Men's Ice Hockey Opens 2018-19 Season at Vermont Saturday Night

Saturday, October 13

Burlington, Vt. / Gutterson Fieldhouse

7:00 PM

Quinnipiac University

Vermont

Photo by: Rob Rasmussen / P8Photos.com

Men's Ice Hockey Opens 2018-19 Season at Vermont Saturday Night

10/12/2018 12:54:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey

Bobcats Set for Second Ever Trip to Gutterson Fieldhouse

By: QU Athletic Communications

Quinnipiac Bobcats (0-0-0, 0-0-0 ECAC Hockey) vs.
Vermont Catamounts (1-0-0, 0-0-0 Hockey East)
Saturday, October 13, 2018 | 7:00 PM
Gutterson Fieldhouse | Burlington, Vt.
All-Time vs. Vermont: 2-1 (Won last meeting, 3-2 (OT), on Oct. 14, 2017)

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HAMDEN, Conn. – The Quinnipiac men's ice hockey team officially kicks off the 2018-19 season Saturday night on the road in Burlington, Vermont, as the Bobcats take on the Vermont Catamounts at Gutterson Fieldhouse.

Last Time Out
Quinnipiac defeated the University of Prince Edward Island, 5-2, in an exhibition game at Frank Perrotti, Jr. Arena last Saturday. Five different Bobcats scored goals and 10 different players recorded a point, highlighted by Scott Davidson's three-point night on the strength of a goal and two assists. Quinnipiac outshot Prince Edward Island, 38-17, in the dominant exhibition win. The goaltenders combined for 15 saves in the win, led by Andrew Shortridge's nine saves in relief of Keith Petruzzelli who made the start.

Scouting Vermont
The Catamounts are 1-0-0 on the season after upsetting No. 4 Michigan, 5-2, to open the season last Saturday at Yost Ice Arena in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Stefanos Lekkas stole the show for the Catamounts as he made 48 saves on 50 shots, and recorded 23 saves in the final period of the contest. Alex Esposito led Vermont with two goals in the win while Matt Alvaro and Liam Coughlin each had two assists. Martin Frechette, Max Kaufman, and Matt O'Donnell also scored for the Catamounts.

All-Time Against Vermont
The Bobcats are 2-1 all-time against the Catamounts as they embark on just their second trip to Gutterson Fieldhouse. Quinnipiac made its first trip to Vermont on Dec. 30, 2007, for the Catamount Cup, which the Bobcats won the matchup, 4-1. Saturday marks the third straight year the two teams met after Quinnipiac fell to Vermont, 5-1, in Northern Ireland during the Friendship Four in 2016-17. Last season, the Bobcats won a thriller, 3-2, in overtime as Odeen Tufto put home the game-winning goal.

Last Season
Quinnipiac finished ninth in the ECAC Hockey standings after skating to a 9-11-2 mark in league play. After winning the first round series against No. 8 seed Yale, Quinnipiac's 13th straight season with a playoff series win, the Bobcats fell to Cornell in the quarterfinals to wrap up with a 16-18-3 overall record.

ECAC Hockey Preseason Poll
The Bobcats were picked to finish seventh in the ECAC Hockey Preseason Coaches' Poll, just one point behind Yale for sixth and nine points ahead of Dartmouth in eighth. Quinnipiac was also picked eighth in the preseason media poll, just seven points behind Dartmouth for sixth.

NHL Opening Night
Last Wednesday night, Matthew Peca '15 became the first former Quinnipiac men's ice hockey player to be named to an NHL Opening Night roster as he skated in his first game with the Montreal Canadiens. Peca signed a two-year deal with Montreal this summer after spending the past three-plus seasons in the Tampa Bay Lightning organization where he played 20 NHL games.

Former Bobcat player and associate head coach Reid Cashman '07 made his NHL coaching debut last Wednesday night as well as he took to the bench as an assistant coach for the Washington Capitals in their season opener. The Capitals beat the Boston Bruins, 3-2. Cashman was promoted to assistant coach with the Capitals after spending the past two seasons as an assistant with Hershey, the Capitals' AHL affiliate.

New Coaching Addition
Head coach Rand Pecknold added a new piece to the coaching staff this summer as Quinnipiac hired Shawn Roche as the program's director of hockey operations. Roche comes to Hamden after spending the past four seasons in the New York Rangers organization, including the past two as a video coach for the Rangers. Roche replaced Neil McKenney, who left Quinnipiac for a scouting position with the NHL's San Jose Sharks.