UTICA, NY - The battle for number nine has reached its final stages. The only team standing in the Pioneers' way? Their newfound bitter rival, the SUNY Geneseo Ice Knights.
 
This weekend, the #6 Pioneers will be facing their fiercest conference rival for the first time this season. The #13-ranked SUNY Geneseo Ice Knights will finally come to town this Friday, marking the beginning of a two-game UCHC series between the league leaders. The Pioneers need just one victory over Geneseo to clinch their ninth straight conference regular season title.
 
SUNY Geneseo joined the UCHC last season after leaving the SUNYAC, following a decade of dominance in the top-tier college hockey conference. The rivalry last season saw these two teams battle five times, four in the regular season and one in the UCHC title game. If not for reigning NCAA Champion Hobart, the teams would have also met in the National Championship, with Geneseo falling one game short of the season's climactic clash in 2025. Utica will welcome the Ice Knights to the Aud on Friday, before traveling to the Ira S. Wilson Ice Arena the following day. Both games are slated to start at 7:00 PM
 
This Weekend's Action: The #6 Pioneers hope to continue their unbeaten conference winning streak this double-header weekend, welcoming the #13 Ice Knights to the Adirondack Bank Center on Friday, February 13th, before heading on the road to finish off the series at the Ira S. Wilson Ice Arena on Saturday, February 14th. Both games start at 7:00 pm.
 
Check out all the information about this weekend's series!
 
Looking for a Ticket for Friday's matchup?
 
For Friday's game at Utica, you can purchase a ticket at the following link:  https://empirestatetix.evenue.net/event/UU26/0213
 
General admission is $12
 
Stream: You can stream this weekend's games by heading to the following links:
 
Friday: https://www.empire8network.com/utica/
 
Saturday: https://www.empire8network.com/geneseo/
 
Live Stats: Interested spectators can follow along with live statistics by clicking the "live stats" tab on our men's hockey schedule page, or by heading to these links:
 
Friday: https://uticapioneers.com/sidearmstats/mhockey/summary
 
Saturday: https://geneseoknights.com/sidearmstats/mhockey/summary
 
 
 
 
 
Recapping Last Weekend's Series Sweep Over Elmira College: This past weekend, the Pioneers took on a renewed UCHC rival in the Elmira Soaring Eagles. During the two-game set, The Pioneer offense picked up where it left off against St. John Fisher, continuing to perform at maximum capacity and dominating the Soaring Eagles by scores of 6-4 and 5-2, respectively, sweeping Elmira and remaining undefeated in UCHC play.
 
In game one, the orange and blue started slowly, trailing 2-1 after the first period. However, the floodgates opened in the middle frame, as the Pioneers scored three unanswered goals, never looking back as they went on to win 6-4 in the first matchup.
 
The result of their second meeting was no different, though the method to achieve the series sweep varied a bit from the night before: instead of having to come back from behind, the Pioneers took an early lead with three goals in the first seven minutes and 20 seconds. Following the opening onslaught, the Pioneers would hold strong due to the return of Senior Goaltender, Kyle Curtin (St. George, Ontario), who allowed just two goals against his former squad to secure the series sweep. The Pioneers outshot the Soaring Eagles 37-12 in the sweeping victory, winning 5-2 to sustain their recent run.
 
The Pioneers grabbed their 11th and 12th conference wins, keeping their unbeaten record and 11-game winning streak alive. Thanks to their pair of league wins, the Pioneers are now one win against Geneseo away from clinching their ninth-straight UCHC Regular Season Championship and 10th consecutive regular-season league championship (they won the final ECAC West Regular Season Championship). The Pioneers also clinched a first-round bye in the UCHC Tournament and will now host Semifinal action as the Aud this season.
 
Streaks Summary: The Pioneers saw a few streaks come to an end this past weekend, such as Stepan Kuznetsov's (Yaroslavl, Russia) points streak, which wrapped up at an impressive eight games since joining the team over winter break. Nick Ahern (Chicago, IL) would also see his points streak broken at eight games, as he logged at least one point in each of the Pioneers' first eight games of 2026, much like Kuznetsov.
 
Two streaks that continued, however, were those of John Gutt (Middletown, NJ) and Drake Morse (Grand Rapids, MI), who each continued to achieve their sustained success during this past weekend's series. Gutt, the senior center, would score the game-winning goal on Friday before adding an assist on Saturday, running his point streak to nine games, dating back to the January 4th game against SUNY Canton. Morse matched those stats, scoring on Friday and assisting on Saturday to move his streak to eight games. The Pioneer captain has also logged points in 17 of his last 19 games, showing his continued form.
 
The Pioneers also saw another, very random streak continue this past Saturday, and this one's a DOOZY. Last year's postseason hero Eric Vitale (Toronto, Ontario) managed to score three goals and grab one assist this past weekend, being gifted the Empire 8 Player of the Week status for his spectacular two-game stretch. This continued the Pioneers' run of conference awards recognition, with the team securing a weekly conference award for the sixth straight week, despite their conference double streak being stalled. HOWEVER, that is not the streak that we want to focus on. Rather, this streak has to deal with the Utica University Nexus Center, a place where Eric Vitale (Toronto, Ontario) has been nearly unstoppable during his Pioneer career. In his three seasons, the Pioneer forward has played in five contests on the orange and blue's alternate rink. In those five games, the veteran goal-scorer has netted at least one puck in each and every outing. In his freshman season, he scored in the two regular-season games against Manhattanville and Lebanon College at the Nexus Center, and last season he netted goals in each of the Pioneers' final two NCAA Tournament games on that same rink. Last weekend, he grabbed two goals on that same sheet of ice.
 
To summarize, Eric Vitale (Toronto, Ontario) owns the Mastrovito Hyundai rink, which is made even more absurd due to the player's current NIL partnership with that very same company.
 
Below is a list of each of the Pioneers' weekly award winners this season.
 
John Gutt (Middletown, NJ) | Men's Hockey - UCHC Co-Player of the Week - November 17th
John Gutt (Middletown, NJ) | Men's Hockey - Empire 8 Co-Player of the Week - November 17th
Kyle Curtin (St. George, Ontario) | Men's Hockey - Empire 8 Goaltender of the Week - November 24th
Kyle Curtin (St. George, Ontario) | Men's Hockey - UCHC Goaltender of the Week - November 24th
Sal Cerrato (St. Louis, MO) | Men's Hockey - Empire 8 Player of the Week - January 5th
Sal Cerrato (St. Louis, MO) | Men's Hockey - UCHC Co-Rookie of the Week - January 5th
John Gutt (Middletown, NJ) | Men's Hockey - Empire 8 Player of the Week - January 12th
John Gutt (Middletown, NJ) | Men's Hockey - UCHC Player of the Week - January 12th
Gabriel Lundberg (Gothenburg, Sweden) | Men's Hockey - Empire 8 Player of the Week - January 19th
Gabriel Lundberg (Gothenburg, Sweden) | Men's Hockey - UCHC Co-Player of the Week - January 19th
Aidan Hughes (Mississauga, Ontario) | Men's Hockey - Empire 8 Player of the Week - January 26th
Aidan Hughes (Mississauga, Ontario) | Men's Hockey - UCHC Co-Player of the Week - January 26th
Stepan Kuznetsov (Yaroslavl, Russia) | Men's Hockey - UCHC Rookie of the Week - January 26th
Frank Murphy (Mississauga, Ontario) | Men's Hockey - UCHC Goalie of the Week - February 2nd
Frank Murphy (Mississauga, Ontario) | Men's Hockey - Empire 8 Goalie of the Week - February 2nd
Eric Vitale (Toronto, Ontario) | Men's Hockey - Empire 8 Player of the Week - February 9th
 
The Postseason Picture: Thanks to their sweep over Elmira and Geneseo's bye week, the Pioneers are on the doorstep of clinching this year's UCHC Regular Season Championship and home-ice advantage during the UCHC Tournament. The orange and blue need to defeat the Ice Knights just once in regulation this weekend to seal the deal, as they currently hold an eight-point lead with four games remaining. Geneseo has fallen behind in the conference race due to upsets at the hands of Manhattanville, Elmira, and Nazareth. If the Pioneers defeat Geneseo in regulation this weekend, they would secure three more points, ensuring that they'll lead the race by at least seven points following this weekend's action. In the UCHC, teams earn 3 points for a regulation victory, and with only 2 games remaining in the regular season, the Ice Knights will be unable to catch the Pioneers in the standings race.
 
Here are the standings heading into this weekend
Asterisks represent a clinched postseason berth
1: Utica* | 36 pts | 12-0 UCHC | 12 GP
2: Geneseo* | 28 pts | 9-3 UCHC | 12 GP
3: Chatham* | 23 pts | 8-4 UCHC | 12 GP
4: Albertus Magnus* | 21 pts | 7-7 UCHC | 14 GP
5: Nazareth | 19 pts | 6-5-1 UCHC | 12 GP
6: Brockport | 16 pts | 5-7 UCHC | 12 GP
 
7: St. John Fisher | 9 pts | 3-11 UCHC | 14 GP
8: Manhattanville | 8 pts | 3-9 UCHC | 12 GP
9: Elmira | 8 pts | 2-9-1 UCHC | 12 GP
 
This weekend was a WILD one for the National Collegiate Percentage Index (NPI), the determining metric for the NCAA Division III Tournament field of 14. Following Friday night, the Pioneers saw a slight jump up to #3 thanks to a key loss by a team above them in the ranks. Former #3 Aurora lost outright to under-.500 MSOE on Friday night, falling 7-5 in the first meeting of the weekend. The Spartans would battle to a 2-2 draw with the Raiders the following day, dropping them from #3 to #9 heading into this week, where they are now projected as the final at-large team in the field. #2 Hamilton would also lose this weekend, taking a road defeat to Bowdoin, who would use that momentum to hop the Pioneers following Saturday. The Pioneers would fall from #3 to #5 after the second day of the weekend slate, by no fault of their own. The determining factor in their drop was a combination of three things: #3 Endicott's gigantic sweep over now-#17 Curry, #4 Bowdoin's victory over #2 Hamilton, and #14 Oswego's loss to #15 Geneseo, which hurts the Pioneers by lessening the impact of their win earlier this year vs the Lakers. Below is a look at the top ten of the NPI heading into this week - the asterisks represent projected conference champions.
 
National Collegiate Percentage Index as of 2/4/26
#1: Hobart* | 66.145 | 21-0 | SUNYAC (1)
#2: Hamilton* | 60.851 | 16-2-2 | NESCAC (1)
#3: Endicott* | 58.964 | 17-3-2 | CNE (1)
#4: Bowdoin | 58.951 | 13-5-1 | NESCAC (2)
#5: Utica* | 58.842 | 16-5 | UCHC (1)
#6: Adrian* | 58.507 | 17-5-1 | NCHA (1)
#7: University of New England | 58.097 | 17-5 | CNE (2)
#8: Salve Regina | 57.861 | 17-3 | Independent
#9: Aurora | 57.772 | 18-4-1 | NCHA (2)
#10: Babson* | 57.124 | 16-3-2 | Little East (1)
 
In the current rankings, if each conference tournament were won by the current NPI leader in that league, the remaining at-large bids would go to Bowdoin, UNE, Salve Regina, and Aurora.
 
Here is a link to the current NPI: https://www.uscho.com/rankings/npi/d-iii-men
 
Here are some featured matchups to keep an eye on this weekend, related to the top 10 of the NPI (the rankings used are from the NPI and are not from either of the rankings polls).
 
Friday, February 13th
#22 Tufts vs #2 Hamilton - 7:00 PM @ Tufts
#28 Trinity vs #4 Bowdoin - 7:00 PM @ Trinity
#5 Utica vs #15 Geneseo - 7:00 PM @ Utica
#6 Adiran vs #20 Trine - 7:00 PM @ Adrian
 
 
Saturday, February 14th
#15 Geneseo vs #5 Utica - 7:00 PM @ Geneseo
#20 Trine vs #6 Adrian - 7:00 PM @ Adrian
 
Also, it is worth noting that the NPI differs from the USCHO and DIIIHockeyNews.com rankings. The NPI is an algorithm that is adjusted by a team's performance; the USCHO and DIIIHockeyNews.com polls are rankings voted on by members of the media and have no bearing on the final at-large selection. In those polls, the Pioneers have also managed to rise back up the ranks following a 0-4 start to the season, now ranking #6 in the USCHO poll and #7 in the DIIIHockeyNews.com poll - ⁶🤷⁷
 
Orange and Blue Archive - SUNY Geneseo: This weekend, two of the premier powers in New York State will add a pair of chapters to their admittedly small rivalry history. Until this past season, the Pioneers and the Ice Knights did not share a league despite their close proximity, resulting in only six meetings over the first 23 seasons of their coexistence in college hockey. However, they more than made up for lost time last season, facing off five times, including in the 20th edition of the New York Sash Teddy Bear Toss and in the UCHC Championship. The Pioneers went 1-3-1 last season against the speedy Ice Knights, a record they look to right this weekend. Prior to last season, the Pioneers held a 5-1 advantage in the series, a run they look to return to with the pair of ranked battles this weekend. The all-time series currently stands at 6-4-1 in the Pioneers' favor, heading into this weekend.
 
The last meeting between these two teams was in last season's UCHC Finals, where Geneseo would ride a four-goal first period to a 7-3 Championship victory in their first UCHC season. Despite that seemingly lopsided scoreline, the Pioneers would make things extremely interesting after scoring three unanswered goals in the second period to make it 4-3 midway through the contest. However, the Ice Knights would respond with three more goals to take the title tilt. A trio of seniors would score in that early-second period run, as Shane Murphy (Oriskany, NY/Danbury Hat Tricks (NAHL)), Ben Schultheis (Mount Juliet, TN/Ferris State University (NCAA DI)), and Jakob Breault (Acton Vale, QC/Alaska-Fairbanks (NCAA DI)) all netted goals. Avery Sturtz (Cedar Rapids, IA) also appeared following the first period, holding off the Ice Knights' barrage extremely well during the majority of the outing.
 
The Pioneers last defeated Geneseo earlier that 2024-2025 season, shutting out the Ice Knights on Valentine's Day in a 4-0 shocker. During what was a wacky contest, the Pioneers would score twice in the first two minutes of the game, and once more in the first period to make it 3-0, before not scoring again until the decisive empty-net score in the third period. Ryan Piros (Hartland, MI/University of Dubuque (NCAA DIII)) would make 30 saves in the game to secure a clean sheet as the Pioneers grabbed a massive 4-0 victory.
 
The last installation of this rivalry before their five matchups last season was an extremely rare #1 vs #2 game, as the top two teams in the USCHO Division III Rankings faced off in the 2021 Utica Thanksgiving Showcase Championship. Despite outshooting the visitors, #2 Utica couldn't take advantage of their opportunities, eventually falling by a 3-0 final.
 
Scouting the Ice Knights: Last season, the SUNY Geneseo Ice Knights had one of their greatest campaigns in program history, securing a 24-5-1 record, including the UCHC Tournament Championship and a berth in the NCAA Division III Semifinals, where they lost to the eventual NCAA Champion Hobart at the Nexus Center.
 
This year, the Ice Knights are experiencing a slight downtick in production due to the graduation of key pieces like Peter Morgan and goaltender Adam Harris. However, a large pool of returning talent bodes well for the program's future. Thanks to these standouts, the team has compiled a 14-6-1 record and a 9-3 mark in UCHC play, currently ranking second in the conference standings. Oddly enough, despite a stellar home ice advantage at the Ira S. Wilson Ice Arena, the Ice Knights have actually been a tougher team on the road, posting a 5-4 record on home ice and an 8-1-1 mark on the road. Despite suffering shocking home losses at the hands of Elmira, Manhattanville, and Nazareth, the team has also picked up some solid victories, most recently defeating a tough Oswego team on the road by a 4-1 final. Funnily enough, the Ice Knights lost to that same Oswego team 1-0 on home ice earlier this season, showcasing their tendency to show up for games on enemy ice. The Ice Knights also took down NPI top ten team Salve Regina by a 4-3 final at the College Hockey Invitational, and swept Chatham in their most recent UCHC series.
 
Senior forward Alex Dameski is the sparkplug for this iteration of the Ice Knights, having 30 points in just 21 games played to lead the team. He is one of two players on the team to have double-digit goals, netting 16 pucks and racking up 14 assists through the campaign so far. Geneseo's other leading scorer is junior forward Carter Diceman, who has 11 goals and six assists on the season. Dameski and Diceman are flanked by a trio of solid playmakers, with defender Sean Melso (6g, 17a), and forwards Filip Wiberg (7g, 15a), and Luke Panchisin (7g, 12a) all dishing out apples to aid in the team's 3.8 goals per game.
 
In net, the Ice Knights rely on returning talent Jacob Torgner, who has posted a 2.01 goals allowed average to go along with a .933 save percentage this season, also owning a record of 11-4-1 in net. Freshman stopper Ian Vandenberg has also seen lots of playing time in goal, accounting for nearly ¼ of the Ice Knights' total minutes this season. He's posted a 2.86 goals allowed average, .908 save percentage, and a win-loss record of 3-2.
 
Following This Weekend's Conference Doubleheader: The Pioneers have just one more weekend in the regular season, following the series against Geneseo, welcoming Chatham to the Adirondack Bank Center next weekend to wrap up their 25th regular season. The team will face the Cougars on Friday, February 21st, and Saturday, February 22nd, at 7:00 and 2:00, respectively. The team will then move on to the UCHC Tournament, where they will host Semifinal action following a first-round bye. Their tournament run will kick off on Saturday, February 28th, at a time TBD.