Niagara Purple Eagles men's ice hockey
Introduction The '''Niagara Purple Eagles men's ice hockey''' team is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I college ice hockey program that represents Niagara University. The Purple Eagles are a member of Atlantic Hockey. They play at the Dwyer Arena in Lewiston, New York.
History After several years of playing at the club level, the team turned varsity in the 1996–97 season, which they played as independent.In 1999 they became charter members of the College Hockey America, joining two other independent teams (Air Force and Army) and three former Division II teams (Alabama–Huntsville, Bemidji State and Findlay).Niagara went undefeated in conference play that season, 1999–00, winning the conference tournament and gaining an at-large invitation to the NCAA tournament, as the conference did not gain an automatic bid until the 2003 tournament. Starting goaltender Greg Gardner set a single-season NCAA record for shutouts with 12 as Niagara posted its first (and only as of 2019) 30-win campaign. The Purple Eagles upset the University of New Hampshire to advance to the Elite Eight, where they lost to North Dakota. North Dakota went on to win that national championship.Niagara also won the College Hockey America Championship in 2004 and 2008, appearing in the NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Championship again those years. In 2004 they lost against Boston College and in 2008 against Michigan. On January 29, 2009, Niagara University announced that the team was moving to Atlantic Hockey beginning in the 2010-11 season.On October 14, 2010, it was announced that Jay McKee would serve as a volunteer assistant coach for Niagara Purple Eagles men's ice hockey, while not ruling out a return to the NHL.On December 14, 2013 the Purple Eagles faced off against the RIT Tigers in an outdoor hockey game known as Frozen Frontier tying 2-2.Air Force in 2019
Season-by-season results Source:
Head coaches As of the completion of 2022–23 season Tenure Coach Years Record Pct. 1996–2001  Blaise MacDonald  5  91–58–17   2001–2017  Dave Burkholder  16  247–279–68   2017–Present  Jason Lammers  6  77–111–21   Totals 3 coaches 27 seasons 415–448–106
NCAA tournament appearances  Year Location Opponent Result 2000  Target Center  New Hampshire  W 4-1 North Dakota  L 1-4 2004  Verizon Wireless Arena  Boston College  L 2-5 2008  Times Union Center Michigan  L 1-5 2013  Van Andel Arena North Dakota  L 1-2
Statistical leaders Source:===Career points leaders===  Player  Years   GP   G   A  Pts   PIM 2001–2005 141 71 95 '''166''' 142 1996–2000 126 65 77 '''142''' 80 1996–2000 126 55 87 '''142''' 112 2006–2010 146 38 103 '''141''' 103 2005–2009 139 78 59 '''137''' 226 1996–2000 126 67 66 '''133''' 46 2003–2007 145 43 89 '''132''' 142 1996–2000 124 60 69 '''129''' 58 2004–2008 146 51 78 '''129''' 108 2000–2004 144 60 64 '''124''' 111===Career goaltending leaders===''GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; SV% = Save percentage; GAA = Goals against average''minimum 30 games played  Player  Years  GP  Min  W  L  T  GA  SO  SV%  GAA  2010–2013  45  2588  27  11  6  93  6  .930  '''2.16'''  2019–Present  33  1942  13  16  4  75  3  .924  '''2.30'''  2009–2012  61  3262  29  18  8  132  3  .922  '''2.43'''  1996–2000  113  6638  64  33  12  270  16  .907  '''2.44'''  2005–2009  98  5311  47  32  11  231  8  .921  '''2.61'''Statistics current through the start of the 2021–22 season.
Roster As of September 15, 2023.
Awards and honors ===NCAA=======All-Americans===='''AHCA Second Team All-Americans'''*2010–11: Paul Zanette, F===CHA=======Individual awards===='''Player of the Year'''*Greg Gardner: 1999*Joe Tallari: 2003*Barret Ehgoetz: 2004*Jeff Van Nynatten: 2006*Sean Bentivoglio: 2007*Juliano Pagliero: 2009'''Rookie of the Year'''*Ted Cook: 2006*Les Reaney: 2006*Chris Moran: 2007'''Most Valuable Player in Tournament'''*Kyle Martin: 2000*Jeff Van Nynatten: 2004*Ted Cook: 2008'''Coach of the Year'''*Blaise MacDonald: 2000*Dave Burkholder: 2006, 2007'''Three-Star Player of the Year'''*Ted Cook: 2007'''Student-Athlete of the Year'''*Vince Rocco: 2009====All-Conference teams===='''First Team All-CHA'''*1999–00: Greg Gardner, G; Chris MacKenzie, D; Kyle Martin, F; Mike Isherwood, F*2002–03: Joe Tallari, F*2003–04: Jeff Van Nynatten, G; Barret Ehgoetz, F*2004–05: Barret Ehgoetz, F*2005–06: Sean Bentivoglio, F*2006–07: Pat Oliveto, D; Sean Bentivoglio, F; Ted Cook, F*2007–08: Juliano Pagliero, G; Ryan Annesley, D; Vince Rocco, F*2008–09: Juliano Pagliero, G*2009–10: Chris Moran, F'''Second Team All-CHA'''*1999–00: Mikko Sivonen, F*2000–01: Bernie Sigrist, F*2001–02: Scott Crawford, D*2002–03: Barret Ehgoetz, F*2003–04: Andrew Lackner, D; Joe Tallari, F*2004–05: Ryan Gale, F*2005–06: Jeff Van Nynatten, G; Ted Cook, F; Les Reaney, F*2006–07: Juliano Pagliero, G; Les Reaney, F*2007–08: Tyler Gotto, D; Matt Caruana, F*2008–09: Tyler Gotto, D; Vince Rocco, F; Egor Mironov, F*2009–10: Tyler Gotto, D; Ryan Olidis, F'''All-CHA Rookie Team'''*2002–03: Brian Hartman, D; Jason Williamson, F*2003–04: Pat Oliveto, F*2005–06: Ted Cook, F; Les Reaney, F*2006–07: Tyler Gotto, D; Chris Moran, F*2007–08: Adam Avramenko, G*2008–09: Dan Baco, D*2009–10: Jason Beattie, F===Atlantic Hockey=======Individual awards===='''Player of the Year'''*Paul Zanette: 2011*Carsen Chubak: 2013'''Rookie of the Year'''*Ludwig Stenlund: 2019'''Regular Season Goaltending Award'''*Chris Noonan: 2012'''Regular Season Scoring Trophy'''*Paul Zanette: 2011'''Coach of the Year'''*Dave Burkholder: 2013'''Most Valuable Player in Tournament'''*Scott Champagne: 2005====All-Conference teams===='''First Team All-Atlantic Hockey'''*2010–11: Bryan Haczyk, F; Paul Zanette, F*2012–13: Carsen Chubak, G; Giancarlo Iuorio, F'''Second Team All-Atlantic Hockey'''*2011–12: Chris Noonan, G*2012–13: Dan Weiss, D'''Third Team All-Atlantic Hockey'''*2010–11: Ryan Annesley, D*2012–13: Kevin Ryan, D*2013–14: Kevin Ryan, D*2017–18: Derian Plouffe, F*2018–19: Noah Delmas, D; Ludwig Stenlund, F*2019–20: Jack Billings, F'''Atlantic Hockey All-Rookie Team'''*2010–11: Ryan Rashid, F*2013–14: Vinny Muto, D*2014–15: Keegan Harper, D*2018–19: Ludwig Stenlund, F*2019–20: Chad Veltri, G*2020–21: Josef Mysak, D*2021–22: Shane Ott, F
Niagara Purple Eagles Hall of Fame The following is a list of people associated with the men's ice hockey program who were elected into the Niagara Purple Eagles Hall of Fame (induction date in parentheses). *Greg Gardner (2006)*Peter DeSantis (2007)*Mile Isherwood (2007)*Joe Tallari (2012)*Barret Ehgoetz (2013)*1999-2000 Men's Team (2016)
[[Former NCAA players in the National Hockey League|Purple Eagles in the NHL]] As of July 1, 2023.Player Position Team(s) Years Games Sean BentivoglioLeft WingNYI2008–200910Matt RyanCenterLAK2005–2006120Source:
See also *Niagara Purple Eagles women's ice hockey
References
External links * Niagara Purple Eagles men's ice hockey