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2021–22 Mercyhurst Lakers men's ice hockey season

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2021–22 Mercyhurst Lakers
men's ice hockey season
Conference7th Atlantic Hockey
Home iceMercyhurst Ice Center
Rankings
USCHONR
USA TodayNR
Record
Overall16–19–4
Conference10–12–4
Home7–5–3
Road9–11–1
Neutral0–3–0
Coaches and captains
Head coachRick Gotkin
Assistant coachesGreg Gardner
Matt Nicholson
Ryan Zapolski
Captain(s)Pierce Crawford
Geoff Kitt
Alternate captain(s)Michael Bevilacqua
Josh McDougall
Mercyhurst Lakers men's ice hockey seasons
« 2020–21 2022–23 »

The 2021–22 Mercyhurst Lakers men's ice hockey season was the 35th season of play for the program, the 23rd at the Division I level, and the 19th season in the Atlantic Hockey conference. The Lakers represented Mercyhurst University and were coached by Rick Gotkin, in his 34th season.

Season

[edit]

Mercyhurst was hoping to build on an improvement in 2021 with a strong start to their season. Early returns were mixed as the team tied four of their first eight games. Defense was an issue as the Mercyhurst goal was consistently harassed by their opponents to the tune of nearly 34 shots a game. While the team had Hank Johnson and Kyle McClellan share the starting role, neither was able to shine against the constant barrage. The Lakers nearly pulled themselves back up to .500 at the end of November when they earned a surprising split with Ohio State and there was some hope that the team was ready to turn a corner.

Unfortunately, the defensive performance got even worse afterwards and Mercyhurst went 1–10 in their next eleven matches. In that stretch the Lakers allowed no fewer than 3 goals a game and, even when the offense had a good night, their two netminders couldn't keep the puck out of the net.

By the middle of January, the team was at the bottom of the Atlantic Hockey standings and it looked like the Lakers would have to wait for another year. However, Rick Gotkin decided to put his trust in McClellan as the team's starter and the sophomore began to respond with stellar performances by the end of the month. Seemingly overnight, Mercyhurst went from allowing 5 goals a game to surrendering 1. Mercyhurst arrested their downward descent and started winning games, the most surprising coming against conference-leader, American International in mid-February.

The winning came too late for Mercyhurst to finish any higher than 7th, but it did grant the Lakers home ice advantage in the first round of the conference tournament. McLellan continued to be called upon to save the team's season and he responded with two sterling efforts, winning consecutive 2–1 games while stopping 71 shots. McLellan then backstopped Mercyhurst to an upset over the #2 seed, Canisius; while he got a bit more help from the Laker offense in terms of shots, he still needed to make every save as both games were essentially 2–1 matches (Mercyhurst scored an empty-net goal in the second game).

Mercyhurst managed to lift itself into the conference semifinal and continued to play strong, putting a scare into American International. The Lakers twice took the lead in the game but a hat-trick from AIC's Blake Bennett erased both leads. The Lakers were forced to pull McLellan to try and tie the game but the Yellow Jackets ended up netting a 5th goal as a result. That marker proved critical after Mercyhurst answered with 80 seconds to play but they could not even the score and saw their tremendous postseason run end.

Departures

[edit]
Player Position Nationality Cause
Khristian Acosta Forward  United States Transferred to Utica
Justin Cmunt Forward  United States Transferred to Geneseo State
Jac Lymn Goaltender  United States Joined club team
Devon Mussio Defenseman  Canada Transferred to Skidmore
Brendan Schneider Forward  Canada Left program (retired)
Dante Spagnuolo Forward  Canada Mid-season transfer to Adrian
Ashton Stockie Forward  Canada Signed Professional Contract (HCB Ticino Rockets)
Quinn Wichers Defenseman  Canada Graduation (signed with Rapid City Rush)

Recruiting

[edit]
Player Position Nationality Age Notes
Jake Beaune Defenseman  United States 21 Livonia, MI
Mickey Burns Forward  United States 21 Wayne, NJ; transfer from Vermont
Pierce Crawford Forward  United States 24 Park Ridge, IL; graduate transfer from Notre Dame
Garrett Dahm Forward  United States 21 Swansea, IL
Kyler Head Forward  United States 22 Malone, NY; transfer from Robert Morris
Philip Waugh Forward/Defenseman  United States 21 McLean, VA; already completed one year of classes

Roster

[edit]

As of August 23, 2021.[1]

No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team NHL rights
1 Texas Matt Lenz Sophomore G 5' 11" (1.8 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1999-06-02 Grapevine, Texas Steinbach (MJHL)
2 Virginia Philip Waugh Sophomore F 6' 4" (1.93 m) 217 lb (98 kg) 2000-01-10 McLean, Virginia P. A. L. (NCDC)
3 Michigan Jake Beaune Freshman D 6' 3" (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 2000-06-13 Livonia, Michigan Lincoln (USHL)
5 Ontario Cade Townend Junior D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1999-06-17 Carleton Place, Ontario Carleton Place (CCHL)
5 New York (state) Michael Bevilacqua (A) Senior D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1997-05-07 Hamburg, New York Green Bay (USHL)
6 Pennsylvania Carson Brière Sophomore F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 1999-09-23 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Trail (BCHL)
7 Ontario Devon Daniels Senior D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1998-04-28 Thunder Bay, Ontario Ottawa (CCHL)
8 Ontario Owen Norton Senior D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 161 lb (73 kg) 1998-06-19 Ancaster, Ontario Surrey (BCHL)
10 Ontario Geoff Kitt (C) Senior F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1997-02-09 Dryden, Ontario Carleton Place (CCHL)
11 Ohio Steven Ipri Senior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 155 lb (70 kg) 1998-03-13 Broadview Heights, Ohio Lone Star (NAHL)
12 Minnesota Austin Heidemann Sophomore F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1999-06-27 Maple Grove, Minnesota Sioux City (USHL)
13 Pennsylvania Paul Maust Junior F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1998-06-24 Butler, Pennsylvania Green Bay (USHL)
14 Ohio Gueorgui Feduolov Junior F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1998-12-10 Mentor, Ohio Shreveport (NAHL)
15 Ontario Dante Spagnuolo Junior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 178 lb (81 kg) 1998-09-04 Newmarket, Ontario North York (OJHL)
16 British Columbia Wyatt Head Sophomore D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1999-03-28 Kelowna, British Columbia Coquitlam (BCHL)
18 Pennsylvania Dalton Hunter Senior F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1997-09-26 Greensburg, Pennsylvania Dubuque (USHL)
19 Illinois Garrett Dahm Freshman F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2000-06-29 Belleville, Illinois Youngstown (USHL)
20 Ontario Keanan Stewart Sophomore F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 2000-04-29 Elmira, Ontario Burlington (OJHL)
21 New Jersey Mickey Burns Sophomore F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2000-04-03 Wayne, New Jersey Vermont (HEA)
22 New York (state) Kyler Head Sophomore F 6' 4" (1.93 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1999-07-13 Malone, New York Robert Morris (AHA)
23 New Jersey Jonathan Bendorf Junior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1999-02-26 Yardville, New Jersey Aberdeen (NAHL)
24 Minnesota Marko Reifenberger Sophomore F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1999-01-19 Hastings, Minnesota Minnesota Magicians (NAHL)
25 Ontario Joseph Maziarz Junior D 5' 11" (1.8 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1999-02-23 Waterloo, Ontario North York (OJHL)
26 Illinois Pierce Crawford (C) Graduate F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1997-06-23 Park Ridge, Illinois Notre Dame (Big Ten)
27 Wisconsin Carver Watson Junior D 5' 11" (1.8 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1998-03-03 Appleton, Wisconsin Vernon (BCHL)
28 Saskatchewan Josh McDougall (A) Senior D 5' 10" (1.78 m) 187 lb (85 kg) 1998-06-19 Prince Albert, Saskatchewan Nipawin (SJHL)
29 Minnesota Hank Johnson Graduate G 6' 1" (1.85 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1996-01-10 Minneapolis, Minnesota Bemidji State (WCHA)
31 Missouri Kyle McClellan Sophomore G 6' 1" (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1999-03-18 Manchester, Missouri Omaha (USHL)
34 New York (state) Noah Kane Sophomore F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1999-11-27 Buffalo, New York Maine (NAHL)
37 Ontario Rylee St. Onge Junior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 193 lb (88 kg) 1998-04-22 St. Catharines, Ontario Alaska Anchorage (WCHA)
38 Ontario Dante Sheriff Sophomore F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1999-08-04 Brampton, Ontario Austin (NAHL)

Standings

[edit]
Conference record Overall record
GP W L T OW OL SW PTS GF GA GP W L T GF GA
#18 American International †* 26 17 7 2 1 2 0 54 97 61 38 22 13 3 134 95
Canisius 26 13 11 2 2 1 1 43 76 67 35 16 16 3 99 97
Army 26 12 11 3 0 1 2 42 75 68 35 14 17 4 98 100
RIT 26 12 10 4 1 3 3 41 69 82 38 18 16 4 92 115
Sacred Heart 26 11 12 3 0 1 3 40 72 70 37 15 18 4 95 100
Air Force 26 11 12 3 3 2 2 37 76 80 36 16 17 3 99 127
Mercyhurst 26 10 12 4 0 1 1 36 75 79 39 16 19 4 114 129
Niagara 26 10 13 3 2 2 1 34 70 79 36 11 22 3 82 122
Bentley 26 10 14 2 1 2 1 34 70 78 36 14 20 2 94 117
Holy Cross 26 10 14 2 3 0 0 29 56 72 37 12 23 2 77 108
Championship: March 19, 2022
† indicates conference regular season champion
* indicates conference tournament champion (Riley Trophy)
Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll

Schedule and results

[edit]
Date Time Opponent# Rank# Site TV Decision Result Attendance Record
Exhibition
October 2 7:35 PM at Vermont* Gutterson FieldhouseBurlington, Vermont (Exhibition)     L 2–4  0
Regular Season
October 8 8:00 PM at #4 Minnesota* 3M Arena at MariucciMinneapolis, Minnesota BSN+ Johnson L 4–7  6,372 0–1–0
October 9 6:00 PM at #4 Minnesota* 3M Arena at MariucciMinneapolis, Minnesota BSN McClellan L 3–5  6,396 0–2–0
October 15 7:05 PM Holy Cross Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania   McClellan T 4–4 SOW 813 0–2–1 (0–0–1)
October 16 3:05 PM Holy Cross Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania   Johnson W 5–2  512 1–2–1 (1–0–1)
October 24 5:05 PM USNTDP* Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania (Exhibition)     W 7–3   
October 29 7:05 PM at RIT Gene Polisseni CenterHenrietta, New York   Johnson T 3–3 SOL 2,222 1–2–2 (1–0–2)
October 30 7:05 PM at RIT Gene Polisseni CenterHenrietta, New York   McClellan L 1–3  1,718 1–3–2 (1–1–2)
November 5 7:05 PM Sacred Heart Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania   Johnson T 3–3 SOL 889 1–3–3 (1–1–3)
November 6 4:05 PM Sacred Heart Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania   McClellan T 3–3 SOL 697 1–3–4 (1–1–4)
November 12 7:05 PM at Holy Cross Hart CenterWorcester, Massachusetts   Johnson W 3–2  435 2–3–4 (2–1–4)
November 13 5:05 PM at Holy Cross Hart CenterWorcester, Massachusetts   McClellan L 4–5 OT 302 2–4–4 (2–2–4)
November 19 7:05 PM Canisius Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania   Johnson L 1–6  747 2–5–4 (2–3–4)
November 20 7:00 PM at Canisius LECOM HarborcenterBuffalo, New York   McClellan W 5–2  502 3–5–4 (3–3–4)
November 26 5:00 PM at #17 Ohio State* Value City ArenaColumbus, Ohio   Johnson W 5–4  3,277 4–5–4
November 27 5:00 PM at #17 Ohio State* Value City ArenaColumbus, Ohio   McClellan L 2–3  2,554 4–6–4
December 3 7:05 PM at Bentley Bentley ArenaWaltham, Massachusetts   Johnson L 3–4  1,131 4–7–4 (3–4–4)
December 4 5:05 PM at Bentley Bentley ArenaWaltham, Massachusetts   McClellan L 1–3  965 4–8–4 (3–5–4)
December 12 3:05 PM at Miami Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania   McClellan L 4–7  858 4–9–4
Ledyard Bank Classic
December 30 4:00 PM vs. #20 Boston College* Thompson ArenaHanover, New Hampshire (Ledyard Bank Semifinal)   Johnson L 2–4  87 4–10–4
December 31 4:00 PM vs. New Hampshire* Thompson ArenaHanover, New Hampshire (Ledyard Bank Consolation Game)   Johnson L 1–7  48 4–11–4
January 4 7:05 PM at Miami* Steve Cady ArenaOxford, Ohio   Johnson W 5–4 OT 894 5–11–4
January 14 1:05 PM at American International MassMutual CenterSpringfield, Massachusetts   Johnson L 4–5  70 5–12–4 (3–6–4)
January 15 1:05 PM at American International MassMutual CenterSpringfield, Massachusetts   McClellan L 3–6  79 5–13–4 (3–7–4)
January 21 7:05 PM Air Force Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania   McClellan L 2–5  120 5–14–4 (3–8–4)
January 22 4:05 PM Air Force Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania   McClellan L 3–5  120 5–15–4 (3–9–4)
January 28 7:00 PM at Niagara Dwyer ArenaLewiston, New York   McClellan W 4–1  638 6–15–4 (4–9–4)
January 29 5:00 PM at Niagara Dwyer ArenaLewiston, New York   McClellan L 0–1  767 6–16–4 (4–10–4)
February 4 7:05 PM at Army Tate RinkWest Point, New York   McClellan W 4–0  1,238 7–16–4 (5–10–4)
February 5 4:05 PM at Army Tate RinkWest Point, New York   McClellan L 1–5  1,284 7–17–4 (5–11–4)
February 11 7:05 PM RIT Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania   McClellan W 1–0  758 8–17–4 (6–11–4)
February 12 7:05 PM RIT Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania   McClellan W 4–2  812 9–17–4 (7–11–4)
February 18 7:05 PM American International Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania   McClellan L 1–5  1,214 9–18–4 (7–12–4)
February 19 3:05 PM American International Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania   McClellan W 6–3  779 10–18–4 (8–12–4)
February 25 7:00 PM at Canisius LECOM HarborcenterBuffalo, New York   McClellan W 3–0  732 11–18–4 (9–12–4)
February 26 7:05 PM Canisius Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania   McClellan W 3–1  858 12–18–4 (10–12–4)
Atlantic Hockey Tournament
March 4 7:05 PM Niagara* Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania (First Round game 1)   McClellan W 2–1 OT 687 13–18–4
March 5 7:05 PM Niagara* Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania (First Round game 2)   McClellan W 2–1  704 14–18–4
March 11 7:00 PM at Canisius* LECOM HarborcenterBuffalo, New York (Quarterfinal game 1)   McClellan W 2–1 2OT 513 15–18–4
March 12 7:00 PM at Canisius* LECOM HarborcenterBuffalo, New York (Quarterfinal game 2)   McClellan W 3–1  443 16–18–4
March 18 4:05 PM vs. American International* Adirondack Bank CenterUtica, New York (Semifinal)   McClellan L 4–5  1,072 16–19–4
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Eastern Time.
Source:[2]

Scoring statistics

[edit]
Name Position Games Goals Assists Points PIM
Carson Brière C/RW 31 13 14 27 20
Austin Heidemann F 38 12 15 27 18
Dante Sheriff RW 33 8 19 27 43
Rylee St. Onge LW 36 15 8 23 37
Jonathan Bendorf LW 36 6 14 20 4
Gueorgui Feduolov F 36 7 9 16 8
Pierce Crawford F 38 7 9 16 50
Cade Townend D 39 7 9 16 37
Josh McDougall D 39 3 12 15 2
Noah Kane C 26 5 9 14 8
Owen Norton D 36 3 10 13 52
Marko Reifenberger C 32 6 6 12 21
Mickey Burns LW 23 4 8 12 2
Geoff Kitt C 35 3 9 12 6
Paul Maust LW 37 4 6 10 26
Steven Ipri F 21 3 6 9 41
Devon Daniels D 38 2 6 8 29
Kyler Head F 18 3 3 6 11
Jake Beaune D 35 1 4 5 16
Michael Bevilacqua D 35 0 4 4 44
Dustin Geregach D 16 0 3 3 4
Keanan Stewart F 7 2 0 2 2
Wyatt Head D 8 0 2 2 6
Garrett Dahm F 22 0 2 2 8
Dante Spagnuolo C 3 0 1 1 0
Dalton Hunter RW 6 0 1 1 6
Philip Waugh D/F 14 0 1 1 2
Kyle McClellan G 27 0 1 1 0
Matt Lenz G 1 0 0 0 0
Hank Johnson G 13 0 0 0 0
Total 114 192 306 503

[3]

Goaltending statistics

[edit]
Name Games Minutes Wins Losses Ties Goals Against Saves Shut Outs SV % GAA
Kyle McClellan 27 1616 12 13 2 69 939 3 .932 2.56
Hank Johnson 13 741 4 6 2 54 369 0 .872 4.37
Matt Lenz 1 9:56 0 0 0 1 8 0 .889 6.04
Empty Net - 12 - - - 5 - - - -
Total 39 2389 16 19 4 129 1316 3 .911 3.24

Rankings

[edit]
Poll Week
Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 (Final)
USCHO.com NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR - NR
USA Today NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR

Note: USCHO did not release a poll in week 24.[4]

Awards and honors

[edit]
Player Award Ref
Carson Brière Atlantic Hockey Third Team [5]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "2020–21 Men's Ice Hockey Roster". Mercyhurst Athletics. Retrieved July 19, 2018.
  2. ^ "Mercyhurst 2021-22 Team Schedule". College Hockey Inc. Retrieved February 2, 2022.
  3. ^ "Mercyhurst Univ. 2021-2022 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
  4. ^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  5. ^ "Atlantic Hockey Announces 2021-22 All-Conference Teams". Atlantic Hockey. March 16, 2022. Retrieved March 16, 2022.