2020–21 Mercyhurst Lakers
men's ice hockey season
Conference7th Atlantic Hockey
Home iceMercyhurst Ice Center
Rankings
USCHO.comNR
USA Today/
US Hockey Magazine
NR
Record
Overall8–12–1
Conference7–8–1–1–1–1
Home6–6–1
Road2–6–0
Neutral0–0–0
Coaches and captains
Head coachRick Gotkin
Assistant coachesGreg Gardner
Derek Whitmore
Captain(s)Quinn Wichers
Alternate captain(s)Michael Bevilacqua
Mercyhurst Lakers men's ice hockey seasons
« 2019–20 2021–22 »

The 2020–21 Mercyhurst Lakers men's ice hockey season was the 34th season of play for the program, the 22nd at the Division I level, and the 18th season in the Atlantic Hockey conference. The Lakers represented Mercyhurst University and were coached by Rick Gotkin, in his 33rd season.

The start of the college hockey season was delayed due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. As a result, Mercyhurst's first scheduled game was in mid-November as opposed to early-October, which was the norm.

Season

As a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic the entire college ice hockey season was delayed. Because the NCAA had previously announced that all winter sports athletes would retain whatever eligibility they possessed through at least the following year, none of Mercyhurst's players would lose a season of play.[1] However, the NCAA also approved a change in its transfer regulations that would allow players to transfer and play immediately rather than having to sit out a season, as the rules previously required.[2]

Mercyhurst managed to recover after the program's worst season, posting a middling record amidst an ever-changing schedule. Despite playing 14 fewer games, the Lakers won three more games than they had the year before. including three over ranked opponents.

Ashton Stockie and Carver Watson sat out the season.

Departures

Player Position Nationality Cause
James AndersonForward United StatesGraduation
Stefano CantaliGoaltender CanadaSigned Professional Contract (Chiefs Leuven)
Cory CarusoForward CanadaLeft Program
Colin DeAugustineGoaltender United StatesGraduation
Ethan JohnsonForward United StatesLeft Program
Jonathan LazarusForward United StatesGraduation
Garrett MetcalfGoaltender United StatesTransferred to Long Island
Brendan RileyForward United StatesGraduation

Recruiting

Player Position Nationality Age Notes
Carson BrièreForward United States21Haddonfield, NJ
Wyatt HeadDefenseman Canada21Kelowna, BC
Austin HeidemannForward United States21Maple Grove, MN
Hank JohnsonGoaltender United States24Minneapolis, MN; transfer from Bemidji State
Noah KaneForward United States20Buffalo, NY
Matt LenzGoaltender Canada21Calgary, AB
Jac LymnGoaltender United States19Charlotte, NC
Kyle McClellanGoaltender United States21Manchester, MO
Devon MussioDefenseman Canada21Vancouver, BC
Marko ReifenbergerForward United States21Hastings, MN
Dante SheriffForward Canada21Woodbridge, ON
Rylee St. OngeForward Canada22St. Catharines, ON; transfer from Alaska Anchorage
Keanan StewartDefenseman Canada20Guelph, ON

Roster

As of December 31, 2020.[3]

No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team NHL rights
1 Texas Matt Lenz Freshman G 5' 11" (1.8 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1999-06-02 Grapevine, Texas Steinbach (MJHL)
2 Ontario Cade Townend Sophomore D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1999-06-17 Carleton Place, Ontario Carleton Place (CCHL)
4 Ontario Quinn Wichers (C) Senior D 6' 4" (1.93 m) 217 lb (98 kg) 1997-08-19 Metcalfe, Ontario Kemptville (CCHL)
5 New York (state) Michael Bevilacqua (A) Junior D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1997-05-07 Hamburg, New York Green Bay (USHL)
6 Pennsylvania Carson Brière Freshman F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 1999-09-23 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Trail (BCHL)
7 Ontario Devon Daniels Junior D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1998-04-28 Thunder Bay, Ontario Ottawa (CCHL)
8 Ontario Owen Norton Junior D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 161 lb (73 kg) 1998-06-19 Ancaster, Ontario Surrey (BCHL)
9 New York (state) Justin Cmunt Sophomore F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1998-01-28 East Amherst, New York Shreveport (NAHL)
10 Ontario Geoff Kitt Junior F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1997-02-09 Dryden, Ontario Carleton Place (CCHL)
11 Ohio Steven Ipri Junior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 155 lb (70 kg) 1998-03-13 Broadview Heights, Ohio Lone Star (NAHL)
12 Minnesota Austin Heidemann Freshman F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1999-06-27 Maple Grove, Minnesota Sioux City (USHL)
13 Pennsylvania Paul Maust Sophomore F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1998-06-24 Butler, Pennsylvania Green Bay (USHL)
14 Ohio Gueorgui Feduolov Sophomore F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1998-12-10 Mentor, Ohio Shreveport (NAHL)
15 Ontario Dante Spagnuolo Sophomore F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 178 lb (81 kg) 1998-09-04 Newmarket, Ontario North York (OJHL)
16 British Columbia Wyatt Head Freshman D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1999-03-28 Kelowna, British Columbia Coquitlam (BCHL)
16 Ontario Ashton Stockie Sophomore F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1999-07-15 Stratford, Ontario North York (OJHL)
18 Pennsylvania Dalton Hunter Junior F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1997-09-26 Greensburg, Pennsylvania Dubuque (USHL)
19 Illinois Garrett Dahm Freshman F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2000-06-29 Belleville, Illinois Youngstown (USHL)
20 Ontario Keanan Stewart Freshman F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 2000-04-29 Elmira, Ontario Burlington (OJHL)
21 New Jersey Khristian Acosta Sophomore F 5' 8" (1.73 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1998-05-05 Port Monmouth, New Jersey Tri-City (USHL)
22 Ontario Brendan Schneider Sophomore F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1998-08-26 Wellesley, Ontario Merritt (BCHL)
23 New Jersey Jonathan Bendorf Sophomore F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1999-02-26 Yardville, New Jersey Aberdeen (NAHL)
24 Minnesota Marko Reifenberger Freshman F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1999-01-19 Hastings, Minnesota Minnesota Magicians (NAHL)
25 Ontario Joseph Maziarz Sophomore D 5' 11" (1.8 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1999-02-23 Waterloo, Ontario North York (OJHL)
27 Wisconsin Carver Watson Sophomore D 5' 11" (1.8 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1998-03-03 Appleton, Wisconsin Vernon (BCHL)
28 Saskatchewan Josh McDougall Junior D 5' 10" (1.78 m) 187 lb (85 kg) 1998-06-19 Prince Albert, Saskatchewan Nipawin (SJHL)
29 Minnesota Hank Johnson Senior G 6' 1" (1.85 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1996-01-10 Minneapolis, Minnesota Bemidji State (WCHA)
31 Missouri Kyle McClellan Freshman G 6' 1" (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1999-03-18 Manchester, Missouri Omaha (USHL)
34 New York (state) Noah Kane Freshman F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1999-11-27 Buffalo, New York Maine (NAHL)
37 Ontario Rylee St. Onge Sophomore F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1998-04-22 St. Catharines, Ontario Alaska Anchorage (WCHA)
38 Ontario Dante Sheriff Freshman F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1999-08-04 Brampton, Ontario Austin (NAHL)

Standings

Conference record Overall record
GP W L T OW OL SW PTS PT% GF GA GP W L T GF GA
#15 American International †*12111010032.88947181915406740
Army15104131130.66742332215617148
Robert Morris15105021029.64458482415908569
Canisius1385011024.61542341711605946
RIT1375100123.5904340209926870
Sacred Heart1366112020.51335381861024359
Mercyhurst1678111123.47954502181216467
Bentley15411015016.35635481651104251
Niagara1539302115.33339532271235770
Air Force133912109.23132491431013556
Holy Cross123902007.19422381641203052
Championship: March 20, 2021
† indicates conference regular season champion
* indicates conference tournament champion (Riley Trophy)
Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll

Schedule and results

DateTimeOpponent#Rank#SiteTVDecisionResultAttendanceRecord
Regular Season
December 5 1:30 PM at #18 Bowling Green* Slater Family Ice ArenaBowling Green, Ohio  Johnson W 2–1  300 1–0–0
December 6 3:00 PM vs. #18 Bowling Green* Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania  Johnson L 1–3  149 1–1–0
December 12 5:00 PM vs. #7 Clarkson* Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania  Johnson L 3–4 OT 89 1–2–0
December 13 4:00 PM vs. #7 Clarkson* Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania  Johnson L 2–6  89 1–3–0
December 16 5:05 PM vs. Niagara Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania  Johnson T 3–3 SOW 97 1–3–1 (0–0–1)
December 18 7:00 PM at Niagara Dwyer ArenaLewiston, New York  Johnson W 7–4  0 2–3–1 (1–0–1)
January 2 4:35 PM at Canisius LECOM HarborcenterBuffalo, New York  Johnson L 2–3  0 2–4–1 (1–1–1)
January 3 3:00 PM vs. Canisius Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania  Johnson L 0–3  127 2–5–1 (1–2–1)
January 8 5:00 PM vs. Air Force Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania  Johnson W 5–2  127 3–5–1 (2–2–1)
January 9 3:00 PM vs. Air Force Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania  McClellan W 6–3  137 4–5–1 (3–2–1)
January 19 4:30 PM vs. #17 Robert Morris Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania  Johnson W 3–2 OT 127 5–5–1 (4–2–1)
January 23 4:35 PM vs. #17 Robert Morris Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania  Johnson W 7–5  75 6–5–1 (5–2–1)
January 28 5:00 PM at RIT Gene Polisseni CenterHenrietta, New York  Johnson L 4–6  0 6–6–1 (5–3–1)
January 30 7:30 PM vs. Robert Morris Colonials ArenaNeville Township, Pennsylvania  Johnson L 3–5  0 6–7–1 (5–4–1)
February 5 5:00 PM at RIT Gene Polisseni CenterHenrietta, New York  McClellan L 1–2  0 6–8–1 (5–5–1)
February 6 5:05 PM vs. RIT Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania  Johnson W 6–2  0 7–8–1 (6–5–1)
February 9 7:05 PM vs. Canisius Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania  McClellan L 1–3  0 7–9–1 (6–6–1)
February 16 7:05 PM at Canisius LECOM HarborcenterBuffalo, New York  McClellan L 4–5 OT 0 7–10–1 (6–7–1)
February 19 7:05 PM vs. Niagara Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania  McClellan W 1–0  0 8–10–1 (7–7–1)
February 20 7:00 PM vs. Niagara Dwyer ArenaLewiston, New York  McClellan L 1–2  0 8–11–1 (7–8–1)
Atlantic Hockey Tournament
March 8 5:00 PM vs. Niagara* Mercyhurst Ice CenterErie, Pennsylvania (First Round)  McClellan L 2–3  163 8–12–1
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Eastern Time.

[4]

Scoring statistics

Name Position Games Goals Assists Points PIM
Carson BrièreC/RW215141910
Jonathan BendorfLW21114152
Dante SheriffF195101531
Gueorgui FeduolovF21491316
Joseph MaziarzD20112138
Austin HeidemannF1675129
Geoff KittC193694
Owen NortonD190998
Michael BevilacquaD215388
Paul MaustLW2135828
Josh McDougallD/F171780
Steven IpriF1142612
Noah KaneC194266
Marko ReifenbergerC211564
Cade TownendD2123514
Brendan SchneiderC92245
Rylee St. OngeLW91340
Devon DanielsD181340
Justin CmuntLW112138
Dante SpagnuoloC1312310
Keanan StewartF1312317
Dalton HunterRW80332
Quinn WichersD170334
Khristian AcostaF70114
Hank JohnsonG150110
Wyatt HeadD20000
Devon MussioD30000
Kyle McClellanG60000
Total64117181214

[5]

Goaltending statistics

Name Games Minutes Wins Losses Ties Goals Against Saves Shut Outs SV % GAA
Kyle McClellan6355240121641.9322.03
Hank Johnson15904681524690.9003.45
Empty Net-13---3----
Total2112738121676331.9043.16

Rankings

Poll Week
Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 (Final)
USCHO.com NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR - NR
USA Today NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR

USCHO did not release a poll in week 20.[6]

Awards and honors

Player Award Ref
Joseph Maziarz Atlantic Hockey Second Team [7]
Jon Bendorf
Carson Brière
Carson Brière Atlantic Hockey Rookie Team [7]
Austin Heidemann

References

  1. "NCAA approves blanket waiver for 2020 fall sports athletes to retain year of eligibility". CBS Sports. August 21, 2020. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  2. "DI Council grants waiver to allow transfer student-athletes to compete immediately". NCAA. December 16, 2020. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  3. "2020–21 Men's Ice Hockey Roster". Mercyhurst Athletics. Retrieved July 19, 2018.
  4. "Mercyhurst Lakers (Men) 2020-2021 Schedule and Results". College Hockey Stats. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
  5. "Mercyhurst Univ. 2020-2021 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
  6. "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  7. 1 2 "Atlantic Hockey Announces All-Conference and All-Rookie Winners". Atlantic Hockey. March 11, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
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