2000-01 Men's Ice Hockey Outlook

After earning three consecutive bids to the ECAC East Playoffs, the Trinity College men's ice hockey team looks to return to the postseason in 2000-01 after missing the NESCAC Tournament last winter. Trinity, which was 9-14 last season, welcomes back a host of talent and experience, particularly on defense and in goal. Head Coach John Dunham (332-249-19) enters his 27th season with high hopes for the upcoming campaign.

A solid group of hard-nosed defensemen returns for the Bantams, led by juniors Brian Fenwick, Martins Lans, and Mike Sayre. Fenwick flourished last season after moving from forward and finished third on the team in scoring with eight goals and 11 assists. Lans is a two-year starter on the blue line who can defend and score when needed, while Sayre is an exceptionally fast and physical player who can dominate a game. Sayre missed most of the 1999-00 season due to an injury and was sorely missed. Seniors Justin Clarke and David Kleiner are also solid returnees on defense, giving Dunham five veteran defensemen with two seasons of college experience. Junior transfer Matt Brown joins this group after a couple of seasons at Division I Northeastern University. A natural leader on defense, Brown should give the Bantams one of the best defenses in the NESCAC.

Junior Geoff Faulkner returns in goal following a fine first season as the starter in 1999-00. Faulkner performed admirably in 18 games with 580 saves and a 3.79 goals-against average. Sophomore Evan Munno also returns and could challenge Faulkner for playing time. Munno started during three games last season and delivered 66 saves and a shutout. Goaltending should be a strength for the team.

A highly competitive situation exists at forward where quite a few veterans hope to replace the scoring of departed seniors Dan Lyons, Scott Rickard, Mikko Auvinen, and Ryan Southard. Senior Denis Petrov emerged as a quality finisher in 1999-00 with seven goals, including a team-high four on the power play. Fellow senior Greg Bridgman has improved steadily each year, while juniors Jeffrey Griffin, Mark Colwell, Ryan Beale, and Matt Greason are all expected to develop into consistent goal scorers. Sophomores Greg O’Leary and Dustin Kim had outstanding freshman campaigns, totaling nine goals and eight assists between them, while classmates Andrew Halder and Steve Callahan showed the potential to have a bigger impact in their second seasons.

Coach Dunham is optimistic about the team's prospects in 2000-01, saying, "The experience and depth on the blue line and in goal will be a great asset. But the key to the season will be the development of our young forwards. We need to embrace the concept of team defense and get more consistent scoring. I like the attitude of our returning players. We have several athletes who will refuse to lose!"