By: Collin Schuck – IceRays Staff
Jan. 26, 2016
Friday night seemed to be the magic night for alumni gaining more production with 12 different players factoring in decisions. Now in the 17th edition of the IceRays Alumni Report, Vol. II, consistent producers in NCAA Division I and III as well as United States Hockey League (USHL) levels continued to find ways to get points, and there was one player that moved franchises coming at the end of last week.
The news broke late last week, but forward Ryan Garbutt (’09-’10) is on the move once again. On Thursday, the left-winger was traded to the Anaheim Ducks by the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for left-winger Jiri Sekac. The one-for-one deal moves the 30-year-old to his third team in two seasons following a trade to Chicago from the Dallas Stars in the off-season and this move out west. Garbutt made his Ducks debut on Saturday night against Detroit in the team’s 4-3 road win.
With only one game played and before the end of the game, the week wasn’t a pleasant one for Chicago Wolves goaltender Pheonix Copley (’10-’11). On Friday night, the second-year netminder lasted only 38:45 minutes in the team’s 4-3 shootout win against the Charlotte Checkers, turning away 17 of 20 shots in the process though trailing 3-0 at that point. The team would score three in the third, including the game-tying goal with six seconds remaining, and close it out in the shootout. Thanks to his team’s efforts, Copley doesn’t record a decision but has given up three or more goals in five of six games during January while being pulled in two of three games.
The Lehigh Valley Phantoms also sent their IceRays alumnus in for only one game last weekend, but netminder Anthony Stolarz (’11-’12) had the opposite fortune. After five-straight losses, the 21-year-old picked up the win in a 6-5 shootout victory against the Hershey Bears yesterday. The game was a make-up contest due to Winter Storm Jonas hitting the Northeast and postponing Saturday’s game. The Bears came back in the third period to force the extra period, and the Edison, N.J., native earned 26 saves on 31 attempts during the effort. Stolarz heads into his last week of games before the 2016 AHL All-Star Game this weekend.
Despite the snow and winter storms, Mercyhurst University played both of their road games against Robert Morris University on Friday and Saturday though coming away without a win. Friday night helped the team’s efforts with a 2-2 draw, and forward Tommaso Bucci (’12-’13) put the Lakers on the board in the second period to draw within one at that point. The Franklin Square, N.Y., native has first two goals over his last five games and is starting to find the net in American Hockey Association (AHA) play.
Defenseman Perry D’Arrisso (’11-’13) is also heating up heading into the thick of East Coast Athletic Conference (ECAC) play with Clarkson University. In Saturday’s 5-0 blanking of Brown University at home, the Canadian scored the game’s final goal coming in the third period for his third of the season. That’s already the most he’s had in three seasons, and he also has three points over his last four games while doubling his point total from the previous two seasons in just 20 games this year. D’Arrisso now has five points with ten games to go in regular season play.
Consider it a successful weekend for Ohio State University, earning an overtime loss and win against 14th-ranked Penn State and a big 5-1 victory at that. However, the 3-2 overtime loss came first on Friday night though forward Matt Weis (’11-’12) helped put the Buckeyes up 2-1 in the second period with an assist on the game’s first even-strength goal. Weis now has three assists over his last three games and is back to producing points, sitting now fifth one team in points with 15 through 20 games.
UMass Dartmouth is in the midst of a five-game home stand, and the time back in New Hampshire has helped get the team going with three wins in their last four games. In their most recent 4-2 win on Saturday against Westfield State, Brandon Berkley (’12-’14) helped the Corsairs’ cause with an assist on their final goal of the night. That’s his first point in seven games and gives him his fifth point this season in 14 games, breaking his career-high in points set last season in five fewer games.
Saint John’s University has a few big wins against Bethel University, putting up 14-combined goals between both games. An alumnus recorded a point in each win last weekend starting with Friday’s 7-3 home victory when forward Matt Colford (’14-’15) scored on the power play toward the end of the first period to then tie the game at 2-2 before the Johnnies recorded five of the game’s final six goals. The next night, a 7-1 road win finished the weekend sweep, and for the second-straight weekend forward Connor Kelly (’13-’15) got on the score sheet, this time directly assisting Kevin Becker’s third period goal and the team’s fourth of seven-straight dating back to early in the opening frame. Colford now has ten points through 18 games this season, and Kelly has four points in his last four games to move up to six on the year.
Just like in Saint John’s, Plymouth State also had two players earn a single point last weekend in separate games. On Thursday night, the Panthers drew even with Framingham State at 2-2 on the road, and defenseman Tommy Dowell (’11-’12) helped to find Josh Woody in the third period on the power play to score the game-tying goal. Two nights later, Plymouth State took down Fitchburg State 3-1 at home, and forward Ian McGilvrey (’12-’13) found Matt Volonnino within the first minute of the third period to tie the game en route to the late win. Alums have been quieter as of late, but McGilvrey’s helper moves him to 11 points and Dowell’s is his sixth, which moves him two away from his career-high set last season.
It may have taken seven games, but forward Dmitry Ermakov (’11-’12) picked up his first point of the season in Friday’s 4-1 win over New England College on the road. The junior found Dean Niezgoda for the game’s first goal late in the opening period, and from that point the Norwich Cadets never lost the lead. Over the last two seasons, the Columbia, Md., native has only played 14 games including eight this season, combining for three points. This compares to his freshman season, when he had eight points through 18 games.
Forward Jon Grebosky (’11-’13) only had one point last weekend, which doesn’t seem like a big deal unless you consider the consistency he’s been putting up points for Concordia College. In Friday’s 4-3 win over Augsburg, the sophomore scored the game’s second goal and first for the Cobbers coming early in the second period as part of the team’s weekend sweep. The following night ended a three-game point streak, during which Grebosky earned six points including three goals. He has points in 11 of 17 games this season, leading the team in all three major scoring categories with nine goals and 10 assists for 19 points.
There was more success last weekend for forward Nick Monfils (’13-’14), who has been trying to kick up production for Marian University. He earned his second goal in as many games on Friday night against Lake Forest during their 5-2 win, scoring a power play goal late in the second period and proved to be just enough insurance to get the Sabres the victory. In his first collegiate season, the Oshkosh, Wisc., native now has three goals through 16 games.
Colby College has not had the best of seasons, going 5-8-4 thus far and a pair of games at home last weekend didn’t help their cause. The good news is that one player, forward Jonathan Sdao (’10-’11), got back on the scoreline after going quiet for a few months. The senior scored his second goal of the season shorthanded in the second period on Friday night in the Mules’ 4-2 loss to Middlebury. That’s his first point since the end of November, spanning almost two months and 11 games. He now has four points through 17 games.
Defenseman Chris Taff (’11-’13) continues his strong sophomore campaign with SUNY Plattsburgh in a home-and-home series against Morrisville. The Cardinals earned wins on both nights, and in Friday’s 5-2 win the Omaha, Neb., native assisted on the game’s final goal coming within the final three minutes of the third period. That’s points in two-straight weekends for Taff, who now owns 13 points through 13 games and sits fifth on the team and second among defensemen.
It can be officially said that forward Tommy Telesca (’12-’13) is back to his scoring ways with more consistency in gaining production. Friday night brought about his third goal of the season during SUNY Potsdam’s 2-2 draw with SUNY Canton to start off the scoring back in the first period of play. After starting the year pointless in four games following a five-game absence due to injury, the Selden, N.Y., native has put up seven points over nine games including three over his last four.
A mini three-game point streak ended last weekend for forward Nico Sturm (’13-’14) in USHL play, but before that subsided on Saturday night the Austrian recorded two points on Friday night during the Try-City Storm’s 4-1 win over the Dubuque Fighting Saints. Though scoring ended at the end of the second period, Sturm factored into the final two goals of the game with his 10th of the year with 44 seconds remaining in the frame and an assist just 36 seconds later right before the 2nd intermission break. He now sits third on the team in points with 19 thanks to his five-point break through three games.
After 11 games without a point heading into the New Year, forward Landon Quinney (’14-’15) finally broke his long point drought on Saturday night. The Moose Jaw Warriors fell 4-3 in overtime to the Lethbridge Hurricanes, but Quinney found Jesse Shynkaruk for his side’s first goal coming in the second period for the sole goal of the frame. Despite the drought, Quinney still remains third among rookies on the roster with 13 points through his first 47 games of Western Hockey League (WHL) action.
Read the IceRays Alumni Report every Tuesday on www.GoIceRays.com and hear the audio version on the IceRays Broadcast Network.
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Collin Schuck is the Director of Broadcasting & Media Relations for the Corpus Christi IceRays. He can be contacted at cschuck@goicerays.com or on Twitter at @CollinDSchuck.
