This Weekend
The Dutchmen return to action after a week off, heading out to North Dakota for a two-game series against the No. 3 Fighting Hawks. Friday's game at Ralph Engelstad Arena will start at 8:37 p.m. (ET), while Saturday's contest will begin at 8:07 p.m.
Media Coverage
Fans back in New York can follow the games online, live video feeds will be available through NCHC.tv for a fee, while audio feeds can be accessed after a free registration through UNDsports.com. Live stats will also be available online at UNDsports.com.Â
Locally, the games will be broadcast on Midco SportsNet and can be heard on the radio at KQHT 96.1-FM in the Grand Forks, ND area.
Social Media
Receive real-time updates during all Union men's hockey games by following the team's official Twitter account @UnionMHockey. Additional in-game updates and commentary will be provided by assistant sports information director
Ross LaDue via his Twitter account @RLaDue.
Last Time Out
Union vs Princeton - Nov. 10 - Messa Rink
Union Goals:
Ryan Scarfo,
Anthony Rinaldi,
Sean Harrison,
Sebastian Vidmar
Princeton Goalie: Ryan Ferland (L), 40 saves, 4 goals against
Union Goalie:
Jake Kupsky (W) - 24 saves, 3 goals against
Power Play: Union 1-3, Princeton 0-2
Noteworthy: The Dutchmen and Tigers played in their second consecutive 4-3 overtime game at Messa Rink. The game marked the firs time this season Union has conceded the first goal and came back to win. Union scored three goals in the second period to take a 3-1 lead before Princeton scored twice in the third to force overtime.
Sebastian Vidmar scored with 26 seconds remaining in overtime, while on the power play, to give Union its sixth win of the season.
Sean Harrison scored his first collegiate goal, while
Jake Kupsky earned his first win of the season in net for Union.
Union vs #16 Quinnipiac - Nov. 11 - Messa Rink
Union Goals:
Ryan Scarfo,
Anthony Rinaldi,
Luc Brown (2x).
Quinnipiac Goalie: Andrew Shortridge (L), 15 saves, 3 goals against; Keith Petruzzelli, 9 saves, 1 goal against.
Union Goalie:
Darion Hanson (W) - 28 saves, 1 goal against
Power Play: Union 2-5, Quinnipiac 1-4
Noteworthy: The Dutchmen out-shot the Bobcats in the first two periods and jumped out to a commanding 3-0 lead after the first 40 minutes. Quinnipiac tried to battle back in the third and ended up out-shooting Union overall in the game, 29-28, but Quinnipiac only scored once on a power play, while
Luc Brown scored his second goal of the game to match the Bobcats' offense in the period.
vs North Dakota
Union and North Dakota met for the first time in Division I history last season in Schenectady on Dec. 31, 2016. The Fighting Hawks jumped out to a 1-0 lead just 11 seconds into the contest and went on to defeat the Dutchmen 3-1, despite being out-shot 33-29. Spencer Foo scored the lone Union goal, while
J.C. Brassard and
Ryan Scarfo tallied assists on the play, making them the only two current Union skaters to have points against North Dakota.
Scouting the Fighting Hawks
North Dakota holds an 8-3-3 overall record and a 3-2-1-1 mark in NCHC play. UND is coming off a weekend split against No. 1 Denver, the Fighting Hawks took the first game 5-4, before dropping the finale 4-1 against the Pioneers. UND has gone 3-1 against common opponents, sweeping St. Lawrence (Oct. 13-14) and splitting with Minnesota (Oct. 20-21).Â
Current Streaks
Five Union skaters enter the weekend having recorded a point in at least the previous two games:
Brett Supinski (6 games - 1g, 10a);
Anthony Rinaldi (6 games - 5g, 3a);
J.C. Brassard (0g, 3a);
Ryan Scarfo (2g, 0a) and
Cole Maier (0g, 2a). Supinski has also recorded a point in all but two games so far this season.Â
Spreading the Wealth
A total of 19 skaters have already recorded a point for Union this season, including 17 who have more than one, and 16 who have scored goals.Â
Junior Leadership
Union is tied for fifth in the country for junior class scoring. All six junior skaters have recored at least two goals this season.
Brett Supinski leads the class, and the team, with five goals and 12 assists. Of the top-6 junior classes in scoring, both Union and North Dakota have the smallest junior classes, with six skaters each.
Fashionably Late
Of the Dutchmen's 42 goals scored this season, the majority of them (17) have come in the third period, and Union is currently tied for sixth in the nation in third-period goal production.Â
Extra Goals
Forward
Brett Supinski leads the nation in extra-attacker goals. The junior from Collegeville, PA scored with an empty Union net in back-to-back games, Oct. 13-15. Both of his extra-attacker goals were scored within the final 15 seconds of regulation.
Winning
With a 5-1 win over Niagara on Oct. 20, 2017, head coach
Rick Bennett became the winningest hockey coach in Union hockey's Division I history. Bennett owns a career record of 142-75-30, surpassing Nate Leaman's record of 138-127-35.Â
Best of the Week
With five-point weekend over Oct. 20-21,
Ryan Scarfo led all ECAC Hockey skaters in scoring, and earned Player of the Week honors for his efforts. In the first outing of the weekend, Scarfo put up two assists against RIT in a 6-1 win. Against Niagara, Scarfo scored twice, including the game-winner, and added an assist for a career-tying best three-point night. The weekly honor was the first for the Dutchmen this season.
What a Debut
First-year goaltender
Darion Hanson made his collegiate debut on Oct. 20 against RIT. Hanson made 24 saves in the 6-1 win, including 14 in the third period, seven of which were made while shorthanded. He followed up his debut with second win, helping Union defeat Niagara 5-1, with the only goal conceded coming on a Purple Eagles' power play.
Apple-trick
Junior captain
Cole Maier set a personal best on Oct. 21 at Niagara, recording three assists against the Purple Eagles. He registered an assist on the game-winner, and had an assist in each of the three periods.
Brett Supinski recorded Union's second 'apple-trick' of the season, tallying three assists in the 4-1 against No. 16 Quinnipiac on Nov. 11. It was also the second three-assist game in the junior's career.Â
Already Spoken For
The Union College hockey team features three student-athletes who have been drafted by NHL teams.Â
Welcome to Union College
The Dutchmen welcome nine new student-athletes to their ranks this season, including five forwards, three defensemen and one goaltender.
Newest Pros
Over the summer Union College had six members of its 2016-17 team sign professional contracts with North American organizations.
| Name |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Team |
League |
Date |
| Nick DeSimone |
Jr |
D |
San Jose |
NHL |
March 30 (FA) |
| Spencer Foo |
Jr. |
F |
Calgary |
NHL |
June 27 (FA) |
| Michael Pontarelli |
Sr. |
D |
Quad City |
ECHL |
July 27 |
| Alex Sakellaropoulos |
Sr. |
G |
Fort Wayne |
ECHL |
July 20 |
| Jeff Taylor |
Sr. |
D |
Pittsburgh |
NHL |
March 26 |
| Mike Vecchione |
Sr. |
F |
Philadelphia |
NHL |
March 31 (FA) |
Rising Stock
Vidmar (14g, 27a) ranked in the top five of the biggest point increases in Division I from the 2015-16 season to the 2016-17 season, adding 31 more points (8g, 23a) during his sophomore campaign.Â
