After suffering its first losing streak of the season in a two-game sweep at the Florida College Classic, No. 9 the men’s hockey team rebounded with a convincing 5-2 win over the University of New Hampshire on Jan. 3. Five different players scored a goal in that win, and the Red kept up its strong effort in garnering a three-point weekend on its annual ECAC Hockey trip to North Country — a road trip which has been cruel to the team in recent years — with a 3-1 win over Clarkson on Jan. 15 and a 1-1 tie against St. Lawrence on Jan. 16.
In Durham, N.H., the teams faced off on Olympic-sized ice but the Red (9-4-3, 7-2-2 ECAC Hockey) did not seem to have too much trouble adjusting to the larger surface. Senior center Blake Gallagher got the Red on the board first after collecting a rebound from his own shot and stuffing it past the Wildcats’ goalie Brian Foster to put the visitors up, 1-0, 7:30 into the game. UNH responded with two goals in the second, but junior Patrick Kennedy’s third goal of the season kept the score even at 2 heading into the third. Junior Riley Nash and sophomore Sean Collins scored in the first half of the third to put the Red back on top, then senior Joe Scali scored an empty-net goal to pad the lead.
In North Country, the Red put together two gutsy games after the team was plagued with a sickness that affected 17 players. Only five defensemen skated against Clarkson, but the Red was still able to grind out its first victory in Potsdam, N.Y., since 2005. Kennedy scored the game-winner and senior captain Colin Greening added to the lead with his seventh goal of the season near the end of the third period to give the Red the 3-1 win. The next night, Cornell killed off two Saints 5-on-3 chances in the second period and senior goalie Ben Scrivens saved 35 to cling to the 1-1 tie. Collins scored Cornell’s only goal with 1:11 to play in the first period and St. Lawrence answered back 7:36 into the second.
Cornell takes on the No. 5 North Dakota Fighting Sioux at 7 p.m. tonight and tomorrow at Lynah Rink.
Original Author: Keenan Weatherford