And Then There Were Two

By: Michelle Cashman

The Purple Eagles are down to their final two games of the 2009 – 2010 season. The boys will defend their home ice against two opponents, first against Cortland State University of New York on Friday and then on Saturday, the final game will be against ECHL challenger Syracuse University.

This will the first time this season Niagara will be up against Cortland. The Red Dragons are boasting an 11-3 record and a third place ranking in their league but Niagara has beaten teams with better rankings, namely their latest conquest # 24 ranked nationally University at Buffalo, so this upcoming game is not out of the question. The Red Dragons average four goals per game so it’s imperative that Niagara’s defense keep a sharp eye. Cortland can easily explode during a game and rack upwards to thirteen goals, so the Eagles will definitely have to keep their defense tight. The puck drops at 9:30 p.m. in Niagara’s Dwyer Arena.

ECHL adversary Syracuse University will be travelling to Dwyer Arena to attempt to vanquish their October 2^nd loss against Niagara, in which the Eagles won 4 – 2. While Syracuse has not had the best season, 8-15 overall, they are still a powerful team which Niagara cannot lightly brush off. Especially with this being the final game of the regular season as well as Senior Night, the Eagles are going to want to bring everything they have to the table and pull out a monstrous win to end the season with. For Sean Carmack, Jeff Osler, Nick Gollaher, Dan Fitzgerald, Kevin Zola, and Michael Playfair, this will be their final game as Purple Eagles. If Niagara can play as they have in the past few weeks, working together and exploiting their advantages, they should have no problem ending this season on a high note. The game will start at 8:45 p.m., but make sure to get there early for the Senior Night ceremonies.