Three members of the Hamilton College men’s hockey team have been named to the 2016 NESCAC All-Conference Team. Forward Robbie Murden ’17 (Georgetown, Ontario/Christ the King Catholic) and goaltender Evan Buitenhuis ’18 (Burlington, Ontario/Nelson HS) were first-team selections and defenseman Conor Lamberti ’17 (Kings Park, N.Y./Choate Rosemary Hall [Conn.]) was a second-team pick. The Continentals’ three all-NESCAC selections tied a school record and no other team had more players receive all-conference recognition this year.
Murden makes his second appearance on the all-NESCAC team after earning second-team honors last winter. He finished the season with team and conference-best totals of 17 goals and 33 points and his 16 assists were one short of the NESCAC leader (linemate Neil Conway ’18). Murden, who currently ranks 12th nationally in goals per game and 15th in points per game, scored four power-play goals and two game winners. He was named NESCAC Player of the Week on Dec. 7 after scoring three of Hamilton’s four goals in a weekend series. Murden will enter his senior season with 89 points (43-46=89) in 72 games.
Buitenhuis joins Murden as the first Continental teammates named first-team all-NESCAC. He’s the first goaltender from Hamilton to earn a spot on the NESCAC all-conference team. He played in all but two games this year, making 22 starts. Buitenhuis set single-season school records with his 1.74 goals-against average and .943 save percentage while posting a record of 12-7-4 with three shutouts. He ranks sixth in Division III in save percentage and ninth in goals-against average. Buitenhuis became Hamilton’s first representative on D3hockey.com’s Team of the Week when his 78-save performance in an unbeaten weekend landed him on the Dec. 15 unit. Over 28 career games, he’s compiled a 1.75 goals-against average and stopped 94.3 percent of the shots he’s faced.
Lamberti led a defense that is sixth in Division III with 1.92 goals allowed per game. He was Hamilton’s fifth-leading scorer (3-9=12) and his three goals led the team’s blue liners. He scored all three of his goals on the power play and was whistled for just four penalties while playing every game. A three-year regular, he’s scored 26 points (4-22=26) while playing all but four games in his career.
The Continentals posted a 13-8-4 record this season. Their 8-6-4 NESCAC mark was good for fourth place in the league standings (their best finish since 2011).
