ITHACA, N.Y. — Aleksi Peltonen's goal with 2:45 remaining in regulation, and Emil Zetterquist's 28-save shutout, proved to be the difference in St. Lawrence's 1-0 shutout over the No. 11-ranked Cornell men's hockey team at a sold-out Lynah Rink on Saturday night.
Zetterquist earned a secondary assist on Peltonen's game-winning marker after saving a shot from the right point by senior defenseman
Sam Malinski. Jan Lasak had the primary assist for the Skating Saints (16-16-0, 11-9-0 ECAC).
Sophomore goaltender
Ian Shane made 16 saves between the pipes in the setback for the Big Red (16-9-2, 13-6-1 ECAC).
Cornell generated majority of the offense in the contest with its 66 shot attempts compared to St. Lawrence's 32. The Big Red also had the 28-17 edge in shots on goal.
"I don't think we gave them a lot. At the same token, we had opportunities and we didn't capitalize,"
Ben Syer, Cornell's associate head coach, said following the contest. "It was a tight game. Give them a lot of credit, they worked their tails off all night, and made it hard to play against. It was a back-and-forth game and there weren't many grade-A scoring chances on both sides.
"At the end of the day, when you lose, it's frustrating, especially on Senior Night it makes it a little bit tougher."
The Big Red had three close opportunities to record the game's first goal, but each attempt ricocheted off the goal post.
Cornell went 0-for-3 on the night with the man advantage and St. Lawrence failed to capitalize on its lone attempt which came in the second period.
Following the contest, eight Cornell seniors took their "final lap" at Lynah Rink and saluting the Lynah Faithful.
"It's bittersweet,"
Zach Tupker, one of the eight seniors recognized following the game, said of his lap around the rink. "Just thinking about the guys my freshman year — Jeff Malott, Noah Bauld, Yanni Kaldis — it's been a long four years, and a great four years. In that 30 seconds, just a lot of memories and emotions."
Game Notes
• Saturday was the 123rd all-time meeting between the two Empire State programs. Cornell is 68-47-8 all-time over St. Lawrence following the setback.
• The Skating Saints have won consecutive games against the Big Red for the first time since sweeping the season series in 2014-15. St. Lawrence has won consecutive games at Lynah Rink for the first time since 1998 and 1999.
• Cornell's 1-0 loss is the first such result since falling to RPI on Jan. 15, 2016 at Houston Field House. It is the first time the Big Red lost by a 1-0 score on home ice since losing to Quinnipiac in overtime on Feb. 6, 2015.
• Zetterquist became the first opposing goaltender to blank Cornell on its home ice since Clarkson's Jake Kielly posted a 15-save shutout on Nov. 18, 2017.
• Cornell was swept at home against its North Country counterparts for the first time since the 1998-99 season. It was the first time the Big Red was swept in a home weekend since falling to Michigan State to open the 2018-19 slate.
Looking Ahead
Despite the loss, Cornell secured at least the No. 3 seed in the 2023 ECAC Hockey Championships due to Clarkson losing in a shootout against Colgate and RPI falling to Harvard.
Cornell will head on the road for its final two regular-season games of the season next weekend against Brown and Yale with a chance of clinching its 25th Ivy League title.
Both games are slated for 7 p.m. puck drops, and game action will be broadcast on ESPN+ and WHCU (870 AM, 97.7 FM).
