Men's Hockey | 1/4/2012 3:01:00 PM
ROCHESTER, NY – The RIT men's hockey team will play its first two games of the 2012 calendar year at Wisconsin on Friday and Saturday. Both games will get underway at 8:07 p.m. EST. The two contests are the first meetings between the schools since the 2010 NCAA Frozen Four Semifinal.
Friday's game will be aired live on the Big Ten Network, with coverage beginning at 8 p.m. Big Ten Network is channel 240 on Time Warner Digital Cable in the Rochester area, 610 on DirecTV, and 439 on Dish Network. It is a premium channel on all three carriers. On Time Warner, Big Ten Network is also available in high definition on channel 1076. Please check with your local cable provider for availability.
Dan Kelly will call the action, with Rob Andringa, serving as color commentator. Jay Wilson will be the on-ice reporter.
The Tigers come into this weekend's contests on a roll after defeating No. 11 Ferris State 3-0 and No. 16 Lake Superior State 3-1 to capture the prestigious Catamount Cup hosted by the University of Vermont last Thursday and Friday. Defenseman
Chris Saracino (St. Louis, MO/Green Bay Gamblers) was named the Catamount Cup MVP and was an All-Tournament Team selection along with forward
Mike Colavecchia (Maple, Ontario/Lindsay Muskies) and goaltender
Shane Madolora (Salinas, CA/), who earned his ninth career shutout. The shutout over Ferris State was RIT's first at the Division I level over a non-Atlantic Hockey Association team.
On Monday, Saracino was named the AHA Player of the Week, while Madolora earned Goalie of the Week honors.
Colavecchia and
Cameron Burt (Detroit, MI/) are tied for the team lead in scoring with 15 points apiece. Colavecchia leads the way with six goals, while Burt's 11 assists are a team-high. In net, Madolora had started 11 straight games before
Josh Watson (Lititz, PA/Powell River Kings) earned his first collegiate win, stopping 32 shots against Lake Superior State last Friday. Madolora is 8-3-1 with a 2.00 goals against average, .930 save percentage, and three shutouts this season. Watson is 1-1-1 with a 1.63 goals against average, and .940 save percentage.
Wisconsin (7-9-2, 4-8-2 WCHA) has not played a regular season game in nearly a month, tying and losing to No. 1 Minnesota Duluth at home on December 9-10. On December 31, the Badgers defeated the United States Under-18 National team, 4-3. Justin Schultz leads the team in scoring with 28 points on nine goals and 19 assists. Rochester native Mark Zengerle is right behind with eight goals and 27 points. In goal, Joel Rumpel and Landon Peterson have split time. Rumpel is 5-4-2 with a 3.12 goals against average and .902 save percentage, while Peterson is 2-5-0.
The Badgers have eight NHL draft picks on their roster, including Schultz, a second round pick of the Anaheim Ducks in 2008.
It will be the second and third meetings between the two schools. On April 8, 2010, Wisconsin ended RIT's dream season with an 8-1 win in the Frozen Four Semifinal in front of 34,954 fans at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan. Twelve current Tigers were part of the Frozen Four team, while six Badgers are active from that squad. Six Badgers from that team (Jake Gardiner, Ryan McDonagh, Blake Geoffrion, Craig Smith, Brendan Smith, and Derek Stepan) play in the NHL.
RIT is away from Ritter Arena for nine straight contests and do not play at home again until January 27. So far, RIT is 2-1 on its road swing. After this weekend's contests, the Tigers play their final 14 regular season games against Atlantic Hockey Association opponents.
