning promotions at sister track Brewerton Speedway in 1991, Fulton became a member of the DIRTcar NE Racing fraternity in 1999 with the Fink family in charge. “So everything was new, even some of the faces, and everybody had a fresh, new attitude.”

“All new equipment, new track surface and new grandstands gave us a solid start. Right now we have more new plans but I don’t like to talk about things until they’re done. There’s always a lot of ideas going around, I’m more focused on what’s been accomplished. Just want to get the first race in and we’ll have a lot more to say,” remarked Fink, who along with his wife Joan, received the Leonard J. Sammons, Jr. Memorial Award recognizing outstanding contributions to auto racing during the 2006 Northeast Modified Hall of Fame ceremonies on the Cayuga County Fairgrounds.

For more information, the speedway office can be reached by phoning 315/593-6531 and the track website remains www.fultonspeedway.com. Contact DIRTcar Racing Northeast Director of Competition & Track Sanctioning Joe Skotnicki (704/796-4566) or log into www.superdirtcarseries.com for additional news & notes. Be sure to sign up on http://www.twitter.com/SuperDIRTcar and receive updates throughout the season.

Story Provided by Tom Skibinski - DIRTcar NE PR Director 

AHL Coach goes Nuts in Losing Cause

The Abbotsford Heat and the Hamilton Bulldogs got together Saturday night in Abbotsford. Hamilton won the game 4-0 but Heat Head Coach Jim Playfair goes nuts after a call that the refs blew. Here is the video courtesy of Hockey Night in Canada

Oswego Ousted by St. Norbert 4-3

With the score knotted at 3-3, St. Norbert’s Cody Keefer scored the game-winning goal with 39.4 seconds remaining to give the third-ranked Green Knights a 4-3 win over the second-ranked Oswego State men’s ice hockey team in the semifinals of the NCAA Division III Men's Ice Hockey Championships on Friday at Herb Brooks Arena in Lake Placid, N.Y. The Lakers tied the contest on three separate occasions, including Jon Whitelaw’s goal with 2:32 left to play in regulation. Oswego State finished the season with an overall record of 26-3-0, while St. Norbert advanced to the NCAA Championship with a record of 24-3-3 overall.
Few scoring opportunities existed in the first period as both teams gained a feel for each other and the Olympic-size rink.  Oswego State went on the only power play of the frame in the early stages, but was unable to apply any pressure.  At the end of the penalty, Mike Bernardy (Jr., Sandy, Utah) came out of the penalty box, picked up the puck at neutral ice to create the first scoring chance of the game.  He ripped a wrist shot on the breakaway, but Laker goaltender Kyle Gunn-Taylor (Sr., West Seneca, N.Y.) made a right pad save to keep St. Norbert off of the scoreboard.

Late in the period, an Oswego State turnover at neutral ice resulted in Johan Ryd (So., Sodertalje, Sweden) picking up the puck for a 1-on-0 breakaway.  He rifled a shot past Gunn-Taylor into the lower right portion of the net to give St. Norbert a 1-0 lead with 1:59 remaining in the first period.  The Green Knights turned up the pressure on the Lakers in the waning seconds of the stanza, but the defense was able to keep St. Norbert from scoring as the score stood at 1-0 heading into intermission.

After play went back-and-forth for the majority of the second stanza, Eric Selleck (So., Spencerville, Ontario) carried the puck to the blue line before dumping the pass to Justin Fox (Jr., Whitby, Ontario) on the far right side.  Fox laced a cross-ice to Neil Musselwhite (Sr., Burlington, Ontario), who gathered the puck before firing a wrist shot into the upper left-corner of the net over Green Knight goalie B.J. O’Brien’s (Jr., Lakeville, Minn.) stick at 17:14.  It was Musselwhite’s 23rd goal of the season as the score was tied at 1-1 after two periods.

Whatever scoring was lacking in the first 40 minutes was made up for in abundance in the final frame.  Early in the third, St. Norbert took advantage of an Oswego State boarding penalty when Matt Boyd’s shot for the slot ricocheted off the crossbar into open space where Tyler Allen (Sr., Midhurst, Ontario) flipped the puck into the net at 4:18.  Less than a minute later, the Lakers evened the score when Fox received a pass on the right side from Chris Laganiere (Jr., Owego, N.Y).  He faked a slap shot near the left face-off circle before sending a wrist shot into the left side of the net at the 5:12 mark.

The Green Knights regained the lead at 7:02 when they capitalized on an Oswego State turnover in the defensive zone.  Scott Pulak (Jr., Green Bay, Wis.) fed Sam Tikka (Sr., Soldotna, Alaska) with a pass as he sent an uncontested shot through Gunn-Taylor’s five-hole to make the score 3-2. 
Oswego State continued to fight until it tied the game again with 2:32 remaining when Paul Rodrigues (Fr., Etobicoke, Ontario) played the puck from behind the net to Jon Whitelaw (Fr., Huntsville, Ontario), who was in front of the net to pound home the goal.

The game appeared to be headed into overtime until another turnover at center ice lead to Cody Keefer (Fr., Grayling, Mich.) skating in for the breakaway and the game-winning goal with 39.4 seconds remaining on the clock.  Head coach Ed Gosek called timeout after the score and pulled Gunn-Taylor for the extra attacker, but the Lakers were unable to put a shot on goal in the final seconds.

Oswego State’s Kyle Gunn-Taylor finished the game with 16 saves as he finished the season with a record of 18-2-0.  St. Norbert’s B.J. O’Brien improved to 24-2-3 after registering 20 saves.  The Lakers were 0-for-4 on the power play compared to the Green Knights, who were 1-for-2. 

Notes
-Oswego State ended the year with one of the most successful seasons in school history as it set a new mark for highest winning percentage in school history at .897 after going 26-3-0.  The previous mark was .883 (26-3-1), which was set in 1980-81.
-The Lakers are now 2-1-0 all-time against St. Norbert as Oswego State defeated the Green Knights 4-3 in overtime in the 2007 NCAA Semifinals and 4-3 on November 28, 2008 in DePere, Wis.

Box Score

Photo: Mike LeBoeuf (Oswego Palladium Times) 
Story: Oswego State Sports Information  

Oswego and St. Norbert meet in Semifinals from Lake Placid

The Oswego State Lakers and St. Norbert Green Knights will meet for the second time in the last 4 years in the NCAA D-III National Semifinals for the shot to play for a national championship. Oswego won that game back in 2007 in OT on a goal by former Laker Captain Ryan Woodward. This year's battle will get underway at 4:00 pm Friday afternoon from the Herb Brooks Ice Arena in Lake Placid, NY, the site of the 1980 "Miracle on Ice".

St. Norbert comes into the matchup with a record of 23-3-3. The Green Knights defeated Gustavus Adolphus 3-1 last Saturday to make the Frozen Four. St. Norbert is led offensively by Senior forward Shane Wheeler. Wheeler has 31 points (13 G, 28 A) in 29 games played. Fellow Senior Tyler Allen has 30 points (14 G, 16 A) and Senior Matt Boyd has 28 points (9 G, 18 A). The Green Knights are led in net by Junior BJ O'Brien. O'Brien is 23-2-3 with a .923 save percentage and a Goals Against Avearge (GAA) of 1.58.

Oswego's road to Lake Placid only had one stop on the way... the Campus Center Ice Arena. The Lakers went perfect at home this season and that includes last Saturday's 9-2 defeat over Bowdoin in the Quarterfinals. The Lakers are 26-2-0 and Champions of the SUNYAC Conference. Oswego is led offensively by the line of Eric Selleck, Chris Laganiere and Justin Fox. Selleck has 53 points (21 Goals, 32 Assists) in just 27 games played. Owego's Chris Laganiere has 45 points (16 G, 29 A) as does Justin Fox (13 G, 32 A). The Lakers are led in net by West Seneca, NY native Kyle Gunn-Taylor. KGT has an overall record of  18-1-0 with a .918 save percentage and a Goals Against Average of 2.00

The winner of this matchup will meet the winners of the night cap game between Norwich and Plattsburgh for the National Title at 5:00 pm Saturday from Lake Placid. The game between Oswego and St Norbert will be webstreamed live through 88.9 FM WNYO Oswego. The contest will also be webcasted courtesy of FastHockey.com.  Sign-up registration is required by logging on to http://www.fasthockey.com/login.php, but the video is free.

Lakers Oust Bowdoin 9-2, Head to Lake Placid For Frozen Four

The second-ranked Oswego State men’s hockey team posted a convincing 9-2 win over sixth-ranked Bowdoin on Saturday night at the Campus Center Arena to advance to the NCAA Division III Men’s Hockey Semifinal round. Senior assistant captain Neil Musselwhite paced the Laker offense with four goals, while sophomore defenseman Hank Van Boxmeer broke out for two goals and two assists in the victory. Oswego State, which improved to 26-2-0 overall, will face third-ranked St. Norbert on Friday, March 19 in Lake Placid, N.Y. at a time to be announced. The Polar Bears finished the season with an overall record of 19-7-1.
Bowdoin struck first by capitalizing on a pair of Oswego State charging penalties at 5:14 in the first period when Mike Corbelle’s (Sr., Byfield, Mass.) blast from the right point got past Laker netminder Kyle Gunn-Taylor (Sr., West Seneca, N.Y.).  Captain Colin MacCormack (Sr., Bedford, Nova Scotia) was credited with an assist on the play as the Polar Bears quieted the crowd.

The Lakers evened the game two minutes later as both teams skated 4-on-4.  Brad Dormiedy (Sr., Ajax, Ontario) moved the puck from the defensive zone to neutral ice before finding Neil Musselwhite (Sr., Burlington, Ontario), who was skating up the right side.  Musselwhite got around the Polar Bear defender, moved through the crease, and got the backhand past Bowdoin goaltender Chris Rossi (Sr., Barrington, R.I.).  The Polar Bears gained another two-skater advantage later in the period, but Oswego State was able to kill both penalties and keep the score knotted at 1-1.

It would not be until late in the period when the Lakers seized the lead for good.  Luke Moodie (Fr., Burlington, Ontario) carried the puck deep into the Bowdoin defensive zone before finding Eric Selleck (So., Spencerville, Ontario) at the right face-off circle.  As a Polar Bear player went down to block the shot, Selleck passed over to Hank Van Boxmeer (So., Orange, Calif.), whose blast from the blue line found its way through traffic at 14:38 to put Oswego State ahead 2-1. 

Van Boxmeer struck again early in the second period with six seconds remaining on a Laker power play when he ripped a slap shot that popped Rossi’s water bottle off of the top of the net.  Matt Singleton (Fr., Brooklin, Ontario) and Moodie received assists on the goal that gave Oswego State a 3-1 edge.  The Lakers took advantage of a Bowdoin line change at the 7:34 mark with seven seconds left in another Oswego State power play when Musselwhite’s slap shot from the left face-off went off of Rossi’s glove, and bounced into the air behind Rossi into the net.  Gunn-Taylor was credited with an assist on the play for his first career point.
Minutes later, Dormiedy carried the puck across the blue line, ripped a slap shot past Rossi after faking a pass to Musselwhite on the left side to give the Lakers a four-goal lead midway through the second period.  The goal prompted Bowdoin head coach Terry Meagher to call timeout and switch Rossi for Richard Nerland (So., Calgary, Alberta).

However, the change did not slow down the Oswego State offense as Musselwhite completed the hat trick at 17:47 in the middle stanza when Dormiedy drew the Bowdoin defender on a 2-on-1 rush before passing to his linemate for the tap-in goal. The Lakers closed out the second period with their third power-play goal of the game when Justin Fox (Jr., Whitby, Ontario) deflected a Tyler Lyon (Sr., Foxboro, Ontario) slap shot past Nerland to give Oswego State a 7-1 lead at intermission. 

Midway through the third period, Musselwhite tacked on his fourth goal of the game when he and Chris Laganiere (Jr., Owego, N.Y.) traded passes back-and-forth during an odd-man rush. B owdoin answered seconds later, though, when Rob MacGregor (Fr., Collegeville, Pa.) flipped the puck over Gunn-Taylor’s left shoulder at 10:49 with assists going to Kyle Shearer-Hardy (Jr., Montreal, Quebec) and Brendan Reich (Jr., Montvale, N.J.) to make the score 8-2.  The final Oswego State goal came at the 12:50 mark when Van Boxmeer laced a two-line pass through center ice to Tyler Leimbrock (Fr., Bolton, Ontario) in stride, as he skated in on Nerland unabated for the goal.  Michael Gilchrist (Fr., Rochester, N.Y.) also earned an assist.

The Lakers finished the game 3-for-7 on the power play compared to the Polar Bears, who went 1-for-8 with the skater advantage, including 1-for-6 in the first period.  Oswego State out-shot Bowdoin 33-23, but that differential occurred solely in the second stanza as the Lakers owned a 16-4 shot advantage.
Oswego State’s Kyle Gunn-Taylor improved to 18-1-0 on the season after stopping 21 shots and allowing two goals.  The Polar Bears’ Chris Rossi recorded 17 saves on 22 shots, while Richard Nerland finished with seven saves on 11 shots.  Musselwhite’s four-goal performance tied the NCAA championship record for most goals in a single game, which has occurred on four previous occasions with the most recent taking place in 1997 when Norwich’s Curt Healy posted four goals against Plattsburgh.

The Lakers, who are advancing to the NCAA semifinal game for the first time since 2007, will face St. Norbert on Friday, March 19.  St. Norbert defeated Gustavus Adolphus 3-1 to earn a spot in Lake Placid.
Fans looking to attend Friday’s contest can find ticket information at NCAA.com. 

Box Score

Courtesy of Oswego State Sports Information  

Oswego vs Bowdoin... Winner Heads to Lake Placid

The Oswego State Lakers are hosting the NCAA D-III Mens Ice Hockey Quarterfinals for the first time since their 3-0 shutout of Norwich in 2007 on their way to the National Championship. The Lakers are just one win away from heading to Lake Placid and represent the SUNYAC in the frozen four.  The one team that is stoping the Lakers to head to Lake Placid, the Bowdoin Polar Bears. The matchup at the Campus Center Ice Arena at SUNY Oswego will start with the puck drop, around 7:00 pm Saturday night.

The Polar Bears, 19-6-1 are representing the NESCAC Conference and recieved one of the at large bids to get into the national tournament. The Polar Bears are 6th according to the USCHO D-III Polls and are led offensively by Junior Defenseman Kyle Shearer-Hardy with 8 goals and 21 assists for 29 points in 24 games played this season. Leading forward is freshman Daniel Weiniger with 13 goals and 13 assists for 26 points in 21 games played. Bowdoin is led between the pipes by Senior Chris Rossi. Rossi is 14-1-1 with a 2.08 Goals Against Average (GAA) and a .919 save percentage.

Oswego State enters this contest after winning the SUNYAC Championship for the first time since 2003 as they defeated arch-rival Plattsburgh 6-3 last Saturday night in Oswego for their third win this season over the Cardinals. The Lakers, 25-2-0 were 2nd in the final USCHO D-III Poll of the season. Oswego is led offensively by the top line of Eric Selleck, Justin Fox and Chris Laganiere. Selleck, has 21 goals and 31 assists for 52 points to lead all scorers for Oswego. Chris Laganiere and Justin Fox both have 44 points each. Laganiere has 16 goals and 28 assists while Fox has 12 goals and 32 assists. Between the pipes, Kyle Gunn-Taylor leads the way for the Lakers. Gunn-Taylor is 17-1-0 with a 2.00 GAA and a .916 save percentage.

This game will be broadcasted through the Student Media Groups at SUNY Oswego. WTOP-10 and Central NY Time Warner local access 96 will have the game starting with their pregame show "Hockey Night in Oswego" at 6:30 pm. WNYO-FM 88.9 will broadcast the game starting with their pregame show, "Countdown to Faceoff" at 6:00 pm. WNYO-FM and WTOP Webstream will be doing a webstream of the 7:00 pm contest from the Campus Center Ice Arena on the shores of Lake Ontario. Live stats will also be available for the contest through the Oswego State Sports Information Department.

Neil Musselwhite is Heading to the Motor City

Oswego State senior men’s ice hockey player Neil Musselwhite of Burlington, Ontario has been selected as one of six players to represent the men’s East squad in the fifth annual NCAA Frozen Four Skills Challenge on April 9 at Ford Field in Detroit. The competition will be conducted in an East versus West format with each team having six male position players, six female position players, two male goaltenders and two female goaltenders as part of the festivites at the 2010 NCAA Division I Men's Hockey Frozen Four. Musselwhite, who was the only Division III men’s hockey player to be named to the East and West final roster, will compete in the fastest skater challenge.

Musselwhite has been known around the league for his speed during his four-year career at Oswego State, but made a national splash on December 4 when he tallied three short-handed goals in a span of 2:59 against Brockport. He is believed to be just the third player in college hockey history to achieve a natural short-handed hat trick. Musselwhite is currently second on the squad with 18 goals and leads all NCAA Divisions with six short-handed goals. Musselwhite was speechless when told the news at practice on Wednesday, but would like to thank all of the Oswego State fans who voted for him over a two-week period as selection to the team was partially based on those fan votes.

Other members of the men’s East squad include Sean Backman, Yale; Bobby Butler, New Hampshire; Owen Meyer, Army; Ben Smith, Boston College and Brandon Wong, Quinnipiac. The two goalies are: Jared DeMichiel, RIT and Ben Scrivens, Cornell.

The No. 2-Lakers will host No. 6-Bowdoin in the NCAA Division III Men’s Hockey Quarterfinals on Saturday, March 13 at 7 p.m. at the Campus Center Arena in Oswego. Tickets are available for the contest and may be purchased by calling 315-312-3073.

Courtesy of Oswego State Sports Information Department 

Final Seconds of SUNYAC Championship

Audio: Mike Keeley - Home PxP Announcer Oswego State Lakers - WNYO FM
Video: Joe Crahan - WNYO-FM Personality and OSU Fan

SUNYAC CHAMPS... Your Oswego State Lakers

For the first time since 2007, the Oswego State men’s hockey team will be headed back to the NCAA Division III Men’s Hockey Tournament after defeating visiting Plattsburgh 6-3 for the SUNYAC Championship on Saturday night in Oswego. The Lakers displayed a balanced attack as six different players scored goals in front of a sold-out crowd. Oswego State, which earned its eighth conference title overall and first since 2002-03, improved to 25-2-0 on the season, while the Cardinals dropped to 18-5-4.
Paul Rodrigues (Fr., Etobicoke, Ont.) got the scoring started at 9:32 in the first period when he netted a wrist shot from the left side over the glove of Plattsburgh goaltender Ryan Williams.  Luke Moodie (Fr., Burlington, Ont.) and Michael Gilchrist (Fr., Rochester, N.Y.) were credited with assists on the goal. Owen Kelly (Jr., Plattsburgh, N.Y.) stretched the lead to two when he scored on a pass from Andrew Mather (So., Ottawa, Ont.) at 13:26 in the first period. The Lakers would carry their two-goal lead until midway through the second period when the Cardinals ended the shutout bid.  Andrew Willock was able to push the puck in the net after a long scramble at 9:17 in the second period.  Eric Satim recorded an assist on the play.  Kevin Huinink (Jr., Whitby, Ont.) positioned himself behind Kyle Gunn-Taylor (Sr., West Seneca, N.Y.) during the scramble, saving several scoring chances before the eventual goal.

Huinink got Oswego State back on track at 16:11 when he blasted a slap shot from just inside the blue line that beat Williams up high. Mather pushed the score to 4-1 when he fired a wrist shot that beat the Cardinal goaltender stick-side at 18:04 in the second stanza.  Mather received a pass from Kelly, switching roles from their combined effort on a first period goal.

Just 22 seconds later, Taylor Farris (Fr., Oakville, Ont.) received a pass from Tyler Leimbrock (Fr., Bolton, Ont.) and took it down the left side before letting go of a wrist shot. The shot trickled between Williams’ legs and into the net, making the score 5-1 for Farris’ first collegiate score.

Momentum continued to be on the side of Oswego State at the start of the third frame when Justin Fox (Jr., Whitby, Ont.) scored 51 seconds in when he took a pass from Chris Laganiere (Jr., Owego, N.Y.) and beat Josh Leis, who had replaced Williams at the start of the third, with a wrist shot over his glove from the middle of the ice.  It was the fourth Laker goal in a five-minute span.

Plattsburgh continued to fight late into the game, scoring two goals 2:16 apart to bring the lead down to 6-3 with less than three minutes remaining. Eric Satim and Dylan Clarke scored for Plattsburgh, both on power plays, but it would not be enough as Oswego State went on to hoist the championship trophy.
In goal for the Lakers, Kyle Gunn-Taylor (Sr., West Seneca, N.Y.) registered 35 saves on the night.  The Plattsburgh goalies combined for 17 saves, as Williams had nine and Leis had eight.

After the game, the SUNYAC All-Tournament Team was announced. Oswego State’s Kyle Gunn-Taylor was selected as the top goalie and Tyler Lyon (Sr., Foxboro, Ont.) was chosen for play at the blue line. The three forwards chosen were Morrisville’s Chris Cerbino, Plattsburgh’s Dylan Clarke, and Oswego State’s Tyler Leimbrock.

Oswego State’s Kevin Huinink was named the SUNYAC Tournament Most Valuable Player, after recording two goals and an assist in two Laker games and a +5 rating. With the win, the Lakers avenged last year’s defeat in the title game against the Cardinals. This was the team’s third win against the Cardinals this season, as they swept the regular-season series.

Oswego State will await word from the NCAA selection committee on when and where it will play when the national tournament bracket is released at NCAA.com on Sunday at 6 p.m.  Plattsburgh will wait to see if it receives one of the three at-large bids for the 11-team tournament.

Box Score

Story Courtesy of SUNY Oswego Sports Information 

GCC's Cheer Team Wins Grand Champion at 'Cheer for a Cure' Competition

The Genesee Community College Cougar Cheer Team and Cougarette Dance Team have returned from a very successful first time showing at the annual Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation's (JDRF) Cheer for a Cure cheerleading and dance competition. On Sunday, February 28, cheer and dance teams throughout Western, New York met at the University of Buffalo's Alumni Arena to compete and raise funds for the JDRF's annual fundraiser. The GCC Cheer Team placed first in the College Co-Ed Limited Division and won Grand Champion in the College Division. The Cougarette Dance Team also took home first place in the Hip Hop Open Division.

The Cougar Cheer Team and Cougarette Dance Team are off to a great start for their first year as competing squads. Formed in the fall 2009 semester, the teams have had less than a year to get their teams and routines in shape for competition.

"I was so proud of the teams", Coach Jennifer Newell said. "We competed against some outstanding squads who have a long tradition of being tough competitors. Our teams worked really hard and came out on top."
The Cheer for a Cure competition raised funds to benefit JDRF and was co-sponsored by Buffalo's Kiss 98.5 radio station. Cheer for a Cure is one of the largest cheerleading competitions in Western, NY with approximately 141 teams gathering to compete from elementary age to college level. The Cougar Cheer Team beat out Jamestown Community College, Erie Community College, University of Buffalo (all-girls team) and Daemen College to take the top honor in the College Division. "There was so much energy in that arena, what an incredible moment it was when they announced our name as Grand Champions," Newell said. "We were all stunned, it was unbelievable!"

Coached by Jennifer Newell, Dean of Students at Genesee, the Cheer Team is made up of: Lisa Ames, Frankie Brumsted, Alyssa Brunette, Danielle Colvin, Allyson Galens, Shaday Gibbs, Amaryllis Labue, Michel'le Marable, Sheena Murray, Mark Nichols, Jessalyn Payne, Rebecca Piechowiak, Mindy Pilon, Kelly Rugar, Jacquay Wilder, Genna Wiseman and Lizzy Zacher. Members of the Cougarettes Dance Team include: Shartanay Gibbs, Iasiah Jones, Delores O-Boateng, Kyla Preston, Kiara Davis, Jacquay Wilder, Alexa Berry, Farah St. Cloud, Skylar Perry, Jasmine Giles, and Faatima Muhammed.
For further information please contact Genesee Cheer Team coach, Jennifer Newell at 585-343-0055 x6314.

photo/Facebook 

Oswego Comes Back and Beats Morrisville; Meet Plattsburgh in SUNYAC Finals

Men's Ice Hockey Overcomes Early Deficit For 8-5 Win Over Morrisville; Faces Plattsburgh In SUNYAC ChampionshipThe No. 2 nationally ranked Oswego State men’s ice hockey team erased a three-goal deficit to come back for an 8-5 win over Morrisville in the SUNYAC Semifinals on Saturday night at the Campus Center Arena. The Lakers trailed 3-0 in the first ten minutes of the game, but charged back behind a hat trick from freshman Tyler Leimbrock and two goals from senior Neil Musselwhite. Oswego State, which improved to 24-2-0 overall, will face Plattsburgh in the SUNYAC Championship game on Saturday, March 6 at 7 p.m. in Oswego. The Mustangs finished the season at 9-17-0.

Morrisville put up the game’s first goal after a rare Oswego State turnover in the defensive zone resulted in Chris Cerbino (Fr., Highland, N.Y.) flipping a backhand above Laker goaltender Kyle Gunn-Taylor (Sr., West Seneca, N.Y.) at 7:50.  Minutes later, Oswego State caught Morrisville in a line change creating a 4-on-1 rush, but Mustang goalie Caylin Relkoff (Jr., Grand Forks, B.C.) made two saves to keep the Lakers off of the board.  The Mustangs charged the other way, as Gunn-Taylor stopped Dave Shultz’s (Jr., Trucksville, Pa.) shot, but Geoff Matzel (So., Chittenango, N.Y.) was there to cleanup the rebound to put Morrisville ahead 2-0 at 8:47 in the first period.

The Mustangs kept their momentum going after a Laker tripping penalty near the midway point of the frame.  Morrisville’s Andrew Alarie (Sr., Carlisle, Ont.) won the ensuing face-off, feeding the puck back to Bobby Cass, who snuck a shot through traffic and into the back of the net.  The goal resulted in Coach Ed Gosek making a goaltending switch replacing Gunn-Taylor with Paul Beckwith (So., Cleveland, Ohio).

Oswego State got on the scoreboard at 12:53 when Tyler Leimbrock (Fr., Bolton, Ont.) was in position to pound home the rebound after a Neil Musselwhite (Sr., Burlington, Ont.) shot.  Brad Dormiedy (Sr., Ajax, Ont.) also earned an assist on the play.  The Lakers cut the deficit in half minutes later when Dormiedy played the puck from behind the net to Musselwhite, who was sitting in front of the crease, for the tap-in goal to make the score 3-2 at the first intermission.

Morrisville regained its two-goal advantage at 1:02 in the second when Johnathan Cristini (So., Mississauga, Ont.) picked up the puck in neutral territory.  He broke free of the Oswego State defense for an uncontested shot to make the score 4-2 in favor of Morrisville.  The Lakers responded quickly, though, when Tyler Leimbrock netted his second goal of the game at 3:18 when his slap shot from the slot went over Relkoff’s glove into the top left corner of the net.  Leimbrock completed the hat trick at the end of the frame when he deflected in a blast by Kevin Huinink (Jr., Whitby, Ont.) from the left point to send the teams into the locker room knotted at 4-4.
The Mustangs started the third period with a skater-advantage, but Neil Musselwhite beat two Morrisville defenders to the puck after causing the turnover for the breakaway.  His shot got past Relkoff giving Oswego State its first lead of the game 27 seconds into the stanza for his sixth short-handed goal of the season. 

Jon Whitelaw (Fr., Huntsville, Ont.) gave the Lakers a 6-4 edge when Relkoff came out of the crease to play the puck.  Whitelaw caused enough of a disruption to get control of the puck for the empty-net goal forcing Morrisville to call timeout with 8:27 left in the game. 

Oswego State later capitalized on its eighth power-play chance of the game when Eric Selleck (So., Spencerville, Ont.) posted his 21st goal of the season after receiving a feed from Justin Fox (Jr., Whitby, Ont.) and Chris Laganiere (Jr., Owego, N.Y.) to go ahead 7-4.  However, Morrisville was not done as Tom Longland (So., Dunnville, Ont.) posted his sixth goal of year with three minutes remaining.  Huinink sealed victory for the Lakers when he scored an empty-net, short-handed goal at 19:00.

Oswego State’s Paul Beckwith earned his eighth win of the season by making 16 saves in the final 50:17 of the game.  Caylin Relkoff stopped 32 of the 39 shots he faced.  Both teams struggled on the power play as the Lakers went 1-for-8 and the Mustangs went 1-for-5 and allowed two short-handed goals.

Tickets for the SUNYAC championship game will be available for SUNY Oswego students and current season ticket holders on Monday, Mar. 1 at the Campus Center Box Office. Season ticket holders and students will receive ticket priority through the end of the day on Tuesday, Mar. 2, while tickets will be made available to the general public on Wednesday, Mar. 3.

Ticket prices are $8 for adults and $3 for SUNY Oswego students with college ID.  Students that purchase tickets in advance will be entered into a drawing for three pairs of all-session passes at the NCAA Division III Men’s Ice Hockey Championships in Lake Placid on March 19-20.  Students must be present to win and have SUNY Oswego ID to claim the prize. The Campus Center Box Office hours are 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday through Friday and may be reached at (315) 312-3073.

Box Score

Story and Pictures Courtesy of Oswego State Sports Information  

SUNYAC Semi-Finals Preview

This weekend two teams will emerge and then play for the SUNYAC Championship next weekend. However, all four teams should not think that far and worry about their upcoming opponents this weekend. To no one's suprise the top two teams in the conference are Oswego and Plattsburgh. However, their two opponents are somewhat of a suprise.

The top seed Oswego State Lakers will host the Morrisville Mustangs on Saturday night at 7:00 pm from the Campus Center Ice Arena. Oswego (23-2-0) was one game away from sweeping the entire SUNYAC Conference this season until dropping a 3-1 decision at the Ira S Wilson Rink in Geneseo against the Ice Knights on the last day of the regular season. Oswego is also coming into this contest being the number 2 ranked team in the nation, according to the latest USCHO D-III Polls.  Morrisville is coming in to ths game with the Lakers with a overall record of 9-16-0 and they are here after defeating the Fredonia Blue Devils 3-2 in Overtime on Tuesday evening during the play in game. Just three days prior to that, Fredonia lit up the Mustangs 7-1.  Oswego swept the regular season against the Mustangs, beating them 8-1 in Oswego back on November 21st and 5-3 on February 13th at the Ice Plex in Morrisville. Oswego is led offensively by their top line of Eric Selleck, Chris Laganiere and Justin Fox. Selleck, hit the 50 point plateau while Laganiere and Fox both have 42 points respectfully. The Lakers are solid in net with both Kyle Gunn-Taylor (16-1-0, 1.78 GAA and .924 save %) and Paul Beckwith (7-1-0, 1.85 GAA, .931%) performing well. Morrisville is led offensively by juniors Rob Sgarbossa, Andrew Alarie and Bobby Cass. Sgarbossa only has 21 points, thats half the points that both Laganiere and Fox has for Oswego. Look for Morrisville to come out all hyped up after beating Fredonia and look for Oswego to put the pressure on Mustang netminder Caylin Relkoff  (9-13-0, 4.05 GAA and .890 save%) early and often and therefore the Lakers will host the SUNYAC Championship game on the shores of Lake Ontario. 

The second ranked Plattsburgh Cardinals are set to host the Brockport Golden Eagles Saturday Night at the Stafford Ice Arena. The Cards, (17-4-4) are looking to find their way back into the SUNYAC Championship and try to defend their title. Plattsburgh is coming into this showdown ranked forth in the nation according to the USCHO D-III Polls. The Brockport Golden Eagles (14-11-1) are coming to Plattsburgh after shutting out the Potsdam Bears 3-0 in their Play in Game on Tuesday night. Plattsburgh, like Oswego swept their opponent during the regular season, defeating the Golden Eagles 4-1 at Stafford and then 7-1 in Brockport. The Cardinals are led offensively by Juniors Dylan Clarke ( 7 G, 17 A for 24 points) and Eric Satim (10 G, 13 A for 23 points).  Brockport is led by Sophomore James Cody (13 G-14 A- 27 P) and Junior Ray Tremblay (6 G- 19 A- 25 P). The battle will be in net as Brockport's Todd Sheridan is coming in with a 11-10-1 record, 3.02 GAA and a .913 save %. Plattsburgh's two  Freshmen netminders, Ryan Williams (10-1-1, 1.89 GAA, .917 save %) and Josh Leis (7-3-3, 1.63 GAA and .933 save %) have performed well for Bob Emery after the early departure of former netminder Bryan Hince. Look for Brockport to come out and skate well with the Cardinals but as the game goes on, Plattsburgh's pressure on Sheridan will take over and look for the Cardinals to play for the SUNYAC Championship next weekend.

Here are the scenarios for the right to play in the SUNYAC Championship
If Oswego wins - they will host the SUNYAC Championships
If Plattsburgh Wins - Either host the Championship game (with Oswego loss) or they will travel to Oswego
If Brockport Wins - Travel to Oswego or host Morrisville for the Championship
If Morrisville Wins - Travel to either Brockport or Plattsburgh

Media Coverage of SUNYAC Semi-Finals 
For those who cannot attend the game in Oswego... Time Warner Cable Sports will broadcast the game live as well as WTOP-10 and locall access channel 96. They are also webstreaming the game live courtesy of Oswego State Sports Information with WTOP personnel providing commentary for WTOP and the webstream. A live radio broadcast will provided by WNYO (88.9 FM) and is available at www.wnyo.org, as well as live stats, which can be accessed at www.sidearmstats.com/oswego/mhockey.

As for the Plattsburgh game, long time play by play announcer Ducky Drake will broadcast the match up with Brockport on WIRY radio in Plattsburgh. Live stats is also available by CLICKING HERE. For the Brockport fans, 89.1 The Point will cover the game on the radio dials with Live Stats doing that game as well as Fast Hockey.com providing video.  

Oswego Men Dominate SUNYAC Post-Season Awards

The State University of New York Athletic Conference released its 2009-10 Post-Season Men’s Ice Hockey awards on Wednesday and Oswego State garnered the majority of the awards. Sophomore forward Eric Selleck (pictured)  was named the Herb Hammond Most Valuable Player, freshman forward Jon Whitelaw was named Rookie of the Year, and Ed Gosek was selected as the Coach of the Year. Three players received First Team All-Conference recognition including junior forward Chris Laganiere, junior defenseman Stephen Mallaro, and Selleck, while senior forward Neil Musselwhite was named to the Second Team.


In addition, senior defenseman Tyler Lyon and senior goaltender Kyle Gunn-Taylor received honorable mention All-Conference honors.  After finishing the SUNYAC regular season with a record of 15-1-0, the Lakers, who are 23-2-0 overall, earned the top seed in the conference post-season tournament.
Eric Selleck, a native of Spencerville, Ontario, led the league in the majority of offensive categories including points (39), assists (25), goals (14), power play points (14).  He was tied for the league-lead in goals scored at 14.  Last year’s SUNYAC Rookie of the Year was named SUNYAC Player of the Week on November 9 and December 14.  Selleck is the second player in conference history to receive both SUNYAC MVP and Rookie of the Year honors following Oswego State’s Ryan Ellis and is the first to accomplish this in consecutive seasons. 

Chris Laganiere, an Owego, N.Y. native, led the conference with four game-winning goals and ranked second in the conference at 30 points.  He tied Selleck for a league-best 14 goals and was tied for first in power play goals at six.  Laganiere also ranked second in power play points at 11 and fourth in assists at 16.

Stephen Mallaro (right), a defenseman from Syracuse, N.Y., was fourth among conference defensemen in scoring with 11 points on four goals and seven assists.  He also posted three game-winning goals for Oswego State.

Assistant captain Neil Musselwhite led the conference with four short-handed goals and was tied for third in the league with 11 goals.  The Burlington, Ontario native was selected as the SUNYAC Player of the Week on December 7 and January 11.  He became the ninth player in NCAA history to tally a short-handed natural hat trick on December 4 against Brockport. 

Jon Whitelaw (right), a forward from Hunstville, Ontario, led all league rookies with 22 points on eight goals and 14 assists and was fourth among all players with nine power play points.  Whitelaw was named the SUNYAC Player of the Week on February 1 and was a three-time SUNYAC Rookie of the Week selection.  He is the ninth Laker to be selected as Rookie of the Year and the seventh since the 2000-01 season. 



Captain Tyler Lyon (left), who hails from Foxboro, Ontario, anchored a defense that allowed the fewest goals in the league at 1.75 goals per game, and helped set up the offense for the top-scoring squad in the SUNYAC at 5.44 goals per game.  Lyon, who started all 16 conference games this season, was also a key figure in the Laker penalty kill.

Kyle Gunn-Taylor, an honorable mention selection, registered a conference record of 11-1-0 and posted a 1.69 goals against average, which was second among SUNYAC goalies, and a .927 save percentage.  The West Seneca, N.Y. native was also chosen as the SUNYAC Goaltender of the Week three times during the season.

Head Coach Ed Gosek (left) was chosen as the SUNYAC Coach of the Year for the second time in his seven-year tenure. Gosek led Oswego State to its first No. 1 seed in the SUNYAC Post-Season Tournament since 2003 despite 15 newcomers on the team.  His squad finished the season atop every conference team statistical category including scoring offense (5.44 goals per game), scoring defense (1.75 goals per game), power play efficiency (28.1 percent), and penalty kill (86.8 percent).  Gosek was named Coach of the Year for the 2004-05 season.

The Lakers start post-season play on Saturday when they face Morrisville at 7 p.m. in the semifinal round of the SUNYAC Playoffs.The game will be broadcasted live on Time Warner Cable Sports, WTOP-10, and on the radio on WNYO-FM 88.9.

Courtesy of Oswego State Sports Information

The Game That Shocked The Hockey World...Geneseo Beats #1 Oswego

The Oswego State men’s ice hockey team saw its 22-game winning streak come to an end after suffering a 3-1 loss at Geneseo on Saturday night. Luke Moodie gave the Lakers a 1-0 lead early in the second period, but the Ice Knights went on to score the next three goals for the victory in the final game of the regular season. Oswego State moved to 23-2-0 overall and 15-1-0 in the SUNYAC, while Geneseo ended the year at 13-10-2 overall and 9-6-1 in the league. The Lakers, who are the top-seed entering the SUNYAC Tournament, will host a semifinal game on Saturday, Feb. 27 at 7 p.m. against the lowest remaining seed from the play-in games on Tuesday, Feb. 23.
Oswego State’s Luke Moodie (pictured) (Fr., Burlington, Ont.) broke a scoreless tie in the second period with his 13th goal of the season with assists going to linemates Paul Rodrigues (Fr., Etobicoke, Ont.) and Jon Whitelaw (Fr., Huntsville, Ont.) at 5:26.  Geneseo called its lone timeout minutes later, which proved to be effective, as the Ice Knights evened the score off the stick of Jonathan Redlick.  Geneseo took advantage of a Laker interference penalty late in the frame when Stefan Decosse fed Jake Yard for the eventual game-winner at 17:27.

Oswego State tried to even the contest, but the Ice Knights took a two-score lead when David Arduin scored his 11th goal of the year at 15:09.  The Lakers called timeout following the goal, but were unable to send the game into overtime. 

It was a physical contest as both teams combined to commit 16 penalties for 59 minutes.  Oswego State went 0-for-3 with the skater advantage, while Geneseo went 1-for-6.  Laker goalie Kyle Gunn-Taylor (Sr., West Seneca, N.Y.) suffered his first loss of the season allowing three goals and making 20 saves in the losing effort.  The Ice Knights’ Cory Gershon compiled 33 saves, including 17 in the first period when Oswego State came out of the gates quickly. 

Story Courtesy of Oswego State Sports Information 
Box Score

Senior Weekend Not so Kind for Oswego State Women

The Oswego State women’s ice hockey team trailed top-ranked Plattsburgh by two goals after two periods, but the Cardinals scored five goals in the final 20 minutes to hand the Lakers a 7-1 loss on Friday night at the Campus Center Arena in Oswego. Stephanie Moberg registered a hat trick to lead Plattsburgh, while Kristen Bond and Megan DiJulio added two goals each. The game was also “Pink at the Rink” night for Oswego State, which fell to 7-16-1 on the season and 5-11-1 in the ECAC West standings. The Cardinals improved to 21-1-2 overall and 16-0-1 in the league.
Plattsburgh struck first at 2:50 in the first period while short-handed as Emi Williams (Jr., Anchorage, Alaska) stonewalled Brittany Meade on a breakaway.  Williams lost track of the puck, though, as the save pulled her out of the crease where Stephanie Moberg pounced on the rebound for the goal.  The Cardinals took a two-goal lead when Kristen Bond’s slap shot from the right point got past a screened Williams 11 seconds into Plattsburgh’s first power-play opportunity of the game at the 8:31 mark.

However, Oswego State cut the deficit in half minutes later when Jenna Kirkwood (Sr., Chilliwack, B.C.) tallied her 11th goal of the season after receiving a pass from Kelly Collins (So., Fairport, N.Y.) on an odd-skater rush.  Jillian Bergeron (So., Brockville, Ont.) also was credited with an assist on the goal.  The Cardinals had another skater advantage late in the frame resulting in Bond’s second score of the contest to give Plattsburgh a 3-1 lead at the break.

Physical play picked up in the second period as both squads combined to commit seven penalties.  Emi Williams kept the Cardinals off the scoreboard for the majority of the frame with several sprawling saves, but Plattsburgh would not be denied late in the stanza.  With a 5-on-3 skater edge, Moberg tallied her second goal as her shot from the left point went just underneath the crossbar at 18:02 to put the Cardinals ahead 4-1 after two periods.
At 8:09 in the third period, Moberg broke free from the Laker defense to pick up the hat trick by putting a shot through Williams’ five-hole to make the score 5-1 in favor of Plattsburgh.  It became a 6-1 contest when Megan DiJulio flipped the puck over Williams’ shoulder after beating an Oswego State defender up the left side of the rink.  DiJulio added another goal with 1:09 left in the game, as the Cardinals skated away with the 7-1 victory.

Emi Williams finished the night with 42 saves on 49 saves for the Lakers, while Mandy Mackrell made 13 saves for Plattsburgh.

The squads square off again on Saturday at 3 p.m. in Oswego as the Lakers celebrate Senior Day.

Box Score

Story and Pictures Courtesy of Oswego State Sports Information 

Oswego Keeps Winning Streak Alive With 4-2 Win at Brockport

The Oswego State men’s ice hockey team extended its winning streak to 22 games by defeating Brockport 4-2 on Friday night in Brockport. The Lakers owned a small 2-1 lead entering the third period before goals by Luke Moodie and Brad Dormiedy gave Oswego State a three-goal advantage with under five minutes to play. The Lakers remained undefeated in SUNYAC play with a mark of 15-0-0 and improved to 23-1-0 on the year, while the Golden Eagles fell to 12-11-1 overall and 6-8-1 in the conference.

Sophomore Eric Selleck (pictured)  (Spencerville, Ont.) lit the lamp for the Lakers 1:31 into the game on the first power-play chance of the game after receiving a pass from Jon Whitelaw (Fr., Huntsville, Ont.) and Stephen Mallaro (Jr., Syracuse, N.Y.), who each earned assists on the play.  Neither team put points on the scoreboard for the rest of the frame, as Oswego State took a 1-0 lead into the second period..

Brockport evened the game at 1-1 when Sean O’Malley notched a goal at 8:19 in the second frame.  Nearly eight minutes later, Selleck put the Lakers back on top 2-1 with his 20th goal of the season, which was unassisted.  The score remained at 2-1 heading into the second intermission.


Luke Moodie (Fr., Burlington, Ont.) made it a two-goal contest for Oswego State 58 seconds into the third period with his 12th goal of the season, as linemates Paul Rodrigues (Fr., Etobicoke, Ont.) and Whitelaw received assists.  Senior assistant captain Brad Dormiedy (Ajax, Ont.) pushed the score to three goals with 5:49 to play after connecting with Jesse McConney (Fr., Barrie, Ont.) and Tyler Leimbrock (Fr., Bolton, Ont.).

However, the Golden Eagles would not go away as O’Malley posted his second goal of the night on a power play to pull Brockport to within 4-2 with 1:59 remaining on the clock.  Laker goaltender Kyle Gunn-Taylor (Sr., West Seneca, N.Y.) made five of his 22 total saves in the final two minutes to preserve the win for Oswego State.  Brockport goalie Todd Sheridan finished the game with 30 saves, including 14 in the third period, as the Lakers out-shot the Golden Eagles 34-24.

Oswego State closes out the regular season at Geneseo on Saturday night with the first face-off at 7 p.m.

Box Score

Courtesy of SUNY Oswego Sports Information Department