Niagara goaltender Jeff Van Nynatten will miss the next eight weeks after injuring to his index finger in practice on Monday, it was announced by head coach Dave Burkholder. The injury will require surgery, which is scheduled for Tuesday afternoon.
Van Nynatten led all College Hockey America netminders with 18 wins last season and earned the CHA Tournament Most Valuable Player award after leading the Purple Eagles to the tournament championship and an NCAA Tournament appearance.
A preseason selection to the CHA All-Conference Team, Van Nynatten has a 3.01 goals against average, .910 save percentage and a 3-5-0 record in eight games with Niagara this season. The junior from Stratford, Ont. has a career record of 28-21-3 in 61 games with the Purple Eagles.
Van Nynatten’s last game action came on Nov. 20, when he stopped 39 shots in a 2-1 overtime loss to Bemidji State. He had his string of 12 consecutive starts snapped after dropping a 4-3 decision to Western Michigan on Nov. 5, putting him on the bench for the next four games.
The Purple Eagles will likely go with freshman Scott Mollison when they take on CHA rival Alabama-Huntsville on the road this weekend. Mollison has a 2-1-0 record and 1.80 goals against average in four games this season and was named CHA Rookie of the Week after allowing just two goals and posting back-to-back wins against Quinnipiac on Nov. 12 and 13.
