ESTERO, Fla So much for the schedule favoring the co-host and returning tournament champion. For the second year in a row, two top 10 teams will meet on the first day of the Florida College Classic in Estero. This time it is 2009 Florida College Classic champ Maine ranked ninth versus the sixth ranked Red Hawks of Miami University. The tournament opener features Saint Cloud vs Cornell, last year it was the Big Red who had the feature match when they took on Colorado College on opening night. This year Cornell and Saint Cloud both come to Florida unranked and looking for some momentum going into 2011. The Huskies and Big Red were both ranked pre season but it has been a struggle for both teams so far this fall. This is only the second meeting ever between the two teams. Cornell beat the Huskies 3-2 in the 2008 Classic. The Big Red 4-6-1(2-4-0) is riding a 3 game win streak to Florida. Cornell features a balanced attack as sophomore forward Greg Miller leads the Big Red with only 8 points. Cornell does boast the 8th ranked penalty killing unit in the nation, while freshman, Andy Iles and Junior, Mike Garman, have split the goaltending chores. Both Saint Cloud and Cornell have struggled to score goals. The Huskies 5-11-2(3-8-1) have 10 NHL draft picks on their roster, average only 2.5 goals per game. They are led by junior Drew LeBlanc who has 18 points in 18 games. Sophomore, Mike Lee and senior Dan Dunn have also split time in goal for the Huskies and are ranked 46th nationally with a 3.33 GAA. It will be a matchup of two teams who have struggled to score and struggled to stop opponents from scoring. Whoever emerges from day one will be looking to turn their fortunes around against one of the nation’s top teams in the championship game. The numbers for Miami and Maine seem like a polar opposite. Miami and Maine are second and tenth respectively in scoring. Miami boasts the nation’s third best penalty kill and special teams may be the difference is this heavyweight matchup. Maine 8-4-4(6-3-2) has struggled on special teams ranked 34th on the power play and 31st on the kill. Junior, Spencer Abbott, leads the Black Bears with 11 goals and 21 points; freshman Dan Sullivan has led the Bears in goal with five wins and a 2.44 GAA. The Red Hawks 10-5-3(8-4-2) are led by Carter Camper, the nation’s scoring leader with 13 goals and 35 points. Miami platoons two juniors in goal. Cody Reichard sports a 2.60 goals against, while Connor Knapp is at 1.81 and a .918 save percentage. This is the 11th edition of the Florida College Classic and while the numbers suggest that the winner of the Miami-Maine battle will be a lock to win the tournament crown, last year both Colorado College and Cornell lost on day two to finish second and fourth in the tournament. Contact Joe.Malta@prohockeynews.com
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