No. 9 Plymouth State hockey team ready to host NCAA game on Saturday night
Mar. 7—The deeper and more responsible team will advance in the NCAA Division III tournament on Saturday, Plymouth State University men's hockey coach Craig Russell said.
Russell's Panthers (23-2-2) will host Cortland (18-8-2) on Saturday night (7) at Hanaway Rink. PSU is ranked ninth nationally and won its fifth straight Massachusetts Collegiate Athletic Conference tournament title last weekend. Cortland, which is ranked 13th, claimed the State University of New York Athletic Conference title and automatic NCAA bid.
"This game is going to be won and lost in the late stages, so the team with the most depth that is responsible should be the one that comes away with it," Russell said, "and I feel like we're built just that way."
Saturday's winner will advance to a quarterfinal game at No. 2 and United Collegiate Hockey Conference champion Utica (23-2-3) on Saturday, March 19 at 7 p.m.
The Panthers are winless in their five all-time NCAA tournament games. Saturday will mark Cortland's first NCAA tournament game.
From scouting the Red Dragons, Russell said he has noticed they try to outwork everybody they play, have two strong lines, great goaltending and are more physical than Plymouth State.
The Panthers, though, have a slight edge in speed, skill and depth, Russell said.
Cortland has not allowed more than two goals in a game since its final regular-season loss — 5-4 to Plattsburgh on Feb. 9.
Cortland senior goaltender Jack Riedell finished second in the SUNYAC in save percentage (.938) and third in goals-against average (2.07).
"Their goaltender's at the top of his game right now," Russell said. "He's had five or six really good games in a row. They're not giving up many goals — they're giving up one or two a night and against some really good teams."
Red Dragons forwards Nate Berke (15 goals, 20 assists), Colby Seitz (12 goals, 17 assists) and Domenic Settimo (eight goals, 19 assists) all finished among the top 10 in the SUNYAC in points.
Plymouth State boasts the MASCAC Player of the Year in sophomore forward Will Redick (26 goals, 29 assists) and the MASCAC Defensive Player of the Year in senior goaltender Kalle Andersson (1.75 goals against average, .934 save percentage).
Redick leads the nation (all divisions) in goals per game (1.04) and points per game (2.2).
Another sophomore forward has emerged offensively lately for the Panthers: Payton Schaly, who was named the MASCAC Tournament MVP after recording two game-winning, power-play goals alongside two assists in PSU's semifinal triumph over Westfield State (5-1) and championship game victory over Fitchburg State (3-0).
Schaly, of Orillia, Ontario, skates on the third line with junior Ethan Stuckless and senior captain Anton Jellvik. He has tallied five of his eight goals and four of his six assists since the Panthers returned from the holiday break.
"I think coming into the year Payton had some really big goals for himself and he didn't meet those goals early on," Russell said, "so I think he really started to grip the stick tight and here in the last month and a half, two months, he's really started to relax and just play. He's a shooter, so when he's shooting pucks, we're just better for it."
Cortland owns a 5-2 all-time record against the Panthers but the programs have not met since Plymouth State swept a two-game series played at the Tilton School in 2009.
Russell, who is in his 14th season leading the Panthers, said one of his favorite aspects of coaching is preparing for an unfamiliar team.
Plymouth State plays each of its fellow MASCAC members three times each regular season.
"This one is just more fun," Russell said. "I don't think they (the Red Dragons) have a lot of secrets. They're a very honest, hard-working team, which is what wins at this time of year."
UNH finishes regular season vs. UMass Lowell
The UNH hockey team, sitting in sixth place in Hockey East (30 points), finishes its regular season with a home-and-home series against last-place UMass Lowell (18 points). The teams, who have not met yet this season, play Friday night (7) at Tsongas Arena, then Saturday night (7:30) at the Whittemore Center in Durham. Both games will be shown on NESN.
The Wildcats (17-14-1 overall, 10-11-1 in Hockey East) could finish anywhere from fifth to eighth, depending on the results of the weekend, which began Thursday night with Providence hosting Boston University and Vermont visiting Connecticut. The top five seeds earn a first-round bye to the league's tournament quarterfinals. The other six teams play first-round contests on Wednesday, with No. 6 hosting No. 11, No. 7 hosting No. 10 and No. 8 hosting No. 9.
This season, all tournament games are single-elimination.
