Capitals College Credits: Ryan Leonard Continues Scoring Streak, Joaquim Lemay Scores Game-Winner, Chase Clark Heats Up

Posted on November 13, 2023 by Jon Sorensen


The Washington Capitals’ college prospects continue to get better. With conference play in full swing, the prospects have stepped up and continue to help their teams win critical games. Here is how each of them performed for week six of the college hockey season. 

Ryan Leonard, F, 2023 1st RD, No. 4 Boston College Eagles (7-2-1, 2-1-1)

After not scoring in his first four games of his collegiate career, Leonard has goals in four straight contests. The Eagles took on the No. 9 Maine Black Bears for their second Hockey East series.

Boston College was down 3-1 with about eight minutes to go in the third period in Game 1. Similar to most of his goals this season, Leonard drove to the front of the net and linemate Gabe Perreault put a puck right on his tape, making it a one goal game.

Unfortunately it was not enough as the Eagles fell in the series opener 4-2. Leonard led the team with five shots on goal.

Game 2 was once again a tight contest. BC had to play catch up for the majority of the game. Just as they had in Game 1, the Black Bears got on the board first. But Leonard and the Eagles responded thanks to Perreault’s second goal of the season and first of the series. Leonard had the primary assist.

Boston College was down 2-1 with about five minutes to go in regulation. The eighth-overall pick came up at the perfect time, tying the game at two forcing overtime.

The Eagles got the extra point in an eight-round shootout and would tie Maine 2-2. Leonard is now fourth on the team with 10 points (five goals, five assists) in 10 games. He is also second on the team with 40 shots on goal.

“It’s Surreal, Honestly”: Boston College’s Ryan Leonard On Student Support, Beating Top Opponents, And Team Chemistry

David Gucciardi, LD, 2022 7th RD, No. 11 Michigan State Spartans (8-3-1, 3-0-1)

Gucciardi did not suit up for the second straight weekend Michigan State’s series against the No. 18 Penn State Nittany Lions. The Spartans tied with the Nittany Lions in Game 1 of the series, with Penn State eventually getting the extra point in the shootout, but bounced back in Game 2 with a 5-3 win. 

The Spartans have a big test ahead of them when they take on the No. 1 Wisconsin Badgers on Nov. 17-18. 

Chase Clark, G, 2021 6th RD, Sacred Heart Pioneers (5-5-1, 5-2-1)

Clark and the Pioneers had a fantastic weekend. Sacred Heart earned its first sweep of the season against the defending Atlantic Hockey champion Canisius Golden Griffins. It has won five out of its last six contests and are sitting in second place in the AHA. 

In Game 1, the Pioneers got off to a slow start giving up the first goal of the game with 1:09 to go in the first period, and then rallied with four unanswered goals, taking the series opener 4-1. Clark ended the game with 24 saves. 

Game 2 was a bit of a nail-biter for the home squad. The Pioneers had a 3-0 lead, but the Golden Griffins made it a one goal contest heading into the third period. Clark stopped all seven third period shots and Sacred Heart would go on to win 3-2. 

Clark made 21 saves and is now 5-5-0 with a 2.52 goals-against average and a .916 save percentage. 

The Pioneers will have the weekend off and will be back in action against the Robert Morris Colonials on Nov. 24-25. 

Ryan Chesley, RD, 2022 2nd RD, No. 6 Minnesota Golden Gophers (5-3-2, 1-2-1)

Coming off a win and a tie against the Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs, the Gophers were right back into conference play facing off against the No. 12 Michigan Wolverines. The Wolverines defeated the Gophers in the Big Ten championship for the second-consecutive season last year and were seeking revenge playing in a very hostile environment that is Yost Ice Arena. 

Chesley took a tripping penalty that eventually resulted in a Michigan power-play goal. 

However, the right-shot defenseman was on the ice for Jimmy Clark’s highlight-reel tying tally in the third period. The Gophers trailed 3-1 for the majority of the second period, but Clark began the comeback in the dying seconds of the second.

Eventually, Chesley got on the scoresheet having the secondary assist on Brody Lamb’s game-winning tally.

Minnesota would win 4-3 marking its first Big Ten win of the season. Chesley also finished the game with three shot attempts and two shot blocks.

Game 2 was a different storyline. For the second consecutive game, Chesley took a penalty that resulted in the Wolverines capitalizing on the man-advantage. 

Down 2-1 with about five minutes to go in the final frame, Jimmy Snuggerud scored a huge goal that tied the game at two forcing overtime. The Wolverines got the extra point winning the shootout in three rounds. 

Chesley still leads the Gophers with a plus-8 rating and leads the team with 20 blocked shots. 

The Gophers will return home to battle against the No. 17 Notre Dame Fighting Irish. They have a lot of ground to make up as they are currently sixth in the Big Ten. 

Brent Johnson, RD, 2021 3rd RD, Ohio State Buckeyes (3-5-3, 0-5-1)

The Buckeyes were swept for the second consecutive weekend, this time against the then-unranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Ohio State could not get anything going offensively. The Fighting Irish dominated from start to finish, taking a 4-0 lead. The Buckeyes got one goal late in the third, but it was too late.

Johnson had one shot on goal on two shot attempts in the series opener.

Ohio State was blanked 3-0 in the series finale. Johnson was a minus-1 and had three shots on goal. He led the team with six shot attempts.

The Buckeyes will look to end their three-game skid when they take on the Princeton Tigers for their third non-conference matchup. Ohio State currently sits dead last in the Big Ten. 

Joaquim Lemay, LD, 2021 4th RD, Omaha Mavericks (5-2-1, 1-1-0)

Lemay was back in the lineup against the LIU Sharks after missing last weekend’s series against the No. 16 Western Michigan Broncos. The 2021 fourth-round pick is having a breakout year in his sophomore campaign. He is second on the team with six points (three goals, three assists) among defensemen. 

In Game 1, Lemay had the secondary assist on the Mavericks’ second goal of the game.

Omaha took Game 1 3-2. Lemay had three shots on goal and led the team with eight shot attempts.

Game 2 was even better for Lemay. He had the secondary assist on the Mavericks’ second goal of the game in the second period.

However, the Sharks came back from a 4-2 deficit and tied the game with about three minutes to go in the third. But Lemay got the game-winning goal in overtime just 52 seconds into the extra session.

Omaha will resume NCHC play when it battles against the No. 3 Denver Pioneers.

Other College Hockey Storylines

  • No. 14 Arizona State splits with No. 3 Denver (6-5OTW, 8-4L)
  • Bemidji State splits with Michigan Tech (4-2L, 6-4W)
  • No. 8 Boston University sweeps UMass Lowell (3-2W, 6-1W)
  • UConn splits with Merrimack (6-3L, 4-3W)
  • Minnesota State sweeps Ferris State (6-2W, 3-2OTW)
  • AIC sweeps Holy Cross (4-1W, 3-2W)
  • Mercyhurst splits with No. 20 RIT (5-2L, 2-0W)
  • Air Force sweeps Army (4-3OTW, 4-0W)
  • Vermont splits with No. 15 UMass (4-1L, 6-2W)
  • Dartmouth ties No. 10 Cornell (2-2SOL) and beats Colgate 3-2
  • No. 19 St. Cloud sweeps No. 16 Western Michigan (3-2W, 3-0W)
  • No. 2 North Dakota sweeps Minnesota Duluth (4-2W, 2-0W)
  • Northern Michigan sweeps Lake Superior State (6-4W, 4-3OTW)
  • No. 5 Providence sweeps Northeastern (2-1W, 5-2W)


By Jacob Cheris

About Jon Sorensen

Jon has been a Caps fan since day one, attending his first game at the Capital Centre in 1974. His interest in the Caps has grown over the decades and included time as a season ticket holder. He has been a journalist covering the team for 10+ years, primarily focusing on analysis, analytics and prospect development.
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2 Responses to Capitals College Credits: Ryan Leonard Continues Scoring Streak, Joaquim Lemay Scores Game-Winner, Chase Clark Heats Up

  1. DWGie26 says:
    November 13, 2023 at 11:44 pm

    I know I say this every report, but I hope Chesly and Leonard turn pro after this year. Both continue to impress, with if nothing else, consistency. Love seeing that.

    Clark also continues to impress but wish he was on a better team. A sweep on the weekend is good for the soul!

    Could Lemey be a sleeper for us?

    Gucc might be too physical for the NCAA so he probably needs to go pro too.

    Reply
    • Anonymous says:
      November 14, 2023 at 3:00 am

      I think Clark deliberately chose a poor team. Last year, he was backup on the team that won the national championship. Now if you’re a young goalie, with NHL aspirations, who do you pick? A team that will play rock solid defense in front of you, or a team that let’s you see a lot of shots? Do you want to pick up bad habits with a winning team, or learn good positioning, and rebound control, with a shaky defense?

      Gucciardi doesn’t impress me a lot. He doesn’t do anything really well. Don’t think we need another John Erskine. But I won’t throw him under the bus yet. I’m rooting for him to prove me wrong.

      Reply

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