The Pitt D1 Panthers are the talk of the local collegiate hockey community. The team heads into the weekend with a 17-5-2 record and sole possession of first place in College Hockey Mid-America (CHMA), our regional ACHA Division 1 league. The league champion will head to the ACHA Division 1 National Championship in Strongsville, Ohio this March.

The rest of the nation is starting to notice as well. The Panthers have climbed from relative obscurity to a #25 national ranking with a 10-0-1 record in its last 11 games. As the wins pile up each week, the rankings votes continue to increase.

New Head Coach Stu Rulnick and his assistant coaches, Jerry Bass and Dan Hestin (formerly Head Coach at IUP) have fostered an environment for success. The Panthers performance is impressive considering the completely new staff and the loss of 7 forwards from last season, including the team’s all-time leading scorer. It is a testament to a great team effort and many individuals elevating their games.

Team captain and senior forward, Robby McDyre, is scoring at a clip that nobody imagined. He has accumulated 48 points in 24 games -- good for 5th in scoring in the entire ACHA and 3rd in points per game. Robby’s linemates are on fire as well. Brandon Pratt, a junior assistant captain, has racked up 35 points. Phil Trombetta, a transfer from IUP, has notched 33 points. Both McDyre and Pratt have netted 4 game winning goals. Trombetta and Mike McCurdy (28 points) each have 2 game winners.

On the other end of the ice, starting goaltender Rob Behling has been rock solid. Behling transferred from the University of Connecticut (NCAA D1). He is leading the way with a 2.43 GAA and a .920 save percentage, tied for 2nd best amongst all starters in the ACHA. Pitt likely boasts the best group of goaltenders in the ACHA as Matt Schmidlin, CHMA All-Conference Second Team in 2010-2011, and Mike Whitney, 2009-2010 Team Rookie of the Year, round out the roster. New goaltending coach, Frank Gribbin, has done a stellar job working with the team’s netminders.

On defense, Pitt is relying on a solid veteran core including Steve Boyle, Matt DiPippa, Brian Foster, and Scott Litwack. Newcomers Jeff Clark and Pete Zenger have also been strong contributors.
Only 5 league games remain until the CHMA Playoffs. The Panthers hope to keep up the pace and make an ACHA D1 National Tournament berth in March.

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The game time for this Saturday’s game between Pitt D1 and Robert Morris University has been moved up to 7:20 pm.

The Pitt D2 Panthers have been ranked #10 in the latest ACHA Division 2 Southeast Region Rankings. The ranking is significant as it is the highest ranking in the team’s history. In addition, a Top 10 ranking will earn an invitation to the ACHA D2 Regional Tournament.

The team improved on its previous #12 ranking due to impressive wins over #6 Kennesaw State and #13 Rowan at the Liberty Showcase.