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Men's Hockey October 28, 2013

Nationally-Ranked Clarkson Opens ECAC Hockey Play at Brown and Yale

James Howden has played a key role for Clarkson on the blueline as the Knights' scoring defense is ranked second in the nation, allowing only 1.50 goals per game - photo by Mike Tansey
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Off to its best start in seven years with a very successful mark in the non-league, opening portion of the schedule, the Clarkson University Hockey team gets set to enter ECAC Hockey play this weekend with plenty of momentum. Guided by third-year head coach Casey Jones and assistants Phil Roy '00 and Andy Jones, the Golden Knights travel to New England for the beginning of conference action.

The Knights open where the season ended last March in the league playoffs when they battle Brown at Meehan Auditorium in Providence, RI on Friday. The Green and Gold then take on the defending national champion the following night, playing in New Haven, CT against Yale at Ingalls Rink. Both games begin at 7:00 p.m.
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Led by senior captain Ben Sexton (Kanata, ONT), Clarkson stands at 6-1-1 overall and is riding a five-game (4-0-1) unbeaten streak. Highlighting the start is this past weekend's sweep of National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) foe Colorado College at Cheel Arena where they allowed the Tigers to score only one goal in the two-game series. The Knights are ranked 17th in the country in the latest USCHO.com Poll.

• USCHO.com Poll - October 27
• USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll - October 27

With a complete 60-minute effort Clarkson was able to gain its first win ever against Colorado College with a hard fought 2-1 victory on Friday. Senior Allan McPherson (Kinburn, ONT) and sophomore Pat Megannety (Oakville, ONT) led the Clarkson offense with one goal and one assist apiece, helping the Knights snap a 14-game winless skid (0-11-3) to the Tigers. Sophomore Greg Lewis (Mars, PA) made 20 saves in the Green and Gold's strong defensive performance.

Junior Joe Zarbo (Grand Island, NY) scored the game's lone goal with 9.9 seconds left in overtime to lift Clarkson to a 1-0 victory over CC on Saturday. Freshman goaltender Steve Perry (Ligonier, PA) recorded his second shutout of the season with an 18-save outing.

Video Recap of Colorado College series

Lewis and Perry are back boning a stingy effort by the Green and Gold which is listed as second in the NCAA in scoring defense, allowing only 1.50 goals per game. The young netminders from Pennsylvania have split the duties between the pipes with each earning four starts. Perry, with a 3-0-1 record, is listed among the top six goaltenders in the country with a 1.20 goals against average (5th), a .948 save percentage (6th) and two shutouts (tied 1st). Lewis has been equally as impressive with a 1.75 GAA and a .930 save percentage en route to a 3-1 record.

Sexton paces a balanced offensive showing by the Knights with a seven points, including a team-high six assists. Joe Zarbo and McPherson lead the team with three goals apiece.

Coming off a strong finish to last year when it advanced to the ECAC Tournament championship game, Brown opened the 2013-14 campaign by winning the Liberty Invitational in Newark, NJ this past weekend. Guided by fifth-year head coach Brendan Whittet, the Bears knocked of Yale 4-1 in the first round on Friday and skated past Dartmouth in Saturday's championship game. Brown was picked to finish eighth in the ECAC Hockey Coaches' Preseason Poll.

ECAC Hockey's first national champion since 1989, Yale will be a team everyone is gunning for in 2013-14. The Bulldogs dropped their first game since winning the 2013 NCAA title last April, falling to Brown at the Liberty Invitational. The Bulldogs, guided by eighth-year head coach Keith Allain, came back the following day to edge Princeton 3-2. Yale is the coaches' choice to win the ECAC Hockey regular season this year.

The Series:
Clarkson leads Brown in their all-time series, which began in 1953, by a commanding 58-18-8 margin. The Bears, however, have enjoyed the better of the recent play with a four-game unbeaten streak in the series, including three straight wins. Over the last 10 meetings, Brown has gone 5-3-2.

Clarkson gained one of a possible four points during the regular season last year. The teams battled to a 3-3 tie in Providence on November 10, and the Bears won 3-2 in Potsdam on January 11. Brown swept the Green and Gold in the first round of the ECAC playoffs at Meehan Auditorium on March 8-9, winning 3-0 and 4-3.

Ben Sexton has a team-high seven points in the series on one goal and six assists through five games. Jarrett Burton has tallied a Clarkson high of three goals against Brown. Allan McPherson has scored two goals and three assists, while Will Frederick also has tallied twice and added two assists in the series. Greg Lewis posts a .891 save percentage and a 3.24 goals against average through 222 minutes of action against the Bears.

Clarkson leads the all-time series against Yale, which began in 1929-30, 70-36-4. The Bulldogs have picked up their series play recently, going 7-3 in the last 10 meetings against the Knights. Last season, the teams split with each winning on the other's home ice. Clarkson shut out Yale at Ingalls Rink in its ECAC opener on November 9. The Bulldogs returned the favor with a 3-1 victory at Cheel on January 12.

Sam Labrecque has scored two goals and two assists in three games against Yale. Ben Sexton has three points in the rivalry with one goal and two assists. Jarrett Burton has two goals in the series, including the game-winner in the 1-0 win at Ingalls Rink last November. Greg Lewis made 23 saves in the shutout victory and posts a .964 save percentage and a 1.00 GAA against the Bulldogs.

Knight Notes:
Clarkson is ranked second in the country in scoring defense, allowing an average of only 1.50 goals per game. The Knights have only allowed more than one goal in a game twice – a 4-1 loss to UNH and a 5-2 win over Mercyhurst at the Ice breaker Tournament on October 11-12. This past weekend the Green and Gold surrendered just one goal in a two-game series sweep of Colorado College (2-1, 1-0). Saturday's win was Clarkson's second shutout of the season … The Knights have outshot opponents in seven of the first eight games. Niagara was the only team to hold an edge in shots, 30-29 in Clarkson's 2-0 victory in Western NY on October 6 … The Knights' young goaltending tandem of Greg Lewis and Steve Perry, who both have four starts, is benefiting from Clarkson's strong defensive play. Perry, with a 3-0-1 record, is listed among the top six goaltenders in the country with a 1.20 goals against average (5th), a .948 save percentage (6th) and two shutouts (tied 1st). Lewis has been equally as impressive with a 1.75 GAA and a .930 save percentage en route to a 3-1 record … Clarkson skated to six NCAA victories in the month of October for the first time ever … The Knights are 3-0-1 in games decided by one-goal-or-less after going 3-6-7 in those games last year … The Knights' penalty-kill is tied for 12th in Division I (27-31, 87.1%) … Clarkson has scored a power-play goal in six of eight games, and is 6-of-32 overall (18.8%) … The Knights are 5-0-1 when scoring first and 4-0-1 when leading through 40 minutes … Twenty Knights have recorded at least one point this season, including 14 different goal scorers … Ben Sexton has a team-high seven points and six assists … Sophomore defenseman Paul Geiger (Stouffville, ONT) is second on the Knights' points chart with six (1-5) … Joe Zarbo and Allan McPherson share the Knights' goal-scoring lead with three tallies each. McPherson has a team-high two power-play markers, while Zarbo and senior Jarrett Burton (Echo Bay, ONT) both have a pair of game-winners … Clarkson is ranked among the Top 20 in a national polls for the first time since mid-November, 2008


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