The 2020–21 Sacred Heart Pioneers men's ice hockey season was the 28th season of play for the program, the 23rd at the Division I level, and the 18th season in the Atlantic Hockey conference. The Pioneers represented Sacred Heart University and were coached by C. J. Marottolo, in his 12th season.
| 2020–21 Sacred Heart Pioneers men's ice hockey season | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Conference | Atlantic Hockey |
| Home ice | Webster Bank Arena |
| Rankings | |
| USCHO.com | NR |
| USA Today/ US Hockey Magazine | NR |
| Record | |
| Overall | 6–10–2 |
| Conference | 6–6–1–1–2–0 |
| Home | 3–2–2 |
| Road | 2–8–0 |
| Neutral | 1–0–0 |
| Coaches and captains | |
| Head coach | C. J. Marottolo |
| Assistant coaches | Scott McDougall Steve Bergin Craig Height |
| Captain(s) | Marc Johnstone |
| Alternate captain(s) | Alex Bates Max Luukko |
| Sacred Heart Pioneers men's ice hockey seasons « 2019–20 2021–22 » | |
The start of the college hockey season was delayed due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. As a result, Sacred Heart's first scheduled game was in late-November as opposed to early-October, which was the norm.
Season
editAs a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic the entire college ice hockey season was delayed. Because the NCAA had previously announced that all winter sports athletes would retain whatever eligibility they possessed through at least the following year, none of Sacred Heart's players would lose a season of play.[1] However, the NCAA also approved a change in its transfer regulations that would allow players to transfer and play immediately rather than having to sit out a season, as the rules previously required.[2]
Coming off of the best season in the history of the program, Sacred Heart saw a bit of a decline. The team finished 6–10–2 but the record does not reflect the difficulties that the team faced during the season. The Pioneers were not alone in suffering through COVID-related cancellations, but Sacred Heart saw their opposition increase in difficulty as a result. Many of their cancelled games were against weaker teams and the Pioneers added a set of games with Quinnipiac, a team that was ranked throughout the season. Additionally, Sacred Heart played Army (another ranked team) six times during the season, a full third of their games. While SHU kept most of those matches close they did lose to the Black Knights 5 times during the season, which accounts for half of the team's losses. It would be difficult to come away with any conclusions about Sacred Heart's season other than the team had to weather several storms during the year.
Departures
edit| Player | Position | Nationality | Cause |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drennen Atherton | Goaltender |  United States |
Transferred to Norwich |
| Vito Bavaro | Forward | United States |
Graduation |
| Colin Bernard | Defenseman | United States |
Left program |
| Jason Cotton | Forward | United States |
Graduation (Signed with Carolina Hurricanes) |
| Jordan Kaplan | Forward | United States |
Transferred to Vermont |
| Mike Lee | Defenseman | United States |
Graduation (Signed with Indy Fuel) |
| Austin McIlmurray | Forward | United States |
Graduation (Signed with Fort Wayne Komets) |
| Matt Tugnutt | Forward |  Canada |
Transferred to Providence |
Recruiting
edit| Player | Position | Nationality | Age | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grant Anderson | Defenseman | United States |
21 | Plymouth, MN |
| Ryan Doolin | Forward | United States |
21 | Hanover, MA |
| Carson Gallagher | Forward | Canada |
21 | Courtice, ON |
| Cody Hoban | Forward | United States |
19 | Guilford, CT |
| John Jaworski | Forward | United States |
20 | Grinnell, IA |
| Andrius Kulbis-Marino | Defenseman | United States |
20 | Methuen, MA |
| Emil Öhrvall | Forward |  Sweden |
22 | Växjö, SWE; transfer from Michigan |
| Adam Tisdale | Forward | Canada |
21 | Cochrane, AB; transfer from Clarkson |
| David Tomeo | Goaltender | United States |
21 | West Caldwell, NJ |
Roster
editAs of September 15, 2020[update].[3]
| No. | S/P/C | Player | Class | Pos | Height | Weight | DoB | Hometown | Previous team | NHL rights |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 
|
Grant Anderson | Freshman | D | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 187 lb (85 kg) | 1999-09-15 | Plymouth, Minnesota | Omaha (USHL) | — |
| 4 | 
|
Jeppe Urup Morgensen | Sophomore | D | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 176 lb (80 kg) | 1999-03-14 | Odense, Denmark | Youngstown (USHL) | — |
| 5 | 
|
Andrius Kulbis-Marino | Freshman | D | 6' 1" (1.85 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | 2000-02-16 | Methuen, Massachusetts | Maine (NAHL) | — |
| 6 | 
|
Max Luukko (A) | Senior | D | 6' 3" (1.91 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 1995-12-28 | Avalon, New Jersey | Philadelphia (USPHL) | — |
| 7 |
|
Daniel Petrick | Sophomore | D | 5' 9" (1.75 m) | 199 lb (90 kg) | 1999-04-06 | Wilbraham, Massachusetts | Madison (USHL) | — |
| 8 |
|
Tim Clifton | Sophomore | F | 5' 10" (1.78 m) | 165 lb (75 kg) | 1998-02-23 | Farmingdale, New Jersey | Shreveport (NAHL) | — |
| 9 | 
|
John Jaworski | Freshman | F | 5' 10" (1.78 m) | 165 lb (75 kg) | 2000-03-20 | Grinnell, Iowa | Chicago (USHL) | — |
| 10 | 
|
Alex Bates (A) | Senior | D | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | 1997-06-17 | Parker, Colorado | Wenatchee (BCHL) | — |
| 11 | 
|
Ryan Steele | Junior | F | 6' 1" (1.85 m) | 182 lb (83 kg) | 1997-09-13 | Stratford, Prince Edward Island | West Kelowna (BCHL) | — |
| 12 | 
|
Kevin Lombardi | Sophomore | F | 6' 4" (1.93 m) | 234 lb (106 kg) | 1998-08-12 | Schwenksville, Pennsylvania | Sioux City (USHL) | — |
| 13 | 
|
Cody Hoban | Freshman | F | 5' 9" (1.75 m) | 165 lb (75 kg) | 2001-04-26 | Guilford, Connecticut | Danbury (NAHL) | — |
| 14 | 
|
Nick Boyagian | Junior | F | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 181 lb (82 kg) | 1997-07-16 | East Greenbush, New York | New Jersey (NAHL) | — |
| 15 |
|
Evan Wisocky | Senior | F | 5' 10" (1.78 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | 1998-03-20 | Hoboken, New Jersey | Connecticut (HEA) | — |
| 16 |
|
Marcus Joseph | Junior | D | 5' 9" (1.75 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | 1997-05-08 | Mountain Top, Pennsylvania | Nanaimo (BCHL) | — |
| 17 |
|
Emil Öhrvall | Junior | F | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | 1998-06-10 | Växjö, Sweden | Michigan (Big Ten) | — |
| 18 |
|
Michael Gilroy | Senior | D | 6' 3" (1.91 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | 1996-10-10 | North Bellmore, New York | P. A. L. (USPHL) | — |
| 19 |
|
Ryan Doolin | Freshman | F | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 1999-02-06 | Hanover, Massachusetts | Alberni Valley (BCHL) | — |
| 20 | 
|
Adam Tisdale | Junior | F | 5' 9" (1.75 m) | 171 lb (78 kg) | 1998-11-09 | Cochrane, Alberta | Clarkson (ECAC) | — |
| 21 | 
|
Josh Allan | Senior | D | 5' 10" (1.78 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | 1997-05-02 | Orillia, Ontario | Trenton (OJHL) | — |
| 22 |
|
Derek Contessa | Sophomore | F | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 206 lb (93 kg) | 1999-03-03 | Freehold, New Jersey | Dubuque (USHL) | — |
| 23 |
|
Braeden Tuck | Sophomore | F | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 183 lb (83 kg) | 1998-04-15 | Calgary, Alberta | Trail (BCHL) | — |
| 24 | 
|
Austin Magera | Junior | F | 6' 1" (1.85 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | 1998-07-19 | Suwanee, Georgia | Lincoln (USHL) | — |
| 25 |
|
Carson Gallagher | Freshman | F | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 174 lb (79 kg) | 1999-08-04 | Courtice, Ontario | Johnstown (NAHL) | — |
| 26 |
|
Marc Johnstone (C) | Senior | F | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | 1996-06-19 | Cranford, New Jersey | Chicago (USHL) | — |
| 27 |
|
Patrick Dawson | Sophomore | D | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 1999-01-14 | Medway, Massachusetts | Odessa (NAHL) | — |
| 28 | 
|
Marcel Godbout | Senior | F | 5' 9" (1.75 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 1996-06-04 | St. Clair Shores, Michigan | Sioux City (NAHL) | — |
| 29 |
|
Todd Goehring | Junior | F | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | 1997-07-08 | Wayside, New Jersey | Chicago (USHL) | — |
| 30 |
|
Josh Benson | Junior | G | 6' 1" (1.85 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 1997-11-04 | Stillwater, Minnesota | Fairbanks (NAHL) | — |
| 31 |
|
David Tomeo | Freshman | G | 6' 1" (1.85 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | 1999-03-02 | West Caldwell, New Jersey | Johnstown (NAHL) | — |
| 33 |
|
Luke Lush | Sophomore | G | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 194 lb (88 kg) | 1998-02-15 | Sherwood Park, Alberta | Drayton Valley (AJHL) | — |
Standings
edit| Conference record | Overall record | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | W | L | T | OW | OL | SW | PTS | PT% | GF | GA | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | ||
| #15 American International †* | 12 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 32 | .889 | 47 | 18 | 19 | 15 | 4 | 0 | 67 | 40 | |
| Army | 15 | 10 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 30 | .667 | 42 | 33 | 22 | 15 | 6 | 1 | 71 | 48 | |
| Robert Morris | 15 | 10 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 29 | .644 | 58 | 48 | 24 | 15 | 9 | 0 | 85 | 69 | |
| Canisius | 13 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 24 | .615 | 42 | 34 | 17 | 11 | 6 | 0 | 59 | 46 | |
| RIT | 13 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 23 | .590 | 43 | 40 | 20 | 9 | 9 | 2 | 68 | 70 | |
| Sacred Heart | 13 | 6 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 20 | .513 | 35 | 38 | 18 | 6 | 10 | 2 | 43 | 59 | |
| Mercyhurst | 16 | 7 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 23 | .479 | 54 | 50 | 21 | 8 | 12 | 1 | 64 | 67 | |
| Bentley | 15 | 4 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 16 | .356 | 35 | 48 | 16 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 42 | 51 | |
| Niagara | 15 | 3 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 15 | .333 | 39 | 53 | 22 | 7 | 12 | 3 | 57 | 70 | |
| Air Force | 13 | 3 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 9 | .231 | 32 | 49 | 14 | 3 | 10 | 1 | 35 | 56 | |
| Holy Cross | 12 | 3 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 7 | .194 | 22 | 38 | 16 | 4 | 12 | 0 | 30 | 52 | |
| Championship: March 20, 2021 † indicates conference regular season champion * indicates conference tournament champion (Riley Trophy) Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll | ||||||||||||||||||
Schedule and Results
edit| Date | Time | Opponent# | Rank# | Site | TV | Decision | Result | Attendance | Record | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Regular Season | |||||||||||
| December 4 | 6:00 PM | at Holy Cross | Hart Center • Worcester, Massachusetts | Benson | W 2–1 | 0 | 1–0–0 (1–0–0) | ||||
| December 6 | 2:00 PM | at Holy Cross | Hart Center • Worcester, Massachusetts | Benson | L 3–6 | 0 | 1–1–0 (1–1–0) | ||||
| December 14 | 7:00 PM | at #11 Quinnipiac* | People's United Center • Hamden, Connecticut | Lush | L 2–9 | 0 | 1–2–0 | ||||
| December 15 | 7:00 PM | at #11 Quinnipiac* | People's United Center • Hamden, Connecticut | Benson | L 1–2 OT | 0 | 1–3–0 | ||||
| January 6 | 3:05 PM | vs. Air Force | Dwyer Arena • Lewiston, New York | Benson | W 4–3 OT | 0 | 2–3–0 (2–1–0) | ||||
| January 26 | 5:00 PM | at #19 American International | MassMutual Center • Springfield, Massachusetts | Benson | L 2–8 | 0 | 2–4–0 (2–2–0) | ||||
| January 29 | 5:05 PM | at Army | Tate Rink • West Point, New York | Benson | L 1–2 | 0 | 2–5–0 (2–3–0) | ||||
| January 30 | 6:00 PM | vs. Army | Webster Bank Arena • Bridgeport, Connecticut | Benson | T 2–2 SOL | 0 | 2–5–1 (2–3–1) | ||||
| February 4 | 5:05 PM | vs. Bentley | Bentley Arena • Waltham, Massachusetts | Benson | W 4–0 | 0 | 3–5–1 (3–3–1) | ||||
| February 5 | 5:05 PM | at Bentley | Webster Bank Arena • Bridgeport, Connecticut | Benson | W 4–2 | 0 | 4–5–1 (4–3–1) | ||||
| February 8 | 7:05 PM | vs. Army | Webster Bank Arena • Bridgeport, Connecticut | Benson | L 1–3 | 0 | 4–6–1 (4–4–1) | ||||
| February 9 | 5:05 PM | at Army | Tate Rink • West Point, New York | Lush | L 1–2 OT | 3 | 4–7–1 (4–5–1) | ||||
| February 13 | 7:30 PM | vs. St. Lawrence* | Webster Bank Arena • Bridgeport, Connecticut | Benson | T 2–2 OT | 0 | 4–7–2 | ||||
| February 16 | 5:05 PM | vs. Bentley | Webster Bank Arena • Bridgeport, Connecticut | Benson | L 4–5 OT | 0 | 4–8–2 (4–6–1) | ||||
| February 19 | 7:35 PM | vs. Holy Cross | Webster Bank Arena • Bridgeport, Connecticut | Lush | W 2–1 | 0 | 5–8–2 (5–6–1) | ||||
| February 20 | 4:05 PM | at Holy Cross | Webster Bank Arena • Bridgeport, Connecticut | Lush | W 5–3 | 0 | 6–8–2 (6–6–1) | ||||
| Atlantic Hockey Tournament | |||||||||||
| March 12 | 5:05 PM | at Army* | Tate Rink • West Point, New York (Quarterfinal Game 1) | Lush | L 0–4 | 102 | 6–9–2 | ||||
| March 13 | 5:05 PM | at Army* | Tate Rink • West Point, New York (Quarterfinal Game 2) | Benson | L 3–4 3OT | 96 | 6–10–2 | ||||
| Sacred Heart lost series 0–2 | |||||||||||
| *Non-conference game. #Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Eastern Time. | |||||||||||
Scoring statistics
edit| Name | Position | Games | Goals | Assists | Points | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marc Johnstone | RW | 16 | 6 | 10 | 16 | 12 |
| Braeden Tuck | F | 18 | 6 | 10 | 16 | 0 |
| Austin Magera | C | 17 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 10 |
| Kevin Lombardi | RW | 17 | 8 | 4 | 12 | 2 |
| Ryan Steele | F | 17 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 12 |
| Marcel Godbout | C/RW | 18 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 6 |
| Patrick Dawson | D | 18 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 10 |
| Grant Anderson | D | 18 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 4 |
| Todd Goehring | F | 12 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
| Josh Allan | D | 13 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 11 |
| Emil Öhrvall | LW | 10 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 8 |
| Nick Boyagian | F | 17 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| Jeppe Urup Mogensen | D | 14 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| Evan Wisocky | C | 16 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Alex Bates | F | 17 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 17 |
| Tim Clifton | C | 14 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 21 |
| Michael Gilroy | D | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Derek Contessa | RW | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Adam Tisdale | C | 10 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Cody Hoban | F | 10 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| Andrius Kulbis-Marino | D | 12 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| John Jaworski | F | 16 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Ryan Doolin | F | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Daniel Petrick | D | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Carson Gallagher | C | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Marcus Joseph | D | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Luke Lush | G | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Max Luukko | D | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Josh Benson | G | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bench | - | - | - | - | - | 6 |
| Total | 43 | 78 | 121 | 154 |
Goaltending statistics
edit| Name | Games | Minutes | Wins | Losses | Ties | Goals Against | Saves | Shut Outs | SV % | GAA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Josh Benson | 14 | 853 | 4 | 7 | 2 | 43 | 383 | 1 | .899 | 3.02 |
| Luke Lush | 6 | 292 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 16 | 125 | 0 | .887 | 3.29 |
| Empty Net | - | 6 | - | - | - | 0 | - | - | - | - |
| Total | 18 | 1152 | 6 | 10 | 2 | 59 | 508 | 1 | .896 | 3.07 |
Rankings
edit| Poll | Week | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 (Final) | ||||
| USCHO.com | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | - | NR | |||
| USA Today | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | |||
USCHO did not release a poll in week 20.[6]
Awards and honors
edit| Player | Award | Ref |
|---|---|---|
| Marc Johnstone | Atlantic Hockey First Team | [7] |
| Braeden Tuck | Atlantic Hockey Second Team | [7] |
References
edit- ^ "NCAA approves blanket waiver for 2020 fall sports athletes to retain year of eligibility". CBS Sports. August 21, 2020. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
- ^ "DI Council grants waiver to allow transfer student-athletes to compete immediately". NCAA. December 16, 2020. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
- ^ "2020–21 Sacred Heart Men's Ice Hockey Roster". Sacred Heart University Department of Athletics. Retrieved July 27, 2017.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Sacred Heart Pioneers (Men) 2020-2021 Schedule and Results". College Hockey Stats. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
- ^ "Sacred Heart Univ. 2020-2021 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved June 20, 2020.
- ^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
- ^ a b "Atlantic Hockey Announces All-Conference and All-Rookie Winners". Atlantic Hockey. March 11, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2021.