Middlebury at Wesleyan Friday 1/4 at 7 PM

Who: Middlebury College Panthers at Wesleyan University Cardinals
Where: Spurrier-Snyder Rink  Middletown, CT
When: 7 PM Friday 1/4/13
Video/Audio: NA

Records: Middlebury (4-4-2; 3-1-2 in NESCAC) 
                 Wesleyan (5-4-1; 1-2-1 in  NESCAC)

League Stats: Middlebury      Offense - 3.80  GPM (2nd in NESCAC)
                                                  Defense - 3.10 GPM (7th in NESCAC)
                         Wesleyan         Offense - 3.80 GPM ( 2nd in NESCAC) 
                                                  Defense - 2.50 GPM (6th in NESCAC) 

The Lowdown: It's a New Year

The Panthers enter the game owners of a three game losing streak(though only one was a league game), having been swept in the two games of their own Holiday Classic (bah humbug!). The Cardinals closed out 2012 with a consolation game victory over Elmira in the Cardinal Classic (not their tournie), after a loss to Plattsburgh (who lost to Amherst in the finals) in the first round. Middlebury would like to start the new year off right by breaking their losing streak and Wesleyan would like to start off on the right foot by winning only their second conference game.

Key(s) to the game: 
1.Youth vs Experience

Middlebury has one of the more talented rosters in the 'CAC, but their youth has shown off in some inconsistent play this season. Outside of leading scorer Louis Belisle (F, Jr.), their next seven leaders in points are all underclassmen.  In contrast, the top seven point leaders for Wesleyan are all upperclassmen. So what will win out, talent or experience?

2. Middlebury's Power Play vs Wesleyan's Penalty Kill
Middlebury has by far the best power play in conference (39%) and Wesleyan has the second best penalty kill at 89.5%. Obviously the goal is to avoid the penalties, but it will be an interesting battle if the Cardinals can't stay out of the box.

Players to Watch

Middlebury - Louis Belisle (F, Jr.): The leading scorer for the Panthers has a knack for saving his best for conference games. The junior from Quebec has had all  11 points (7-4-11) come in conference games, including a four goal, six point effort in early December against Tufts.

Wesleyan - Keith Buehler (F, Jr): Tied for the team lead in points (6-8-14), Buehler is coming off a 2 goal game against Elmira.