2020 Holy Cross vs Robert Morris | Atlantic Hockey 1st Round, Game #1

Opening Round Primer For 2020 Atlantic Hockey Conference Tournament

Opening Round Primer For 2020 Atlantic Hockey Conference Tournament

The playoffs have finally arrived. How to watch the Atlantic Hockey Playoffs.

Mar 3, 2020 by Jacob Messing
Opening Round Primer For 2020 Atlantic Hockey Conference Tournament

The regular season has come to a close in Atlantic Hockey, topped by an AIC squad that claimed its second consecutive title as AH heads into the opening round of the conference tournament this weekend.

Despite varying success in the regular season, the conference tournament offers all 11 Atlantic Hockey teams a chance at the NCAA tournament, as the conference tournament winner earns an automatic bid.

AH has made itself heard; regardless of zero at-large bids since the conference’s inception in 2003-04, Atlantic Hockey has had a string of success at the national level in recent years. The lone AH representative has ousted the top-seeded team in each of the past two seasons, in addition to first-round upsets in 2015 and 2017.

AIC’s 13-2 stretch to end the season earned them a bye for the opening round, joined by Sacred Heart, RIT, Army West Point, and Niagara, which are seeded 2–5, respectively.

The puck drops on Round 1 this weekend, where the remaining six teams are matched up with the highest seed holding home-ice advantage over the lowest seed. Don’t miss any of the action, catch the best-of-three opening-round series live, right here on FloHockey.

(11) Mercyhurst at (6) Air Force

The Falcons’ 10-18-6 overall record does not appear encouraging for the opening round, but hosting a 5-27-2 Lakers team bodes well for Air Force in a best-of-three series. The two teams matched up back on Feb. 21-22, where Air Force came away with a 1-0-1 showing following a 2-1 win and 1-1 tie.



Neither team boasts a typical go-to player at any position, but a much deeper offense and a puck-moving blue line favors the Falcons over a Mercyhurst team whose last win came back in mid-January (Nov. 16 before that).

Players to Watch: Lakers senior James Anderson leads all skaters in the series with 10 goals and is in his best offensive season in the NCAA with 20 points in 34 games. For the Falcons, defenseman Zack Mirageas leads the team with 18 assists (21 pts.) in 34 games, but his offensive inclination can lead to defensive lapses for his team.

Prediction: a Lakers team with two wins since mid-November won’t suddenly find two more in the next three games.

(10) Holy Cross at (7) Robert Morris

After seven wins in their first 11 games of the season, the Colonials began to slide and finished the season with an 11-18-5 overall record. For the Crusaders, a season-long battle of defensive woes has culminated in a 10-19-5 overall record. With just seven goals over their past five games (all losses), the woes are compiling.

Regardless of similar overall records — and a 1-1, head-to-head season record — the Colonials boast a more consistent team capable of taking advantage of the Crusaders’ three netminders all sporting sub-.900 save percentages.

Players to Watch: Colonials forward Nick Prkusic leads the team with 27 points (11 G, 16 A) in 31 games and has been the team’s offensive guide. He’ll need to continue to provide a spark in the offensive zone to alleviate the abundance of shots allowed in his team’s defensive zone. Holy Cross sophomore Conner Jean leads all skaters in the series with 12 goals and has come a long way in his second NCAA season.

Prediction: the Colonials have been a regularly more competitive team and with a 1-7 February record for the Crusaders; Robert Morris will move on to Round 2.

(9) Canisius at (8) Bentley

Bentley (15-16-3 overall) is playing its best hockey of the season with a 7-3 record over its past 10 contests and tied for sixth in the conference, but a tiebreaker gave them an eight seed. The Golden Griffins (10-18-6 overall) had just two wins through their first 14 games, but have since recorded at least a point in 14 of their past 20 games. 



Head-to-head has been a lock with a 0-0-2 record between the two programs during a January series. It’s fitting for two teams with eerily similar statistics on paper, save for record.

Players to Watch: team-leading scorers, Canisius’ Matt Hoover (14-17–31) and Bentley’s Jakov Novak (16-14–30), will be the focal points for two teams bound to rely on offense vs. defense in the series.

Prediction: Bentley holds an advantage over the Griffins and is favored to earn a trip to Round 2 with their current momentum.

Don’t miss any of the Atlantic Hockey conference tournament opening round action, stream it all live, right here on FloHockey this weekend.


Have a question or a comment for Jacob Messing? You can find him on Twitter @Jacob_Messing.