This Week: In the opening round of the NCAA Tournament, Trinity College returned to the ice after a two-week hiatus and dispatched No. 14 Nichols, 4-2. The Bantams jumped out to an early three-goal lead and held off a late Bison rally before putting the game away with an empty-net goal. This week, Trinity will host No. 4 Plattsburgh State with a berth to the Frozen Four on the line.
Match-up:
NCAA Quarterfinals
No. 5 Trinity (22-3-1) vs. No. 4 Plattsburgh State (20-5-2)
Saturday, March, 21, 2015 at 7:00 p.m.
Williams Rink at the Koeppel Community Sports Center
Hartford, Conn.
Live Stats: Click Here (All links will become active at the start of the contest)
Live Video: Click Here
Series History: The Bantams are 0-2 versus the Cardinals all-time. In the first-ever meeting between the two schools, Plattsburgh skated to a 4-1 victory at home during the 2005-06 season. In the most recent meeting during the 2009-10 campaign, the Cardinals scored a shutout victory at home. Plattsburgh will be playing in Hartford for the first time in program history this weekend.
Scouting Plattsburgh: The Cardinals defeated Oswego State, 2-1, to capture their 22 SUNYAC Conference Championship. Plattsburgh will be making an appearance in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2012. Versus NESCAC teams this season, the Cardinals are 1-2-1, having lost back-to-back home games to Williams and Middlebury in January. Plattsburgh is led offensively by a trio of seniors, Connor Toomey, Michael Cassidy and Mark Constantine. Toomey leads the team in points (31), assists (19) and is tied for the team lead with 12 goals. Cassidy has 26 points thanks to 12 goals and 14 helpers while Costantine has 10 markers and 13 assists this year. Between the pipes, Bradley Rouleau and Spencer Finney have each seen significant time. Rouleau is 12-5-1 with .908 save percentage and Finney is 8-0-1 with a .936 save percentage and a 1.67 goals-against average.
Game Notes:
- Trinity is ranked No. 5 in the most recent D3Hockey.com poll and No. 7 in the latest USCHO.com poll. Plattsburgh is ranked No. 4 and No. 3 in the two polls, respectively. The Bantams are receiving one first-place vote in the D3Hockey poll. Two of Trinity's three setbacks this winter have come versus nationally ranked opponents and the Cardinals lost two a pair of ranked opponents this season.
- Last time out, junior netminder Nathaniel Heilbron made 34 saves and Ryan Cole put the game out of reach with an empty-net tally with less than a minute remaining in regulation as Trinity skated past Nichols, 4-2.
- Cole, the 2014-15 NESCAC Player of the Year, leads the team in goals (15), points (36) and ranks second in assists with 21. Junior forward Michael Hawkrigg is second on the squad in goals and points with 14 and 34, respectively. Senior assistant captain Jackson Brewer leads the team and ranks 10 in the nation in assists per game (0.92). Earlier this year, Brewer and Hawkrigg became the 19th and 20th players in program history to reach the 100 point plateau. Brewer currently ranks 13 all-time in points with 119 and Hawkrigg sits in 17th with 104 points.
- As a team, ranks seventh in the country in scoring offense, potting 4.23 goals per tilts. The Bantams also are fifth in the nation in scoring defense, allowing just 1.81 goals per contest. Trinity ranks fourth in the country in scoring margin at 2.42.
- Sophomore Sean Orlando is tied for second on the team with 14 markers and he leads the team and the nation in power-play goals with 10. First-year forward Tyler Whitney leads the team and is tied for second in the country with five game-winning goals.
- On special teams, Trinity has converted 29-of-107 power-play opportunities and successfully killed 67-of-79 penalties this season. The Bantams have the fourth most efficient power-play unit in the country.
- Trinity's depth is shown in their third-period scoring margin. In the final 20 minutes this season, the Bantams have outscored their opponents, 40-14. Trinity has also done a good job scoring early, netting 35 goals and allowing just 13 during the first period.
- Between the pipes, Heilbron is 17-3-1 this season with 546 saves. He has amassed a .932 save percentage and 1.95 goals-against average this winter. In five starts, Alex Morin has gone 5-0-0 with a .955 save percentage and a 1.05 save percentage.
