The Colgate men’s hockey team is set to host its final two games before winter break as the Raiders host Massachusetts in a pair matinee games this weekend.
Both games are going to be on the Patriot League Network and live stats will be available as well. All the necessary links can be accessed through the Men’s Hockey Game Central link.
COLGATE HOCKEY ON TWITTER
Colgate men’s hockey is on Twitter. Fans can follow along for behind the scenes photos and facts, while also getting game day updates and alumni stories. Search for the Twitter handle @Colgate_Hockey and follow the Raiders today.
THIS WEEK: TWO-GAME SET WITH UMASS
The Raiders are home for their final competitive weekend of 2013 as they host UMass. The Minutemen have struggled most of the season with a 4-11-2 record and have gone winless in eight of their last nine with their lone victory coming against No. 13 Notre Dame last Saturday in a 3-2 win on the road. The Minutemen are averaging under two goals a game and are giving up almost 3.5 goals per contest.
NEXT UP: EXHIBITION GAME WITH RUSSIAN RED STARS
Colgate will play its final game of 2013 with the Russian Red Stars coming to Starr Rink for an exhibition game on New Year’s Eve. The Red Stars are playing five teams around the northeast, including ECAC Hockey teams Colgate, Harvard, Yale and Cornell. The team is filled with junior Russian players from club teams around Russia. The Red Stars are playing Yale and Harvard prior to coming to Colgate and they will finish up with Cornell and Merrimack after the new year.
ECAC HOCKEY ON NATIONAL SCENE
Colgate’s conference is currently the premiere conference in college hockey with six teams in the USCHO National Poll, which is the most from any league in the country. Three of the six are in the top 10 as Quinnipiac (#7), Clarkson (#8) and Union (#10) each have double-digit victories. The Raiders are inching closer to the top-20 with six votes in the poll.
AMONG TOP LEAGUE TEAMS
Colgate is 5-2-1 in its last eight games and sits 5-3-1 in the conference with 11 points, putting them in the top four in ECAC Hockey. Colgate is sixth in the conference in goals with 43 overall scores and the Raiders are fifth in league goals with 28. Colgate is getting closer to averaging three goals a game overall and have scored an average of 3.11 per game in conference.
KULEVICH CONTRIBUTING
The rookie blueliner is sneaking in as one of Colgate’s top defensemen with six assists, including one against Cornell on Saturday in the Raiders’ second goal of the game. He has points in five of the last nine games and has seven blocked shots in the last three games and 25 total this year, which is a team best.
FINN SUCCEEDING
Rookie netminder Charlie is riding a three-game unbeaten streak, including the 2-2 tie at Cornellon Saturday. He made 26 saves with 13 stops in the final period to perserve the tie. Both goals were 5-on-3 goals and his last three goals given up have been power play scores. He has won four of his last six starts and he is 2-1-0 at home this season.
SCOUTING THE MINUTEMEN
Massachusetts enters the weekend with a 4-11-2 overall record after splitting with No. 13 Notre Dame last weekend on the road. It was the first visit to South Bend for the Minutemen for a Hockey East matchup as the Irish joined the league this year. The Minutemen have struggled to score goals this season. They are averaging 1.94 goals per game, while giving up 3.47 scores a contest. UMass has only one win in its last nine.
Senior Branden Gracel is the team leader in goals with seven, four coming on the power play. He scored two goals last weekend at Notre Dame and is riding a three-game point streak. Conor Sheary is the leading point-getter with 12 points and a team-best 10 assists. Steven Iacobellis is one behind Gracel for the team lead in goals with six and four have come on the power play.
In goal, Steve Mastalerz has started 13 games this season and has a 4-8-1 record and a 2.73 goals against average and a .915 save percentage. He got both starts against the Irish and made 60 saves in the two games, including 33 in the 3-2 win on Saturday night.
SERIES HISTORY
This will be the 17th and 18th meetings between these two schools and third and fourth in the last two seasons. The Raiders lead the series at 14-1-1 and are unbeaten in the last 15 contests. The Raiders swept the Minutemen last season at the Mullins Center. UMass won the first matchup in 1932-33 by a 12-5 score. Colgate has tallied 10 or more goals in the series four times.
