The match up

The Bemidji State University men’s ice hockey team opens its 57th season of collegiate hockey this weekend when it welcomes Lake Superior State University to Sanford Center for the first time. The Beavers have posted an impressive 41-13-2 mark in season openers and are unbeaten in 26 of their last 33 lid-lifters. Since making the jump to the NCAA Division I ranks for the 1999-2000 season, BSU is 7-5-1 in season openers.

Lake Superior State arrives in Bemidji, Minn. having already played two games. Last weekend the lakers faced intrastate rival Michigan Tech in a nonconference series and split to bring their record to 1-0-0 on the season. LSSU put up four goals in each game winning the opener at home, 4-2, before dropping the series finale 8-4 in Houghton, Mich.

Senior forward Dominic Monardo had a hand in five of the Lakers’ eight goals during opening weekend netting a goal to go with four assists (1g-4a). Fellow senior Nick McParland added a goal and an assist which included the game-winner Oct. 11.

Kevin Kapalka, a junior goaltender, has started both games in net for LSSU. He is 1-1-0 on the season and has a .855 save percentage and a 5.42 goals against average. He was relieved by junior Niels-Erik Ravn in the loss. Ravn posted a .909 save percentage and 3.01 goals against average.



The rivalry

This weekend Bemidji State reconnects with Lake Superior State to rekindle rivalry dating back to the late 1960s. From 1966-1973 BSU and LSSU met on a yearly basis as members of the International Collegiate Hockey Association (ICHA). In addition, the teams have a storied national championship history. BSU defeated Lake Superior State for the NAIA national title in 1968, 1969 and 1970, with the 1969 and 1970 championships taking place on LSSU ice.

In all, BSU and LSSU have met on 41 previous occasions with the Lakers owning a 22-17-2 advantage and a 10-8-1 mark versus the Beavers in games played in Bemidji, Minn.

Last season the Beavers traveled to Sault Sainte Marie, Mich. Nov. 4-5 to for a nonconference series split. BSU won the series opener 3-2 in overtime, before the Lakers bounced back to earn a 2-1 victory.



The unparalleled tradition

The 2012-13 season represents the 14th at the NCAA Division I level, and the 57th year of intercollegiate competition, for a BSU program which has assembled one of the finest traditions in all of American collegiate sport.

*BSU owns 13 NAIA, NCAA Division II and NCAA Division III national titles.

*The Beavers have captured 21 conference titles in 56 seasons of intercollegiate competition.

*In 2009, BSU became the first No. 16 seed to ever earn a spot in the Frozen Four. In just its 10th year at the NCAA Division I level, only one team, the 1958 Denver Pioneers, found its way to college hockey’s grandest stage faster.

*BSU has developed seven NHL players, six Olympians and 82 All-America honorees.

*BSU has compiled an all-time record of 998-507-94 (.654) in 1,564 games.



The coaches

uBemidji State’s Tom Serratore (Bemidji State ‘86) is in his 12th season as BSU’s head coach and has an overall record of 195-164-41 (.539). In addition to directing the Beavers to records of at least .500 in seven of the last nine seasons, Serratore’s teams have won CHA regular-season championships five times since 2003-04 and made trips to the NCAA Tournament in 2005, 2006, 2009 and 2010, with a 2009 appearance in the Frozen Four. He is a five-time CHA Coach of the Year recipient and was Spencer Penrose National Coach of the Year Runner-up in 2009.

uNow in his eighth season at LSSU, Jim Roque has led the Lakers to a 104-126-44 (.460) record. The 1987 Lake Superior State graduate is in his third stint on the Lakers’ coaching staff for a total of 18 seasons. He also served as an assistant under Frank Anzalone and Jeff Jackson before taking the reigns of the program in 2005. As a player, Roque totaled 56 goals and 144 career points from 1983-87 and sits 19th on the Lakers’ all-time scoring list.



Last season for the Beavers

The BSU men’s hockey team is coming off its second season in the WCHA. The Beavers posted a 17-18-3 record which included an 11-14-3 mark in league play, which was good for 10th place in the league’s final standings. Was swept by eventual WCHA Final Five Champion University of North Dakota in the first round of the 2012 WCHA playoffs, 4-1, 4-3.



Last time versus Lake Superior State

The Beavers last met LSSU Nov. 4-5 of last season. The Beavers used an overtime goal off the stick of Jordan George to gain a 3-2 victory over then-No. 13 Lake Superior State, before the Lakers earned a nonconference series split with a 2-1 win in the back half of the two-game set. BSU was led in the series by Shea Walters, who netted a pair of goals. Despite being tagged with the loss, goaltender Andrew Walsh collected 27 saves, posted a .931 save percentage and a 2.05 goals against average.



Beavers picked to finish eleventh

Western Collegiate Hockey Association media picked Bemidji State to finish 11th in the annual 94X WCHA Preseason Media Poll. Defending regular-season champion University of Minnesota was picked as the favorite to win the league and the MacNaughton Cup in 2012-13. The Gophers garnered 24 of 25 first-place votes and 11.92 points per ballot to edge University of North Dakota (10.76).



Oh captain, My captain

For the second consecutive season, senior forward Ben Kinne (St. Paul, Minn.) will captained the Beavers during the 2012-13 campaign. Senior defenseman Jake Areshenko (Port Coquitlam, British Columbia) will wear the “A” for the second season, while Aaron McLeod and Matt Prapavessis were also selected alternate captains for 2012-13.



Playing close to home

Five of the Beavers’ 27 rostered players in 2012-13 hail form the state of Minnesota. James Hansen and Sam Windle call Maple Grove their hometown, Sam Rendle is from Grand Rapids, Ben Kinne hails from St. Paul, Danny Mattson grew up in Minneapolis and Matt Hartmann calls Hugo home.



Familiar look

Tom Serratore returns 20 letter winners from a year ago including Jordan George and Aaron McLeod. George posted 31 points (19g-12a), which included a career-high 19 goals scored in 2011-12 to lead the team, while McLeod more than doubled his point total by registering 23 points (9g-14a) to finish fourth on the team. BSU returns 72 percent of scoring from a year ago, which includes 73.3 percent of its goal scoring (74-of-101) and 71.4 percent of its assist scoring (115-of-161).



Three is the magic number

In 2011-12, the three-goal mark was a threshold for Bemidji State. The Beavers were 5-15-1 when allowing more than two goals and were 12-3-2 when scoring at least three. When its opponent scores three or more goals, BSU is 4-16-2 last winter.



The search for 1,000

In 56 years of hockey, the Bemidji State men’s hockey program has accumulated 998 wins. With an all-time record of 998-504-94 (.657) in 1,596 games, two wins this weekend would also make the Beavers the 18th program in college hockey history to log 1,000 wins.



BSU 18th in all-time wins

Bemidji State became the 18th program among the 58 current members of NCAA Division I to post its 900th all-time victory when it defeated Ala.-Huntsville, 3-2, on Dec. 15, 2006. BSU’s 998 victories currently rank 18th all-time among current members of Division I. Cornell is next ahead of BSU, in 17th all-time with 1,018 victories. Seventeen Division I programs have posted 1,000 wins, including 2012-13 BSU foe Minnesota which leads Division I with 1,655 all-time victories, and is the only program in the nation with 1,600 or more all-time wins, while Michigan is second with 1,552 victories.



Friday is a perfect time for OT

All four of BSU’s overtime contests in 2011-12 came in the first game of a series. The Beavers were unbeaten in overtime last season at 1-0-3. BSU has not lost an overtime game since falling to Minnesota, 3-2, versus Minnesota Mar. 5, 2011--a streak spanning five games (2-0-3).



Don’t call it a shutout

BSU was shut out two times in 2011-12 with the last coming at Minnesota Feb. 17. Bemidji State opens the 2012-13 season riding a string of seven games with at least one goals scored.



Man advantage

Bemidji State finished the 2011-12 season going 25-for-118 (.212) on the man advantage with a 20-for-91 (.220) success rate in WCHA play to rank fourth in league play.



It’s a fine line...

The Beavers were involved in 17 games that were decided by one goal or fewer last season. BSU was 8-6-3 in those games.



Penalty killers...

The Beavers were not whistled for a single penalty March 2 at UAA, marking the first time last season the penalty-kill unit was untested and the first time in the Beavers Division I era (1999-2000). The BSU penalty-kill finished the seasons 123-147 (.837) on the season to sit 10th in the country, which included killing 92-109 (.844) in WCHA play to lead the league.



Beaver scoring by class

In 2011-12, BSU’s juniors class led BSU’s scoring race with 55-71=126, which included netting nearly 57 percent of the teams goal scoring. Next was the senior class with 25-43=68 points, followed by the sophomores (10-19=29). BSU’s freshman class had seven goals and 21 assists to its credit to round out the race.



Power-play Goose eggs

It’s not all that uncommon for a team to be held without a power-play goal in any individual game, but Dec. 31, 2011 versus Bowling Green, BSU didn’t get a single power-play opportunity (0-for-0). BSU also failed to get a man advantage opportunity Feb. 17, 2012 at Minnesota Since Bemidji State made the jump to the NCAA Division I level for the 1999-2000 season, that has only happened four times in 461 games and two during the Beavers’ last 2011-12 campaign.



Then there were seven

Matt Read, a 2011 graduate of Bemidji State and the Beavers’ Division I-era scoring leader, made the Philadelphia Flyers’ 2011-12 opening-day roster and scored his first NHL goal in the Flyer’s second game of the season.

Read’s trip to the NHL makes seven products of the Beaver Hockey program to skate in the NHL ranks. He joins former BSU goaltender Matt Clime (2005-2009) and his teammate Andrew Murray (2001-05) as the only other former Beavers currently in the NHL.



Its share of OT

Extending their March 17 WCHA Final Five quarterfinal game versus Minnesota Duluth to overtime, the Beavers completed the 2010-11 season playing in 12 overtime games, marking its most since playing in a school-record 15 in 2002-03.

In the 11 years since the Beavers moved to Division I, they have escaped overtime with at least a tie in 76 percent (68) of the 89 games that have needed extra time to decide the outcome.

Since March 11, 2006, BSU is 12-6-21 in games extended to sudden death, including a 1-0-3 record in extra time in 2011-12.



Shoot the puck

BSU was out shot in 26 of its 38 games last season. BSU finished the season trailing its opponents 1,113-941 (-4.9 spg), which includes a 877-695 (-7.7 spg) differential in 28 WCHA games. BSU was 8-14-3 when being out shot, 8-4-0 when out shooting its opponent and 1-0-0 when shots are even.



Big shots

BSU logged more than 30 shots on goal in 2011-12 just four times. Ironically, BSU dropped three of those games with its only win coming Feb. 11 when it registered 30 shots on goal on a 4-1 victory over Colorado College.



Directions to the scoring column

With six new skaters in the BSU line up, the 2012-13 season brings with it many collegiate firsts--games, goals, assists. Freshman Phil Brewer, James Hansen, Brad Robbins, Markus Gerbrandt, Graeme McCormack and Cory Ward open the weekend in search of their first collegiate points, while senior Matt Hartmann (0-0=0 in 18 gp) remains the only BSU veteran without a point to his name.



Assistance from the crease

March 3 BSU’s defense produced a goal and two assists including a helper from goaltender Dan Bakala. The assist was the fourth of his career and first to come from between the pipes for the Beavers since Bakala contributed to a goal Jan. 7, 2011. With four in his career, he is just one behind Jim Scanlan (1978-82) who holds BSU’s all-time record.



1-0 wins...

BSU’s victory versus UND Nov. 20 seventh 1-0 victory in the history of the program. Since making the jump to NCAA Division I for the 1999-2000 campaign, BSU is 3-57-7 when scoring only one goal.





I am Iron Man

Jordan George is BSU’s current Ironman. Since stepping on campus in the fall of 2009, he has missed just one of the of the Beavers’ last 113 games. He sat out of the Jan. 16, 2010 contest at Niagara, but has played in the last 90 games consecutively.



Blueline’s offensive push

The Beavers got three assists from its defensive corps in the team’s March 9-10, 2012 WCHA playoff series at North Dakota. Beaver defensemen finished the season scoring in 31 of BSU’s 38 games in 2011-12 and accounted 16 goals and 46 assists (16-46=62) accounting for 24 percent of BSU’s total scoring with an average of 1.63 points per game in 2011-12.



Hints at the outcome

The Beavers are 18-5-3 since 2008-09 when captain Ben Kinne scores a goal. Last season Kinne had 10 goals and BSU was 6-3-1 in those contests. Alternate captain Jake Areshenko scores less frequently, but has the same effect on the game’s outcome. BSU is 9-3-3 when he logs a point and 3-1-0 when he scores a goal.



Power-play shortage

Of the 58 Division I men’s hockey teams, only Dartmouth (104) and Cornell (108), both of which have played six fewer games than BSU, had fewer power-play opportunities than the Beavers’ 118 chances last winter. In WCHA play, BSU had just 91 PP opportunities trailing its nearest opponent, St. Cloud State (98) and by seven. Minnesota State led the league with 134 man advantage opportunities.



Dropping third period leads

In 2010-11, Bemidji State had its streak of 47 consecutive games entering the third period without a loss snapped at 47 games (45-0-2)--a streak stretching back more than three seasons. Since that point, the Beavers have not been perfect translating third period leads into victories. In 2011-12 when leading after two periods, BSU was 13-4-0. Most of those four losses could be attributed to BSU being out scored 39-29 in the third period last season, which included a 32-20 differential in WCHA games.



By George he’s scored 100

With two goals and an assist versus UAA March 2-3, 2012, then-junior Jordan George became the 59th player in the history of Bemidji State hockey to eclipse the 100-point plateau. In 113 collegiate games, he has amassed 101 points (49g-52a).



Offensive Defenseman

Finding his way into the line up in all 38 of Bemidji State’s games last season, sophomore defender Matt Prapavessis not only contributed on the BSU blueline, he was also an active participant on the Beavers’ power-play unit and registered at least a point in 13 games. He posted a goal and 12 assists to lead all BSU rookies, rank tied for fifth on the team in assists and finished among the WCHA’s top 25 defensemen in scoring and top 18 rookies.



Building on career year

Entering his junior season with 15 points (8g-7a) to his credit, centerman Aaron McLeod earned a spot on the BSU top attacking line posting career-high totals for goals (9), assists (14) and points (23). He finished fourth on the team in scoring.



Netting a new goaltender

The graduate of Dan Bakala leaves the 2012-13 Bemidji State hockey team with a void in the nets for the first time in three seasons. Bakala played 90 games over the course of the last three seasons. The obvious person to replace Bakala is sophomore Andrew Walsh. The Dawson Creek, B.C. native saw time in 11 games as a rookie collecting a 6-4-1 record, two shutouts and team bests in save percentage (.915) and goals against average (2.37).



New faces for 2012-13

The BSU 2012-13 freshman class features four forwards, two defensemen and a goaltender. Here is a quick recap of who they are, where they come from and what they’ve accomplished:

Phil Brewer 6-1, 186, F, R, Cambridge, Ontario (OJHL-Burlington) - Played four easons with Burlington... Finished the 2010-11 season, his last season with the Cougars, as the league’s top scorer (39-70--109).



James Hansen 6-1, 225, D, L, Mpale Grove, Minn. (USHL-Waterloo) - Coming off 14-point (3g-11a) season in 60 games played with Waterloo... Finished second among Waterloo blueliners with a +6 plus/minus rating.



Markus Gerbrandt 5-10, 173, F, L, Edmonton, Alberta (AJHL-Fort McMurray) - Played three seasons with Fort McMurray... Last season, he recorded 86 points (40g-46a).



Graeme McCormack 6-1, 194, D, R, Thundar Bay, Ontario (BCHL-Nanaimo) - Played two seasons with Nanaimo where he piled up 12 goals and 42 assists for 54 points.



Brad Robbins 5-7, 169, F, R, Murrieta, Calif. (USHL-SIoux City) - Played two seasons with Sioux City... In 2011-12, he played in 58 of 62 contests led the team in scoring with 49 points (25g-24a).



Fabian Sivnert 5-9, 169, G, L, Holviken, Sweden (EJHL-Valley Jr. Warriors) - Saw time in 30 of 45 games in 2011-12... Posted an overall record of 18-9-2 and recorded a .926 save percentage and a 2.53 goals allowed average.



Cory Ward 5-10, 194, F, R, Las Vegas, Nev. (NAHL-Aberdeen) - Played two seasons with Aberdeen... In 2011-12, he posted a team-best 35 goals and 63 points (35g-28a).