Hockey Preview: Stout to face Finlandia twice, in two locations this weekend

 WIAC Weekly Notes | Finlandia Live Video

THIS WEEK'S GAMES: The Blue Devils (7-4-1, 0-1-1) make the trip to Upper Michigan where they will play Finlandia University (3-7-1, 1-4-1 NCHA), Friday, Dec. 14, with the puck scheduled to drop at 6:15 p.m. (Central Time). Stout will host Finlandia the following night in Eagle River, Wis., with the game scheduled to start at 7 p.m. in the Eagle River Recreation Association (ERRA) Sports Arena in a game that is being touted as the first college hockey game played in the historic dome. The Blue Devils are scheduled to participate in a clinic with the Eagle River youth hockey program. The Blue Devils' Adam Kresl is a native of Eagle River.

A LOOK AT UW-STOUT:

• The Blue Devils return four seniors, defensemen Mathias Ahman and Joe Kleven, and forwards Gavin Smith and Dylan Zins. Stout has eight juniors, seven sophomores, and 11 freshmen.
• After last week's two-goal game in the 7-1 win over Northland College, freshman Logan Nelson has become the Blue Devils' leading scorer, leading the way with six goals and four assists. Three of Nelson's goals have come on the power play. Nelson is ranked 31st nationally for points by a freshman. 
• Fellow freshman Arturas Laukaitis has matched Nelson's number of goals, putting in six goals and chalking up three assists. Laukaitis has two power play goals.
• Senior defenseman Mathias Ahman has been clamped down on a bit after his breakout All-American junior season. Ahman currently has four goals and five assists, tied for 36th nationally among defensemen. After scoring seven power play goals lasts season, Ahman got his first power play goal of the season, scoring on the advantage late in a 7-4 loss to St. Thomas, Dec. 7.
• Four freshman have scored at least one goal and three sophomores have scored at least one goal. Freshmen Nelson and Laukaitis are among the team's scoring leaders. Freshmen Alex Nagel and Raphael Gosselin have scored two and one goal, respectively. Sophomore Lucas Carroll has four goals and three assists, while Hunter Anderson has one goal and six assists. Jack Cernohous has scored his first collegiate goals this season, finding the back of the net twice and offering two assists. 
• Duluth products Conner Valesano (2-8-10) and Alex Toscano (2-3-5) are among the team leaders in points. Valesano is second in points and Toscano is eighth.
• Valesano leads the team in assists with eight, while Anderson has six. Ahman and Gosselin each have five.
• Tommi Ahlgren has been solid this season, including back-to-back shutouts two weeks ago. Ahlgren has a GAA of 1.82 for the season and is 18th nationally. Ahlgren is 19th nationally in saves percentage (.931), 25th in winning percentage (6-2-1, 722), tied for seventh in shutouts (2)
• In goal, Brady Meyers has made two appearances, picking up the 3-0 shutout win in his collegiate debut against Trine. He came on in relief to allow one goal and has a goals against average (GAA) of 0.61 and a saves percentage of .967. Ridge Gerads' collegiate debut didn't go quite as well. Gerads gave up three goals against Aurora before giving way to Meyers. Gerads will look to lower his GAA from an 8.18.
• Complete Blue Devil 2018-19 Statistics

AHMAN IN NATIONAL STATS LAST SEASON

• Ahman received national attention last season as one of the highest scoring defensemen in all of NCAA Division III, finishing the season with 11 goals and 11 assists for 22 points, ranking 16th nationally, averaging 0.85 points, a mark that led the WIAC. Ahman was second in the conference with seven power play goals, ranking 14th among all players nationally in power plays. Among defensemen, Ahman tied for third nationally in total goals. In the WIAC among all players, Ahman ranked seventh in goals scored (11), 10th in points (11-11-22), second in power play points (7-6-13) and 15th in assists (11). Ahman was an All-WIAC first team selection.

BLUE DEVIL SPECIAL TEAMS

• The Blue Devils are 9-53 on the power play (.170). Logan Nelson has three power play goals, tied for 17th nationally, and Arturas Laukaitis and Alex Bowe each have two. Jack Cernohous scored Stout's first shorthanded goal, his first career goal and Lucas Carroll has one. The Blue Devils have scored at least one power play goal in seven games and have have twice scored two power play goals in single games.
• On the penalty kill, the Blue Devils are 4-53 (.925), tops in the WIAC, and fourth among the NCAA Division III. The Blue Devils have not allowed a power play goal since Nov. 28 when they surrendered two against UW-Eau Claire.

LOTS OF GOALS

• When Stout scored seven goals in a 7-1 win over Northland College, Dec. 8, 2018, it was the most goals scored since scoring seven in a 7-2 win over Aurora University, Jan. 23, 2015. Only two weeks earlier, Stout scored eight goals in an 8-5 win over Concordia University Wisconsin, Jan. 10, 2015. The six goal differential over Northland was the widest since Stout defeated St. Thomas, 8-0, Nov. 7, 2009.

BACK-TO-BACK SHUTOUTS

• Tommi Ahlgren recorded 32 saves in a 3-0 shutout win over Lawrence University, Nov. 16, then took a 4-0 shutout win over No. 7 Marian University, Nov. 17, where he recorded 27 saves. Over the last two games, Ahlgren was able to successfully turn away 10 power play opportunities. The Blue Devils last posted back-to-back shutouts win, Jan. 29, 2011 with a 1-0 win at UW-Superior, and Feb. 3, 2011, a 2-0 win at UW-Eau Claire. The first time Stout put together back-to-back shutout wins was Jan. 29-30, 1999, with two home wins, 4-0, 5-0, over St. Scholastics. Tom Lescovich recorded the back-to-back shutouts in 2011, and Ben Plester and Todd Sether teamed for the 1999 shutouts.

BLUE DEVILS LAST TIME OUT

• Stout lost 7-4 to St. Thomas, Dec. 7, but then turned that score on it's head with a 7-1 win over Northland College the following night.
• UW-Stout found their stride as they beat Northland College, 7-1. The Lumberjacks scored first, but the Blue Devils scored seven unanswered goals. Stout had four goals in the second period and three in the third period. Austin Jackson and Logan Nelson each had two goals and Conner Valesano had three assists. | Game Story and Statistics
• In a high scoring affair, St. Thomas University scored seven goals against UW-Stout. The Blue Devils went into the first intermission up 2-1, but gave up four goals in five minutes in the second period to go down, 5-3. That was enough for the Tommies as they downed Stout, 7-4. | Game Story and Statistics

Game Stats Tracker

UW-Stout	Statistics	Finlandia University	-	-
3.25	Goals/game	1.6	-	-
2.33	Goals allowed	3.3	-	-
17.0 percent	Power Play %	16.3 percent	-	-
92.5 percent	Penalty Kill %	72.2 percent	-	-
3	Shutouts	1	-	-

SCOUTING FINLANDIA UNIVERSITY

• Russell Daavettia, Kendall Boien-Porter and Andrew Froese each have two goals and two assists to lead Finlandia, which is a member of the NCHA. Both of Daavettia's goals are power play goals and Boien-Porter has a shorthanded goal. Marcus Gloss has started 10 of the team's 11 games, playing 587 minutes with a GAA of 2.97 and a saves percentage of .917.
• Finlandia Stats

LIONS LAST TIME OUT

• The Lions have been off since Dec. 1 when they lost a 3-1 decision to Lawrence University.
• It was another 60 minutes of hustle and SISU as the Finlandia University men's hockey team lost 3-1 to Lawrence, Dec. 1 at the Houghton County Arena. Finlandia and Lawrence were very active in the first period. Combined, there were 18 saves and another 11 shots on target that were blocked. The Vikings managed to slip through and score at the 3:27 mark of the second period. The Lawrence goalie made three great saves to keep the Lions off the board. FinnU out shot Lawrence, 15-7 in the second period alone. With 4:47 left in the period, senior Bryce Mitzel took advantage of great passing to score. The Vikings came back to take the lead at 2-1 with four minutes left in the second. In those last four minutes, Finlandia had four shots that were saved. After several near-misses by the Lions, the Vikings got an insurance goal with less than a minute to play in the final period. Finlandia outshot Lawrence 37-29 for the game. Junior Blake Peavey and sophomore Hunter Keroeach had a face-off win percentage of .625 or better. Sophomore Marcus Gloss finished with 29 saves. | Game Story and Statistics

WHEN STOUT AND FINLANDIA MET LAST

• UW-Stout outshot Finlandia University by a more than three-to-margin and scored three goals in the first period on their way to a 5-1 over the Lions Fanetti Community Center Friday in the 2016-17 season-opener. Freshman Trent Olson racked up three assists in his first game as a Blue Devil. The Blue Devils (1-0-0) scored twice in the first period within a 17 second span. Freshman Colton Brausenopened the score at the 3:06 mark, getting assists from Olson and Karl Andersen. Seventeen second later, Justin Moody picked up his first goal of the season, with assists by Olson and Connor Valesano. Olson dished off third assist of the game at 11:26 when Riley Colvard scored on the power play. Alex Toscano provided the second assist. Finlandia got on the board in the opening stanza when Thomas Clayton scored at 16:12. Stout scored once in the second and once in the third. Joe Kleven scored at 13:03 of the second period, with assists by Shayne McLaughlin and Valesono. Valesano scored his first goal as a Blue Devil, scoring 32 seconds into the third period on assists by McLaughlin and Moody. Stout put 46 shots on net, while holding the Lions to only 13 shots. Walker Enstad recorded 41 saves for Finlandia, while Spencer Viele had 12 saves. | Game Story and Statistics

USCHO.com TOP 15 DIVISION III POLL: The Blue Devils have been receiving votes in the 2018-19 USCHO.com poll since Nov. 18, and received one vote this week. Blue Devil 2017-18 opponents ranking in the Top 15 in the latest USHCO.com Division III poll are: UW-Stevens Point, 1st (Feb. 1, Feb. 8); UW-Eau Claire, 4th (Nov. 28, Jan. 23);  Augsburg University, 5th. (Jan. 12) and Marian University 13th (Nov. 17). Concordia-Moorhead (Nov. 2) is receiving votes. USCHO.com Division III Poll

TEAM CAPTAINS: Captains for the 2018-19 season are Mathias Ahman, Conner Valesano, Lucas Carroll and Adam Kresl.


AWARDS AND HONORS: 2018-19:

• 2018-19: Tommi Ahlgren was named the WIAC athlete of the week and to the D3hockey.com Team of the Week, Nov. 20, after posting back-to-back shutout wins over Lawrence (3-0) and seventh ranked Marian (4-0).

UW-STOUT COACH TERRY WATKINS

• The 2018-19 season marks Terry Watkins' (259-314-41) 23rd season as the head coach of the Blue Devils' varsity program.
• Watkins spent eight years coaching the club team (104-102-16) as Stout prepared to return to varsity status in 1997.
• Watkins was the 2006-07 NCHA coach of the year when Stout finished in a three-way tie for first.
• Watkins had a Hall of Fame career at Stout as a defenseman. Watkins played in UW-Stout's first-ever game, but he was a member of the Blue Devils' opponents, St. Paul Groveland, Jan. 19, 1969. St. Paul beat the Blue Devils, 8-4. Watkins enrolled at Stout the following school year and joined the hockey team.
• Stout won a WIAC title in 2010-11, and an NCHA title during the 2006-07 season.
• Watkins reached 700 games as the head coach of a UW-Stout hockey team (varsity and club) when the Blue Devils played UW-Stevens Point, Dec. 7, 2013.
• Watkins came into the season with a 252-310-40 record.

FINLANDIA'S JOE BURCAR

• Joe Burcar is in his 12th overall season as head coach of men's hockey at Finlandia University.  He was the head coach from 2001 until November 2009. Burcar is 108-147-14 in his tenure with the Lions, the second winningest coach in all sports in school history.  After three years as an independent, Finlandia found a home in the MCHA/NCHA.  Burcar guided the team to the playoffs in each of the first five seasons and in 2006-07 they won the Harris Cup, which was the first conference title in any sport in school history.

THE CONFERENCES:

• UW-Stout is a member of the five-team Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC). The WIAC is made up of Stout, UW-Eau Claire, UW-Stevens Point, UW-Superior and UW-River Falls.

LENDING AN ASSIST: Two different Stout goalies earned assists during the 2015-16 season. Spencer Viele was awarded an assist Nov. 6 against Bethel University, then added a second assist Jan. 29 at UW-Superior and Chase Hollander earned an assist Nov. 21, 2015, against Concordia. The three helpers mark the first time two UW-Stout goalies have gotten an assist in the same year since the team returned to varsity status 20 years ago...When Spencer Viele was awarded an assist against Bethel University, Nov. 6, 2015, he was not the first Stout goalie, and won't be the last, to get an assist. Since the Blue Devil hockey program returned to varsity play during the 1996-97 season, seven goalies have earned at least one assist. Chase Hollander was awarded an assist for his pass as Danny Ray scored against UW-Superior, Jan. 17, 2015. Corey Koop did it during the 2013-14 season, Jeff Stone during the 2008-09 season, and Jake Schuman during the 2004-05 season each recorded an assist. Jeff Dotson did it in 2000-01 as a freshman, then did it again as a senior in 2003-04. Kelly Elde did it twice during the 1996-97 season.

PREVIOUS BLUE DEVIL HAT TRICKS (since 2008)
Mathias Ahman vs. St. Olaf College, Jan. 5, 2018
Joe Anderson vs. Gustavus Adolphus, Jan. 9, 2016
Tyler Cayemberg vs. Concordia University Wisconsin, Nov. 21, 2015
Austin Nelson vs. Aurora University, Jan. 23, 2015
Branden Gay vs. St. Scholastica, Dec. 2, 2011
Branden Gay vs. St. Norbert, Feb. 12, 2011
Scott Motz vs. St. Mary's University, Jan. 13, 2009
Nick Klaren vs. Northland, Nov. 4, 2008
Scott Motz vs. Northland, Nov. 4, 2008
Derek Hanson vs. Augsburg, Oct. 31, 2008
Derek Hanson vs. Concordia, Oct. 24, 2008

THE LAST TIME...
Two Stout players recorded a hat trick: Scott Motz, Nick Klaren vs. Northland College, Nov. 4, 2008
A Stout player recorded two or more power play goals: 2, Mathias Ahman vs. St. Olaf College, Jan. 5, 2018
A Stout player recorded a shorthanded goal: Lucas Carroll vs. Lawrence University, Nov. 16, 2018 (W 3-0)
Stout scored two empty net goals: Jake Useldinger, Nolan Kirley vs. Saint Mary's University, Jan. 16, 2016
A Stout goalie recorded 40-45 saves: 41, Tommi Ahlgren vs. UW-Superior, Nov. 30, 2018
A Stout goalie recorded 46-50 saves: 49, Spencer Viele vs. Aurora University, Jan. 24, 2015
A Stout goalie recorded 50-55 saves: 51, Corey Koop vs. UW-Eau Claire, Feb. 20, 2014
A Stout goalie recorded 55-plus saves: 59, Corey Koop vs. UW-Stevens Point, Dec. 7, 2013
A Stout player recorded four goals: 4, Brad Weappa vs. Hamline University, Jan. 18, 2000
A Stout goalie recorded an assist: Spencer Viele vs. UW-Superior, Jan. 29, 2016
A Stout team scored 5-7 goals: 7 vs. Northland College (W 7-1), Dec. 8, 2018
A Stout team scored 8-10 goals: 8 vs. Concordia Wisconsin (W 8-5), Jan. 10, 2015
A Stout team scored 10-plus goals: 11 vs. Northland College (W 11-2), Nov. 4, 2008
Stout posted a shutout: vs. Marian University, Nov. 17, 2018 (3-0); vs. Lawrence University, Nov. 16, 2018 (4-0); vs. Trine University (3-0), Oct. 26, 2018 vs. St. Olaf College (3-0), Dec. 10, 2016; Gustavus Adolphus (0-0), Nov. 7, 2015
Stout recorded back-to-back shutouts: Nov. 16, 2018, 3-0, vs. Lawrence University, Nov. 17, 2018, 4-0, vs. Marian University
Stout was shut out: vs. Aurora University (2-0), Nov. 24, 2017
Both teams played to a scoreless tie: vs. Gustavus Adolphus, Nov. 7, 2015


BLUE DEVIL RECORD BOOK
Individual Records
Goals by Game: 8, Glenn LaChapelle vs. UW-Stevens Point, Feb. 18, 1973
Assists by Game: 9, Chuck Gerber vs. UW-Stevens Point, Feb. 18, 1973
Points by Game: 9, Glenn LaChapelle (8/1) vs. UW-Stevens Point, Feb. 18, 1973; Chuck Gerber (0/9) vs. UW-Stevens Point, Feb. 18, 1973;
Saves by Game: 67, Tom Slupe vs. Wisconsin JV, Feb. 14, 1970
Goals by Season: 43, Glenn LaChappelle, 1972-73
Assists by Season: 28, Derek Hanson, 2008-09
Points by Season: 65, Glenn LaChapelle (43/22), 1972-73
Saves by Season: 850, Tad Larson, 1977-78
Goalie Win/Loss Record by Season: 21-5-2, Matt Koenig, 2008-09
Goals by Career: 80, Glenn LaChapelle, 1970-73
Assists by Career: 80, Derek Hanson, 2006-10; Scott Motz, 2006-10
Points by Career: 140, Derek Hanson (60/80), 2006-10
Saves by Career: 2480, Tad Larson, 1974-78
Goalie Win/Loss Record by Career: 44-16-4, Matt Koenig, 2005-09
Fastest First Period Goal: 10 seconds, Mark Ryder vs. UW-Stevens Point, Feb. 17, 1973
Fastest Second Period Goal: 6 seconds, Mike Kautz vs. UW-Stevens Point, Jan. 20, 2006
Fastest Third Period Goal: 6 seconds, Duane Johnson vs. St. Cloud State, Dec. 2, 1978
Fastest Overtime Goal: 6 seconds, Curt Moore vs. Concordia, Nov. 26, 1976

Team Records
Most Goals in a Period: 11, vs. UW-Stevens Point, Feb. 17, 1973
Most Goals in a Game: 21 vs. UW-Stevens Point, Feb. 17, 1973
Most Goals Allowed in a Game: 18, vs. Wisconsin JV, Feb. 14, 1970
Most Penalty Minutes: 21-54 vs. UW-Eau Claire, Dec. 13, 1997
Most Penalty Minutes, Both Teams: 35-96 vs. UW-Eau Claire, Dec. 13, 1997


STOUT'S RANKED HISTORY: The Blue Devils returned to the USCHO.com poll Nov. 19, 2018...the last time the Blue Devils were mentioned was with one vote in the Oct. 31, 2016 poll...The last time Stout was mentioned was Jan. 18, 2016...The Blue Devils returned to the USCHO.com Division III poll, Jan. 18, 2016, after nearly a four year hiatus, receiving five votes. A tie and two straight losses the following week dropped the Blue Devils out of the poll. Stout finished the 2008-09 season as the second ranked team in the USCHO.com poll. With the exception of the Nov. 17, 2008, USCHO.com poll, Stout had been ranked in the top 15 since the Nov. 13, 2006, poll. Stout made their first appearance in the poll on Nov. 27, 2000, when they received one vote, then moved up to 10th the following week. The 2008-09 season ending poll matched Stout's previous high mark of second in the Jan. 29, 2007, poll. Stout opened the 2009-10 season ranked third, their highest-ever season-opening ranking, but fell out of the polls midway through the season and returned to the top 15, Nov. 22, 2010. Stout was in the 2011-12 USCHO.com poll early in the season, dropped out, returned again, but dropped out. Stout returned to the poll after a win over top-ranked St. Norbert, Jan. 18, 2012, garnering eight votes in the Jan. 21, 2012, poll, effectively ranking the Blue Devils 19th. Stout returned to the poll in the early part of the 2012-13 season, receiving seven votes in the Dec. 3, 2012 poll before dropping out. | USCHO.com Division III poll

SCORELESS TIE: If fans were looking for scoring in the UW-Stout/Gustavus Adolphus College game Nov. 7, 2015, they went away disappointed. The scoreless tie with the Gusties was a first for UW-Stout, which has never had a scoreless tie in any of the program's varsity games, stretching back to 1968. Gustavus last season set an NCAA Division III record for ties with eight and one was a scoreless tie. According to Tim Danehy of collegehockeystats.net, scoreless ties are "not common obviously, but not that rare overall" across all divisions, both men and women, and appear to be on the rise. So far this year, six scoreless ties have been reported, but the Stout/Gustavus double goose eggs were the first of the season for Division III men. Last season there were 17 scoreless ties reported to collegehockeystats.net, of which six were Division III men, Danehy said. In 2013-14 there were nine total and 2012-13 had 10 total. The same night UW-Stout and Gustavus were going scoreless, the UW-Eau Claire women and St. Catherine played to a 0-0 decision.

HOME ICE: The Dunn County Board in 2015 approved renaming the Dunn County Ice Arena the Fanetti Community Center in recognition of Marilyn Fanetti's contribution to fundraising efforts undertaken by the Menomonie Youth Hockey Association to remodel and add to the arena at the Dunn County Recreation Park. Fanetti donated $370,000 to the project and asked that the hockey arena and new community room be named for her family.

LIGHTING THE LAMP: It will now be easier to see when the the Blue Devils score. The Fanetti Community Center this summer received an upgrade in their lighting. The lighting in the ice arena was recently replaced with LED lights. The replacement was helped by Xcel Energy through their incentive program, Focus on Energy. The incentives offered by Xcel Energy and Focus on Energy - including bonus incentives through the program's limited-time Community Small Business Offerings (CSBO) campaign - helped offset the cost of the Menomonie Youth Hockey Association Ice Board's investment. | Complete Story

UP NEXT: The Blue Devils are off until they travel to Northfield, Minn., to meet St. Olaf College, Friday, Jan. 4 at 7 p.m. for the third time this season.