Atlantic Hockey Picks, November 27-December 1 – USCHO (blog)
Last week:
Dan: 6-3-2
Chris: 6-3-2
On the season:
Dan: 52-28-7 (.638)
Chris: 60-20-7 (.730)
This Week’s Picks:
Friday, November 27 and Saturday November 28
Army West Point at Canisius
Dan: It’s hard to imagine Army West Point being swept by anybody these days, and I really think they’re on the verge of a breakout. This could be the weekend they do it; the Black Knights are arguably the best team capable of handling a road series after Thanksgiving, and every home team will deal with the inevitable letdown of their student bases being on vacation. That said, I’m pulling a Lee Corso swerve and taking Canisius in a sweep.
Chris:I’ve correctly picked Army to earn a tie in each of the past two weekends (at least in these comments; we don’t actually pick ties). Why stop now? That said, officially I’m going with a Canisius sweep.
Niagara at Holy Cross:
Dan: Holy Cross transformed as a team over the past seven games, a stretch in which they’ve gone 5-2. With the exception of a 7-5 win over Brown, they’ve held opponents to one or none goals in each of their four other wins. They’ve given up three and five goals in losses. If the defense is on, they win. That’s a good challenge against a Niagara offense that’s averaging over three goals per game in their last three games, Holy Cross sweeps.
Chris: There will be lots of purple on display in Worcester, but I like the guys in the mostly white jerseys to pull out four tough points at home. Holy Cross sweeps.
Air Force vs. Colorado College
Dan: These teams will play on Friday at the academy before shifting to the World Arena less than 20 miles away. But you couldn’t find two teams heading in any further directions away from each other. Air Force is 2-0-1 in their last three, including a three point weekend against Sacred Heart on the road. Colorado College is completely winless. Air Force sweeps.
Chris:At 0-9, Colorado College will be playing some desperate hockey, with the added pressure/incentive of a local rivalry on the line. I think the Tigers snap their streak, but not until Saturday. Air Force wins Friday; Colorado College on Saturday.
Saturday, November 28 and Sunday, November 29
Sacred Heart at Robert Morris
Dan: I think I love this matchup as the early season series of the year. Robert Morris has ample motivation to get a good weekend after losing points to AIC and Army West Point the last two weeks. That’s the same for a good SHU squad that lost twice to Penn State and only took a point from Air Force. Sacred Heart wins on Friday. Robert Morris wins on Saturday.
Chris:If this series was in Milford, I’d go with a split. But I think Robert Morris finds a way to win both. RMU sweeps.
Saturday, November 28
Bentley at New Hampshire
Dan: UNH has a decided home ice advantage playing on an Olympic-sized rink measuring 200 feet by 100 feet; they haven’t finished below .500 at home since well over 15 years ago. That said, their only win so far on Lake Whitt is against AIC to start the season. The Wildcats haven’t won a game in general since Halloween That’s an interesting subplot to facing a hungry Bentley team that’s looking to prove it can regain its winning stroke against Hockey East teams. UNH wins, but I feel zero confidence in this pick.
Chris: Bentley has represented the league well in non-conference play, and while a win here is certainly possible, I’m going with the slumping Wildcats. UNH wins.
RIT at Boston College
Dan: BC is ranked #1 in both scoring offense and scoring defense. That comes despite giving up four goals to Michigan State and three goals to New Hampshire last weekend. If there’s a good news for RIT, it’s that Conte Forum should feel like a mausoleum with a 4 PM Saturday game. Boston College wins.
Chris: I’ll be broadcasting this one, a payback trip for the Tigers after Boston College came to Rochester in 2014. That was a 6-2 BC win, and I’m thinking along so same lines. BC wins.
Tuesday, December 1
American International at Bentley
Dan: After losing at BU and (predicted) at UNH, Bentley returns home for their first conference game at the JAR since October 10th. It’s AIC’s first visit to the JAR since February 28th, 2014, a place where they’re 3-3 since the start of the decade. In a bit of good news, the two teams, member schools of the D2 Northeast-10 in everything else, will play each other four times this year Bentley wins.
Chris: If Bentley can avoid a letdown after some tough road games, I think the Falcons take care of business. Bentley wins.
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