After a split at Lynah Rink last weekend, men’s hockey is hitting the road once again with a chip on its shoulder.
“It gets to be a [broken] record that you can out-chance teams. You have to win the hockey game,” said head coach Mike Schafer ’86. “I'd rather be 17-7 and get out-chanced every night.”
Sitting in sixth place in the ECAC, Cornell is in desperate need of six points this weekend if it still wants to contend for that top-four seed.
It will have to go through Brown and Yale to get there, with hidden pressure on the Red as it looks to defend its back-to-back Ivy League titles –– any kind of loss would likely put the Red out of contention for the crown.
“I think a lot of us are a little stressed out and frustrated with how the season has gone, but we know it starts in this room and we have what it takes,” said senior defenseman Michael Suda. “So we just gotta really hunker down on the details and get back to work.”
The road has not been kind for the Red, which posts a 1-5-4 record away from Lynah Rink. Even with two wins this weekend, three total wins on the road would stand as the fewest for Cornell since the 2014-2015 season. The Red has eclipsed at least six away victories since then.
“I met with a lot of our guys and I truly believe in them. It's been a struggle with the injuries and expectations. … You know, sports are a funny thing,” Schafer said. “They've lost some confidence but I know that it's in that locker room with how they can play and how hard they can play.”
Injury Report
Unfortunately for Cornell (9-8-6, 6-6-4 ECAC), it will have to continue battle through an abundance of injuries. Per Schafer, the lineup will likely consist of eight defensemen after another tough weekend on the forward group.
The Red is hoping to get freshman forward Charlie Major –– who hasn’t played since Jan. 11 –– back in the lineup, but there has been no final decision made yet. Another potential skater that could miss time is sophomore forward Jonathan Castagna, who left the ice during the third period last Saturday against Union and never returned.
The Sun has also learned that junior forward Winter Wallace and sophomore forward Luke Devlin are not likely to return this season.
“They're really missed. It's tough to lose both of those big power forwards out of your lineup. We talk about being more physical [now] –– when they're in our lineup, we don't have to talk about that,” Schafer said, adding that Wallace has been skating sporadically while Devlin has not begun on-ice activity. “It's unfortunate. It's difficult for an athlete to lose a whole season, and that's what's happened to them.”
The Scout
Brown (11-10-2, 7-8-1 ECAC)
The Red defeated the Bears back on Nov. 9 at Lynah Rink, a game that saw Brown score first before Cornell came clawing back to steal three points. That game marked just the second game of the season for Brown, which has posted seven wins in its last eight games.
“We just have to go on the road and play really frustrating hockey,” Schafer said. “Get above them and keep them away from transitional chances and just be really solid defensively.”
The Bears are chock full of promising young talent –– four of its top five point scorers are underclassmen, including freshman Brian Nicholas leading the pack with 23 points. The former University of Michigan commit, who switched his commitment to Brown ahead of this season, was named the ECAC Rookie of the Month for January.
“We're expecting physical, possession-type games,” Suda said. “They're both big [and] physical teams, but we are too, so we're looking forward to the challenge and we know we can get the job done.”
Yale (5-16-2, 4-10-2 ECAC)
The first blemish of Cornell’s season came in a 1-1 tie and shootout loss to Yale on Nov. 8, the Red’s lone loss in the shootout this season. Back then, it was Yale’s star sophomore Jack Stark in net, who fended off 15 shots in the final 25 minutes to clinch two points for the Bulldogs.
Since then, Stark has battled senior Luke Pearson and freshman Noak Pak for the starters’ crease. Yet a .948 save percentage in two games against the Red should be incentive enough for Yale head coach Keith Allain to give Stark the nod, as he has stopped 53 of 56 Cornell shots in his young career.
“They're a much better team when we saw them here last year, and I think they're even better now,” Schafer said. “I'll be their senior night, and they'll be all fired up for it. So it's always a test.”
The Bulldogs will be hungry, in search of their first win since Jan. 18.
The Game Plan
Over the last few weekends, Cornell’s offense has dried up, easily attributable to the mounting injuries for Schafer’s squad.
As a result, the team has been forced to turn its attention to the defensive side of things.
Though not having Wallace and Devlin in the lineup inhibits Cornell’s peak physicality, the Red is honing in on its defensive habits and paying close attention to the details. That should be apparent this weekend, as the team will likely dress a similar number of defensemen as it does forwards.
“We're going to win 1-0, 2-1, and just take a more of a defensive mindset, because they're getting frustrated with the fact that they're not scoring,” Schafer said. “You get in a funk like this, it happens, but the focus has got to be be physical, be disciplined, be good defensively [and] be patient.”
Cornell will take on Brown on Friday in Providence, Rhode Island before heading down to New Haven, Connecticut for a tilt with Yale. Puck drop for both games is slated for 7 p.m. and all action can be streamed live on ESPN+.
Jane McNally is a senior editor on the 143rd editorial board and was the sports editor on the 142nd editorial board. She is a member of the class of 2026 in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. You can follow her on X @JaneMcNally_ and reach her at jmcnally@cornellsun.com.
