ECAC WEST NEWSLETTER
Volume 3, Number 7
December 10th, 1996
TIES GALORE - Lots of sister kissing in the ECAC West last week. All
three conference games ended in ties to essentially keep the standings
the same. In other news, the first NCAA polls saw three ECAC West
teams ranked (Elmira and RIT in D-III and Mercyhurst in D-II). Since
Canisius and Niagara aren't eligible for the D-I poll, this means that
three of the four ECAC Teams eligible for a national ranking have
achieved one.
STANDINGS
W L T Pts GF GA
Niagara (8-6-2) 2 0 2 6 25 14
RIT (5-1-2) 1 0 1 3 8 5
Mercyhurst (5-4-2) 1 0 1 3 12 9
Elmira (8-1-1) 1 1 1 3 13 13
Canisius (7-3-1) 1 2 1 3 23 24
Hobart (3-7-1) 0 3 0 0 14 30
Note: Niagara, in their first season in the ECAC West, is ineligible for the
playoffs.
RECENT RESULTS
12/3:
Brockport 3 at Canisius 7
Hobart 4 at Babson 6
12/4:
Hobart 6 at Skidmore 5 (ot)
12/6:
RIT 2 at Niagara 2
12/7:
Canisius 4 at Elmira 4
Niagara 4 at Mercyhurst 4
SCORING LEADERS
GP G A Pts
P. DeSantis, Niagara 4 6 2 8
S. Toll, RIT 2 6 1 7
J. Oort, Canisius 4 2 5 7
R. Othmann, Canisius 4 2 5 7
J. Braun, Canisius 4 0 7 7
GOALTENDING LEADERS GP Save % GAA
J. Morris, RIT 2 .943 2.40
G. Gardner, Niagara 4 .880 2.50
TEAM-BY-TEAM REPORT:
CANISIUS (7-3-1)): The Ice Griffs remained undefeated in their last
four games with a 7-3 win over Brockport and 4-4 tie at Elmira.
Against Brockport, Junior forward Ryan Stewart led the way with 2
goals and 2 assists, and sophomore goaltender Bob Janosz stopped 39
shots to earn the win. At Elmira, Todd Kreutzer scored with only :49
seconds left in regulation to earn the tie. Canisius had pulled
goaltender Kevin Kreutzer for an extra attacker. Kreutzer finished
with 42 saves. The Griffs have concluded the 1996 portion of their schedule.
ELMIRA (8-1-1, ranked #2 the NCAA Division III Eastern Poll): The
Soaring Eagles tied Canisius in their only game of the week (see
above). This weekend Elmira will participate in a three-team
round-robin tournament at Hamilton College. They play Fredonia on
Saturday and then the host Continentals on Sunday.
HOBART (3-7-1): The Statesmen went 1-1 on their eastern roadtip,
dropping a 6-4 contest at Babson before rallying to defeat Skidmore
6-5 in overtime the next night. It was the first time in 31 games that
Skidmore had lost on home ice. Hobart hosts Hamilton on Tuesday and
then concludes the 1996 portion of their schedule at Brockport on
Saturday (12/14).
MERCYHURST (5-4-2, ranked #3 in the NCAA Division II poll)) : The
Lakers Lost a two-goal third period lead and had to settle for a tie
with Niagara on home ice. The Lakers have a busy week upcoming with a
conference game against RIT followed by their hosting their first
tournament, which includes Findlay, Oswego and AIC.
NIAGARA (8-6-2): The Purple Eagles bounced back from a disappointing
weekend in Plattsburgh to earn hard-fought ties with RIT and
Mercyhurst. In both contests, Niagara scored the equalizer late to
earn their point. The Purple Eagles are off until the New Year.
RIT (5-1-2, ranked #5 in the NCAA Division III Eastern Poll) : The
Tigers played their first ever game at Niagara and came away with a
2-2 tie. Steve Toll and Art Thomas scored for the Tigers. Toll now has
28 points (18-11) in eight games. Jamie Morris made 40 saves to lower
his league-leading goals against to 2.40. The Tigers play a key ECAC
West matchup at Mercyhurst on Tuesday, and then return home to face
Brockport on Friday (12/13).This will be RIT's first home game in six weeks.
UPCOMING GAMES
12/10:
RIT at Mercyhurst
Hamilton at Hobart
12/13:
Findlay at Mercyhurst (Mercyhurst Tournament)
Brockport at RIT
12/14:
Elmira vs. Fredonia (Hamilton Tournament)
Mercyhurst vs. AIC/Oswego (Mercyhurst Tournament)
Hobart at Brockport
12/15:
Elmira at Hamilton (Hamilton Tournament)
GAME OF THE WEEK: Elmira vs. Fredonia on neutral ice boasts the #2 and
#3 ranked teams in the latest Division III Eastern poll.
ECAC WEST vs.
SUNYAC 12-7-2
ECAC East 4-2-0
ECAC N/C/S 7-0-0
Other 3-4-1
TOTAL 26-13-3
Chris Lerch
US College Hockey Magazine
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