ITHACA, N.Y. -- Fresh off the first win of the season on Nov. 6 at Clarkson, the Cornell men's hockey team will look to build off of that victory this weekend when it takes on Quinnipiac and Princeton in a pair of contests at Lynah Rink. Both games can be heard in the Ithaca area on WHCU 870 AM with Jason Weinstein on the call, while live audio will also be available through the Cornell Redcast subscription service.

ABOUT THE BIG RED

Cornell opened up league play last weekend with a split in the North Country, falling in the league opener at St. Lawrence before scoring a 6-1 victory at Clarkson. On Friday, Mike Garman got the start and made 30 saves in a game that was scoreless heading into the third period. Saturday, Jordan Kary had the best game of his career, scoring a pair of goals to lead the Big Red to its first victory of the year. Locke Jillson and Kirill Gotovets both had a goal and an assist in the game, while Dan Nicholls added a pair of helpers on the night. Freshman goaltender Andy Iles picked up the victory in his first career road start, making 35 saves on 36 shots. For the season, freshman Dustin Mowrey has three goals to lead the team in that category, while a whopping six other players are tied with Mowrey for the team lead in scoring with three points. Ten different players have accounted for the 13 goals scored this season by the Big Red, while only freshmen Armand de Swardt and Mathieu Brisson have yet to collect a point among skaters who have appeared in at least one game this season. Garman and Iles have split time in goal, with each goaltender getting a pair of starts. Iles has a 2.26 goals-against average and a .923 save percentage while Garman has a 4.59 goals-against average and a .855 save percentage. Cornell has converted on three power-play goals in 20 chances (15.0 percent) while killing off 18-of-22 opponents' power play chances (81.8 percent).

ABOUT QUINNIPIAC

Quinnipiac enters the weekend with a 4-3-1 overall record and a 0-1-1 mark in ECAC Hockey play, tying Brown on Friday, 3-3, before falling to Yale on Saturday, 5-1. Freshman Kellen Jones and junior Yuri Bouharevich are tied for the team scoring lead with six points apiece, with Jones sharing the team goal-scoring lead with Clay Harvey and Spencer Heichman. Dan Clarke has seen most of the time in goal this season, recording a 3.08 goals-against average and a .892 save percentage, while understudy Eric Hartzell has a 1.61 goals-against average and a .933 save percentage in just under 75 minutes of action. Quinnipiac has converted 6-of-37 power-play chances (16.2 percent) while killing off 32-of-43 opponents' power plays (74.4 percent).

THE SERIES WITH QUINNIPIAC

Cornell holds and 8-4-2 lead in the all-time series against the Bobcats after splitting the two meetings last season. Quinnipiac handed the Big Red a 3-2 loss at Lynah Rink in mid-November last season, but the Big Red responded with a 2-0 win on Feb. 5, 2010, in Hamden, Conn. In games played at Lynah Rink, the Big Red holds a 4-3-1 record against the Bobcats.

ABOUT PRINCETON

The Tigers enter the weekend with the same 1-3 mark as the Big Red, losing to Dartmouth, Brown and Yale to open the season before scoring their first win of the season against Brown in an ECAC Hockey game. Freshman Andrew Calof leads the team in scoring with seven points on a goal and six assists, while senior Matt Arhontas has a team-best five goals. Princeton is in the midst of a three-way search to replace Zane Kalemba in goal, with sophomore Mike Condon getting a pair of games in net to open the year. Condon has a .921 save percentage and a 2.53 goals-against average, while freshman Sean Bonar has a .931 save percentage and a 2.04 goals-against average. Senior Alan Reynolds has also gotten in the mix with a .891 save percentage and a 5.00 goals-against average. The Tigers have scored four power-play goals in 21 chances (19.0 percent) while killing off 18-of-21 opponents' power plays (85.7 percent).

THE SERIES WITH PRINCETON

Cornell holds a 79-47-7 lead in the all-time series against Princeton, with Saturday's contest being the 134th all-time meeting against the Tigers. The two teams met three times last season, with Princeton claiming a victory in the second and third games, winning at home and in Estero, Fla. Cornell claimed a 5-2 win on Nov. 20 at Lynah Rink before the Tigers scored a 3-2 win in the consolation game of the Florida College Classic. In the rubber match of the season, Princeton scored a 5-3 win on Feb. 6 at Hobey Baker Rink. Cornell head coach Mike Schafer is 24-11-2 all-time against the Tigers.

A LOOK AROUND THE LEAGUE

Before the season, many around ECAC Hockey felt that the league would be incredibly balanced this season, and the first weekend of league play has backed that up. Every team in the league has at least one point through the first two games, with only Yale and St. Lawrence collecting sweeps in the first weekend. Cornell is tied with three other teams for fourth place in the league standings with two points, with Union alone in third after securing a win at Harvard and a tie at Dartmouth last weekend.

NOT BLANKED OFTEN

Cornell's shutout loss at St. Lawrence on Nov. 5 marked the first time that the Big Red had been shut out since falling to Yale in the 2009 ECAC Hockey championship game in Albany, N.Y., by a 5-0 margin. Cornell went both NCAA tournament games that season, all of last season and the first two games of 2010-11 without being blanked, a span of 38 games.

WORKED WELL LAST TIME

Cornell opened the 2010-11 season with three straight defeats, something that hasn't happened since the 1979-80 season. While Cornell finished that season with a 16-15 record, the Big Red peaked at the right time, winning the ECAC championship and advancing to the Frozen Four for the first time since 1973. 

BALANCED ATTACK

When Cornell got its first win of the season on Nov. 6 at Clarkson, it came by way of a balanced offensive attack. A total of 13 different skaters collected at least one point on the night, with four players – Jordan Kary, Kirill Gotovets, Locke Jillson and Dan Nicholls – collecting a pair of points.

A CHANGE WILL DO YOU GOOD

Jordan Kary and Keir Ross benefitted from a pair of scoring changes after the Clarkson game on Nov. 6. Kary was credited with the game's second goal, originally awarded to Braden Birch, giving him the first two goals, including the game-winner. Ross, meanwhile, was given the second assist on the Big Red's sixth goal, giving him his first point of the year.

THAT WAS QUICK

Jordan Kary has needed just four games this season to record a career season high for points, with those two points even coming in one game. Entering the season, Kary had just two career points, collecting an assist as a freshman and a goal as a junior. He equaled that output on Nov. 6 against Clarkson, scoring a pair of goals against the Golden Knights.

FOR STARTERS

Cornell's loss to New Hampshire on Oct. 29 dropped the Big Red's all-time record in season openers to 55-33-6 and snapped a string of two straight wins in season opener. The loss also sent Cornell head coach Mike Schafer to 10-5-1 all-time in season openers.

SHORT-HANDED

John Esposito's goal against New Hampshire marked the first short-handed goal for a Cornell player in a span of 59 games since Riley Nash scored short-handed against St. Cloud State on Dec. 27, 2008, in Estero, Fla. 

A LONG AWAITED DEBUT

Sophomore forward Vince Mihalek was a scratch for all 34 of the Big Red's games a year ago and the season opener against New Hampshire this season, but finally made his collegiate debut against RIT on Oct. 30. Mihalek collected an assist in his debut.

YOUTH MOVEMENT

Of the seven players to share the team lead in scoring entering the weekend, six of those are underclassmen, with the seventh being a player known more for his physical play than his offensive prowess, senior Dan Nicholls. Of the other six players, three are sophomores, two are juniors and one is a freshman.

THE FIRST ONE'S OUT OF THE WAY

Freshman Andy Iles picked up his first win of his career on Nov. 6 at Clarkson, picking up 35 saves in the victory. Iles is now 1-1 on the year and has seen action in three of the Big Red's four games this season.

WELCOME TO THE CLUB

All six members of the freshman class made their collegiate debut during the season's opening weekend on Oct. 29-30 against New Hampshire and RIT. Dustin Mowrey, Rodger Craig, Kirill Gotovets and Andy Iles saw time in both games, while Mathieu Brisson and Armand de Swardt both played in one game apiece, with Brisson appearing in the RIT game and de Swardt playing against New Hampshire.

THE ELDER STATESMAN

Quick, what Cornell player has appeared in the most games over the course of his career with the Big Red? If you guessed senior defenseman Mike Devin, you guessed correctly. Devin appeared in his 100th career game on Oct. 30 against RIT and is the only active player to have appeared in 100 games. Devin has played 102 career games entering the weekend, with Patrick Kennedy set to reach the 100-game mark with the first game this weekend.

FOR STARTERS

Cornell's loss to New Hampshire on Oct. 29 dropped the Big Red's all-time record in season openers to 55-33-6 and snapped a string of two straight wins in season opener. The loss also sent Cornell head coach Mike Schafer to 10-5-1 all-time in season openers.

THAT DOESN'T HAPPEN HERE

When New Hampshire scored seven times against the Big Red in the season opener on Oct. 29, it marked the first time that an opponent scored seven goals at Lynah Rink since Providence did so on Jan. 5, 1999, in a 7-3 Friar victory. It's been even longer since Cornell gave up seven in a season opener - in fact, it's never happened since Lynah Rink has been open. The last time the Big Red gave up seven goals in a season opener came in the 1947-48 season when Cornell lost, 9-0, to Army.

ALLOWING A DOZEN

Traditionally one of the nation's top defensive teams, Cornell allowed 12 goals in the first weekend of the season on Oct. 29-30 against New Hampshire and RIT. The Big Red hadn't given up 12 goals in a weekend since Feb. 6-7, 1999, at Yale and Princeton. That weekend, Cornell dropped the opener, 11-0, at Ingalls Rink in New Haven, Conn., before rebounding the following night with a 4-1 victory at Princeton. The last time Cornell gave up at least 12 goals in back-to-back losses came in Brian McCutcheon's final games as head coach, losing at Clarkson on March 6-7, 1995, by 6-2 and 7-2 scores.

0-2 OPENERS

The last time Cornell began a season 0-2 was the 2007-08 season, when the Big Red dropped contests to RIT and Princeton to begin the year. The Big Red rebounded in the third game to record a 5-3 win against Quinnipiac to avoid going 0-3 to begin the season. Cornell concluded that season with a 19-14-3 record and a third-place finish in the ECAC Hockey tournament. The Big Red last began a season 0-3 in 1979-80, falling twice to Notre Dame and at Brown before picking up a victory in game number four at Yale. In spite of the start, Cornell wound up winning the ECAC Hockey championship that season and finished fourth at the NCAA tournament.

SHORT-HANDED

John Esposito's goal against New Hampshire marked the first short-handed goal for a Cornell player in a span of 59 games since Riley Nash scored short-handed against St. Cloud State on Dec. 27, 2008, in Estero, Fla. 

A LONG AWAITED DEBUT

Sophomore forward Vince Mihalek was a scratch for all 34 of the Big Red's games a year ago and the season opener against New Hampshire this season, but finally made his collegiate debut against RIT on Oct. 30. Mihalek collected an assist in his debut.

THREE RIVERS RECAP

Cornell answered a lot of questions about its offensive abilities with a five-goal first period in its exhibiton opener against Quebec at Trois-Rivieres on Oct. 21. Joe Devin and Tyler Roeszler both had a pair of goals in the first period, with Roezler tallying three points in all on the evening. Freshman Armand de Swardt had a goal and an assist, while Braden Birch and Greg Miller both had a pair of helpers. Mike Garman got the start in goal, posting 23 saves for the victory.

USA! USA! USA!

Cornell's offensive outburst continued in the second exhibition of the season, defeating the U.S. U18 National Team, 6-0, on Oct. 23. Joe Devin had a pair of goals and a pair of assists for a four-point night to lead the way for the Big Red. Junior Sean Collins had a goal and two assists, while John Esposito and Keir Ross both had a pair of assists. Kirill Gotovets had a goal and an assist, with Rodger Craig and Tyler Roeszler both adding a goal. Andy Iles posted 30 saves in his unofficial Cornell debut to record the shutout.

A SOUTHWEST FLAVOR

Cornell's roster in 2010-11 features a trio of players from the state of Texas, in juniors Locke Jillson and Keir Ross and freshman Armand de Swardt, with all three calling the Dallas area home. Cornell has now had four players from the Lone Star State, as the trio joins David McKee in hailing from Texas.

INTERNATIONAL EXPOSURE

Freshman Kirill Gotovets got a taste of the big time in May when he was selected to represent his native Belarus in the 2010 IIHF World Championships – not an age group World Championships (though he did play for Belarus at the U20 World Championship as well) – but playing against some of the best players the world has to offer. He played in three of Belarus' eight games at the World Championships, recording two shots and two minutes in penalties, helping his nation to a 10th-place finish. Gotovets has been in the United States for the last two years while attending school at Shattuck-St. Mary's in Minnesota.

BROTHERLY LOVE

A pair of Cornell players have older brothers who are currently on rosters of NHL clubs, with four players having older brothers playing professional hockey at some level. Junior Sean Whitney's older brother, Ryan, plays for the Anaheim Ducks, while sophomore Chris Moulson's brother, Matt, plays with the New York Islanders. Another player, sophomore John Esposito, has an older brother, Angelo, who plays for the Chicago Wolves of the American Hockey League (Atlanta affiliate), with senior Patrick Kennedy's older brother, Michael, playing in the ECHL for the Florida Everblades.

IS THERE A DRAFT IN HERE?

Cornell has four players on the roster for 2010-11 who have been selected by NHL clubs. Junior Sean Collins (Columbus), sophomores Braden Birch (Chicago) and Nick D'Agostino (Pittsburgh) and freshman Kirill Gotovets (Tampa Bay) are each the property of NHL clubs after having been drafted prior to beginning their careers at Cornell.

AMERICAN INFLUENCE

The Big Red roster in 2010-11 has nine players who call the United States home, up from seven last season and tied for second-most on a Mike Schafer-coached Big Red team. Cornell had 10 Americans on the roster in 1997-98, Schafer's third season, and had nine in 1999-2000, 2006-07 and 2008-09. 

HOMETOWN HERO

With programs in major cities like in Boston and Minneapolis, it's commonplace for a hometown player to suit up for the local college team, but that's not something as common in a city like Ithaca. So when freshman goaltender Andy Iles made his official collegiate debut on Oct. 29 against New Hampshire, he became the first Ithaca native to play for Cornell since Mike Tallman, who suited up for 37 games in three seasons from 1986-87 to 1988-89.

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 16th season, Schafer has 298 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 Quinnipiac's Rand Pecknold by four, with St. Lawrence's Joe Marsh well ahead with 457 career wins.

UP NEXT

Cornell's homestand continues with games against Yale and Brown next weekend. The contest against Yale will be a special 7:30 p.m. start and broadcast on CBS College Sports, while the Brown game on Saturday begins at 7 p.m.