There was quite a bit of preseason talk about Niagara’s early schedule that featured a six-game road trip through Clarkson, St. Lawrence, Michigan, Cornell, Colgate and UMass after the Purple Eagles’ home opener October 9.

Senior defenseman Tyler Gotto has a hand in six of Niagara's 16 goals (two goals, four assists).

Included were home openers for three teams, but even with the strength of schedule, very few people envisioned Niagara being one of just five teams in the nation without a victory after an 0-5-1 start.

“It’s been an exciting time, but going in we expected to fare better,” head coach Dave Burkholder said. “(Playing) three home openers in some of the greatest venues in college hockey has tested where we are as a team.

“We are not satisfied with our record as a whole, but there have been positives on the ice. Moreso than in other leagues, our schedule allows us to test ourselves early, so why wouldn’t we?”

Looking deeper their current won-loss record, the Purps held leads in four of their six games so far. They had 2-0 and 4-1 leads at home against Colgate before allowing the Raiders to tie the game in the third period.

The trip to northern New York saw a 2-1 lead at Clarkson and a 3-0 advantage at St. Lawrence disappear. And the squad held a 2-1 lead midway through last weekend’s game at Colgate before falling.

“The power play is a work in progress (ranked 56th of 58 at 4% with one goal in 25 chances),” Burkholder said, “but we have some young kids in key spots and some of our older players are not off to great starts.”

The statistics also bear out their late-game struggles, being outscored 7-1 and outshot by 28 shots in the third period. Add in two overtime goals against and a .500 or better record seems like just an eyelash away.

“Our guys have been very honest in their self evaluations and you don’t get leads in three buildings like we have without doing something right,” Burkholder added. “Bemidji State last season started the year 2-7 and went to the Frozen Four.”

It doesn’t get any easier this weekend with a home-and-home Friday and Sunday against UMass, 17th in the INCH Power Rankings, before kicking off their conference schedule next week. The Minutemen have scored 11 of their 19 total goals with the man advantage and outscored their opponents 8-2 in the final period over five games.

FRIES AT THE BOTTOM OF THE BAG

· Alabama-Huntsville is off this week and has just six games on the schedule before the holiday break. After a pair of overtime conference losses last week, it is a key stretch for the Chargers with four of the six in conference and on the road.

· Bemidji State hosts Robert Morris this weekend for a pair. The Colonials last season accounted for the only two losses the Beavers had over the final 17 games of the season before the Frozen Four.

· Bemidji State’s Jordan George, Niagara’s Marc Zanette and Alabama-Huntsville’s Justin Cseter are putting in early bids for the CHA All-Rookie team forward spots with a combined eight goals and seven assists.