For the Gold

The 2017 SUNYAC Championship Final pits Oswego State and SUNY Plattsburgh against one another for the sixth consecutive postseason matchup.

The Cardinals climbed out of a hole they dug themselves into with an impressive run through January and February, earning points in nine of its last ten games to grab the second seed in this year’s playoffs.

Last season, Oswego State struggled for a good portion of their schedule and finished as the fourth seed in the SUNYAC. A refocused approach and attention to detail from each member of this team helped bring the Lakers back to being a top five team in the nation.

Now both teams are just one win shy of being crowned the 2017 SUNYAC champions. Oswego State will most likely be awarded an at-large bid into the NCAA tournament, even with a loss, but the Cardinals will almost assuredly need a win tonight to earn a place in the field.

Season Series

A win on each team’s home ice has the season series knotted at one. A disappointing 2-1 Whiteout loss is still fresh in the mind’s of many. SUNY Plattsburgh scored twice in the third period of that game, including a goal within the last minute.

In both of those games the first goal was the difference maker. Oswego State struck first in Plattsburgh, while the Cardinals potted the game’s first tally in Oswego. Scoring first tonight could be looked back on as the difference maker. The Lakers are 4-4-1 when surrendering the lead first this seaon. SUNY Plattsburgh is 4-7-1 in that same scenario.

Nobody wants to play from behind in any game, especially one like this.

Lineup Card

Oswego State only has one change in the lineup tonight. Kristoffer Brun will sit after he left the semifinal game with an apparent shoulder injury and will not play tonight. Joey Rutkowski will slot in for Brun after not playing in the last three games. 

Both senior netminders will get the start. Matt Zawadzki was the first player on the ice for Friday’s practice, a sign he was slotted to go tonight. This will be his first appearance against SUNY Plattsburgh this season. Zawadzki is 1-2 against the North Country foe in his playoff career and will have a chance to get back to the .500 mark against SUNY Plattsburgh.

Brady Rouleau will start for the Cardinals tonight, as expected. He has played in 18 games this season and has appeared in the last 13-straight games. He was rock solid on Whiteout Weekend, but allowed four goals in a rough outing in the first meeting between these two programs this season.

Players to Watch

OSW: Stephen Johnson

The SUNYAC Defensive Player of the Year will need to be his typical self tonight. He is known for his offensive ability and leads the conference with 30 points, but he is just as steady in his own zone. He can jump up in the rush to become another outlet through the neutral zone, and the senior also rarely gets beat and keeps scoring chances to the outside. He has scored big goals this season, the two goals against SUNY Geneseo being the biggest.

Johnson epitomizes how the Lakers play at both ends, and he will be counted on to come up in big situations tonight. His power play unit will need to take advantage of opportunities to take advantage of the Cardinals’ mediocre penalty killing.

PLT: Brady Rouleau

Rouleau was the game’s best player in this year’s Whiteout game. He was square to the puck and neutralized the Lakers’ potent offense. Goalies can take over games and as the season gets later and later that becomes even more true.

Rouleau came on in relief for Spencer Finney in last season’s title game after Finney made only six saves and allowed four goals. Rouleau could not stop the bleeding, stopping 17 of the 20 shots he faced in a 7-1 loss to the Ice Knights.

By the Numbers

Record

OSW: 21-4-1/13-2-1 (No. 2) [1st seed]

PLT: 16-9-1/10-5-1 (No. 13) [2nd seed]

Shots per Game

OSW: 36.0

PLT: 36.0

Shots Against per Game

OSW: 22.3

PLT: 27.3

Goals per Game

OSW: 4.85 [2nd in Div. III]

PLT: 3.50 [24th in Div. III]

Goals Against per Game

OSW: 1.88 [6th in Div. III]

PLT: 3.31 [T-53rd in Div. III]

Power Play

OSW: 33-118 (27.97%)  [4th in Div. III]

PLT:  24-127 (18.90%) [36th in Div. III]

Penalty Kill

OSW: 102-120 (85.0%) [18th in Div. III]

PLT: 103-128 (80.5%) [45th in Div. III]

*Overall statistics from USCHO.com

Game Prediction

Oswego State lost all three games last season by just one goal. Whiteout was also decided by one goal. These two teams almost always play each other close. The winner of this game will be whatever team can play their style. SUNY Plattsburgh did so on Whiteout and won. They played a tight checking game and it was not about who can score four goals first. Oswego State is more comfortable in games where offense is not at a premium.

Oswego State is seemingly playing its best hockey of the season at this point, and it should be enough to earn them the 2017 SUNYAC Championship.

Lakers win 4-3

*Follow @GonianSports on Twitter for full game updates of the 2017 SUNYAC Championship Final