UNH Power Play - #1 in the Nation

#1 Power Play

One fifth of the way into the 2019-20 regular season, the UNH Wildcats have the top-ranked power play in NCAA Division 1 hockey. In 7 games, UNH has had 31 power play opportunities and have scored 10 power play goals. That's a 32.3 scoring percentage on the power play. Rensselear Polytechnic Institute is second in the nation with 29.6 PowerPlay% and Michigan State is third with 29.2%. The Ivy League schools have only played 3 games so are excluded from this analysis.

Two UNH juniors, defenseman Max Gildon and winger Patrick Grasso, lead the team with 3 power play goals. Junior winger Charlie Kelleher has scored 2 power play goals, junior defenseman Benton Maass has one, and sophomore forward Angus Crookshank has one. Here are the video highlights of all 10 UNH power play goals:

Max Gildon
Max Gildon has scored 3 of UNH's 10 power play goals, two with a slap shot and one, an unassisted move to the net. He has also assisted on 5 others power play goals. Gildon leads all NCAA Division 1 defensemen in scoring (11 points). He's also tied for 1st in assists (8) and T-2nd in power play goals. Overall, he is tied for 5th in NCAA scoring.

Patrick Grasso
In the 2016-17 season, Patrick Grasso scored more power play goals (9) than any other NCAA freshman. He also tied for 2nd in game-winning goals (5) and T-3rd in goals (20). He missed most of the 2017-18 season with an injury that required surgery. Now, in his third year of eligibility, Grasso looks to be rounding back into scoring form, particularly on the power play. Like Gildon, he has scored three power play goals in 7 games and they are both tied for 3rd in the NCAA. Grasso has also distributed 2 power play assists.

Charlie Kelleher
Junior winger Charlie Kelleher, along with Patrick Grasso, are the Alternate Captains on the 2019-20 UNH squad. Kelleher has tallied 2 power play goals. The most dramatic came last Saturday night in overtime against Dartmouth. Max Gildon wristed a shot toward the goal that deflected off Angus Crookshank's skate. Kelleher, parked on the doorstep of the crease, banged the loose puck home. He has also contributed 3 power play assists. Kelleher scored another overtime, game-winning goal against Merrimack College two Saturdays ago. Here's a rinkside video of his OT GWG against Dartmouth:

Angus Crookshank
As a freshman last season, Angus Crookshank tied for second in goal-scoring on the team with 10 goals. In the second game this season, Crookshank scored his power play goal on a tip-in off a wrist shot by Max Gildon. In the last 2 games, Crookshank scored the thrilling, OT game-winning goal against Boston College and scored two more goals against Dartmouth. He was named Hockey East Co-Player of the Week.

Benton Maass
This season, junior defenseman Benton Maass has primarily played on UNH's second power play unit. Gildon is the only defenseman on the first PP unit along with forwards Kelleher, Grasso, Crookshank and sophomore Jackson Pierson. Maass began the season in dramatic fashion scoring the game-winning goal on a power play against Miami. Freshman forward Chase Stevenson tapped the puck into the top of the slot and Maass rocketed a shot past the Miami goalie. As a freshman, Maass scored 3 power play goals.

UNH's penalty kill units have been scored on 4 times in 24 opportunities - a Penalty Kill % of 83.3. Their special teams net of +6 is the best in Hockey East. The Wildcats return to action tomorrow afternoon at home against #2 ranked UMass-Amherst.