Feb. 7, 2006
Notre Dame, Ind. –
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• The Series: Notre Dame (9-16-3/7-12-3) vs. Ferris State (14-10-6/9-8-5)
• Date/Site/Times: Friday, Feb. 10, 2006 - 7:35 p.m. - Joyce Center (2,713) Saturday, Feb. 11, 2006 - 7:05 p.m. - Ewigleben Arena (2,493)
• Broadcast Information: Radio: Notre Dame hockey can be heard live on ESPN Radio 1580, South Bend's SportsCenter. Mike Lockert, "the voice of Irish hockey" will bring you all the play-by-play action.
• Internet Broadcast: At the Notre Dame website - www.und.com.
IN THE HOME STRETCH: After playing seven of their last 10 games on the road, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish head into the home stretch of the 2005-06 regular season with three home games and three road games left on the docket. This week, the Irish will battle the Ferris State Bulldogs in a home-and-home series. On Friday, Feb. 10, the two teams will meet at Notre Dame’s Joyce Center in a 7:35 p.m. contest. The following night, the two teams meet in Big Rapids, Mich., for a 7:05 p.m. game at Ewigleben Arena on the Ferris State campus. The Irish are coming off a pair of one-goal losses with #14/#14 Michigan State last weekend, losing 3-2 on Friday at home and 2-1 on the road Saturday night at Munn Arena. The losses dropped Notre Dame to 9-16-3 overall and 7-12-3 in CCHA action. The Irish are currently tied for ninth in the conference with Alaska Fairbanks and Bowling Green, five points behind three teams tied for sixth place – Nebraska-Omaha, Ohio State and Northern Michigan. After this weekend, the Irish have four games left – two on the road at Bowling Green and two at home with Alaska Fairbanks. Ferris State comes into the series with a 14-10-6 record and the Bulldogs are fifth in the CCHA with a 9-8-5 league record, good for 23 points, just one ahead of the three teams tied for sixth and one behind fourth-place Lake Superior. Ferris State closes the season with two games at Ohio State and a home-and-home series versus Michigan.
IRISH VERSUS BULLDOGS: Notre Dame and Ferris State have met 52 times in the all-time series with the Bulldogs holding a 33-14-5 edge. At the Joyce Center, the Irish are 8-18-3 versus Ferris State and at Ewigleben Arena in Big Rapids, Mich., the Irish are 6-13-2. Through a quirk in the schedule, Notre Dame has played just twice since the 1999-2000 season at Big Rapids. Since Oct. 23, 1999, the two teams have played 13 times at the Joyce Center, twice at Ewigleben and once at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Mich. Notre Dame’s last win in Big Rapids was Oct. 16, 1998 and the Irish are 0-2-1 there since. Last season, Ferris State won twice at the Joyce Center by 4-2 and 2-1 margins. Notre Dame’s last win versus the Bulldogs at home came on Feb. 14, 2004, closing out a series sweep with 4-2 and 4-1 wins.
ROOKIE SUCCESS: With five goals and 21 assists for 26 points, freshman Erik Condra (Livonia, Mich.) leads the Irish in scoring. His 26 points are the most by a Notre Dame freshman since Rob Globke, Aaron Gill and Brett Lebda all had 26 points in their freshman season of 2000-01. The last freshman to have more than 26 points for the Irish was rookie defenseman Mark Eaton who had 29 points (12g, 17a) in his only year at Notre Dame in 1997-98. The last Irish freshman to lead the team in scoring was Jamie Ling, with 40 points, in 1992-93.
MICHIGAN STATE RECAP: Notre Dame suffered a pair of one-goal losses in the weekend series with Michigan State, dropping a 3-2 decision at home on Friday and a 2-1 game on Saturday at Munn Arena. On Saturday night, junior goaltender David Brown (Stoney Creek, Ont.) made a season-high 38 saves, but it wasn’t enough as the Irish lost 2-1. David Booth got Michigan State on the scoreboard at 7:19 of the first period when he deflected a shot by Ethan Graham from the left point over Brown for his ninth of the season. Notre Dame tied the score at 19:17 of the second period when Erik Condra (Fr., Livonia, Mich.) whipped a shot from a bad angle below the left-wing circle past Spartan goaltender Jeff Lerg to make it 1-1. The goal was Condra’s fifth of the season. Michigan State would get the game winner at 14:31 of the third on a power play when Drew Miller deflected a shot by Booth over Brown for his 10th of the season. The Spartans out shot the Irish, 40-27, in the game. Lerg had 26 saves for MSU. The Spartans were 1-for-8 on the power play while Notre Dame was 0-for-7. On Friday night, third-period goals by Tim Crowder and Tim Kennedy proved to be the difference as Michigan State handed Notre Dame a 3-2 loss. The Spartans took a 1-0 lead in the first period on a power-play goal by Justin Abdelkader at 13:37. The score stayed that way until 50 seconds into the third when Josh Sciba (Jr., Westland, Mich.) tied the score 1-1 with his 13th goal of the season and eighth on the power play. Michigan State snapped the tie with Crowder’s goal at 4:51 (ppg) followed by Kennedy’s game winner at 7:51. Evan Rankin (Fr., Portage, Mich.) cut the lead to 3-2 with his second goal of the season at 19:51 with David Brown pulled in favor of a sixth attacker. In the game, the Spartans out shot Notre Dame, 33-23. Brown finished with 30 saves while Dominic Vicari had 21 for Michigan State. MSU was 2-for-6 on the power play while the Irish were 1-for-3.
THE PUCK STOPS HERE: Goaltender David Brown has now seen action in 21 consecutive games for the Irish, starting 20 of them. In his last four games, Brown is just 1-3-0, but has a 1.52 goals-against average and a .950 save percentage. In those four games, the Irish have scored just four goals and his one victory was a 1-0 shutout. In his 21-game streak, Brown is 6-10-3 with a 2.40 goals-against mark and a .918 save percentage. On the season, Brown is 6-13-3 with a 2.75 goals against and a .905 save percentage.
OPENER BLUES: Notre Dame is just 2-7-2 in the opening game of CCHA series this season. In game two of a weekend series in conference play, the Irish are 5-5-1.
ROAD WARRIORS: Notre Dame played six of its eight games in January on the road and finished the month with a 3-3-2 record. In the six road games, the Irish were 3-2-1 and since Dec. 6 at Minnesota State, Notre Dame is 4-3-1 away from home.
POWER-PLAY LEADER: Junior center Josh Sciba collected his team leading 13th goal of the season on Friday night and his eighth on the power play in the 3-2 loss to Michigan State. Sciba’s eight power-play goals this year tie him for second in the CCHA, one behind Bowling Green’s Jonathan Matsumoto. Sciba’s eight power-play goals are the most by an Irish player since Aaron Gill `04 had nine in 2003-04. On the year, Sciba has career highs in goals (13), assists (11), points (24) and power-play goals (8). For his career, Sciba has 26 goals with 13 of them coming on the power play.
NEW KID ON THE BLOCK: Freshman right wing Erik Condra leads Notre Dame in scoring with five goals and 21 assists for 26 points in 28 games during his rookie year. He currently is tied for first in the CCHA with Michigan’s Jack Johnson (6-20-26) for the league’s rookie-point lead with 26 points and is tied for 10th among rookie scorers in the nation. His three-point game at Northern Michigan on Jan. 21 was his fourth of the season and he now has six games with two or more points on the year. He also is tied for 17th in the CCHA scoring race and his 21 assists rank him sixth in the league in that category.
FAN FAVORITES: During their six road games in January, the Irish helped the opposition draw some of its biggest crowds of the year. On Jan. 6-7 at Nebraska-Omaha, the Mavericks drew back-to-back season-high crowds of 6,366 and 7,642. On Jan. 21 at Northern Michigan, the game drew the Wildcats’ third biggest crowd of the year, 3,992. Last weekend at Ohio State, the two games drew the biggest crowds of the year with 10,857 on Friday and 11,141 on Saturday at Value City Arena. At the Joyce Center, the Irish have played in front of sellout crowds (2,763) in each of their last two games.
TOUGH ONES: The two one-goal losses at Michigan State drops the Irish to 4-6 in one-goal games this season. Notre Dame is 1-3 in it’s last four one-goal games and 2-4 in the 2006 portion of the schedule.
TOP CITIZEN: Notre Dame senior defenseman Chris Trick (Troy, Mich.) is one of seven finalists for college hockey’s Humanitarian Award that is awarded each year to college hockey’s top citizen. An assistant captain with the Irish, Trick oversees the team’s community service projects. He has been a two-year member of Notre Dame’s Student-Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC) and has been the team’s organizer for various community service projects the last two seasons. Away from Notre Dame, Trick has worked with the Michigan Amateur Hockey Association’s (MAHA) Great Lakes Sled Dogs, a sled hockey program in Fraser, Mich, playing for the team, coaching and helping in fund-raising efforts. The Hockey Humanitarian Award is awarded every year at the NCAA Frozen Four in April.
POWER-PLAY POWER: After struggling early in the season on the power play, Notre Dame has now scored at least one power-play goal in nine of its last 11 games, including four with two or more. In those 11 games, the Irish are 14-for-63 on the power play for a 22.2% success rate. For the year, Notre Dame has 32 power-play goals in 180 chances (17.8%) in 28 games. Last season, the Irish had 23 power-play goals in 238 chances (9.8%) in 38 games. The Irish power play currently ranks fifth in the CCHA.
POWER-PLAY POINT GETTERS: Here are Notre Dame’s top five scorers on the power play this season:
Name Goals Assists PointsJosh Sciba 8 8 16Wes O'Neill 4 10 14Mark Van Guilder 3 10 13Erik Condra 2 11 13Noah Babin 3 6 9
BACK-TO-BACK SHUTOUTS: Notre Dame has been involved in back-to-back 1-0 shutouts three times in their history. Last weekend marked the first time the two teams involved split the games. On Feb. 12-13, 1999, the Irish lost back-to-back 1-0 games at Michigan State and then at home with Ferris State. On Dec. 28-Jan. 3, 2003-04, the Irish won 1-0 games versus Maine and Findlay.
SIX AND COUNTING: David Brown’s 1-0 shutout at Ohio State (Jan. 28) was the sixth of his career and second of the season for the junior goaltender. He had four in his freshman year to set the single-season record. He is now tied for first on the career shutout list with Morgan Cey `05, as both now have six in their Notre Dame careers.
STREAK IS SNAPPED: Notre Dame’s 1-0 shutout of Ohio State on Jan. 28 snapped a seven-game Buckeye win streak versus the Irish. It was the first Irish win since Oct. 10, 2003. The win also put a dent in Ohio State’s recent domination of the Irish as the Buckeyes are now 13-2-3 versus Notre Dame in the last 18 meetings.
WALLY’S WORLD: Senior right wing Tim Wallace (Anchorage, Alaska) is having a career-year for the Irish in 2005-06. He already has career highs in goals (10), points (19) and power-play goals (4) in the first 28 games of the season. He has tied his career best with nine assists this season. Wallace recorded his fifth multiple-point game of the year on Jan. 20 with a goal and an assist at Northern Michigan. The senior right wing has four two-point games on the year and one game with three points (2g, 1a) – a career high. He has a pair of two-goal games to his credit – Oct. 28 vs. Princeton and Dec. 18 vs. Lake Superior – giving him three for his career. Wallace continues to add to his “Iron Man” streak as he has now played in 145 consecutive games for the Irish. He is in the midst of a five-game scoreless skid.
STREAKING SCIBA: Junior center Josh Sciba has now scored points in seven of his last 10 games (3-7-10) after having a four-game streak snapped on Jan. 20 at Northern Michigan. He bounced back the following night with a pair of assists in the 4-3 win versus the Wildcats. Sciba has had a career year in 2005-06 with highs in goals (13), assists (11), points (24), power-play goals (8) and short-handed tallies (1). His eight power-play goals are the most by a Notre Dame player since Aaron Gill `04 had nine in the 2003-04 season.
UNLIKELY HEROES: Notre Dame’s 4-3 win at Northern Michigan produced a couple of unlikely heroes for the Irish in freshman goaltender Jordan Pearce (Anchorage, Alaska) and junior defenseman Tom Sawatske (Duluth, Minn.). Pearce saw his first action since Dec. 2 at Western Michigan when he entered the game with 13:28 left in the second period and the Irish trailing 3-1. He stopped all 14 shots he faced in the game, including three on a five-minute power-play due to a major penalty with 3:49 left in the game, to pick up his first win since Nov. 10. Sawatske scored his first goal with the Irish on his ninth shot in a Notre Dame uniform for the game winner at 8:50 of the third period. The goal was Sawatske’s first collegiate goal since Nov. 29, 2003 versus Michigan State when he was a member of the Wisconsin Badgers.
David Brown IN THE NOTRE DAME RECORD BOOKS
Career
Goals-Against Average (Min. of 30 decisions)1. Morgan Cey (2001-2005) 2.792. David Brown (2003-) 2.913. Forrest Karr (1995-99) 2.92
Save Percentage (Min. of 30 decisions)1. Morgan Cey (2001-2005) .9132. David Brown (2003 - ) .9053. Tony Zasowski (1999-03) .892
Shutouts1. David Brown (2003-) 6 Morgan Cey (2001-2005) 63. Mark Kronholm (1970-74) 4
Minutes Played1. Lance Madson (1986-90) 6,900:092. Morgan Cey (2001-2005) 6,465:043. Matt Eisler (1994-98) 6,276:304. Greg Louder (1990-94) 5,521:565. Dave Laurion (1978-82) 5,485:006. Dick Tomasoni (1968-72) 5,240:007. Bob McNamara (1979-83) 5,092:008. Len Moher (1974-78) 4,919:009. Mark Kronholm (1970-74) 4,877:0010. David Brown (2003- ) 3,562:40
Season Records
Goals-Against Average1. David Brown (2003-04) 2.322. Morgan Cey (2003-04) 2.423. Tony Zasowski (1999-00) 2.564. Forrest Karr (1998-99) 2.585. Matt Eisler (1997-98) 2.706. Morgan Cey (2001-02) 2.727. David Brown (2005-06) 2.758. Chris Cathcart (1970-71) 2.839. Morgan Cey (2002-03) 2.8710. Forrest Carr (1997-98) 2.88
Save Percentage1. David Brown (2003-04) .9252. Morgan Cey (2003-04) .9243. Morgan Cey (2002-03) .912 Morgan Cey (2004-05) .9125. Morgan Cey (2001-02) .9106. Mark Kronholm (1970-71) .9077. David Brown (2005-06) .905 Matt Eisler (1997-98) .905
Shutouts1. David Brown (2003-04) 42. David Brown (2005-06) 2 Morgan Cey (2003-04) 2 Morgan Cey (2002-03) 2 Morgan Cey (2001-02) 2
BATTLING BACK: Notre Dame’s come-from-behind win at Northern Michigan on Jan. 21 was the first for the Irish this season. Notre Dame went into that game with an 0-13-0 record when trailing after two. It was the team’s first come-from-behind win (when trailing, entering the third period) since Dec. 10, 2004, when they came from a 2-1 deficit to beat Michigan State, 3-2 in overtime.
FOUR IN THE NHL: With his recall on Jan. 30 by the Columbus Blue Jackets, former Irish standout Ben Simon `00 gives Notre Dame four alums now playing in the National Hockey League. Simon joins Rob Globke `04 (Florida), Brett Lebda `04 (Detroit) and Mark Eaton (Nashville) now playing in the NHL. Only one other time, have the Irish had more players in the NHL in one season. That came during the 1982-83 season when the Irish had five players see time in the NHL. That group included: Jim Brown `82 (three games with Los Angeles), Jack Brownschidle `77 (72 games with St. Louis), Jeff Brownschidle `81 (four games with Hartford), Don Jackson `78 (71 games with Edmonton) and Dave Poulin `82 (two games with Philadelphia).
IRON MEN: Senior right wing Tim Wallace has played in all 145 games during his three-plus seasons at Notre Dame. He became Notre Dame’s all-time “Iron Man,” passing former defenseman Evan Nielsen (`03) who held the record with 114 games between 2000-03. Other Irish consecutive game streaks of 35 games or more include:
Mark Van Guilder – 66 games
Mike Walsh – 61 games
Van Guilder joins Wallace as the only two players with two or more years experience on the Irish roster who have not missed a game during their careers. Chris Trick saw his streak of 61 consecutive games snapped on Jan. 20 when he did not play at Northern Michigan.
AHEAD OF PACE: With 68 goals in the first 28 games of the season, the Irish have already surpassed last season’s mark of 60 goals that was recorded in 38 games. The 60 goals (1.58 per game) were the fewest ever scored by the Irish in a single season.
POWER-PLAY PRODUCER: Wes O’Neill (Jr. Essex, Ont.) leads Notre Dame’s defense in scoring with four goals and 13 assists for 17 points. All four of his goals this season have come on the power play. The big defenseman recorded the first three-point game of his career at Minnesota State (Dec. 6) with three assists on the night. On the year, O’Neill has four multiple-point games and for his career, now has nine games with two or more points. The 2004 New York Islander draft choice has seen 14 of his points (4g, 10a) come on the power play. In his two-plus seasons with the Irish, O’Neill now has 12 goals and 37 assists for 49 points with 30 of those coming via the power play (10g, 20a).
NOAH KNOWS: Defenseman Noah Babin (Jr., Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) saw his three-game scoring streak (1-2-3) snapped at Ohio State. He is second among Irish defensemen in scoring with three goals and 10 assists for 13 points. He now has career-highs in assists and points, surpassing last year’s totals of five goals and six assists for 11 points. His three-point game (1g, 2a) against Lake Superior State (Dec. 18) was a career-high for the junior defenseman.
GETTING INVOLVED: Tom Sawatske became the third Notre Dame defenseman to score a goal this season with his third-period game winner versus Northern Michigan on Jan. 21. He joins Wes O’Neill (4) and Noah Babin (3) on the goal-scoring list for defensemen. For the year, O’Neill leads the team’s defensemen in scoring with four goals and 12 assists for 16 points. Babin is second with three goals and 10 assists for 13 points. Sophomore Brock Sheahan (Lethbridge, Alb.) has a career-high eight assists. Senior Chris Trick (Troy, Mich.) has three assists. Sawatske has a goal and two assists for three points while sophomore Dan VeNard (Vernon Hills, Ill.) has one assist on the year. For the season, Notre Dame’s defense has contributed eight goals and 37 assists for 45 points on the year.
CAREER YEAR: Mark Van Guilder’s (So., Roseville, Minn.) four goals and 14 assists on the season for 18 points gives him a career highs in all three categories. He recorded the fourth multiple-point game of his career with a goal and two assists versus Nebraska-Omaha on Jan. 6. He is currently fourth on the team in scoring.
NOTRE DAME’S RECORD WHEN….
When Notre Dame scores first ........................ 8-2-3When opponents score first .......................... 1-14-0When Notre Dame leads after one period .............. 4-0-0When Notre Dame trails after one period ............. 0-8-0When score is tied after one period ................. 5-8-3When Notre Dame leads after two periods ............. 8-0-3When Notre Dame trails after two periods ............ 1-15-0When score is tied after two periods ................ 0-1-0When Notre Dame outshoots opponent .................. 3-4-0When opponent outshoots Notre Dame .................. 6-10-3When shots are even ................................. 0-2-0In Game 1 of CCHA weekend series .................... 2-7-2In Game 2 of CCHA weekend series .................... 5-5-1In one-goal games ................................... 4-6-0In two-goal games ................................... 2-4-0Notre Dame at home .................................. 5-8-1Notre Dame on the road .............................. 4-8-2Notre Dame on neutral ice ........................... 0-0-0Notre Dame in overtime .............................. 0-0-3Notre Dame in October ............................... 1-3-0Notre Dame in November .............................. 2-5-1Notre Dame in December .............................. 3-3-0Notre Dame in January ............................... 3-3-2Notre Dame in February .............................. 0-2-0