WINTHROP, Mass. – Niagara hockey senior forward Derian Plouffe earned the first Travel Team USA Player of the Week award of the 2017-18 season, as announced by the Atlantic Hockey Conference (AHC).
Plouffe scored a power-play goal and tallied a team-best six shots on goal in Niagara’s season opener at Colgate on Sept. 30. A slick setup from defenseman Noah Delmas gave Plouffe a one-time shot that tied the game at 1-1 in the second period, but Colgate responded by scoring twice later in the second period on the way to a 5-1 victory.
This is the second career weekly honor for Plouffe, who earned Player of the Week accolades on Nov. 22, 2016 after scoring four points (3+1) in a three-game week that saw the Purple Eagles earn conference wins over Mercyhurst and Sacred Heart. Last season, Plouffe tallied eight points (4+4) in 12 games. Through six conference games, he led Niagara in goals (two), assists (three), and plus/minus (plus-7) before missing the remainder of the season due to injury.
