SFU Hosts Maryville Saints For November Doubleheader Clash

SFU Hockey schedules doubleheader versus Maryville

The Simon Fraser University Red Leafs Non Conference Hockey Club have announced that they have scheduled a doubleheader against the Maryville University Saints. The games will be played at SFU’s home rink, the Bill Copeland Sports Centre on November 1st and 2nd, with both matches set for a 7:00 PM start time (PST).

Maryville University is a school based in Town and Country, Missouri, and led by Head Coach John Hogan, are off to a strong start in their season having gone 5-0-1 (wins,losses,ties) through the month of September.

A unique aspect to this matchup is that both SFU and Maryville’s hockey teams have been considering the potential of NCAA Division 1 Hockey. The two clubs are currently independent non-conference outfits, meaning they do not currently belong to a set division of clubs i.e. Hockey East in the eastern United States, or the BCHIL in Canadian U SPORTS.

SFU Head Coach Mark Coletta spoke on the impact playing Div. 1 hockey could have:

 “I think there's an appetite for more college hockey teams and NCAA hockey is not only a great game, it's a pathway to the NHL and it provides hockey players education and a future in the game.

“We've been pushing to play NCAA Division 1 competition and play these games as a recruiting tool, as elevating the strength of schedule, just playing better competition is always good.”

The Red Leafs begin a five-game American road trip October 5th in New York State as they play the Long Island University Sharks, before taking on Sacred Heart, Robert Morris, Lake Superior State, and Bowling Green State before finally returning home for the Maryville doubleheader in November.

SFU has started the season 2-2, with both their wins coming against Trinity Western University, while they lost both games versus the University of British Columbia.