#13 Men's Hockey Wraps Up Regular Season Slate at Brown, Yale

Mike Schafer '86
The Jay R. Bloom ‘77 Head Coach of Cornell Men’s Ice Hockey

THE PUCK DROP
• With a potential 25th Ivy League title on the line, the No. 13-ranked Cornell men's hockey team heads east to square off against Ivy League rivals Brown and Yale to conclude the 2022-23 regular season.

IVY LEAGUE ON THE LINE
• Cornell is currently in second place in the Ivy League standings with 19 points. The Big Red trails Harvard who concluded Ivy League play with 24 points following a 9-1-0 record. Six of the Crimson's nine victories came in regulation.

• With five points this weekend — a win in overtime or a shootout, coupled with a regulation win — Cornell would share the Ivy League title with Harvard.

• Two wins in regulation this weekend for the Big Red would ensure Cornell its first Ivy League title since 2019-20.

• Claiming the Ivy League title would be the third time in the last five years that the Big Red has won the Ancient Eight title, joined by the 2018-19 and 2019-20 squads. 

• Entering this weekend, Cornell's 24 Ivy League titles trail Harvard who has an Ivy League-leading 28 Ancient Eight titles since the first title was awarded to Dartmouth following the 1933-34 campaign.

TAKE A BREAK!
• With its 4-4 tie to Colgate on Feb. 11, Cornell clinched one of the coveted top-four seeds in this year's ECAC Hockey Championships.

• Excluding the 2020-21 season that featured just four of the 12 ECAC Hockey programs play, Cornell has clinched a top-four seed in each of the last sixth tournaments. Since the adoption of the 12-team tournament format before the 2002-03 season, Cornell has been a top-four seed in 16 of the 20 tournaments played.

POINT SEGER
• Junior forward Gabriel Seger has recorded seven assists over his last five games. During the stretch, Seger has three multi-assist performances.

• The native of Uppsala, Sweden, has 21 assists so far this season, which is tied with Colgate's Nick Anderson for the fourth-most by a player in ECAC Hockey.

• Seger's 21 assists are the most by a Cornell player since defenseman Yanni Kaldis recorded 24 helpers during the 2018-19 campaign. No Cornell forward has had at least 20 assists in a season since Greg Miller registered 25 assists during the 2010-11 slate.

SAM'S THE MAN
• Senior defenseman Sam Malinski is tied with Harvard's Henry Thrun and St. Lawrence's Luc Salem for the second-most points by a blueliner this season. The 25 points (eight goals, 17 assists) by Malinski is one off from matching Quinnipiac's Zach Metsa for the lead in ECAC Hockey.

• Malinski's 25 points are the most by a Cornell defenseman in a season since Yanni Kaldis concluded the 2019-20 season with 25 points (five goals, 20 assists).

• With his next point, Malinski would have the most points by a Cornell blueliner since Kaldis' 28-point season in 2018-19 (four goals, 24 assists).

‘SPECIAL’ IN SPECIAL TEAMS
• Cornell currently has the second-best power play nationally as the Big Red is converting at a 28.9 percent clip. North Dakota paces the nation at 31.1 percent.

• Despite scoring on one of its seven power-play opportunities last weekend against Clarkson and St. Lawrence, the Big Red has scored a power-play goal in nine of its last 14 contests, going 18-of-48 in the span (37.5 percent).

POWER-PLAY GOALS GALORE!
• Earlier this month against Union on Feb. 4, Cornell scored six power-play goals in its 10-1 victory over the Dutchmen. The six goals were one shy of matching the program record that was established on Nov. 18, 1977 against York. It was the most power-play goals in a Division I game since Jan. 30, 2015, when Boston University scored six against UMass.

• Of the six power-play goals against Union, five came in the first period (four during a five-minute major penalty) to set Cornell's modern-era record for power-play goals in a period. The previous record of four happened on four other occasions, most recently on Feb. 8, 2003, against Vermont.

THAT WAS FAST…
• Freshman forward Dalton Bancroft, sophomore forward Ondrej Psenicka, and fellow freshman forward Nick DeSantis combined to score three goals in 23 seconds against Union in the 10-1 win on Feb. 4.

• The 23-second span between the trio of goals was the quickest Cornell has scored three goals in the program's modern era — since the reinstatement of hockey before the 1957-58 season.

• Cornell's trio of goals in 23 seconds bested the previous record of 24 seconds from Feb. 28, 1976, against Princeton. Fred Tomczyk had his tally bookended by goals from Mark Trivett.

• In addition to the three goals in 23-second span, the Big Red scored four times in a 54-second span, which marked the first time in the modern era that Cornell scored four times in under a minute. The previous record of 1:34 was done against Penn in a 13-1 win on March 4, 1961. Rudy Mateka (16:34), Bob Myers (17:28), Webb Nichols (17:46), and Myers (18:08) were the goal scorers in the stretch.

• To put the record into perspective, the National Hockey League record for the quickest four goals scored by one team was done in 1:20 by the Boston Bruins against the New York Rangers on Jan. 21, 1945 (Bill Thoms — 6:34, Frank Mario — 7:08 and 7:27, and Ken Smith — 7:54). 

RANKING IN THE TOP 10
• Cornell is one of four programs currently ranking in the top 10 in both scoring offense and scoring defense.

• Offensively, the Big Red is tied with its bitter Ivy League rival Harvard for the seventh-most goals per game this season, scoring at a 3.64 clip.

• The Big Red's 2.22 goals allowed per game ranks fifth in the nation, trailing Quinnipiac (1.66), Michigan Tech (2.09), Minnesota State (2.09), and UMass Lowell (2.13).

NONE SHALL PASS…
• Cornell enters this weekend boasting one of the nation's top scoring defenses. The Big Red has yielded 60 goals allowed so far this year, which is the second-fewest by a Division I program this season, trailing ECAC Hockey rival Quinnipiac (53).

• Historically, Cornell has boasted one of the nation's stingiest defensive units in Division I hockey. The Big Red has ranked in the top-10 in scoring defense in each of its last five seasons of competition. 

• Since the 2016-17 season, Cornell has yielded 383 goals against which stands as the fewest by a Division I team in the span. Harvard is second in the category with 478 goals allowed.

• The Big Red's 1.99 goals allowed per game average in the timeframe ranks second, only behind Minnesota State (1.84).

SHANE'S WORLD
• Sophomore goaltender Ian Shane has been strong between the pipes for Cornell this year, posting a goals-against average of 1.97 that ranks fifth nationally and is second in ECAC Hockey behind Quinnipiac's Yaniv Perets, who paces the nation with his 1.61 average.

• Shane was up for two award nominations this season. He was named to the Mike Richter Award watch list on Jan. 12 and is Cornell's lone nominee for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award. 

• Despite not being named one of the nine semifinalists for the Richter Award last week, Shane was Cornell's first goaltender to be named to the Richter Award watch list in consecutive years since Matthew Galajda in 2018-19 and 2019-20.

BLANKING TOP-10 OPPONENTS
• Sophomore goaltender Ian Shane is one of three goaltenders at the Division I level to record a pair of shutouts against opponents ranked who were ranked in the top 10 of the USCHO.com poll at the time of the shutout.

• Joining Shane in the rare feat this season is Wisconsin's Jared Moe, who shutout Minnesota Duluth (Oct. 22) and Ohio State (Jan. 20), as well as St. Cloud State's Jaxon Castor, who did so against Minnesota (Jan. 7) and Denver (Jan. 21).

• Quinnipiac's Yaniv Perets, Maine's Victor Ostman, UMass' Luke Pavicich, Miami's Ludvig Persson, Omaha's Simon Latkoczy and Jake Kucharski, Penn State's Liam Souliere, and Minnesota State's Alex Tracy have posted shutouts against top-10 opponents this year.

OFFENSIVE DOMINANCE
• Cornell has excelled in the opening 40 minutes of games this season, outscoring its opponents 73-41, good for a plus-32 goal advantage.

• In comparison, Cornell has only outscored its opponents by four goals, 21-18, in the final period of regulation.

• Since the Big Red's 6-0 victory over UConn at the Frozen Apple on Nov. 26 at Madison Square Garden, the Big Red has outscored its opponents in the first two periods by a 56-28 margin.

• Over the opening 40 minutes of play, Cornell has generated a plus-199 advantage in shots on goal (563-364). In the final period of regulation, the Big Red has a plus-43 advantage in shots (230-187).

SCOUTING BROWN
• Brown enters the final weekend of the regular season with a 9-16-2 overall record and a 5-13-2 mark in ECAC Hockey play.

• Since defeating Harvard on Jan. 21 at Meehan Auditorium, 3-2, the Bears have lost five of its last six games. The lone victory since defeating the Crimson was against RPI, 3-2, on Feb. 10 in Troy, N.Y., at Houston Field House.

• With two games remaining in the regular season, Brown can finish anywhere between the No. 8 and No. 12 seeds for the ECAC Hockey Championship, which begins next weekend with first-round matchups being hosted by the No. 5 through No. 8 seeds.

• Ryan Bottrill leads Brown in points with 19. His 13 assists are tied with Luke Krys for the team lead. James Crossman's nine goals paces the Bears this season.

• Mathieu Caron has started all 21 of his appearances this year, logging an 8-10-2 record with a 2.33 goals-against average and a .924 save percentage.

SERIES HISTORY
• Friday will be the 137th all-time meeting between the two Ivy League rivals, which Cornell has an 84-44-8 advantage in.

• Cornell has dominated the series as of late going unbeaten in 19 of its last 21 games against the Bears, dating back to the 2011-12 season. During the stretch, the Big Red is 16-2-3.

• Since Mike Schafer '86 took over the Cornell program prior to the 1995-96 season, the Big Red has a 42-8-6 mark against its Ancient Eight rival.
At Meehan Auditorium, Cornell has a 12-3-2 record dating back to the 2004-05 season. Nine of the last 22 meetings on Brown's home ice have gone to overtime.

THE LAST TIME AGAINST BROWN
RECAP | BOX SCORE

ITHACA, N.Y. (NOV. 19, 2023) – Five different Cornell players found the back of the net to aid freshman goaltender Remington Keopple in recording his first collegiate win in the Big Red's 5-1 victory over Brown at Lynah Rink back on Nov. 19.

Jack O'Leary, Matt Stienburg, Jack Lagerstrom, Winter Wallace, and Kyle Penney all scored for the Big Red.

Keopple, who was making his first start in front of the Lynah Faithful, made 17 saves to improve to 1-1-0 on the year.

Matt Sutton scored the lone goal for Brown, who had a 34-save performance from goaltender Mathieu Caron.

SCOUTING YALE
• Yale enters the final weekend of regular-season play with a 6-17-4 overall record and a 5-13-2 mark in ECAC Hockey action.

• The Bulldogs' 4-0 shutout of Princeton last Saturday snapped Yale's three-game losing streak.

• This weekend marks Yale's first pair of home games since posting back-to-back 4-0 shutouts over Clarkson and St. Lawrence. Goaltender Luke Pearson was subsequently named ECAC Hockey's Goaltender of the Week for his performances against the pair of North Country foes.

• In five of its last six home games, Yale has picked up at least one point by registering a 3-2-1 record in the span. One of the losses came in overtime to Harvard on Jan. 20.

• Ian Carpentier has a Yale-leading 15 points (eight goals, seven assists) enter this weekend's slate. Carpentier's eight goals are the most by a Bulldogs player this year. Briggs Gammill and William Dineen are tied for the team lead in assists with eight helpers apiece.

• Pearson has started appeared in 16 games this year for the Bulldogs, starting in 15 of the contests. He has a 4-7-4 record with a 2.25 goals-against average and a .924 save percentage. Nathan Reid has made 13 appearances with 10 starts for Yale, going 2-7-0 with a 2.98 goals-against average with a .908 save percentage.

SERIES HISTORY
• Saturday will be the 161st all-time meeting between the Ancient Eight rivals. Cornell leads the series, 90-62-8, and is 13-5-3 over its last 21 games against Yale.

• Cornell has dominated Yale of late, logging an 8-1-2 record over the last 11 meetings. The Big Red has won the last five meetings and has outscored the Bulldogs by a 21-4 margin, while posting three shutouts over the previous four contests.

THE LAST TIME AGAINST YALE
RECAP | BOX SCORE

ITHACA, N.Y. (NOV. 18, 2022) — Senior forward Zach Tupker scored two of five unanswered goals to lead the Cornell men's hockey team to a 5-2 victory over Yale in the Big Red's home opener at Lynah Rink on Nov. 18.

Joining Tupker on the scoresheet was junior forward Gabriel Seger and freshmen forwards Dalton Bancroft and Nick DeSantis. Tupker, who registered his first collegiate multi-goal game, was one of three Big Red players to log multi-point nights, joined by Bancroft (one goal, one assists) and fellow freshmen forward Sean Donaldson (two assists).

Sophomore goaltender Ian Shane posted his third victory of the season for Cornell, making 16 saves in the victory.

Reilly Connors and Briggs Gammill scored for Yale, who had a 26-save performance from Connor Hopkins.

#11 MEN'S HOCKEY FALLS TO CLARKSON

RECAP I BOX SCORE 

ITHACA, N.Y. (FEB. 17, 2023) – Mathieu Gosselin highlighted the victory for the Golden Knights by assisting on all four Golden Knights goals. Alex Campbell and Ayrton Martino each had two-goal nights for Clarkson. Campbell added an assist on Clarkson's second goal of the contest to give himself a three-point night.

Senior forward Ben Berard scored twice for the Big Red, while fellow senior forward Jack Malone potted the other marker. Junior forward Gabriel Seger recorded two assists in the setback for Cornell.

ST. LAWRENCE SHUTS OUT #11 MEN'S HOCKEY ON SENIOR NIGHT

RECAP I BOX SCORE 

ITHACA, N.Y. (FEB. 18, 2023) – 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.

Sophomore goaltender Ian Shane made 16 saves between the pipes in the setback for the Big Red.

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.

2022-23 Roster

If you’ve never been to a Big Red hockey game at Cornell’s James Lynah Rink, there are quite a few things you’ve never experienced. You’ve never camped out in line just to get season tickets and ensure your spot as one of the raucous and devoted "Lynah Faithful." But most importantly, if you’ve never been to Lynah, you’ve never really experienced all the best that college hockey has to offer.

Lynah Rink, which turned 65 years old in 2022, is the home of Big Red hockey. The rink, which was dedicated April 6, 1957, was named in honor of the late James Lynah (class of 1905), director of athletics at Cornell from 1935-43.

The venue has received a facelift or two since its inaugural game on March 21, 1957, between the NHL's N.Y. Rangers and the AHL's Rochester Americans.

During the summer of 2006, the rink underwent a 16,700 square foot expansion that added new locker rooms, coaches offices, study lounges, a new athletic training space, and the addition of approximately 450 new seats. Prior to the expansion of the support space, the university spent nearly $1 million in renovations to Lynah in the summer of 2000, replacing the rink floor, drainage system, frost protection, and refrigeration piping, as well as adding new boards and seamless glass.

Though many physical aspects of Lynah Rink have changed over the years, one thing remains constant: the crowd. Lynah is capable of holding 4,267 boisterous Cornell hockey fans who provide unwavering support for the Big Red, creating an atmosphere that is unparalleled in the sport of college hockey. Although many rinks in the nation are larger in seating capacity, few are known to be louder. The Cornell fans, aptly named the "Lynah Faithful," stream into every home contest and make themselves as much a part of the game as the players do. Whether they’re cheering for the Big Red or joining the pep band in their rendition of "Give My Regards to Davy," the Lynah Faithful reaffirm the old saying, "there’s no place like home."

• Cornell will have next weekend off as it has received a first-round bye in the 2023 ECAC Hockey Championships.

• The Big Red will host a best-of-three series from March 10-12 against one of the four teams that is victorious in the first-round matchups next weekend.