Initial seedings are set for the first round of the ECAC Hockey playoffs that will ultimately decide the conference champion and winner of the Whitelaw Cup on March 19 in Lake Placid, N.Y.
The 5th-12th place regular season teams will meet in a best-of-three preliminary round at the higher-seeded schools this coming weekend March 4-6. New England-based programs Brown (9th), Dartmouth (11th) and Yale (12th) will travel to New York to play St. Lawrence (8th), RPI (10th) and Colgate (5th), respectively. No. 1 seed Quinnipiac and Harvard (3rd) account for the regional programs with a first-round bye.
Brown defenseman and Connecticut native Luke Krys starred at Salisbury at the prep level and will be a player to watch as the Bears attempt to knock off the No. 8-ranked Saints on the road. In addition to Krys, the opening playoff round teams have a mix of players who were expected to be top performers this season, along with a few surprise newcomers who have made significant impacts in their first taste of NCAA hockey.
Luke Krys (Ridgefield, Conn.)
Brown, 9/27/00, D, right shot, 5-11/165
Swift skater can move pucks and brings veteran presence and poise to Brendan Whittet’s ninth-seeded Bears. The younger brother of 2016 Chicago second-round pick and former BU Terrier Chad Krys (now with Toronto) can be an adventure defensively at times. Even with the goals given up by Brown this season, don’t be surprised if there is some pro interest in the younger Krys as an undrafted free agent at some point, and the playoffs will provide the opportunity to get some eyes on him.
Alex Young
Colgate, 3/22/01, C, right shot, 5-11/170
San Jose prospect finished just behind older brother Colton Young for the team scoring lead in his sophomore campaign. The Western Canadian import and former Alberta Junior League star with the Canmore Eagles is slick, creative and dangerous; reflective of his selection in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. He’ll need at least another season to get stronger and more polished, but Young, his brother, and a third Calgarian in Josh McKechney give Colgate a pretty potent scoring punch up front.
Clay Stevenson
Dartmouth, 3/3/99, G, catches left, 6-4/195
After going 30-2-2 in his final season with Chilliwack of the BCHL, Stevenson delivered the goods in Hanover. Despite finishing with a 5-12-2 record, he posted an impressive 2.64 goals-against average and even better .924 save percentage, keeping the Big Green in a lot of games despite coming up short. With an offense that struggled to generate consistent scoring, Stevenson used his excellent size and quickness to hold up under pressure from opposing clubs and stole a couple. He’s going to be a top netminder in the ECAC going forward and gives Reid Cashman’s team their best chance to make it out of the round.
Christian O’Neill (Westwood, Mass.)
Princeton, 6/17/98, C, left shot, 5-11/175
Although the scoring has not come to the fore as expected, the senior’s speed and solid two-way play makes him a reliable option for the heavier, more intense postseason style of play. The son of former Boston College forward Jeff O’Neill has the smarts and experience to be a valuable asset in the first round.
Ian Murphy (Braintree, Mass.)
Princeton, 4/6/99, RW, right shot, 5-11/180
Before Princeton, Murphy starred at BC High and Dexter Southfield, while playing split-season games with the Cape Cod Whalers. He spent two years in the USHL with the Tri-City Storm, including being a member of the 2019 Anderson Cup-winning roster with the top regular-season record. Although a role player in juniors, and having lost his freshman season to COVID in 2020-21, he’s gotten off to a great start in his college career for the Tigers and is trending up as the playoffs begin.
T.J. Walsh (Shrewsbury, Mass.)
RPI, 4/29/00, LW, left shot, 5-9/165
This transfer to the Engineers from Northeastern in his junior season played a big role after being a bit player with the Huskies. A smaller, but quick forward who darts to loose pucks in the small areas and has a decent scoring touch around the net, he was at one time one of the New England area’s top players in his birth year. It will be interesting to see what he can do this postseason and with R.P.I. next year.
Collin Graf (Lincoln, Mass.)
Union, 9/21/02, C, right shot, 6-0/170
The former Jr. Bruins top scorer from a year ago has always had a good puck game and some nifty hands to make plays in traffic, but he’s opened some eyes as a freshman with the Dutchmen. His nine goals and 18 points give him a tie for second place in scoring as the youngest player on the team. He’s grown into his body and is playing with confidence, with the immediate production to prove it.
Kaden Pickering
St. Lawrence, 12/17/98, RW, right shot, 5-9/180
Smallish but quick and feisty winger was a big point producer at Northwood and has been one of the Saints’ more reliable forwards over the past four seasons. He can get off the mark quickly and buzzes the net to good effect. As a senior, he’d love nothing more than to go out a winner after posting a career high of 18 points.
Ian Carpentier (Worcester, Mass.)
Yale, 6/22/00, C, left shot, 6-1/175
Freshman is the Bulldogs’ top scorer on a team that has had a lot of trouble finding the back of the net. The former USPHL NCDC standout with the Boston Jr. Bruins has the size and a good shot, leading the way with eight goals this season. It was a tough year for the 12th-seed that went 7-14-1, but Carpentier’s positive progress and immediate impact was a welcome development.
