The Niagara Purple Eagles wrap up their non-conference schedule this weekend when they travel to Grand Forks, North Dakota to take on No. 2/3 North Dakota.
History 101
* The Purple Eagles and North Dakota have met five times since their first meeting on March 25, 2000 with NU still looking for its first win.
* It was against UND that Niagara’s inaugural class of seniors played their last game. The Purple Eagles fell 4-1 to the University of North Dakota in the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals. All-freshman team from 1996-97 includes goaltender Greg Gardner, forwards Mike Isherwood, Mikko Sivonen, Peter DeSantis, Kyle Martin, Jay Kasperek, John Maksymiu and Dr. Jon Marshall, as well as defensemen Nate Handrahan, Chris MacKenzie and Colin Rows.
* The 2012-13 season saw Niagara become the first Atlantic Hockey team to be awarded an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament. The third-seeded Niagara hockey team lost to second-seed North Dakota in a 2-1 decision in its NCAA West Regional semifinal game at the Van Andel Arena.
Last Time Out
* The third-seeded Niagara hockey team fell to second-seeded North Dakota with a 2-1 decision in its NCAA West Regional semifinal game Friday at the Van Andel Arena.
* After Jason Beattie<http://www.
A Note About Goals
* The Purple Eagles scored three goals in both games against the Air Force Falcons last weekend. The six-goal total is the second-most the team has scored this season. The nine-goal outburst against Army is the most goals the team has scored in a single weekend.
Taking Down The Top Dog
* UND was ranked number one last week before falling to No. 2 in this week’s USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Men’s College Hockey Poll.
* The last time the Purple Eagles topped a team No. 1 ranked team was on Oct. 25, 2003 when then they beat New Hampshire, 5-2, in the building formerly known as HSBC Arena (now the First Niagara Center). Junior Barret<http://www.
, now a NU Hall of Famer, scored a hat trick in the second game of the Xerox Punch Imlach College Hockey Showcase.
Another Note About Goals<http://www.purpleeagles.
* Three freshmen scored their first collegiate goals for the Niagara Purple Eagles in the 4-3 overtime loss to the Air Force Falcons on Jan. 10.<http://www.purpleeagles.
* Luke Edwards, Stanislav Dzakhov, and Lawrence Smith all tallied the first goals of their NCAA careers. Edwards and Smith both scored even strength while Dzakhov’s came with the man-advantage.<http://www.
The Purple Eagles On The Power-Play<http://www.
* Niagara scored power-play goals in both games against the Sacred Heart Pioneers on Jan 2-3. It was the second time this season that they scored with the man-advantage in back-to-back games.<http://www.
* The first time the Purple and White struck in consecutive games was when they scored one power-play goal on Oct. 18 against Robert Morris and two against Notre Dame on Oct. 24.<http://www.purpleeagles.
* The Purple Eagles tallied again with the man-advantage against the Air Force Falcons on Jan. 10 to push their streak to three successful power-plays in four games.
