Sports
Related Photos
Tools
PRO HOCKEY: NU’s Caruana gets one-year deal with Anaheim
Niagara co-captain off to AHL’s Portland.
LEWISTON — National Hockey League scouts had been snubbing Lewiston on trips from Buffalo to Toronto.
But the Witmer Road exit appears to be getting a workout these days, as pro contracts are coming fast and furious for the Niagara men’s hockey team. The Purple Eagles announced Tuesday that senior Matt Caruana has signed a one-year contract with the Stanley Cup champion Anaheim Ducks, marking the program’s third pro contract in six weeks. The team had just three players sign NHL deals in the previous 12 years.
Caruana finished his senior season with 39 points in 37 games and was among the nation’s top 40 scorers.
“What Matt’s done for our program is remarkable,” NU coach Dave Burkholder said. “What I’ll remember most about him is his demeanor and the professional approach he took to everything.”
Caruana left Tuesday night for the Ducks’ American Hockey League affiliate in Portland, Maine, and said he expects to be in the lineup Friday when the Pirates play at Worcester. The team demanded he get two practices under his belt, so Caruana had to pack up and ship out Tuesday night.
Caruana’s former teammate, Kyle Rogers, signed an NHL deal with Toronto on Saturday, and Les Reaney left Niagara in February to sign a deal with the Edmonton Oilers.
But Caruana said the program’s most important signing was that of Sean Bentivoglio, last season’s College Hockey America player of the year. Bentivoglio used a tryout with the American Hockey League’s Providence Bruins following his senior season as a springboard to a two-way contract with the New York Islanders. It was Niagara’s first NHL contract since Matt Ryan signed in 2003.
“Benti put us back on the map,” Caruana said. “We might have been off it for a bit. But this just shows Niagara is a program on the rise.”
Caruana primarily played on the second line as a junior, although he was a part of the team’s first power-play unit. As a senior, though, he had to step into the role left behind by Bentivoglio, a senior leader on the team’s top line. He did admirably, finishing second in scoring to junior Vince Rocco.
“He’s a playmaker. He has really good vision,” Burkholder said. “He’s the prototypical centerman — he’s also good on face-offs, he’s got a touch around the net, and he’s got above average speed. And I think he has room to put more weight on his frame.”
Burkholder repeatedly reminded his seniors they were the only four-year class that had yet to reach the NCAA Tournament, a tidbit Caruana took to heart.
“You try not to think about it, but we just didn’t want to be that class,” Caruana said. The only other senior to see significant playing time was defenseman Scott Langdon. “But the way this all turned out was great. I just wanted this to be my best year.”
Burkholder insisted it was, and said he could see the relief in Caruana when the Purple Eagles won the CHA Tournament at home, securing a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
“Talk about pressure. He carried it all year. He knew everyone wanted to see how we’d do without Bentivoglio,” Burkholder said. “Looking into his eyes when that was over was one of the special moments in my career.”
- Sports
-
-
For SU, tourney will show whether key departures were a blessing
“Certainly it hurts to lose your top three scorers,” said Andy Rautins, a fifth-year senior for the Orange. “But at the same time, it made us into a better team. We have a lot of chemistry this year. Everybody is always on the same page regardless of what five guys are on the floor. I think we’re a very unselfish team. That’s what has made us so successful.”
-
Falls' Carter ready to get back in the ring
Niagara Falls' Terry Carter will make his first appearance in the boxing ring in five years when he fights in the Golden Gloves Tournament Saturday at ECC's Flickinger Center in Buffalo.
-
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL: Falls' Harrison helps Robert Morris into WNIT
It’s not quite a homecoming, but it’s close enough to get Destiny Harrison excited. The Niagara Falls native will be in Olean tonight when her Robert Morris team meets St. Bonaventure in the first round of the women’s National Invitation Tournament.
-
MMA: GI’s Weiser heads from field to octagon
Former Grand Island standout and current Buffalo State linebacker Eddie Weiser’s roots run deep when it comes to fighting.
-
NCAA TOURNAMENT: Gonzaga trumpets small conference cause as a mid-major player
With a big budget, a 6,000-seat arena that’s nearly impossible to get into, and a string of top national and international recruits, Gonzaga has become the poster child for the emergence of mid-major basketball.
-
SABRES: Miller pulled in 4-3 loss to Thrashers
Ryan Miller was pulled after giving up three goals in the first 6 minutes and Jim Slater’s third-period goal gave the Thrashers a 4-3 win over the Northeast-leading Sabres on Tuesday night.
-
FOOTBALL: Falls to get semi-pro team
According to numerous reports, Niagara Falls will be the site of an expansion team in the United States Football League, a semi-pro league that currently has teams in Lockport, Buffalo and Lackawanna.
-
MEN'S HOCKEY: UAH stuns Niagara in OT to take CHA title
In what might be a fitting finale to a league that never really found continuity or conformity, the last College Hockey America hockey game finished with a surprise and little sense of closure for the home team.
-
NCAA TOURNAMENT: Syracuse opens in Buffalo as seedings unfold
Kansas, Kentucky and Duke won their conference tournaments and the top seeding that went with them when the selection committee rolled out its 65-team NCAA tournament bracket Sunday.
-
MEN'S BASKETBALL: Next year, Niagara will be in Nelson's hands
Always a gifted passer, Nelson has improved his all-around game since his freshman year, and although he wasn’t one of the five point guards on the 15-member all-Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference’s team last year, Lewis predicted he’ll be recognized as one of the league’s best players next year.
- More Sports Headlines
-
