Friday vs. Clarkson: Game Notes | Live Stats | Live VIdeo | Live Audio
Saturday vs St. Lawrence: Game Notes | Live Stats | Live Video | Live Audio

The Niagara Purple Eagles get the 2014-15 season started this weekend with a pair of games against ECAC opponents, Clarkson and St. Lawrence. Get ready for the 19th season of hockey on Monteagle Ridge with season previews from local media outlets and game notes highlighting this weekend's matchups.

SEASON PREVIEWS:
Buffalo News - Amy Moritz | Niagara Gazette - Michael Mroziak | Sabres.com - Zac Hirschbeck | USCHO.com - Chris Lerch

GAME NOTES:
Preseason Poll - AHA
• NU was picked fourth in this year's AHA preseason coaches' poll. 
• Niagara, which advanced to the 2014 AHA Tournament Semifinals, was one of four teams to earn a first place vote on the way to 69 points to tie with Bentley for fourth place. 
• Bonus Note: Niagara also received a vote in the USCHO Top-20 poll. 

Opening Up At Home
• Niagara begins the 2014-15 season with three of its first four and 9-of-15 games at Dwyer Arena. 
• Over the last three seasons NU has a 34-11-6 record at home. 
• That record includes the 2012-13 season when it went an incredible 15-0-2 on home ice for the best home record in the nation and the best showing in program history.
• This year, NU will look to improve on its 3-3-2 record at home in the month of October over the same three-year stretch.

The Record In The Dwyer
• The team has opened the season at home six times over the last 10 seasons and has a 1-2-3 record in those games. The win came on Oct. 7, 2005 when the Purple Eagles doubled-up the Clarkson Golden Knights 6-3.
• Home openers are another matter. NU holds a 4-2-4 record in the first game played on home ice over the last 10 seasons.

We're Talking About Practice
• The Purple Eagles topped Brock University 4-0 in last Sunday's exhibition game.  
• That game was the first time the Purple Eagles played in an exhibition game since the 2011-12 season when they hosted Queens on October 1. They won the game by a 7-2 final.
• That season the Purple and White went on to a 17-11-9 record and finished second in the AHA to earn a first-round bye in the playoffs. NU swept Robert Morris in the quarterfinals before falling to RIT 2-1 in overtime in the semifinals.

No Small Task
• This season's non-conference schedule isn't exactly what you'd call an easy one. The Purple Eagles hit the road in late-October to take on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish who were tabbed 12th in the USCHO preseason poll. In mid-January they will travel to North Dakota to face UND, who just happened to be pegged second in the same USCHO poll.
• The team gets conference play started before it heads to Notre Dame with a home-and-home with Robert Morris. You know what they say, "there isn't a better way to get ready for a team ranked 12th nationally than to play the team ranked second in your conference." 

Forever Young
• The Purple Eagles enter their second consecutive campaign with nearly 20 underclassmen.
• Unlike last year, however, the roster skews to the older side with 10 sophomores and seven freshmen, as opposed to the eight sophomores and 10 freshmen on last season's roster.

Returning Points
• Niagara returns 21-of-27 players that saw ice time in the 2013-14 season. Those returners account for 77.5 percent of the total points scored last season (224-of-289).
• Those returners also account for 89-of-113 goals scored for a 78.8 percent return rate.

Wearing The "C"
• Senior defenseman Kevin Albers will serve as a team captain for the second consecutive season. He is joined by junior defenseman Matt Dineen.
•Senior forward Isaac Kohls and sophomore forward TJ Sarcona will wear the alternate captain "A"s this year.

The Big 1-9
• The Niagara hockey program heads into its 19th season. It enters with a 320-253-72 (.552) all-time record. 
• Over the previous 18 seasons, the program has also collected three CHA regular-sesaon titles, three CHA Tournament titles, one AHA regular-season title, and four NCAA Tournament appearances.

Getting The Start
• Adrian Ignagni will start between the pipes on Saturday against Clarkson. His first career start in the NCAA came against the Golden Knights on Oct. 6, 2013 (a 2-0 loss).

Revenge Is A Dish Best Served Cold (Like On An Ice Rink)
• NU unveiled its 2012-13 AHA Regular Season Title banner in last year's season opener against Calrkson, a game that would go down as a 2-1 loss for the Purple and White. That loss also snapped the team's 22-game home-ice unbeaten streak. 

Getting On The Board
• Niagara rookies have found some recent success getting on the scoresheet against the Golden Knights. 
• Matt Chiarantano and Tyler Akeson both collected their first career points with an assist each in the team's 4-4 tie against Clarkson on Oct. 27, 2012.
• Mike Conderman scored his first career goal against Clarkson in last season's home opener on Oct. 5.  
• Not to be outdone, Jackson Teichroeb (as in the goalie) also earned his first (and only) career point against Clarkson. He assisted on the aforementioned Conderman goal.

Comme Ci Comme Ca
• Sophomore Vincent Muto spent part of the offseason in the Montreal Canadiens development camp from July 7-11. The sophomore went up against different prospects throughout the organization.
• The Purple Eagles have had one player in a NHL development camp every summer since 2007. The list includes: Dan Kolenda (Panthers, 2013), C.J. Chartrain (Capitals 2012), Paul Zanette (Blackhawks, 2011), Scott Arnold (Devils, 2010 & Flames, 2011), Bryan Haczyk (Devils, 2010 & 2011), Jason Beattie (Flyers, 2010), Egor Mironov (Maple Leafs, 2009), Juliano Pagliero (Senators, 2008), Ted Cook (Sabres, 2008), Kyle Rogers (Maple Leafs, 2008), Scott Langdon (Maple Leafs, 2008), Matt Caruana (Ducks, 2008), and Sean Bentivoglio (Islanders, 2007 & 2008).