This’ll be a quick-hitter, without the usual feature material in the middle due to a crunched-up week… the Beanpot and Clarkson-St. Lawrence kinda accordioned my standard pace and schedule.
Players of the Week
Player of the week: Alex Killorn, Harvard
The Crimson’s most consistent (or perhaps only consistent) player this year scored three goals and five points against two ranked opponents in Princeton and Boston University this weekend, and finished a +1 for the deuce to boot. All three of Killorn’s Friday points came on the power play, with a first- and second-assist, and the game-tying goal with 5:55 to play. In the Beanpot consolation contest, the junior center scored shorthanded and even-strength goals to boost his season total to 10… the most on the team. The five-point outburst this week broke a string of three scoreless games for Killorn, tied for his longest such drought of the season.
Honorable mention: Danny Biega, Harvard (1-3-4, +3 vs. Princeton and BU); Brian O’Neill, Yale (3-1-4, +1 at SLU and Clarkson; hat trick at Clarkson)
Rookie of the week: Matt Hatch, Union
The Empire State native (out of Massena, N.Y.) potted two goals, added an assist and finished the week a +3 against Cornell and Colgate. Hatch scored the decisive second and coffin-nailing fourth goals against the Big Red in Friday’s monster tilt, then contributed the first assist on Adam Presizniuk’s goal against the Raiders, which began Union’s comeback. With five goals and 12 points in 25 games this season, Hatch has been reliably productive for Nate Leaman’s Dutchmen, but is still only the fourth-highest scorer among his classmates in Schenectady.
Honorable mention: Josh Jooris, Union (1-2-3 vs. Cornell and Colgate)
Goalie of the week: James Mello, Dartmouth
The junior out of Rehobeth, Mass. was as sharp as ever this weekend, giving up only two goals on 52 shots against spunky Quinnipiac and Princeton. Friday night saw the netminder save 21 of 22 shots against the Bobcats in an evenly paced affair, and he followed that up with 29 saves on 30 shots against the Tigers on Saturday – including 12 stops on 12 shots as Princeton pressed in the third period. Mello boasts a .936 save rate for the year and a 2.00-even goals against average: those marks qualify as second and sixth in the nation, respectively.
Honorable mention: Mike Clemente, Brown (4 goals against, 62 shots at Clarkson and SLU); Andy Iles, Cornell (2 goals against, 32 shots at RPI); Keith Kinkaid, Union (3 goals against, 36 shots vs. Cornell and Colgate; 9-save shutout of Cornell); Ryan Carroll, Harvard (4 goals against, 49 shots vs. BU); Eric Hartzell, Quinnipiac (2 goals against, 27 shots at Dartmouth); Paul Karpowich, Clarkson (7 goals against, 88 shots vs. Brown, Yale, and at SLU)
My top 20
This ballot was submitted prior to the Beanpot finales, of course.
1. Boston College
2. Yale
3. North Dakota
4. Union
5. Minnesota-Duluth
6. Denver
7. Merrimack
8. Dartmouth
9. New Hampshire
10. Rensselaer
11. Wisconsin
12. Miami
13. Western Michigan
14. Michigan
15. Notre Dame
16. Princeton
17. Nebraska-Omaha
18. Boston University
19. Cornell
20. Colorado College
