Saturday Showdown Pits Men’s Hockey vs. WNE

BOSTON – The Suffolk men's hockey drops the puck in a Saturday showdown against CCC rival Western New England at 7:30 p.m. at the Rams' home ice, Emmons Horrigan O'Neil Memorial Rink. 

SOCIALIZE
Stay up-to-date with all the latest news and notes on Suffolk Athletics by connecting with the Rams on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Be sure to use the hashtag #RamNation for an insider's look at Suffolk's teams and student-athletes.

LAST TIME OUT
Salve Regina was too much for the Suffolk men's hockey team in its 2017 home debut as the Seahawks used a two-goal performance from Shaun Patry and an 18-save, shutout  effort by Blake Wojtala to stun the Rams, 5-0, Thursday night at Emmons Horrigan O'Neil Rink. 

MORE READING: Salve Regina Stops Men's Hockey, 5-0

RUNDOWN ON THE RAMS
Suffolk's setback to Salve Regina Thursday night put the Rams at 4-9-4 on the season and 2-7-2 against CCC competition. 

The Rams offensive leaders did not change after Thursday night as Tommy Bishop continues to be the ring leader with 13 points thanks to a team-best eight handouts and five scores. Second on the squad is senior Danyil Medvedev with four goals and five assists for nine points. Justin Holliday rounds out the Rams' top three with eight points on five goals and three assists. 

In net, Kevin Venturoso has started Suffolk's three games in 2017 with two setbacks and one cleansheet that put the senior at 2-5-0 on the season. In his nine appearances he garnered a .910 save percentage and 3.32 GAA. Michael Levine saw his first action in the New Year Thursday night with a 10-save, third period effort. Overall, Levine, who was Suffolk's go-to goalie to open the season, is 2-3-3 with a .900 save percentage and 3.58 GAA. 

GET TO KNOW THE GOLDEN BEARS
Similar to Suffolk, Western New England has gone 1-1 in its last two games, picking up an 4-3 OT win versus Johnson & Wales, before falling to the University of New England, 6-1, Thursday night. The two-game split gave the Golden Bears a 6-10-2 overall mark and 3-7-1 league ledger. 

Twenty different Golden Bears have notched a point on the season with not a single skater standing out in double figures. Matt Smethurst is the leader in points off four tallies and a team-best five handouts, which ties five other WNE skaters. Steve Beck and David Kleyman are second on the squad in points with eight apiece. The former used a team-high six scores and two setups, while the latter found the back of the net three times and dished out five helpers. 

Kevin Gollmer has played all, but 35 minutes in net for WNE this year with Kyle Carducci and Baylee Johns relieving the starter. Gollmer boasts a .906 save percentage with 600 stops and a 3.51 GAA, giving up 62 goals in 18 outings. 

WE MEET AGAIN
In a clash of two Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) squads, the Suffolk men's hockey team trailed 2-1 with less than one minute remaining in regulation. Mikhail Bryan put in the equalizing goal with just 15 seconds remaining to force overtime for the first time this season, but neither the Rams nor Golden Bears scored in the extra minutes to end in a 2-2 tie at Olympia Ice Arena Nov. 10.   

MORE READING: Bryan Pushes Men's Hockey to 2-2 Draw at Western New England

INSIDE THE SERIES
Saturday night marks the 33rd meeting between the Rams and Golden Bears since the 1999-2000 campaign. Suffolk took home a 6-3 victory to begin and has gone on to hold a 17-13-2 lead in the all-time series.   

EYES ON THE GAME

HATS OFF
In his Suffolk debut Jackson Tucker registered a hat trick showing, scoring all three of Suffolk's goals in the 3-0 win at Becker. Tucker, the first Ram to pot three pucks in one game since Stanton Turner did so in a 7-2 win over the Hawks Nov. 11, 2014, grabbed CCC Player of the Week accolades for his three-goal game performance. 

MORE READING: Tucker Grabs CCC Player of the Week 

SHUTOUT
Kevin Venturoso turned aside 28 pucks Saturday night at Beckerto record his first collegiate shutout. He is the first Suffolk netminder to tally a cleansheet since Michael Levine blanked (1-0) Becker Feb. 13, 2016. 

FROZEN FENWAY
Thursday, Jan. 5 will go inside Suffolk men's hockey record books as the Rams took the ice at legendary Fenway Park apart of the Capital One Frozen Fenway 2017. 

MORE READING: Men's Hockey Holds Intersquad Scrimmage at Frozen Fenway

SHORT-HANDED
Luke Miller's first goal of the season came in short-handed fashion at Western New England Nov. 10. The junior forward is the first Ram to net a man-down score since Justin Selep '16 put one away in a 5-2 win at Nichols Jan. 16, 2016. 

CCC FROZEN FIRST
Simon Leahy's first goal of the season turned out to be a historic one as the senior from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, was the first player across the CCC to find the back of the netting on the inaugural night of play for the first-year league. Since the tally was on the power play, he added to the historics, as the forward also became the first CCC skater to put one away on the man advantage opportunity. 

CCC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Tommy Bishop of the Suffolk men's hockey team will go down in history as the first-ever Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Player of the Week as the sophomore grabbed the initial award of the inaugural season after a career opening night, the conference office announced Oct. 31.

MORE READING: Bishop Grabs First-Ever CCC Player of the Week Nod

UP NEXT
Suffolk stops by Wentworth Thursday, Feb. 2 for a 7 p.m. puck drop