The Road Trip Begins: The Saints begin a stretch of five straight road contests with Saturday night’s meeting with Providence in Providence. SLU will have a week off following Saturday’s tilt and then the Saints travel to Michigan State and Wayne State before opening ECACHL competition on the road at Dartmouth and Harvard.

Split at Home: The Saints opened at home for just the third time in the last 12 years and gained a split with a 4-3 win over RIT and a 4-3 loss to Niagara. It was the third time in six meetings that RIT has opened the season at Appleton Arena and the Saints won for the third time. It was the 33rd season opening win for the Saints and the 34th home opening victory. The split snapped a string of opening weekend home sweeps for the Saints, who swept St. Cloud State in 1995-96 and Merrimack in 1999-2000.

The Providence Series: The Saints and Friars will meet for the 46th time since 1955 and Providence holds a slim one-game lead in the all time series, 23-22-0. The Saints are 3-1 in their last four against Providence after a 5-3 win at Appleton Arena last season. SLU won 4-3 in overtime in its last appearance at Schneider Rink, November 23, 2001. Saint coach Joe Marsh is 5-5-0 in ten career games against the Friars.

Coach Joe Marsh: Saint coach Joe Marsh begins his 22nd season behind the Saint bench and is closing in on the 400 victory mark. Marsh takes a 380-316-49 record into the weekend game. His team went 21-17-4 last season and finished fifth in the ECACHL. That was the 12th 20 or more win season in Saint hockey history and Marsh has coached ten of the 12 teams to win 20 or more. Eight active Division I coaches have 400 or more career victories. Marsh’s staff includes a trio of SLU graduates, all of whom played under Marsh. Associate head coach Chris Wells is in his eighth season and is a 1992 graduate. Assistant Bob Prier, captain of the 1999 team, is in his fifth season and volunteer assistant Mike Hurlbut, a 1989 first-team All America defenseman, is in his fifth year as well.

The New Look: The Saints were one of the most experienced teams in the nation last season with a roster which included five graduate students and three seniors. The 30-man roster to start the 2006-07 season includes 19 freshmen and sophomores, five juniors and six seniors.

Top Gun: Senior captain Kyle Rank is the top returning scorer for the Saints from last year’s squad with 11 goals and 17 assists for 28 points in 40 games. Rank has 24 goals and 42 assists for 66 points in 112 career games. He has not missed a game since his first appearance six games into the 2003-04 season.

Iron Man: Junior goaltender Justin Pesony tied the single-season appearance record last season with 37 and started 36 games. His 20 wins were the second most in Saint history, trailing Paul Cohen’s 22 in 1987-88. Pesony, who is the first goaltender to be a Saint assistant captain since Grey Weicker in 1982-83, will have some help this season. John Hallas returns after playing in four games including one start as a backup last season and newcomers Kain Tisi and Alex Petizian have impressive pre-collegiate backgrounds. Tisi backstopped the St. Michael’s Buzzers to back-to-back championships while Petizian had outstanding numbers for the best Northwood Prep team in that school’s history.

In the Pros: The Saints graduated four of their top five leading scorers from last season including ECACHL Player of the Year and All America T.J. Trevelyan and ECACHL Outstanding Defensive Defenseman award winner Mike Madill. Trevelyan led the ECACHL in both overall and league scoring, finishing the year with 20 goals and 28 assists in 40 games. John Zeiler was the second leading scorer with 13 goals and 15 assists for 28 points while Madill was fourth on the Saint scoring chart with five goals and 22 assists for 27 points and Mike Zbriger was fifth with 14 goals and 12 assists for 26 points. All four are playing professional hockey this season. The graduating class accounted for 68 of 130 total goals last season and 161 of 338 points.

Top Rookie: Saint freshman Mike McKenzie, the leading scorer in the OPJHL last season, wasted little time in getting his collegiate career off to a good start. He had a goal and two assists in the weekend games against RIT and Niagara and was named ECACHL Rookie of the Week. He scored the game winner on a deflection of a Kevin DeVergilio shot against RIT and assisted on two of Zach Miskovic’s goals against Niagara.

Different Sources: Three of the four Saint goals in the RIT game came from rookies...McKenzie, Travis Vermeulen and Jeremiah Cunningham all scoring their first collegiate goal in their first collegiate game. The other four goals on the weekend came from defensemen. Captain Drew Bagnall scored the first goal of the season for the Saints in the RIT game and Zach Miskovic scored two and Jared Ross the other in the Niagara game.

Target Areas: The Saints finished sixth among ECACHL teams overall in power play efficiency last season at 16.7 percent and were eighth in penalty killing at 83.3 percent, both areas that the coaching staff would like to see improvement in. The Saints were third overall among ECACHL teams in scoring at 3.25 goals per game and ninth in scoring defense at 3.02. They were the second least penalized team in the league at 14.2 minutes per game, trailing only Harvard which averaged 14.1 minutes per game.

Player Notes

Drew Bagnall: Senior captain Drew Bagnall missed a chunk of last season after severing four tendons when cut by a skate in game three of the season against UMass.-Amherst. A Florida Panthers draftee (through trade), Bagnall has played in 103 career games and has 14 goals and 34 assists for 48 points. He had a goal and nine assists in 24 games last season. He scored the first goal of the season for the Saints on a power play 25 seconds into the second period against RIT. (Career vs. Providence: 1st game)

Kevin DeVergilio: Sophomore forward Kevin DeVergilio’s 14 goals as a rookie were the most since Brandon Dietrich scored 20 in the 1998-99 campaign. DeVergilio played in 38 games and had 14 goals and 11 assists for 25 points as a rookie. The Saint team Rookie of the Year, he had five power play goals and two game winners. He had an assist in each game last weekend including one on the game winner against RIT as Mike McKenzie tipped DeVergilio’s shot past the RIT goaltender. He scored a goal and had two assists all in the third period of last year’s game against Providence. (Career vs. Providence: 1 gm. 1-2-3)

Shawn Fensel: Sophomore defenseman Shawn Fensel played in all 40 games last season and contributed four goals and seven assists for 11 points. Three of his four goals were on the power play. He took only six penalties for 12 minutes in 40 games. He scored his first collegiate goal on a power play to open the scoring in last year’s Providence game. (Career vs. Providence: 1 gm. 1-0-1)

Matt Generous: A member of the ECACHL All Rookie Team and the Ronald C. Hoffmann First Year Scholar Athlete Award winner for the class of 2009, Matt Generous played in 34 games last season and did not miss a game after sitting out the first six due to an ankle sprain. He scored four goals, two of them on the power play, and had 11 assists. He sustained a shoulder injury in the season opener against RIT and missed the Niagara game. He will sit this weekend out, but should be ready for Michigan State. (Career vs. Providence, DNP)

Charlie Giffin: Junior forward Charlie Giffin played in 37 games last sason and had four goals and seven assists for 11 points. Three of his four goals were game winners. He saw limited action as a rookie and has played in 43 career games with all of his scoring coming last season. He assisted on the first goal of the season, setting up Drew Bagnall’s power play goal against RIT. (Career vs. Providence: 1 gm. 0-0-0)

Jordan Hack: Junior forward Jordan Hack has seen spot duty in his first two seasons in a Saint uniform. He played in six games last season and 17 as a rookie. He has one assist for his career. He did not play last weekend. (Career vs. Providence: 1 gm. 0-0-0)

John Hallas: Senior goaltender John Hallas appeared in four games as a backup last season and made his first collegiate start, a 3-1 loss to Quinnipiac at Yale which included an empty net goal. He had a 2.47 goals against average with a .879 save percentage. He has made five career appearances in two seasons. (Career vs. Providence: DNP)

Brock McBride: Sophomore forward Brock McBride played in 35 games last season and had six goals and 12 assists for 18 points. He scored a power play goal and had two game winners. He had two assists in last weekend’s games, one each night. (Career vs. Providence: 1 gm. 0-1-1).

Zach Miskovic: Sophomore defenseman Zach Miskovic played in all 40 games for the Saints as a rookie and had a goal and 14 assists for 15 points. He also had only 15 penalties in 40 games. He doubled his career goal scoring total in the Niagara game with his first collegiate multi-goal game, scoring two on bombs from the blue line. (Career vs. Providence: 1 gm. 0-1-1)

Pat Muir: Senior forward Pat Muir has seen spot action in his first three seasons with the Saints and has played in 10 career games, three of them last season. He made his first appearance of the year in the Niagara game. (Career vs. Providence: 1st meeting)

Justin Pesony: The first Saint goaltender to wear the A of an assistant captain since Grey Weicker in 1983, Justin Pesony tied the single-season appearances mark with 37 last season and made 36 starts. He won 20 games, the second most for a SLU goaltender in program history. He made 21 saves in the win over RIT for his 23rd career win. He made 33 saves in last year’s win over Providence for his third win of the season. (Career vs. Providence: 1 gm. 3.00 GA Avg. .916 save pct., 1-0-0)

Kyle Rank: Senior captain Kyle Rank is the leading returning scorer for the Saints after putting up 11 goals and 17 assists in 40 games last season. He had six power play goals, a shorthander and a game winner. He has played in 112 consecutive games since his first appearance six games into his rookie season. He played two years of golf for the Saint golf team and earned All America and conference Player of the Year honors. He earned his first point of his senior season with an assist against Niagara (Career vs. Providence: 1 gm. 0-0-0)

Jared Ross: Sophomore defender Jared Ross played in 29 games as a rookie, missing 11 with injuries. He led the defensemen in goal-scoring with six includingfour on the power play and had a game winner. He finished his rookie year with six goals and four assists for 10 points. He scored his first goal of the year against Niagara last weekend. He scored his first collegiate goal on a power play against Providence last year. (Career vs. Providence: 1 gm. 1-0-1)

Andrzej Sandrzyk: Senior forward Andrzej Sandrzyk filled in on defense when injuries created a lack of depth last season and turned in solid performances down the stretch at both defense and wing. He played in 24 games last season with a goal and four assists. His goal and three of the assists came in the playoffs. He played both games on defense last weekend. (Career vs. Providence: 1 gm. 0-0-0)

Max Taylor: Senior center Max Taylor played in 34 games as a junior with four goals and 11 assists for 15 points. He had a power play goal, a shorthander and two game winners. He has played in 106 career games with 16 goals and 32 assists for 48 career points. Max had a goal and an assist in last year’s game with Providence and scored the game-winner. (Career vs. Providence: 1 gm. 1-1-2)

Mark Wallmann: Junior forward Mark Wallmann played in 39 games last season and had six goals and an assist for seven points. He scored one game winner and had his first carer multi-goal game with two at Yale. (Career vs. Providence: 1 gm. 0-0-0)

Paul Wallmann: Junior defenseman Paul Wallmann played in ten games as a sophomore and had three assists. He has played 38 career games and has four assists. He had one of his assists in the Providence game last season. (Career vs. Providence: 1 gm. 0-1-1)

Newcomers

Tom Bardis: Played for Cushing Academy last year and had 18 goals and 32 assists for 50 points. Was the Cushing Outstanding Offensive Player as a junior and senior. He made his collegiate debut against RIT>

Jeremiah Cunningham: Team captain of the New England Champion Salisbury Prep team, Jeremiah had 10 goals and 25 assists in his final prep season. He played in both games last weekend and scored his first collegiate goal against RIT.

Alex Curran: A teammate of Bardis at Cushing, Alex Curran had 20 goals and 34 assists last season. He made his debut against Niagara and had an assist for his first collegiate point.

Dan Coughlin: A sophomore defenseman, Dan practiced with the Saints last season, but did not see game action.

Sean Flanagan: Canton native Sean Flanagan, nephew of SLU women’s coach Paul Flanagan, had five goals and eight assists in 14 games for the Cornwall Colts in an injury-shortened final season of junior hockey. He was first team All Northern Athletic Conference for three years and MVP one year. He was also an All America high school lacrosse player. He made his debut against RIT and played in one of two last weekend.

Derek Keller: A defenseman who played for the North Battleford Stars, he earned the Outstanding Defenseman Award and was an offensive threat from the blue line, scoring 16 goals with 30 assists. He was also a member of two league and provincial championship baseball tams. He made his collegiate debut against Niagara.

Mike McKenzie: The leading scorer and 2006 MVP in the Ontario Provincial Junior Hockey League, Mike McKenzie had 39 goals and 38 assists in 40 games for the St. Michael’s Buzzers. The son of TSN analyst Bob McKenzie, Mike scored the game winner against RIT in his first collegiate game and assisted on two of the three Saint goals in the Niagara game. He was named ECACHL Rookie of the Week.

Chris Oetting: A sophomore forward, Chris practiced with the Saints last season, but did not see game action.

Casey Parenteau: A sophomore transfer from St. Johns (MN), Casey Parenteau played for Anderson Cup Champions Sioux Falls in the USHL and had 21 goals and 31 assists. Casey scored his first Division I point on an assist on the season’s first goal against RIT.

Alex Petizian: The primary goaltender for the Northwood School with a 2.00 goals against and a .930 save percentage last season, Alex played the second half of the Niagara game and made a penalty shot save among his dozen stops. He saved 12 of 13 shots in 29:57 against Niagara.

Chris Smith: A sophomore defenseman, Chris Smith played in the exhibition game against the US Under-18 team last season, but did not see action in an official collegiate game.

Kain Tisi: Kain Tisi was the primary goaltender for the St. Michael’s Buzzers and helped the team to two league championships and three league championship appearances. He made his collegiate debut as the starter against Niagara and had seven saves on ten shots.

Travis Vermeulen: A member of the Sioux Falls Stampede where he scored nine goals and assisted on 15 in 59 games, Travis Vermeulen had a goal and an assist in the RIT game in his collegiate debut and played in both games on opening weekend.