Only three players on last year’s team won’t be back in cherry and white this winter, and that trio only accounted for three points in 2000-01. This certainly bodes well for a group that finished 17-15-2 last season.

And the Engineers have already established themselves as a force this season, particularly on the offensive end, averaging 4.75 goals per game thus far. Currently, four of the league’s top five scorers skate for RPI: Marc Cavosie (5-6-11), Matt Murley (5-1-6), Nolan Graham (2-3-5), and Andrew McPherson (0-5-5).

Rensselaer certainly raised some eyebrows by defeating perennial Hockey East power New Hampshire and nearly coming back from a 6-1 deficit against Boston University on the strength of a Cavosie hat trick before losing, 6-5. RPI also looked very sharp on the road at Minnesota-Duluth in a pair of one-goal losses.

The Engineers (1-3-0) will open their ECAC slate on Nov. 9 at Colgate.

St. Lawrence

It is rare for a team that has graduated many key players to enter the season wearing a bullseye on its sweater, but that’s what happens when you’re the defending ECAC tournament champions.

Make no mistake about it, legendary Saints coach Joe Marsh will see a very competitive team on the ice this season. For a man who won his 300th game last season, that’s almost a given. And he will certainly have some weapons at his disposal, most notably senior Russ Bartlett, who was third on the team in scoring last season with a very impressive 18-25-43 stat line.

Bartlett is off to a good start already this season, leading the Saints in scoring through their first four games with two goals and two assists.

One area of concern for the Saints (1-3-0) going into the season—goaltending—seems to be in good hands. Freshmen Kevin Ackley and Mike McKenna split time during St. Lawrence’s early-season trips to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula to face Michigan Tech and Lake Superior State. Both played very well and are actually “one-two” among ECAC goaltenders in save percentage, Ackley at .941 and McKenna at .920.

Union

Union’s October road sweep of Notre Dame can certainly be termed a “fast start.”

However, Coach Kevin Sneddon ’92 might be a little wary of jumping to optimistic conclusions too quickly.

Last season, the Skating Dutchmen stormed out of the gates to a 6-1-1 record (3-0-0 in ECAC play) before going 1-11-2 during the months of December and January. In those games with the Irish, however, Union showed that they are a very different team from last season. They demonstrated a scoring touch (potting nine goals in two games), killed penalties efficiently (14-of-15), and received solid play in goal from senior Brandon Snee. What’s more, the Dutchmen showed that they could win on the road, something that was problematic for them last season (2-13-1 away from Achilles Rink).

The Dutchmen didn’t see that same success in their third game of the year, though, in dropping a 3-0 decision at Merrimack. The game was tight all the way, however, as the Warriors held a ten- uous 1-0 advantage until there were less than two minutes to play in the game.

The Dutchmen (2-1-0) are set to host Bemidji State (Minn.) on Nov. 2-3.