Men's Ice Hockey

The Saint Anselm men's ice hockey team opens the 2009-2010 season on the road on Friday night, November 20th.  The team finished eighth in the ECAC East, going 10-5-1 overall and 7-12-1 in the league.  The Hawks were undefeated in the Northeast-10 during the regular season, going 5-0 to earn the top seed for the tournament and a first-round bye.  The Hawks fell to Stonehill on March 4, 2009 by a score of 7-4 in the Northeast-10 semifinals.

The Hawks are led by head coach Ed Seney, who returns for his eighth season in charge of the Hawks.  Seney is assisted by Saint Anselm alumni Michael Martiniello '02 and Mike Curtis '07, who both played for the Hawks when they were students.

This season's team is primarily made up of freshmen and juniors, as the Hawks welcome 14 first-years and return 16 veterans, 11 of whom are juniors.  According to coach Curtis, "In my opinion it is a good thing to have a group of young, hungry freshmen want to play, who want to win, and who will push the upperclassmen to play better.  We really have a great mix of players.  We will rely on our experienced upperclassmen to play a key role, but the freshmen will push the upperclassmen to be their best, because everyone will be fighting for a spot in the lineup."

"Since half the team is new this season, the freshmen will really be changing the culture and the nature of the Hawks.  Coach Seney stresses work ethic, passion and playing as a team.  If you have that kind of drive and commitment, more often than not you will be successful.  If we can go into every game with a group of guys that compete at every whistle, we will give ourselves the chance to win."

After finishing 5-0 in the Northeast-10 during last year's regular season, the Hawks were picked to finish first this season by the league's coaches.  Thus, the team's main goal for this year is to win the Northeast-10.  "The last few seasons, we have put ourselves in a position to win the tournament, but have come up short. This year we are focusing on the task at hand, taking the season one game at a time. It doesn't matter where you're picked at the beginning of the season, it's where you finish at the end." 

While winning the Northeast-10 is the team's top priority, the Hawks also aim to be competitive in the ECAC East.  After finishing in eighth with a 7-12-1 league record in 2008-2009, the Hawks were forecast to finish seventh this season.  "We want to put out a team every night that can compete and really make some noise.  Of course we would like to win the ECAC too, but the league is full of some of the top teams in the nation.  For now, we want to make sure we stay competitive and play our hardest every game."

The Hawks will open their season against Castleton State College and Skidmore College for the fifth consecutive season, this year on the road.  The Hawks completed a sweep of the two teams last season for a big four-point home opener, but that is not an easy task to repeat.  The Castleton Spartans are a physical team, while the Thoroughbreds are more of a running gun, specializing in their speed.  The opening weekend will serve as great opportunity to test the versatility of the young team.

While the Hawks do not feel a strong rivalry towards any of their opponents in particular, there are several key games to look for.  Southern New Hampshire, the closest team on the schedule, tends to view the Hawks as a rival, and will play their hardest to try to win.  Saint Michael's is the only other team in both the ECAC and the Northeast-10, so their matchup on January 15th, 2010 will represent a two-game swing, counting towards both league records.  In the ECAC, both Middlebury and Norwich have recently won the national championship, so a win against either former champion would definitely turn some heads.  However, with just 25 games in the regular season, every game will be important, and there are no easy teams.  The Hawks must regard every game as a playoff and always play their best.

The Hawks are pleased to return 16 players from last season and to welcome 14 incoming freshmen.  The Hawks' only senior, Seth Goodrich, comes back for his second season as team captain.  The Salisbury, Vt., native has appeared in 77 games for the Hawks over the last three seasons, scoring 22 career points on 19 assists and three goals.  He is a tough physical defenseman, who plays aggressively and moves the puck well.   Goodrich will lead the defense with the help of junior John Hennessey.  The resident of Westwood, Mass., has appeared in 47 games for the Hawks, scoring 18 career points on four goals and 14 assists.  "The two defensemen will play a big part of our defensive core, which is going to be relatively young.  We will lean on them to guide the younger players."

The Hawks return four of their top-six leading scorers from last season in juniors Coleman Noonan, Paul Snell, Ryan Butler, and Nick Wheeler.  Noonan, a native of Norfolk, Mass., was last year's leading scorer, recording 10 goals and 14 assists for 24 points on the season.  One of this year's team captains, he has appeared in 49 games for Hawks, scoring 37 career points on 15 goals and 22 assists.  He has terrific offensive instincts, and has good hands with a quick release.

Snell tied Noonan for a team-leading 10 goals last season, and added 10 assists to be the team's second leading scorer with 20 points.  The Groton, Mass., resident has appeared in 53 career games for the Hawks, notching 17 goals and 15 assists in two seasons.  He is a gritty forward with a good slap shot.  He is a tremendous competitor with a great winning attitude. 

Butler, who hails from Arlington, Mass., was fourth on the team in scoring last season, recording nine goals and 10 assists for 19 points.  He is a heads-up, two-way player with excellent hockey instincts, who has appeared in 51 total games for the Hawks.  He has 34 career points, scoring 15 goals and 19 assists over the past two seasons.  Wheeler, a resident of Nashua, N.H., is the Hawks' third team captain.  He has great feet and the ability to read offense well.  He has appeared in 50 games for the Hawks, notching 11 goals and 16 assists for 27 career points.

The incoming freshman class is led by forwards Timothy King, Tucker Mullin, Mike Richard, and John Hyslip, and defensemen Ryan Clark and Evan Gogonis.  King, a native of Weymouth, Mass., played from the Bridgewater Bandits, where he was the Bay State League MVP.  He was also selected as a Dream Team member by the Boston Herald and named All-Scholastic by the Boston Globe and the Patriot Ledger.  Mullin, who hails from Andover, Mass., was the MVC and HNIB Mass. Division II Player of the Year in 2007.  He was also voted All-Scholastic by the Boston Herald and Merrimack Valley MVP the same year.

Richard, a Derry, N.H. resident, was All-State New Hampshire in 2006 and 2007.  He was the all-time leading scorer at Pinkerton Academy, with 133 career points, where he was named Athlete of the Week on numerous occasions.  Hyslip, who lives in Andover, Mass., was team MVP and Offensive Player of the Year at The Tilton School.  The coaches expect the four forwards to be offensive contributors on a nightly basis, who will balance out the upperclassmen.

Clark and Gogonis are expected to log a lot of minutes in the backline, playing in all situations.  The coaches hope that they will step in and make a big difference in the Hawks' defense.  Clark, who hails from Wadsworth, Ohio, was the Boys Prep team captain last season and a member of the Bridgewater Bandits.  Gogonis is a native of Northborough, Mass., who played for the Boston Junior Bruins.  Last season he broke the Bruins' team record for season points for a defenseman in league play, scoring 56 points on six goals and 50 assists.  He was second in the league among all players with his 50 assists.

Forwards
In addition to the aforementioned forwards, the Hawks return six more offensive players.  Michael Adams, a junior from Bedford, Mass., has appeared in 32 career games for the Hawks, recording seven goals and four assists for 11 points over the past two seasons.  He has excellent speed and terrific hands, and will see time in power play and penalty kill situations.  Classmate John Penny, who hails from Andover, Mass., is an excellent skater with good hands, who moves the puck well.  He has appeared in 33 games for the Hawks, notching four goals and 10 assists for 14 points in two years.

Jim Toomey, a junior from Billerica, Mass., is a quality stick-handler with good speed.  He was the leading scorer at Kimball Union Academy and has appeared in 34 games for the Hawks, scoring three goals and five assists in two seasons.  The final junior forward, Brendan Carroll, is from Duxbury, Mass.  He has played in 33 games for the Hawks, scoring four goals and three assists.  He is a tough, rugged forward with the ability to score goals.

Michael DeVita and Ryan Holley are the Hawks' two sophomore forwards.  DeVita , who hails from Annandale, N.J., is an aggressive forward who makes his presence felt on the ice.  He has good hands, good vision, and a quick release.  He played in six games last season as a freshman, recording his first career point on December 2, 2008 against Assumption.  Holley is a power forward from Owings, Md., who plays with finesse.  He appeared in 21 games as a freshman, recording one goal and four assists for five points on the season.

The Hawks also have six additional freshmen joining the offense this season.  Kevin Karales, a native of Plymouth, Mass., received the Hobey Baker Character and Sportsmanship Award at Boston College High School.  He was also the varsity team captain and leading-scorer at The Pomfret School last season.  Andrew Kacz, who hails from North Dighton, Mass., was the team captain for The Canterbury School and Moses Brown, and was named to the Rhode Island All-Star and All-State Teams. 

Tyler Savage, who comes to Saint Anselm all the way from Carrollton, Texas, was team captain and a Gordon Cup Conference All-Star Honorable Mention in 2006.  He was also a member of the state semifinal team in 2005 and 2006.  Joey Demeria, a native of Potomac, Md., is a two-time state champion and a former teammate of Savage's, as the two have played together on the New Jersey Rockets. 

Bryan Luther, a resident of Scituate, R.I., played three years of varsity hockey in high school and was a member of the Boston Advantage.  Reed Hersey, who lives in Woodstock, Vt., played for the Boston Junior Shamrocks and was an EJHL All-Star and team captain last season.

Defensemen
The Hawks have three additional defensemen in their backline, two sophomores and a freshman.   Chris Sullivan, a resident of Needham, Mass., appeared in 23 games last season for the Hawks, scoring his first career point on February 6, 2009 against Babson.  He is a gritty defenseman with good vision, who makes smart plays with the puck and has a deceptive shot from the points.

Nick Rossi, who hails from Smithtown, N.Y., was the second leading scorer among freshmen last season, recording four assists in 15 games.  He has good hands and great hockey sense, with good offensive capabilities from the point.  Michael Tierney, a Scituate, Mass. native, was a New England All-Star and a Boston Globe Honorable Mention.

Goaltenders
The Hawks have three solid goaltenders this season, two juniors and a freshman.  Alex Wyse logged the most minutes in goal on team last season, playing 41.5% of the team's minutes.  After transferring from the Division I Clarkson University, the Amherst, N.Y. native made 13 starts as a sophomore, logging 651:35 minutes in goal and notching a 4-7-1 record.  He allowed 49 goals and made 341 saves for a goals against average of 4.51 and a save percentage of .874.  Wyse made 76 saves in last season's opening weekend to lead the Hawks to their first two wins of the season.  He has a strong work ethic on and off the ice and a quick glove.

Kevin Fairweather, a resident of Woburn, Mass., transferred to Saint Anselm last year as well, after completing his freshman year at the University of Connecticut.  He made six starts for the Hawks, allowing 17 goals with 161 saves, for a team-best 3.16 GAA and a .904 save percentage.  He displays a lot of confidence in the net and does not give up many rebounds.          

Freshman Corey Cotnoir will round out the Hawks' goaltending core.  The Bow, N.H., native was First-Team All-State his sophomore through senior years.  He was also voted team MVP as well as being named to the Union Leader's All-State and All-Conference teams as a junior and senior.  The rookie will compete for a starting role this season.