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All-American Chase Nieuwendyk provides
plenty of firepower |
The Brockport Golden Eagles had a standout season
in 2014-2015, going 13-12-2 overall, while finishing 6-8-2 in conference play.
After securing the sixth and final playoff spot, they manhandled their greatest
rival Geneseo in the first round and came so, so close to upsetting the Plattsburgh
Cardinals in the second round, tying the game in the third before falling 7-5
(Plattburgh’s seventh goal was last minute empty netter).
We got a taste for such electric and competitive
play during the regular season, when the Golden Eagles tied powerhouse Oswego
4-4 and twice scared Plattsburgh in what were Brockport losses (0-1 and 3-4
scores).
In all of those games, including the playoffs,
Brockport was just one goal, one mistake, one moment away from possibly snaring
a victory. Things could have so easily gone the Golden Eagle’s way in any of
those (and other) affairs. That’s how close Brockport is to going to the next
level and becoming SUNYAC champions – and maybe something more.
After having lost just four players to graduation
at the end of the season (albeit major contributors), what remained from the
2014-2015 roster is intact and the coaches, once again, recruited some
top-level talent.
Brockport was in the top half of DIII teams when it
came to scoring last year, their 3.11 goals per game good for 32nd
in the country. 27 of their 84 goals came on the power play, which had that
specialty unit ranked 14th in the country, and 2nd in the
SUNYAC after Oswego. The team was well-balanced, with 6 men having 6 or more
goals, and 10 having 10 or more points.
Despite that balance, the team’s offensive success
is heavily reliant on one man – Chase
Nieuwendyk. While no other Golden Eagle lit the lamp more than 7 times,
Nieuwendyk found the back of the net an amazing 18 times (the 14th
best output in the whole country). Of those, 9 were with the man advantage,
good for 2nd in the nation. With 12 assists to go with them, he
amassed 30 points. Especially awesome was his line in SUNYAC play, 11-8-19 in
16 conference games. That led to his being chosen for the All-SUNYAC first team
while becoming just the second All-American in Brockport hockey history (after
the great James Cody), getting Third Team East honors. Nieuwendyk is now in his
senior season, so appreciate his play while you can – he is an amazing talent;
fast and creative, there are 5 or 6 times a game when your jaw drops while
watching him trying to make something out of nothing.
While the statistical gap between him and the rest
of the forwards is vast, that doesn’t mean Brockport is lacking in firepower.
Some guys should see their numbers grow quite well. Ryan Kangas had a great freshman season, posting a 6-15-21 line.
His maturation on the ice, and being paired with Nieuwendyk for a whole season
should see both his goals scored and assists rise this year. There’s no
sophomore slump in the cards for this talented kid.
Expect to see good numbers from fellow sophomore Dylan Shapiro. His 4-4-8 line belied
his talent last year. His effortless flow to the puck and net last year put
some of the conference’s bigger d-men to shame. He should capitalize on that
and get some goals this year. Likewise for second year player Zac Sikich who had 6 goals as a
freshman and can get shots off quickly…he has double-digit goal talent and is
willing to take shots from tougher angles.
As for upperclassman, look for big things out of Jeremy DeFazio, James Ryan, and Jake Taylor. DeFazio’s output has been
increasing every year and last season the hard-charging forward – who is a
treat to watch -- hustled his way to a 5-9-14 line. 20 points is not out of the
question. Ryan was outstanding on the power play last year, getting 5 such goals,
while netting 7 overall. He had 8 goals the previous season and is always
Johnny-on-the-spot; the kid could be deadly in an extended playoff run. Taylor,
who will be a junior, had another solid season. After scoring 10 goals as a
freshman, he had a 6-10-16 line last season, with 11 points in SUNYAC games. He
could certainly surpass his freshman totals this season, especially with a
slapshot like his.
The offense gets a lot of support from an atypical
place – the blue line. Defenseman Chris
Luker had another brilliant offensive season – he followed up his 9-13-22
sophomore season with a 4-19-23 campaign and First Team All-SUNYAC honors for
the second season in a row. A very strong case can be made that he deserved
All-American recognition, especially last season when he was 7th in
the nation in points among defensemen and he had already established himself as
a great two-way defenseman. That slight will be a great motivator for Luker,
who, when he puts his mind to something, can be transformative: Consider his
freshman year when he led the team with 44 penalty minutes – in the years that
followed had just 14 and 8, and became the most decorated d-man in Brockport
history. I don’t know how a blueliner can build on consecutive 20-point
seasons, but he will. All-American honors would be the icing on the cake for a
great career.
Luker is joined by a solid supporting cast. Jonathan Demme is the team captain this
year and is a “defenseman’s defenseman.” He doesn’t put up big numbers (no
goals and 4 assists last year), but he doesn’t have to. It’s not his job. His
duty is to contain the conference’s biggest threats, something he does quite
well and without sloppiness – he had just 10 penalty minutes last season and
only 4 in SUNYAC play (he doesn’t make mistakes). Robbie Hall saw a lot of ice time last season and with the graduation
of Bobby Chayka, it will be on him and Brian
Hurlimann to fill the void of physicality. Hall could surprise and provide
some fireworks from the blue line…he has the potential to post a 12 point
season.
If and when the pucks get past the defensemen,
Brockport has a great #1 in goal. There should be no worries even though the
team lost to graduation Aaron Green who had a brilliant senior season and finished
off a very nice career that put him near the top in all of the key statistical
categories. Senior Jared Lockhurst
came into the NCAA with great fanfare and admiration, especially from opposing
coaches who publically sang his praises and, he began each of his first three
seasons as the starter. But, the injury bug seems to have always had other
plans for Lockhurst and he has often found himself watching. When healthy, he
has been brilliant with save percentages of .919 as a freshman, .903 as a
sophomore, and .910 as a junior. Due to injuries (and, last year, Green’s hot
hand), Lockhurst had been limited to 14, 14 and 10 games. If he can stay
injury-free this year, expect him to be in .920 territory. He has excellent mechanics,
positioning and attitude -- he has preternatural calmness on the ice.
In the offseason, Coaches Brian Dickinson and
Stephen Mallaro recruited 2 goaltenders among their 7 pick-ups to back-up
Lockhurst. Here’s the skinny on all of the recruits…
It’s an excellent recruiting class, one that
addresses some weaknesses and areas of need while preparing for the future.
Preparing for the future is critical, as after this season the team will be
without the likes of Demme, Lockhurst, Luker, Nieuwendyk, DeFazio, Ryan, Chad
Cummings, and Jesse Facchini. That’s a lot of talent to lose in one year,
especially when you are talking about 2 guys who rank among the very best in
the whole country.
But, that’s something to worry about next year.
For now, we have each of those guys. And, what a
blessing it is, as we have them at their primes – it’s normally the case that
NCAA hockey players are at their pinnacle as seniors. If that’s true this year,
the sky’s the limit. This is certainly a team with the mental and physical make-ups
to make it to the SUNYAC championship and beyond.
Of all the years that I’ve watched Brockport hockey (this
will be my 23rd season in the stands), this is the team that I’ve
had the most hope for. All the pieces are there. Their time is now.
Count my words, 2015-2016 will be something
special.
