Chris Lerch

Down to the wire The 2017-18 Atlantic Hockey regular season is in the books. It was the closest race in league history, and when the dust had settled, Mercyhurst claimed its second regular season title and first since 2014. Picked to finish eighth by the coaches at the start of the season, the Lakers were … Read more

Félix Chamberland scored with 40 seconds left in the third period to give the Golden Griffins the win and second overall seed in the Atlantic Hockey tournament. Niagara led 2-1 after the first period on goals from Kris Spriggs and Derian Plouffe. Dylan McLaughlin tied the game for Canisius midway through the second period with his … Read more

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — It easy to say that the Mercyhurst Lakers exceeded expectations this season, but not those of Lakers coach Rick Gotkin. “The coaches picked us to finish eighth, and the media picked us seventh,” said Gotkin. “And maybe deservedly so, but we felt like we had a good team, a mature team, and … Read more

The Falcons lead 2-1 after two periods on goals from Phil Boje and Marshall Bowery. RMU’s Brady Ferguson had a goal and an assist for this 157th and 158 career points, moving into first place all time at the school. Air Force outshot Robert Morris 29-21. Billy Christopolous made 19 saves for Air Force, while … Read more

Tyler Pham’s eighth goal of the season early in the third period was the eventual game-winner, giving the host Black Knights a 4-2 lead at the time. Sacred Heart cut the lead to one on a goal by Kory Kennedy 8:09 left in regulation, but Cole Bruns and the Black Knights shut the door after … Read more

Nicolas Luka’s goal at 7:58 of the third period broke a 2-2 tie and was the eventual game-winner. Both of Bentley’s goals (by Jonathan Desbiens and Kyle Schmidt) came on the power play. AIC’s Stefano Durante made 24 saves for his ninth win of the season, while Aidan Pelino stopped 24 shots in the loss. The … Read more

Last week: Dan: 3-6 Chris: 2-7 On the season: Dan: 92-80-24 (.531) Chris: 100-72-24 (.571) This Week’s Picks Thursday, February 22 American International at Holy Cross Chris: The teams played last Saturday in Springfield, with AIC coming out on top, 1-0. This is the Crusaders final game of the season, and therefore their last chance … Read more

With a weekend to go in the regular season, the difference between first place and last place in Atlantic Hockey is just 10 points. That’s unprecedented. For comparison, here’s the delta between first and last in the other conferences (granted, some leagues award three points for a win, but it’s still striking): Big Ten: 32 … Read more

Last week: Dan: 5-7 Chris: 3-9 On the season: Dan: 89-74-24 (.540) Chris: 98-65-24 (.588) This Week’s Picks Friday, February 16 and Saturday, February 17 Army West Point at Bentley Chris: Army West Point will look to spoil the opening of Bentley’s new Arena. I’m thinking the Falcons will be extra psyched to open their … Read more

Three things from last weekend in Atlantic Hockey: Farewell, old friend On Saturday, Bentley University played its last game in the John A Ryan Skating Arena, affectionately known (well, maybe not “affectionately” by visiting teams) as the JAR. It’s been the Falcons’ home for over 40 years, but Bentley is opening a new, on-campus rink … Read more

Last week: Dan: 6-3-2 Chris: 6-3-2 On the season: Dan: 84-67-24 (.549) Chris: 95-56-24 (.611) This Week’s Picks Friday, February 9 and Saturday, February 10 Air Force at Bentley Chris:Assuming they actually play these games (Air Force will not be able to play if the government shuts down again and the deadline is Feb. 8), … Read more

The Golden Griffins (14-12-2) and Crusaders (12-11-7) remain tied for first place after splitting their weekend series. Matt Hoover had a pair of goals for Canisius, while Daniel Urbani made 31 saves for his 12th win of the season. Holy Cross goaltender Paul Berrafato made 29 saves in his 108th career appearance for the Crusaders. … Read more

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Bentley University will open its new on-campus rink in two weeks, but Falcons sophomore Jonathan Desbiens would be fine with playing more games at Rochester Institute of Technology’s Gene Polisseni Center. In four career games at the Polisseni Center, Desbiens has seven goals, including one tonight to help the Falcons to a … Read more