Union played two different kind of games this weekend. Both resulted in wins.
So, which was more impressive, the Dutchmen's 11-2 rout of Clarkson on Friday, or the 4-2 triumph over St. Lawrence on Saturday?
Both games had their unique characteristics. In Friday's game, after the Dutchmen gave up a goal 20 seconds into the first period, they scored the next nine goals.
But if I am a Dutchmen fan, I would be happier with the victory over the Saints.
The Dutchmen played OK for two periods, but the Saints were much better. And, they should have had all of the momentum after Travis Vermeulen scored a short-handed goal with 6.3 seconds left in the second period to give St. Lawrence a 2-1 lead.
Instead of sulking coming out of the locker room for third period, the Dutchmen came out with renewed vigor. Mario Valery-Trabucco scored early in the third period to tie the score. Wayne Simpson was the in the right spot to tip Mike Schreiber's left-point shot into the net at 7:11. And Brock Matheson sealed it with a goal at 18:07.
Friday's game was interesting in that everything Union seem to fire on net went into the net. The 11 goals were the most in the team's Division I history. The Dutchmen did it against a Clarkson team that has been decimated by injuries and illness. But, as I said in my postgame blog Friday, I liked that Union didn't feel sorry for the Golden Knights and didn't let up.
But, in terms of making a bigger impact, the Dutchmen's win over the Saints was more impressive. It showed me that, even though the Dutchmen can struggle for a time, they can find a way to win. That will become paramount over the final six games of the regular season and into the postseason.
Vote for Leaman
St. Lawrence coach Joe Marsh already knows who he is voting for on ECAC Coach of the Year.
"I give them a lot of credit, they are a very well-coached team," Marsh said. "Those guys have done a fabulous job this year. Actually, not just this year, it's been coming. I'll say it publicly, Nate's got my vote for coach of the year. He's done a fantastic job."
Creative consultant
If you watch my video interviews with Leaman and notice he looks at the camera a lot, you can thank his creative consultant.
Leaman's father, Terry, who came in from his Ohio home for Saturday's game, has advised his son on his appearances.
"He's the one that calls me up and says you have to look at the camera," Leaman said.
Union moves up
Thanks to its sweep of the North Country teams, Union moved up in the latest USCHO.com NCAA hockey poll.
The Dutchmen are ranked 16th in the poll released Monday. They were 20th last week.
Union (9-3-4 ECAC Hockey, 15-7-6 overall) routed Clarkson, 11-2, Friday, and then rallied from a 2-1 deficit to beat St. Lawrence, 4-2, Saturday.
RPI received eight points, finish tied for fourth with Boston University in the other teams receiving votes category.
Union moved up two spots, to No. 13 in the Inside College Hockey Power Rankings. RPI entered the rankings at No. 18. To view the list, click here.
Union is tied with Yale for 17th in the Pairwise Rankings. To view the list, click here.
Here are the polls:
USCHO.com Division I Men's Poll
Team (First Place) Record Pts Last Week
1 Miami (46) 20- 4-6 996 1
2 Denver (3) 18- 6-4 949 2
3 Wisconsin (1) 16- 7-4 899 3
4 St. Cloud State 18- 8-4 844 4
5 Bemidji State 18- 6-2 703 7
6 Yale 14- 6-3 650 8
7 Minnesota-Duluth 18-11-1 642 6
8 Cornell 13- 6-3 637 5
9 Colorado College 17-10-3 635 10
10 Boston College 15- 8-2 598 14
11 North Dakota 13-10-5 538 9
12 Maine 14- 9-3 432 16
13 Michigan State 17-10-5 389 12
14 Ferris State 17- 9-4 387 11
15 New Hampshire 13-10-4 258 13
16 Union 15- 7-6 248 20
17 Vermont 13- 9-4 242 17
18 Massachusetts 16-11-0 201 15
19 Michigan 16-13-1 131 19
20 Mass.-Lowell 14-12-2 29 18
Others receiving votes: St. Lawrence 28, Alaska 18, RIT 15, Boston University 8, RPI 8, Northern Michigan 6, Sacred Heart 5, Lake Superior 3, Minnesota 1.
USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Men's College Hockey Poll
(First-place votes in parenthesis)
Rank School Last Poll's Ranking 2009-10 Record Weeks in Top-15
1 Miami University, 509 (33) 1 20-4-6 18
2 University of Denver, 478 (1) 2 18-6-4 18
3 University of Wisconsin, 441 3 16-7-4 11
4 St. Cloud State University, 400 4 18-8-4 7
5 Bemidji State University, 305 7 18-6-2 15
6 Cornell University, 289 5 13-6-3 18
7 Yale University, 286 8 14-6-3 18
8 University of Minnesota Duluth, 260 6 18-11-1 12
9 Colorado College, 244 10 17-10-3 15
10 Boston College, 227 14 15-8-2 15
11 University of North Dakota, 199 9 13-10-5 18
12 University of Maine, 136 NR 14-9-3 1
13 Ferris State University, 98 11 17-9-4 9
14 Michigan State University, 87 12 17-10-5 13
15 University of New Hampshire, 48 13 13-10-4 3
Others receiving votes: University of Massachusetts, 27; Union, 21; University of Vermont, 18; University of Michigan, 6; Rochester Institute of Technology, 1.
Daily Gazette ECAC Hockey Team of the Week — Union
The Dutchmen's second sweep of the North Country teams this season not only snapped their four-game winless streak, it moved them into a three-way tie for first place in ECAC Hockey.
Valery-Trabucco, Bodie honored
Two Union players were honored by ECAC Hockey on Monday.
Valery-Trabucco was named player of the week for the third time this season. He had his second hat trick of the season and added two assists in Union's 11-2 rout of Clarkson, and had a goal and an assist in Saturday's 4-2 win over St. Lawrence.
Freshman forward Kyle Bodie was named rookie of the week. He had a career-best one goal and three assists in the Clarkson win.
Biega suspended
Harvard defenseman Danny Biega has been suspended by ECACH for tonight's Beanpot consolation game against Northeastern.
Biega was ejected for a major hitting from behind penalty against the Bears' Jesse Fratkin late in the second period of the Crimson's 5-2 win. Fratkin did not return, and missed Saturday's 5-5 tie against Dartmouth.
If you have any comments, post them below, or e-mail them to me at schott@dailygazette.com.
