2025 SUNYAC Tournament Championship

No. 4 Plattsburgh State (16-10-1, 8-6-0) at No. 2 Oswego State (15-8-3, 9-4-1)

Saturday, March 8, 2025 • 7 p.m. • Oswego, N.Y. • Deborah F. Stanley Ice Arena

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PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – The fourth-seeded Plattsburgh State men's ice hockey team will continue the journey for its 25th conference title on Saturday night at the Deborah F. Stanley Arena in New York as the Cardinals face second-seeded Oswego in the championship game of the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Tournament.
 
TICKET PRICING: Tickets are $11 for adults, and $8 for seniors (65+) and children (3-12). Tickets can be bought online or in person, with tickets online being sold at tickets.oswego.edu and in person at the box office beginning Saturday, March 8 at 1:30 p.m.
 
ABOUT THE SERIES: While the Cardinals hold an 82-51-9 record against the Lakers all-time, Oswego State has won the last two contests and four of the last five meetings. However, in the last two postseason contests, the Cards have been able to defeat the Lakers at Deborah F. Stanley Arena, ending Oswego State's season in the championship game in 2023 and in the semifinals in 2024.
 
ABOUT THE CARDINALS: Plattsburgh State (16-10-1, 8-6-0 SUNYAC) is in the SUNYAC Tournament for the 34th consecutive season and enters Saturday's game on a five-game winning streak, after a dramatic, come-from-behind win on Saturday.

Cortland went into the first intermission up 2-0 and then scored their third goal in the third period, leading 3-0 past the halfway through the final period of regulation. The Cards responded with three goals of their own in the third period, tying the game. A power play goal from Colin Callanan (Stony Point, N.Y./New York Apple Core) started the scoring and then a Vlad Pshenichnikov (Moscow, Russia/Utica) goal pulled Plattsburgh within one with less than seven minutes to go. Despite struggling to get the puck in the offensive zone in the final minute, the team was able to get an offensive zone faceoff, where Aaron Catron (Middletown, Del./Philadelphia Little Flyers) buried the shot of the faceoff to send the game into overtime with four seconds left. The Cards wasted little time in the extra period, as Jake Sacratini (Montreal, Quebec/AIC) deflected in a Kevin Weaver-Vitale (Toronto, Ontario/Markham Royals) shot from the point, giving the Cards the dramatic come from behind win.

The win on Saturday comes off the heels of an equally impressive comeback last Wednesday, Feb. 26, against fifth-seeded Potsdam. After Potsdam went into the first intermission up 3-0, the Cards responded with a goal in the second period and then tallied four goals in the third period to win 5-3. Lonan Bulger (Yellowknife, Northwest Territories/Hobart) who entered the night with just three points on the season, tallied four points, scoring twice, and notching two assists.

As a team, the Cardinals rank in the top four in nearly every major offensive category in the SUNYAC. As of late, the team has boasted a fantastic power play with eleven power-play goals in their last eight games, going 11-33 (33.3%) in that span. This season, they rank third in the league at 25.0% on the advantage, while they have the second-best kill rate at 84.1%.
 
The Cardinals have used a balanced offensive attack this season to win games, as they average 3.33 goals per game as a team. First-year Tyler Ramm (Westborough, Mass./Northeast Generals) is currently tied for the team lead with 11 goals, seven of which have come in the last eight games, helping him land All-Rookie Team honors from the SUNYAC. Sophomore Aaron Catron has 11 goals and six assists on the season, as he has formed a great tandem with linemate and fellow sophomore Vlad Pshenichnikov, who transferred to Plattsburgh over the winter break and has tallied 18 points in 16 games. Patrick Cole (Lancaster, N.Y./Buffalo Jr. Sabres) has ten goals on the year, all of which have come after the winter break. Junior Jake Sacratini leads all Plattsburgh forwards with 24 points, as he has tallied nine goals and 15 assists in his first season with the Cardinals. Senior captain Jake Lanyi (North Salem, N.Y./Connecticut Jr. Rangers) has had a productive year for the Cards as well, tallying 18 points on three goals and 15 assists.

Graduate student defenseman Kevin Weaver-Vitale leads all Plattsburgh players with 27 points and 20 assists, also tallying seven goals this year as he helps captain a Plattsburgh defense that is fourth in the SUNYAC at 2.65 goals allowed. He also leads the team with a +14 plus-minus and earned All-Conference First team honors this year. Senior Jack Ring (Hingham, Mass./Northeast Generals), an All-SUNYAC conference second team selection, has also been an asset offensively, tallying 17 points in 27 games. Junior Brannon Butler (Toronto, Ontario/Boston Advantage) is second on the team with a +10 plus-minus and 34 blocks, while junior captain Spencer Bellina (Medina, Ohio/Chippewa Steel) has a team-high 39 blocks to go along with 11 points this year, as the four aforementioned defensemen provide two strong defensive pairings for Plattsburgh.

Senior netminder Jacob Hearne (Ennismore, Ontario/Toronto Jr. Canadiens) has stepped nicely into the role of everyday goalie this year, posting a 16-8-1 record in 25 games played. His 2.30 goals-against average ranks third in the SUNYAC as he also has a .908 save percentage.

Head coach Steve Moffat '98 enters the weekend with a 114-86-16 record overall and 82-43-11 with Plattsburgh State. Moffat has now led Plattsburgh to three straight SUNYAC Championship games, and is searching for his second championship as head coach, after he led the 2022-23 Cards to victory at Oswego State.
 
ABOUT THE LAKERS: The second-seeded Oswego State Lakers (15-8-3, 9-4-1) are looking for their first conference championship since 2013-14 and have a great chance to do that with what has been the most potent offense in the SUNYAC all season. On the season, the team averages 4.35 goals per game and has a lethal power play unit, converting on 33.3% of their chances.

The Lakers took down third-seeded 5-2 this past Saturday, earning their second trip to the SUNYAC Finals in the last three seasons. After Buffalo State scored the first goal of the game at 6:13 in the second period, Brandon Cohen scored back-to-back goals at 6:34 and 8:37 to give the team a lead they would not relinquish. Early goals in the third period from Drake Semrad and Daniel Colabufo iced the game for the Lakers down the stretch.

Oswego State has the Defensive Player of the Year in Travis Baker and the Rookie of the Year in Ryan Burke, as their talented team will look to secure their first SUNYAC title in over a decade.  

The team had five players honored on the All-SUNYAC teams with three of those five playing at forward. Burke leads the way for this offense, as he has a team-high 37 points and 27 assists and was named to the All-Conference First team and All-Rookie team for his strong season. Daniel Colabufo was a first team selection as well and tallied 12 goals and 11 assists this year. All-Rookie selection Brandon Cohen had a team-high 18 goals as well as 32 points, while junior Matt McQuade had 15 goals and 15 assists.

The Lakers' defense outside the net is led by Baker, who had seven goals and 18 assists in 26 games played this season. Nico Paone, who was an All-Rookie selection this year, has six goals and 12 assists with a +14 plus-minus. Drake Semrad (10 points), Jonathan Balah (+6, 22 blocks), and Josh Simpson (+25) add up to make a solid group of defensemen for the Lakers.

Junior goaltender Brandon Milberg made 21 starts and allowed 2.23 goals-against, while putting up a .906 save percentage in his second season with the Lakers. He currently has a record of 14-6-2 and has three shutouts on the year.

Head coach Ed Gosek has a 407-141-36 record and is looking for his fourth conference championship in his 23^rd year at the helm of the Oswego State Lakers.
 
WHAT'S NEXT: The winner of the Plattsburgh and Oswego matchup will earn the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, with a matchup to be determined.