Where: Koeppel Center Hartford CT
When: 7 PM Saturday 3/14/15
Video/Audio: Trinity Live Stream Live Stats
Preview: Trinity
Stats (national rank)
Offense: 4.15 G/GM (9th)
Defense: 2.04 G/GM (7th)
Power Play: 31/124 - 25% (9th)
Penalty Kill: 92/106 - 86.8& (10th)
Penalty Minutes: 12.93/GM (29th)
Offense: 4.24 G/GM (7th)
Defense: 1.80 G/GM (5th)
Power Play: 28/104 - 26.92 % (4th)
Penalty Killing: 65/77 - 84.4 % (23rd)
Penalty Minutes: 9.60/GM (64th)
The Lowdown
Happy Pi Day, y'all. After two weeks sitting and waiting after their Quartefinal upset loss to eight seed Tufts in the NESCAC tournament, Trinity is finally getting to play again, and this time in the NCAA tournament. The Bantams got snubbed in 2014 as an at-large selection in the NCAA tournament following a semifinal loss to fifth seed and eventual champion Bowdoin. The loss dropped them from the 1st ranked team in the final public NCAA Rankings to out of the tournament altogether.
This year they got the Pool-C nod and will host ECAC-Northeast champion Nichols. The Bison won their second straight ECAC-NE title to earn an automatic bid. Along with the MASCAC automatic bid, the ECAC-NE champion is usually considered one of the weakest entries into the eleven team tournament. While Nichols resume is thin, they are still a 21 team win with the NCAA D-III leader in save percentage, Alex Larson (G, '16) at .952.
Historically, Trinity holds a 16-7 edge over the Dudley, MA team that plays their home games 35 minutes away, a state over in Rhode Island. The Bisons have the most recent victory defeating the Bantams 3-2 in December 2012 in a game in which current Bantam Jackson Brewer (F, '15) scored a tally. While they have not played each other this season, the two teams do have common opponents in Plymouth State, Hobart and Western New England. Trinity went 3-0-0 against these teams, including a 4-3 victory over ECAC-West champion Hobart, part of a beefed up out-of-conference schedule that helped the Bantams make the tournament despite the shocker against Tufts. For Nichols, they were on the other side of a 4-3 game against Hobart, losing to the Statesman in January. Overall, the bison went 3-1-0 against common opponents.
We shouldn't jump ahead, but if Trinity takes care of business against Nichols there is a good chance they will be hosting the Quarterfinal game against SUNY-AC champs Plattsburgh State. The winner of tonight's game was schedule to head to upstate New York for the Quarters, but if the #1 Plattsburgh State women win their Quartefinal game against St. Thomas today at 3 PM, the Cardinal women will host the NCAA Final Four next weekend. So by game time tonight the Bison and Bantams will know if the winner of the first round game will be hosting next weekend's Quarterfinals.
Players to Watch (other than the goalies)
Frank Butler (F, '15) The Bisons leading goal scorer is no stranger to central CT hockey as he played for the Hartford Jr. Wolfpack before going to Nichols. In the loss to Hobart, Butler had two tallies.
Mike Hawkrigg (F, '15) Hawkrigg was the hero of the NESCAC quarterfinals in 2013 and had ten points (4-6-10) in his first three conference tournament games. He has been shutout in the last two in the semi loss to Bowdoin last year and the quarter finals loss to Tufts this year. How does he do in his first NCAA Tournament game?
Trinity better get down to business, or it will be an early flight from the NCAA tournament for the host Bantams. If they win they'll also likely force Plattsburgh to make the long trip to Hartford. They don't take flights in D-III hockey, but you get the point, right?
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