The top-ranked Hobart College hockey team will renew its rivalry with Elmira College this weekend, Jan. 20-21, when the New England Hockey Conference travel partners square off for a home-and-home series. Friday's game will be at The Cooler and Saturday's game will take place in Pine Valley, New York, at the Murray Athletic Center. Faceoff for both games will be at 7 p.m.
 
The Statesmen bring a 16-1-0 overall record and a 9-1-0 mark in NEHC play into the weekend. Hobart has 27 points and is tied for first in the conference standings with Norwich. The Statesmen have a game in hand on the Cadets. Hobart bounced back from its first loss of the season with a 3-0 win over Southern Maine and a 4-1 victory over then No. 11 Babson last weekend.
 
The Soaring Eagles are 8-8-1 overall with a 5-4-1 mark in conference play. Elmira currently sits in the conference standings with 16 points. The Soaring Eagles are looking to get back on track after being swept by the Beavers and Huskies last weekend.
 
ABOUT THE STATESMEN

• Hobart is led offensively by junior Jonah Alexander's 11 assists and 19 points. He is second on the team with eight goals.
• Alexander leads a group of five Statesmen that have double-digits in points, including his linemates sophomores Luke Aquaro (10-8-18) and Shane Shell (3-10-13).
• Hobart's No. 1 ranked scoring defense (0.94 gpg) is anchored by the goalie tandem of Damon Beaver and Mavrick Goyer.
• Beaver is 8-1-0 with a nation's best 0.78 GAA and .965 save percentage. He has four shutouts. Goyer is 8-0-0. He is second in the nation with a 1.12 GAA and is ninth with a .943 save percentage.

 
ABOUT THE SOARING EAGLES

• Amedeo Mastrangeli leads the team with 15 assists and 16 points. He is 17th in the nation in assists per game (0.88).
• Chance Gorman has a team-leading seven goals on the season. Kerfalla Toure and Janis Vizbellis are right behind him with six goals each.
• Kyle Curtin has played a majority of the minutes in goal. He is 5-4-0 with a 2.13 GAA and a .933 save percentage. He is 20th in the nation in save percentage.

 
SERIES HISTORY

• This weekend's games will mark the 96th and 97th meeting between Hobart and Elmira. The Soaring Eagles have a 60-32-3 edge in the series.
• Since Head Coach Mark Taylor took over, the Statesmen are 30-26-3 against Elmira.
• At 95 games, Elmira is Hobart's most frequented opponent.
• On March 12, Hobart defeated Elmira 4-2 in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Blake Coffey '22 and Artem Buzoverya each had a goal and an assist. Liam Lascelle '22 made 25 saves in the victory.