Box Score (PDF)
HAMDEN, Conn. — The men's hockey team defeated top-ranked Quinnipiac in a game suiting the Bobcats' style once before — but it couldn't do it against Sunday. Quinnipiac scored three goals in the second period to break open a fast-paced, penalty-filled Game 3 of an ECAC Hockey Championship quarterfinal at High Point Solutions Arena for a 6-3 victory. While the loss likely ends Cornell's season, there is still faint hope the Big Red can nab an at-large berth to the NCAA tournament.
The Bobcats entered the game with the most penalty minutes per game among ECAC Hockey teams (11.3), but they also have the nation's best combined special teams percentage (57.1 percent). In contrast, the Big Red was the fifth-least penalized team in the nation (7.7 minutes per game) and typically plays games dominated by five-on-five play — thus what unfolded Sunday was not to the visitors' favor. Quinnipiac drew four of its six power-play chances in the second period, cashing in on two of them to blow the game open.
"It was a special teams game, and when Quinnipiac gets in a special teams game they're really good," said
Mike Schafer, the Jay R. Bloom '77 Head Coach of Men's Hockey at Cornell University. "It was a lot different than the first two games."
Up until roughly the midway point, the game was eerily similar to that of Saturday's Game 2. Once again, the Big Red was largely the better team for the majority of the first period — but Quinnipiac scored twice in quick succession. This time, confusion between defenders led to Scott Davidson's undefended wraparound goal 1:10 in. Just 31 seconds later, Bo Pieper shoveled in a rebound from the top of the crease and the Bobcats were suddenly up 2-0 before many players had even taken their first shift.
Cornell answered right back to cut its deficit to 2-1 with junior forward
Matt Buckles' goal at the 4:12 mark. Sophomore defenseman
Ryan Bliss narrowly kept the play on sides at the blue line, then fired a shot toward goal which Garteig save, but chaos ensued with senior forward
Christian Hilbrich parked on top of the crease. With the puck bouncing wide of the post and behind the net, Buckles swooped in and around the far side to wrap a shot in under traffic. The goal was Buckles' seventh of the season, his sixth on the power play, and his third in just five postseason games.
Buckles made a bid to tie the game less than three minutes later when he was set up on the rush in the slot by sophomore forward
Trevor Yates, but Garteig got a piece of the shot and junior forward
Jake Weidner's rebound attempt from a sharp angle hit the near post.
The start to the next period was also problematic for the Big Red. K.J. Tiefenwerth's shot near the two-minute mark caromed off the crossbar, but Cornell wasn't as lucky a minute later a turnover by the net left Gillam helpless for Pieper's tap-in and second goal of the game.
With perhaps his strongest play of the series, Quinnipiac goalie Michael Garteig kept his team in front by two goals with saves on quality chances from junior forward
Eric Freschi and Hilbrich. Gillam also did his best to keep the Big Red in the game as penalty trouble began to mount, making a save on Travis St. Denis' one-timer at the 14-minute mark and Chase Priskie's open shot from the slot at 15:30 on a brief two-man advantage.
But Quinnipiac ultimately clinched the game with power-play goals from Andrew Taverner and Sam Anas in the final four minutes of the second, making the score 5-1. Freschi scored on a deflection of a point shot from junior defenseman
Patrick McCarron 5:56 into the third, but the Bobcats essentially iced the game with Travis St. Denis' 180-foot empty-net goal. Weidner then closed the scoring with 1:12 to play off a pretty feed from Hilbrich. Junior goaltender
Ryan Coon finished the game for Cornell, making his collegiate debut.
With a 16-11-7 record, Cornell has been eliminated from league tournament contention and will have to wait until Sunday, March 20. The NCAA regionals will be staged March 25-27.
