Buffalo State Men’s Hockey to Visit Potsdam on Wednesday for SUNYAC Quarterfinal
BUFFALO, NY—Buffalo State will make its fifth-consecutive SUNYAC playoff appearance tomorrow night as the No. 5 seed when it travels to No. 4 Potsdam for a 7 p.m. faceoff. The Bengals will be looking to make their fourth-consecutive trip to the semifinals.
Buffalo State finished the regular season 11-11-3 overall and went 4-0-1 in its final five games to finish 7-6-3 in the SUNYAC. Potsdam is 12-10-3 overall and was 8-6-2 in league play, securing the fourth-seed with a 4-2 victory at then nationally-ranked No. 1 Oswego on Saturday. The Bears won their final four regular-season games.
Junior forward Ryan Salkeld (Virginia Beach, VA/Churchland) has led the Bengals in scoring, averaging more than a point-per-game, with 13 goals and 13 assists for 26 points in 25 games. Junior captain Brett Hope (Blenheim, ON/Blenheim) has tallied 23 points on nine goals and 14 assists, and rookie Jason Zaleski (Scranton, PA/Scranton) has 22 points with 12 goals and 10 assists.
Sophomore goalie Mike DeLaVergne (Pawling, NY/Pawling) played the final five regular season games in goal after returning from injury, and has posted a 2.17 goals against average and a .935 save percentage during that undefeated stretch.
The Bengals split the season series with the Bears, falling 5-2 in Potsdam on Nov. 15, but winning 5-3 on home ice on Feb. 7.
The winner will advance to the semifinals on Saturday. If No. 3 Geneseo defeats No. 6 Brockport in the other quarterfinal, the Buffalo State/Potsdam winner will travel to No. 1 Plattsburgh. If Brockport wins, the Buffalo State/Potsdam winner will play at No. 2 Oswego.
