Even though there are just four weeks remaining in the regular season, Cornell will get its first look at Rensselaer and Union this weekend on a trip to New York's Capital District that includes the team's fourth televised game in as many weeks. The Big Red will take on upstart Rensselaer at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 3 in a game that can be seen across North America on NBC Sports Network, which added college hockey to its broadcast schedule shortly before it changed its name from Versus to its current handle. Cornell then takes the short trip west to Schenectady for a showdown at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 4 against Union, which just surpassed the Big Red for first place in ECAC Hockey last weekend. Cornell fell to 14th in both major polls after a pair of losses to Colgate last weekend, while Union is now up to a tie for 11th in the USCHO.com poll and 12th in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll. The Big Red is 3-1-1 against ranked teams this season. Both of this weekend's games will feature play-by-play by Jason Weinstein on WHCU 870 AM and can be accessed worldwide through the Cornell Redcast subscription service.
 
GAME #22: #14/14 CORNELL at RENSSELAER
DATE: Friday, Feb. 3, 2012
TIME: 7:30 p.m.
SITE: Houston Field House — Troy, N.Y.
2011-12 RECORDS: Cornell 11-6-4, 8-3-3 ECAC Hockey; Rensselaer 7-18-1, 4-9-1 ECAC Hockey
SERIES RECORD: Cornell leads, 59-31-6
LAST MEETING: Cornell won in overtime, 3-2, on Feb. 12, 2011 in Troy, N.Y.
TV: NBC Sports Network
RADIO: WHCU 870 AM (Jason Weinstein)
LIVE STATS: www.rpiathletics.com/livestats
 
GAME #23: #14/14 CORNELL at #11/12 UNION
DATE: Saturday, Feb. 4, 2012
TIME: 7 p.m.
2011-12 RECORDS: Cornell 11-6-4, 8-3-3 ECAC Hockey; Union 15-6-6, 9-3-3 ECAC Hockey
SERIES RECORD: Cornell leads, 29-14-6
LAST MEETING: Cornell lost, 4-0, on Feb. 11, 2011 in Schenectady, N.Y.
SITE: Messa Rink — Schenectady, N.Y.
RADIO: WHCU 870 AM (Jason Weinstein)
LIVE STATS: http://livestats.internetconsult.com/union/mhockey
VIDEO (fee): www.unionathletics.com/showcase

Cornell game notes (PDF)
RPI game notes (PDF)
Union game notes (PDF)

ABOUT THE BIG RED
Cornell had a seven-game unbeaten streak halted last weekend with a pair of close losses to Colgate. The Raiders held off the Big Red for a 2-1 victory on Friday at Lynah Rink, then came from behind with four third-period goals (including an empty-netter) for a 5-3 triumph in the rematch on Saturday at Starr Rink in Hamilton. The setbacks were the first for the Big Red in 2012, and the only back-to-back losses the team has suffered all season. As a result, the Big Red has lost its standing as first place in ECAC Hockey for the first time since Nov. 11. Cornell has fallen two points behind Union, though the Big Red has played one fewer game. ... Cornell has trailed in games for just 211 minutes, 52 seconds this season. A good chunk of that — 29 percent, to be exact — came last weekend, when Colgate led for 61:03 of the teams' two-game set. ... The Big Red has surrendered 47 goals, which is the lowest total in the nation. ... The team's leading scorer last season, junior forward Greg Miller (7-11—18) is tied for this year's race with freshman linemate Brian Ferlin (7-11—18) and junior defenseman Nick D'Agostino (8-10—18). Senior forward Sean Collins (7-8—15) has 10 points over his last nine games to join the race. ... The last time Cornell had more than four ties was during when it went 16-10-6 during the 2003-04 season.
 
ABOUT RENSSELAER
The Engineers have shaken off seperate eight- and six-game losing streaks and proven to be resilient in recent weeks by posting a 4-2-1 record in their last seven games.  Hot goaltending has been at the core of the turnaround, with junior Bryce Merriam surrendering just one goal on 82 shots in a road sweep of Brown and Yale from Jan. 20-21. The effort earned Merriam the ECAC Hockey Goalie of the Week honors. Rensselaer followed up by yielding fewer than 20 shots on goal in both home games against St. Lawrence and Clarkson last weekend, but the Engineers could only muster a split with a 4-0 shutout of the Saints and 3-2 loss to the Golden Knights. The team still ranks second to last in the country in team offense, though the height of those struggles were early in the season. Rensselaer had been held to fewer than two goals in a game just once in its last 14 — a claim that not even the nation's top offense at Minnesota-Duluth can't make. ... Relative to the Ratings Percentage Index (RPI), the Engineers currently have the toughest schedule in ECAC Hockey (average of their opponents' RPI is 31.18, compared to Cornell's opponents' average of 34.10). ... The Engineers have been outscored 29-10 in third periods. ... There are no seniors among Rensselaer's top eight scorers. Included is junior Nick Bailen (5-11—16; 4 PPGs, 3 GWGs), a preseason All-ECAC Hockey pick on defense. He is tied with junior forward Marty O'Grady (5-5—10) and freshman forward Ryan Haggerty (5-4—9; 5 PPGs) for the team lead in goals. ... Merriam, a junior, has started most of the games in goal, posting a 6-13 record, 2.31 goals-against average and .916 save percentage. He served primarily as a backup the last two seasons. He has faced Cornell once before, making 20 saves in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Big Red on Feb. 12, 2011 at Houston Field House.
 
THE SERIES WITH RENSSELAER
Friday's game will be the 97th all-time meeting between the Big Red and Engineers, with Cornell holding a 59-31-6 lead in the series — including a 10-1-2 mark in the last 13 meetings. That one loss came in an ECAC Hockey Championship quarterfinal series in 2009. The Engineers' last regular-season victory over the Big Red came on Feb. 24, 2006, at Houston Field House. Mike Schafer is 27-11-4 against Rensselaer in his tenure as the Big Red's head coach, while Engineers head coach Seth Appert is 10-1-2 against the Big Red.
 
ABOUT UNION
The Dutchmen are 6-1-1 in their last eight games — all in-conference — having surged ahead of Cornell for first place in ECAC Hockey by two points, though the Big Red has a game in hand. Union is coming off of a pair blowout victories at home against Clarkson and St. Lawrence. While defense is a popular headline for the Dutchmen, since they lead the nation with an average of 1.78 goals against, Union has averaged 4.13 goals per game over its last eight contests. ... The Dutchmen have surrendered two or fewer goals in 14 of their 15 victories. ... Union has a pair of impressive non-league victories on the road against Michigan and Merrimack, helping it hold down 14th place in the PairWise Rankings heading into this weekend. ... Junior center Jeremy Welsh (18-6—24; 9 PPGs) is tied for fifth in the nation in goals and tied for first in power-play goals. Linemate sophomore Daniel Carr (12-13—25; 8 PPGs) isn't far behind after finishing second in the nation in that category last season. ... Senior center Kelly Zajac (6-25—31) leads the team in scoring, pivoting a line with Wayne Simpson (13-9—22; 5 PPGs) and sophomore Matt Hatch (5-7—12). ... Sophomore Mat Bodie (7-15—22) is seventh in the nation in scoring among blueliners. ... Sophomore Troy Grosenick has emerged as the starter following the early departure of Keith Kinkaid last spring. Grosenick hasn't missed a beat with a 14-4-3 record, 1.58 goals-against average (which leads the nation) and .940 save percentage (second in the nation).
 
THE SERIES WITH UNION
Saturday's game will be the 50th all-time meeting between the Big Red and Dutchmen, with Cornell holding a 29-14-6 lead in the series. Union swept the two-game series between the teams last season, breaking a seven-game winless skid against Cornell which included an ECAC Hockey Championship quarterfinal series in 2008 at Messa Rink. Mike Schafer is 20-10-5 against Union in his tenure as the Big Red's head coach, while Saturday's game will be the first against CU for Rick Bennett as the Dutchmen's head coach.
 
CLASS-Y KEIR
Senior captain Keir Ross was named one of 10 national finalists for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award on Wednesday. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence — community, classroom, character and competition. Ross posted a plus-12 rating last season, good for second on the team, and was penalized the least of any defenseman despite frequently being matched up against some of the opposition's best forward combinations. Outside of the rink, Ross is a two-time selection to the ECAC Hockey Academic All-League team and was the Big Red's Hockey Scholar Athlete last season. He was also named to the College of Human Ecology Dean's List in 2010, carrying a 3.57 grade point average in Human Biology, Health and Society. He joins Brown's Jack Maclellan as the lone ECAC Hockey representatives among the finalists.
 
IVY LEAGUE LEADERS
Using a front-loaded schedule, the Big Red has taken a commanding lead in the chase for its first title in the Ivy League since the 2004-05 season. With just February games at home against Brown and Yale remaining, Cornell is 5-1-2 in Ivy League play and can clinch a share of the title with a win Friday, Feb. 10 against the Bears. The Big Red can clinch the crown outright with a victory Saturday, Feb. 11 against three-time defending champion Yale; or a victory against Brown and a tie against Yale.
 
FAST STARTERS
The Big Red is 8-1 on Friday nights this season and 7-2 in games on the front end of back-to-backs. Cornell has scored the first goal in all but one game in both scenarios. Some of the team's biggest victories have come at the start of the weekend, including at then-No. 9 Yale on Nov. 4 and at then-No. 6 Colorado College on Jan. 6.
 
A.I. — THE NEW ANSWER
With three consecutive shutouts in November, sophomore goalie Andy Iles recorded the second-longest shutout streak in program history, spanning 213 minutes, 35 seconds over a five-game span. The only Cornell shutout streak that went longer was posted by Toronto Maple Leafs goalie Ben Scrivens, who held the opposition scoreless for 267:11 during the 2010 playoffs. But Iles wasn't done there — he posted back-to-back shutouts against St. Lawrence and Clarkson on Dec. 2 and Dec. 3, respectively, spurring another lengthy shutout streak of 152:36 that ranks ninth all-time in Big Red history. Iles is tied for second in the nation with five shutouts. His goals-against average of 2.11 is 11th in the NCAA. Iles also picked up his first collegiate point with an assist Dec. 30 against Clarkson, which was the Big Red's first goalie assist since Ben Scrivens garnered one March 9, 2008 — a span of 120 games.
 
DANGEROUS D'AGOSTINO
Junior defenseman Nick D'Agostino is tied for the team lead in scoring with eight goals and 10 assists for 18 points entering the weekend. His average of 0.86 points per game is ninth in the nation among blueliners; his five game-winning goals is tied for fourth in the NCAA; and his six power-play goals is tops nationally among defensemen. If he wins the team's scoring race this season, it would mark the first time a Big Red defensemen has done so since Dan Lodboa racked up 61 points as a senior during the program's monumental 1969-70 season in which it went 29-0 and won the NCAA championship.
 
NOW THAT'S DEFENSE
Junior defenseman Braden Birch, a Chicago Blackhawks draft pick, went two months without being on the ice for an even-strength goal against. The streak of 668 minutes, 49 seconds covered all 12 games in which Birch has appeared, ending with Clarkson's final goal Dec. 30 at the Florida College Hockey Classic. Not surprisingly, Birch leads the team's defensemen with a plus-11 rating. The pairing of Birch and senior Sean Whitney had not surrendered a five-on-five goal this season until Saturday, Jan. 28. But in the same game, Birch also scored his first goal of the season.
 
MORE FROM MOWREY
The Big Red's forward corps took a hit in a Jan. 13 game at Quinnipiac when junior forward John Esposito — who was playing on the team's most productive even-strength and power-play line with junior Greg Miller and freshman Brian Ferlin — suffered an injury. But sophomore forward Dustin Mowrey has stepped into Esposito's spot on the line and posted five points in the last four games to push his total to seven points over the Big Red's last six games.
 
RYAN OFF AND RUNNING
Joakim Ryan has already set a program record for goals in a season for freshman defensemen with six through 20 games. The record goes back to 1975-76, which was the first season in which freshmen were allowed to compete at the varsity level. Ryan got his season off to a flying start with two goals and an assist in the opening 5-4 loss to Mercyhurst on Oct. 29. For his efforts, Ryan was awarded as the ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Week. It was actually the second straight year that a freshman potted two goals in his debut for the Big Red — forward Dustin Mowrey did it on Oct. 29, 2010 against New Hampshire.
 
FEEL THE DRAFT?
Cornell has six players on the roster who have been selected in the NHL Entry Draft, including picks in the fourth and fifth rounds last June. Freshmen Brian Ferlin (Boston Bruins) and Joel Lowry (Los Angeles Kings) were selected in a span of 20 picks, giving the 2011-12 Big Red the program's highest number of draft picks on a single team since 2006-07. Other players whose NHL rights are already owned are senior Sean Collins (Columbus Blue Jackets), juniors Braden Birch (Chicago Blackhawks) and Nick D'Agostino (Pittsburgh Penguins) and sophomore Kirill Gotovets (Tampa Bay Lightning).
 
FERLIN'S FURIOUS START
Freshman forward Brian Ferlin, a native of Jacksonville, Fla., is 11th the nation in rookie points per game (0.86) and is tops in the ECAC Hockey rookie scoring race after posting 14 points in the Big Red's first 14 conference games. Teams around the league have taken notice, tabbing the Boston Bruins draft pick as the Rookie of the Week on consecutive weeks of Nov. 7 and Nov. 14. Teammate Joakim Ryan earned the honor on Oct. 31, meaning the Big Red had ECAC Hockey's top newcomer for the first three weeks of its season.
 
COLLECTING HARDWARE
Goalie Andy Iles became the first Cornell hockey player to earn a medal for the United States at the IIHF World Junior Championships when he was part of Team USA that claimed bronze at the 2011 tournament in Buffalo, N.Y. Iles is just the second Cornell player to be a member of the U.S. team, joining Jean-Marc Pelletier in 1998. The last Cornell player to earn a medal for any nation at the IIHF World Junior Championships was Sasha Pokulok, who claimed gold with Canada in 2006. The bronze medal won by Iles is the first bronze of the seven medals claimed by Cornellians at the tournament. Iles was been named the U.S. emergency goalie for this year's World Junior tournament, but was never summoned to join the team.
 
INTERNATIONAL EXPOSURE
Andy Iles isn't the only Cornell player to experience international competition recently. Freshmen forward Brian Ferlin and defenseman Joakim Ryan were also at the Junior Evaluation Camp from Aug. 6-13 in Lake Placid, N.Y. Ferlin had a goal and three assists in five games with the United States and Ryan trolled the blue line for Sweden. Ferlin was then invited to the U.S. World Junior Pre-Tournament Camp in mid-December, but did not make the final cut. Sophomore defenseman Kirill Gotovets played in three of Belarus' eight games at the 2010 IIHF World Championships, helping his nation to a 10th-place finish. Gotovets came to the United States two years before coming to Cornell, attending prestigious Shattuck-St. Mary's in Minnesota.
 
BLANK YOU VERY MUCH
Sophomore goalie Andy Iles made 15 saves for his first collegiate shutout on Nov. 18 in a 4-0 victory over Princeton. With that result, the Big Red extended its streak of seasons with at least one shutout to 17. The last time Cornell went a full schedule without posting a shutout came during the 1994-95 season under former coach Brian McCutcheon, as Cornell finished that year 11-15-4. The following year marked the first season for head coach Mike Schafer, and his clubs have never gone a full year without recording a shutout.
 
CLOSER TO HOME
Hometown fans of the Big Red got a rare treat last season when goalie Andy Iles became the first Ithaca native to play for the team since Mark McCutcheon in 2006-07. But when freshman Kevin Cole made his collegiate debut Dec. 30 against Clarkson, it became the first time in at least 50 years — and perhaps the first time in program history — that two Ithaca natives have played for the Big Red in the same season. Cole was born in Ithaca and raised in nearby Lansing before heading off to junior programs in Syracuse and Cornwall, Ontario. His father, Dave, lettered for the Big Red in the 1981-82 season, and his mother, Karen (Shull), also played for the Cornell women's hockey team. This is the ninth consecutive season that the son of a former Big Red player has also suited up for Cornell.
 
BIG STAGE PERFORMERS
Seniors Sean Whitney and Locke Jillson have shown a knack for producing in front of the biggest crowds they've seen in their college careers. Both scored goals against Boston in front of a sold-out crowd of 18,200 at Madison Square Garden in 2009, then the duo teamed up to score the Big Red's lone goal against BU on the same stage on Nov. 26. Whitney had the initial shot on Jillson's goal, which came on a sharp-angle shot off a rebound. Jillson then potted his second goal of the season to open the scoring in a 3-1 victory Jan. 6 at then-No. 6 Colorado College.
 
NEW SUPPORT STAFF
Mike Schafer returns for his 17th season as the Cornell head coach, but he has three new assistants this year. While the new assistant coaches will be new faces in their positions behind the bench, their faces will still be familiar. Ben Syer joins the Big Red after eight seasons as an assistant coach for ECAC Hockey opponent Quinnipiac, and Topher Scott returns to East Hill just 3½ years since he last competed for the Big Red as a senior co-captain who eclipsed 100 career points. Volunteer assistant coach Kris Mayotte is also familiar with ECAC Hockey, having tended goal for Union from 2002-06.
 
CLIMBING THE CHARTS
Cornell head coach Mike Schafer is quickly moving up the ranks of the coaching fraternity in his win totals. Now in his 17th season, Schafer has 324 career victories, ranking him third in ECAC Hockey, but with the shortest tenure of the two ahead of him in the rankings. Schafer trails only St. Lawrence's Joe Marsh (475) and is closing the gap on Quinnipiac's Rand Pecknold (325). Schafer is tops among Ivy League coaches, with Dartmouth's Bob Gaudet recently reaching his 308th career win.
 
SOUTHERN FLAIR
None of the other 57 schools in Division I men's hockey have as many players that call states bordering the Gulf of Mexico home as Cornell. The Big Red has four players that fit into that category — Florida native Brian Ferlin and the three Texans, Locke Jillson, Keir Ross and Armand de Swardt. Northern Michigan is the only other team in the country that has three players from Texas.
 
MILESTONE MANIA
The Big Red's 2-1 win over Quinnipiac in game one of the ECAC Hockey quarterfinals last season marked the 1,000th victory all-time for the Cornell men's hockey program. Cornell became the 17th program to reach that milestone. The Big Red then surpassed another milestone this season by recording the 500th victory all-time at storied Lynah Rink with a 1-0 shutout of Niagara on Nov. 22.
 
THE OFFENSIVE DEFENSE
The Big Red has scored four shorthanded goals this season — which is tied for second in ECAC Hockey and matches last season's total after going without a goal on the penalty kill since Dec. 28, 2008. Senior forward Sean Collins has two of this season's shorthanded goals after potting two last season to become the first Cornell player with multiple shorties since both Cam Abbott and Mark McCutcheon had a pair of them in the 2005-06 season. Junior forward Vince Mihalek, freshman forward Joel Lowry and freshman defenseman Joakim Ryan have the Big Red's other shorthanded goals this season.
 
AMERICAN INFLUENCE
Seven of this season's nine freshmen were born in the United States, giving the Big Red a more American feel than it's seen in quite a while. Cornell has 12 players who were born in the United States, which is the most on a Mike Schafer-coached team at Cornell. The previous high was 10, which came in 1997-98.
 
PROSE ABOUT PROS
All seven players who graduated after playing with the Big Red last season have played professionally this season. The group includes forwards Joe Devin (AHL's San Antonio Rampage and ECHL's Cincinnati Cyclones), Tyler Roeszler (Sweden's Vita Hästen), Patrick Kennedy (ECHL's Idaho Steelheads and Trenton Titans), Jordan Kary (CHL's Texas Brahmas), Dan Nicholls (CHL's Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees and Texas Brahmas, and SHL's Fayetteville FireAntz), defenseman Mike Devin (ECHL's Elmira Jackals) and goalie Mike Garman (ECHL's Colorado Eagles and CHL's Tulsa Oilers). Two players who left Cornell after the 2010 season have also made their NHL debuts this season — goalie Ben Scrivens with the Toronto Maple Leafs and forward Riley Nash with the Carolina Hurricanes.
 
UP NEXT
The Big Red returns home with a chance to clinch its first Ivy League title since 2005 with games against Brown at 7 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 10 and Yale at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 11.