Pittsburgh sports media veteran and college hockey aficionado Mike Prisuta returns to RMUColonials.com to provide insights on the Colonials throughout the season.

It's been a year to remember at Robert Morris, one full of lessons learned in the second half of one season and in the first half of another that the Colonials would be wise not to forget.

The 17-6-3 run RMU crafted from last January through in the NCAA Tournament and the 8-1-3 start to the 2014-15 season have confirmed for Derek Schooley and his players the ways in which they need to go about the business of winning.

"We've found out a little about our team so far," Schooley said of the six series that preceded this weekend's hosting of Sacred Heart (7:05 p.m., Friday and Saturday, at the Island Sports Center). "We know what we do well. We know what we struggle with, what gives us problems."

The 20th-ranked Colonials' prerequisites for playing the game aren't unique to the 11th-year Division I program that calls the 84 Lumber Arena home.

But that doesn't make following a proven formula for success any less essential.

RMU is a team that's gone a combined 25-7-6 in the calendar year, beginning with a 2-1 victory last Jan. 4 at Sacred Heart.

But the Colonials can also become vulnerable if certain aspects of their game aren't what they need to be on a consistent basis, such as: 

- If they're not aggressive on their forecheck, getting caught between in between attacking in the offensive zone and hustling back into the neutral and defensive zones.
- If they're not getting on and off the ice quickly and not getting fresh legs over the boards at the appropriate times.
- If they succumb to a loss of focus or fundamentals and take misconducts or otherwise unnecessary penalties.
- And if they respond to those stretches in games where the puck seemingly just won't go into the net by passing up good shot opportunities and getting too cute in an attempt to net a slam-dunk goal. 

Evidence of how effective the Colonials can become when they're on their details can be found on the stat sheet as well as in the standings:

- Senior winger and Captain Cody Wydo is tied for second nationally in points per game (8g, 10a, 18p in 12 games, 1.50), tied for eighth in goals per game (0.67) and tied for No. 17 in assists per game (0.83).
- Junior winger Matt Cope is tied for No. 1 in short-handed goals (two).
- Freshman forward Brady Ferguson is No. 3 in rookie points per game (5g, 7a, 12p in 11 games, 1.09).
- And both starting goaltenders are recognizable by their national rankings. Sophomore Dalton Izyk is No. 9 in goals-against average (1.72) and No. 5 in save percentage (.946) while junior Terry Shafer checks in at No. 18 (1.95 GAA) and No. 17 (.930 SV%).

Those who aren't making statistical headlines are still making critical contributions, with the hat trick junior winger David Friedmann registered in a 6-0 triumph on Nov. 22 at American International standing as the most recent example, but far from the only one.

And the work ethic has been there often enough to become the team's signature characteristic. That's helped RMU compensate for an occasional lack of execution and a couple of injuries the Colonials have been forced to work around.

It's all added up to Robert Morris leading the nation in scoring offense (3.83 goals per game) and scoring margin (2.00) and ranking No. 3 in points percentage (.792) through its first 12 games.

At RMU the blueprint has been established.

"We know how we need to play," Schooley said. "It's a matter of doing it on a daily basis."

A longtime member of the WDVE Morning Show, Prisuta also previously served as a reporter for the Beaver County Times and as a columnist for the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. The Michigan State University graduate got his start in the profession covering the Spartan hockey program. Follow him on Twitter at @DVEMike.