March 4, 2010

ECAC Hockey Championship First Round
No. 7 Quinnipiac University Bobcats (17-15-2, 11-11-0 ECAC Hockey) vs.
No. 10 Dartmouth College Big Green (8-17-4, 6-12-4 ECAC Hockey)
March 5-7, 2010 - 7 p.m.
TD Bank Sports Center - Hamden, Conn.

Home Ice Advantage
The Quinnipiac University men's ice hockey team, with the 7^th seed, clinched home-ice advantage for the ECAC Hockey Championship First Round with a pair of wins this past weekend against Brown, 8-3, and #5 Yale, 4-3. The Bobcats host 10^th seed Dartmouth for a best-of-three series set to begin on Friday, March 5 at 7 p.m. at the TD Bank Sports Center in Hamden, Conn. The Bobcats and Big Green will play again on Saturday, March 6 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, March 7, if necessary, at the same time. Quinnipiac is 17-15-2 overall and 11-11-0 in ECAC Hockey play. Their 11 ECAC Hockey wins are the most in program history since their inaugural 2005-06 season. Dartmouth comes to Hamden with a record of 8-17-4 overall and 6-12-4 in league action.

On The Air
As always, Bobcat fans can catch all the action by tuning to AM 1220 WQUN to hear the "Voice of the Bobcats" Bill Schweizer will have the play-by-play, while former NHLer Chris Kotsopoulos will have the color commentary. Bobcat fans can also live video from the Bobcat Channel at www.quinnipiacbobcats.com.

B2 Network
All ECAC Hockey Championship tournament games can be found on the B2 Network. Bobcat fans can access the live feed by visiting B2TV.com.

ECAC Hockey Championship Tournament History
Since joining the league for the 2006-07 season, the Bobcats hold an 13-8 career record in the ECAC Hockey Championship tournament. The Bobcats' carry an 8-1 record in the first round of the tournament, while posting a 4-6 mark in quarterfinal games. Quinnipiac is 1-0 in semifinal games and 0-1 in the championship game. Quinnipiac's most successful postseason came in 2007 when the Bobcats swept Union at home before upsetting Cornell at Lynah Rink in two games in the quarterfinals. Quinnipiac continued their run, knocking off St. Lawrence, 4-0, in the semifinals before falling to Clarkson in the Championship Game, 4-2. Quinnipiac led in that game, 2-0, heading into the third period. It was the last time Quinnipiac lost after leading after two periods.

All-Time Against Dartmouth
In 11 games against Dartmouth all-time, Quinnipiac is 6-4-1, with wins in four of their last six meetings. Quinnipiac split the regualr-season series, with the home team winning both games. The Bobcats knocked-off the Big Green, 4-2, on Nov. 14 at the TD Bank Sports Center before Dartmouth evened the series at 1-1 with a 4-3 win in Hanover, N.H. on Jan. 29. Last season, Dartmouth was one of two teams, along with Clarkson, that the Bobcats swept, winning 6-0 at home to complete a four-win in six-days swing before edging the Big Green in the final game of the year to clinch home-ice advantage for the 2008-09 ECAC Hockey Tournament. Quinnipiac has won 4 of 5 meetings on its home ice against the Big Green, including the last two meetings.

Scouting The Big Green
Dartmouth is currently 9-17-3 overall and 7-12-3 in ECAC Hockey play. The Big Green have not lost a game in their last five games out, posting a 3-0-2 record. On the road this season, Dartmouth is 3-8-2. The Big Green is led by Adam Estoclet with a team-high 22 assists, as well as 11 goals, for a team-best 33 points. Scott Fleming is close behind with 32 points, including a team-high 20 goals. Doug Jones (3-19-22), Matt Reber (3-17-20) and All-ECAC Hockey Second Team Defenseman Evan Stephens (6-13-19) round-out Dartmouth's top-five scorers. James Mello has started the last three games in goal for Dartmouth. In 13 appears, Mello is 3-4-2 with a 2.95 goals-against average and a .916 save percentage. Jody O'Neill has seen the majority of the minutes between the pipes for Dartmouth, posting a 6-13-1 record with a 3.88 goals-against average and a .888 save percentage.

Last Time Out Against The Big Green
On Jan. 29, 2010, Quinnipiac lost to Dartmouth, 4-3, in Hanover, N.H. Dustin Walsh scored twice in the first period while Evan Stephens and Adam Estoclet also scored for Dartmouth. Eric Lampe, Spencer Heichman and Russell Goodman all scored for Quinnipiac in the loss, while Greg Holt had a pair of assists. Dartmouth's James Mellos stopped 20 of 23 shots-on-goal by the Bobcats over the first two periods before Jody O'Neill came on in relief for the third period, turning away all 16 shots he saw down the stretch.

ECAC Hockey Player of the Week
Senior Captain Jean-Marc Beaudoin was named the ECAC Hockey Player of the Week on Monday, March 1, 2010. Beaudoin scored a team-high four goals in a pair of pivotal ECAC Hockey wins this weekend. The senior captain led the Bobcats with two goals and an assist against Brown in an 8-3 win on Friday, Feb. 26. The game ultimately clinched home-ice for the Bobcats for the first round of the ECAC Hockey Championship. Beaudoin followed that performance by matching his output against ECAC Hockey's other Elm City institution, Yale, in a 4-3 win on Saturday, Feb. 27 before a sell-out crowd of over 4,200 at the TD Bank Sports Center in Hamden, Conn. Beaudoin's offensive outburst this weekend gives him a career-high 30 points this season on 12 goals and a career-best 18 assists. It also gives Beaudoin 42 goals and 55 assists for 97 points for his career. Beaudoin is the second Quinnipiac player to win the weekly award this season, joining teammate Eric Lampe (Madison, Wisc.) to win the award. Goalie Dan Clarke (Belleville, Ont.) was a three-time Goalie of the Week honoree.

ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Week
Freshman Loren Barron also earned ECAC Hockey weekly honors this week, taking home the Rookie of the Week award. Barron totaled four points in the Bobcats back-to-back wins against Brown and Yale this weekend. The first-year defenseman had three assists against Brown, making him the first Quinnipiac freshman since Brandon Wong in 2006-07 to tally three helpers in a game. Against Yale on Saturday night, Barron was the only freshman in the Bobcats' line-up to pick up a point with an assist on Beaudoin's first goal of the night. The freshman defenseman has three goals and five assists for the year. Barron is the first Quinnipiac player named Rookie of the Week this season.

Milestone Watch
Quinnipiac University men's ice hockey head coach Rand Pecknold currently boasts 298 career wins, sitting just two W's from the 300 mark. Pecknold would become just the fourth coach in Quinnipiac history, along with Burt Kahn, Dan Gooley and Mike Quitko, to reach the 300-win mark.

Milestone Watch, II
Seniors Eric Lampe sits at 98 career points, while captain Jean-Marc Beaudoin sits at 97 points. They would become the 17th and 18th players, respectively, in Quinnipiac's Division I history to reach the 100-point mark. All-time, they would be the 31st and 32nd players to reach the century mark.

All-Time ECAC Hockey Mark
Quinnipiac's 11 ECAC Hockey wins this season are the most in program history since the Bobcats joined the league for the 2005-06 season.

Lowe's Senior CLASS Award
Quinnipiac University men's ice hockey senior captain Jean-Marc Beadoin (St. Paul, Alb.) has been named one of the 10 finalists for the prestigious Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. The award is given annually to an outstanding senior NCAA student-athlete who excels on and off the ice. The 10 finalists will be placed on the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award hockey ballot for a nationwide vote beginning today and concluding March 16. Fan balloting is available on the award's official Web site, http://www.seniorCLASSaward.com, as well as through text messaging. Fans can text HOCKEY to 74567 to vote for the finalists. These votes will be combined with votes from coaches and media to determine the recipient of the award.

Closing The Door
Last season, Quinnipiac was 16-0-0 in games in which it led after the second period. In their last 49 games in that scenario, dating back three seasons, Quinnipiac is undefeated at 45-0-4 when playing with a lead heading into the final frame. The Bobcats last loss,when leading after the second period, came in the 2006-07 ECAC Hockey Championship Game when Clarkson scored four third period goals to come-from-behind and take the league crown.

TD Bank Sports Center History
Since the door's opened on Quinnipiac University's state-of-the-art arena on Jan. 27, 2007, the Bobcats have played 61 games on their home ice, posting a 36-19-6 record.

NCAA Frozen Four Skills Challenge
Quinnipiac University senior assistant captain Brandon Wong , as well as women's ice hockey senior Janine Duffy, has been announced as a preliminary selection for the 2010 NCAA Frozen Four Skills Challenge. Currently, 78 student-athletes from NCAA Division I men's and women's ice hockey have been announced with a goal of 32 student-athletes to be announced later this month. Bobcat fans have an opportunity to help their favorite Quinnipiac ice hockey student-athletes be selected to participate in the prestigious NCAA Frozen Four Skills Challenge by voting online from Feb. 1 through Feb. 15. Bobcat fans can visit www.ncaa.com/frozenfour for more information and online voting.