UTICA, NY - The No. 3 Utica University Men's Hockey team continues to charge on through their UCHC conference campaign this weekend with a mini-homestand against the Chatham University Cougars. The Pioneers will welcome their Pittsburgh-based foe to the Adirondack Bank Center on Friday and Saturday for back-to-back home UCHC action. Friday's matchup will begin at 7:00 PM and will be Excellus BlueCross BlueShield Night. Saturday's contest will get underway at 5:00 PM.
 
How to Watch: You can catch this weekend's two-game slate by heading to the "Watch" tab in the Men's Ice Hockey schedule section of our athletics website. You can also follow the links below to view each game.
(Friday) Utica Men's Ice Hockey Stream: https://www.empire8network.com/utica/
(Saturday) Utica Men's Ice Hockey Stream: https://www.empire8network.com/utica/
 
Keep Up with Live Stats: You can follow along with live statistics for the games by heading to the "Live Stats" tab under the matchups in the Men's Ice Hockey schedule section of our athletics website. You can also follow the links below to view live statistics for both matchups.
(Friday) Utica Men's Ice Hockey Live Statistics: https://uticapioneers.com/sidearmstats/mhockey/summary
(Saturday) Utica Men's Ice Hockey Live Statistics: https://uticapioneers.com/sidearmstats/mhockey/summary
 
Weekend Recap: Utica met the SUNY Brockport Golden Eagles this past weekend for the first on-ice action between the two schools in over a decade. During the first matchup, Friday night's tilt, the Pioneers once again got out to a fast start, cruising ahead 3-0 with two first period goals and an early score in the second period. The hosts weathered a second period Brockport score, scoring right back a few minutes later and pushing their advantage to secure a 5-2 win. Five different Pioneers scored on the night and Matt Wood (Garnet Valley, PA/Richmond Generals (USPHL)) ended as the team's leading point-getter with three points off of a goal and two assists. The Pioneers sported their rare orange jerseys in the win, with the team running their annual Davidson GM of Rome Orange Jersey Auction during Friday's proceedings. The next evening, now clad in their road navies, the team traveled to Rochester for the second game of the two-match set against the Golden Eagles. This time around, the Pioneers only allowed a single score by their opposition, using a powerful four-goal first period to stun the Golden Eagles early and ride to a 5-1 victory and second consecutive UCHC two-game sweep. Jakob Breault (Acton Vale, QC/Alaska-Fairbanks (NCAA DI)) had a goal and an assist in the action and the Pioneers once again saw five different goal scorers in the victory. Breault had a fantastic weekend in the mini-series, which leads into the next topic of discussion… 
 
Three in a Breault: Jakob Breault (Acton Vale, QC/Alaska-Fairbanks (NCAA DI)) captured the Pioneers third-straight UCHC Player of the Week Award to begin the 2024-2025 season. The Pioneers main man in the circle cleaned house during the mini-series against Brockport, racking up four points on two goals and two assists, while also locking down the faceoff game against the Golden Eagles. The Graduate Center won 27 of his 34 total faceoff chances in the two games, good for a faceoff win percentage of 79%. For his efforts, he was rewarded with the team's third-straight UCHC Player of the Week Honor and the squad's second-straight Empire 8 Player of the Week Award win. Breault really broke out this past week, finally achieving his first couple scores of the new season. His ascension back into the ranks of the Pioneers' most devastating attackers provides a whole new level for the highly ranked Pioneers. He will look to contribute to a roster that has combined for some otherworldly statistical feats, headlined in the NCAA Division III Men's Hockey Statistical Leaderboards… 
 
Statcast: If you like offense, then the Pioneers are your team. Utica currently holds the top scoring offense in all of Division III Men's Hockey, with the team putting up a colossal 5.5 goals per game throughout their first six matchups. They currently rank second in total goals to a St. Norbert squad that has an extra game under their belt, with the Green Knights holding 36 scores in seven games compared to the Pioneers' 33 in six matches.
 
Because of the team's offense dominance, it makes sense that they also sit quite high in the power play percentage column, with the Pioneers converting their power plays 43% of the time so far in the new season. They have gone 6-for-14 in their man-up opportunities during the season so far, posting that 43% conversion rate and currently ranking out second in all of DIII behind only UMass Dartmouth, who holds a 50% conversion rate.
 
The Pioneers have also rattled the net enough to possess the 5th-best scoring margin in all of DIII over the first few weeks, outscoring opponents by an average of three goals per game. The team has scored 33 total goals and allowed 15 scores by their opponents, leading to that top five ranking and three goal per game gap between them and their foes.
 
On an individual level, the team kept up their streak of superior synergy, holding two of the nation's premier assisters in the early going. Matt Wood (Garnet Valley, PA/Richmond Generals (USPHL)) is tied for fifth in DIII at 1.5 assists per game but ranks second in total assists with nine. Directly behind the Senior Wood is a Sophomore in Aydin Parekh (Nobleton, ON/Georgetown Raiders (OJHL)), who has posted 1.33 assists per game and eight total playmakers. Wood and Parekh are second and third in the entire Division for total assists, with the two side by side in the overall assists column.
 
In an odd way, the team placing only one player inside the top 50 scorers is an incredible feat, since the team holds Division III's current top-scoring offense. This goes to show the absurd amount of players that can hurt you on the Pioneers' attack. Johnny Mulera (Rockville, MD/Salve Regina University (NCAA DIII)) is the only Pioneer ranked inside the top 50 for scoring, with the transfer student being tied for 25th with five goals and .83 goals per game. Mulera is plastered all over the offensive leaderboards, also placing tied for 14th in points, accruing 10 points off of five goals and five assists in his six games this year. He averages 1.67 points per game. In addition, he has scored three of his goals on the power play, ranking tied for second in DIII for power play goals.
 
Pioneer Primer: Utica continues to spread the wealth wonderfully in the early going, with all but five players possessing a point already this season, three of those players being the Pioneers' Goaltenders. 10 players have multiple goals this season already, maybe adding to the reasoning behind the Pioneers already possessing four different UCHC award winners in Shane Murphy (Oriskany, NY/Danbury Hat Tricks (NAHL)), Vladislav Pshenichnikov (Moscow, Russia/Utica Comets (NCDC)), Breault, and Anthony Bax (Parkhill, ON/Flin Flon Bombers (SJHL)) (Rookie of the Week). The team continues to outshoot their opponents by a significant margin, currently holding a 253-144 shots for to shots against total.
Murphy won the team's first UCHC Player of the Week for his play during the Pioneers' opening weekend against Adrian. Pshenichnikov and Bax followed it up in the following series against Nazareth, with the former getting both the Empire 8 Player of the Week as well as the UCHC Player of the Week, and the latter achieving a UCHC Rookie of the Week nod. Lastly, Breault captured the Empire 8/UCHC Award combo, earning the Pioneers' fifth and sixth honor of the new season.
 
In the Polls: The Pioneers remained at #3 in the USCHO and DIII Hockey News polls this week but saw a shakeup in the team ranked directly above them. Adrian, the Pioneers season-opening opponent, fell from the #2 spot after back-to-back losses at home to the then #11 ranked Aurora Spartans. The pair of defeats caused the Bulldogs to slip down to #7 in this week's USCHO poll and DIII Hockey News poll, with the Spartans climbing up to #5 in both rankings. Adrian's losses also set a couple other featured moves in motion, with the St. Norbert Green Knights, a member of Adrian's conference, jumping up over the Pioneers to #2 after a 6-2 win over a ranked Stevens Point side. St. Norbert and Aurora, now ranked #2 and $5 respectively, will meet this weekend in De Pere, Wisconsin for a two-game set, meaning there is surely more poll drama to come from the Midwest in next week's rankings.
 
There are a few other movements of note, with new UCHC rep Geneseo ascending to the #4 ranking in both polls. This could potentially set up an unbelievable scenario for this year's New York Sash Teddy Bear Toss, as the now #4 Knights and the #3 Pioneers will meet at Adirondack Bank Center for the coveted clash in just a few weeks' time.
 
Before that pivotal game, the Pioneers will host their Thanksgiving Showcase Tournament, which will arrive next weekend after Thanksgiving. All three of the other teams participating are receiving votes, with Oswego State, Stevenson, and University of New England all getting over 20 votes of recognition in each poll this week.
 
Chatting About Chatham: The Chatham University Cougars are off to a 0-3-1 start in the new season, with all of their games coming against UCHC opponents in Geneseo and Nazareth. The Cougars have shown some fight in their opening few matchups, winning a shootout over Nazareth after playing the Golden Flyers to a 3-3 standstill, and even bringing the then #6 Knights to the brink after knotting their series finale up at three apiece in the third period before falling 6-3.
 
Chatham looks to be dangerous once again after finishing last season with a record of 11-15, falling in the UCHC Quarterfinal to Wilkes University.
 
The Cougars bring back their top three offensive leaders for another round, with Nick Cyprian, Bekk McClaine, and Nicholas Babbie back to give it another go just a season after turning in some quality numbers. Cyprian leads the team in points with four after putting up a team-high 22 last season. Cyprian was dangerous as a playmaker last season, notching 17 assists, a role he looks to be filling once again as he's already accounted for three such tallies this year. Babbie is right behind Cyprian on the attack, with the Sophomore Forward accounting for three assists as well after a freshman season that saw him finish with 12 such plays.
 
The Cougars have gone punch-for-punch with their foes so far, nearly putting up a level amount of shots, with their margin being 148 for and 151 against. They've scored 11 goals in their four games and given up 17.
 
Geno Pichora is the only Chatham Goaltender with multiple appearances, starting for the entirety of their series against Nazareth. Louis Finnegan and Cameron Kuntar each started a game against Geneseo but haven't seen the net since. It remains to be seen who the Cougars will favor for this weekend's slate.
 
The Series - Chatham U: Utica will enter this weekend on a double-digit winning streak against the Cougars, playing strong in every single matchup between the two teams since their first contest back in 2017. The Pioneers average 6.62 goals per game in their appearances against the Cougars.
 
The Cougars have been a vastly improved team over the last few years though, with many of the early results between the two squads coming in the early years of a program that was established prior to the 2017-2018 season. In their eighth year of competition, they look to keep improving and threatening great teams like they did earlier this year to Geneseo.
 
After Chatham: The Pioneers will return to the Adirondack Bank Center next weekend for their Delta Marriott Thanksgiving Showcase, a Tournament that will be played on Friday on Saturday between Utica, Oswego, University of New England, and former UCHC opponent Stevenson. Utica and UNE will meet in the first round, with the winners of each matchup advancing to a Championship Game on Saturday.
 
Tune in this weekend as the Pioneers continue their 2024-2025 campaign against Chatham!