Box Score (PDF)
 
ITHACA, N.Y. — The Cornell men's hockey team's season is on the brink after a 4-2 loss to Union on Friday night in the first game of an ECAC Hockey Championships first-round series at Lynah Rink. The Dutchmen scored three goals in the second period to break open a scoreless game and come within one win of eliminating the Big Red in a best-of-three series. Junior forward Christian Hilbrich and sophomore forward Matt Buckles scored the Big Red goals.
 
Max Novak got 10th-seeded Union (17-16-2) on the board with a rebound goal 7:36 into the middle frame. Seventh-seeded Cornell (11-13-6) fell into a deeper hole when Mike Vecchione cleanly won a faceoff back to Max Novak for a one-time goal with 5 minutes, 53 seconds left in the second. The Dutchmen the took a three-goal lead on Daniel Ciampini's deft backhand finish of a two-on-one break just a couple minutes later.
 
The first period followed unspoken playoff protocol, with open ice fairly hard to come by and no power plays awarded to either team. The exception to those parameters came almost entirely during two minutes of four-on-four play. Senior forward Cole Bardreau was sent in on a breakaway by senior forward John McCarron, but Union goalie Colin Stevens did well to read the shot and smoothly plucked it with his catching glove with 5:28 to play in the period. About 30 seconds later, junior John Knisley — the smallest skater on the Big Red's roster — delivered one of the season's biggest hits when his clean hip check sent Matt Wilkins tumbling to the ice to ignite the Lynah Rink crowd. The Dutchmen had an ominous-looking three-on-two with four minutes to play in the frame, but senior defenseman Joakim Ryan sprawled across to block J.C. Brassard's shot from the left circle.
 
Union slowly took control in the second period, leading to Novak's goal. Jeff Taylor worked the puck to defensive partner Nick DeSimone, and his shot from the right point took a deflection in trafffic that put sophomore goalie Mitch Gillam off-balance. The puck rattled around underneath him and, with no whistle, Novak was first to blindly poke the puck from underneath the goalie and into the net.
 
The Dutchmen lead later ballooned to four goals on a short-handed goal by Vecchione. Cornell then closed the gap with two late goals. Hilbrich's came on the power play with 6:53 remaining. Senior forward Cole Bardreau not only pushed his team-leading assist total to 17 on the tally, but he created a screen that allowed Hilbrich's shot to zip inside the far post past Stevens' glove. It was Hilbrich's team-leading 10th goal of the season.
 
The Big Red then pulled its goalie for several minutes toward the end of the game, eventually leading to Buckles' eighth goal of the season. Working with a six-on-five advantage, sophomore forward Jeff Kubiak tried to come out from behind the net to Stevens' right. The puck slid back to freshman defenseman Ryan Bliss at the center point, but his shot was blocked. Buckles regained possession and worked the puck back and forth before beating Stevens with a wrist shot from the left circle.
 
Game 2 of the series is at 7 p.m. Saturday at Lynah Rink. If Cornell wins, a winner-take-all Game 3 would be played at 7 p.m. Sunday.