Feb 02, 2023
SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. - The Laker hockey program is set to travel to Marquette, Mich. to resume the battle for the Cappo Cup against the Northern Michigan Wildcats in a two-game Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) road series. Lake Superior State will be looking to gain some ground in the conference standings and build momentum as both teams begin to look toward the postseason.
Stories to watch:
- The Wildcats lead the all-time series between the two programs 80-52-13, including a pair of games earlier this season in November.
- The Lakers are coming off of a series split against Bemidji State in which Harrison Roy (Lakeville, Mass.) scored a game-winner with 13.3 seconds remaining in regulation on Jan. 28, giving senior goaltender Seth Eisele (Lake Elmo, Minn.) his first win between the pipes this season. Meanwhile, the Wildcats will be looking to bounce back after being swept by Michigan Tech in a home-and-home series this past weekend.
- LSSU has shown tremendous improvement over the past few weeks with a pair of wins and three narrow losses, including giving No. 13 Minnesota State all they could handle by staying at least within a single goal of the Mavericks for all but eight seconds of the series due to an empty-netter.
- The Lakers have held on to the Cappo Cup for three consecutive years, but they will need to dig deep to extend that streak to four as the Wildcats were able to win the first two games of the regular season series in November with a goal differential of +5.
- Rookie goaltender Beni Halasz was able to impress early for the Wildcats, but his teammates work to take pressure off of him as NMU boasts the top two shot blockers in the CCHA in Aiden Gallacher (69) and Michael Van Unen (65). Meanwhile, the Lakers will look to counter in their own defensive zone led by reigning CCHA Defenseman of the Week, Jacob Bengtsson (Stockholm, Sweden).
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Six different Lakers have recorded at least ten points entering the series against Northern Michigan, led by Bengtsson with 19 (1G, 18A).
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Bengtsson is currently leading LSSU in assists this season with 18.
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Roy leads the team in goals so far this season with nine after scoring a pair, including the game-winner with 13.3 seconds remaining in regulation, in a 3-2 victory over Bemidji State on Jan. 28.
- Senior Defenseman Jared Kucharek (Royal Oak, Mich.) is on pace to play in his 100th career NCAA hockey game on Saturday, Feb. 4 should he appear in both contests of the series after only appearing in a single game over the previous two seasons with Western Michigan due to injury.