Men's Hockey | 9/19/2019 11:00:00 AM

PITTSBURGH -- The Robert Morris University men's hockey team announces that it will deploy a three-captain system for the 2019-20 season, with Luke Lynch, Daniel Mantenuto and Nick Prkusic all getting the 'C' stitched to their jerseys.

For Lynch, a senior from Pittsburgh, this is the second year he'll wear a letter, as he sported the 'A' for alternate captain as a junior. For the senior Mantenuto and the junior Prkusic, this will be their first seasons wearing letters at the college level.

"I think we've got a unique group of leaders," RMU head coach Derek Schooley said. "They all have strengths. By naming all three captains, I think it balances them all out. It helps complete the leadership of this team, as far as who's wearing the 'C'.

"They all bring unique aspects to create a very good captain core. One thing I could say about all of these guys is they all come to work every day."

Lynch is coming off his second straight 30-plus-point season, leading the Colonials in assists with 21. He has missed just one game in three years at Robert Morris, scoring 87 points (36g, 51a) to rank 14th in team history.

"I'm going to keep playing my game the same way, doing all the little things right and leading by example," Lynch said. "That's a big thing of mine, so I want to keep doing that. The team thought we had three great leaders, so why not put a 'C' on all of our chests? Whether or not you have a letter, it doesn't matter. I'm going to keep playing the same way."

Lynch is on pace to become the 12th Colonial to reach the 100-point milestone, but his leadership qualities are as much about his contagious energy as his offensive production.

"Luke's very outgoing," Schooley said. "He's a talker. He's the voice of the locker room and provides a lot of energy to the team. He's loud, and I mean that in a good way."

Mantenuto, who was raised in the northern Toronto suburb of Thornhill, Ontario, broke out in his junior season for 22 points, nearly matching his output from his first two years of college hockey combined.

"Obviously it's an honor to be named a captain, especially with a program that has a history like we do," Mantenuto said. "I think the biggest thing is bringing everyone together and making sure everyone enjoys their time here, and feels like they're fitting in and belonging to the family. That's when we've had our biggest successes, when everyone's contributing and everyone loves coming to the rink every day and loves being around each other."

The understated left-handed centerman was especially lethal late, scoring two goals and assisting on three others during RMU's six-game run through the Atlantic Hockey playoffs. Mantenuto also won the majority of his faceoffs for the second year in a row.

"People really respect Daniel because of his work ethic," Schooley said. "He's battled through a lot in his first two years and had a great junior year. He's not a loud guy. He's a quiet guy who goes about his business. He's professional."

Prkusic, a native of greater Edmonton, Alberta, also took a big step forward in 2018-19. The 6-foot-3 power forward leaped from five points (all goals) as a freshmen to 23 points (seven goals) as a sophomore.

"Nick's a very mature individual," Schooley said. "He's very thoughtful when he speaks. He had a really good sophomore year and he competes extremely hard."

Like Mantenuto, Prkusic also rose to the postseason occasion, notching a goal and four assists as the Colonials returned to the AHA semifinal round for a league record-tying sixth consecutive season. He's focusing on helping get everyone on board before the season opens on the first weekend of October.

"It's going to take a lot more than just the three of us," Prkusic said. "It's going to be a lead-by-committee kind of thing. It's all about setting the culture and tone early, and holding everyone accountable. We're off to a good start and we need to keep it going that way."

With last year's 11-man freshman class having matured into sophomores, group leadership figures to be a theme for RMU's 16th Division I season. The seven-man senior class will have plenty of help as it aims for a third trip to the AHA championship game in four seasons on campus.

"We have a tremendous amount of leaders in the senior class, the junior class and the sophomore class," Schooley said. "The captains won't just be leaders by themselves. We have six or seven guys who could wear letters on this team."

The 2019-20 season starts with an opening weekend series against Michigan Tech on Oct. 5-6 at the Island Sports Center. The full schedule, which includes 16 home dates, plus a game against Penn State on Jan. 11 at PPG Paints Arena, can be accessed here.

Led by Schooley since the start of the program, the Colonials have qualified for a league-record-tying six consecutive Atlantic Hockey final fours, a stretch that includes two regular-season crowns and an NCAA tournament appearance in 2014. They boasted five Atlantic Hockey Student-Athletes of the Year in 2018-19, and 23 league academic honorees overall.