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