ITHACA, N.Y. – The Big Red will hit the road for the first time in nearly a month when it heads to the Upper Midwest to face off with Minnesota-Duluth. The Big Red has gotten on a roll over recent contests, winning the final three games of its season long five-game home stand. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs enter the weekend with wins in its last seven contests. It will be the team's first meeting with the Bulldogs since the teams squared off in the NCAA Women's Frozen Four Championship Game in 2010 – a 3-2 Minnesota-Duluth victory in three overtimes.
 
Cornell Big Red (3-4-0, 3-2-0 ECAC Hockey) at Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs (8-4-2, 5-4-1 WCHA)
Friday, November 21, 2014 | 5:07 PM EST | Duluth, Minn. – AMSOIL Arena
Live Stats | Live Video ($) | Live Audio
 
Cornell Big Red (3-4-0, 3-2-0 ECAC Hockey) at Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs (8-4-2, 5-4-1 WCHA)
Saturday, November 22, 2014 | 7:07 PM EST | Duluth, Minn.  – AMSOIL Arena
Live Stats | Live Video ($) | Live Audio
 
Game Notes
Cornell | Minnesota-Duluth
 
Big Red Headlines
Cornell returned to game action this past weekend following a two-week layoff. While the Big Red looked out of sorts to begin the season dropping its first four games – two without the services of its top two centers Brianne Jenner and Jillian Saulnier and head coach Doug Derraugh – the team remained confident, knowing that brighter times were ahead. The team used the break to press the reset button on the season and start fresh. It certainly seems to have worked as the team broke out in a big way this past weekend against ECAC Hockey and Ivy League foes Brown and Yale. Keyed by the returns of Jenner and Saulnier, the Cornell offense kicked into high gear tallying 11 goals in the two blow-out victories. Both players accounted for four points on the weekend, while the Big Red gained some big contributions from the blue-line. The team started the weekend on Friday afternoon, as it bested Brown 5-1 for the squad's first victory of the season.  On Saturday, the team celebrated "Cornell Women's Hockey Team Day" with a resounding 6-2 victory over Yale in the team's annual fundraiser game to benefit the United Way of Tompkins County. Cornell continued its winning ways in its first week-night game of the season on Tuesday against local rival Colgate. Erin O'Connor potted the game-winner just 57-seconds into the third period, while Emily Fulton sealed the deal with an empty netter with 3-seconds left to push the Big Red to 3-2-0 in ECAC Hockey play.
 
About Head Coach Doug Derraugh '91
Derraugh enters his 10^th season at the helm of the Cornell women's ice hockey program. Returning to his alma mater before the 2005-06 season, he quickly transformed a program that posted only four wins in the season prior to his appointment into a consistent presence in ECAC Hockey and on the national stage. The Cornell program continues to grow under the guidance of the veteran coach. In 2013-14, he led the program to its fourth ECAC Hockey Tournament title over the last five seasons. All five of the Big Red's NCAA Tournament appearances have come under his leadership. Derraugh has twice been named ECAC Hockey Coach of the Year, most recently during the 2012-13 regular-season and tournament championship season. He is the winningest coach in the history of the program with a 173-105-21 record at Cornell. He returns both associate head coach Danielle Bilodeau '01 (ninth season) and assistant coach Edith Racine (sixth season) in 2014-15.
 
Bulldog Headlines
Similar to Cornell, Minnesota-Duluth has played one of the toughest schedules in the country to begin the season. The Bulldogs kicked off the season in late September with a two-game series out east against Connecticut. The team tied the opener 4-4, before blanking the Huskies 3-0 in the second game. The team returned home for tough conference matchups against nationally ranked Wisconsin, Minnesota, and North Dakota. The Bulldogs preceded to drop four of their next five games; finally securing a 1-0 victory over North Dakota in the final game of the six game stretch. Since that point the schedule has eased up and the Bulldogs have taken off. Minnesota-Duluth enters the weekend set with the Big Red winners of its last seven contests. The team has outscored its opponents 26-to-7 over the stretch. Most recently the Bulldogs swept a two-game set over the weekend at St. Cloud State. UMD jumped on St. Cloud State 6-1 in the opening game of the series. Katerina Mrazova potted two goals in the contest, while Ashleigh Brykaliuk added a goal and two assists. The second of the series was played much more tigthly as the Bulldogs were able to hang on for a 1-0 victory. Brienna Gillanders scored the game-winner at 17:22 of the first period. Minnesota-Duluth will head back to its non-conference slate this weekend where the team is 3-0-1 against such foes this season.
 
Previous Meeting Against Minnesota-Duluth...
The Big Red and the Bulldogs have only met one time in the storied history of the two programs. That meeting came on the brightest of stages as the two teams faced off in the Championship Game of the 2010 NCAA Women's Frozen Four hosted by the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. Cornell entered the game red hot after making a sensational run to its first-ever ECAC Hockey Tournament Title with a 4-3 overtime victory over Clarkson in the championship game. The strong play continued as the squad upset Harvard in Cambridge, Mass., to earn a trip to the program's first ever Frozen Four. The Big Red continued its underdog run with a 3-2 comeback victory in overtime against rival Mercyhurst, setting the stage for the anticipated matchup with the home-state Bulldogs. Melanie Jue got the scoring going for the Big Red with a power-play goal. The Bulldogs equalized with a power-play goal of its own just 18-seconds into the third period on a goal by leading scorer Emmanuelle Blais. Minnesota-Duluth jumped ahead with just 5:18 to go in the game when Jaime Rasmussen connected for the Bulldogs second power-play goal. With time dwindling down, Melanie Jue injected the Big Red with life, marking her second of the game with 3:30 remaining in regulation. The game would go to three overtimes, in which Cornell net-minder Amanda Mazzotta was fantastic. She made 35 saves after regulation - and a women's NCAA Championship game record 61 overall - before finally relinquishing a goal by the Bulldogs Jessica Wong with 33.6 seconds  remaining. The 119:26-minutes of game action marks the longest NCAA Frozen Four game in history.
 
AMSOIL Arena
Minnesota-Duluth is home to one of hockey's crown jewels in AMSOIL Arena. The building is one of the newest rinks in the Upper Midwest and provides a spectacular place to take in a game. Christened in December of 2010, the building is located on the scenic St. Louis Bay waterfront near Duluth's famous Aerial lift bridge. The building combines new world amenities and old world charm as it packs 6,756 seats into an intimate setting, making the building an extremely loud and intimidating place for opponents to play. Minnesota-Duluth played host to the NCAA Women's Frozen Four in 2012.
 
Non-Conference, No Problem
Since the Big Red's loss to Minnesota-Duluth in the final game of 2009-10, Cornell has feasted on non-conferenc e opposition. The Big Red has posted a 39-12-1 record outside of ECAC Hockey play over the last five seasons, which includes this season's early 0-2 mark at #1/1 Boston College. The Big Red have not lost more than three non-conference games in a season since 2009-10, when the squad went 7-7 outside of the league play. Cornell will have a tough task on its hands to avoid that string when it faces nationally ranked Minnesota-Duluth. The Bulldogs are 4-0 in non-conference games played at AMSOIL Arena over the last two seasons. Cornell will look to rebound from a tough start to non-conference play against another nationally ranked foe. Minnesota-Duluth checks in as ninth in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll, while the Bulldogs are ranked 10th by USCHO.com.
 
Poll Position
With the slow start to 2014, Cornell has fallen out of the top-10 in both the USCHO and USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Women's College Hockey polls. It is the first time in over five seasons that the Big Red has not been ranked in the top-10 in at least one of the two major polls. The last time it happened was Week Four of the 2009-10 season. Cornell had gone 127 consecutive weeks ranked in the top-10 of at least one of the polls. While only the USCHO.com poll has been released this week, Cornell likely will need to score victories in the team's upcoming two-game road set at Minnesota-Duluth in order to gain consideration to re-enter the top-10 of either poll. Cornell currently is the second team in the receiving votes category of the most recent USCHO.com poll, while the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll has them in fourth in receiving votes.
 
Dynamic Duo
Cornell seniors Brianne Jenner and Jillian Saulnier were certainly missed as the team started off 0-2-0 at Lynah Rink without the services of its top two centers. The duo did not take long in making an impact following both players return to the lineup this past weekend. Jenner got the Big Red off and running with a goal just 1:55 into the first period against Brown. The captain would later add a goal early in the third period on the power-play, while Saulnier turned the lead into a rout with two goals in the span of 1:08 to cap the scoring for the Big Red. Both players also marked multi-point games on Saturday in the second game of the weekend set. Jenner chipped in two assists, while Saulnier added a goal and a helper in the 6-2 victory and added a pair of apples on Tuesday. Saulnier is tied for second on the team with a 3-4-7 line, while Jenner is fourth with 3 goals and 3 assists. Both players are averaging well over a point per game for their careers.
 
Winning-Time
Cornell has been the winningest program in ECAC Hockey over the last five seasons. The Big Red has averaged over 26 wins per season in compiling a 133-29-10 (.802) record since 2009-10. Cornell won the regular-season title four of those five years with the stretch of four straight coming to an end last season. The next closest ECAC Hockey squads in terms of recent wins are Harvard and Clarkson. The Crimson have amassed a 106-42-17 (.694) record, while the Golden Knights check-in with a 118-54-21 (.666) record. Cornell looks to have the ball rolling after an impressive weekend sweep of Brown and Yale.
 
All Gold Everything
Brianne Jenner returns to East Hill for her senior season in 2014-15 and she's bring some hardware with her. The Big Red captain won a gold medal as a member of the Canadian National Team that defeated the United States 3-2 in overtime in the gold medal game of the XXII Olympic Winter Games held in Sochi, Russia. Although Jenner was one of the youngest members of Team Canada in the Olympics, she had a monumental impact in winning Canada's fourth straight gold medal. After the United States held a 2-0 lead through 56-minutes, Jenner sparked the furious Canadian comeback in the final 3:30, firing home a shot through heavy traffic in front of the USA net. Canada would go on to score the tying goal in the final minute, before ending it with a power play marker halfway through the first overtime session to complete the comeback.
 
Coach Canada
While head coach Doug Derraugh has been a fixture as the bench boss for the Big Red for the last nine seasons, he will also wear another coaching cap in 2014-15. This past summer, Hockey Canada announced that Derraugh will serve as the head coach for the Canada National Women's Team for the first year of the new Olympic cycle following the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, this past year. He brings a wealth of experience to the position and will be quite familiar with team operations after serving as an assistant coach on the Canadian National Team that won the gold medal at the 2012 IIHF Ice Hockey Women's World Championship. Derraugh is expected to miss minimal game action for the Big Red; however, associate head coach Danielle Bilodeau '01 and assistant coach Edith Racine will be more than capable to step in if a conflict does arise.
 
4 Nations Cup
Cornell had a big presence at last week's 4 Nations Cup that was hosted at Kamloops, British Columbia. In addition to Derraugh being the bench boss for Team Canada, seven current and former Big Red players participated at the event. Current team members Jillian Saulnier and Brianne Jenner had huge impacts at the tournament for Team Canada. Saulnier (1-0 – 1pt) scored the game-winning goal in Canada's 2-0 opening game victory over Sweden, while Jenner (0-1 – 1pt) scored the lone goal in the shootout of Canada's 3-2 victory over the United States in the gold medal game. Former Cornellians Rebecca Johnston '12 (3-0 – 3pts), Laura Fortino '13 (0-2 – 2pts), Lauriane Rougeau '13 (0-1 – 1pt), and Jessica Campbell '14 (3gp) also had excellent tournaments for the Canadian team. Alyssa Gagliardi '14 also appeared in one game on the blue line for the United States. The tournament victory was Derraugh's first at the helm of the national team.
 
Blue-Line Bash
The blue-line had its coming out party this past weekend, chipping in major contributions in the Big Red's weekend sweep. Junior Taylor Woods, who had been slotted at forward earlier this season, made the shift to defense and acclimated quickly to her role. She tallied two goals – including the game-winner on Saturday – and an assist in her first game action as a defender. Her output keyed an onslaught of goals from the back as Sarah Knee, Morgan Richardson and Erin O'Connor also tallied goals for the Big Red .
 
Fast Start for Fulton
Senior right wing Emily Fulton has gotten off to a torrid start on the offensive end this season. She leads the Big Red with a 4-8 – 12 line through the first seven games of the year. She posted the second most points of any Big Red player over the weekend, chipping in five helpers in the two games. Her pace continued on Tuesday as she collected an assist and empty net goal to seal the Big Red victory over Colgate. She currently is tied for fifth in the conference for points (12), while she's tied for fourth in assists (8). She ranks first in ECAC Hockey with a 1.71 points per game average.
 
O'Connor's Outburst
Freshman defender Erin O'Connor has been an immediate contributor on a Big Red blue-line which saw a lot of attrition from last year's team. While she had not cracked the score sheet through the season's first two weeks, she broke out in a big way this past weekend. She led the team with six points and a +5 rating in extended ice time against Brown and Yale. She tallied her first collegiate assist as part of a three apple effort against Brown. On Saturday, she netted her first collegiate goal on the power-play, while adding two more apples. She now ranks second on the team in both points and assists. Her big weekend earned her ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Week honors for this past week. She continued her breakout on Tuesday with another goal.
 
Punch on the Power-Play
The return of Jenner and Saulnier to the top power-play unit paid huge dividends, both in the amount of penalties drawn and the Big Red's ability to capitalize on its chances. Cornell drew 13 penalties over the course of the two games this past weekend and translated those opportunities into four power-play goals. Despite only playing six games this season, Cornell now is tied for third in ECAC Hockey with seven power-play markers this season. The team currently sits fifth in the conference with a 22.6% (7-of-31) conversion rate with the player advantage.
 
Fresh Faces
The Big Red will welcome five new members to the squad in 2014-15. The Class of 2018 will be a big boon to the back line as the class is comprised of a goalie, three defenders, and one forward. Two of freshmen hail from Illinois in Erin O'Connor (Evanston, Ill./Chicago Young Americans) and Sydnee Saracco (Countryside, Ill./Chicago Mission). Two others come to East Hill from Toronto, Ontario in goalie Amelia Boughn (Mississauga Junior Chiefs) and Sarah Knee (Toronto Junior Aeros). The lone forward of the group is Morgan McKim (Mars, Pa./Shattuck-St. Mary's).  The common theme amongst the newcomers is size. The new class averages 5-8 and it is expected to bring an added level physicality in front of the net and in puck battles along the wall this season.
 
Penalty Problems
One area the Big Red could stand to improve is penalty prevention. Cornell has found themselves shorthanded 37 times through the team's first six games, which included 12 times over the two-game set against Brown and Yale and 6 times against Colgate. While the team is relinquishing penalties, it has not been burned in recent games as the penalty-kill has found its groove after a tough opening series in Boston College.  The Big Red has killed 29 of the last 34 (.853) opponent power-plays. The team has also looked threatening on the offensive end with a skater down, tallying two shorthanded goals and generating several opportunities on the kill this past weekend. Cornell will look to limit the chances against aMinnesota-Duluth squad that possesses a potent power-play unit.
 
Career Numbers Watch
* Brianne Jenner currently sits in sixth place on the all-time list in career points (184), fourth in assists (103), and seventh in goals (81). She needs four points to tie Rebecca Johnston (2007-11) for fifth all-time. With her two assists on Saturday against Yale she passed Catherine White (2008-11) for fourth all-time. After her two-goal game against Brown, she now is just three goals short of tying Amy Stanzin (1982-86) for sixth all-time.
* Jillian Saulnier currently sits in eighth place on the all-time list in career points (158) and is seventh all-time in assists (95). With her two points on Tuesday she passed Amy Stanzin (1982-86) for eighth all-time. With her assist at Boston College she passed Rebecca Johnston (2008-11) all alone into seventh place on the all-time list. She currently sits at 62 career goals and needs just four more to tie Catherine White (2008-11) for 10th on the all-time list.
* Emily Fulton currently sits at 95 points – 41 goals and 54 assists – she needs five points to reach 100 for her career.
 
Up Next
Cornell will continue its non-conference slate following the Thanksgiving holiday with two more contests at Lynah Rink. First the Big Red will welcome rival Mercyhurst for a 7 p.m. puck drop on Monday, December 1. The team will return to action the following evening as local opponent Syracuse visits Lynah for another 7 p.m. puck drop.