CCC SEMIFINALS: No. 2 Endicott, No. 3 UNE Clash On Saturday (3 PM)

CCC TOURNAMENT RELEASE / BRACKET

BEVERLY, Mass. – The second-seeded Endicott men's ice hockey team (18-5-3) will host No. 3 seed University of New England (UNE, 19-4-3) this Saturday in the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Tournament semifinals at 3 PM at Raymond J. Bourque Arena.

Ticket prices for Saturday's game are as follows: Endicott students are free with I.D., $3.00 for non-Endicott students, senior citizens, and children 12 and up, $5.00 for adults (children under 12 are not charged admission).

HOW THEY GOT HERE: Endicott throttled No. 7 Suffolk in the CCC Quarterfinals, 10-2, while UNE topped No. 6 Wentworth, 6-3, in the quarterfinals as well.

THE MATCHUP/SERIES HISTORY: Endicott is 1-2-2 against UNE in the all-time series. Meanwhile, this season, the Nor'easters defeated Endicott, 4-2, on 2/9/18 in Biddeford, Maine and also erased a three-goal deficit in the third period to earn a 4-4 overtime tie against the Gulls on 2/10/18 in Beverly, Mass.

Endicott's lone win versus UNE came in last year's CCC Championship game on 3/4/17 when Cam Bleck (Lake Forest, Ill.) buried the game-winning goal with 8.7-seconds left in regulation.

SCOUTING ENDICOTT: The Gulls are 9-2-1 at home this season and are 4-4-2 in their last 10 games. During that stretch, Endicott has played two nationally ranked teams and a pair of regional powers as well.

As a team, the Gulls are ranked No. 1 in the country in goals per game at 5.27, No. 20 in scoring defense (2.35), No. 1 in scoring margin (2.92), No. 2 in most penalty minutes (19.1 PIM/G), No. 3 on the power play (34-for-125, 27.2%), No. 19 on the penalty kill (112-for-131, 85.5%), and No. 5 on combined special teams (146-for-256, 57.0%).

Individually, Endicott showcases three student-athletes among the top-50 point-getters in the country. Ross Olsson (Billerica, Mass.) and Logan Day (Seminole, Fla.) are both tied for No. 12 overall on the list, while Jason Kalinowski (Stamford, Conn.) is situated 42nd overall. Olsson and Day both currently have 38 points (16g, 22a, 1.52 | 15g, 23a, 1.52 P/GM), while Kalinowski has produced 29 points (9g, 20a, 1.21 P/GM). Day also is the top-scoring defenseman in the country by a difference of 0.06 P/GM.

Meanwhile, Daniel Kucerovy (Bethel Park, Pa.) ranks No. 13 in the country in goals per game at 0.69 (18 goals).

Lastly, Mark Specia (Ringwood, N.J.) ranks No. 18 in goals against average (GAA) at 2.02, and No. 4 in winning percentage (11-2-1, .821).

SCOUTING UNE: The Nor'easters are 7-2-3 on the road this season and are 8-1-1 in their last 10 contests.

UNE ranks among the best in NCAA Division III in the following categories: No. 2 scoring offense (5.08 G/GM), No. 56 scoring defense (3.31 G/GM), No. 12 scoring margin (1.77), No. 1 most penalty minutes (19.8 PIM/G), No. 1 power play (49-for-13, 363.%), No. 59 penalty kill (119-for-150, 79.3%), and No. 1 combined special teams (168-for-285, 58.9%).

Individually, Brady Fleurent (Biddeford, Maine) leads the entire country in points per game at 1.92 (14g, 32a, 46p), while Ryan Bloom (Northville, Mich.) is fifth with 1.69 P/GM (18g, 26a, 44p). The Nor'easters also feature three of the best freshmen scorers in the nation as Tyler Seltenreich (Littleton, Colo.), Jeff Eppright (Barrington, N.J.), and Max Rasberg (Columbus, Ohio) are positioned No. 6, No. 7, and No. 8, respectively, on the list. Seltenreich checks in at 1.19 P/GM (17g, 14a, 31p), while Eppright is averaging 1.12 P/GM (11g, 17a, 28p) and Rasberg is at 1.08 P/GM (7g, 20a, 27p).

In goal, Tate Sproxton (Surrey, British Columbia) is 9-2-1 (.792) this season with a 3.03 GAA, a .908 save percentage, and 334 total saves in 12 games played.

WHAT'S AT STAKE

The winner of No. 11/11 nationally ranked Endicott (18-5-3) and No. 3 UNE (19-4-3) will advance to the CCC Championship game, which is scheduled for Saturday, March 3 at a time and place to be determined later.

Tournament Schedule
(Games hosted by the higher seed)

Quarterfinals – Saturday, Feb. 17

#1 Salve Regina def. #8 Western New England, 8-1 | BOX
#2 Endicott def. #7 Suffolk, 10-2 | BOX
#3 University of New England def. #6 Wentworth, 6-3 | BOX
#5 Nichols def. #4 Curry, 4-3 | BOX

Semifinals – Saturday, Feb. 24

#5 Nichols at #1 Salve Regina, 4 PM
#3 University of New England at #2 Endicott, 3 PM

Finals – Saturday, March 3

Semifinal winners at higher seed, TBA 

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(Photo credit - David Le '10)