ROCHESTER, N.Y. - The RIT men's hockey team opens Atlantic Hockey play this Friday and Saturday with two games at Army.

The Tigers opened the 60th season (17th at D1) in program history with a 5-2 setback to visiting Colgate last Saturday, while the Black Knights look to bounce back from a 7-0 loss at No. 7 Providence their first game of the season. 

FOLLOW LIVE
Watch: FloHockey.tv/events
Local Audio: WITR 89.7 FM/FOX Sports 1280 AM
Web Audio: witr.rit.edu or foxsports1280.iheart.com
PxP/Color: Ed Trefzger, Scott Biggar, Matt Campbell
Live Stats: goarmywestpoint.com/sidearmstats/mhockey
Twitter: @RITMHKY

TIGER TRACKS
Junior forward Andrew Rinaldi scored in the opening minutes of action, but it was visiting Colgate scoring five-straight  to earn a 5-2 victory at the Polisseni Center last Saturday. Rinaldi stole a puck at the top of the Raider zone and cleaned up his own rebound on the crease 2:10 into the game for the Tigers' first goal of the season, but Colgate answered 41 seconds later and again with 5:02 on the clock to build a 2-1 lead after 20 minutes of play. The Raiders scored the lone goal of the second period and two more in the opening minutes of the third to put the game out of reach. Tiger senior forward Jake Joffe scored with seven seconds left in regulation to close the night. Senior goaltender Ian Andriano finished with 18 saves while RIT out-shot Colgate, 25-23. Freshman forward Evan Miller was credited with an assist on Joffe's goal for his first collegiate point.

THE PIPES ARE CALLIN'
Last Saturday's game with Colgate marked the first season-opener in four years a goaltender not named Logan Drackett got the start. Drackett rewrote much of the Tiger record book prior to  graduation last spring, finishing as the program's Division I-era career leader with 99 appearances, 98 starts, 2,468 saves and 42 victories. 

DANDY ANDY
Junior forward Andrew Rinaldi scored RIT's first goal of the 2021-22 campaign after finishing scoreless in 11 games during the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 season. Rinaldi looks to get back to his freshman year form when he finishing third on the team with 10 goals. 

CALL IN THE CALVERLEY
Senior forward Will Calverley was named only the fourth All-American in Division I program history last winter after landing AHCA Second-Team honors. Also tabbed the Atlantic Hockey-West Co-Player of the Year as well as the Best Defensive Forward, the first-team all-conference pick finished the season ranked fourth in the nation and first in Atlantic Hockey with 1.39 points per game while tying for first in the league with 25 points and second with 12 goals. Voted a preseason All-Atlantic Hockey pick, Calverley returns with 64 career points on 32 goals and 32 assists in 87 career appearances the last three seasons.

DAN THE MAN
Senior defenseman Dan Willett is back after garnering First-Team Atlantic Hockey-West All-Conference honors last season. He led RIT and tied for 12th in Atlantic Hockey with 30 blocked shots and also tied for first for RIT with 14 assists and was fourth with 18 points. The 2021-22 Preseason All-Atlantic Hockey honoree leads all Tiger returners with 61 career assists while ranking second with 70 career points over 128 games played the last four seasons.

GREEN EGGS AND HAMACHER
Senior forward Jake Hamacher is the top returning scorer in Atlantic Hockey with 85 career points. He also leads all Tigers 34 career goals, while his 51 assists only rank behind Willett. He tied for the 2020-21 team lead with 14 assists while finishing third with 21 points and seven goals. He and Willett have also played a team-best 128 games over the last four seasons.

BRUCE ALMIGHTY
Senior forward Nick Bruce was the Tigers' fifth-leading scorer during the 2020-21 season, tying for third with 12 assists with four goals for 16 points. Appearing in 18 games during his fourth season in an RIT sweater, the forward will return with 79 career games played along with 40 career points on 10 goals and 30 assists. He is also one of four Tigers returning for a fifth year with the program, joining Willett, Hamacher and senior goalie Ian Andriano to use the additional year of eligibility granted by the NCAA due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

POINTS…
RIT finished the 2020-21 season 13th nationally with 3.40 goals per game, while the Tiger power ranked 11th with a 23.3 percent conversion rate. Eight of the team's top-10 scorers return, led by senior forward Will Calverley (12G, 13A), junior forward Elijah Gonsalves (9G, 13) and senior forward Jake Hamacher (7G, 14A) are back for the 2021-22 campaign. Hamacher (34G, 51A, 85P), Calverley (32G, 32A, 64P) and senior defenseman Dan Willett (9G, 61A, 70P) are also the top-three returning career scorers in all of Atlantic Hockey. 

…AND COUNTER POINTS
RIT finished last season ranked in the bottom third of the nation in scoring defense (38th, 3.50 goals per game allowed) and in the middle of the pack in penalty killing (24th, 80.8 percent). However, all but one member (senior Regan Seiferling) of last year's youthful blueline group returns this season with another year of experience under their sweaters. 

FAMILIAR FACE
RIT welcomed former Tigers standout Shane Madolora back to the program this season as Volunteer Goalie Coach. The 2012 graduate remains the Division I-era program leader with a .932 save percentage, which is tied for 10th in NCAA history. He is also tops with a 1.97 goals against average, which remains tied for 24th in the NCAA record book. Madolora established single-season program records as a junior which still stand, leading the nation with a .935 save percentage to go along with a stingy 1.93. GAA on his way to Inside College Hockey Second-Team All-America honors and Atlantic Hockey Goaltender of the Year recognition. The following year, he tied his own record with a 1.93 GAA to go along with a .931 save percentage while tying for first nationally with a program-record seven shutouts. Madolora remains first in Tiger history (and tied for 20th in NCAA history) with 13 career shutouts, as well as fourth with 1,727 saves, fifth with 36 wins, and tied for fifth with 65 appearances. His 18-9-5 record during the 2011-12 campaign tied for the second-highest single-season win total by a Tiger, completing his RIT career with a 36-14-2 record. 

OH, CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN
Senior forward Will Calverley and senior defenseman Dan Willett were voted captains for the 2021-22 season, while senior forward Nick Bruce, Andrew Petrucci and Kobe Walker were named assistant captains. Calverley and Willett both served as assistant captains last season. 

TIGERS IN THE NHL
Former RIT standout defenseman Chris Tanev enters his 13th season in the NHL, spending the last 11 with the Vancouver Canucks before signing a free agent contract with the Calgary Flames prior to the 2020-21 season. Voted the 2010 AHA Rookie of the Year, Tanev made his NHL debut on Jan. 18, 2011, becoming the first RIT player to appear in an NHL contest. Entering the 2021-22 season, he has played in 570 NHL games with 24 goals and 106 assists for 130 career points. He won a gold medal with Team Canada at the 2016 International Ice Hockey Federation World Championships. Tanev tallied 28 points (10-18-28) and was plus-33 in 41 games for RIT in 2009-10. Tanev and another former Tiger, Steve Pinizzotto (2005-07), were teammates with Vancouver in 2012-13. Pinizzotto tallied 57 points (20-37-57) in 54 career games for the Tigers and appeared in 36 NHL games with two goals and four assists. 

RIT's NCAA DIVISION II/III HISTORY
RIT made 16 NCAA Tournament appearances since 1983. RIT won the 1983 National Championship at the Division II level, and 1985 National Championship at the Division III level. RIT earned National Runner-Up honors in 1989, 1996 and 2001. The Tigers made the National Final Four in 1984, 1986, 1999, and 2010. Overall, RIT was 26-15-4 in NCAA contests at the DII/III level and is 3-2 in Division I. RIT made the NCAA Tournament in 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1989, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002,  2010, 2015, and 2016.

FINAL FOUR FRENZY
RIT was the first team in NCAA history to reach the Frozen Four in a team's first postseason appearance back in 2010. They were also the first team from the AHA to reach the Frozen Four. RIT was one win away from duplicating that feat in 2014-15.