Men's Hockey set for Harris Cup Quarterfinals Wednesday at Marian
The Concordia University Wisconsin Men's Hockey team skated to a 2-2 tie at Northland on Saturday afternoon and as a result had to wait until Saturday night's NCHA results to see if they would take part in the Harris Cup Playoffs. Fortunately for the Falcons, Lawrence scored three third-period goals to defeat Lake Forest, allowing CUW a berth in the tournament.
The Falcons will now play Marian at 7 p.m. on Wednesday night in a single elimination game. A win would advance the Falcons to take on No. 1 Adrian this weekend in a two-game series. The game will be played at the Blue Line Family Ice Center in Fond du Lac.
CUWFalcons.com takes a look at some of the things you need to know before Wednesday's Harris Cup matchup at Marian.
Live coverage links for Wednesday's game can be found here.
Regular Season: The Sabres swept CUW in a two-game set back on January 15-16. The opener, played at Marian, was a 4-2 final, while in the contest at CUW, the Sabres struck twice in the third period for a 4-2 win. Marian has now won six straight in the series.
School Record Wins: The Falcons set a school record with 11 wins this season. CUW finished the NCHA regular season with a 7-10-3 record, while posting an 11-11-3 overall mark.
Playoff History: The Falcons are playing in the conference playoffs for the fifth time in school history and are in search of their first playoff win. CUW has reached the Harris Cup Playoffs three straight seasons now, being swept by St. Scholastica two seasons ago and by Adrian last year.
Defense: CUW has had its best defensive season in program history this winter. The Falcons have posted the best team save percentage (.893) and goals against average (3.19) this season.
Games Played Record: Senior Eli Riddle will be skating in the 104th game of his career on Wednesday, which will set a new program record. Jonathan Smith (2007-2011) appeared in 103 games in his career and is currently tied with Riddle. Riddle also owns the program record for most assists (43) and is third in points (53).
Marian Winning Streak: The Sabres are the hottest team in the NCHA, having won 12 straight. Marian has lost just once since the New Year, falling at then No. 11 UW-River Falls, 3-2, before rattling off 12 straight victories. Marian is ranked No. 12 in the USCHO.com poll.
The Coaches: Jasen Wise is in his fourth season with the Falcons and has guided them to the four winningest seasons in program history. Wise is no stranger to Marian, having coached the Sabres for eight seasons prior to arriving at CUW. He is the winningest coach in the history of both programs. Erik Largen is in his first season with the Sabres and the 17 wins are tied for third most in school history.
Concordia Wisconsin vs. Marian By the Numbers:
Goals Per Game: CUW – 2.6; MU – 3.64
Scoring Defense: CUW – 3.28; MU – 1.72
Penalty Minutes Per Game: CUW – 13.6; MU – 9.0
Power Play: CUW – 13.8% (15-for-109); MU – 23.9% (21-for-88)
Penalty Kill: CUW – 76% (95-of-125); MU 87.5% (70-of-80)
Top Scorer: Braden Crone (CUW) – 21 points (10G, 11A); Derek Thorogood (MU) – 33 (9G, 24A)
Projected Goaltender: Jack Romanuik (CUW) - 7-5-2 (3.06 GAA, .900 SV%); Mike Baldwin (MU) – 11-2-3 (1.45 GAA, .937 SV%)