University of Connecticut Athletics
Koidahl Named Atlantic Hockey Player Of The Week
2/20/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
WAKEFIELD, Mass. (February 20, 2006) - Junior Cole Koidahl (Minneapolis, Minn.) was named the Atlantic Hockey Association Player of the Week, as announced by the conference office on Monday morning. Also recognized by the league this week were sophomore goaltender Brad Smith (Detroit, Mich.) and freshman Sean Erickson (Eden Prairie, Minn.).
Koidahl has become the team’s points and goals leaders after another stellar weekend of play. He recorded his third consecutive game with two goals in Friday night’s 5-4 victory over Army. He scored the game-tying goal with less than three minutes remaining in the second period of the game and the game-winner, unassisted, at 3:33 in the third stanza. He also tallied an assist on the team’s second goal of the game. On Saturday night, Koidahl added another assist for a weekend total of four points. He ranks 11th in the league in points with 28, eighth in the league with 12 goals and 14th in assists with 16. This is Koidahl's second Player of the Week award this season. He has also been named the the AHA Honor Roll on two occasions.
Smith and Erickson were named to the Honor Roll for their contributions to UConn's successful weekend at Army. Smith has led the Huskies out of their 12-game losing streak into a three-game unbeaten streak over the last two weekends. He has recorded a total of 97 saves in the last four games, 54 of which game in this past weekend series with Army. In the first game, Smith made 31 saves as the Huskies edged past Army, 5-4. On Saturday night, he made 23 more, seven of which came overtime when Army was on a power play. He currently holds a 2.60 GAA.
This week's AHA recognition is the first of the season for Erickson. The rookie has been an ironhorse for the Huskies this season. He has appeared in 28 of 29 games and has been a presence offensively and defensively. He ranks fifth on the team in points with 15, three of which came in this past weekend’s series match-up with Army. In Connecticut’s 5-4 victory on Friday night, Erickson tallied two assists, including one on the game-tying goal in the second period. On Saturday night, Erickson notched the Huskies’ second goal of the night on their way to a 3-3 tie. The rookie defenseman helped to keep Army to just six power play goals on 20 opportunities this weekend.
The team will next play on Friday, Feb. 24 at Bentley.
