WESTFIELD, Mass. – The Westfield State University men's ice hockey team was selected to finish sixth in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference based on a pre-season poll by several coaches around the league released earlier today.
The Owls suffered a heartbreaking overtime loss in the first round of the MASCAC tournament to Umass. Dartmouth, 5-4, to end the 2017-18 season. The Owls finished with a 10-14-1 record in the regular season, posting an 8-10 mark in the conference.
The defending regular season champions, Plymouth State, were picked to claim the championship this year. They tallied five of the possible seven first-place votes for 35 total points. Not too far behind were the defending MASCAC tournament champions, Fitchburg State, who cleaned up the final two first-place votes totaling 31 points. The Owls found the sixth slot, accumulating 12 points.
The Owls will look to assistant-captains Aaron Clancy (Quincy, Mass.) and F.X. Girard (St. Lazare, Quebec) to lead the team towards another playoff run. Clancy netted 14 goals, including four game-winners while Girard totaled 24 points last season. Westfield also anticipates the return of team captain Lenny Caglianone (Matawan, N.J.), who suffered a season-ending knee injury in the first home game of the year last season.
Westfield State begins the 2018-19 campaign this Friday night against Western New England University at the Olympia Ice Center, beginning at 7:00 p.m. The Owls open up on home ice on November 8th against Post University, with puck drop slated for 7:35 p.m. at Amelia Park Ice Arena.
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