ASTON, Pa. – The Neumann University men's ice hockey team will travel to No. 15 Utica College on Wednesday for the first round of the ECAC West playoffs. Face-off is slated for 7:00 PM.

Neumann (13-7-3) is the fifth seed, finishing the season with a 3-6-3 conference record. Utica (15-8-2), the fourth seed, went 4-6-2 in the ECAC West. The Knights hold a 2-0-1 record against Utica this season, including 1-0-1 at the Pioneers.

In the first meeting, back in November, the Knights defeated the Pioneers 2-1. Andrew Love scored the first goal and Jeff Bienvenue gave Neumann the win in the third period. Matt Tendler made 24 saves in net for the win.

In the 5-0 win against the Pioneers just 12 days ago, Ryan Dreger put away two goals, while Bill Foster netted one with one assist. Goaltender while Ross MacKinnon made 39 saves. The Knights also killed two five on three power-play opportunities by the Pioneers.  The next day the teams knotted at two.  MacKinnon made 38 saves in net, while Cory Park, Andrew Love and Dave Gervais each scored one goal for Neumann.

The Knights are currently being led by Park, Marlon Gardner and Mike Rey, all with 22 points. Park leads the team with 13 goals, eight coming on the power play and three being game-winners. Rey has dished out 18 assists.

On the blue line, Neumann is led by William Lacasse and Scott Farrell. Goaltender MacKinnon, who saw the majority of shots on goal this season, has a record of 8-4-3 in 15 games, while Tendler has a record of 5-3-0, appearing nine games in net.

Evan Chlanda leads Utica's Pioneers with 33 points with 15 goals and 18 assists. Tom Coffman has 11 goals, but has a team best of 21 assists, while Trever Hertz has 30 points.

The winner will travel to No. 1 seeded No. 9 Elmira on Saturday evening for semifinal action. No. 2 seeded Manhattanville will host No. 3 seed Hobart in the other semifinal game. The winners will then meet for the ECAC West Championship on March 3.