When the 2011-12 men’s hockey campaign officially begins with the annual Red-White Game on Oct. 15, there will be 10 new faces suited up in Cornell uniforms on the Lynah Rink ice. On Monday, head coach Mike Schafer ’86 announced that seven forwards, two defensemen and one goaltender will be joining the Red this season.
“I am very excited about the class of 2015,” Schafer said in a statement. “This class has international experience, a winning attitude and each one of them already has pretty impressive accomplishments.”
With the departure of co-captain Joe Devin ’11, the team’s leading scorer last season, the Red will look to add some offense from a talented group of young forwards led by Jacksonville, Fla. native Brian Ferlin. The 6-2 forward notched 73 points on 25 goals and 48 assists last season for the Indiana Ice of the USHL.
6-2, 185-pound forward Joel Lowry was equally impressive on the offensive end for the Victoria Grizzlies of the BCHL. In 117 games for Victoria over two seasons Lowry picked up 133 points, including 84 points last season in limited action due to injury.
Macomb, Mich. native John McCarron enters his first season at Cornell coming off an impressive year with the USHL’s Lincoln Stars in 2010-11. The 6-3 forward notched 57 points in 60 games last season.
For the second consecutive year Cornell will welcome a member of the U.S. National Team to its program. A year after rising sophomore goalie Andy Iles arrived on East Hill, Fairport, N.Y. native Cole Bardreau joins the Red as a member of the offensive unit. Bardreau played in 60 games for the U.S. squad last season, including the team’s gold medal win at the IIHF U18 World Championship in Germany. The 5-10, 184-pound forward scored 11 goals and added 15 assists in 2010-11 for Iles’ former team.
Lowry’s Victoria Grizzlies teammate Madison Dias will also join the Red this season. Dias, a 6-0, 172-pound forward from Penticton, British Columbia, scored 56 points on 22 goals and 34 assists over the course of 62 games for the Grizzlies.
Forward Kevin Cole returns home to Ithaca after two seasons with the Cornwall Colts of the CJHL. In 34 games during the 2010-11 campaign Cole scored 13 goals and tallied 18 assists. Cole was named to the CJHL All-Star team last season, and capped the year off with six goals and five assists during postseason competition.
Philippe Hudon, a 6-1 forward out of Hudson, Quebec, rounds out the offensive end of this year’s recruiting class. In 22 games for Choate last season, Hudon tallied 20 points on 10 goals and 10 assists. The incoming freshman was ranked 74th among domestic skaters heading into the 2011 NHL Draft.
The early graduation of Michael Garman ’11 forced the Red to recruit another net minder to back up Iles, who is expected to be the primary starter this season after splitting time between the pipes last year. Edmonton, Alberta native Vincenzo Marozzi has been tapped to fill the void left by Garman. Marozzi has led the Spruce Grove Saints of the AJHL to back-to-back league championships over the last two seasons, compiling a record of 118-24-13 with a 2.12 goals-against average and a save percentage of 92.2. The 6-0, 175-pound Marozzi was even more dominant last season for the Saints, when he held opponents to an average of 1.60 goals-against and upped his save percentage to 93.3.
After the graduation of Mike Devin ’11, Cornell’s defensive unit will now be led by captain rising senior Keir Ross, and assistant captain rising junior Nick D’Agostino. Defensemen Jacob MacDonald and Joakim Ryan will join that pair in attempting to keep the puck out of the Cornell net. MacDonald, who stands at 6-0, scored eight goals alongside 22 assists for the Waterloo Black Hawks of the USHL. The Brighton, Mich. native played in 87 games for Waterloo over the last two seasons, compiling 40 points over that period. Ryan also posted strong offensive numbers in his lone season of USHL play as a member of the Dubuque Fighting Saints. The 5-10 defenseman out of Rumson, N.J. scored three goals in addition to 29 assists over 53 games during the 2010-11 campaign. Among USHL defenders, Ryan finished eighth in the league in scoring with his 32-point offensive output.
Original Author: Evan Rich