The celebration from winning its first ECAC Hockey Championship Tournament title in 12 years has been placed in the background for Clarkson University who is all business this week as the Golden Knights focus on playing in the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive season.  After raising the Whitelaw Cup this past weekend in Lake Placid, Clarkson is back in the NCAA Tournament for the 22nd time in the program's 97-year history, earning the No. 2 seed in the Northeast Regional.

The Golden Knights will face off against Notre Dame (Big10) on Friday, March 29 at SNHU Arena, in Manchester, N.H. Game time is slated for 6:30 p.m. This is the only first-round matchup in the 16-team tournament that features a pair of conference tournament champions. 

Rounding out the four-team Northeast Regional is Massachusetts and Harvard, who will play at 3:00 p.m. in Friday's first game. The Clarkson vs. Notre Dame match up will be broadcast on ESPNU along with Saturday's regional championship game at 6:30 p.m. The UMass vs. Harvard game on Friday will be on ESPN2.

Guided by the ECAC Hockey Coach of the Year, Casey Jones, now in his eighth year behind the Green and Gold bench, and assistants coaches Josh Hauge and Brent Brekke, the Knights own a 26-10-2 overall record. Clarkson, ranked fifth in the last NCAA pairwise, enters the tournament with the nation's longest current unbeaten streak at nine-games (7-0-2).
 

• NCAA Northeast Regional Central
• Game Notes vs Notre Dame - NCAA Northeast Regional
• NCAA.com
• College Hockey Inc. 2019 Tournament Storylines
• NCAA Tournament TV Schedule
• ESPNU Video Streaming
• TSN.ca Video Streaming
• B99.3 FM Broadcast
• Live Stats
• ECAC Hockey
• Thursday Clarkson Regional Press Conference (3/28)

• Clarkson has made 21 previous appearances in the NCAA Tournament, posting a record of 13-25-1.
• The Knights were edged by Providence in last year's tournament, falling 1-0 at the East Regional in Bridgeport, Conn.
• The Knights made back-to-back showings in 2007 and 2008 for their only other appearances in the 2000s. During the 1990s, the Green and Gold were a regular fixture in the tournament, qualifying nine out of 10 years.
• Since regional play began in 1992, Clarkson has gone 2-10 in the tournament. 
• Clarkson's last victory in the NCAA Tournament was a 2-1 victory over St. Cloud State before losing to Michigan 2-0 in the 2008 East Regional in Albany, N.Y.
• The Knights are 5-13-1 in first round games, 2-5 in the quarterfinals and 3-4 in semifinal play. Clarkson is 0-3 in NCAA Championship games, having last played for the national title in 1970, falling to Cornell 6-4 in Lake Placid.
• Clarkson's last showing in the NCAA Frozen Four was in 1991 when the Green and Gold lost to Boston University 7-3 at the Saint Paul Civic Center in St. Paul, Minn. 
• The Knights' 26 wins through 38 games and .711 winning percentage this season is the most victories by a Clarkson team since the 1996-97 squad skated to a 27-10 record and the best winning percentage since 1998-99 when the Knights skated to a .729% (25-11-1).  The program record for wins in a season is 29 set in 1990-91 (29-9-2). 
• From the start of the second half of the schedule, beginning with its Desert Hockey Classic Tournament wins over nationally-ranked Arizona State (3-0) and defending national champion Minnesota-Duluth (3-1), Clarkson has gone 17-4-2. The Knights enter this weekend's NCAA regional play on a seven-game unbeaten streak (7-0-2).
• Clarkson owns the best record against other teams in the NCAA Tournament with a 6-2-1 mark.
• The Knights have the third-best winning percentage in the nation since Christmas at .783% 
• Clarkson's defensive effort is ranked fourth in the NCAA, allowing only 1.97 goals per game.
• Clarkson's offense is averaging 3.16 goals per game,  13th in the NCAA.
• The Knights' scoring margin is tied for 6th in the NCAA at 1.18.
• Announced as a Top 10 Finalist for the Hobey Baker Award, co-captain Nico Sturm leads the Green and Gold's offensive effort with 45 points, tied for 8th in the NCAA.  He is only five points shy of the national lead. The junior center  has tallied 14 goals and a team-high 31 assists (tied for 3rd in the nation). He has set up more goals in a season than any Golden Knight since Todd White '97 and J.F. Houle'97 put up 36 assists each in 1996-97. Sturm has recorded at least one point in 32 of 38 games, and has posted 13 multiple-point outings. During his three seasons, Clarkson is 23-3 when Sturm records two-or-more points in a game. He was named to the ECAC Hockey All-Tournament team, tallying two assists in the 5-2 semifinal win over Harvard (3/22). Sturm joined Clarkson's Century Club with a goal and an assist in the ECAC quarterfinal Game 2, 5-2 victory over Yale. Sturm has 103 career points on 36 goals and 67 assists through 117 games. He becomes the first Clarkson junior to reach 100 points since Erik Cole '00 (103 points) in the 1999-2000 campaign. The last Golden Knight to reach 100 points was Allan McPherson '14 (103) in 2013-14. ECAC Hockey's Best Defensive Forward two years in a row, Sturm holds the best overall plus/minus rating in ECAC Hockey (+23), tied for 15th best in the nation. He is Clarkson's top center at the faceoff circle, winning 58.5% (388-275) of his draws. 
• The Knights' leading goal scorer, Haralds Egle has tallied 18 goals and added 21 assists for second on the Clarkson points' list with 39. Egle has tallied 22 points (11-11) in the first 21 games of the New Year. He recorded 16 points (5-11) in 37 games last season. The junior right wing has netted a team-high five game-winning goals with four coming since late January.  Eagle Has at least one point in 27 games, including 11 multiple-point outings.
• Linemates, Sturm and Egle have combined for 84 points, the third most among teammates in this year's NCAA Tournament.
• One of 10 semifinalists for the Mike Richter Award, which annually honors the most outstanding goaltender in the NCAA, junior Jake Kielly ranks among the NCAA's best in all the major goaltending categories.  Starting all 38 games, he leads Division I in wins with 26, tied for fifth in shutouts with five,  posts a .929 save percentage (8th in the nation) and a 1.89 goals against average (Tied 7th).  He has allowed two-or-fewer goals in 28 of the 38 games. He leads all active NCAA goaltenders in career shutouts with 16. Kielly is the current national leader in career saves (2,782) and is second in career victories (64). Kielly is third on the Green and Gold's all-time win list with a 64-36-13 career record.  He was selected ECAC Hockey All-Tournament Goaltender,  was named MVP of the Desert Hockey Classic, and gained ECAC Hockey Goaltender of the Month honors for October and January. 
• Clarkson's third leading scorer, co-captain Devin Brosseau is enjoying a stellar postseason showing with seven points in four ECAC Hockey playoff games, including a pair of three-point outings. Named MVP of the ECAC Hockey Championship Tournament, the junior left wing figured in on all the Clarkson scoring in the 3-2 overtime championship win over Cornell (3/23). He scored a pair of first-period power-play goals five minutes apart and then set up the winning goal in the extra session. He also had a two-goal, one-assist effort in the 5-2 Game 2 win over Yale (3/16).  ECAC Hockey's Student-Athlete of the Year has tallied 28 points on 14 goals and 14 assists, and leads the Knights in power-play markers with eight. He also has two game-winners. 
• Aaron Thow leads the Knights' offensive production from the blueline and is tied for fourth on the team in scoring with 25 points on eight goals and 17 assists. He posts a +10 plus/minus. The 2nd Team ECAC All-Star tallied 26 points (7-19) through his first three seasons with a then career-high 11 points (2-9) last year. 
• Sophomore wing Jack Jacome has 24 points, including 18 assists. 
He scored the Knights' fourth goal in 5-2 win over Harvard (3/22) in ECAC Semifinals. Jacome scored on the power play and added an assist in quarterfinal 5-2 Game 2 win over Yale (3/16).
• An early-season injury kept freshman Josh Dunne from an all-star campaign in his collegiate debut, but the center has still put up some impressive numbers. Dunne has connected for 14 goals and nine assists for 23 points through 31 games. He set up both power-play goals in the championship win over Cornell (3/23). Dunne scored a goal in both ECAC quarterfinal wins over Yale (3/15-16) along with one assist. Dunne has three goals and four assists in March. 
• Greg Moro is second on the Clarkson blueline and rounds out the Knights' 20-point scorers with five goals and 15 assists.  Four of his goals have come on the power play. The junior owns the best plus/minus among the Knight rearguards at +17.
• Sophomore defenseman Connor McCarthy, one of the tallest players in college hockey at 6-7,  also has recorded double-digit points with four goals and nine assists. Eight of his 13 points have come on the power play, including three goals. He tallied three assists in the ECAC Hockey playoffs.
• The Knights' nine-member freshman class has combined to skate in 250 games (most of any Clarkson class) and has contributed 23% of the scoring with 32 goals and 42 assists. The Rookies have accounted for six goals, including three of the four game winners in the playoffs, and eight assists in their first four postseason games.
• The Knights' three member Class of 2019 – Juho Jokiharju, Marly Quince and Aaron Thow - have compiled 87 victories, the most by any Clarkson senior class in 20 seasons.
• The Knights have tallied the opening goal in 27 games, going 19-6-2 when they get on the scoreboard first. 
• Clarkson starts fast and finishes even stronger, outscoring the opponents 40-21 in the first period and 46-22 over the final 20  minutes of regulation. The Green and Gold hold a 32-31 edge in the middle frame.
• The Knights' penalty kill is ranked 10th in the country at 86.2% (112-130), while the power play is ranked 16th in Division I, clicking at 21.6% (27-125). The Knights have been perfect in the postseason shorthanded, killing off all 11 of the opponents' power plays. Clarkson has killed off 19 of the last 20 opponent man-advantage attempts (93.7%) over the last seven games. The Knights have gone 5-16 (31.2%) with the man-advantage in four postseason games.
• Clarkson posted the fifth-best home winning percentage (.806) with a 14-3-1 record at Cheel Arena.  The Knights 7-7-1 on the road and are a perfect 5-0 at neutral sites.
• The Knights are 2-1-2 in overtime games.
• CU is 13-0 when it scores four-or-more goals and 24-3 when it scores at least three times.
• Devin Brosseau and Nico Sturm are the"Robert E. Empie '68 Men's Hockey Team Captains" while Marly Quince and Jake Kielly will serve as assistant captains. 

Vs Notre Dame -Clarkson and Notre Dame have only faced off against each other three times with the Knights holding a 2-1 edge. Clarkson won the last meeting defeating the Fighting Irish two years ago, 2-0 in the championship game of the Shillelagh Tournament over the Thanksgiving Holiday break on November 26, 2016 at Compton Family Arena in South Bend, IN. The teams faced off back-to-back early in the 1980-81 season. The Fighting Irish won the first meeting 4-1 on October 31, 1980 at the Onondaga War Memorial in Syracuse. The Knights came back and won the following night, 5-2 at the Rochester War Memorial in Rochester on November 1. Seven current Knights have played against Notre Dame. Devin Brosseau has scored one goal and Nico Sturm has an assist in the series. Jake Kielly turned aside all 35 shots he faced against the Irish in the 2-0 to earn MOP of the 2016 Shillelagh Tournament.
 11/26/16 - Clarkson 2 - ND 0 (South Bend, IN)
 11/1/80 - Clarkson 5 - ND 2 (Rochester, NY)
 10/31/80 - ND 4 - Clarkson 1 (Syracuse, NY)

Scouting Notre Dame: Notre Dame enters the NCAA Regionals with an overall record of 22-13-3 after finishing in second place in the Big Ten with a record of 11-11-2. The Fighting Irish finished with an 11-11-2 Big Ten record (37 points) but that was only three points ahead of a fifth-place tie and they were closer to last (30 points) than first (46 points). 

The Irish scored just 63 goals in conference, the least in the Big Ten, and 109 overall, the third fewest among Big Ten teams. Notre Dame more than made up for its lack of offensive production with stingy defense and goaltending. The Irish allowed 65 goals in conference play and 85 goals overall, with both figures ranking second in the Big Ten behind regular-season champion Ohio State. 

This will be just the third game Notre Dame will play against an ECAC opponent this season as the Irish faced RPI near the close of the first semester, beating the Engineers 5-1 and 3-0 in South Bend. Notre Dame played the majority of its games at home this season (22 of 38), playing at Compton Family Ice Arena in nine of its last 11 games, dating back to early February. 

The Fighting Irish enter the tournament on a four-game winning streak, tied for the fourth longest current unbeaten streak in the country, thanks to a four-game run in the Big Ten Tournament. In the Quarterfinals, star goaltender Cale Morris and the Irish shut out Michigan State 1-0 and 2-0 to advance to the Semifinals, where Notre Dame downed Minnesota took a 2-1 in overtime with a goal just 53 seconds into the extra session. The Irish were the top remaining seed in the tournament for the championship game and hosted Penn State, which owned the most potent offense in college hockey by nearly half a goal per game. Notre Dame skated away with a 3-2 victory to earn a second straight Big Ten title. 

Cale Morris, the Most Outstanding Player in the tournament, was stellar for the Irish, posting a 0.75 goals against average and a .977 save percentage. Senior defenseman Bobby Nardella leads Notre Dame in points and assists with 32 points on seven goals and 25 assists. Dylan Malmquist leads all forwards with 30 points with 10 goals and 20 assists. Cal Burke and Michael Graham are tied for the team-lead with 12 goals on the season. Cale Morris suffered a "down" year compared to the lofty standards he produced last season. Morris started 33 games this season and went 18-12-3 with four shutouts, recording a .931 save percentage and a 2.18 goals against average.