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DURHAM, N.H. --The fifteenth-ranked University of New Hampshire men's ice hockey team will play host to Hockey East foe Merrimack on Saturday night (7 p.m.). The game will be broadcast by the Wildcat Sports Radio Network. Log on to www.unhwildcats.com for links to live stats, live video and live audio broadcasts.
SCOUTING THE WARRIORS: Merrimack enters the week 3-6-3 overall with a 1-5-2 mark in Hockey East. It will play host to UMass-Lowell on Tuesday night. After opening the season 2-1-0, MC has just one win in its last nine games, a 3-1 win over UMass on 11/8.Most recently, the Warriors snapped a six-game losing streak in Maine dating back to a 2-2 tie Dec. 3, 2004. Merrimack has scored just 22 goals this season, but have been equally stingy allowing just 27 goals. Pat Kimball, Chris Barton and Francois Ouimet are the team leaders in scoring with seven points each. Andrew Brathwaite and Joe Cannata have split time in net for the Warriors. Brathwaite is 2-5-0 with a 2.39 GAA, while Cannata is 1-1-3 with a 2.01 GAA.
SERIES HISTORY VS. MERRIMACK: The Wildcats hold the advantage in the all-time series vs. Merrimack College at 59-11-8 in 78 all-time meetings dating back to Jan. 16, 1960...The Wildcats have won 11 of the last 13 meetings, which includes a 2-0-1 record in last year’s season series...UNH owns a 22-2-2 all-time record vs. Merrimack at the Whittemore Center and Coach Umile in his 17-year coaching career has compiled a 47-8-7 all-time mark against the Warriors...The ‘Cats are 12-1-0 in the last 13 meetings against Merrimack at Towse Rink...In UNH’s last eight wins against the Warriors, UNH has outscored Merrimack, 49-10... Since 1995, the Wildcats are 35-2-5 against MC... Seniors Jerry Pollastrone and Thomas Fortney are the active leading Wildcat scorers against Merrimack with four points each (2g, 2a --0g,4a, respectively) for UNH...Junior goaltender Brian Foster has posted a 0-0-1 lifetime record against the Warriors with a 0.92 GAA, a .971 save percentage. His only appearance was a 1-1 overtime tie with the Warriors back on March 1, 2008 at Merrimack.
SCORING LEADERS VS. THE WARRIORS:
Player GP G-A-P
Jerry Pollastrone 8 2-2-4
Thomas Fortney 9 0-4-4
Jamie Fritsch 8 0-3-3
Joe Charlebois 9 0-2-2
Bobby Butler 6 1-1-2
Greg Collins 9 1-0-1
Phil DeSimone 3 1-0-1
Danny Dries 3 1-0-1
Mike Sislo 3 1-0-1
James van Riemsdyk 2 1-0-1
Kevin Kapstad 7 0-0-0
Peter LeBlanc 6 0-0-0
Nick Krates 3 0-0-0
Paul Thompson 3 0-0-0
Matt Campanale 1 0-0-0
Greg Manz 1 0-0-0
Goaltending Stats
Player GP/Min GA GAA W-L-T SV SV%
Foster 1/64:57 1 0.92 0-0-1 34 .971
Foster Game-by-Game vs. the Warriors
Date Min Res. Svs. GA Shots
3-1-08 64:57 T 34 1 35
Totals 64:57 0-0-1 34 1 35
LAST TIME THESE TEAMS MET (3/1/08 AT MERRIMACK): The Wildcats extended its season-high unbeaten streak to 11 games as they skated to a 1-1 tie with Merrimack College at the Thom Lawler Arena on March 1. Trailing 1-0, UNH tallied the equalizer at 4:34 in the third. Thomas Fortney won a face off in the Merrimack zone to an open Mike Sislo for a one-timer that beat Warrior netminder Andrew Braithwaite. It was just the third goal of the year for the freshman forward.
LAST TIME OUT (11/22/08 VS. PROVIDENCE): Danny Dries scored a pair of second-period goals to pace a three-goal second and lift the Wildcats to a 4-3 win at Whittemore Center. Mike Sislo and Mike Borisenok each scored, while Brian Foster stopped 32 shots in the winning effort.
WILDCATS CONTINUE RECENT SUCCESS AGAINST PC: UNH is now 10-1-1 in its last 12 games against Providence.
FOUR STRAIGHT MULTI-GOAL GAMES: After going the first nine games of the season without a multi-goal performer, the Wildcats have had a player with a multi-goal game four contests in a row. Danny Dries (11/14 @ UML, 11/22 vs. PC), Mike Sislo (11/15 @ BC), James van Riemsdyk (11/21 @ NU).
‘CATS REMAIN UNBEATEN AT THE WHITT: UNH remains unbeaten at 5-0-1 at Whittemore Center.
CHARLEBOIS HAS FIVE POINTS IN LAST THREE GAMES: Joe Charlebois has a point in three straight games (0-5-5).
BORISENOK TALLIES FIRST COLLEGIATE GOAL: Mike Borisenok scored his first collegiate goal at 12:44 of the first period in a 4-3 win against PC on 11/22. The goal erased an early 1-0 Friar lead.
SISLO DOUBLES GOAL SCORING PRODUCTION: Mike Sislo has already doubled his goal production from a year ago with six goals in 13 games compared to just three all last year.
PROTECTING THE LEAD: UNH is 5-0-1 when leading after two periods.
van RIEMSDYK TALLIES FIRST MULTI-GOAL GAME OF HIS CAREER: James van Riemsdyk scored a pair of goals in Friday night’s 3-2 loss at Northeastern. It was the sophomore’s first multi-goal game of his career. van Riemsdyk has a team-leading nine goals this season.
JVP PASSES 50 CAREER POINTS: James van Riemsdyk surpassed 50 career points with a pair of goals at Northeastern on 11/21. van Riemsdyk has 52 career points on 19 goals and 33 assists.
LEBLANC CONTINUES TO BE PRODUCTIVE;REACHES 30 CAREER POINTS: Junior Peter LeBlanc had an assist Friday night and became the second UNH player with double-figure points. In addition, he reaches 30 career points with 12 goals and 18 assists.
FOSTER RETURNS TO LINEUP: Junior netminder Brian Foster returned to the lineup last weekend after missing all of the previous weekend with an injury. Foster stopped 33 shots both nights against Northeastern and PC.
SOPHOMORE SLUMP? NOT AT UNH: Overall, the sophomores are accounting for 49 percent of the offense. A UNH sophomore has scored a goal in 12 of 13 games this season including two goals from Danny Dries and one from Mike Sislo on Saturday against Providence. The second-year Wildcats have accounted for 69 percent of the goal scoring 24-of-35 goals.
Player G A P
van Riemsdyk 8 10 18
Dries 5 4 9
DeSimone 3 4 7
Sislo 6 1 7
Thompson, P. 2 0 2
Vranek 0 1 1
Totals 24 20 44
van RIEMSDYK PROVIDING WILDCAT SPARK: James van Riemsdyk has 11 points in his last six games (4g, 7a - 1.83 ppg) and has scored in all but two of the Wildcats’ games this season. He has scored in 10 of the last 11 games (8-10-18) and tallied a point in 18 of the last 21 games (9-20-29) dating back to Feb. 22, 2008 at BC.
0-1-1 vs. Providence (11/22)
2-0-2 at Northeastern (11/21)
1-3-4 at Boston College (11/15)
0-1-1 at Mass-Lowell (11/14)
1-1-2 at Minnesota (11/8)
0-1-1 at Minnesota (11/7)
0-0-0 at NU (11/1)
1-1-2 vs. NU (10/31)
0-1-1 at SLU (10/26)
1-0-1 vs. UMass (10/24)
1-1-2 vs. BU (10/19)
0-0-0 vs. RPI (10/17)
1-0-1 vs. Wisconsin (10/11)
0-3-3 vs. Notre Dame (3/28)
0-2-2 vs. Boston College (3/21)
0-2-2 vs. UMass (3/15)
0-1-1 vs. UMass (3/14)
0-0-0 vs. Merrimack (3/1)
0-1-1 at Merrimack (2/29)
1-0-1 vs. Boston College (2/23)
0-1-1 at Boston College (2/22)
TOTAL: 9-20-29 (1.38 PPG)
SCORING BY CLASS: 2008-09 breakdown of scoring by class.
(G) % (A) % (P) %
Seniors (1) 3% (17) 31% (18) 20%
Juniors (7) 20% (10) 19% (17) 19%
Sophomores (24) 69% (20) 37% (44) 49%
Freshmen (3) 9% (7) 13% (10) 11%
Totals (35) 100% (54) 100% (89) 100%
WHITTEMORE TRULY HOME SWEET HOME: UNH is 12-1-1 in its last 14 games at Whittemore Center and are 18-4-1 dating back to the start of the 2007-08 season.
UNH’S HOCKEY EAST TOP WEEKLY PERFORMERS (AS ANNOUNCED BY LEAGUE OFFICE):
Joe Charlebois, UNH (Sr., D, Potsdam, N.Y.) Had three assists last weekend, including two in a win over PC on Saturday.
Steve Moses, UNH (Fr., F, Leominster, Mass.) Recored two assists in a win over PC on Saturday night.
James van Riemsdyk, UNH (So., F, Middletown, N.J.) Had three points (2g,1a) during the weekend, including his first career multi-goal game.
THE NATIONAL POLLS:
USCHO.com/CBS Sports Division I Men’s Poll (Nov. 24)
Rk. Team (First Place) Record Pts LW
1 Minnesota (41) 7-1-4 984 1
2 Notre Dame (2) 9-3-1 867 5
3 Colorado College (1) 8-3-3 825 3
4 Northeastern 9-2-2 815 6
5 Boston College 7-4-1 778 4
6 Miami (1) 8-3-3 759 7
7 Princeton (3) 7-1-0 710 8
8 Boston University (1) 7-4-0 692 2
9 Denver 7-5-1 555 10
10 Minnesota State 7-3-2 538 11
11 Air Force (1) 12-0-0 515 12
12 Cornell 4-0-2 455 14
13 Vermont 7-3-2 430 15
14 Michigan 8-6-0 350 9
15 New Hampshire 5-5-3 286 13
16 Nebraska-Omaha 9-2-1 254 19
17 Massachusetts 6-4-1 239 16
18 St. Cloud State 8-5-0 179 17
19 Alaska-Anchorage 7-5-2 58 NR
20 Dartmouth 5-3-0 46 NR
USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine (Nov. 24)
Rk. School, Pts. (FPV) LW Record WIP
1 Minnesota, 498 (30) 1 7-1-4 9
2 Notre Dame, 446 6 9-3-1 9
3 Colorado College, 404 (1) 3 8-3-3 9
4 Northeastern, 395 5 9-2-2 6
5 Miami (Ohio), 374 (1) 7 8-3-3 9
6 Boston College, 332 4 7-4-1 9
7 Princeton, 328 (1) 8 7-1-0 8
8 Boston University, 273 2 7-4-0 9
9 Minnesota State, 218 11 7-3-2 7
10 Denver, 200 10 7-5-1 9
11 Air Force, 160 (1) 12 12-0-0 4
12 Cornell, 154 14 4-0-2 3
13 Vermont, 116 NR 7-3-2 4
14 Nebraska Omaha, 58 NR 9-2-1 1
15 Michigan, 57 9 8-6-0 9
WHERE IS UNH RANKED?: Here is a week-by-week look at the ‘Cats in the national polls and the HE standings:
Date USA TODAY USCHO HE
9/22 N/A 7 3rd (pre)
9/29 N/A 7 3rd (pre)
10/6 7 7 3rd (pre)
10/13 6 6 ---
10/20 3 4 2nd
10/27 7 6 2nd
11/3 5 5 2nd
11/10 5 6 2nd
11/17 13 13 5th
11/24 NR 15 6th
OTHER RANKINGS:
Inside College Hockey Power Rankings: 15th
NORTHEAST REGIONAL TICKETS ON SALE: Tickets for the Northeast regional at the Verizon Wireless Arena in Manchester, N.H. (hosted by the University of New Hampshire), are now on sale. Fans can purchase tickets by visiting the Verizon Wireless Arena box office, by calling (603) 868-7300 or by logging onto the internet at www.unhwildcats.com or www.ticketmaster.com. Start times for the first-round games are 1:30 and 5 p.m. Eastern time, March 28, while the regional final is 5:30 p.m. Eastern time, March 29. Tickets for the three-game package are $82.
Wildcats Among National leaders (11/24): Below is a list of where UNH players and the team rank nationally.
Individual Rank Stats
Points Per Game:
James van Riemsdyk 15th 1.38 ppg
Goals Per Game:
James van Riemsdyk 19th 0.62 gpg
Assists Per Game:
James van Riemsdyk 27th 0.77 apg
Power Play Goals:
James van Riemsdyk 25th 3 ppg
Short-Handed Goals:
James van Riemsdyk 9th 1 shg
Game-Winning Goals:
four tied 46th 1 gwg
Defensemen Scoring:
none ranked
Freshmen Scoring:
Steve Moses 46th 0.55 ppg
Goals Against Average:
Brian Foster 31st 2.27
Save Percentage:
Brian Foster 19th .930
Winning Percentage:
Brian Foster 24th .600
Team
Scoring Offense 29th 2.69 gpg
Scoring Defense 38th 3.15 gapg
Scoring Margin 38th -.46
Power Play 47th 10.3
Penalty Kill 37th 82.1
Combined Special Teams 41st 47.5
Team Winning Percentage 28th .500
WHERE UNH IS RANKED IN HOCKEY EAST (11/24):
Overall HE games
Goals/per game 2.69/7th 3.00/6th
GAA 3.15/8th 3.50/9th
Power Play 10.3/9th 13.0/7th
Penalty Kill 82.1/8th 81.2/6th
Special Teams Net -8/8th -3/8th
1st Period Scoring 9/5th 7/5th
2nd Period Scoring 17/1st 9/6th
3rd Period Scoring 9/8th 7/5th
WILDCAT AWARDS: Here is a list of awards that Wildcat players have won to date this season:
Player Award Date
J. van Riemsdyk CHN’s Nat. Plys to Watch 10-4-08
Joe Charlebois CHN’s Nat. Plys to Watch 10-4-08
Brian Foster CHN’s Nat. Plys to Watch 10-4-08
Brian Foster HE Def. Player of the Week 10-20-08
Brian Foster Inside Hockey Play. of the Week 10-20-08
Brian Foster HE Goalie of the Month October
WILDCATS PICKED THIRD IN HOCKEY EAST POLL: UNH was picked third in the Hockey East preseason Coaches’ Poll, which was announced Sept. 29 at the league’s annual media day at Legends Restaurant at the TD Banknorth Garden.
2008-09 Hockey East Men’s Preseason Coaches Poll
Rk. Team (FPV) Pts
1. Boston College (6) 86
2. Boston University (3) 80
3. New Hampshire (1) 78
4. Northeastern 62
5. Vermont 58
6. Massachusetts 48
7. UMass-Lowell 46
8. Providence 34
9. Maine 28
10. Merrimack 20
HOME SWEET HOME: UNH is in its 14th season of play at the Whittemore Center in 2008-09, posting a 4-0-1 at Towse Rink.UNH owns a 174-48-20 all-time record in 14 seasons of play at the Whittemore Center with 158 sellouts during that time in 241 all-time games.
THE DICK UMILE ERA: Dick Umile, a five-time Hockey East Coach of the Year, enters his 19th season as the head coach of the UNH Wildcats. He recently earned his fourth Leonard Fowle New England Coach of the Year award. After signing a long-term contract in 2000, Umile will conclude his coaching career at his alma mater. During his time spent at UNH, Umile has molded UNH hockey into one of the top programs in all of Division I hockey, guiding the Wildcats to four Frozen Four appearances, 14 NCAA tournament appearances and 18 Hockey East championship tournament showings in his 18-year career in Durham. In addition, Umile has posted 16 20-victory campaigns over the span of 18 seasons, including a current streak of 12 20-win seasons and back-to-back 25-plus win seasons. Umile is now the winningest coach in the history of UNH hockey with 424 career victories. He surpassed legendary coach Charlie Holt on Feb. 16, 2005 in a 6-1 victory at Merrimack at Thom Lawler Arena in North Andover, Mass. Umile ranks third among active NCAA coaches with a .653 winning percentage and on the active victories list his 424 victories ranks eighth among NCAA coaches. He has been named Coach of the Year a total of 10 times in his career, including New England honors four times. Umile’s five Hockey East Coach of the Year Awards is an all-time league best. Last season Umile led the Wildcats to a 25-10-3 record, including a program-record 19 Hockey East wins en route to a 19-5-3 record in league play, which earned UNH the regular season title for the second season in a row. Umile captured his 400th career victory Oct. 19, 2007 against Boston University. Umile coached four All-Americans in Kevin Regan, Mike Radja, Matt Fornataro, and Brad Flashains, which was the first time in school history that four players received that honor.
THE PROGRAM’S HISTORY: UNH has appeared in the NCAA Tournament 18 times in the 81-year history of the program. UNH has appeared in the Frozen Four seven times, including national championship game appearances against Maine in 1999 and Minnesota in 2003. UNH earned Hockey East Tournament titles in 2002 and 2003 and regular-season championships in 1997, 1999, 2002, 2003, 2007 and 2008. The Wildcats won the ECAC regular-season title in 1974 and the tournament championship in 1979. UNH has posted 29 seasons with 20-plus wins, including the last 12 consecutive seasons.
‘CATS SELECTED IN THE NHL DRAFT: Six current UNH players have been selected in the National Hockey League draft.Joe Charlebois (Chicago), Phil DeSimone (Washington), Brian Foster (Florida), Blake Kessel (N.Y. Islanders), Peter LeBlanc (Chicago) and James van Riemsdyk (Philadelphia) have all been taken.
‘CATS IN THE PROS: Here is a listing of former Wildcats playing professional hockey:
Justin Aikins: Sport Vaasan Mestis(FIN)
Travis Banga: Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees (CHL)
Derek Bekar: Springfield Falcons (AHL)
Eric Boguniecki: Iowa Chops (AHL)
A.J. Bucchino: Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees (CHL)
Ty Conklin: Detroit Red Wings (NHL)
Matt Dzieduszycki: Hannover Scorpions (DEL)
Matt Fornataro: Phoenix Roadrunners (ECHL)
Lanny Gare: Bad Nauheim EC (GerObL)
Darren Haydar: Grand Rapids Griffins (AHL)
Brett Hemingway:Alaska Aces (ECHL)
Colin Hemingway: Alaska Aces (ECHL)
Mark Kolanos: Arizona Sun Dogs (CHL)
Jason Krog: Manitoba Moose (AHL)
Nathan Martz: Alba Volan Szekeshfehervar (Austria)
Jacob Micflikier: Rochester Americans (AHL)
Mark Mowers: Fribourg-Gotteron (Swiss NL)
Chris Murray: Portland Pirates (AHL)
Bryan Muir: Minsk Dynamo (KHL)
Eric Nickulas: Ingolstadt ERC (DEL)
Josh Prudden: Fresno Falcons (ECHL)
Mike Radja: Rockford Ice Hogs (AHL)
Kevin Regan: Providence Bruins (AHL)
Steve Saviano: Tappara Tampere (FNL)
Tyler Scott: Bakersfield Condors (ECHL)
Trevor Smith: Bridgeport Soundtigers (AHL)
Mike Souza: Cortina SG (Italy)
Garrett Stafford: Grand Rapids Griffins (AHL)
Craig Switzer: Elmira Jackals (ECHL)
Tyson Teplitsky: Cardiff Devils (EIHL)
Daniel Winnik: Phoenix Coyotes (NHL)
Brian Yandle: Augusta Lynx (ECHL)
UNH HOCKEY ON THE RADIO: UNH men’s hockey action this season can be heard live on the UNH Sports Network.In the summer of 1999, the University of New Hampshire Athletic Department formed the “UNH Sports Network” — the largest network ever to broadcast UNH sporting events. In 2001-2002, WTSN AM 1270 was introduced as the flagship station with the signal carried on several stations through New Hampshire. The network also consists of WGIR 610AM in Manchester; WNTK 99.7 FM in New London; WCNL 1010AM in Newport; and WUVR-1490AM in Lebanon. WNTK offers streaming audio of network broadcasts at www.wntk.com. Dan Parkhurst will once again be handling the majority of the play-by-play, while Pete Webster will be doing the color commentating. Webster has been anouncing Wildcat hockey for 15 years since the 1993-94 season.
LISTEN LIVE ON THE INTERNET: Yahoo Broadcast will carry all of the UNH men’s ice hockey action again this season.If you can not attend Wildcat hockey at the Whittemore Center, you can still tune into the game from anywhere you can gain access to the internet.Fans can get to the UNH men’s ice hockey Yahoo Broadcast site by going to the men’s hockey schedule page at www.unhwildcats.com.
UNH HOCKEY ON TELEVISION: UNH will have 12 games broadcast live on TV in 2008-09.NESN will air four games, while three will air on CN8 and ESPNU, while two will air on FSN-North Minnesota.
DATE GAME Channel Result
OCT. 19 BOSTON U. ESPNU W, 2-1
OCT. 26 @ ST. Lawrence ESPNU L, 1-4
Oct. 31 NORTHEASTERN CN8 W, 4-2
NOV. 7 @ Minnesota Fox Sports North-MN T, 2-2
NOV. 8 @ Minnesota Fox Sports North-MN L, 2-6
DEC. 6 UMASS-LOWELL CN8
JAN. 4 @ Maine ESPNU
JAN. 23 @Boston U. NESN
JAN. 24 BOSTON U. CN8
FEB. 6 MAINE NESN
FEB. 20 BOSTON COLLEGE NESN
FEB. 28 MERRIMACK NESN
THE DICK UMILE SHOW ON RADIO: The Coach’s Show featuring UNH men’s hockey head coach Dick Umile, with hosts Andy Schachat and D. Ellis is broadcast on Mondays live from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. on WTSN-1270 AM (Dover, N.H.), simulcasted on WGIR- 610 AM (Manchester, N.H.) and on www.wtsn1270.com from Libby’s Bar and Grill on Main Street in Durham.The show will start the Monday following the end of the UNH football season.The Coaches Show features Coach Umile as well as a selected student-athlete each week from the men’s ice hockey team.
GRANITE STATE CONNECTION: The Wildcat hockey team features three players from New Hampshire with Brian Foster (Pembroke), Paul Thompson (Derry) and Alan Thompson (Gilford) all hailing from the Granite State.
WATCH ALL THE ACTION WITH THE UNHWILDCATS.TV: After an extremely successful first season, UNH and Pack Network have once again partnered to provide online video streaming of UNH’s seven ticketed sports for the upcoming 2008-09 season with UNHwildcats.TV.
Wildcat fans are encouraged to buy the “Wildcat All-Access Pass” which is an annual subscription for $79.95 that provides not only all the live coverage of UNH home athletic events, but also premium content not available to view without the All-Access Pass. The premium content includes a behind the scenes look at UNH athletics through player and coaches interviews, highlights, podcasts, select post-game interviews and an in-depth archive section of all video available on UNHwildcats.TV. Fans can also purchase home events on a per game basis of $6.95.
