Currently standing at No. 2 in the nation, the 24-2-1 (17-0-1 in conference play) Utica Pioneers have already established a new threshold for wins in a season but look to add so much more over the upcoming weeks. This Saturday, the Pioneers host the No. 8 ranked Wilkes Colonels for the UCHC championship – the only title in the east to be contested by top ten teams in the nation. While Utica has home ice advantage and likely already secured a spot in the NCAA tournament, this team wants to check off another significant goal on the way to what may be a special 2021-22 season.
“We had some special visitors on campus this week to spend some time with the team,” noted head coach Gary Heenan. “The guys that graduated from the 2020 team that was poised to play in the NCAA tournament before the COVID shutdown were here to remind this club that they want to finish it on the ice. They have a great opportunity in front of them in winning the conference tournament to follow-up on the regular season title. Those guys that had difficult circumstances take their national opportunity away wanted to make sure our guys this year knew they should take advantage of their opportunity starting with Wilkes on Saturday. I think our team heard the message loud and clear.”
Utica won’t have it easy against a strong Wilkes team that finished second to the Pioneers in the regular season. Utica won a close 3-2 game at home back in December before the two teams played a 1-1 overtime tie in February that saw Utica win a shootout to wrap-up the regular season title. Despite the success against the Colonels this season, Heenan and his staff are preparing for a very challenging opponent on Saturday night.
“It was great to see how the guys finished the game against Manhattanville in the semifinals,” said Heenan. “We had that 2-0 lead and could have sat on it but they stayed aggressive and scored a couple of more goals in the third period to put it out of reach. We are going to need the full effort from everyone on Saturday. Wilkes comes in with some super high-end talent that are likely to play at the next level and 17 seniors looking to win the league for the first time. They are built for this type of game and will challenge us to be at our very best to earn the win. We have been focused on keeping the guys sharp this week and will stay true to the gameplan that has worked for us all season. We roll four lines and six defensemen and get a lot out of the extra forward we dress too.”
While Wilkes does have some high-end talent, Utica boasts three 40-point scorers, five 30-point scorers and two 20-point scorers with players like Brett Everson and Mic Curran getting their games into high gear in the second half. Add in a mobile group of defenseman that can make the offense fly and Utica will present some matchup problems for Wilkes based on their depth and talent, especially on special teams.
“Everyone has played a role in our success this season including three goaltenders,” stated Heenan. “We have a D-corps that pairs up a stay-at-home guy with an offensive player so guys like Justin [Allen], Jayson [Dobay] and Brian [Scoville] can help generate some opportunities at the other end of the ice wit the talented group of forwards we have.”
Allen, who broke the points mark by a defenseman this season, has been dynamic with his skating and puck handling but also a bit surprising with his improved shot this year. Allen has eight goals and 30 assists for 38 points while posting an eye-popping +34 plus/minus stat.
“Justin just has this amazing deception in his game,” said Heenan. “He moves so well on the ice and has such great skating ability that he can shake lose from defenders creating numbers for our team. He keeps the puck on his stick a long time, which sometimes can drive a coach crazy, but makes great decisions with the puck when he decides to pass or shoot. He has worked really hard on his shot this season. I don’t think he would say he has a great shot, but it is much improved, and his eight goals reflect the work he has put into finding shooting lanes and putting pucks in spots.”
While both regular season games were low-scoring affairs, Heenan wouldn’t be surprised by anything on Saturday and the Pioneers will be ready for whatever style of game shows up on the ice.
“We have played tight games with them so far this year as both teams have great discipline and speed,” noted Heenan. “I kind of expect that pattern to continue but who knows, with the talent on the ice for both sides, a special teams game could be an 8-6 final.”
Utica hosts Wilkes at The Aud on Saturday night with a 7 PM puck drop to decide the UCHC champion and auto-bid to the NCAA tournament.
