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Chilliwack Chiefs in the NCAA: Pelino picks up a win

Craig Puffer scored a goal and Luke Esposito's Harvard Crimson keep rolling as the college hockey season hits its stretch run.
AidenPelinoBentley
Ex-Chilliwack Chief Aidan Pelino picked up his second win of the NCAA Div 1 hockey season

Dennis Cholowski

Freshman — D — 26-1-9-10

St. Cloud State Huskies

The first year defenceman went pointless in weekend games against the Bemidji State Beavers and Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs.

The Detroit Red Wings first round pick (2016) has been held off the score-sheet in his last six outings.

Cholowski's Huskies are 6-9-1-0 within their conference and sit eighth in the nine-team standings.

St. Cloud State is 12-13-1 overall heading into back to back road games Friday and Saturday against No. 13 ranked North Dakota.

Cholowski spent parts of three seasons (2013-16) with the Chilliwack Chiefs.

 

Scott Davidson

Sophomore — F— 25-0-6-6

Quinnipiac Bobcats

Davidson picked up a minor penalty but otherwise was quiet as his Bobcats split weekend games against the Arizona State Sun Devils.

Quinnipiac is 8-6-1 against East Coast Athletic Conference competition and sits fourth in the 12 team standings.

The No. 19 ranked Bobcats are 14-11-2 overall and skate into games versus Brown University Friday and Yale Saturday.

Davidson (21) played 21 games with the Chiefs in 2014-15.

 

Jeremy Germain

Freshman — F — 21-1-6-7

Princeton Tigers

Germain was held off the scoresheet as his team earned a 5-4 win over David Thompson's Penn State Nittany Lions Saturday.

Princeton is 3-9-2 versus East Coast Athletic Conference foes and sits 10th in the 12 team standings.

The Tigers are 8-11-2 overall and have games Friday at Yale and Saturday at Brown.

Germain (20) played 56 games with the Chiefs in 2015-16.

 

David Thompson

Senior — D — 7-2-1-3

Penn State Nittany Lions

Davidson picked up his second goal of the season Saturday in a 5-4 loss to Jeremy Germain's Princeton Tigers.

Penn State is 5-2-1-0 within their conference and third in the six-team Big 10 standings.

The Nittany Lions are 16-4-2 overall and ranked sixth nationally.

Thompson's team visits No. 7 ranked Big 10 rival Minnesota in back to back road games Friday and Saturday.

Thompson spent two seasons (2011-13) with the Chiefs.

 

Jake Hand

Sophomore — F — 18-0-3-3

Lake Superior Lakers

Hand was quiet in a pair of weekend road games versus the Minnesota State Mavericks.

His Lakers are 8-10-4-1 and sixth in the 10-team Western Collegiate Hockey Association standings.

They are 11-13-4 overall with no games this weekend.

Hand spent the 2013-15 seasons with the Chiefs.

 

Vincent Desharnais — D — 20-2-0-2

Sophomore

Vimal Sukumaran — F — 17-5-4-9

Freshman

Providence Friars

Desharnais went pointless in two weekend road wins at New Hampshire. Sukumaran picked up an assist in the second one, a 3-2 triumph on Saturday.

Their Friars, ranked No. 15 nationally, are 6-6-2 versus Hockey East foes and sit eighth in the 12 team conference.

They are 14-8-4 overall skating into weekend home games Friday and Saturday versus the Maine Black Bears.

Desharnais spent the 2014-15 season in Chilliwack while Sukumaran was here for the 2015-16 campaign.

 

Zach Giuttari — D — 16-0-2-2

Freshman

Brown Bears

Giuttari didn't pick up a point in a weekend home and home versus Yale.

His Bears are 3-11-0 within the East Coast Athletic Conference and sit 11th in the 12 team circuit.

Brown U is 4-16-1 overall as they prepare to host the No. 19 ranked Quinnipiac Bobcats Friday and the

Princeton Tigers Saturday.

Giuttari spent the 2015-16 season in Chilliwack

 

Ben Masella — D — 28-0-7-7

Senior

St. Lawrence Saints

Masella did not pick up a point in weekend games against the Rensselaer Engineers (Friday) and Union Dutchmen (Saturday).

Masella's No. 14 ranked crew beat Rensselaer 2-1 and upset No. 4 ranked Union 4-3, leaving them 11-2-3 in conference play.

They occupy top spot in the East Coast Athletic Conference and carry an overall record of 15-7-6 into a Saturday matchup with the Clarkson Golden Knights.

Masella spent the 2012-13 season in Chilliwack.

 

Mitch Gillam — G — 19 GP with 2.16 GAA and .915 SP

Senior

Cornell Big Red

Gillam took a pair of losses as No. 16 ranked Cornell fell 4-1 to No. 5 ranked Harvard on Friday, and 4-2 to Dartmouth on Saturday.

Backed by Gillam, the Big Red are 7-4-2 versus East Coast Athletic Conference teams, sitting fifth in the 12-team circuit.

Cornell is 12-6-2 overall heading into a Friday night showdown with the No. 4 ranked Union Dutchmen, followed by a Saturday date with Rensselaer.

Gillam spent two seasons in Chilliwack (2011-13) and won the BCHL's Top Goaltender award in 2012-13.

 

Luke Esposito

Senior — F — 22-6-14-20

Harvard Crimson

Esposito assisted on a couple goals against his former teammate as his No. 5 ranked Harvard toppled Mitch Gillam and the No. 16 ranked Cornell Big Red by a 4-1 score on Friday. Esposito had a quieter night Saturday as his team beat the unranked Colgate Raiders 3-1.

His Crimson are 10-4-2 within the East Coast Athletic Conference and 14-5-2 overall.

They are third in the ECAC heading into a Friday nighter versus Dartmouth and Monday's Beanpot Tournament opener versus Northeastern.

Esposito was the BCHL's fourth leading scorer while playing with the Chiefs in 2012-13.

 

Alex Perron-Fontaine

Senior — D — 14-1-0-1

Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) Tigers

Perron-Fontaine has not suited up for the last four games.

RIT is 10-11-0 versus Atlantic Hockey foes, occupying eighth place in the 11 team conference.

The Tigers are 10-16-1 overall and get back to action Friday and Saturday, visiting the Robert Morris Colonials.

Perron-Fontaine spent two seasons (2011-13) in Chilliwack.

 

Aidan Pelino

Freshman — G — 8 GP with 2.69 GAA and .932 SP

Bentley

Pelino made 34 saves Saturday, leading his team to a 3-2 win over the Rochester Institute of Technology Tigers.

Pelino's Falcons are 8-8-4 in Atlantic Hockey play and hold down sixth place in the 11 team conference.

Bentley is 9-12-5 overall heading into weekend home games Friday and Saturday versus Air Force.

Pelino tended net for the Chiefs for two seasons (2014-16).

 

Tipper Higgins

Sophomore — F — 19-3-4-7

Army West Point

A frustrating second season with the Black Knights continued for Higgins as he was held pointless in weekend games versus Air Force. Higgins has gone eight games without a point after scoring seven points in his first 11 outings.

Higgins' team has achieved an 11-8-1 record in Atlantic Hockey play and sits fourth in the standings.

They are 12-10-3 overall and have back to back road games versus the second place Canisius College Golden Griffins coming up this weekend.

Higgins played for the Chiefs in 2012-13.

 

Craig Puffer

Sophomore — F — 25-8-7-15

Vermont Catamounts

Puffer lit the lamp once Friday, but he couldn't save his No. 12 ranked Catamounts from a 3-1 upset loss at the hands of the unranked Connecticut Huskies.

Puffer's crew is 8-5-1 versus Hockey East rivals, holding down third place in the standings.

They are 16-8-2 overall as they visit Notre Dame for back to back road games Friday and Saturday.

Puffer played for Chilliwack in 2014-15.

 

Mathieu Tibbet

Junior — F — 24-4-4-8

Merrimack

Tibbet picked up an assist Friday, helping his team to a massive upset on the road. Tibbet's No. 3 ranked Warriors beat the Boston University Terriers 4-1.

Merrimack's record improved to 4-7-3 within the Hockey East conference, good for ninth place.

The Warriors are 10-13-3 as they prepare for a home-and-home versus the Connecticut Huskies this weekend.

Tibbet played three seasons (2011-14) in Chilliwack.



Eric Welsh

About the Author: Eric Welsh

I joined the Chilliwack Progress in 2007, originally hired as a sports reporter.
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