December
23, 2003
Rensselaer Holiday Tournament
Houston
Field House • Troy, N.Y.
THE
FIELD
Sunday,
December 28
Colgate
vs. Northeastern, 4 p.m. ET
Mercyhurst at Rennselaer, 7 p.m. ET
Monday,
December 29
Third-Place Game, 4 p.m. ET
Championship, 7 p.m. ET
LAST
YEAR
Joe
Exter allowed one goal in each game to lead Merrimack to
the tournament title last season.
INTERESTING
HISTORICAL FACT
Rensselaer’s
tournament, now in its 53rd year, is far and away the longest-running
holiday affair in college hockey.
WHO
TO WATCH
Believe it or not, in a tournament featuring teams from each of the East’s three conferences, the most dynamic individuals may belong to the Atlantic Hockey entry. Rich Hansen, Scott Reynolds, Adam Tackaberry and David Wrigley are the leaders of a Mercyhurst attack that features skill and balance – head coach Rick Gotkin takes pride in his team’s ability to score with three or even four lines.
Among the teams from the more established conferences, here’s a player at each position to watch. Colgate’s Jon Smyth has shown a goal-scorer’s touch this year, as his 11 goals are more than five times his total from last season (2). He’ll be challenged in the opening round by goaltender Keni Gibson, who’s posted back-to-back shutouts for the Huskies. And among those who will face Mercyhurst’s forwards is Scott Basiuk, one of INCH’s first-half All-ECAC selections on defense.
HOW
WE SEE IT
Among the nation’s most woeful teams at the start of the month, Northeastern has enjoyed a resurgence in December and comes in red hot. It’s almost as if they’ve been playing the Miami Dolphins all month. Well, they haven’t exactly been playing the Patriots – wins against Vermont and Princeton might not warrant too much excitement – but things are certainly starting to go the Huskies’ way.
Last year Colgate ranked 54th in the nation in offense (2.40 goals per game), and top scorer Scooter Smith graduated. But others, like Smyth, have matured, and the Raiders are 17th nationally in scoring this year (3.33 goals per game), including a six-goal game against Brown’s remarkable Yann Danis.
Offense is also Mercyhurst’s best attribute, as you can gather from the flock of talented forwards mentioned above. The Lakers stand second in the nation in scoring offense (4.23 goals per game), and that’s not all due to their Atlantic Hockey competition. They’ve played one of the toughest schedules in the nation, with visits to Michigan, Ohio State, Western Michigan, Cornell and St. Lawrence.
The home team won a couple of overtime games the last time in won the Holiday Tournament, in 2001. This year’s team has shown similar resolve, with five of its eight wins coming by one goal, including both upsets of St. Cloud State at Houston Field House. In a very evenly matched field, it could be that clutch performances and home-ice advantage are the difference for the Engineers.
