Jan. 17, 2005
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* The Game: Notre Dame Fighting Irish (5-13-5) vs. Michigan Tech Huskies (2-17-1)
* Date/Site/Time: Tues., Jan. 18, 2005 – 6:35 p.m. (CST) – Resch Center (10,000) – Green Bay, Wis.
* The Series: Notre Dame Fighting Irish (5-13-5) vs. #5/#5 Wisconsin Badgers (17-6-1)
* Date/Site/Times: Fri., Jan. 21, 2005 – 8:08 p.m. – Joyce Center (2,713) – Notre Dame, Ind. Sat., Jan. 22, 2004 – 7:05 pm. – Allstate Arena (15,000) – Rosemont, Ill.
* 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” and Tom Nevala will bring you all the action both nights. Irish hockey can also be heard live via the internet at www.und.com.
Television: Friday night’s game versus Wisconsin will be televised live nationally by College Sports Television (CSTV). Mike Emrick will handle the play-by-play duties with Billy Jaffe doing the color commentary.
NON-CONFERENCE ACTION FOR THE IRISH:
Notre Dame (5-13-5) closes out its busiest stretch of the season (five games in nine days) with three non-conference games this week versus teams from the WCHA. On Tuesday, Jan. 18, the Irish travel to Green Bay, Wis., to face the Michigan Tech Huskies in a 6:35 p.m. (CST) game at the Resch Center. Michigan Tech comes into the game with a 2-17-1 overall record and are 10th in the WCHA with a 2-14-0 league record. The Huskies were idle last week and have not played since Jan. 8 when they lost a 1-0 decision at Denver. Following the meeting with Michigan Tech, Notre Dame returns home to face #5/#5 Wisconsin in a pair of games on Jan. 21-22. Friday’s game will be played at the Joyce Center and will be televised nationally on College Sports Television (DirecTV 610). Faceoff is set for 8:05 p.m. On Saturday, Jan. 22, the two teams will meet at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill., with that game set to begin at 7:05 p.m. (CST). Wisconsin comes into the game with a 17-6-1 overall record and is currently first in the WCHA with a 14-4-0 record. The Badgers are coming off a sweep of Alaska Anchorage at home last weekend by 6-1 and 3-2 scores.
THE MICHIGAN TECH SERIES:
Notre Dame and Michigan Tech have met 58 times in the all-time series with the Huskies leading 34-22-2. The first meeting came during the 1920-21 season and the last meeting was on Dec. 30, 1993 at the Great Lakes Invitational. Michigan Tech won that game, 8-6. The two teams were members of the WCHA together from 1971-72 to 1980-81 and then spent two years, 1981-82 to 1982-83, together as members of the CCHA. The teams have met five times on neutral ice with the Huskies holding a 3-2-0 edge. Four of those appearances have been at the Great Lakes Invitational.
IRISH VERSUS BADGERS:
Notre Dame and Wisconsin have met 69 times in the all-time series with the Badgers holding a 36-16-7 edge. The two teams met last season in Madison, Wis., on Jan. 17-18, 2004 with the two teams playing to a 2-2 in the opener and then Notre Dame taking a 3-1 decision in the second game. At the Joyce Center, the Badgers have a 14-6-5 record but haven’t played there since Dec. 12, 1997, a game they won, 2-1. Saturday’s game at Allstate Arena will be the first meeting of the two teams in that building. In the last 10 meetings between the two teams, going back to the 1980-81 season, the Irish have a 5-4-1 edge over the Badgers.
HUSKIES’ALUM:
Current Irish assistant coach Layne LeBel is a 1994 Michigan Tech graduate. In fact, the last time the two teams met – Dec. 30, 1993 – LeBel was patrolling the blue line for the Huskies where he had a goal and an assist in the 8-6 Michigan Tech win. His assist put the Huskies ahead 3-2 in the second period and his goal closed out a five-goal second period that gave MTU a commanding 6-2 lead in the game.
RETURN TO THE FROZEN TUNDRA:
Tuesday night’s game in Green Bay will be a homecoming of sort for six members of the Notre Dame hockey team. Five players and one assistant coach spent parts of their hockey careers in the Land of Lombardi with the Green Bay Gamblers of the United States Hockey League (USHL). Senior defenseman Joe Zurenko (Palatine, Ill.) played for the Gamblers during the ’00-’01 season and sophomore blueliners Noah Babin (Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) and Wes O’Neill (Essex, Ont.) were teammates there in ’02-’03. Second-year assistant coach Layne LeBel also spent two seasons (’01-’03) with the Gamblers. Freshmen right wing Victor Oreskovich (Oakville, Ont.) and defenseman Dan VeNard (Vernon Hills, Ill) also played in Green Bay, Oreskovich in ’03-’04 while VeNard played three seasons there from ’01-’04.
BUSY MONTH:
Notre Dame is in the midst of its busiest month of the season as the Irish are playing five games in a nine day span from Jan. 14 to Jan. 22. In January, the Irish play 11 times and are currently 1-4-1 in the first six contests. They split with R.P.I. on Jan. 1-2 before tying Lake Superior (1-1) and losing in overtime (2-1) on Jan. 7-8. last weekend, the Irish were swept at home by #12/#12 Ohio State, 4-1 and 3-1. The remainder of the January schedule looks like this: vs. Michigan Tech (at Green Bay, Wis., Jan. 18), home with Wisconsin (Jan. 21 and at Chicago on Jan. 22), at Bowling Green (Jan. 28) and home with the Falcons (Jan. 29). The Irish have only played 11 games in a month once in the program’s history – January of 1976. Notre Dame was 5-5-1 in those 11 games.
IRISH SCORING WOES:
The Irish have scored just one goal in each of the last four games and a total of seven in six games during the month of January. They have been held to one goal or less in 13 of their first 23 games this season. On the year, Notre Dame has scored just 37 goals in the first 23 games (1.61 per game). The Irish have had their problems in the third period as they have been out scored by a 30-10 margin. Overall, Notre Dame has been outscored 72-37 for the year.
VERSUS RANKED TEAMS:
Through the first 23 games of the 2004-05 season, Notre Dame has played 11 contests versus teams ranked teams. In those 11 games, the Irish are 1-8-2. The lone win came against Boston College (Oct. 22) when the Eagles were ranked first in the nation. The ties have come versus Minnesota-Duluth and Northern Michigan.
OHIO STATE RECAP:
Saturday, Jan. 15 – Ohio State freshman center Domenic Maiani had a hand in goals by Rod Pelley, Bryce Anderson and Sean Collins to lead the Buckeyes to a 3-1 win over the Irish to sweep the weekend series at the Joyce Center. Sophomore Josh Sciba (Northville, Mich.) had Notre Dame’s lone goal. Pelley opened the scoring with a first-period power-play goal at 8:28. The Buckeye lead would go to 2-0 in the second period when Anderson scored at 11:29. Sciba’s power-play goal at 11:27 of the third period cut the lead to 2-1, but that was as close as the Irish would get as Collins scored into an empty net at 19:52 to close the scoring. Ohio State out shot the Irish, 30-18 in the game. Dave Caruso made 17 saves for OSU while Morgan Cey (Sr., Wilkie, Sask.) made 27 saves while giving up two goals on the night.
Friday, Jan. 14 – Tom Fritsche and Matt Beaudoin each scored a goal and an assist and Andrew Schembri chipped in three assists to lead Ohio State to a 4-1 win over Notre Dame. The Buckeyes scored three times on the power play in six chances. Notre Dame’s lone goal came at 15:52 of the first period when Wes O’Neill (So., Essex, Ont.) scored on a five-on-three power-play goal. The Buckeyes tied the game at 19:16 on a Fritsche power-play goal. Defenseman Nate Guenin got the game winner at 10:22 of the second period when he beat David Brown (So., Stoney Creek, Ont.) with a slapshot from the right point. Bryce Anderson (16:19) and Beaudoin added late third-period, power-play goals for the final of 4-1. Ohio State out shot the Irish, 26-19 in the game. Brown finished with 22 saves while Dave Caruso had 18 for the Buckeyes.
BUCKEYE MASTERY:
Ohio State has had Notre Dame’s number since the start of the 2000-01 season. In the 14 games played between the two teams, the Buckeyes own a 10-1-3 record, including a pair of wins in each of the last two CCHA Super Six opening games.
OUT OF ACTION:
The 2004-05 season is one that sophomore right wing Matt Williams-Kovacs (Calgary, Alb.) will like to forget. He suffered a broken right ankle on Oct. 16 at Miami and missed the next 14 games. He returned to the Notre Dame lineup on Jan. 2 versus R.P.I. and played in that game and the first period of the Jan. 7 Lake Superior game when he suffered a broken right wrist and will be lost for the remainder of the season. He was scoreless in six games this season. Junior center Matt Amado (Surrey, B.C.) suffered a concussion in the Jan. 7 game at Lake Superior and missed the last three games.
IRON MAN:
Junior right wing Tim Wallace (Anchorage, Alaska) has played in all 102 games of his Notre Dame career. The Irish record for consecutive games played belongs to Evan Nielsen (’03) who played in 114 consecutive games between 2001-03. Nielsen missed just two games, playing in 156 of 158 games. Wallace played in all 40 games as a freshman and all 39 Irish games in 2003-04. The center has a three goals and six assists for nine points in the first 23 games of 2004-05.
STINGY IN JANUARY:
Notre Dame goaltender Morgan Cey played in the 100th game (97 starts) of his Notre Dame career on Jan. 15 versus Ohio State. During January, he has played in five of Notre Dame’s six games, surrendering just eight goals in those five games. During the month, he is 1-3-1 with a 1.58 goals-against average and a .942 save percentage (130 saves on 138 shots). In those five games, the Irish have scored six goals.
THE PUCK STOPS HERE:
Goaltender Morgan Cey continues to make his mark in the Notre Dame record books (see table to right). On the season, the senior goaltender is 3-7-4 with a career-best goals-against average (2.35) and save percentage (.929). In his 14 decisions this year, the Irish have scored 24 goals. Earlier this season (0ct. 24), Cey was named the CCHA’s goaltender and USCHO.com’s defensive player of the week. Cey recorded a career-high 50 saves in downing the top-ranked Boston College Eagles, 3-2, at the Joyce Center on Oct. 22. Of the 33 goals he’s given up this year, 15 have been on the power play.
SEN-CEY-TIONAL:
Morgan Cey’s 50-save performance versus Boston College was the first 50-save game for a Notre Dame goaltender since Lance Madson (’86-’90) turned in 57 saves in a 6-3 loss to Air Force on Nov. 12, 1988. Cey, now has 38 wins in his career to rank sixth on Notre Dame’s all-time wins list.
CORY’S STORY:
Hard-working center Cory McLean (Sr., Fargo, N.D.) is second in team scoring with three goals and a team-high 10 assists for 13 points on the year. His 10 assists are just four off his career high set last season when he had 14 helpers and a career-best 24 points.
WES FOR THE DEFENSE:
Sophomore defenseman Wes O’Neill (Essex, Ont.) has become Notre Dame’s offensive and defensive leader this season. Through 23 games, O’Neill leads the team in goals (6), power-play goals (5) and points (14). He is second in assists (8) and shots on goal (52). O’Neill has career highs in goals (6) and points (14) this season.
NOAH KNOWS:
Defenseman Noah Babin (So., Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.) brings a four-game point-scoring streak (1-3-4) into the Michigan Tech game. He now has had a hand in each of Notre Dame’s last four goals, scoring on Jan. 7 at Lake Superior, assisting on ND’s lone goal versus the Lakers on Jan. 8 and then assisting on each Notre Dame goal in the 4-1 and 3-1 losses to Ohio State. On the year, Babin is second among Notre Dame defensemen in scoring with career highs in goals (3), assists (5) and points (8). As a freshman last year, Babin had one assist in 31 games.
FIT TO BE TIED:
Notre Dame’s overtime loss on Jan. 8 to Lake Superior State was their first loss in the extra stanza since dropping a 6-5 overtime decision to Ohio State on March 18, 2004. On Dec. 10, the Irish defeated Michigan State, 3-2 in overtime, for their first regular-season overtime wins since Jan. 25, 2002, a span of 16 overtime games (0-2-14). Since the 1999-2000 season, Notre Dame has been involved in 48 overtime games. In those games, the Irish are 7-6-35. This season, the Irish are 1-1-5 in overtime. During the 2003-04 season, Notre Dame had a total of eight overtime contests, going 1-3-4 in those games. The lone overtime win came in game three of the first round of the CCHA playoffs versus Western Michigan.
WHAT CAN BROWN DO FOR YOU?:
Notre Dame goaltender David Brown (So., Stoney Creek, Ont.) started each of the games in the Michigan State series (Dec. 10-11), surrendering five goals while making 61 saves in 120:32 of action for a 2.49 goals-against average versus the Spartans and a .924 save percentage. On the season, Brown is 2-6-1 with a 3.77 goals against and a .884 save percentage.
BLUE-LINE SCORING:
Sophomore defenseman Wes O’Neill leads the Irish in scoring after 22 games with six goals and eight assists. He is followed on the blue line by sophomore Noah Babin who has a three goals and five assists for seven points. Junior Chris Trick is third with a goal and three assists for four points. Freshman Brock Sheahan (Lethbridge, Alb.) checks in with three assists on the year while Dan VeNard (Fr., Vernon Hills, Ill.) has one assist. Through 23 games, the Irish defense has accounted for 10 of Notre Dame’s 37 goals (27.0%) and 30 of Notre Dame’s 103 points (29.1%).
ALL TIED UP:
The most ties the Irish have ever had in a season is eight and that came during the 1999-2000 campaign. The most overtime games the Irish have participated in is 11 and that came during the 1993-94 season. Notre Dame was 2-4-5 in those games.
SHOT MARGINS:
The Irish have out shot teams just seven times in their first 23 games this season. Only once this season have the Irish out shot a team in a weekend series. That occured on Jan. 7-8 at Lake Superior State. The Irish have been held to less than 20 shots in a game six times this season, including twice last weekend when they mustered just 19 and 18 shots versus Ohio State respectively. Notre Dame is 2-1-4 when they out shoot an opponent and 3-12-1 when an opponent has more shots in a game.
THREE RANKED BY NHL:
Three hockey players who have signed national letters-of-intent to attend Notre Dame have been ranked by the Nathional Hockey League’s (NHL) Central Scouting in their mid-term rankings for the June 2005 draft. Christian Hanson (Venetia, Pa./Tri-City Storm) was ranked 52nd among all North American skaters. He leads Tri-City in scoring with 11 goals and 18 assists for 29 points in 34 games. Defenseman Kyle Lawson (New Hudson, Mich./USA Under-18) is ranked 195th. He has a goal and 13 assists for 14 points in 22 games for the U.S. Under-18 Team. He will defer until the 2006-07 season. Goaltender Jordan Pearce (Anchorage, Alaska/Lincoln Stars) was ranked ninth among goaltenders eligible for the draft. He is 13-6-2 for Lincoln with a 3.17 goals-against average and a .891 save percentag.
PLAYING SHORT-HANDED:
Ohio State converted on four of 12 power-play chances in the Jan. 14-15 series. On the year, the Irish have given up 29 power-play goals in 157 chances for an 81.5% succes rate. Last season, Notre Dame’s penalty-killing unit was tops in the CCHA and was fourth in the nation in 2003-04, killing penalties at an 87.4% success rate.
POWER-PLAY STRUGGLES:
After going four games without a power-play goal, Notre Dame has scored once with the man advantage in each of the last two games. Previous to the Ohio State series, the Irish were 0-21 on the power play in a four-game span. Since Dec. 10 (eight games), the Irish are just 4-for-43 with the power play (9.3%). On the year, the Irish have scored 16 power-play goals in 153 chances (10.4%).
TOUGH BARNS:
Since returning to the CCHA in 1992-93, Michigan’s Yost Arena and Michigan State’s Munn Arena have been regular “Houses of Horror” for the Irish. At Yost Arena, the Irish are 1-15-1 in the last 17 regular-season meetings and 2-19-1 overall. At Munn Arena, Notre Dame is 2-16-1 on the home ice of the Spartans.
THIRD PERIOD BREAKDOWNS:
Through the first 23 games of the season, Notre Dame has been out scored by a 72-37 margin. Much of the disparity has come in the third period when the Irish have been out scored 30-10 (-20).
RANK-IN-FILE:
Freshman right wing Evan Rankin (Portage, Mich.) continues to show a nose for the net in his rookie season. The Portage, Mich., native returned to the lineup after missing two games (U.S. Under-18 Team and UAF) with a hip injury to score his fourth goal of the season (first on the power play) in the 3-2 loss to the Nanooks on Nov. 27. He set up Matt Amado’s game winner versus Michigan State and led the team with six shots on goal in the game. He leads Irish freshmen in scoring with four goals and three assists for seven points in 20 games this season.
THREE-GOAL LEADS:
Notre Dame led Bowling Green by a 3-0 score before giving up four goals to trail, 4-3, before Wes O’Neill’s heroics with three seconds left. The last time the Irish surrendered a three-goal lead was on Nov. 6, 1998. The Irish led Boston College, 5-2 after two periods before settling for a 5-5 tie.
CAREER BESTS:
Junior left wing Mike Walsh (Northville, Mich.) had the first three-point game and the first three-assist game of his career in the 4-4 tie with Bowling Green. Defenseman Wes O’Neill recorded the first two-goal game of his career versus the Falcons. Freshman right wing Evan Rankin recorded the first multiple-point game of his career as he scored a goal and added an assist versus Bowling Green. Cory McLean equalled his career-high with three points versus the Falcons as he scored once and added two assists in the contest.
PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES:
The Irish experienced their own version of Planes, Trains and Automobiles on their journey to Fairbanks, Alaska. The Irish hockey team left the Notre Dame campus at 1:30 p.m. (EST) on Wednesday, Nov. 24 and took five hours for the 112-mile trip to Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport (due to holiday traffic and weather). From there, the 7:20 p.m. (CST) flight to Anchorage, Alaska didn’t leave Chicago until midnight. The six-hour-and-thirty minute flight arrived at 3:30 a.m. (Alaska Standard Time – 7:30 a.m. EST). The Irish flight to Fairbanks left at 1:00 a.m. (AST), so the team had to stay in an Anchorage hotel for five hours before leaving for the airport at 9:45 a.m. (1:45 p.m. EST). The team arrived in Fairbanks at 12:30 p.m. (4:30 p.m. EST) making the normal 16-hour trip a 27-hour ordeal. The Irish went right from the airport to the Carlson Center to practice for an hour-and-a-half before enjoying Thanksgiving dinner at 3:30 p.m. (7:30 p.m. EST).
CAPTAINS:
Senior Cory McLean (Fargo, N.D.) will serve as Notre Dame’s team captain this season. The team’s two alternate captains will be junior Mike Walsh (Northville, Mich.) and sophomore Jason Paige (Saginaw, Mich.). Paige is just the second sophomore in Dave Poulin’s 10 seasons at Notre Dame to be selected as an alternate captain. The first was Steve Noble (’98) who was selected an alternate for the 1995-96 season. He went on to serve as captain in 1996-97 and 1997-98.
GILL THE THRILL:
Junior center Tony Gill (Rochester, Minn.) scored the first goal of his Notre Dame career in the 3-2 win over Alaska Fairbanks. The brother of former Irish captain, Aaron Gill, Tony played in 33 career games before getting his first goal.
TOUGH PLACE TO WIN:
Notre Dame’s win at Western Michigan on Nov. 13th was just the fourth for the Irish at Lawson Arena since returning to the CCHA in 1992-93. Notre Dame is now 4-16-3 at Lawson since that season. Overall, the Irish are 7-19-4 in the all-time series versus the Broncos in Kalamazoo, Mich.
BEATING THE BEST:
For the second year in a row, Notre Dame faced the Boston College Eagles when the Eagles were the top-ranked team in the nation. For the second year in a row, the Irish sent the Eagles home with a loss as they prevailed on Oct. 22 by a 3-2 score. The last time the Irish had defeated a top-ranked team at the Joyce Center was Jan. 13, 1978 when they upset Denver, 5-3. A year ago, in Boston, the Irish downed the top-ranked Eagles, 1-0. In the 37-year history of the program, Notre Dame owns eight wins over top-ranked teams. The list:
10/22/04 – vs. Boston College, 3-2
10/23/03 – at Boston College, 1-0
1/3/99 – at North Dakota, 4-3
11/20/78 – at Minnesota, 3-2
1/13/78 – vs. Denver, 5-3
1/18/74 – vs. Michigan Tech, 7-1
2/24/73 – vs. Wisconsin, 4-3
2/23/73 – vs. Wisconsin, 8-5
TOPS IN DIRECTORS CUP STANDINGS:
Notre Dame stands first in the third set of fall sports standings released in the 2004-05 United States Sports Academy Division I Directors’ Cup all-sports competition sponsored by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (formerly known as Sears Directors’ Cup). This marks the first time in the 12-year history of the all-sports program that Notre Dame has ranked number one. The previous highest ranking for the Irish was second in the 2004-05 second set of fall standings. Fall NCAA competition earned the Irish 337 points based on their NCAA title in women’s soccer (100 points), their fourth-place finish in women’s cross country (80), 11th-place finish in men’s cross country (57) and second-round NCAA appearances in men’s soccer and volleyball (50 each). The current school rankings.
1. Notre Dame, 337
2. Michigan, 333
3. Stanford 332
4. Duke 327
5. UCLA 297
6. Maryland 280
7. Ohio State, 276
8. Colorado 275
9. Texas, 262
10.Wisconsin 251
In previous years, Notre Dame has finished 11th in ’93-’94, 30th in ’94-’95, 11th in ’95-’96, 14th in ’96-’97, 31st in ’97-’98, 25th in ’98-99, 21st in ’99-’00, 11th in ’00-’01, 13th in ’01-02 and ’02-’03 and 19th in ’03-’04.
BLASTING THE BISCUIT:
The Irish fired 54 shots at Bowling Green goaltender Jordan Sigalet on Nov. 5, including 29 in the second period. The last time the Irish had more than 54 shots on goal came on Oct. 17, 2003 when they fired 59 at – you guessed it – Jordan Sigalet of Bowling Green. He made 56 saves that night in a 5-3 Falcon win.
BISCUIT BARRAGE:
The 52 shots that Boston College fired at Morgan Cey on Oct. 22 was the most shots on goal the Irish have faced since Jan. 23, 2001 when Michigan fired 51 on the Notre Dame goal in a 9-0 Wolverine win.
THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOME:
Notre Dame’s loss to Minnesota-Duluth on Oct. 8 snapped a 15-game (12-0-3) regular-season home unbeaten at the Joyce Center. The last time the Irish had lost a regular-season home game at the Joyce Center was on Oct. 17, 2003 versus Bowling Green. Notre Dame was 14-2-2 (.833) at the Joyce Center last season. This year, the Irish are 3-6-3 at home and 17-8-5 (.650) in their last 30 home games. The 2003-04 home record of 14-2-2 was the best for the Irish since 1987-88 when that year’s Irish squad was 18-2-0 on home ice.
GOLD-MEDAL IRISH:
Two former Notre Dame hockey players helped the United States win the gold medal in the recent Deutschland Cup tournament held in Hannover, Germany. Forward Yan Stastny, currently playing for the Nurnberg Ice Tigers in Germany, collected a goal and an assist in the four games. Defenseman Mark Eaton, currently a member of the Nashville Predators, scored a power-play goal in the gold medal game vrsus Slovakia. The U.S. defeated Germany, 5-1, lost to Canada, 5-3, defeated Switzerland, 4-2 and then shutout Slovakia, 4-0, to finish 3-1 in the tournament. The U.S. ended tied with Canada with 3-1 records, but received the gold medal due to greater goal differential over the four games.
FRESHMAN FIRSTS:
Freshman left wing Mark Van Guilder (Roseville, Minn.) collected his first collegiate goal on Nov. 4 at Bowling Green. He became the second Irish freshman to get his first goal, following Evan Rankin who scored the first goal of his Notre Dame career with a second-period goal versus Boston College (Oct.22). Defenseman Brock Sheahan collected his first career point in Notre Dame’s season opener versus Minnesota-Duluth and fellow defenseman Dan VeNard got his first career point on Nov. 12 at Western Michigan.
FIRST TIMER:
Noah Babin scored his first career goal for the Irish in the 1-1 tie with Northern Michigan. The sophomore defenseman has played in 41 career games for Notre Dame. He got his second career goal in the 2-2 with Western Michigan on Nov. 12. He is the first Notre Dame hockey player from the state of Florida.
FAMILY MATTERS:
Two Irish junior hockey players – Rory Walsh and Mike Walsh – have fathers who played sports at Notre Dame while attending the University during the 1970’s. Rory Walsh’s father, Brian (’77), was an all-American hockey player for the Irish. A center iceman, the elder Walsh is Notre Dame’s all-time leading scorer after recording 234 career points on 89 goals and 145 assists. Mike Walsh’s father, Max (’74), was an offensive lineman on the Notre Dame football team and a member of the 1973 national championship team. Rory Walsh is one of Notre Dame’s goaltenders and Walsh plays left wing for the Irish.
NHL DRAFTEES:
In June of 2004, the Irish had three players selected in the NHL Entry Draft. Freshman right wing Victor Oreskovich (Oakville, Ont.) was a second-round selection, 55th overall by the Colorado Avalanche. Sophomore defenseman Wes O’Neill was chosen in the fourth round, 115th overall by the New York Islanders. Sophomore goaltender David Brown was selected in the eighth round, 228th overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins. Those three join junior Mike Walsh as Notre Dame players selected by in the draft. Walsh was picked in the fifth round of the 2002 draft by the New York Rangers.
FORMER IRISH GREAT GREG MEREDITH RECEIVES NCAA SILVER ANNIVERSARY AWARD:
Former Notre Dame hockey All-American, Greg Meredith (1976-80) was one of six NCAA Silver Anniversary Award recipients at the NCAA Convention in Dallas, Tex., Jan. 9. The Silver Anniversary Award recognizes former student-athletes who have distinguished themselves since completing their college careers 25 years ago. Meredith is Notre Dame’s all-time leading goal scorer with 104 goals in 149 career games. He is also tops in power-play goals (43) and seventh in all-time points with 192 for his career. He is just one of two players ever to score 40 goals in a season (1979-80) at Notre Dame. A four-year letterwinner with the Irish, Meredith was a finalist for a Rhodes Scholarship and was an NCAA postgraduate scholarship recipient. He is currently the managing director for Putnam Lovell NBF Securities Inc., and has held positions with Salomon Brothers, Inc., Nationsbanc Capital Markets, Inc., and Fenway Partners, Inc. From 2001 to 2003, he served as president and chief executive officer at HSBC Capital and was also president and CEO of Printvision, a software company from 2002-03. In addition, Meredith is the founder and president of Proctor Capital, a private investment and strategic advisory firm. He played four years in the NHL for the Calgary Flames and was an assistant coach at Harvard. Meredith currently coaches the St. David’s hockey program for boys and girls between 9 and 11 years of age. He formed the Meredith Family Foundation in 1997, which contributes to programs such as the LOGAN Center, which provides services to individuals with intellectual disabilities, the St. Joseph’s County Special Olympics, and Camp Millhouse, a summer camp for children with significant intellectual disabilities. In addition, the organization funds educational initiatives including the Paul E. Meredith scholarships at Notre Dame. Meredith is the 10th former Irish athlete to receive the award that was started in 1973.
FOUR OF FIVE:
Notre Dame has advanced to Joe Louis Arena and the CCHA finals in four of the last five seasons (2000, 2002, 2003, 2004). Only two other CCHA teams – Michigan and Michigan State – have been there all four years since the 1999-2000 campaign. The Irish also are one of five teams, joining Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State and Northern Michigan, to make it to the CCHA Super Six in each of the last three seasons.
STORM WARNINGS:
Three members of the Notre Dame freshman class saw action with the USHL’s Tri-City Storm during the ’03-’04 season. Defensemen Brian D’Arcy (Western Springs, Ill.) and Luke Lucyk (Fox Point, Wis.) were members of the Storm’s highly ranked defense. Forward Mark Van Guilder (Roseville, Minn.) was a key contributor to the USHL’s regular-season champions. Van Guilder was fifth on the team in scoring with 17 goals and 22 assists for 39 points in 60 games. In 11 playoff games, Van Guilder added three goals and two assists for five points. D’Arcy saw his season cut short due to injuries, playing in 32 games with no goals and two assists to go with 36 penalty minutes. Lucyk was a regular on the defense with a goal and nine assists for 10 points in 60 games.
NCAA ACTION:
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish hockey team had a season to remember in 2003-04. The Irish advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in the program’s 36-year history with a 20-15-4 overall record. In their first trip to the tournament, the Irish dropped a 5-2 decision to two-time NCAA defending champion Minnesota in the Grand Rapids Regional.
THE IRISH AND THE U.S. DEVELOPMENTAL PROGRAM:
Notre Dame’s current roster includes four players who have past experience with USA Hockey, as members of the National Team Development Program (NTDP). Since the program began, the Irish have had a total of 13 NTDP alums grace their roster. The current contingent includes junior Tim Wallace and sophomores Noah Babin, Michael Bartlett (Morton Grove, Ill.) and Josh Sciba (Westland, Mich.). Other former NTDP players who played at Notre Dame and their years in the national program include: Brett Henning (1997-98), Michael Chin (1997-98), Connor Dunlop (1997-99), Paul Harris (1997-99), John Wroblewski (1997-99), Neil Komadoski (1998-2000), Brett Lebda (1998-2000), Rob Globke (1998-2000) and Derek Smith (2000-01).
INTERNATIONAL LEADER:
Notre Dame assistant coach, Andy Slaggert, served as the head coach of the U.S. Under-17 Select Team that finished second at the Five Nation’s Tournament from Aug. 24-28 in Halle, Germany. The U.S. Team’s lone loss came to the Czech Republic (the eventual winners). This was Slaggert’s second international appearance with USA Hockey as he served as assistant coach on the 2003 gold-medal winning team at the World Under-18 Select Tournament held in the Czech Republic. The 12-year assistant at Notre Dame has been involved in coaching with USA Hockey since the 1996-97 season.