UTICA, NY- The Utica College men's hockey team returns to the Utica Memorial Auditorium this weekend for its final two home games of the regular season against Elmira. The two ECAC two-game West Conference match up begins Friday evening (7 p.m.) and wraps up Saturday (7 p.m.).
 
HOW UC STANDS: The Pioneers are now 8-4-2 in their last 14 games and their record overall on the year is 10-8-4 … Utica is also 3-7-2 in ECAC West play… UC is currently in fifth place in the conference with eight points this season … Including the two-game set against Elmira, Utica has just three games left, all of which are in conference play.
 
HOME SWEET HOME: UC currently has a 6-5-1 record on the season at the Utica Memorial Auditorium… Utica currently leads the nation with a paid attendance averaging 3,717 fans through the last 12 home games.

FIRST SOURCE "LIVIN' THE DREAM" NIGHT: Friday night is First Source Federal Credit Union "Livin' The Dream" Night … One lucky fan will win their dream come true courtesy of First Source … To enter, fans can go to firstsourcedreams.org from their smart phone … Once you tell First Source your dream, the Dream Team panelists will be on site and they will evaluate each submission … Based on logistics, creativity, cost, and need, finalists will be narrowed down … One winner will be selected at random, and First Source will fund a portion of, or their full dream up to $700 … Fans can also stop by the Dream Pad in the concourse at the Aud to enter ... There will also be a dream-themed photo booth, which the First Source team will be uploading pictures to their Facebook page.

INDIUM NIGHT: Saturday night at the Aud is Indium Night! Indium Corporation will sponsor senior night as we pay tribute to the graduating class in the Pioneers regular season home finale … Indium Corporation is a premier materials supplier to the global electronics, semiconductor, solar, thin film, and thermal management markets ... Products include solders, preforms, and fluxes; sputtering targets; indium, gallium, and germanium metals and compounds and sourcing; and NanoFoil® … Founded in 1934, Indium has global technical support and factories located in China, Singapore, South Korea, the United Kingdom, and the USA … For more information about Indium Corporation please visit www.indium.com.
 
AGAINST ELMIRA: The Pioneers are 4-4-0 against Elmira dating back to the 2012-2013 season … The last time these two teams played at the "Aud," the second seeded Soaring Eagles won 5-2 in the ECAC West Tournament Championship game on March, 8, 2014… Last season the Pioneers were 2-2-0 against Elmira… Utica lost to Elmira 4-3 on the road earlier this season on November 14, 2014… Vinny Stefan (Pittsburgh, PA/Kenai River (NAHL)), Jide Idowu (Copper City, FL/Carleton Place (CCHL)), and Dalton Carter (Toledo, OH/Northern Cyclones (EHL)) each recorded goals for UC.
 
LAST TIME OUT: UC is coming off two conference losses to Hobart… The Pioneers lost a heartbreaker 3-2 in OT on Friday night … Easton Powers (South Lyon, MI/Port Huron (NAHL)) and Justin Hogan (Val Therese, Ontario/Brooks Bandits (AJHL)) had goals while Alex Brissette (Atlanta, GA/Hampton Roads (USPHL)), Louie Educate (Chicago, IL/Aberdeen (NAHL)), Kevin Valenti (Queensbury, NY/Northern Cyclones (EHL)), and Dalton Carter (Toledo, OH/Northern Cyclones (EHL)) had once assist each…On Saturday night Utica lost 4-2 with Hobart scoring two goals in the third period… Freshmen Dalton Carter (Toledo, OH/Northern Cyclones (EHL)) and Kollin Schultz (Buffalo, NY/Bay State (USPHL)) scored for the Pioneers, while Kevin Kirisits (Buffalo, NY/Brockville (CCHL)), Luc Boby (Chicago, IL/Kalamazoo (NAHL)), Nick Miglio (San Antonio, TX/Bismarck (NAHL)), and Anthony McVeigh (Kemptville, Ontario/Carleton Place (CCHL)) registered one assist apiece.
 
POINT PRODUCTION: Eight Pioneers have at least 10 points so far this season… Senior Louie Educate (Chicago, IL/Aberdeen (NAHL)) leads the group with 21 points, Justin Hogan (Val Therese, Ontario/Brooks Bandits (AJHL)) is second with 16 points, Dalton Carter (Toledo, OH/Northern Cyclones (EHL)) and Easton Powers (South Lyon, MI/Port Huron (NAHL)) are tied for third with 15, and Joel Wetmore (Horseheads, NY/Lindsay (OJHL)) and sophomore Trent Samuel-Thomas follow with 14 points … Freshman Kevin Valenti (Queensbury, NY/Northern Cyclones (EHL)) and senior Peter LaFosse (Merrimack, NH/Kimball Union Academy) round out the top of the group with 13 and 10 points, respectively.
 
WHO'S HOT: Dalton Carter (Toledo, OH/Northern Cyclones (EHL)) now has four points in his last five games … Freshman Kollin Schultz (Buffalo, NY/Bay State (USPHL)) scored his first collegiate goal over the weekend in just his second career game … Sophomore Easton Powers (South Lyon, MI/Port Huron (NAHL)) has three goals in his last four outings and senior Justin Hogan (Val Therese, Ontario/Brooks Bandits (AJHL)) has two points in his last three games.
 
EDUCATE AT IT AGAIN: Senior forward Louie Educate (Chicago, IL/Aberdeen (NAHL)) ranks sixth in the conference with an average of .95 points per game this season … His 10 goals are tied for third in the conference and his 11 assists are tied for 11^th … Educate has played extremely well on the power-play and he currently ranks fifth in the conference with 11 power-play points (five goals, six assists) … He leads the ECAC West and is tied for third in the country in game-winning goals (four).
 
PLAY-MAKERS: So far this season UC has outscored its opponents by a 67-63 margin… The Pioneers have tallied a total of 125 assists on the season, while their opponents only have 92 assists thus far.
 
BETWEEN THE PIPES: Junior goalie Dylan Wells (Nashville, TN/Bonnyville (AJHL)) has an 8-5-3 record for Utica so far this season… He has a 2.46 goals against average and a .922 save percentage... He has started 16 games and has one shutout.
 
TOUGH OPPONENTS:  According to the KRACH Rankings on USCHO.com, the Pioneers have the third strongest strength of schedule in the nation … Utica has played four teams who are either ranked or receiving votes in the latest USCHO.com National Poll. 
 
MEET THE SOARING EAGLES: Elmira is currently in fourth place in the ECAC West Conference, right ahead of Utica… The Soaring Eagles are 10-9-3 overall and 4-6-2 in the Conference…They are 4-5-1 in their last 10 games … Jarryd ten Vaanholt leads the team with 33 points, 11 goals, and 22 assists … The Soaring Eagles have used a two-goalie system all season, with Sal Magliocco and Ryan deMelo each playing in 12 games between the pipes … Magliocco has a 6-3-2 overall record and a 3.32 goals against average, while DeMelo leads the team with a goals against average of 3.08 and a .918 save percentage.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA: Make sure to follow live updates of the game on the Pioneers official Twitter feed: @UCPioneers… If you are at the game and on Twitter, or talking about the game on Twitter, make sure to use #UCMoose… You can also "Like" the Pioneers on Facebook at www.facebook.com/UCpioneers ... Fans can also follow the Pioneers on Instagram: UCPioneers.
 
PIONEERS ALL-ACCESS: If you can't make it out to the "aud" to watch the game in person, Pioneers All-Access is the place to be on game day, providing live video, audio (WPNR 90.7 FM) and stats for all UC home games in the rink… Pioneers All-Access is a completely FREE service provided for those members of the Pioneer nation that might not be able to make it out to the game … Recent stories and social media are fully integrated into the Pioneers All-Access site for the most comprehensive viewing experience …  Make sure to check out Pioneers All-Access at www.ucpioneers.com/watch.
 
RADIO BROADCAST INFO:  Utica College hockey games will be broadcast on the radio locally at WTLB 99.1 FM/1310 AM (ESPN Radio) by play-by-play man Dave Peroni and color analyst Fred Miller … Live streaming audio can also be accessed on WTLB's website, www.espnur.com … The College's student radio WPNR 90.7 FM will also be broadcasting Saturday night's game.
 
DOWNLOAD THE APP: All UC men's hockey radio broadcasts on WTLB 99.1 FM can be heard on the My Hometown Sports Application available in the Google Play store and on Apple ITunes ... After you download the application make sure to select the ESPN Radio coverage … It's a free application so download today!


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