ROCHESTER, NY – The RIT men’s hockey team begins the 2015 calendar year at the Mariucci Classic hosted by the University of Minnesota on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 2-3. RIT will begin by playing No. 9 UMass Lowell at Mariucci Arena on Friday at 5:07 p.m. EST and either No. 18 Merrimack at 5:07 on Saturday at or host Minnesota, ranked eighth nationally at 8:07 p.m.
The Tigers (5-8-3, 4-5-2 Atlantic Hockey) enter the tournament looking to extend their unbeaten streak to three games. RIT last played on Dec. 12-13 against Niagara, winning 4-1 at home on Dec. 12 and skating to a 1-1 road draw on Dec. 13. Matt Garbowsky (St. George, Ontario/Powell River Kings)scored three goals and added an assist over the weekend series. Senior goaltender Jordan Ruby(Tavistock, Ontario/Wellington Dukes) stopped 54 of 56 shots and was named the Atlantic Hockey Conference Goaltender of the Week, while junior defenseman Alexander Kuqali (Pittsburgh, PA/Sioux City Musketeers) was named the AHC Defensive Player of the Week.
RIT has killed off 31 straight penalties dating back to Nov. 14 at Canisius. RIT’s penalty-killing unit has killed of 89.9 percent of its opponent’s power-plays this season, sixth best nationally. RIT has allowed just five goals over the last five games.
Garbowsky leads all of Division I with 14 goals, 0.88 goals per game, and is second with 258 face-off wins, sixth with 23 points, and tied for sixth with three game-winning tallies. Garbowsky has had a hand on 54.8 percent (23-of-42) of RIT’s goals this season, highest in the nation. Junior Josh Mitchell(Osoyoos, British Columbia/Alberni Valley Bulldogs) is has 18 points this season in 16 games, already surpassing his career-high of 17.
Senior goaltender Jordan Ruby (Tavistock, Ontario/Wellington Dukes) is now 4-3-3 this season with a microscopic 1.87 goals against average (13th nationally) and .930 save percentage (17th nationally) this season. He has allowed just five goals over his last five games, with a 3-1-1 mark, 0.99 goals against average and .960 save percentage during that span.
UMass Lowell (12-3-3, 7-0-2 Hockey East) is the lone team in the tournament to have played after the Christmas break, having emerged victorious at the Frozen Holiday Classic with wins over Sacred Heart and Connecticut last Saturday and Sunday. Dylan Zink was named the tournament MVP. Lowell is the third highest scoring team in the country, averaging 3.78 goals per game, as they are outscoring their opponents, 68-44. C.J. Smith leads the River Hawks in scoring with 16 points on seven goals and nine assists. Nine players have at least 10 points for Lowell. In net, Kevin Boyle is 9-1-3 with a 2.28 goals against average and .919 save percentage, while Jeff Smith is 3-2-0 with a 2.55 goals against average and .901 save percentage.
Minnesota (9-4-1, 1-0-1 Big Ten) is playing for the first time since Dec. 5-6 against Michigan State. The Gophers boast 15 NHL draft picks and are outscoring their opponents, 48-30 this season. Kyle Rau and Mike Reilly lead the team in scoring with 17 points apiece. Rau has six goals and 11 assists, while Reilly has three goals and a team-high 14 assists. Justin Kloose and Connor Reilly lead the team with seven goals each. In net, Adam Wilcox is 9-4-1 with a 2.13 goals against average and .926 save percentage. The Gophers will be without Ryan Collins, Hudson Fasching, and Leon Bristedt, who will be representing the United States at the 2015 Under-20 World Junior Championships in Canada.
Merrimack (10-5-2, 4-4-1 Hockey East) is playing in its first games since Dec. 5-6 against Boston University. The Warriors are outscoring their opponents, 44-32 this season. Brett Seaney and Hampus Gustafsson lead the team in scoring with 15 points apiece. Seaney has six goals and nine assists, while Gustafsson has four goals and 11 helpers. Brian Christie leads Merrimack with seven goals in 2014-15. In net, Rasmus Tirronen is 7-2-1 with a 1.73 goals against average and .929 save percentage, while Collin Delia is 3-3-1 with a 1.95 goals against average and .932 save percentage.
The last time RIT went out to Minnesota was Dec. 29-30, 2007 for the Dodge Holiday Classic. RIT defeated Minnesota, 4-3 and fell to Boston College in the championship game. The last time RIT played nationally-ranked teams on back-to-back days was at the Catamount Classic hosted by the University of Vermont on Dec. 29-30, RIT won both games, defeating No. 11 Ferris State, 3-0 and No. 16 Lake Superior, 3-1.
RIT is 1-4-1 all-time against Lowell, 0-1-1 in the Division I era. The Tigers are 3-3-1 all-time against Merrimack, 0-1-0 in the DI era and 1-0 against Minnesota.
Next weekend, the Tigers return home to play a pair of home contests against American International at the Gene Polisseni Center. On Friday, Jan. 9, it is Youth Hockey Night. Any child who wears his or her youth hockey jersey gets in free. On Saturday, Jan. 10, it is Kids Day. Children can meet and greet the queen and princess of the ice before the game.
