UTICA, NY - The #2 Utica College men's ice hockey team looks to lock down the UCHC regular season title this weekend as they take to the road for an important conference weekend. The Pioneers will battle King's College on Friday, before turning their attention to nationally-ranked #9 Wilkes on Saturday. Friday's game starts at 7 p.m., while Saturday's game begins at 5 p.m.
Follow Along: Live video and stats will be available for both contests this weekend. Friday's game is available at https://kingscollegeathletics.com/watch/?Live=319&type=Live. Saturday's game can be seen at https://gowilkesu.com/sports/2015/7/31/GEN_0731155646.aspx.
On The Books: Utica returned to the #2 spot in the latest USCHO Men's Top 15 on Monday. The Pioneers were re-elevated to the second spot after a long stretch in the third position since getting knocked out of second in a November loss to then-#1 Geneseo. The Pioneers are 19-2 overall.
Last Time Out: The Pioneers ran through a sixth straight weekend sweep while building their win streak to twelve games in a row this past weekend. On Saturday, the Pioneers pummeled Nazareth by a 7-1 score for their eleventh straight victory in the series against the Golden Flyers. The win secured home ice through the semifinal round of the conference tournament for UC as one of the guaranteed top two seeds. Forward Buster Larsson (Malmo, Sweden/Utica Jr. Comets (NCDC)) had a marvelous performance with a goal and three assists, while defenseman Jayson Dobay (Weymouth, MA/Youngstown Phantoms (USHL)) had three assists. The Pioneers went 2-for-5 on the power play. Goaltender Bryan Landsberger (Montreal, Quebec/Nepean Raiders (CCHL)) made 18 saves. On Sunday, non-conference action was the story of the day as Utica rattled off five unanswered goals to overturn an early deficit and defeat SUNY Canton 5-1. After Canton's Sam Martin scored an early shorthanded goal, Dante Zapata (Huntington Beach, CA/Austin Bruins (NAHL)) converted a power play tally 35 seconds later to get the game back in order at a 1-1 tie. Jayson Dobay (Weymouth, MA/Youngstown Phantoms (USHL)), Buster Larsson (Malmo, Sweden/Utica Jr. Comets (NCDC)), Brian Scoville (Agawam, MA/Alabama-Huntsville (NCAA DI)), and Mic Curran (Arlington, MA/Curry College (CCC)) also had goals. Zapata finished with a goal and two assists, while Brandon Osmundson (Virginia Beach, VA/Hampton Roads Whalers (USPHL)) had two assists to snag sole possession of seventh on UC's career points list.
The Series Marks: This will be the tenth all-time meeting against Wilkes. Utica owns an 8-1 record all-time against the Colonels, with the lone loss coming in the 2020-21 season opener by a 3-2 score. The Pioneers avenged that loss the following day with an 11-5 thrashing of the Colonels, with Jamie Bucell (Garfield Heights, OH/Philadelphia (EHL)) (Garfield Heights, OH/Philadelphia (EHL)) and Brett Everson (Mississauga, Ontario/Hawkesbury (CCHL)) each having a two-goal, two-assist night. In the most recent meeting, Buster Larsson (Malmo, Sweden/Utica Jr. Comets (NCDC)), Regen Cavanagh (Chesapeake, VA/Sioux Falls Stampede (USHL)), and Jamie Bucell (Garfield Heights, OH/Philadelphia (EHL)) scored goals as the Pioneers handed Wilkes their first loss of the season by a 3-2 score on December 3rd. The Pioneers are 7-0 against King's College all-time, with four wins coming by way of shutout. UC defeated the Monarchs by an 8-0 score on December 4th, with Eric Holland (Whitby, ON/Brockville Braves (CCHL)) scoring twice to lead the way in the annual New York SASH Teddy Bear Toss game.
Here's The Situation: The Pioneers have already locked up home ice through the semifinals of the eight-team UCHC tournament. There are numerous ways under which Utica can become the UCHC regular season champions for the fifth consecutive year in the final two weekends.
To put it most simply, Utica is six points up on Wilkes. Both teams have four games remaining. With three points available for a regulation win, both teams have twelve remaining points left.
With a perfect league record, Utica's current point total is 42, and their maximum point total is 54 points. Wilkes has 36 standings points, and can get no higher than 48. If Utica sweeps the weekend in regulation, they will get to 48 points while knocking the Colonels below that number, thus securing the top seed and regular season title. A regulation win and a Wilkes regulation loss on Friday secures at least a share of the title for UC.
On Fire Like NBA Jam: Utica continues to light up the national leaderboard in major statistical categories this season. The Pioneers are now third in the nation in scoring offense at 5.29 goals per game, and remain tops in scoring defense at 1.29 points per game. The power play is fourth nationally at 32 percent. That unit has scored in ten of the last eleven games. The penalty kill is third nationally at 92.2 percent.
Leading the Way: Regen Cavanagh (Chesapeake, VA/Sioux Falls Stampede (USHL)) leads the Pioneers as he continues to enjoy a career-best season with 32 points on twelve goals and twenty assists. Cavanagh has four goals and ten assists since the start of the new year, and is eleventh nationally at 1.55 points per game. He hit 75 career points over the weekend. Buster Larsson (Malmo, Sweden/Utica Jr. Comets (NCDC)) (10-21-31) has a point in eleven of the last twelve games and is fourth nationally at 1.05 assists per game while leading the team in assists. John Moncovich (Wilmington, NC/Hampton Roads Whalers (USPHL)) (16-14-30) is still the team's leading goal scorer, and had a goal and an assist over the past weekend. He is tied for third nationally in goal scoring. Brandon Osmundson (Virginia Beach, VA/Hampton Roads Whalers (USPHL)) and Justin Allen (Hilton, NY/Rochester Monarchs (USPHL-NCDC)) have 28 points apiece. Allen is 23rd nationally among all skaters in points per game, and second nationally in that category among defensemen. Dante Zapata (Huntington Beach, CA/Austin Bruins (NAHL)) checks in with 27 points, and is just two power play goals off the national lead.
Milestone Watch: With a goal on Sunday, Mic Curran (Arlington, MA/Curry College (CCC)) now has 97 career collegiate points from his time at Curry and Utica. He needs three more to crack the century mark. Justin Allen (Hilton, NY/Rochester Monarchs (USPHL-NCDC)) is rapidly running down All-American defensemen Daniel Fritz and Dalton Carter for the college's all-time lead in career points by a defenseman. Allen had a goal and assist this weekend to hit 75 career points, and needs just seven more to tie Fritz and Carter at 82 points.
Keep An Eye On....: Senior forward Eric Holland (Whitby, ON/Brockville Braves (CCHL)) knows a thing or two about performing well against King's College. The veteran skater has scored five goals in his last two appearances against the Monarchs. This season, Holland is enjoying the best season of his career with 22 points on ten goals and twelve assists.
He's Got The Number On Speed Dial: Senior forward Regen Cavanagh (Chesapeake, VA/Sioux Falls Stampede (USHL)) has made life difficult for Wilkes from the very first meeting between the two programs. Over four years and eight appearances against the Colonels, Cavanagh has scored seven goals and added three assists. Highlights include a hat trick on January 17th, 2020, as well as scoring both Pioneer goals in the first-ever meeting. Two of his eight career game-winning goals have come against Wilkes.
Know Thy Opponent: Second place Wilkes is 15-4-0 overall, and is second in the UCHC with a record of 12-2-0. Like Utica, Wilkes knows how to put the puck in the back of the net, as they rank just above Utica in scoring offense at second nationally. Their power play unit is at 32.2 percent to rank second nationally. The Colonels are led by Tyler Barrow, who is third nationally at 1.71 points per game and has seven power play goals. Donald Flynn is sixth nationally at 1.65 points per game, and is a 2020 AHCA All-American. King's College is 4-15-0 overall. They are ninth in the conference and are just three points back of eighth place Lebanon Valley for the final playoff spot. Jack Cooper has ten goals and nine assists to lead the Monarchs.
Up Next: The Pioneers close out the home regular season schedule with a conference weekend against Neumann and Manhattanville on February 19th and 20th.
