This Weekend
Colorado College returns home to face the 5th-ranked and two-time defending national champion Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs, Feb. 28-29. Friday's game begins at 7:37 p.m., while the puck drops on Saturday at 6:07 p.m. Both games will be broadcast in Colorado Springs on KRDO NewsRadio 105.5 and 92.5 FM and 1240 AM, and streamed live on NCHC.tv. Saturtday's contest will be televised on AT&T SportsNet and ROOT Sports Northwest.
Last Time Out
The Tigers split a pair of games at Omaha last weekend ... On Friday, Omaha scored four times in the third period as the Mavericks won 5-0. Jason Smallidge opened the scoring with a power-play goal late in the first period. He took a slap shot from the point that eluded a screened
Matt Vernon on his glove side with 3:11 remaining in the period. The teams combined for just 13 total shots in a scoreless second period, then Martin Sundberg put the Mavericks on top 2-0 at the 2:28 mark of the third period. The puck pinballed around the slot before finding Sundberg, whose back was to the Tiger net. He turned and fired a shot that got a piece of Vernon before heading into the net. The Mavericks then scored twice in a span of 36 seconds to take a commanding 4-0 lead. Noah Prokop found the puck in front of the net his shot just cleared the goal line after a CC defender whiffed on a clearing attempt at the 6:58 mark, then Conley found himself at the right side of the net after taking a pass from Nate Knoepke and chopped the puck past Vernon. Brandon Scanlin closed out the scoring at the 13:53 mark of the third with a shot from the left side of Vernon ... On Saturday, the Tigers rallied from a 2-1 deficit with a pair of goals in the final 10 minutes of the second period and held on to defeat Omaha, 3-2.
Zach Berzolla broke a 2-2 deadlock with 45.3 seconds left in the middle frame with his third career goal and first career game winner as the Tigers moved to 3-1-1 in their last five games and into seventh place in the NCHC. Berzolla took a pass from
Connor Mayer, slid to the top of the right circle and fired a rocket that cleanly beat Omaha goalie Isaiah Saville on the short side for the 3-2 advantage. Omaha's Teemu Pulkkinen opened the scoring just 1:50 into the contest when he took a pass from Josh Boyer from behind the net and sent a wrister from the slot past Vernon.
Nick Halloran evened the score and notched CC's first goal of the weekend with 2:31 remaining in the opening frame. With the Tigers on the power play,
Ben Copeland found Halloran with a dot-to-dot pass and Halloran buried a wrist shot from the bottom of the left circle past Saville for his 10th goal of the season. The Mavericks regained the lead at 11:48 of the second period when Dean Stewart took a pass from Joey Abate from the corner and had an open net for a 2-1 advantage.
Andrew Gaus notched his third of the season to even things back up at 13:16 of the middle frame when he put home a rebound after Saville saved a shot by
Jack Gates, setting up Berzolla's game winner in the final minute. The Tigers kept the momentum in the third period, especially in the defensive zone. The Mavericks put just nine shots on goal in the final 20 minutes, and Berzolla kept it a 3-2 game by breaking up a 2-on-1 rush with seven minutes remaining in the game.
Tiger Tales
CC's seven penalties on Friday were the most in a game since having nine at Princeton on Dec. 6 ... Friday's loss was the first this season when allowing less than 30 shots ...
Andrew Gaus scored his first goal since Nov. 16 at St. Cloud State ...
Zach Berzolla scored his third career goal and first against a team other than Western Michigan ...
McKay Flanagan had a career-high three shots on Saturday ... Omaha's 24 shots on Saturday were the second-fewest by an opponent this season (22 by St. Cloud State, 11/15).
Up Next
The Tigers close out the 2019-20 regular season with a home-and-home series against the Denver Pioneers, March 6-7. Friday's game at the Broadmoor World Arena will begin at 7:37 p.m, while Saturday's at Magness Arena is scheduled to start at 8:06 p.m., and will be televised nationally on CBS Sports Network. Â
The Coaches
Mike Haviland (Elmira College, '90) is in his sixth season at the helm of the Tigers. He came to Colorado College after serving one year as head coach of the Hershey Bears (AHL). Haviland was an assistant coach for the Chicago Blackhawks from 2008-12, helping the team win the Stanley Cup in 2010 … Scott Sandelin (North Dakota, '86) is in his 20th season at Minnesota Duluth. He has led the Bulldogs to the 2011, 2018 and 2019 national championships and won the Spencer Penrose Award (Division I Coach of the Year) in 2004.
For the Record
Colorado College is 11-17-2 overall and 4-14-2-1 in the NCHC, good for seventh place in the league with 15 points ... Minnesota Duluth is 18-10-2 overall and 13-5-2 in the NCHC, good for second place with 41 points.
Previous Meetings
Colorado College and Minnesota Duluth have met 196 times, with the Bulldogs holding a 104-82-10 advantage in the series. UMD swept the Tigers in Duluth earler this season.
Scouting the Bulldogs
Scott Perunovich leads the Bulldogs with 35 points (5g,30a) and is tied for the NCHC lead with 30 assists. Noah Cates follows with 28 points (13g,15a), while Cole Koepke has 27 (13g,14a). Hunter Shepard has started all 30 games this season in the net. He has an 18-10-2 record with a 2.31 goals-against average and .913 saves percentage. Â
Halloran Closing in on Century Club
Nick Halloran moved into the top 100 on CC's career scoring list with an assist on Feb. 18 at Western Michigan. With his goal and assist at Omaha last Saturday, he has 94 career points (38g,56a), good for a tie for 85th place with Guy Hildebrand (1969-73).
Another Tough Schedule
The Tigers' schedule includes 16 of their 34 regular-season games this season against teams that are ranked in this week's USCHO.com Top 20 Poll. Colorado College also has 10 games against teams that received votes and 10 contests against the last four national champions (North Dakota, Denver and Minnesota Duluth). Â
Wilkie Up There in National Stats
Chris Wilkie leads the nation with 153 shots and shots per game (5.10). Wilkie, who leads the Tigers in scoring with 28 points (20g,8a), leads the NCHC and is tied for third in the country with 20 goals.
Wilkie and Halloran Nominated for Hobey Baker Award
Chris Wilkie and
Nick Halloran are among 79 student-athletes nominated for the 2020 Hobey Baker Award. The Hobey Baker Award is presented annually to the collegiate hockey player who best demonstrates strength of character both on and off the ice, contributes to the integrity of his team and displays outstanding skills in all phases of the game. Colorado College has had two winners since the first Hobey Baker was awarded in 1981, Peter Sejna (2003) and Marty Sertich (2005).
Second Outdoor Game For Colorado College
The Faceoff at Falcon Stadium against Air Force on Monday, Feb. 17, was the second outdoor game ever for the CC hockey program and the first in Colorado Springs. The Tigers played Denver at Coors Field on Feb. 20, 2016 in the "Battle on Blake."
Top 15 in Fewest Penalties
The Tigers are tied for 15th in the country for fewest penalties taken this season with 122 in 30 games. Â
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Very Defensive in 11 Wins
In the 11 victories this season, the Tigers have allowed just 21 goals, and given up 85 in the other 19 games.
Hundreds Celebrate Robson Arena Groundbreaking
Never in the storied 80-year history of Colorado College Tiger Hockey has the team played its home games on campus. Thanks to the vision of President Jill Tiefenthaler and the Board of Trustees, along with the generosity of donors, including former CC hockey player Ed Robson '54, P'79, G'11, and many others, that will change in 2021.
President Tiefenthaler and Mr. Robson joined Colorado College Vice President and Director of Athletics
Lesley Irvine, hockey coach
Mike Haviland and Colorado Springs City Council President Richard Skorman in talking about the importance of the Ed Robson Arena at the official groundbreaking ceremony Saturday, Feb. 15, on the CC campus.
The state-of-the-art arena will maximize the student-athlete experience and enhance the ability to recruit the best to Colorado College, while educating and training our Tigers to compete for and win conference and national championships. It will house 3,400+ chair-back seats, locker room, film room, player's lounge, staff offices, academic success area, sports medicine, and strength and performance center, providing a true home ice advantage for CC Tiger Hockey. The Ed Robson Arena is also part of the City for Champions project, which is targeted to increase local and state tourism and generously boost local economies. In addition, it will build upon the unique Olympic City USA brand that establishes Colorado Springs' reputation as a regional sports, health and fitness hub for athletes and fitness enthusiasts. On Tuesday, Dec. 10, the Colorado Springs City Council unanimously approved the Ed Robson Arena project and the arena is expected to open in the fall of 2021.
On the Air
All CC games in 2019-20, home and away, will be broadcast live throughout Southern Colorado on KRDO NewsRadio 105.5 and 92.5 FM and 1240 AM, featuring Ken Landau with the play-by-play. Both of this weekend's pre-game shows start 30 minutes before faceoff. The broadcasts also can be heard worldwide via the Internet ... Selected games will also be available on KSBV 93.7 FM in Cripple Creek, Divide, Buena Vista, Monarch and Leadville.
