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University of New Hampshire Athletics
University of New Hampshire
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
'Cats Host RPI for Tuesday Night Game (7 PM)
11/21/2016 2:31:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey
Tuesday, November 22, 2016 at 7 PM
Rensselaer (2-10-1, 1-5-0 ECAC) at New Hampshire (5-5-2, 3-1-1 HEA)
Whittemore Center Arena
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WHAT TO KNOW
- New Hampshire is coming off a 6-2 win over the University of Massachusetts on Friday, Nov. 22 in their only game of the weekend.
- Senior forward Tyler Kelleher recorded five points in the game with one goal and four assists. He is the first Wildcat since Nov. 24, 2012 to tally five points in one game.
- Junior forward Jason Salvaggio recorded a career-high three points in the game with two goals and one assist. His goal proved to be the game winner at 5:08 of the second stanza.
- Junior netminder Danny Tirone made 35 saves in the game for his fifth win of the year. He made eight in the first, 10 in the second and 17 in the third.
- UNH is now 5-5-2 overall and 3-1-1 in Hockey East play.
- The Wildcats and Rensselaer will meet for the 49th time in the history with the all-time series being tied, 24-24-0. At the Whittemore Center, UNH holds a 5-2-0 advantage.
- RPI is coming off a 0-2-0 weekend at home against Ohio State with a 4-0 loss on Friday, Nov. 18 and a 3-2 loss on Saturday, Nov. 19.
- The Engineers are 2-10-1 overall and 1-5-0 in ECAC play.
- The last time the two teams met, RPI took the game by a score of 4-3 at home. Former Wildcat Andrew Poturalski recorded a hat trick in the game while Tirone made 34 saves.
- UNH is back on the ice on Saturday, Nov. 26 when the team travels to Madison Square Garden for the first time in program history to take on Cornell University. Puck drop is set for 8 p.m.
Five is Fine: Senior forward Tyler Kelleher recorded a career-high five points against the University of Massachusetts on Friday, Nov. 22 with one goal and four assists. He was the first 'Cat to record five points in a game since Kevin Goumas on Nov. 24, 2012.
Heading to the Big Apple: The Wildcats will travel to Madison Square Garden to play in New York City for the first time in program history. They will play Cornell on Nov. 26 at 8:00 PM.
Power Play Efficiency: The Wildcats have recorded a power play goal in all but two games this season (Bentley - 10/8, CC - 10/22). The 'Cats have scored 18 power play goals while limiting opponents to just nine. UNH is converting at a rate of 23.4 percent, ranking them ninth in the nation.
Rookie of the Month: Freshman forward Patrick Grasso was named the HCA National Rookie of the Month as well as the HE Pro Ambitions Rookie of the Month on Wednesday, Nov. 2. He is the first 'Cat to earn the accolade since Grayson Downing in November of 2011. Grasso was also named the HE Rookie of the Week on Monday, Oct. 31.
Four-on-Four: Patrick Grasso scored four times on four shots against Merrimack in the 6-2 win on Saturday, Oct. 29. He was the first Wildcat to score four goals in a game since Steve Moses in 2012. He netted three goals in the first period in the span of 3:56.
Grasso's National Ranking (Updated 11/21):
Among Freshmen All Players Totals
Goals 1st T-4th 10 goals
Points T-2nd T-9th 18 points
Power Play Goals 1st T-1st 6 goals
Power Play Points 1st T-1st 12 points
Hat Tricks T-1st T-3rd 1 hat tricks
Number 90: The 2016-17 season is the 90th year of men's hockey at UNH. The program has a record of 1,212-907-145 over the nine decades.
Weekend Warrior: Senior forward Tyler Kelleher was named the Warrior Hockey Player of the Week by the Hockey East Association on Monday, Nov. 21 for a stellar five-point (1g, 4a) performance against Massachusetts on Friday, Nov. 18.
Maller's Milestone: Senior defenseman Dylan Maller scored his first collegiate goal against Clarkson on Saturday, Oct. 15.
Frozen Fenway: For the first time since Jan. 7, 2012, UNH will play an outdoor game when they take on Northeastern at Fenway Park on Saturday, Jan. 14 at 7:30 PM.
350 and Counting: Head coach Dick Umile recorded his 350th Hockey East win in the 6-2 triumph over Merrimack (Oct. 29). His league record is 351-189-89. He has the most wins among active HE coaches and is second all-time to Jack Parker (BU; 421).
Longevity: Umile is the third longest tenured coach at their current institution as he is entering his 27th season with the 'Cats. Red Berenson (Michigan) is going into his 33rd season while Rick Gotkin (Mercyhurst) is going into his 29th season.
'C' is for Captain, and Cleland: Senior blueliner Matias Cleland was elected captain by his teammates and is the first Wildcat to be a lone captain with no assistants since James Richmond in 1986-87.
Wildcat Blue Genes: The incoming freshman class has many NHL ties. Brendan van Riemsdyk is the youngest brother of James van Riemsdyk ('09) and Trevor van Riemsdyk ('14), both of whom play in the NHL. Joe Sacco is the son of Boston Bruins assistant coach Joe Sacco, who played 738 games in the NHL. Patrick Grasso is the nephew of Joe Mullen, who won three Stanley Cups. He is currently an assistant coach with the Philadelphia Flyers.
Welcome to Wildcat Country: UNH added eight freshmen in the off-season: Liam Blackburn (F), Justin Fregona (F), Patrick Grasso (F), Joe Lazzaro (G), Nick Nonis (D), Joe Sacco (F), Brendan van Riemsdyk (F), and Anthony Wyse (D).
Wildcats Through and Through: Head coach Dick Umile ('72) and associate head coaches Glenn Stewart ('94) and Mike Souza ('00) are all graduates and former players of UNH. Assistant AD for Hockey Operations Colin Shank ('05) is also a graduate of UNH.
Three Coaches, 402 Points: Umile, Stewart and Souza are each members of the Century Club for the men's hockey program. Souza tallied 156 points (66g, 90a), Umile 144 points (60g, 84a) and Stewart notched 102 points (51g, 51a).
Where Kelleher Ranks in his Career Nationally (Updated 11/21):
Points:
1. Mike Vecchione - Union College - 139
2. Tyler Kelleher - UNH - 126
3. Max French - Bentley University - 114
Ryan Fitzgerald - Boston College - 114
Justin Kloos - Minnesota - 114
Assists:
1. Tyler Kelleher - UNH - 82
2. Mike Vecchione - Union - 83
3. David Goodwin - Penn State - 6
4. Justin Kloos - Minnesota - 66
Gavin Bayreuther - St. Lawrence - 66
Points Per Game (Min. 100 games)
1. Mike Vecchione - Union College - 1.12 (124 games played)
2. Max French - Bentley University - 1.03 (111 games played)
3. Tyler Kelleher - UNH - 1.01 (125 games played)
4. Justin Kloos - Minnesota - 0.90 (125 games played)
5. Austin Ortega - Omaha - 0.89 (121 games played)
Points for Patrick: Freshman Patrick Grasso scored four goals in Saturday's (Oct. 29) 6-2 win over Merrimack College. He was the first player to score four times in a game since Steve Moses did so on Jan. 14, 2012 against Dartmouth. It was also the last time a player scored four-consecutive goals.
Wildcats Drafted by NHL Teams: Junior Shane Eiserman and sophomore Marcus Vela have both been drafted by NHL organizations. Eiserman was taken by the Ottawa Senators in the fourth round of the 2014 draft as the 100th overall pick. Vela was picked in the seventh round of the 2015 draft as the 190th pick.
Granite State Connection: Three Wildcats hail from the Granite State; Chris Miller of Windham, Nick Nonis of Hampton Falls and Joe Lazzaro of Hampstead.
