Allen's buzzer-beater is Andy Katz's Shot of the Week

Chaisson Allen's buzzer-beating shot to lift Northeastern to victory over Wright State 70-67 in men's basketball on Saturday at Matthews Arena received some national publicity from ESPN's Andy Katz. In Katz's Weekly Watch column, Allen's game-winner was dubbed the "shot of the week. " Check out Katz's column here.

Allen and the Huskies return to action Tuesday at 7 p.m. taking on Big East rival Providence at Matthews Arena. The game will be a White Out and all fans are encouraged to wear white to the game.

Women's basketball holds free youth clinic

The Northeastern women's basketball team held a free clinic for third-eighth graders on Saturday November 28 at Cabot Gym. The event was held before the women's basketball game against Army at Matthews Arena, which the Huskies won 77-45. All those who attended the clinic received a ticket to the game later that afternoon.

Here are some photos of the event:

The Perfect Cure for a Food Coma: Northeastern vs. Vermont Game Notes

Game Notes (.pdf)

Northeastern vs. Vermont
Northeastern welcomes Vermont one day after Thanksgiving in a pivotal Hockey East matchup. After getting outscored 11-3 against BC and Maine, the Huskies have responded over the last three games with two victories and a tie to settle with seven points in league play. The Catamounts are Hockey East’s newest foe, joining the conference prior to the 2005-06 season. Since Vermont rounded out HEA’s 10-team contingent, the Catamounts have enjoyed success against Northeastern with an 8-4-3 record. Northeastern dropped a 4-2 decision at Matthews Arena in the last meeting with UVM but rattled off two straight victories before that by a combined score of 8-4. Friday’s contest marks the third-straight meeting between NU and UVM at Matthews Arena. The last time the Huskies visited Burlington, Vt. was in the Hockey East quarterfinals from 3/14 – 3/16/08. Northeastern claimed the second game of the series in overtime, 2-1, in which Dennis McCauley provided the game-winner. Northeastern was overcome in the tiebreaker match-up, 4-1. Vermont and Northeastern skated in their 40th overall contest in the last engagement on Jan. 17, 2009; the lowest number of meetings between Northeastern and any other HEA constituent. The next closest school in which the Huskies have faced off against less is Massachusetts (64 times). Vermont leads the overall series, 15-21-4, while head coach Greg Cronin has compiled a 4-8-3 record against UVM. Vermont coach Kevin Sneddon has gone 5-7-5 against the Huskies as leader of Vermont.

The Vermont Scoop
Vermont is 4-5-1 through 10 games with a 3-4-1 mark in Hockey East play. Friday’s contest proves to be extremely pivotal for both teams as each club has seven points in the league for a three-way, fifth-place tie with Maine. The Catamounts signature win came in the first third of the season with a 6-4 victory at then-No. 1 Denver and then followed it up with a 4-1 triumph against Boston College, No. 12 in the land at that time. Vermont hit a snag following the two wins, losing at Merrimack, 5-2, and at Maine, 4-1. A tie at UMass Lowell (now No. 3 in the country) preceded a 3-0 blanking of Providence. Vermont suffered a 7-1 throttling at Boston College two Saturdays ago but responded with a 3-2 win the next night. Most recently, the Catamounts endured a 6-2 loss to UMass in front of a sellout crowd at Gutterson Fieldhouse on Tuesday evening (Nov. 24). For the Minutemen, James Marcou had a career high five assists and sophomore Casey Wellman recorded a hat trick as No. 9 Massachusetts defeated No. 18 Vermont. Fourth-year forward Brayden Irwin directs Vermont’s scoroing efforts with a team-best 10 points and club-high six assists. Irwin is also tied with junior Justin Milo for the team lead with four goals. The Catamounts offense seems to rally with Irwin’s presence on the ice as the senior leads UVM with a +7 plus/minus rating. Continuing with the trend, Irwin has also spent the most time in the penalty box, racking up 29 minutes on nine offenses. The Catamounts’ goaltenders have shared the duties through 11 games with sophomore Rob Madore earning the start seven times to senior Mike Spillane’s four. Madore is 2-4-1 with a 3.73 GAA and has accrued a save percentage of 87.9. Spillane rests at an 89.3 save clip with a 3.30 GAA and one shutout. Vermont looks to shake its 2-4 start away from Burlington by obtaining an early lead. The Catamounts are 4-1 with the lead heading into the third period.

Last Time out against Vermont
Vermont scored the first goal of the game at 18:37 in the first period. Defenseman Kevan Miller stopped the puck in the defensive zone and passed it to Viktor Stalberg, who took it all the way to the Northeastern goal line on the left side. He passed the puck into the slot and it went off a Northeastern defenseman and past Brad Thiessen to make it 1-0. Northeastern evened it up with Rob Rassey’s power-play goal at 16:31 in the second. Patrick Cullity was whistled for roughing at 13:43 and Miller was called for contact to the head-roughing at 15:08,setting up an NU five-on-three for 37 seconds. Northeastern didn’t score on that, but did score on the five-on-four. Wade MacLeod passed the puck from the left point to Ryan Ginand in the right circle. Ginand put a shot on net and David Strathman and Rassey both were in front for the rebound. Rassey put it in to make it 1-1. Vermont got the lead back just 15 seconds later when Kyle Medvec scored. Medvec’s shot hit a defender in front and bounced just inside the right post to make it 2-1 at 16:46. The Huskies were able to make it 2-2 on Mike McLaughlin’s first career goal. Vermont took a too many men penalty at 6:09, giving the Huskies an advantage. Alex Tuckerman passed the puck from the right circle to an open McLaughlin on the far side and McLaughlin put it in for the score at 6:19. Peter Lenes scored the game-winner for the Catamounts at 10:28 in the third period on a rebound to put the Catamounts ahead for good. Stalberg tacked on an empty netter at 19:29 to make it 4-2.

Huskies’ Leaders against Vermont
Junior captain Tyler McNeely (2-4-6) and senior David Strathman (1-5-6) have enjoyed the most points against Friday’s foe as each have tallied six. Alex Tuckerman has netted one goal and four assists when Vermont is on the ice while Steve Silva and Steve Quailer have each registered one tally and three helpers. Randy Guzior, Kyle Kraemer, Drew Muench and Wade MacLeod have all accounted for three points whereas Greg Costa, Jim Driscoll and Mike McLaughlin each made the scoring sheet once. McLaughlin’s first-career goal came against Vermont in the last outing.

Unbeaten in the Last Three
Despite a late Providence goal to tie Saturday’s game at 3-3, Northeastern is unbeaten in its last three games. Before the tie on Saturday, the Huskies clicked on all cylinders with a 4-1 triumph at home against the Friars. The weekend before, NU clipped Maine in the backend of a two-game series, 5-2. A combination of two consecutive wins and/or ties will match the five-game unbeaten streak the Huskies assembled from 2/20 – 3/6/09. Northeastern started last season on a six-game untarnished streak, including five-straight wins. Northeastern’s longest unbeaten streak in program history is 12 games. The Huskies ripped off 12 consecutive victories under head coach Fern Flaman to start the 1980-81 season. Greg Cronin nearly matched that streak in 2007-08 when NU was reluctant to lose a game in 11 trips, with two ties mixed in that stretch.

Powerplay on Point
Northeastern has managed to find the back of the net on the powerplay at least once in 10 of its 11 contests this season, including six in its last three outings. The Huskies have scored three powerplay goals twice this season, in both the 5-2 victory against Maine and the 3-2 win in the home opener against Bentley. In those last three games, five different skaters lit the lamp with the extra man, including Kyle Kraemer’s two tallies. Northeastern is currently 19th in the country with a 19.7 percent conversion rate. On 76 chances, the Huskies have pumped in 15 goals. Only nine other teams in the country have scored more than 15, as NU is tied with Michigan State for the 10th-most powerplay tallies in the country through 11 games. The only game Northeastern’s powerplay has not connected was against Boston College on Nov. 7.

Streaking Huskies
When it rains, it pours. Four Huskies are riding pointstreaks heading into Friday night’s tilt, directed by senior Kyle Kraemer’s red-hot five-game stretch with four goals and two assists. Kraemer’s spell is a career-best and a team-high. Newcomer Garrett Vermeersch has rediscovered his scoring touch with a goal and four assists spanning over the last four games. Sophomore Alex Tuckerman has dodged opposing defenses with two goals and an assist in his last three games while defenseman Jake Newton registered an assist in each of the last two Providence affairs. Freshman Drew Ellement had his three-game assist streak snapped on Saturday night in Providence. The Winnipeg, Manitoba native has only played in five-career games.

Kraemer Crushing It as of Late
Kyle Kraemer’s lone tally in a 5-1 loss at Boston College on Nov. 7 ignited something in the St. Louis native’s stick. Kraemer has notched six points in five games, including a three-goal scoring streak. Two of those tallies came via the powerplay. With his recent scoring spell, Kraemer (4-3-7) is now tied for first in goals and second in points with junior Wade MacLeod (4-3-7). The fourth-year forward also moved up the career charts, surpassing classmate David Strathman with 44-career points (16-28-44) for third place on the Huskies roster. Tyler McNeely is second on that list with 48 (22-26-48) while MacLeod leads with 69 points (29-40-69).

Greenhorn Governing the Way
Freshman Garrett Vermeersch has risen to the top of Northeastern’s scoring list with nine points (3-6-9), thanks to his recent four-game scoring streak. Two of his three tallies and five of his six assists have come on the powerplay, denoting that 77.8 percent of his output is generated with the extra skater. The Macomb, Mich. native is tied for seventh in conference-only action (0-5-5) with 0.71 ppg. Vermeersch is one of two incoming skaters in the conference to lead his club in scoring. Merrimack’s Stephane Da Costa has assembled a scoring line of 8-7-15 and is tied for third in the country, overall, in scoring with 1.67 ppg. Vermeersch is tied with four others in America at 0.90 ppg (T-100th).

Multi-Point Performers
Seven Huskies have chalked up a multi-point game this season as Wade MacLeod leads the charge with three under his belt. MacLeod’s most recent two-point outing was at home against Providence (1-1-2). Garrett Vermeersch has registered a pair of multi-point games, with his last coming at PC on 11/21/09 (1-1-2). Jake Newton (1-1-2), Kyle Kraemer (1-1-2), Steve Silva (1-1-2), Tyler McNeely (1-1-2) and Chris Donovan (1-2-3) have all notched one multi-point performance. Donovan’s three points at Colorado College (1-2-3) remains a team best.

O Brother, Where Art Thou?
Freshmen twin brothers, Justin and Drew Daniels, both recorded their first-career assist for Northeastern in a 3-3 tie at Providence on Nov. 21, but it was done so in unique fashion. Both twins earned credit on the help for senior Greg Costa’s first goal of the season, marking the first assist for both brothers on the same play. For Drew, the assist stood as his first-career point while Justin has potted two goals already this season. The Daniels brothers also finished with a +1 rating in that game.

Northeastern Iron Men
On a roster stacked with 28 skaters, only nine Huskies have managed to play in every game thus far. Of the newcomers, goaltender Chris Rawlings and defensemen Chris Student and Jake Newton are the only Huskies to have competed in every game since day one. Mike McLaughlin is the lone sophomore to have taken part in every fray while Steve Silva and Mike Hewkin represent the ironmen of the junior class. Seniors Kyle Kraemer, David Strathman and Greg Costa have donned the black in red in every contest this season, as well.

Costa Cashes In
Senior forward Greg Costa scored his first goal of the season, 15th overall in his career, at Providence. Costa became the last Husky to have skated in every game this year to score a point. Costa has tallied 32 points throughout his career (15-17-32).

Happy to be Home
Northeastern is 4-1 at Matthews Arena this season, dispatching Bentley, Boston University, Maine and Providence along the way. The Huskies have outscored their opponents within that time, 13-3. Last year, Northeastern went 12-3-2 at Matthews Arena, including a 2-1 record in a defeat of Massachusetts in the Hockey East quarterfinals.

Strong after the Second
Before skating to its first tie of the season, Northeastern was 3-0 after leading through the second period. The Huskies were ahead at Providence on Nov. 21, but the Friars added one goal in the third and Northeastern was unable to respond. The overtime session could not break the stalemate as NU is now 3-0-1 when leading through the first two periods.

Career Milestones
Alex Tuckerman participated in his 50th-career game at Northeastern while Greg Cronin earned his 20th-career tie while at Northeastern. The Providence tie also marked his 20th-tie, overall in his career, throughout Hockey East play. Friday’s game at Vermont denotes Steve Silva’s 75th-career game while Wade MacLeod’s next goal or assist acts as his 70th-career point. Also, the next powerplay goal scored by any Husky will count as the 50th-total powerplay goal for the current roster.

Plus/Minus Performance
Two current Huskies own a +2 plus/minus rating in Robbie Vrolyk and Jim Driscoll (injured) while Garrett Vermeersch is +1 through this weekend.

The First 20 Minutes are Almost Over
It’s hard to believe that the Huskies are almost one-third of the way through their regular-season schedule. Northeastern has completed 11 of its 34 regular season games. Through those first 11 games, Northeastern is sitting at .500 with seven points in the Hockey East standings.

Missing Brooms
There were three more league series this past weekend and still no one has been able to complete a full sweep. Northeastern (home and home with Providence), Boston College (at Maine), and New Hampshire (home and home with BU) came close, each garnering three points in their respective series. Only two such series remain before the New Year: on the December 4-5 weekend, Providence visits Maine for two and Northeastern and Merrimack have a home and home series.

Full of Firsts
Sophomore forward Matt Lipinski found the back of the net for the first time in his seventh-collegiate game  on Nov. 14 while rookie Drew Ellement assisted on his classmate Justin Daniels’ goal on Nov. 13 against Maine for his first point with Northeastern. Ellement took the liberty of composing a three-game pointstreak with two more assists. Senior Dylan Wiwchar, seeing his first action since Nov. 28, 2008 against Princeton, registered his second-career assist on Nov. 13 against Maine. In fact, both of Wiwchar’s career points have come against the Black Bears. Rookie Robbie Vrolyk secured his first-collegiate powerplay goal in the 5-2 win on Nov. 14 while Tyler McNeely recorded his first assist of the season on David Strathman’s short-handed tally.

Periodic Performances
In the four games prior to the 5-2 victory against Maine in which the opponent scored first, the Huskies were not able to rebound from the early deficit and 0-4 in those instances. Saturday’s victory marks the first time in which NU was able to shake off the first surrendered goal and come back to claim victory. The Huskies have also won both games when they are tied with their opponent heading into the final period of play.

Handicapped Scoring
David Strathman scored Northeastern’s first short-handed goal of the season in the victory over Maine on Nov. 14 – it was also the senior’s first man-down tally of his career. The last time the Huskies pounced on the penalty kill was on March 13, 2009 when Wade MacLeod scored one against Massachusetts.

Scoring Breakdown
As it has been for most of the season, the rookie classis directing the scoring efforts for Northeastern.  The freshmen have accounted for 17 (8-17-25) of NU’s 74 total points while the juniors sit right behind with 20 points (9-11-20). The seniors have notched 19 points (7-12-19) while the sophomores have contributed 10 points (4-6-10). The freshmen scoring efforts comprises 33.8 percent of the effort while the junior’s number is at 27.0 percent. The seniors and sophomores make up 25.7 percent and 13.5 percent, in that order.

Cutting It Close
Northeastern has found a way to win all three of its one-goal games this season. The Huskies started off the narrow margins of victory at Colorado College with a 4-3 win for the first triumph of the season. Senior Chris Donovan was given credit for the game-winner. In the home opener against Bentley, the Huskies prevailed, 3-2, thanks to junior Steve Silva’s timely tally. NU’s points leader, Wade MacLeod (3-2-5), scored the game’s only goal in powerplay fashion in front of a raucous crowd against BU.

Rawlings Most Targeted Rookie in the Country
Northeastern’s starting goaltender, Chris Rawlings, currently owns a save percentage of .915 (30th in the country) and a 2.94 GAA (45th in the nation). Rawlings most impressive number is the massive amounts of shots he’s faced compared to the other 80 goaltenders in Division I hockey. The North Delta, B.C. native has made 344 saves, which is the seventh most of any netminder this year. Out of the top seven, Rawlings is the lone freshman on that list, making him the most targeted rookie in the nation. Junior Brian Mahoney-Wilson of Lake Superior State has blocked a national-high 377 attempts.

Catching Up with Francesca Vanin

Francesca Vanin seems to have it all figured out.

The fourth most prolific rebounder in Northeastern women’s program history has taken her game abroad to Italy to continue the game she loves.

Vanin stars for Libertas Sporting Udine, one of the top teams in the Italian A-2 league. 

“I have been very fortunate in my pursuit of playing professional basketball after my graduation from Northeastern University,” Vanin said. “I played one season in Puerto Rico and have just now started my fourth season playing basketball in Italy.  Working and living in another country has offered me a wonderful experience that I will benefit from for years to come, even after I hang up my sneakers.”

After Vanin’s senior year, a Puerto Rican coach approached then-Northeastern head coach, Willette White, about any prospective players looking to continue their careers. 

Vanin jumped at the opportunity and secured an agent after a year of Puerto Rican ball. 

“I can definitely attest to four years of Division I basketball at Northeastern prepared me for almost any type of situation I might encounter on the court, no matter what part of the world in landed in,” Vanin said. “Because Northeastern prides itself on a culturally diverse atmosphere, I was able to associate with people from all over the world before traveling overseas.

While at Northeastern, Vanin was a selected to the America East All-Rookie and finished her career in 2006 with 1,184 career points.

Huskies to Close Out Three-Game Homestand against Providence

Game Notes vs. Providence (.pdf)

Northeastern vs. Providence
Friday’s game against Providence marks the end of the Huskies longest homestand this season after splitting with Maine last weekend. Providence skates into Matthews Arena as one of five teams on Northeastern’s ledger that has a history with NU that dates back at least 100 games. (Northeastern’s Friday night game with Maine marked the 100th-game in the series history. The other three teams that comprise the list are Boston University, Boston College and New Hampshire.) The Friars own a 75-48-12 advantage though 135 total contests, but Northeastern has gotten the better of Providence in the last three affairs.  The Huskies have outscored Providence, 13-4, in the last three games, including a 6-3 shelling on Jan. 24, 2009 at Matthews Arena. Prior to that, Northeastern clipped PC, 3-1, on Jan. 23, 2009 before notching its fourth-ever shutout of Providence, 4-0, on Oct. 17, 2008 at Schneider Arena. The Huskies and Friars have met in the postseason only five times with the last occurrence coming on March 11, 1994 in which Northeastern won, 2-1, in overtime of the Hockey East quarterfinals. If Northeastern defeats Providence on Friday night, it will mark the longest winning streak against the Friars since the Huskies strung four wins in a row against PC from Nov. 12, 1985 – Oct. 24, 1986. Head coach Greg Cronin has collected a winning record of 7-6-1 against the Friars while PC coach Tim Army has gone 5-6-1 in 12 battles against Northeastern.

Peeking at Providence
The Friars’ record stands at 6-3, but they are the only team in Hockey East to have played merely three conference games though the middle of November. Providence is 1-2 in league action, but is only one of two clubs to have knocked off Massachusetts this season, 2-1. Providence also lost to the Minutemen before getting shutout against Vermont, 3-0, on Nov. 8. The Friars were picked to finish ninth in the league, but a .667 winning percentage through their first nine games. Most recently, Providence held off Brown, 4-3, on Tuesday night to capture the 24th annual Mayor’s Cup. The Friars built a 4-1 lead but the Bears (0-5-1) almost pulled off the upset bid with two unanswered tallies in the third period. Sophomore Matt Bergland represents the Friars’ biggest arsenal on offense with a team-leading six goals and nine points. Mark Fayne (2-5-7) and Kyle MacKinnon (2-5-7) have each chipped in seven points while Jordan Kremyr and Alex Velischek have logged five helpers, as well. Second-year backstopper Alex Beaudry has started eight games in net, earning four victories with a sound save percentage of .927. Beaudry has allowed 2.26 goals per game thus far. Fayne’s presense on the ice has led to a club-best +8 rating through nine games while MacKinnon has racked up the most time in the box this season, with eight penalties for 27 minutes. The Friars are 2-1 at Schneider Arena and are looking to avenge the sweep Northeastern handed them in last year’s series.

Last Time out against Providence
Ryan Ginand netted his second career hat trick in a 6-3 victory against Providence College at Matthews Arena. Wade MacLeod, Dennis McCauley and Rob Rassey also scored for the Huskies while Brad Thiessen made 23 saves in his 17th win of the season. Northeastern got on the board first when Ginand scored at 2:15 of the first. With Providence’s Matt Bergland in the penalty box for hooking, Ginand got the puck from MacLeod, faked a pass to Mike Hewkin at the point then beat Providence goalie Alex Beaudry to give Northeastern a 1-0 lead. The Huskies took a 2-0 lead when MacLeod scored a power-play goal of his own. Ginand passed the puck to Joe Vitale down low and Vitale shot it on goal from the left side. The rebound went across the crease to MacLeod, who scored from the right side at 7:37. Providence came back with a Matt Germain score at 14:13 in the first period. NU opened up the second when Jim Driscoll got the puck from Chris Donovan in the Northeastern zone and Donovan passed it out to McCauley, who went up the right side all alone and scored at 3:30, giving the Huskies a 3-1 lead. The Huskies added to the lead at 9:53 in the second with a Rassey tally, but Providence was able to get within two when Ian O’Connor scored at 17:27 in the second. Ginand scored the next two goals, putting the game out of reach for the Friars. At 19:04 in the second, he took a pass behind the net from Chris Donovan and shot it point blank at Beaudry for the goal. His next came on a power play at 9:44 in the third period. He came off the bench to join a rush with MacLeod on the left and Vitale on the right. MacLeod centered the puck, Vitale got a piece and Ginand finished it to make it 6-2. Providence was able to get on the board once more with a goal by Kyle MacKinnon, assisted by O’Connor, at 13:36 in the third period.

Huskies’ Leaders against Providence
Wade MacLeod leads Northeastern’s scoring efforts with eight overall points, including three goals and five assists. Three of those points came in the last meeting between NU and PC. Tyler McNeely (2-2-4), Chris Donovan (2-2-4), David Strathman (0-4-4) and Steve Silva (0-4-4) all supplied four points in their careers against Providence while Kyle Kraemer (0-3-3) and Mike McLaughlin (2-0-2) have registered three and two points, respectively. Jim Driscoll, Mike Hewkin, Alex Tuckerman and Drew Muench have each achieved one point in the overall series.

Big Bounceback
Northeastern endured a tough night on the ice in a 6-2 loss in the 100th meeting with Maine last Friday night. A season-high 38 penalty minutes deferred control to the Black Bears for the majority of the game, but the Huskies responded with a dominating 5-2 performance the next night. In the victory, ten different Huskies made their way onto the scoring sheet, marking a season best, and significantly lowered their time in the penalty box (7-14).

A Weekend Full of Firsts
Sophomore forward Matt Lipinski found the back of the net for the first time in his seventh-collegiate game while rookie Drew Ellement assisted on his classmate Justin Daniels’ goal on Friday against Maine for his first point with Northeastern. Ellement took the liberty of composing a two-game pointstreak with another assist on Saturday. Senior Dylan Wiwchar, seeing his first action since Nov. 28, 2008 against Princeton, registered his second-career assist in the 6-2 loss to Maine. In fact, both of Wiwchar’s career points have come against the Black Bears. Rookie Robbie Vrolyk secured his first-collegiate powerplay goal in the 5-2 win on Saturday night while Tyler McNeely recorded his first assist of the season on David Strathman’s short-handed tally.

Periodic Performances
In the four games prior to the 5-2 victory against Maine in which the opponent scored first, the Huskies were not able to rebound from the early deficit and 0-4 in those instances. Saturday’s victory marks the first time in which NU was able to shake off the first surrendered goal and come back to claim victory. The Huskies have also won both games when they are tied with their opponent heading into the final period of play.

Handicapped Scoring
David Strathman scored Northeastern’s first short-handed goal of the season in the victory over Maine – it was also the senior’s first man-down tally of his career. The last time the Huskies pounced on the penalty kill was on March 13, 2009 when Wade MacLeod scored one against Massachusetts.

Streaking Huskies
Kyle Kraemer is working on Northeastern’s longest pointstreak of the season at three games. The senior forward scored NU’s lone goal against Boston College on Nov. 7 and has since followed up with an assist on Steve Silva’s powerplay goal and his first extra-man goal of the season in each of the Maine outings. Kraemer now has four points on the season (2-2-4).  Freshmen Garrett Vermeersch and Drew Ellement each logged an assist in both Maine games while Steve Silva potted a powerplay goal on Friday night and followed with an assist on Kyle Kraemer’s powerplay blast on Saturay. For Ellement, it marks his first time with back-to-back points while Vermeersch scored consecutive goals in the Colorado College trip. Silva has a four-game long career-high pointstreak.

Hewkin Hounding the Opposition
Mike Hewkin is a cog in Northeastern’s defensive corps, but the St. Louis native has taken a more offensive approach to his game as of late. Hewkin has contributed three assists in the last four games and is now tied with David Strathman and Jake Newton for the team lead in defensive points.

Vermeersch Continues to Flourish
With his two helpers in last week’s Maine series, both coming via the poweplay, rookie forward Garrett Vermeersch has assumed the role as Northeastern’s points leader. The Macomb, Mich. native has collected nine points thus far, including two goals and four assists. Vermeersch is tied for fourth in Hockey East with his 0.75 points per game (rookies) and is locked with Cornell’s Nick D’Agostino and Miami’s Curtis McKenzie for 21st in the nation for freshmen scoring. The 5’11 newcomer has emerged as one of Northeastern’s biggest threats on the powerplay. Five of Vermeersch’s six points have come on with the extra-skater advantage.

Steady Skaters
Kyle Kraemer, Steve Silva and Alex Tuckerman are all tied for third in scoring on NU’s roster with four points. Kraemer and Silva have been on fire as of late, scoring a combined five points in the last six games while Tuckerman has been grinding away all season with his latest goal acting as the game-winner against Maine on Saturday. All three skaters rank behind Wade MacLeod (3-2-5) and Garret Vermeersch (2-4-6) in team points.

Scoring Breakdown
As it has been for most of the season, the rookie classis directing the scoring efforts for Northeastern.  The freshmen have accounted for 17 (7-10-17) of NU’s 54 total points while the juniors sit right behind with 16 points (7-9-16). The seniors have notched 14 points (4-10-14) while the sophomores have contributed seven points (3-4-7). The freshmen scoring efforts comprises 31.5 percent of the effort while the junior’s number is at 29.6 percent. The seniors and sophomores make up 26.0 percent and 13.0 percent, in that order.

Powerplay Domination
Despite being shutout on the powerplay at Boston College on Nov. 7, the Huskies have managed to score at least one powerplay goal in eight of their first nine tilts. In Saturday’s 5-2 victory against Maine, Northeastern’s man-up unit erupted for three powerplay goals, matching a season high set against Bentley in the season opener on Oct. 16. The Huskies have capitalized on 19.0 percent (12/63) of their powerplay chances, which ranks sixth in Hockey East and is tied for 25th in all the land.

Cutting It Close
Northeastern has found a way to win all three of its one-goal games this season. The Huskies started off the narrow margins of victory at Colorado College with a 4-3 win for the first triumph of the season. Senior Chris Donovan was given credit for the game-winner. In the home opener against Bentley, the Huskies prevailed, 3-2, thanks to junior Steve Silva’s timely tally. NU’s points leader, Wade MacLeod (3-2-5), scored the game’s only goal in powerplay fashion in front of a raucous crowd against BU.

Rawlings Most Targeted Rookie in the Country
Northeastern’s starting goaltender, Chris Rawlings, currently owns a save percentage of .909 (44th in the country) and a 3.18 GAA (54th in the nation). Rawlings most impressive number is the massive amounts of shots he’s faced compared to the other 80 goaltenders in Division I hockey. The North Delta, B.C. native has made 280 saves, which is the seventh most of any netminder this year. Out of the top seven, Rawlings is the lone freshman on that list, making him the most targeted rookie in the nation. Junior Brian Mahoney-Wilson of Lake Superior State has blocked a national-high 321 attempts.

A Mountain in Net
Freshman Bryan Mountain earned his first playing time of the 2009-10 season in relief of classmate Chris Rawlings on Friday night. Rawlings was pulled after allowing his sixth goal in favor of Mountain. The Bryn Mawr, Pa. native played the remainder of the third period (9:22), but was not tested by the Black Bears offense. The freshman did not face any shots from Maine down the stretch.

Matthews Arena Mystique
Under Greg Cronin’s guidance, Northeastern’s 3-1 start at home is second best to last year’s 3-0-1 undefeated run. Northeastern started off its home campaign 4-0 during the 1993-94 season. The Huskies are 1-4 on the road and Friday night’s game against Providence is the last of NU’s longest home stretch of the year.

Milestones in the Making
Steve Silva’s powerplay goal in Friday’s game against Maine marked his 10th-career tally while Kyle Kraemer notched his 40th-career point by assisting on Silva’s goal. Tyler McNeely locked up his 25th-career assist on David Strathman’s short-handed marker and is about to skate in his 80th-career contest for Northeastern.

Clutch when Close
Northeastern has found a way to win all three of its one-goal games this season. The Huskies started off the narrow margins of victory at Colorado College with a 4-3 win for the first triumph of the season. Senior Chris Donovan was given credit for the game-winner. In the home opener against Bentley, the Huskies prevailed, 3-2, thanks to junior Steve Silva’s timely tally. Wade MacLeod scored the game’s only goal in powerplay fashion in front of a raucous crowd against BU.

Ranked Rivals
No. 17/rv Boston College was the Huskies’ third nationally ranked challenger in both the USCHO.com and USA Today polls this season. UMass Lowell was ranked #13/12 when the two teams met on Oct. 24. (Since then, UMass Lowell has climbed to #4/4). Northeastern clipped No. 7/5 Boston University in its second-ranked challenge. When NU took on Colorado College, the Huskies were tabbed No. 20 in the country while Colorado College was receiving votes. The Huskies victory against the Tigers is starting to look even more impressive now that CC is ranked #7/7 since Nov. 2.

Hockey East Weighing In
Nine of Hockey East’s 10 teams are either ranked or have received votes in USCHO.com / CBS College Sports latest poll. UMass Lowell has skyrocketed to the No. 4 spot in both polls, after sweeping a weekend series at Alabama-Huntsville. Massachusetts continues to ascend, taking over the 11th post in both the USCHO and USA Today polls after a weekend split with New Hampshire. Vermont is tied at No.17 with Boston College in the USCHO poll. Boston University dropped out of both polls and is now receiving votes after a weekend split with Merrimack. Northeastern was issued eight votes in the USCHO poll while Merrimack (17), Providence (12) and UNH (2) round out HEA’s contingent. Maine was the only team not to crack into either poll from the conference.

October Recap
Northeastern kicked off its regular-season slate with a pair of games at Colorado College and came away with a split. The Huskies dropped the first game, 4-2, but countered with a 4-3 victory against the Tigers at World Arena. Alex Tuckerman registered the Huskies’ first goal of the season on David Strathman’s helper for his 40th-career point. Garrett Vermeersch broke out in his first weekend donning an NU sweater with three points, including a powerplay blast in each game. Senior Chris Donovan delivered the game winner against the Tigers as part of his four-point weekend. NU’s win in Colorado Springs marked Greg Cronin’s 150th-career game as the Huskies’ head coach and freshman netminder Chris Rawlings’ first win in net. In the home-opening sellout against Bentley University, the Huskies’ tallied three powerplay goals from the sticks of Jake Newton, Justin Daniels and Steve Silva while Wade MacLeod accounted for two helpers. The Huskies were handed their first conference loss at New Hampshire, 4-2, but MacLeod notched his fourth-career two-goal game against the Wildcats. The following afternoon, NU battled with UMass Lowell to the very end, but lost a 3-1 decision at Tsongas Arena. Tyler McNeely scored his sixth-career powerplay goal in the game. Through five games, the Huskies have scored a powerplay goal in each tilt. Rawlings has made at least 30 stops in four-of-five starts. Vermeersch, MacLeod and Donovan lead Northeastern with four points each while MacLeod, McNeely and Vermeersch stand as NU’s lone multi-goal performers.

Northeastern Caps Cross Country Season at NCAA Regionals

The Northeastern men’s cross country team concluded its season at the 2009 NCAA Regional Championship with a 19th-place finish at Franklin Park. Sophomore Teddy Vrountas directed the Huskies with a 97th-place mark of 33:50 in the 10K trial.

Saturday’s event was more or a survival of not falling than a 10,000 meter race. Heavy rains in Boston for the past day and a half drenched the course and replaced the trails with a quagmire.

Syracuse won the team championship while Ryan Sheridan of Iona claimed the individual crown with a time of 30:36.

The Huskies bested 17 other squads in their final run of the year.

Freshman Daniel Grant posted a mark of 34:08 for 113th while classmate John Jantz crossed the line in 34:15 for 119th.

Senior Bryan Brunelli captured 122nd with a clip of 34:18 while junior James Pellerano trudded the muddy trails in 34:21 for 127th. Senior Ryan Miling weathered the elements in 35:03 for to round out NU’s contingent in 161st.

The Northeastern women’s cross country team concluded its season at the 2009 NCAA Regional Championship with a 24th-place finish at Franklin Park. Junior Annie Scully paced the Huskies with a 92nd-place mark of 24:17 in the 6K championship.

Syracuse won the team championship while Katie Hursey, also of the Orange, was crowned the individual champion with a mark of 21:57.

The Huskies bested nine other squads in their final run of the year.

Sophomore Meegan Joly posted a mark of 24:36 for 114th while classmate Kristen Martin crossed the line in 25:16 for 149th.

Freshman Katie Barrett captured 158th with a clip of 25:21 while junior Seri Gordon trudded the muddy trails in 25:28 for 162nd. Junior Jillian Buck weathered the elements in 25:51 while sophomore Courtney Mortimer placed 190th in 26:01 to round out NU’s contingent in 161st.

Northeastern’s distance team welcomes all challengers when it hosts the Jay Carisella Track & Field Invitational on Saturday, December 5 at the Reggie Lewis Center in Boston to open the indoor season.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Red vs. Black tonight

Here are the rosters for tonight's Red vs. Black Intrasquad Scrimmage at Solomon Court at 7 p.m. For the students, there will be free pizza and a giveaway courtesy of the NU Student Government Association.

Red
#1 Chris Avenant
#3 Chaisson Allen
#11 Vinny Lima
#20 Joel Smith
#21 Dinko Marshavelski
#22 Alwayne Bigby
#32 Manny Adako

Black
#14 Jonathan Lee
#15 Brian McDonald
#23 Matt Janning
#24 Mathiang Muo
#25 Baptiste Bataille
#33 Ben Felix
#54 Nkem Ojougboh

Catching Up with Eugene Spates

If Eugene Spates first four exhibition games in Luxembourg are any indication, he could be in the making of an illustrious pro career. In preparation for the regular season, Spates continued that sweet stroke we saw at Northeastern, averaging 29 points a game in four preseason contests. 

Over the regular season Eugene has led B.C. Mess to an impressive 4-1 record, continued his hot shooting with five huge games.  On November 8th, B.C. Mess defeated the “3 professionals” of Basket Esch and favorite of the Nat. 2 league, 74-73. Spates contributed 33 points including five three pointers.  On November 1st, B.C. Mess beat Telstar 70-66 with Spates again as the high scorer, accounting for 29 points.  On October 25, B.C. Mess beat Grengewald, 90-66, with Eugene pouring in 27 points.  On October 17, B.C. Mess defeated Arel Basket, 70-56, as Spates contributed 24 points.  The only loss of the season came against US Heffingen (77-62) on October 11th, although Spates did score more than half of his team’s points with 34.

On the transition to life in a foreign country, Spates seems to be enjoying the new scenery.

"I like it here because people from Luxembourg speak many languages such as Luxembourgish, French, German, English and any other fifth language they would like to learn," Spates said.

“Lifestyle in my opinion is similar to living in a small country town where they still have farms and the old traditional way of living where the man works and the mom takes care of the house and children. Everybody knows each other here.’

Soon, it could be a place where everybody knows Spates as one of the nation’s basketball stars.

DEE-FENCE

The Huskies Insider listened in on a Huntington News interview with the men's basketball team's three captains (Manny Adako, Baptiste Bataille and Matt Janning), and the consensus of the three was that the key to NU's success this season is defense. Last season, that was certainly true as the Huskies were 11-0 when holding opponents under 40 percent shooting.

The Huskies will be having an intrasquad, red vs. black scrimmage Thursday night at Solomon Court at 7 p.m. It will be an opportunity to take a sneak peek at the team that will open its season at Siena next Tuesday.

In Preperation for the Maine Doubleheader

Game Notes in PDF

100th Game against Maine
Friday’s contest at Matthews Arena marks the Centennial anniversary of Northeastern against Maine. Maine is only one of five teams NU faces this season in which the series dates back 100 decisions, joining Boston University (204), Boston College (203), New Hampshire (153) and Providence (135). Over the past 99 meetings, the Black Bears hold a 48-36-15 advantage over Northeastern, but the Huskies have had Maine’s number as of late. Northeastern has won four straight against its northern foe and has outscored the Black Bears, 17-6, within that stretch. The Huskies dispatched UM, 3-2 in overtime in the last meeting that occurred over 11 months ago on Dec. 5, 2008. Northeastern and Maine have not met in the Hockey East playoffs since March 8-9, 2001, when Maine swept the Huskies in the quarterfinal round. A victory on Friday will match the most wins against Maine since the Huskies’ five-game winning spurt from Feb. 11, 1984 through Nov. 2, 1985. Northeastern emerged victoriously in the first-ever meeting on Dec. 1, 1977, 7-4, at Matthews Arena while Maine’s first win came on Feb. 17, 1979. In the spirit of Friday night’s shutout of Boston University, the Huskies have blanked Maine twice in 99 games, including a recent affair on Oct. 24, 2008 at Alfond Arena. The other time came on Valentine’s Day of 2004 in which both teams skated to a 0-0 stalemate. For head coach Greg Cronin, Friday and Saturday’s games will rekindle some past memories as Northeastern’s leader was the interim head coach at Maine from December 1995-96 and was the assistant coach twice, from 1988-90 and 1993-95. Since taking over at Northeastern, Cronin is 5-8 against his old squad, but has been able to surpass Maine the last four games. Tim Whitehead, head coach at Maine, is 7-7-11 against Northeastern during his tenure with the Black Bears. The Friday-Saturday showdowns at Matthews Arena marks the first home doubleheader of the season for the Huskies as NU puts its 2-0 home record on the line against a Maine team that has knocked off Vermont and Boston University, respectively, in its last two performances. Only two points separate each squad, so a sweep for either team would be a huge boost in the clutter of Hockey East play.

Black Bears Beat
Maine was penciled in to finish eighth in Hockey East in this year’s preseason poll, partly due to a very young squad that features only four seniors. The Black Bears skated to a shaky start, dropping their first three games, including the first two at Union. Since then, Maine has posted a respectable 3-2 total in its last five games with a victory against #13/14 Michigan State and triumphs over conference foes, Boston University and Vermont, in that order. Maine boasts Hockey East’s most prolific scorer this far in sophomore Gustav Nyquist. Nyquist is tied with Massachuetts’ James Marcou with 13 overall points (5-8-13), good for 13th, overall, in the country. The Black Bears also feature a trifecta of skaters with seven total points, including rookie Adam Shemansky (5-2-7) and sophomores William O’Neill (2-5-7) and Spencer Abbott (2-5-7). Both Nyquist and Shemansky share the team lead with five goals. Four of Shemansky’s tallies have come via the powerplay. Sophomore netminder Scott Darling has started five games for Maine, posting a 3-1 record and is allowing 3.03 goals per game and saving shots at a clip of 89.6 percent. Despite having a cluster of high scorers, Maine is 0-4 on the road this season and will be desperately seeking its first win away from Alfond Arena on both Friday and Saturday nights.

Last Time against the Black Bears
Senior defenseman Louis Liotti scored two goals, including the game-winner in overtime as the men’s hockey team beat Maine, 3-2, at Matthews Arena. Wade MacLeod also had a goal and an assist, Joe Vitale had a pair of assists and netminder Brad Thiessen made 31 saves. Maine got scores from Brian Flynn and Matt Duffy. The Huskies got on the board first when MacLeod scored at 18:59 in the first period. Jim Driscoll passed the puck to MacLeod on the left side and MacLeod brought it to the center and fired it into the crowd for the goal. The Huskies were able to up their lead to 2-0 with Liotti’s power-play goal at 9:10 in the second period. Maine’s Will O’Neill was whistled for a five-minute major for hitting from behind and a game misconduct at 8:58, setting up the NU advantage. The Huskies cycled the puck around with MacLeod dishing to Vitale, who passed it to Liotti in the left circle. Liotti skated in and shot the puck past Darling for his second goal of the night. Maine was able to claw back into the game before the end of the second frame. On an odd-man rush, Flynn scored on a huge rebound of a Keif Orsini shot at 14:48. Steve Silva was called for contact to the head-roughing at 17:43 and David Strathman was called for a five-minute major for hitting from behind and a game misconduct at 18:06, giving Maine a five-on-three for 1:37. The Black Bears capitalized with a perfect cycle as Josh Van Dyk passed it to Gustav Nyquist and Nyquist passed it to a wide-open Duffy, who buried it at 19:09 to even the score. Liotti ended it in overtime at 2:29, marking the first time Northeastern swept a season series from Maine since 1984-85, the first season of Hockey East play.

Huskies’ Leaders against Maine
Wade MacLeod directs all Huskies’ scorers against Maine with three goals and five assists while Greg Costa (3-2-5) and Tyler McNeely (2-3-5) are both knotted at five points. Defenseman Randy Guzior has logged four points (3-1-4) against Maine whereas seniors Jim Driscoll and Kyle Kraemer have each accounted for three assists. Steve Quailer (0-2-2) and Alex Tuckerman (1-1-2) have each notched two points while Chris Donovan and Mike Hewkin have each scored a goal. Drew Muench, Steve Silva and Dylan Wiwchar have all contributed an assist in the overall series.

Reversing the 100th-Game Fortunes
With Friday’s game marking the 100th-overall game between Maine and Northeastern, the Huskies have skated in a centennial matchup against four of their other opponents this season, including Boston University, Boston College, New Hampshire and Providence. Unfortunately for Northeastern, the Huskies have run into some bad luck on the 100th game of a series and look to reverse their fortunes. NU is 0-4 in 100th-game anniversaries. Northeastern lost to Boston College, 4-3, at Matthews Arena on March 4, 1981. The 100th NU – BU battle commenced on Nov. 24, 1984 in which the Terriers won, 3-1 while the Wildcats of UNH took down the Huskies, 8-5, on Jan. 15, 1993. Providence beat NU, 5-3, on March 7, 1999. Each of these games took place at Matthews Arena, so the Huskies will be looking to snap the common trend on Friday night.

Unmarred at Matthews Arena
The Huskies have hosted in-state foes Bentley and Boston University and have come away with victories in both games at Matthews Arena. Northeastern has started off its season 2-0 at home 18 times throughout the course of history, most recently when the Huskies beat St. Lawrence, 4-3, on Oct. 13, 2000 and Wisconsin, 5-4 (ot), on Oct. 28, 2000. In games immediately following the second home victory, the Huskies have gone 6-12. The overall Northeastern record when starting 2-0 at home is 216-244-28.

Tall Order for Rookie of the Week
A large reason Northeastern is 2-0 at Matthews Arena this season is because of the 43-save show put on by rookie goaltender, Chris Rawlings, in a 1-0 shutout of #7/5 Boston University on Nov. 6, 2009. Rawlings becomes the Huskies’ second-ever netminder to shut out Boston University as Northeastern recorded its first shutout since blanking UMass Lowell on Feb. 27, 2009. Brad Thiessen was the last NU goalie to make 43 stops when he turned the trick against New Hampshire on Nov. 1, 2008. The 6’5 backstopper has started all seven games for the Huskies and has assembled a win-loss record of 3-4-0. Rawlings is allowing 2.87 goals per game, seventh in Hockey East, while his .919 save percentage currently ranks third in the conference. Rawlings is Hockey East’s only starting freshman goaltender, but is already laying the foundation as one of the toughest to beat in net. He has totaled 226 saves, second most in the league behind New Hampshire’s senior goalie, Brian Foster (242). Foster has started two more games than the Huskies’ defensive anchor. Rawlings’ 2.87 gpg figure is 44th in the country while his save rate of .919 ranks 30th in all the land. For his 43-save shutout performance against Boston University and then making 29 stops at Boston College the following night, Rawlings was awarded NU’s second Pro Ambitions Rookie of the Week award, joining classmate Garrett Vermeersch who made the list on Oct. 12.

Ending a Terrier Reign
Northeastern’s 1-0 win over BU marks the first time the Huskies have won by that score since beating Massachusetts on Feb. 1, 2008. With the shutout, Northeastern can stake its claim to ending BU’s five-year run of not being shutout on the road. Friday night’s triumph marks NU’s first win over its Commonwealth Ave. foe since Feb. 28, 2007. The last time Boston University was denied through 60 minutes on the road was on March 15, 2004.

Cronin Continues to Climb the Ladder
With the BU win, head coach Greg Cronin earned his 60th-career win as Northeastern’s leader and 80th-career win, overall. Cronin’s overall record at Northeaster in 60-76-19. Cronin would love to add to that total against his old club this weekend. While interim head coach at Maine from December 1995-96, Cronin directed the Black Bears to a 27-14-2 record and coached Maine in the Hockey East Championship game in 1996. Cronin also had two stints as an assistant in Orono, one from 1988-90 and the other from 1993-95.

First Hockey East Win of the Season
Friday night’s win against the defending national champion Terriers marked Northeastern’s first Hockey East win of the season. It took NU three conference games to earn two points in the HEA column. Northeastern has won its first Hockey East game of the season on 11 occasions, with the most recent coming in a 4-0 shutout at Providence on Oct. 17, 2008. Six of those wins came on the road while five of them came within the walls of Matthews Arena. The first time NU won its first HEA game of the season was against Boston University on Oct. 26, 1985, 6-3, at BU. The longest it took the Huskies to earn their first Hockey East victory in a season was 10 games when NU beat Merrimack at home, 4-1, on Dec. 1, 2006. Northeastern earned wins against Union and at Michigan during that stretch, but didn’t see its first league win until the Warriors came to town.

Milestones in the Making
Sophomore Alex Tuckerman earned his 25th-career point by assisting on Wade MacLeod’s game-winning goal against Boston University on Friday night. Junior defenseman Mike Hewkin celebrated his 75th game donning a Huskies sweater. He also participated in his 50th-career Hockey East game at Boston College.

Hewkin Making It Happen
Mike Hewkin registered his first points of the season with an assist in both the Boston University and Boston College game. Hewkin has 13-career points to his name, but Friday and Saturday’s performance marks the blueliner’s first-career pointstreak with Northeastern. Hewkin joins defensive partners freshman Jake Newton and senior David Strathman and Jim Driscoll with two helpers on the year. Hewkin has played in all seven games for the Huskies this season. The only skater for NU who has yet to record a point after skating in all seven contests is senior forward Greg Costa.

Kraemer and Student Find the Board
Senior Kyle Kraemer notched NU’s lone tally in a 5-1 loss at Boston College on Saturday night. Kraemer has scored 13 goals in his career and needs one more point to meet the 40-point plateau. Freshman blueliner Chris Student became the fifth newcomer this year to attain his first-career point for the Huskies. Student set up Kraemer on the goal, marking his first assist for Northeastern.

Clutch when Close
Northeastern has found a way to win all three of its one-goal games this season. The Huskies started off the narrow margins of victory at Colorado College with a 4-3 win for the first triumph of the season. Senior Chris Donovan was given credit for the game-winner. In the home opener against Bentley, the Huskies prevailed, 3-2, thanks to junior Steve Silva’s timely tally. NU’s points leader, Wade MacLeod (3-2-5), scored the game’s only goal in powerplay fashion in front of a raucous crowd against BU.

Powerplay Scoring Streak
MacLeod’s marker in the 1-0 BU win extended Northeastern’s powerplay scoring streak to six games, but the Huskies had their streak snapped at Boston College on Saturday night. Kyle Kraemer secured NU’s only goal and it came during a 5-on-5 situation. All three of NU’s tallies against Bentley were powerplay goals. The Huskies’ powerplay is clicking at a rate of 16.3 percent (8/49) which is sixth best in Hockey East and 32nd in the country.

Matthews Arena Meets Max Capacity Again
The Huskies’ faithful stuffed the stands for the second-consecutive home sellout this season. The Boston University sellout marked the first advanced sellout of a Northeastern athletics’ event since the men’s basketball team hosted Duke in 1995. The first advanced sellout came last season when Northeastern hosted Boston College on Oct. 18, 2008. The Eagles were ranked No. 1 in the country and the Huskies treated their fans to a 4-3 triumph. Each advanced sellout has come against a Boston-based school that returns as a defending national champion. Boston College won the title in 2008 while Boston University is this year’s reigning champ. At the Bentley game, a new student-attendance record was set when 2,724 strong packed ‘The Dog House’ to watch Northeastern secure its first home victory of the season.

Ranked Rivals
No. 16/rv Boston College was the Huskies’ third nationally ranked challenger in both the USCHO.com and USA Today polls this season. UMass Lowell was ranked #13/12 when the two teams met on Oct. 24. (Since then, UMass Lowell has climbed to #5/5). Northeastern clipped No. 7/5 Boston University in its second-ranked challenge. When NU took on Colorado College, the Huskies were tabbed No. 20 in the country while Colorado College was receiving votes. The Huskies victory against the Tigers is starting to look even more impressive now that CC is ranked #10/13 since Nov. 2. Northeastern has dealt Colorado College its second loss of the season thus far.

October Recap
Northeastern kicked off its regular-season slate with a pair of games at Colorado College and came away with a split. The Huskies dropped the first game, 4-2, but countered with a 4-3 victory against the Tigers at World Arena. Alex Tuckerman registered the Huskies’ first goal of the season on David Strathman’s helper for his 40th-career point. Garrett Vermeersch broke out in his first weekend donning an NU sweater with three points, including a powerplay blast in each game. Senior Chris Donovan delivered the game winner against the Tigers as part of his four-point weekend. NU’s win in Colorado Springs marked Greg Cronin’s 150th-career game as the Huskies’ head coach and freshman netminder Chris Rawlings’ first win in net. In the home-opening sellout against Bentley University, the Huskies’ tallied three powerplay goals from the sticks of Jake Newton, Justin Daniels and Steve Silva while Wade MacLeod accounted for two helpers. The Huskies were handed their first conference loss at New Hampshire, 4-2, but MacLeod notched his fourth-career two-goal game against the Wildcats. The following afternoon, NU battled with UMass Lowell to the very end, but lost a 3-1 decision at Tsongas Arena. Tyler McNeely scored his sixth-career powerplay goal in the game. Through five games, the Huskies have scored a powerplay goal in each tilt. Rawlings has made at least 30 stops in four-of-five starts. Vermeersch, MacLeod and Donovan lead Northeastern with four points each while MacLeod, McNeely and Vermeersch stand as NU’s lone multi-goal performers.

Hockey East Weighing In
Eight of Hockey East’s 10 teams are either ranked or have received votes in USCHO.com / CBS College Sports latest poll. UMass Lowell has taken over the No. 5 spot in both polls, soaring up three spots after tying Vermont and throttling New Hampshire on ESPNU, 6-3. Massachusetts made the biggest leap, taking over the 14th and 10th posts, respectively, in the USCHO and USA Today polls after sweeping Niagara by a combined score of 8-3. Vermont remains at No.15 while Boston College stays put at No. 16 in the USCHO poll. Boston University plummeted from No. 7 to No. 17 after losing to both NU and Maine on Friday and Sunday, respectively. Northeastern was given 16 votes in the USCHO poll while Providence (9) and UNH (5) round out HEA’s contigent. Maine and Merrimack were not listed in either poll.

No Games for Northeastern
The Huskies did not have any games scheduled over Halloween weekend. Since Greg Cronin has been the head coach at Northeastern (2005-06 season), the Huskies have had a full Friday-Saturday-Sunday break in their schedule only once since the beginning of the season (Excluding Christmas and playoff breaks). Northeastern had a Thursday night tilt at UMass Lowell on Feb. 8, 2007 in which the Huskies lost, 1-0, before beating Harvard in the consolation round of the Beanpot, 3-1, on Monday, Feb. 12.

Steady Scoring throughout the Ranks
The junior class overtook the team points leads amongst all four classes with 12, overall, including four different point scorers MacLeod (5), Silva (3), McNeely (2) and Hewkin (2). The newcomers are still clicking at a strong rate with 11 points (Vermeersch (4), Newton (3), Vrolyk (2), J. Daniels (1), Student (1)). The senior class has offered 10 points, including Donovan (4), Kraemer (2) Driscoll (2) and Strathman (2) while sophomores Tuckerman (3), McLaughlin (1) and Muench (1) round out the scoring.

Converting the Two-Man Advantage
Wade MacLeod’s first goal at New Hampshire marked the Huskies’ first 5-on-3 goal of the season and is one of eight NU extra-man tallies this season.

Guzior Switches Gears
Senior Randy Guzior played in 95 games as a forward for Northeastern before dropping back to guard the blue line at New Hampshire on Oct. 23. On Oct. 24 at UMass Lowell, Guzior earned his first-career start as a defenseman and is just one game shy of skating in his 100th contest.

Skating Milestones
Senior defenseman David Strathman participated in his 100th-career game for Northeastern in the 3-2 victory against Bentley. The Tempe, Ariz. native joins Jim Driscoll and Chris Donovan as a member of the 100-games club. Driscoll leads all members with 113 career games while Donovan has competed in 104. Guzior (99 games), Kraemer (92 games) and Costa (91 games) should all eclipse that mark at some point in the 2009-10 season. Captain Tyler McNeely skated in his 75th-career game at the Whittemore Center on Oct. 23 at New Hampshire while Mike Hewkin did the same at Boston College on Nov. 7.

Nobody Home
The UMass Lowell game’s final score closed out at 3-1 on Oct. 24 , but the River Hawks’ final marker came on an empty net after Chris Rawlings was pulled with 38 seconds in regulation. UML’s empty-net goal is the first one the Huskies have surrendered this year.

Multi-Point Performances
Five Huskies have logged a multi-point performance through their first five contests. Senior Chris Donovan is the only member to have posted three points (1-2-3) in a game when he did so in the 4-3 win at Colorado College. Newcomers Vermeersch (1-1-2) and Newton (1-1-2) have each registered a powerplay goal and an assist in one game while Silva (1-1-2) has carried out the same feat against Bentley. Wade MacLeod’s (0-2-2 • 2-0-2) 15th- and 16th-career multi-point games came with two helpers against Bentley and two tallies at New Hampshire.

Challenging the Champs
Not only did Northeastern host its cross-town rival in BU last Friday night, the Huskies welcomed in the 2009 Division I national champions. The NCAA started crowning a collegiate ice hockey national champion in 1948 when the University of Michigan claimed the initial title. Since the first dubbing 61 years ago, the Huskies have been pitted against the defending national champions 33 times. Northeastern’s first victory against a defending champion was against Boston University when the Huskies toppled the Terriers, 6-4, on Jan. 10, 1979 at Matthews Arena. The Huskies have also enjoyed success the following season whenever Maine has captured the national championship. When the Black Bears were crowned in 1993, NU went 3-1 against Maine during the 1993-94 season, outscoring UM, 18-12. After Maine won it again in 1999, Northeastern went 2-0-1 in the 1999-2000 campaign, outscoring the Black Bears 11-6. Under Greg Cronin, Northeastern is 3-1 against the incumbent champ. The Huskies treated their fans to a 4-3 win against then-No. 1 Boston College (2008 champs) on Oct. 18, 2008, as well. Overall, NU has compiled an overall record of 11-21-1 when opposing the national champion from the previous season. Below is a list of how NU has fared against those teams:
• Boston College (1949 champs - L, 4-9 (1/3/50), L, 3-7 (2/7/50)
• RPI (1954 champs - L, 1-4 (2/1/55)
• Michigan (1964 champs - L, 2-7 (12/29/64)
• Michigan Tech (1965 champs - L, 5-8 (12/27/65)
• Boston University (1971 champs - L, 1-4 (12/21/71)
• Boston University (1972 champs - L, 4-9 (1/17/73), L, 2-3 (1/23/73)
• Boston University (1978 champs - W, 6-4 (1/10/79) L, 0-6 (2/21/79)
• North Dakota (1987 champs - W, 5-4 (OT) (11/27/87)
• Harvard (1989 champs - L, 4-5 (Beanpot) (2/5/90)
• Maine (1993 champs - W, 6-3 (12/3/93), L, 3-6 (12/4/93), W, 5-2 (1/28/94), W, 4-1 (1/29/94)
• Lake Superior State (1994 champs - L, 4-5 (12/28/94)
• Boston University (1995 champs - L, 4-6 (11/3/95), L, 2-10 (11/4/95), L, 4-11 (2/12/96), L, 1-5 (3/1/96)
• Maine (1999 champs - T, 2-2 (11/5/99), W, 3-1 (12/3/99), W, 6-3 (12/4/99)
• Boston College (2001 champs - W, 4-3 (10/20/01), L, 2-7 (2/22/02), L, 1-3 (2/24/02)
• Denver (2004 champs - L, 2-4 (10/16/04), L, 0-4 (1/2/05)
• Boston College (2008 champs - W, 4-3 (10/18/08), W, 6-1 (Beanpot) (2/2/09), W, 2-1 (OT) (3/6/09), L, 1-4 (3/7/09)

Brush Up on BU Before Friday's Big Game

Game Notes (PDF format)

Beantown Brawl
Friday’s match-up with No. 7/5 Boston University will be the 203rd meeting between the inhabitants of Huntington Ave. and Commonwealth Ave. Chapters 201 and 202 of the storied NU-BU series did not yield a winner or a loser. The last two games NU and BU have faced off in have resulted in a tie. Last year’s home-and-home series on Feb. 20 and 21 produced respective scores of 2-2 and 1-1. The Terriers came away with two wins in last season’s four-game series, spoiling Northeastern’s Beanpot title bid, 5-2, on Feb. 2 and shutting out the Huskies, 3-0, on Nov. 16 at Agganis Arena. The 3-0 shutout marks the last time NU has been blanked as the Huskies look for their first victory against Boston University since Feb. 28, 2007 (4-2). BU owns the series advantage, 144-50-8, and has won six of the last 10 encounters. Northeastern’s longest winning streak against the Terriers is seven; spanning from Feb. 23, 1987 to Jan. 17, 1989. In regards to the Beanpot (in which the two clubs will meet on Feb. 1, 2010), Northeastern has won seven out of 37 games. NU’s first victory in program history over BU came on Feb. 9, 1943 by a final of 6-2 while Boston University’s first win was played on Feb. 6, 1931 (4-3). Head coach Greg Cronin is 1-11-5 against Boston University while Jack Parker is 88-32-8 against Northeastern since taking over in 1973.

Terrier Tales
Boston University was penciled in as the favorite to win Hockey East in the preseason media poll, but the Terriers are currently 2-3-0, with a 1-2-0 record in Hockey East. Boston University and Massachusetts kicked off the 2009-10 Hockey East calendar in Amherst as the Minutemen prevailed, 3-2. Four days later, the Terriers were shutout by CCHA-foe Notre Dame, 3-0, yet responded with a 3-2 win against Michigan.  This past weekend, UMass Lowell tested BU in a series split. The Terriers came away with a 5-4 overtime victory thanks to Colby Cohen’s game winner at 1:06 in the extra session, but were handed their second conference loss on Halloween, 3-2, at Agganis Arena. Junior Kevin Shattenkirk directs the Terriers’ scoring with five points (1-4-5) and acts as the assists’ leader, as well. Four of Shattenkirk’s five points have come on the powerplay. Rookie Alex Chiasson (3-1-4) has netted a team-best three goals and is tied with sophomore David Warsofsky (2-2-4) for second in team points. Warsofsky has pulled the trigger on net a club-high 22 times while Corey Trivino, Chiasson and Warsofsky lead all skaters with a +1 rating. Cohen has registered a team-best two powerplay tallies while senior Eric Gryba has perpetrated a team-high seven penalties for 25 minutes. Second-year goaltender Kieran Millan has started all five tilts and is allowing 3.02 goals per game. He has stopped 119-of-134 shots for an 88.8 percent save rate.

Last Time against BU
On Feb. 21, 2009, Northeastern tied Boston University in the second-straight game, 1-1, in front of a sold-out Matthews Arena crowd. Steve Quailer scored the game-tying goal at 17:38 after Joe Vitale fired the initial shot on net. Kieran Millan made the first save but Wade MacLeod took another whack at it on Millan’s right side. The puck landed on Qualier’s stick to put it away for the game-tying tally. Northeastern goaltender Brad Thiessen made 25 saves in the game as the Huskies outshot NU, 32-26, including 11-6 in the third period and 7-1 in overtime. BU broke the scoreless tie at 7:39 of the third on a Matt Gilroy goal. With a 2-2 stalemate the night before, both teams experienced its longest scoring droughts of the season. Boston University went scoreless for 93:18 before Gilroy’s goal whereas Northeastern went scoreless for 88:27 before Quailer lit the lamp.

Huskies’ Leaders against the Terriers
Eleven Northeastern student-athletes have scored at least one point in their careers against their archrival. Senior Kyle Kraemer is NU’s frontrunner with six points (3-3-6) in eight games while juniors Tyler McNeely (4-1-5) and Wade MacLeod (1-4-5) are tied with five apiece in the same number of outings. Senior veteran David Strathman (1-3-4) has tallied four points along with sophomore Drew Muench (0-4-4). Senior Greg Costa (0-2-2), junior Steve Silva (1-1-2) and sophomore Steve Qualier (1-1-2) have all contributed two points in the series while senior Randy Guzior (1-0-1), Jim Driscoll (0-1-1) and Mike McLaughlin (1-0-1) round out NU’s scorers in the BU series.

Matthews Arena Meets Max Capacity Again
The Huskies’ faithful have been anticipating the return of their rivals as indicated by the second advanced sellout of a Northeastern athletics’ event since the men’s basketball team hosted Duke in 1995. The first advanced sellout came last season when Northeastern hosted Boston College on Oct. 18, 2008. The Eagles were ranked No. 1 in the country and the Huskies treated their fans to a 4-3 triumph. Each advanced sellout has come against a Boston-based school that returns as a defending national champion. Boston College won the title in 2008 while Boston University is this year’s reigning champ. Friday night’s game will be NU’s second-straight sellout as Matthews Arena was filled to its capacity of 4,666 for the home opener against Bentley University on Oct. 16. At the Bentley game, a new student-attendance record was set when 2,724 strong packed ‘The Dog House’ to watch Northeastern secure its first home victory of the season. Student tickets pickup for the BU contest will begin on Wednesday at the Northeastern Athletics Ticket Office at Blackman Theatre in Ell Hall at noon. Students must have their Northeastern ID to receive a ticket. Tickets will be distributed there until 3 p.m., Friday or until the allotment has run out. Students who have picked up tickets in advance are asked to enter the arena at the zamboni entrance.

Similar Scoring
Northeastern and Boston University are both averaging 2.4 goals per game which is tied for 43rd in the country and last in conference play. The Huskies are allowing 3.2 goals per game while BU has surrendered a clip of 3.0 goals per game. NU’s figure is tied for 37th in the country, sixth in Hockey East, while the Terriers are tied for 31st in scoring defense, fifth in league action. Northeastern’s 19.4 conversion rate on the powerplay  (27th in the NCAA and fifth in HEA) ranks higher than BU’s value of 17.2 percent (34th in the NCAA sixth in HEA).

Ranked Rivals
No. 7/5 Boston University will be the Huskies’ second nationally ranked challenger in both the USCHO.com and USA Today polls this season. UMass Lowell was ranked #13/12 when the two teams met on Oct. 24. (Since then, UMass Lowell has climbed to #8/8). When NU took on Colorado College, the Huskies were tabbed No. 20 in the country while Colorado College was receiving votes. The Huskies victory against the Tigers is starting to look even more impressive now that CC is ranked #12/11 since Nov. 2. Northeastern has dealt Colorado College its only loss of the season thus far.

October Recap
Northeastern kicked off its regular-season slate with a pair of games at Colorado College and came away with a split. The Huskies dropped the first game, 4-2, but countered with a 4-3 victory against the Tigers at World Arena. Alex Tuckerman registered the Huskies’ first goal of the season on David Strathman’s helper for his 40th-career point. Garrett Vermeersch broke out in his first weekend donning an NU sweater with three points, including a powerplay blast in each game. Senior Chris Donovan delivered the game winner against the Tigers as part of his four-point weekend. NU’s win in Colorado Springs marked Greg Cronin’s 150th-career game as the Huskies’ head coach and freshman netminder Chris Rawlings’ first win in net. In the home-opening sellout against Bentley University, the Huskies’ tallied three powerplay goals from the sticks of Jake Newton, Justin Daniels and Steve Silva while Wade MacLeod accounted for two helpers. The Huskies were handed their first conference loss at New Hampshire, 4-2, but MacLeod notched his fourth-career two-goal game against the Wildcats. The following afternoon, NU battled with UMass Lowell to the very end, but lost a 3-1 decision at Tsongas Arena. Tyler McNeely scored his sixth-career powerplay goal in the game. Through five games, the Huskies have scored a powerplay goal in each tilt. Rawlings has made at least 30 stops in four-of-five starts. Vermeersch, MacLeod and Donovan lead Northeastern with four points each while MacLeod, McNeely and Vermeersch stand as NU’s lone multi-goal performers.

Powerplay Scoring Streak at Five
The Huskies have converted on 7-of-36 (19.4 percent) of their powerplay opportunities this season, spreading at least one extra-man goal out in each of their five games. Northeastern strung together a seven-game powerplay-scoring stretch last season, extending from Jan. 10 through Feb. 2 (6-1 Beanpot win over BC). The Huskies crafted a trifecta of three-straight games with a powerplay goal and a pair of two-game streaks. Vermeersch set the streak in motion with a tally in each Colorado College game while Jake Newton, Justin Daniels and Steve Silva all put away an extra-skater goal against Bentley. Wade MacLeod and Tyler McNeely extended the run at UNH and UML, respectively.

Northeastern at 2-3-0
In 78 seasons of Northeastern hockey, the Huskies have started 2-3-0 through the first five regular season games on 16 occasions. In the games following a 2-3 start, the Huskies have gone 4-9-3 and 1-1-2 in Hockey East play. The Huskies have never started the schedule 2-3 under head coach Greg Cronin’s watch. Last season, Cronin guided NU to a 5-0-1 start before getting upended at New Hampshire on Halloween, 4-2.

Rebounding from Two Losses
Since Northeastern’s first varsity team in 1930, Northeastern has bounced back from a two-loss skid with a victory on 87 instances. The Huskies have also tabulated 15 draws and 132 losses after a two-game draught. Two-game losing streaks were calculated at either the beginning of the season or starting after a win or a tie in the schedule. Last season, the Huskies suffered two consecutive setbacks only twice, including a 4-1 loss at Boston College (3/7/09) and the first game of the Hockey East quarterfinals, 2-1 (3/13/09). The other stretch occurred in the last two outings of the season when NU was defeated by UMass Lowell, 3-2, in the conference semifinals (3/20/09) and then nipped by Cornell, 3-2, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament (3/28/09).

No Games for Northeastern
The Huskies did not have any games scheduled over Halloween weekend. Since Greg Cronin has been the head coach at Northeastern (2005-06 season), the Huskies have had a full Friday-Saturday-Sunday break in their schedule only once since the beginning of the season (Excluding Christmas and playoff breaks). Northeastern had a Thursday night tilt at UMass Lowell on Feb. 8, 2007 in which the Huskies lost, 1-0, before beating Harvard in the consolation round of the Beanpot, 3-1, on Monday, Feb. 12.

Speaking of the Holidays
Northeastern has only played five total games on Halloween, totaling a 2-3 record. NU’s first game was against Providence on 1987. NU lost, 5-3, at Matthews Arena. The Huskies’ first Halloween victory was at Boston College, 3-2, in 1989.

Cronin Creeping Up on another Milestone
Head coach Greg Cronin celebrated his 150th-career game as Northeastern’s leader with the 4-3 win at Colorado College on Oct. 10. Cronin’s next victory marks his 60th-career win for the Huskies and 80th, overall. In his fifth season, Cronin is 59-75-19 with Northeastern, 42-66-17, in Hockey East. His career total is 79-88-21, 52-60-19 in Hockey East.

Freshman Phenoms
The freshman class continues to impress as the young nucleus of Huskies leads the sophomores, juniors and seniors with 10 overall points (5-5-10). Both the juniors (5-4-9) and seniors (2-7-9) have totaled nine points while the sophomore class (1-3-4) has contributed four points. The newcomers have accounted for 31.3 percent of the Huskies’ offense through five games.

Rawlings the Lone Rookie
Freshman Chris Rawlings has made at least 30 saves in four out of his five-career starts. The North Delta, British Columbia native stopped 30 shots at both UNH and UML coupled with a 33 and 34-save effort in the weekend opener at Colorado College, respectively. In the home opener against Bentley, Rawlings blocked 27 pucks, bringing his total to 154 saves through five games (30.8 saves per game). Only two other goalies in the conference (Alex Beaudry – Providence – 186 saves and Brian Foster – UNH – 182 saves) have totaled more saves than Rawlings and the Huskies did not have any contests this weekend. Rawlings is also the only rookie backstopper in Hockey East to have started every game in between the pipes.

Converting the Two-Man Advantage
Wade MacLeod’s first goal at New Hampshire marked the Huskies’ first 5-on-3 goal of the season and is one of seven NU extra-man tallies this season.

Guzior Switches Gears
Senior Randy Guzior played in 95 games as a forward for Northeastern before dropping back to guard the blue line at New Hampshire on Oct. 23. On Oct. 24 at UMass Lowell, Guzior earned his first-career start as a defenseman and is just three games shy of skating in his 100th contest.

Skating Milestones
Senior defenseman David Strathman participated in his 100th-career game for Northeastern in the 3-2 victory against Bentley. The Tempe, Ariz. native joins Jim Driscoll and Chris Donovan as a member of the 100-games club. Driscoll leads all members with 113 career games while Donovan has competed in 104.  Guzior (97 games), Kraemer (90 games) and Costa (89 games) should all eclipse that mark at some point in the 2009-10 season. Captain Tyler McNeely skated in his 75th-career game at the Whittemore Center on Oct. 23 at New Hampshire.

Scoreless Frame
The 0-0 standoff after the opening period at UMass Lowell marked the first time neither team has scored in a period in a Northeastern contest this season.

Nobody Home
The UMass Lowell game’s final score closed out at 3-1, but the River Hawks’ final marker came on an empty net after Chris Rawlings was pulled with 38 seconds in regulation. UML’s empty-net goal is the first one the Huskies have surrendered this year.

Multi-Point Performances
Five Huskies have logged a multi-point performance through their first five contests.  Senior Chris Donovan is the only member to have posted three points (1-2-3) in a game when he did so in the 4-3 win at Colorado College. Newcomers Vermeersch (1-1-2) and Newton (1-1-2) have each registered a powerplay goal and an assist in one game while Silva (1-1-2) has carried out the same feat against Bentley. Wade MacLeod’s (0-2-2 • 2-0-2) 15th- and 16th-career multi-point games came with two helpers against Bentley and two tallies at New Hampshire.

Hockey East Weighing In
Nine of Hockey East’s 10 teams are either ranked or have received votes in USCHO.com / CBS College Sports latest poll. Boston University is ranked seventh in the USCHO poll and fifth in the USA Today poll. UMass Lowell jumped up a post in the USCHO poll and is now eighth in both lists. Vermont dropped from 10th to 15th in both polls but still has a presence while Boston College (16th) and Massachusetts (19th) retain clout in the USCHO’s top 20. Providence, Northeastern, New Hampshire and newcomer Merrimack are all receiving votes in the USCHO poll. Maine is the only Hockey East club to be left off either poll through Nov. 2.

TV Time
Friday’s game at the Whittemore Center was the Huskies first televised game (NESN) of the 2009-10 season. Last year, Northeastern was featured on television nine times, including the two Beanpot games and the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Northeastern totaled a 5-4 record on those occasions. The Huskies were highlighted four times on NESN last season. Northeastern went 3-1 in those contests. This season, Northeastern will be featured in at least five televised games, including the first round of the Beanpot against Boston University on Mon., Feb. 1 at 8 p.m. and the potential championship showdown on Mon., Feb. 8 at 8 p.m. (NESN). Along with the UNH game, Northeastern will be featured in back-to-back home games as the public will be able to feast its eyes on the new Matthews Arena on Sat., Jan. 9 against UMass Lowell (NESN) and Sun., Jan. 10 against Massachusetts (ESPNU). The UMass Lowell contest is at 7:30 p.m. and the Massachusetts game is set for 8 p.m. Northeastern’s game at Boston College on Sun., Feb. 21 at 3 p.m. will also be televised (ESPNU).

Huskies to Air on WRCA 1330 AM
Starting with the New Hampshire game on Oct. 23, the Northeastern men’s hockey games will be broadcast on WRCA 1330 AM. Rob Rudnick will act as the play-by-play announcer while Bill Doherty will provide the color commentary. Rudnick is in his 32nd year of broadcasting Northeastern sports while Doherty is NU’s former Associate Sports Information Director. Both broadcasters have earned the Joe Concannon Award which is presented annually to an outstanding member of the media covering Hockey East, making Northeastern’s the only broadcast team to feature two winners. WRCA 1330 AM joins WRBB Sports 104.9 FM as part of a full-coverage package for the Huskies all season long. All home games can also be viewed live on GoNU.TV. GoNU.TV has already archived over 250 events in its first two seasons of existence.

Matthews Arena Nears the Century Mark
Nearly one week after the final buzzer goes off at Ford Field for the national championship game in Detroit, Matthews Arena will celebrate its 100th birthday on April 16, 2010.  Matthews Arena is the world’s oldest multi-purpose athletic building and houses the world’s oldest artificial sheet of ice. Over this past summer, the Saint Botolph St. staple underwent its third major renovation and received some early birthday presents. Matthews Arena now sports:
• The men’s and women’s suites, consisting of a locker room area, bathroom & shower area and lounge.
• A new men’s basketball locker room
• Brand new strength & conditioning center with state-of-the-art equipment and a sports medicine room to allow student-athletes to train and receive treatment in the same area.
• A new video board at center ice that will show the game in progress, highlights, instant replay, etc.
• The public lobby has new bathrooms and two new concession stands along with high definition LCD televisions that are tied into the video board and sound system.
• A refurbished 23-seat press box equipped with both hard-wire and wireless Internet access and two high-definition LCD televisions that will have replay capability.

Northeastern at the Next Level
Northeastern’s hockey alumni are sprinkled all throughout the professional ranks, including three members from last year’s team. Brad Thiessen, holder of nine NU goaltending records and Joe Vitale, former Huskies captain, have been assigned to Wilkes-Barre Scranton of the AHL. Louis Liotti was assigned to the Worcester Sharks of the AHL after a successful campaign manning the blue line for the Huskies last year. Liotti joins Mike Morris, a 2007 graduate. Mike Ryan was picked up by the Carolina Hurricanes after spending time with the Buffalo Sabres as the Northeastern delegate in The Show. Brian Deeth, Bryan Esner, Donny Grover and Tim Judy made up the list of ECHL representatives while Bryan Nathe and Brian Swiniarski took part in the CHL last season. Ray Ortiz played in the SPHL while Chad Costello spent last year with the IHL. Eight Huskies are playing internationally. Jim Fahey dressed with the Krefeld Penguins last season after playing with the New Jersey Devils and San Jose Sharks. Dan McGillis and Francois Bouchard are both representing NU with the Mannheim Eagles in Germany. McGillis has touched the ice in 634 NHL games, marking the most of any NU alumni. Below is a full list of Huskies in professional hockey in 2008-09:
• Mike Ryan (1999-03) – Carolina Hurricanes (NHL)
• Brad Thiessen (2006-09) – Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins (AHL)
• Joe Vitale (2005-09) – Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins (AHL)
• Dennis McCauley (2005-09) - Worcester Sharks (AHL)
• Louis Liotti (2005-09) - Worcester Sharks (AHL)
• Mike Morris (2002-07) – Worcester Sharks (AHL)
• Brian Deeth (2003-07) – Phoenix Roadrunners (ECHL)
• Bryan Esner (2003-07) – Gwinnet Gladiators (ECHL)
• Donny Grover (2001-05) – Bakersfield Condors (ECHL)
• Tim Judy (2001-05) – Trenton Devils (ECHL)
• Bryan Nathe (2001-03) – Wichita Thunder (CHL)
• Brian Swiniarski (2002-06) – Odessa Jackalopes (CHL)
• Ray Ortiz (2008-09) – Huntsville Havoc (SPHL)
• Chad Costello (2006-08) – Muskegon Lumberjacks (IHL)
• Steve Birnstill (2003-07) - Frederikshavn White Hawks  (Denmark)
• Matti Uusivirta (2005-06) – Blues (Finland)
• Jim Fahey (1998-02) – Krefeld Penguins (Germany)
• Francois Bouchard (1991-95) - Mannheim Eagles  (Germany)
• Dan McGillis (1992-96) – Mannheim Eagles (Germany)
• Jared Mudryk (2008-09) – Klostersee EHC (Germany)
• Jason Gurriero (2001-05) – Szekesfehervar Alba Volan (Hungary)
• Dino Grossi (1989-93) – Valpellice (Italy)