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LSSU Lakers 2015-16: The 50th season

Re: LSSU Lakers 2015-16: The 50th season

Tune into the Hockey North Show, with Randy Russon, for more on the good ship Laker, and the hockey world on Tuesday at 5 p.m. on ESPN Radio station 1400.

Here is the latest article by Randy in www.hockeynewsnorth.com http://www.hockeynewsnorth.com/ncaa/lake-state-freshman-recognized/

Freshman forward Diego Cuglietta of the seventh-place Lake Superior State Lakers, who scored the game-winner in a 1-0 overtime upset of the second-place Bowling Green Falcons on Saturday, has been named Western Collegiate Hockey Association rookie-of-the-week.

Cuglietta’s game-winning goal was his third tally of the season for the Lakers, who have a 5-5-4 record within the 10-team WCHA and are 8-12-4 overall.

Other WCHA players-of-the-week are Bemidji State Beavers forward Nate Arentz and Michigan Tech Huskies goalie Jamie Phillips.

Arentz was named offensive-player-of-the-week and Phillips earned defensive-player-of-the-week honours.

Ringy Dingy!
 
Re: LSSU Lakers 2015-16: The 50th season

The LSSU Lakers are going to honour "much loved" men this weekend. Read about on www.hockeynewsnorth.com with an article by Randy Russon. http://www.hockeynewsnorth.com/ncaa/lakers-to-honour-much-loved-men/

Lake Superior State Lakers will honour the memory of two “much-loved” men during Saturday’s Western Collegiate Hockey Association home game against the Alaska Anchorage Seawolves.

Saturday is being billed as Gary McClellan/Gil Somes Night and the families of both men will be honoured guests when the Lakers and Alaska Anchorage meet in a 7:07 p.m. match at Taffy Abel Arena.

McClellan, who died last June at the age of 74, was a well-known businessman, a charter member of the LSSU Foundation and one of the founders of both the Laker Club and Soo BlueLiners.

“Mac was a tremendous supporter of Sault Ste. Marie and Lake Superior State University,” noted Michigan Soo mayor Tony Bosbous. “He had a unique talent that enabled him to grow, not only businesses but the communities in which he lived.”

McClellan was also an avid Laker hockey fan, from enjoying the games to painting the fight song lyrics on his garage wall.

As for Somes, he was the Laker athletics equipment manager from 1981 to 1995 and remained involved with the program for close to two more decades. Somes passed away in January of 2015 at age 85.

Lake Superior State athletic director Kris Dunbar, a former Laker athlete herself as a women’s basketball standout, noted that McClellan and Somes “will always be remembered.

“Gary and Gil were special people and very much loved,” said Dunbar. “We could never thoroughly repay them for their contributions to Laker athletics, especially the hockey program. They helped make LSSU the special place that it is.”

Ringy Dingy!
 
Re: LSSU Lakers 2015-16: The 50th season

Check out the latest article by www.saultthisweek.com Randy Russon on the LSSU Lakes matching their 2014-15 win total and talking about local product and freshman sensation, Owen Headrick. http://www.saultthisweek.com/2016/01/12/lakers-match-2014-15-win-total-with-14-games-to-go

Lake Superior State Lakers have two more home games this Saturday and Sunday as part of the hotly contested, 10-team, Western Collegiate Hockey Association.

A home split with the second-place Bowling Green Falcons last weekend boosted the Lakers record within the WCHA to 5-5-4.

Overall, the Lakers are 8-12-4 on the season. The eight wins matches their victory total from 2014-2015 with 14 games still to play in the 2015-2016 season.

The Lakers, who are in seventh spot in WCHA, are home to the eighth-place Alaska Anchorage Seawolves this weekend.

The Lakers are only two points back of fifth-place Ferris State and Northern Michigan with two games in hand on both the Bulldogs and Wildcats and are just three points behind fourth-place Bemidji State with four games in hand on the Beavers.

From a local standpoint, freshman defenceman Owen Headrick is tied for sixth on the Laker scoring chart with 3 goals, 4 assists, 7 points in 22 games.

A 1997-birth-year skater from Garden River First Nation, Headrick is the youngest player in the entire WCHA. He played the past two seasons with the Soo Thunderbirds of the Northern Ontario Jr. Hockey League.
 
Re: LSSU Lakers 2015-16: The 50th season

Here is a preview of this weekend's series against Alaska Anchorage, let's pack the rink. Ringy Dingy! http://www.lssulakers.com/sports/m-hockey/2015-16/releases/20160113pr1187

Lake Superior State opens the weekend in 7th place of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association standings and look to move up the standings with a weekend series at home against Alaska Anchorage. The Lakers are two points behind of Northern Michigan and Ferris State and three points behind Bemidji State with games-in-hand on all three.

The series kicks off Saturday evening at 7:07 p.m. ET with a special evening dedicated to the memory of Gary McClellan and Gil Somes, a pair of men, deeply engrained into the fabric of the program that passed away over the last year. Game 2 of the series will be a Sunday matinee starting at 5:07 p.m. ET.

Both games will be broadcast live on 99.5 YES FM.

The Lakers (8-12-4, 5-5-4 WCHA) have already matched last season's win total of eight games following the 1-0 overtime victory against No. 16 Bowling Green last Saturday evening and are 6-4-2. LSSU made the WCHA playoffs last season in the eighth seed but this season have their eyes set on a potential home series during the first round.

Sophomore goaltender Gordon Defiel (5-8-3) made 25 saves through regulation and just over a minute of overtime to produce his fifth career shutout, moving him up to 7th all-time in career shutouts at LSSU. Defiel's play helped cap a season split with the Falcons after earning a pair of 1-1 ties dating back to Nov. 6-7.

Defiel has produced a .924 save-percentage this season and allows only 2.48 goals against per game.

Matching Defiel with impressive netminding for the Lakers this season has been freshman Nick Kossoff. The freshman from West Des Moines, Iowa made 39 saves and allowed just two goals during Friday night's series opener in which the Lakers lost 3-1.

Among freshman goaltenders Kossoff is tied for the national lead with three shutouts, boasts the second-highest save percentage (.935 percent), and trails only Minnesota State's Jason Pawloski with a 1.77 goals-against average.

For the second time this season the WCHA dubbed a Laker freshman forward the "Rookie of the Week." Diego Cuglietta, the man responsible for the redirection of a Matt McArdle shot in overtime that lifted the Lakers 1-0 over the Falcons, joined teammate Gage Torrel as the two Lakers to receive the honor this season.

Cuglietta has scored three goals and has four assists for seven points this season. Torrel, the Lakers' leader in rookie scoring, ranks third in the WCHA among freshmen with four goals and seven assists. Cuglietta, Torrel and teammate C.J. Hayes are all tied with two game-winning goals each to lead the conference's rookie class.

Two points behind the Lakers and looking to return to the WCHA playoffs after missing out last season, the Seawolves (8-9-3, 5-7-2 WCHA) are tied with in-state rival Alaska for eighth place and the final playoff spot.

The Seawolves have been reeling of late, going winless in their last four games (0-3-1). In fact, during their last 10 games UAA has produced a record of 2-6-2 with their two wins coming via a sweep at Michigan Tech.

Senior Blake Tatchell leads the Seawolves in scoring with five goals and 12 assists for 17 points in 20 games. Forwards Tad Kozun (9-5--14), Mason Mitchell (3-9--12) and Matt Anholt (4-7--11) round out the players to reach double digits in scoring for the Seawolves so far.

The teams have met a total of 10 times with the first meeting between the schools dating back to the 1985 Syracuse Invitational (LSSU won 5-3). The Lakers hold a 7-3-0 all-time advantage against the Seawolves, including a 3-1-0 series lead in games played in Sault Ste. Marie. Since the Lakers joined the WCHA in 2013-14, the teams have split the matchup evenly 3-3-0.

Other news and notes

All Laker fans are invited to join the family and friends of Gary McClellan and Gil Somes as the LSSU Alumni Association celebrates their memories and support of LSSU and the Laker Hockey program at an indoor tailgate social at the Lukenda Alumni House on Saturday.
Tailgate begins at 5:30pm January 16th ending just prior to face off at 7:07 pm vs. Alaska - Anchorage. Desserts and salads are welcomed (but not necessary) to supplement the hearty meal we will be serving. Soft drinks will be available, or you may bring your own adult beverages. There is no charge for Saturday's social, but donations will be accepted.
Zak McClellan, son of Gary, will join Bill Crawford on 99.5 YES FM and WCHA TV during the first intermission of Saturday's game.
During the 2nd intermission Crawford will conduct a phone interview with former Laker and current Detroit Red Wings equipment manager Paul Boyer '93 and the impact Somes had on his career.
 
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Re: LSSU Lakers 2015-16: The 50th season

Latest article by www.hockeynewsnorth.com Randy Russon on the good ship Laker part of a WCHA sandwich. http://www.hockeynewsnorth.com/ncaa/wcha-serves-up-a-western-sandwich/

There are seven weekends to play in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association regular season and the menu is stacked with healthy choices of consumption.

For example, with an even WCHA record of 5-5-4, the upstart Lake Superior State Lakers are in seventh place in the 10-team league.

But with 14 points, the Lakers are only two points back of Ferris State and Northern Michigan — who are tied for fifth — with two games in hand on both the Bulldogs and Wildcats.

Not only that, the Lakers are just three points behind fourth-place Bemidji State with four games in hand on the Beavers.

And if you want more, the seventh-seeded Lakers are just two points up on the eighth-place Alaska Anchorage Seawolves with the two teams set to face off this Saturday at 7:07 p.m. and Sunday at 5:07 p.m. at Taffy Abel Arena in the Michigan Soo.

Meanwhile, at the top of the WCHA standings, Minnesota State and Bowling Green are in a tight race for first place with the Mavericks holding a two-point lead over the Falcons, 24 to 22. Both teams have played 16 WCHA games.

And on another note, seventh-place Lake Superior State split a home series with second-place Bowling Green last weekend. The Laker victory was a well-earned 1-0 overtime decision in which freshman forward Diego Cuglietta scored the game’s only goal and sophomore goalie Gordon Defiel made 25 saves for the whitewash.

Eight of the 10 teams in the WCHA make the playoffs. All teams play 28 regular-season games within the WCHA.
 
Re: LSSU Lakers 2015-16: The 50th season

It looks like we got help standings wise with Alaska beating NMU and Ferris only getting a single point against UAH. We are just 2 points behind NMU and just 3 points behind Ferris with 3 games in hand on both teams. A sweep this weekend will be HUGE.
 
Re: LSSU Lakers 2015-16: The 50th season

The Alaska schools almost seem to play better on the road so it should be a tough series. If the Lakers play well and win tonight, then I'll start thinking about a sweep for them. We haven't won the first game of a home series so far this season so now would be a good time to start.
 
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Re: LSSU Lakers 2015-16: The 50th season

LSSULaker889294 said:
Great 3rd period and comeback by the Lakers.
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Yeah, big win to put them in position for a sweep. They need to play better tomorrow night though. From the broadcast, it sounded like they played pretty uninspired the first two periods. Nice to see Hults get back to scoring some goals. And big tying goal from Nenadal and winner from Cuglietta in the 3rd.
 
Re: LSSU Lakers 2015-16: The 50th season

Bill said:
Yeah, big win to put them in position for a sweep. They need to play better tomorrow night though. From the broadcast, it sounded like they played pretty uninspired the first two periods. Nice to see Hults get back to scoring some goals. And big tying goal from Nenadal and winner from Cuglietta in the 3rd.
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I agree Bill. The Lakers also took some stupid penalties as well which can't be done again tomorrow.
 
Re: LSSU Lakers 2015-16: The 50th season

Bill said:
Yeah, big win to put them in position for a sweep. They need to play better tomorrow night though. From the broadcast, it sounded like they played pretty uninspired the first two periods. Nice to see Hults get back to scoring some goals. And big tying goal from Nenadal and winner from Cuglietta in the 3rd.
Click to expand...

Coach did not sound happy at all on the post game show.
 
Re: LSSU Lakers 2015-16: The 50th season

Laker Dude said:
Coach did not sound happy at all on the post game show.
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I agree. Bill Crawford and Damon were saying the power-play units are being too cute trying to make perfect plays and need to shoot the puck more and grab rebounds. I definitely agree with them.
 
Re: LSSU Lakers 2015-16: The 50th season

With a win tonight the Lakers already have achieved more wins this year than they did all of last season. Last season the Lakers scored 60 goals in 38 games for an average of 1.57 goals for; they allowed 131 goals in 38 games for a total of 3.44 goals against. So far this year the Lakers have scored 49 goals in 25 games for an average of 1.96 goals per game; they have allowed 56 goals in 25 games for an average of 2.24 goals against. While these totals are far from what anyone would be happy calling a finished product, they are clear signs of progress under Coach Whitten.
 
Re: LSSU Lakers 2015-16: The 50th season

If you want to win the fans back after playing two bad periods of hockey ,coming back to life in the third will do it.
 
Re: LSSU Lakers 2015-16: The 50th season

Big win and nice comeback by the good ship Laker, as they continue to surge up the standings. Here is a recap of the game from the good folks at LSSU.

Ringy Dingy!

In come-from-behind fashion Lake Superior State hockey defeated Alaska Anchorage, 4-2, in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association series opener on Saturday night. With the victory, and a loss by Alaska against Northern Michigan on Saturday night, the Lakers (9-12-4, 6-5-4 WCHA) moved into sole possession of 7th place in the WCHA standings.

Freshman forward Mitch Hults (6-6—12) scored a pair of goals in the contest including the empty-net goal to seal the 4-2 victory.

The Lakers found themselves trailing 1-0 after the first period of play. Jeremiah Luedtke opened the scoring for the Seawolves (8-10-3, 5-8-3 WCHA) 7:44 into the contest after Anthony Conti intercepted the puck in the defensive zone and sprung Luedtke. Luedtke was able to pick the corner over Gordon Defiel's shoulder to score his second-career goal.

LSSU responded with a goal 43 seconds into the 2nd period when Hults received a pass from behind the net by Alex Globke (4-3--7), wheeled out to the faceoff circle, and wristed a shot over Olivier Mantha's goal.

Hults' first goal of the night brought the score even at 1-1.

With 7:35 remaining in the middle period, Tad Kozun scored a power-play goal to put Anchorage up 2-1. Matt Anholt and Jarrett Brown added assists on the tally by Kozun.

With only five shots during the second period and 13 total, the Lakers trailed the Seawolves 21-13 in the shot column and 2-1 on the scoreboard after two periods of play.

Josh Nenadal (4-1—5) wasted little time in tying the game at 2-2, firing a puck past Mantha 4:40 into the final period. Nenadal's goal was assisted by Austin McKay (1-2—3).

With neither team trying to give an inch, both sides skated through nearly six and a half minutes of grind-it-out hockey that featured a two-minute span of four-on-four play.

With 8:48 left in regulation and the score tied Brown, who assisted on the goal by Kozun, was whistled for a costly five-minute major penalty after checking the Lakers' C.J. Hayes into the boards from behind. The Lakers received an extended penalty and Brown was shown the door with a game misconduct.

After not finding any success and regrouping behind their own net multiple times during the penalty, Diego Cuglietta (4-4—8) finally found the net for the Lakers with nine seconds left on the penalty time Brown.

The power-play goal by Cuglietta, the reigning WCHA Rookie of the Week, put the Lakers up 3-2 and would hold up as the game-winning goal. It was the third career game-winning goal for the freshman and his second-consecutive game winner.

Freshmen Anthony Nellis (3-8—11) and Owen Headrick (3-5—8) added the assists to Cuglietta's goal.

As time was winding down, UAA pulled Mantha in favor of the extra attacker with 44 seconds remaining.

With the Seawolves in their own zone and looking for an outlet pass, Hults intercepted a pass and took the puck unassisted for the empty-net tally.

Defiel made 26 saves and was sharp for the Lakers in picking up his sixth victory of the season.

For the Seawolves, Mantha also made 26 saves but was tagged with three goals in his ninth loss of the season.

The teams cap the series with a 5:07 p.m. matinee game on Sunday evening.
 
eye4talent said:
I wouldn't be surprised if Brett Boeing is on their radar. Damon recruited him to Michigan Tech. He left the program after the GLI and is back in the USHL.
Click to expand...

If he was not happy at Tech because of the remote location and difficulties thereof, why would he feel any different at the Soo?
 
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