Ice Knights open SUNYAC play in dramatic fashion

The Geneseo Ice Knights won their first two SUNAYC games of the season last weekend, defeating Buffalo State and Fredonia.

Geneseo won a dramatic game against on October 28, defeating Buffalo State 4-3 in overtime. Junior Corbin Rosmarin gave Geneseo an early lead, scoring on a rebound off a quick shot from sophomore Zachary Vit. The Bengals came back, scoring one goal in the first, second, and third periods to take a 3-1 lead.

Senior David Arduin put home a rebound on the power play with six minutes left to pull within one. Junior Ryan Bulach and senior Jake Yard picked up assists on the play. Geneseo kept trying to tie the game but the Buffalo State defense blocked shots and first team All-SUNYAC goaltender Kevin Carr stopped kept everything else out of the net.

“He’s an outstanding goaltender, he’s a Division-1 goaltender in my mind,” head coach Chris Schultz said. “You have to go to the traffic areas to get goals.”

With an extra attacker and time running out, Yard threw a puck on net and Vit tipped in the game tying goal in dramatic fashion with 0.9 seconds left in the third.

“You’re going to get a player like Zach once every eight or nine years if you’re lucky,” Schultz said. “He’s in the right place at the right time an awful lot of times.”

In overtime, senior Clint Olson found the back of the net with a backhand shot just 17 seconds into the extra frame. Bulach and Arduin earned assists on the play.

“They stayed mentally tough, they never gave up, and they just found a way to get it done and it’s a beautiful thing to see,” Schultz added. “I’m happy especially for Arduin and Olson who put the team on their backs in terms of leadership.”

Senior Cory Gershon made 26 saves in goal to pick up the win.

Geneseo then defeated Fredonia, 2-1, on October 29. The Ice Knights defense played better than their previous games and junior Adrian Rubeniuk made 29 saves and allowed just the one goal.

“I thought they (the defensive core) had a very strong game,” assistant coach Kris Heeres said. “We were making quicker decisions with the puck. We were keeping it simple.”

Rosmarin again scored the first goal of the game, this time on the power play in the second period. Vit caught Fredonia on a slow change and made a long pass to sophomore Rich Manley. Manley had a two-on-one with Rosmarin, made a great pass and Rosmarin finished for the goal.

“This is what we’ve wanted out of him (Rosmarin),” Heeres added.

Fredonia tied the game early in the third, but Geneseo responded as Arduin scored the game winning goal just three minutes later.

“The bottom line is these were two character wins,” Heeres added. He also praised penalty killers like Bulach, Olson, and sophomore Carson Schell for blocking shots.

Vit and Arduin contributed to every goal on the weekend and are the two leading scorers on the team so far this season.

“That is what we expect out of them,” Heeres said. “They know they are go to guys and they’re taking their game to the next level.”

The Ice Knights are now 2-1 on the season and travel to Oswego on November 4.

Ice Knights fall to Adrian in OT

The 12th ranked Geneseo Ice Knights opened their season with a loss to #4 Adrian on October 22 in overtime, 6-5.

The Knights took the lead in the first period as senior Clint Olson made a great play to free the puck from the corner. He then threw the puck on net where sophomore Carson Schell was able to put home the rebound for the early lead. Adrian scored later in the period to tie the game at the first intermission.

Geneseo took off early in the second period, with three goals in the first six minutes, including two on the power play. Sophomore Zachary Vit and senior Jimmy Powers scored the two power play goals. First year Justin Scharfe earned two assists on each power play goal.

Senior David Arduin scored one minute later to give the Ice Knights a commanding 4-1 lead. Junior Ryan Bulach picked up the assist on the play. The line of Arduin, Bulach, and senior Stefan Decosse have played together the last three years as well as in junior hockey.

“They are very in tune as to where each other are on the ice,” head coach Chris Schultz said. “They have special chemistry. For them, it’s all about how hard they work in order to achieve their goal.”

The Ice Knights allowed two goals late in the second but still held a one goal lead after two periods. Adrian tied the game at four just 15 seconds into the third period with a power play goal. The Bulldogs scored another power play goal five minutes later to take a 5-4 lead after being down 4-1.

“We took the foot off the gas. If and when you get tired, you have to rely on your mind to make the right decisions and execute the game plan,” Schultz said. “During that time late in the second period, we turned the puck over and made terrible decisions with our brains.”

Geneseo tied the game at five just three minutes later as the team was making a quick change. Junior Nick Ryan quickly skated into the offensive zone and scored on a nice pass from first year Jack Caradonna.

The score remained tied at five the remainder of the third period. The Ice Knights opened overtime on the power play, but were unable to score. After killing the penalty, Adrian was able to find the back of the net to win the game, 6-5. Senior Cory Gershon made 26 saves in goal, taking the loss.

Despite the loss, Geneseo will learn from this game against a tough opponent heading into SUNYAC play.

“I think both teams will take a hard look at the defensive zone after that game,” Schultz said. “Adrian will be a very good team every year. I would much rather play a team of that caliber than schedule a cupcake game.”

Geneseo opens SUNYAC play at home on Friday, October 28 against Fredonia.

Ice Knights Preview

The Geneseo Ice Knights enter the season ranked 12th in the initial uscho.com poll. Last season they finished second in the SUNYAC before losing to eventual conference champion Plattsburgh in the semifinals. They finished 2010-2011 with a 16-8-2 record.

Goaltending:

One of the biggest strengths of Geneseo is the returning goaltending tandem of senior Cory Gershon and junior Adrian Rubeniuk. Last season Gershon set a school record with a .921 save percentage and Rubeniuk earned All-SUNYAC honors.

“Both Gershon and Rubeniuk have settled into a position where they are comfortable, they both like the two man rotation,” head coach Chris Schultz said. “As a coach you need goaltending to win games and we have that right now.”

Forwards:

The Ice Knights are returning their top nine scorers from last season, including each forward on their top two lines. Sophomore Zach Vit led the team in scoring as a freshman last year with 13 goals, 22 assists, and 35 points.

Their British Columbia line of seniors Stefan Decosse, David Arduin, and junior Ryan Bulach looks to looks to add onto the great end of the season they had last year.

“They showed up when it counted,” Schultz said. “I thought they were the best line against Plattsburgh in the playoff game.”

“We have quite high expectations for ourselves. This is our third year playing together,” Decosse added. “We hope to get more pucks to the net, get a few more shots, and hopefully bury a few more of our chances.”

Defense:

Geneseo returns most players from a strong unit of defensemen last season. Seniors Jake Yard, Danny Scagnelli and junior Colin de Jersey each made strong contributions on offense as well as on defense last season. Scagnelli was fourth on the team with 21 points, Yard had five power play goals and 17 total points, and de Jersey finished the year with 12 points.

“We have a lot of speed back there and a lot of guys that want to jump into the play,” senior defenseman and team captain Jimmy Powers said.

“I’m looking forward to a very solid D-core,” Schultz said. “Our back line is as strong as its ever been.”

Looking Ahead:

The Ice Knights have high expectations for this season and hope to capture a SUNYAC title.

“As a senior clas, we’re all going to come together and try to push this team to the next level and win that SUNYAC championship,” Decosse said.

“This is the strongest team we’ve had since my first year as coach,” Schultz added. “The commitment that I’ve seen so far is outstanding, the team speed is outstanding.”

Geneseo opens the season at home Saturday, October 22 against 4th ranked Adrian at 4 p.m. Adrian lost in the NCAA Division III championship game last season.

http://www.uscho.com/rankings/d-iii-mens-poll/

http://www.geneseo.edu/athletics/icehockey/schedule

http://collegehockeystats.net/1011/teamstats/genm