Oct. 10, 2017
By Dan Colleran
NOTRE DAME, Ind. ââ’¬” Following a weekend sweep of Alabama Huntsville, seniors Jake Evans (Second Star) and Jordan Gross (Third Star) have earned weekly Big Ten honors the conference announced on Tuesday morning (Oct. 10).
Evans totaled two goals and three assists for a five point weekend against the Chargers. In Friday night’s 5-3 win, he scored the third period game winner and also added an empty net shorthanded tally to seal the victory. In Saturday’s win, Evans – a 2014 Montreal draft pick – had a pair of assists and now has 24 multi-point games in an Irish uniform.
Gross had a four-point weekend against Alabama Huntsville, including three assists in game one of the series and a goal in game two. The senior defenseman also helped the Irish post a shutout on Saturday night as freshman goaltender Dylan St. Cyr earned the shutout in his first career start.
Both Evans (30-67-97) and Gross (27-68-95) are approaching the 100-career points plateau.
Big Ten Stars Of the Week — Oct. 10
First Star: Mason Jobst, Jr., F, OSU
Second Star: Jake Evans, Sr., F, ND
Third Star: Jordan Gross, Sr., D, ND
IN THE POLLS
The Irish moved up to No. 4 in the USCHO.com poll as well as up to No. 6 in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll, both of which were released on Oct. 9. Prior to sweeping the Chargers, the Irish were ranked eighth in both polls.
The ranking sets up a top-five/ten showdown at the Compton Family Ice Arena this weekend (Oct. 13-14) as No. 1 Denver comes to town. The teams will be meeting for the third consecutive season and for the first time since Denver defeated the Irish in the national semifinals at the 2017 Frozen Four en route to the NCAA Championship.
Both games against the Pioneers will be televised by the NBC Sports Network, with Friday’s puck drop slated for 7:05 p.m, while Saturday’s game will begin at 6:05 p.m. To purchase tickets, click here.
— ND —
Dan Colleran, associate athletics communications director at the University of Notre Dame, has been a part of Fighting Irish Media since August 2015 and coordinates all media and publicity efforts surrounding the Notre Dame hockey and golf programs. A native of Walpole, Massachusetts, Colleran spent the previous three years working with the men’s hockey and soccer programs at Providence College. Colleran also spent two years as an Assistant Executive Director of Communications & Championships at the Ivy League and is a graduate of Providence College (’06 & ’08G).