Three things I learned from Atlantic Hockey this weekend:
Sweeps are sweet – Rochester Institute of Technology and American International played the only two-game series this weekend, and RIT continued its dominance over the Yellow Jackets with a pair of victories.
“Our effort level was up and down tonight; we wanted to raise the bar,” RIT coach Wayne Wilson said after Saturdays’ 4-2 win. “I didn’t think we started playing well until they scored. I wasn’t really happy with our inconsistent effort, but it is hard to win two. We got the sweep we were looking for. Sometimes you just got to look at the bottom line — did you get the job done?”
Netting it out – Besides RIT, there were four other teams in contention for a four point weekend. Robert Morris, Canisius, Mercyhurst and Niagara all had a pair of games. The Colonials came close, earning a win and a tie to set a new school record for longest unbeaten streak (seven games).
“Tonight was a good win for us, and we’ve really found our identity lately. Kudos to our guys for setting a new program record,” Colonials head coach Derek Schooley said. “It feels good to win a couple games, and our guys have been putting in the work day-in and day-out to get it done.”
Niagara and Mercyhurst also picked up three points, while Canisius dropped its pair of games. Holy Cross won its only game of the weekend, defeating Army at home.
Sacred Heart dropped a pair of non-conference games, while Bentley, Connecticut and Air Force were already off for the holidays.
Standing watch – There’s only one game left before the holiday break, but it’s a big one in terms of position in AHA the standings. Robert Morris hosts RIT next Saturday. With a win, RIT can claim first place at the turn, while RMU can extend its unbeaten streak and move into a three-way tie for second.
Getting my vote:
Here’s how I’ll vote in tomorrow’s USCHO.com Division I men’s poll:
1. Minnesota Duluth
2. Boston College
3. Ohio State
4. Minnesota
5. Notre Dame
6. Merrimack
7. Boston University
8. Union
9. Western Michigan
10. Colorado College
11. Colgate
12. Ferris State
13. Denver
14. Mass-Lowell
15. Lake Superior
16. Denver
17. Cornell
18. Michigan State
19. North Dakota
20. Air Force
