Team Notes: Raiders, Big Red Renew Rivalry at Prudential Center

HAMILTON, N.Y. – The Colgate men’s hockey team will look to snap its recent skid as the Raiders take on Cornell this coming Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.

The game will not have web streaming available, but fans can access live stats and live audio visiting the Men's Hockey Game Central link. Tickets are still available for Saturday's game at the Prudential Center Box Office or through Ticketmaster. 

RAIDERS COME UP SHORT AGAINST NIAGARA
Colgate scored two power play goals for the second-straight game, but couldn’t hold off the scoring attack of Niagara as the Raiders fell, 4-2, at Dwyer Arena. The Raiders saw sophomore Robbie Bourdon (Montreal, Que.) score his third goal in the last three games, while senior captain Brian Day (Danvers, Mass.) netted his team-high sixth of the season. Junior Alex Evin (Castlegar, B.C.) took the loss in net with 28 saves. Colgate went 2-for-8 on the power play and didn’t allow its opponent to score with the man advantage.

COLGATE-CORNELL RIVALRY TAKES NEW STEP
This season the upstate New York rivals will be taking their series south to Newark, N.J. The teams will be playing a non-conference game at the Prudential Center, which is the new home of the New Jersey Devils. This will make it two neutral site games to be played by the Raiders this season. The two teams will now be facing each other three times this season, which the series did back in 2008-09 when the two schools played at the Florida College Classic in Estero, Fla. 

RIVALRY USED TO NEW BARNS
Colgate and Cornell are used to playing in neutral site games. The two schools have played each other in 14 different rinks since Starr Rink opened in 1959. The Prudential Center will be the 15th rink this upstate New York rivalry has seen and the fourth NHL rink since Madison Square Garden in 1965-66. 

DAY NETS 50TH CAREER GOAL
The senior forward became the 33rd skater in Colgate history to record his 50th career goal, which came on Tuesday night at Niagara. Day scored on the power play in the third period. He has 50 goals and 44 assists for 94 points and is six points away from reaching the 100-point plateau. He will be the 48th skater to obtain the milestone. 

A STREAKING BOURDON
Bourdon is currently on the longest point streak for the Raiders this season as he has scored at least one point in the last five games. He had two points against Niagara with a goal and an assists, while putting home goals against Brown and Yale last weekend. With the streak, the sophomore is ranked 21st in the league in points per game. 

SHOWING NO FAVORITES
Bourdon scored his first goal of the 2010-11 season in the second game at LSSU with a power play goal coming in the third period. He has now scored 13 goals in 13 different games in his career. He has the most against Brown and Yale with three goals apiece against the Bears and Bulldogs for six of his 13 goals. He is still searching for his first career multi-goal game. 

POWER PLAY SNAPS SCORELESS STREAK
The Colgate power play has recently seen better days as the Raiders came into Saturday’s game against Yale, scoreless in its last 22 opportunities. However, Colgate has fired back with four goals in its last 13 opportunities for a 30.8 success rate in its last two games. The Raiders have tallied two power play goals in their last two contests. 

MCDONALD ’00 NAMED TO ECAC TOP 50 PLAYERS
Former Colgate standout and Hobey Baker Finalist Andy McDonald ’00 has been selected as one of ECAC Hockey’s top 50 players as the league announced its second group of five skaters. McDonald finished his career with 67 goals and 88 assists for 155 points in 137 collegiate games. He was named ECAC Hockey Player of the Year back in 2000. He has played for two NHL franchises and has appeared in 584 games. He won the 2007 Stanley Cup with Anaheim and just scored his 150th career NHL goal with St. Louis on Nov. 19 against Jesse Winchester ’08 and the Ottawa Senators. 

POPLAWSKI TO PLAY 100TH CAREER GAME
Saturday will be a milestone for the defenseman as he will be playing in his 100th career game in a Colgate uniform. He is one of only three players on this year’s squad to reach to 100 game mark, joining Day and Brisebois. 

FIRST PENALTY SHOT 
Colgate faced its first penalty shot of the season against Brown on Nov. 19. it was the first one since Dec. 4 of last season against Union. Alex Evin made the save on Union’s player. This time it was Evin again and he stoned Bobby Farnham of the Bears in the second period after being tripped on a breakaway. 

OFFENSIVE DEFENSEMEN
Sophomore Thomas Larkin (Cocquio Trevisago, Italy) and junior Corbin McPherson (Folsom, Calif.) have played in all 10 games together on the blueline and both have already equaled their goal output from a season ago. Larkin has three this year, which leads defensemen and is second on the team, while McPherson netted two against Sacred Heart. The NJ Devils draft pick leads all Colgate defensemen with six points. The Raiders have five defensive players with at least one point.

MIHALIK SEES FIRST ACTION
Freshman Eric Mihalik (Avon Lake, Ohio) saw his first action between the pipes against Quinnipiac, becoming the first rookie to start for Colgate since teammate Bryan Bessette earned a start against Harvard on Feb. 13, 2009. The rookie from Avon Lake, Ohio, made 24 stops in his first action including 11 in the first to keep the Bobcats off the board. He also got the start against Yale and made 28 stops, but gave up six scores. 

THIRD JERSEY SALE
The Colgate men’s hockey team wore its new third jersey last weekend and the jerseys are on sale now with the proceeds going to the Silver Puck Club, the Interfaith Council and Hamilton Food Cupboard. Fans can purchase the jersey by calling Michelle Reese at 315-228-7570.

TOY DRIVE COMING SOON TO STARR
The Raiders will also be collecting toys for the Interfaith Holiday Council on Dec. 11 during the Niagara game, which the items will then be dispersed to the families within Madison County. Fans will again receive a free general admission ticket for every unwrapped toy donated. The Prudential Center will also be joining the holiday effort with a toy drive for Newark Now. The venue is asking attendees to bring a new and unwrapped toy to the game on Saturday.

SCOUTING THE RAIDERS
Colgate will be playing a conference foe on Saturday, but the game is the second-straight non-league matchup for the Raiders. They are looking for its first win since beating Sacred Heart as they are on a seven-game winless streak. The Raiders are averaging 2.73 goals a game, which is sixth in ECAC. After giving up 15 goals the last three games, Colgate has dropped to last in the league in scoring defense, allowing 3.45 goals per game. 

The Raiders have 19 different skaters with at least one point with eight earning five or more points. Bourdon has been a main scoring threat recently with three goals in his last three games and is riding a five-game point streak. He has six points in those five games. Day scored a power play goal against the Purple Eagles and leads Colgate in goals with six on the season. Junior Austin Smith (Dallas, Texas) has seven assists to lead the team and is one ahead of senior Francois Brisebois (Montreal, Que.), who has six. Smith has a total of nine points, while Brisebois has seven. McPherson and rookie Mike McCann (Barrington, Ill.) have contributed six points as McCann leads all freshmen. 

In net, Evin has started 8-of-10 games for the Raiders and has a 2-6-1 mark. He posted his first collegiate shutout against Sacred Heart on Oct. 30 and has recorded an .898 save percentage and a goals against average of 2.89. Mihalik got his second start against Yale last Saturday with a 6-4 loss. He is 0-2-0 on the season and has a save percentage of .852 and a goals against average of 4.59.

On special teams, the power play is slowly getting back on track with four goals in its last 13 opportunities. The Raiders are 9-for-65 on the man advantage for a 13.8 success rate. The penalty kill came around against Niagara, holding the Purple Knights scoreless in four chances. The Raiders did a good job staying out of the box with just four penalties for eight minutes.

SCOUTING THE BIG RED
Cornell is off to one of its toughest starts in recent memory. The Big Red was ranked in the national polls prior to the season, but Cornell hasn’t lived up to its ranking so far this season. The team enters Saturday’s game with a 2-6-0 overall mark and a 2-4-0 record in league play. The Big Red has lost three in a row with losses to Princeton, Brown and Yale. It’s the squad’s second three-game losing streak this season. 

Three skaters are tied at the top of the scoring list with five points with Dustin Mowrey leading the way with three goals and two assists. Nick D’Agostino and Mike Devin has two goals and three assists for five points as well. Jordan Kary and Joe Devin are tied with Mowrey for the team lead in goals with three, while Mowrey and Devin have two goals coming on the power play for the most on the team. 

In net, both Andy Illes and Mike Garman have started four games. Each goaltender has a 1-3-0 mark with Illes posting a 2.37 goals against average and a save percentage of .889. Garman has recorded a 3.23 goals against and a save percentage of .889. 

The power play has struggled this season with just six goals in 38 chances for a 15.8 success rate. The Big Red has allowed six goals on the kill in 42 opportunities for the opponents. 

SERIES HISTORY
Colgate and Cornell will be meeting for the 137th time in the series with the Big Red holding a 71-54-11 advantage. Cornell has gone unbeaten in the last three meetings with a 3-0-2 mark. The series is the second-longest for Colgate as Clarkson and the Raiders have played more games. Colgate and the Golden Knights have played 139 times since 1927-28. The first meeting for Cornell and Colgate came in 1920-21 on an outdoor rink in Ithaca.