Jan. 14, 2008

Full MCHA Release for January 14, 2008

Adrian and Marian Move to Head of the Class

Two teams tightened their grips on a looming battle for first-place in the Midwest Collegiate Hockey Association standings over the weekend, as Adrian College and Marian College both improved to 9-1 in league play with weekend sweeps. The Bulldogs took care of business against Concordia, beating the Falcons, 10-3 and 7-2. Marian, meanwhile, not only defeated MSOE for the first time in over two years, but one-upped that by taking a pair (3-2 Friday/4-3 Saturday) from the Raiders for the first time since February 7 and 8, 2004.

Not to be lost in the shuffle was Northland, who recorded 4-3 and 8-0 victories over Minnesota-Crookston to earn its first league weekend sweep since November of 2001 and also tallied its first-ever shutout against a varsity opponent. In the other series, Finlandia and Lawrence split a pair, with the Vikings winning, 5-3, Friday before the Lions roared back for a 7-2 victory Saturday to increase it's lead in the Northern Division. Of note in the Concordia/Adrian series was a near-record 70 saves by CUW goalie Justus Neumann Saturday, just missing the MCHA record of 71 (Todor Petkov, Northland College vs MSOE, 02/05/05).

Heading into the second half of the season, several MCHA names dot the NCAA rankings in numerous categories. Adrian boasts three of the top five scorers in the nation, with Shawn Skelly (16G/20A=nation-leading 36 points), Eric Miller (17G/16A) and Adam Krug (10G/22A) all in the top five. As a team, the Bulldogs also pace the nation in scoring at 6.07 goals per game and 91 total goals, with runner-up Neumann second at a 5.31 gpg clip. Adrian is also second in scoring margin at +3.07.

Other individual leaders include Finlandia's Ryan Sullivan leading the way with nine power-play goals, Marian's Carl Bresser with a high of five short-handed goals and AC's Skelly tied for first with four game-winners.

Players of the Week
-Marian College Sabres junior forward James Goodfellow (Naperville, IL) keyed Marian's victories over MSOE with his play over the weekend to earn his second MCHA Player of the Week award of the year. On Friday, he had an assist before netting the game-winner halfway through the third period. Then, on Saturday, the captain and criminal justice major had three assists - including one on the game-winner - in MC's 4-3 come-from-behind win.
Other Nominees: Josh Paquette (Finlandia), Ryan Tucker (UM-Crokston), Daniel McIntosh (Northland)

-Northland College freshman goalie Daniel McIntosh (Calgary, Alb.) gets the nod for MCHA Defensive Player of the Week for his work in the Lumberjacks noteworthy weekend. He posted his first collegiate win Friday with 26 saves. The engineering major then topped that with an 8-0 shutout Saturday, stopping 40 shots for the unprecendented shutout for Northland. For icing on the cake, he added an assist on NC's fourth goal of the night.
Other Nominees: Jason Jadczak (Marian), Tiger Marcotte (Finlandia), Jim Ryan (Lawrence), Brian Zwawa (Northland)

-Adrian College freshman forward Eric Miller (Erlanger, Kent.) earns his second MCHA Freshman of the Week award this season for his work on offense in Adrian's convincing sweep of Concordia. He tallied two more goals in each game to give him 17 overall on the year and 12 in league games. Miller currently sits second in league scoring with 22 points on 12 goals and 10 assists.
Other Nominees: Zach Kozak (Northland), Tony Huberty (Northland)