60 Days. 60 Teams. 600 Words (or Less): Niagara

Niagara

2018-19 Record: 17-19-5 (11-12-5, 6th in Atlantic Hockey)
Head Coach: Jason Lammers, 3rd Year
Top returning scorer: Ludwig Stenlund (23G-19A)
Top returning goaltender: Brian Wilson (Jr.)

The Purple Eagles can begin 2019-20 not needing to pick up the pieces after the bottom fell out.

Certainly, the team starts in a more stable place although doing so would not be hard. Niagara spent the previous summer completely reshaping the lineup. Head coach Jason Lammers cut eight players following a second half of the season where NU was an NCAA-worst 2-17-2.

In their place were 11 freshmen plus one transfer and a team that came within an overtime goal of one of the most unlikely NCAA Tournament berths.

The new-look Purple Eagles not only went from being picked to finish last in Atlantic Hockey to a mid-table finish. The team was above .500 in the conference as late as February 1st. Niagara rebounded to end 2018-19 7-2-2.

One reason for the turnaround? Niagara's rookies. While the large group certainly helps, no team had more points from its freshman class than the Purple Eagles. Four finished with 15 or more points, led by Atlantic Hockey Rookie of the Year Ludwig Stenlund. The Skellftea, Sweden native had 23 goals - four more than any other player in Atlantic Hockey and six more than any other freshman nationally.

What's New: The Purple Eagles will fly to some big cities and rinks out west. Niagara's 2019-20 non-conference schedule sees the team traveling to Minnesota and Denver, along with the now regular Penn State visit. (Okay that last part isn't new. Niagara already went to State College two of the past three years while the Nittany Lions returned the favor for a single game at Dwyer Arena in 2014-15.)

The other two locales are familiar to the program but not the players. Niagara has not been to Minneapolis since the 2011 Mariucci Classic. Its last trip to Denver came in October 2013.

Closing Thoughts: Although not on the same level as some other teams, based upon expectations the Purple Eagles soar into the year with some success behind it. The NU newcomers smashed any preseason perceptions. Stenlund had more goals in 2018-19 than in 60 games his final season in juniors while Miami transfer Jake Brandt played a major role on defense. That isn't to say anything about the year's returnees such as goalie Brian Wilson (no, not that one), new captain Noah Delmas (15 goals and 40 points from the blue line), or forwards Justin Kendall and Eric Cooley (forming a productive second line down the stretch with freshman Dylan Mills).

Now the question is how Niagara picks up the pieces to deal with raised expectations. How do the freshmen avoid a sophomore slump? Other teams have taken the same route as Lammers, making massive player cuts after the first year of a new head coach to various success. For every Massachusetts, who went to the national championship game with a handful of remaining pre-cut players, there's a Wisconsin who took a step back.

No one will overlook the Purple Eagles this season. Teams seem to pay more attention to you when coming so close to making the NCAA Tournament. Will Niagara be the team it was during the Atlantic Hockey postseason or closer to the one who was around .500 and went 2-7-2 to kick off 2019?

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