University of New Hampshire Athletics
University of New Hampshire
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Dartmouth College
Wildcats Travel to Intrastate Rival Dartmouth Saturday (7:05 PM | ESPN3)
12/8/2016 1:45:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey
Saturday, December 10, 2016 at 7:05 PM | ESPN3
New Hampshire (8-6-2, 5-1-1 HEA) at Dartmouth College (3-5-2, 1-3-2 ECAC)
Thompson Arena
What to Know...
- The University of New Hampshire is coming off a weekend sweep of Hockey East rival University of Maine in a home-and-home series. On Friday, Dec. 2, the Wildcats defeated the Black Bears 5-1 at home while on Saturday, Dec. 3, they beat Maine 4-3 on the road.
- It was the first win at Alfond Arena for UNH since Nov. 4, 2012.
- UNH is 5-1-1 in Hockey East play and has five wins in the first seven games of HE play for the first time since 2013-14. The last time UNH started 5-1-1 in league play was 2012-13.
- Reigning Hockey East Player of the Week and NCAA First Star Tyler Kelleher recorded six points in the two games with four goals and two assists. He registered two goals and one assist in each game. Kelleher sits in second in the nation in points (30pts, 12g, 18a).
- Junior netminder Danny Tirone made a season-high 38 saves in Saturday's game for his eighth win of the season.
- The Wildcats and Big Green are meeting for the 58th time as UNH holds a 35-19-3 advantage in the all-time series.
- The last time the two teams played, UNH defeated Dartmouth by a score of 6-3 at home on Dec. 11, 2015.
- The Wildcats have never been shutout by DC in any meeting between the two schools. UNH has shutout Dartmouth three times.
- Dartmouth is coming off a pair of losses in the North Country; a 4-2 loss at Clarkson on Friday, Dec. 2 and a 5-1 loss against St. Lawrence on Saturday, Dec. 3.
- The last time the two teams played at Thompson Arena was Dec. 30, 2012.
- After Saturday's game, the Wildcats do not return to the ice again until Friday, Dec. 30 when they take on the University of Maine at SNHU arena in Manchester, N.H. at 7 p.m.
December Success: The Wildcats have not lost a game in the month of December since Dec. 30, 2014 at Omaha. Since Dec. 31, 2014 when UNH beat Omaha 6-2, the Wildcats are 7-0-1 in the month of December.
Kelleher's November: Senior forward Tyler Kelleher was the nation's highest scoring player in the month of November with 15 points. He had four goals and a nation leading 11 assists.
Cleland's Offense: Senior captain Matias Cleland was tied for first nationally among scoring by defensemen in November with nine points. He had one goal and was tied for the national lead in assists with eight for nine points.
Two Shutouts for Tirone: Junior netminder Danny Tirone made 25 saves in Tuesday's 5-0 win over RPI for his second shutout of the season. His first came when he made 14 saves against Mercyhurst (Nov. 5). He now has five shutouts in his career.
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.
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 was awarded the league Rookie of the Month accolade again on Thursday, Dec. 1.
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 12/7):
Among Freshmen All Players Totals
Goals 1st T-4th 11 goals
Points 4th T-17th 20 points
Power Play Goals 1st T-1st 6 goals
Power Play Points 1st T-3rd 13 points
Hat Tricks T-1st T-4th 1 hat trick
Number 90: The 2016-17 season is the 90th year of men's hockey at UNH. The program has a record of 1,215-908-145 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.
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 353-189-89. 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 12/7):
Points:
1. Mike Vecchione - Union College - 144
2. Tyler Kelleher - UNH - 134
3. Justin Kloos - Minnesota - 120
4. Max French - Bentley - 119
5. Ryan Fitzgerald - Boston College - 117
Assists:
1. Tyler Kelleher - UNH - 89
2. Mike Vecchione - Union - 86
3. Alexander Kerfoot - Harvard - 72
4. David Goodwin - Penn State - 71
Gavin Bayreuther - St. Lawrence - 71
Points Per Game (Min. 100 games)
1. Mike Vecchione - Union College - 1.14 (126 games played)
2. Tyler Kelleher - UNH - 1.04 (129 games played)
Max French - Bentley University - 1.04 (114 games played)
4. Justin Kloos - Minnesota - 0.92 (131 games played)
5. Austin Ortega - Omaha - 0.91 (125 games played)
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.
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