#19 ROBERT MORRIS (20-5-5, 17-3-4 AHC) at R.I.T. (12-13-5, 11-8-5 AHC)Friday, Feb. 20 & Saturday, Feb. 21 at 7:05 p.m. | Gene Polisseni Center, Rochester, N.Y.AUDIO: Google Hangouts | VIDEO ($): AtlanticHockey.TV | TV: TSN2 (Saturday)LIVE STATS: Sidearm | TWITTER: @RMUHockeyTHE LEADIt could be a historic weekend for 19th-ranked Robert Morris University, as it chases its first regular-season conference title in 11 years of Division I hockey. RMU leads the rest of the Atlantic Hockey pack by seven points with four games to play. The Colonials can clinch the AHC's top spot by gaining two points in its final four games, or if Mercyhurst and Bentley fail to earn two points each over that same span.
ABOUT ROBERT MORRIS- The Colonials carry a nation-best eight-game unbeaten streak (7-0-1) into the series, one shy of matching the program record set twice before. RMU went nine games without a loss (7-0-2) to start its current season.
-Â RMU has already matched its previous best for wins in a season, set first in 2012-13. Over the past five seasons, the Colonials have the 13th-best winning percentage (.576) among 59 D-I teams and the best in the AHC.
-Â The Colonials are 8-1-3 as the visiting team, the second-best road record in the nation to Michigan Tech (11-1-1). RMU has won four in a row away from home and sports a five-game unbeaten run (4-0-1) on the road.
-Â This will be RMU's first trip to the new Polisseni Center, but the Colonials have good memories in Rochester, as they won their first AHC postseason championship last March at Blue Cross Arena.
MATCHING UP WITH R.I.T.- After losing twice in Pittsburgh earlier this season, the Tigers will get a second chance at RMU on their home ice. The Colonials are 2-1-3 against RIT in Rochester, although all of those games were at Ritter Arena.
-Â This weekend's series features four of Atlantic Hockey's top five scorers, with RIT senior Matt Garbowsky leading the way at 40 points (21g) and junior Josh Mitchell (26a) third with 36. RMU linemates
Cody Wydo (39 points) and
Zac Lynch (35) are second and fifth in the league.
-Â Much like the RMU goalie tandem of
Terry Shafer and
Dalton Izyk, RIT's Jordan Ruby (16 starts) and Mike Rotolo (13) have shared time nearly evenly. The senior Ruby has the better save percentage (.920) and goals-against average (2.14).
-Â The Tigers are middle-of-the-pack in most teamwide categories, but their penalty killing stands out. RIT has allowed just 15 goals in 140 power-play chances, good for a 89.3 percent success rate that ranks fifth in the nation and first in the AHC.
COLONIALS IN THE MEDIARMU Feature: Twenty-win Colonials continue to boost national profile
Web Story: Robert Morris ranked for season-high fourth straight weekPress Release:
Wydo named finalist for Senior CLASS AwardPrisuta on Pucks: RMU has decisions to make in goal as playoffs loomUSCHO.com: Colonials could be dangerous come NCAA tournament timeSirius/XM Radio:
Coach Schooley talks RMU hockey on College Sports NationTSN Radio: Schooley joins Pipeline Show for lengthy discussion on ColonialsFive Year Plan:Â Robert Morris has risen to national prominence over the past five seasons, all of which have seen the Colonials finish at .500 or better. Since joining Atlantic Hockey in 2010-11, RMU is 94-66-24 overall - the 13th-best winning percentage among 59 Division I teams over that span. On top of that, the Colonials have won at least 13 conference games in each of the past five years and have never finished lower than fifth in the AHC.
Cody Keeps Climbing:Â After a program-record 31-goal, 54-point junior year, Hobey Baker Award candidate and Senior CLASS Award finalist Wydo has paced RMU's attack once again. The Michigan native, who entered the season as the active Division I leader in goals, has 39 points (18g, 21a) in his first 30 games, the seventh-highest total in the nation. His five-point night Jan. 17 vs. AIC gave him the all-time program scoring record at 139 points.Â
Kudos from Atlantic Hockey:Â The Colonials have not only succeeded on a team-wide basis this season, they've also earned several individual honors. Wydo and
Dalton Izyk earned Atlantic Hockey monthly awards in October,
Daniel Leavens won player of the month for December and
Zac Lynch claimed the prize for January. After
Tyson Wilson won Defensive Player of the Week on Feb. 10, RMU had 16 AHC weekly honors in total this season.
David Friedmann (two), Wydo (two),
Terry Shafer (two) and Izyk (three) have all won multiple weekly awards.
PLAYER INTERVIEWSophomore defenseman
John Rey talks to
Matt Gajtka about what makes this year's team special, defending first place all season long, and an interesting pregame habit he maintains:
GAME NOTES
