Saints aim for upset

Don Vaughan has already eliminated the fact from his mind that his Colgate men's hockey team upended St. Lawrence University three times during the regular season.

Vaughan, the Raiders' head coach and a former SLU player, said he knows every team in the ECAC Hockey tournament has a fresh start this weekend. But Saints head coach Joe Marsh doesn't want to see Colgate add two more victories to its current total.

St. Lawrence will need to extend its season on the road in the opening round of the conference tournament, which begins Friday. The ninth-seeded Saints must win twice in a best-of-three series against the No. 8 Raiders to advance to the quarterfinals.

"There is a sense of desperation with the playoffs," Marsh said. "We've only got two games left as scheduled. Anything beyond that, we have to make it happen."

The last time Colgate took five straight games from St. Lawrence, it took two seasons from 1993 to 1995. The Raiders captured a pair of 2-1 wins over SLU and also won 4-1 on their home ice at Starr Rink during this regular season. All the statistics don't seem to bother the Saints though.

"Being an underdog is something that the coaches here have always been preaching," said Casey Parenteau, SLU's junior forward. "Even last year when we were in first place, we tried to apply it. Now, being actual underdogs, it better suits the team we've built because we're not flashy. We're a hard-working, blue collar team."

Vaughan's greatest concern is on special teams. The Raiders registered the second-worst power-play percentage in conference play this season (11.1). They also gave up four power-play goals to Dartmouth in their regular-season finale on Saturday.

"Our special teams has to be better," Vaughan said. "Our penalty kill has been good until the past couple weeks. I think everyone knows our power play hasn't been very good all season."

While the Saints have also dealt with lingering issues on special teams, their most challenging task will be getting past Colgate senior Mark Dekanich. The staunch goaltender has been impenetrable at times this season. He set a school and an ECAC Hockey record last month, going over 217 minutes without allowing a goal. It's also the ninth-longest stretch in NCAA history.

"You're not going to beat him on the first one," Marsh said. "We've got to find ways to get more shots to the net and create more confusion."

Marsh wasn't ready to admit that the Saints' sweep of Princeton and Quinnipiac last weekend gave them a jolt of momentum. Nevertheless, they now have an opportunity to construct a deep tournament run under little duress.

"There is no pressure on us, and there shouldn't be," Marsh said. "We need to play loose and hard, which we did this past weekend. We need to be intense and bring it."

TORNEY RISES UP

Once the final horn went off at Gutterson Field House back in December, Saints freshman Bobby Torney didn't expect to get another shift for the remainder of the season.

At least Torney, a Shelburne, Vt., native, had a chance to play in front of his parents as Vermont edged SLU in overtime, 4-3. But as the injuries mounted on the Saints' blue line, the diligent defenseman was ready for duty.

Torney has contributed steady play on SLU's third defensive line in six games this season. He deposited his first collegiate goal against Rensselaer on Feb. 22. Now, he's hoping to get another opportunity in the Saints' opening-round tournament series with Colgate this weekend.

"I've just been working hard in practice all year," Torney said. "I've tried to learn from the core guys, and when the opportunity arose, I just tried to play mistake-free."

Torney said he had to pick up on the defensive schemes quickly, but he's had capable mentors in junior captains Jared Ross and Shawn Fensel, as well as their classmates, Zach Miskovic and Matt Generous.

"He competes hard," Marsh said. "In games, he keeps it relatively simple. I think he's learned a lot now that he's had a legitimate taste of it."

AROUND APPLETON ...

ForwardsKevin DeVergilioandMike McKenziewill return to the lineup after logging two healthy scratches last weekend. Those games are the only ones DeVergilio has missed all season. McKenzie also sat out of SLU's loss at Rensselaer on Feb. 22 due to back spasms. ...Dan Coughlinskated in practice this week with a wrap on his left shoulder. The junior defenseman separated the surgically-repaired shoulder in the second period of Friday's game against Quinnipiac and was out for the rest of the weekend. ...Derek Kellerescaped last week's action without re-aggravating his separated right shoulder. The sophomore defenseman had missed seven games because of the injury.

Sportswriter Max DelSignore covers St. Lawrence University men's hockey for the Times. You may reach him at mdelsignore@wdt.net.