| POTSDAM, N.Y.-The SUNY Potsdam men’s and women’s hockey teams begin their 2019-20 campaigns this weekend. The Bears women square off with new Northeast Women’s Hockey League rival Morrisville State on Friday at 3 p.m. before heading to SUNY Cortland for a 3 p.m. contest on Saturday. The men host defending SUNYAC Champion and third ranked SUNY Geneseo on Friday at 7 p.m. and the College at Brockport at the same time on Saturday. The women posted a 9-14-3 mark last season, including a 6-8-2 record in the NEWHL. The Bears claimed the second seed in the conference tournament and hosted a playoff game for the first time in program history. The Bears said goodbye to second team All-NEWHL selection Rylie Murray ’19, assistant captain Tatum Walber ’19 and former NEWHL Rookie of the Year Samantha White, but they welcome five new faces to bolster the 14 veterans. Senior defenseman Shelbi Thacker (Centerfield, Mich./Honeybaked) is back to captain Potsdam and senior goalie Alexa Pfeiffer (Sylvania, Ohio/Little Caesar’s) will exchange her “A” for a “C”. Two-time senior all-conference defenseman Delphine Léonard (Anjou, Quebec/Dawson College Prep) and senior forward Lucy Condon (Waterloo, Ontario/Waterloo Ravens) will serve as assistants. The vast majority of the Bears’ scoring returns. Senior forward Miranda Kolb (Watertown, N.Y./SUNY Cortland) led the team in scoring last season after transferring from Cortland with eight goals and six assists for 14 points. The performance earned her second team All-NEWHL recognition for the second straight season. Junior forward Natalie Wasielewski (Carnegie, Pa./Pittsburgh Penguins Elite) (6g, 6a) contributed 12 points to the offense and former all-conference defenseman Léonard matched her, continuing to showcase her talents as a two-way player. Sophomore forward Ellie Cleary (Buffalo, N.Y./Buffalo Bisons) is also back after her all-rookie campaign that saw her register seven points. Junior forward Alexis Clark (Niagara Falls, N.Y./Buffalo Bisons), Condon and Thacker all had career years offensively with eight points each and look to build on those numbers this winter. Junior forward Emily Burke (San Jose, Calif./San Jose Jr. Sharks) and sophomore forward Stephanie Dunlap (Niagara Falls, N.Y./Bath, Mich./Meijer U19 AAA) scored some clutch goals in Potsdam’s run last season and sophomore Allie Banas (Buffalo, N.Y./Buffalo Bison) should increase her production this year. On the blue line, Léonard, Shelbi Thacker, junior Keira Thacker(Oakville, Ontario/Hamilton Hawks) and sophomore Abigail Lyon(Winthrop, N.Y./Lake Placid Rockets) will handle the heavy lifting. They helped limit opposing offenses to just 2.50 goals-per-game last season, third best in program history. As she has for the previous three seasons, Pfeiffer will see the majority of the time in goal. She posted a 7-5-1 (6-2 NEWHL) record a year ago along with a .929 save percentage and a 2.22 goals-against-average. Pfeiffer shutout Oswego on Feb. 16, for her 20th career-victory, tying her for the program’s NCAA-era record. Senior Kayla McCabe(Watertown, N.Y./Syracuse Nationals) will see an expanded role in 2019-20, sharing time between the pipes with Pfeiffer. Over her first three seasons, McCabe has registered a 2.88 G.A.A. and an impressive .927 save percentage. Freshman forward Kaylee Merrill (Wasilla, Alaska/Anchorage North Stars) crossed the continent to join the Bears and is expected to provide the offense with more firepower. Freshman forward Emily DellaNeve (Buffalo, N.Y./Buffalo Bisons) is the third Buffalo native to don a Bears jersey this season, while the rest of the newcomers are local. Freshmen Alex Quinn (Potsdam, N.Y./St. Lawrence Steel) and Makenzie Martin (Potsdam, N.Y./Potsdam High School) are from Potsdam and sophomore Iakonhnhiio Cook(Akwesasne, Ontario/Rideau St. Lawrence Thunder), a transfer from Wells College, is from Akwesasne. Morrisville and SUNY Canton join the NEWHL this season, expanding the league to seven teams. The Bears will face each of their conference opponents three times this season, beginning with the Mustangs on Friday. Potsdam’s six nonconference contests include five familiar foes. The Bears will face Saint Michael’s College at home on Nov. 19 and in South Burlington on Feb. 4. NESCAC squads Hamilton College and No. 10 Middlebury College invade Maxcy Hall on Dec. 7 and Jan. 7, respectively. The Bears face the University of New England for the first time on Jan. 10, at home and Franklin Pierce University comes to Maxcy the following afternoon. The Bears men were 8-16-1 (4-11-1 SUNYAC) last season and fell short of the playoffs. They look to rectify that this year and have the leadership and weapons to do it. Senior forward Vincent Guimond (Sorel-Tracey, Quebec) is Potsdam’s captain and seniors Bryce Ferrell (Buffalo, N.Y./Buffalo Jr. Sabres), Sean Winikates(Phoenix, Ariz./Philadelphia Jr. Flyers), Nate Zweig (Binghamton, N.Y./Syracuse Stars) and Tyler Young (Massena, N.Y./Kanata Lasers) are the assistants. 20 Bears are back and the coaching staff has added five freshmen and two transfers to the mix. The Bears return their top eight scorers, all in double-digits last winter. Ferrell led the Bears with 21 points on nine goals and 12 assists and Young was just a point behind with six markers and 14 assists. Guimond had a personal best 17 points on six goals and 11 assists, while sophomore forwards Jack Bloem (Saratoga Springs, N.Y./Connecticut Rangers) (9g, 7a) and Devin Panzeca(Lake Zurich, Ill./East Coast Wizards) (6g, 10a) finished their first year with 16 points apiece. Junior forward Brett Horn (Cary, N.C./Humboldt Broncos) nearly doubled his offensive output with 15 points on four goals and 11 assists. Zweig (4g, 8a) and junior defenseman Joseph Richardson (Palm Beach, Fla./PAL Islanders) each had career years with 12 points. Potsdam also looks to get a spark from sophomore forward Robert Clerc (Wappinger Falls, N.Y./Oswego State), who joined the team midway through the season and provided five points in his eight games. Juniors Joey Sollazzo (Ottawa, Ontario/Navan Grads), Jacob Juron (Latham, N.Y./South Shore Kings) and Paul Michura (Chester, N.J./New Jersey Rockets) and sophomores Thomas Terranova (Middletown, N.J./Syracuse Stars) and Ben Thompson (Canterbury, Conn./New Hampshire Avalanche) are back as well, working for breakout seasons. Richardson and junior Jon Venter (Guilford, Conn./Syracuse Stars) will lead the Bears defense. Winikates and sophomores Ethan Clark (Seven Valleys, Pa./New Hampshire Avalanche) and Chris Gratton (Pottstown, Pa./Walpole Express) will see more ice time. In goal, sophomores Ryan Glander (Campbell Hall, N.Y./Rochester Junior Monarchs) and Michael Paglucca (North Reading, Mass./New Hampshire Avalanche) will push each other for starts after seeing limited time behind Nate Skidmore ’19 as freshmen. Glander was 1-1 in two starts last season and Paglucca played in one contest. Sophomore transfers Justin Geary (Clifton Park, N.Y./Wilkes University) and Michael McArthur (St. Thomas, Ontario/Oswego State) headline the new additions to the roster. Geary, a defenseman, played in four games for Wilkes University in 2018-19 and forward McArthur suited up in one game for Oswego State. Freshmen forwards Nick Alfieri (Buffalo, N.Y./Buffalo Jr. Sabres) and Justin Vernace (Mississauga, Ontario/Brampton Admirals) look to provide a quick boost to the offense, while first year defenseman Connor Cruickshank (Brampton, Ontario/Brampton Admirals) and Ryan Lieth (Warwick, N.Y./New York Apple Core) will battle for playing time. Freshman goalie Connor Green (New Port Richey, Fla./Tampa Bay Juniors) gives the Bears a third option in net. Potsdam jumps into SUNYAC play on Friday night with the national semifinalist Knights. Of the nine nonconference games on the Bears’ slate this season, matchups with No. 10 Trinity College (Nov. 30 at St. Anselm), Wesleyan University (Dec. 1 at St. Anselm) and Stonehill College (Jan. 4 away) are all first time meetings. Potsdam will face longtime rival No. 5 Hobart College (Nov. 23) at home and host Neumann University (Jan. 10-11) for two games. They’ll face Curry College on the road (Jan. 5) and play their regular home-and-home series with SUNY Canton on Jan. 14 (Canton) and Feb. 22 (Maxcy). Video of all three home games this weekend will be streamed live on potsdambears.com, while My Mix 96.1 FM will carry each game over the airwaves. |
