Team Notes: Dogs, Cats on Ice at Whale
NEW HAVEN, Conn. -
The Yale men's hockey team begins the stretch run of the ECAC
Hockey campaign by hosting Quinnipiac (11-7-4, 3-4-3 ECAC) and
Princeton (4-9-4, 3-7-1) in a pair of 7 p.m. games this Friday and
Saturday at the Whale. Both games can be seen live on
yalebulldogs.com, Friday's game with the Bobcats airs live on CPTV
and on WQUN Radio (AM-1220).
VS. QUINNIPIAC
Quinnipiac leads the series with Yale 6-5-1 in a New Haven County
rivalry that began in 2005-06. The Bulldogs swept last year and
have won two straight at home. Five different players hit the net
and Ryan Rondeau '11 stopped 30 of 31 shots as Yale beat Quinnipiac
6-1 before 3,957 at the TD Bank Sports Center in the last meeting
last February. Denny Kearney '11 had two goals while Chad Ziegler, Kevin Limbert, Jimmy Martin '11 and Brian O'Neill tallied goals as the Elis
outshot the Bobcats 42-31. Kenny Agostino had two assists on a night
when his team scored two shorthanders.
VS. PRINCETON
The Elis won both meetings last winter and the teams skated to a
2-2 tie on opening night this season. Yale now lead the series
128-101-9 heading into the 249th contest. In October's Ivy Shootout
at Thompson Arena, the Bulldogs, who outshot the Tigers 30-28,
erased a 1-0 deficit and built a 2-1 lead. Five different Yale
players notched points while Jeff Malcolm made 26 saves.
BULLDOGS BEAT BENTLEY
Yale rang in the New Year by ringing up nine goals, thanks in part
to a four-goal outburst by Brian O'Neill (Yardley, Pa.), in a 9-3
win in the first-ever meeting with Bentley before 2,928 at Ingalls
Rink on Jan. 1. The Bulldogs, who had a 37-19 advantage in shots,
broke open a 3-3 contest with six straight goals. Four consecutive
scores came from the stick of Yale's captain. Yale overcame
Bentley's mini-comeback to shut down the Falcons (5-9-3) over the
last 36 minutes. That meant keeping them off the scoreboard and
allowing just 11 shots over the last two periods. Kenny Agostino
(Flanders, NJ), who had a goal and three points, and Andrew Miller (Bloomfield Hills, Mich), who
had four helpers, also had big days.
BOBCATS
Quinnipiac, 4-1-2 over its last nine outings, is coming off a tie
and a loss at Nebraska-Omaha last weekend. Jeremy Langlois leads
the team with 12 goals and 20 points, while Eric Hartzell (2.08,
.912) and Dan Clarke (2.05, .901) have handled most of the duties
in net. The netminders have helped the Bobcats, led by 18th-year
head coach Rand Pecknold, rank fourth in the country on the penalty
kill and 10th (2.33) for scoring defense.
TIGERS
The Tigers, led by first-year head coach Bob Prier (SLU '99), are
coming off a pair of 3-3 ties at the Mariucci Classic in Minnesota
last weekend against Northeastern and Niagara. Sean Bonar (2.94,
.899) has 13 of Princeton's 17 decisions while stopping 35 of 38
shots against Niagara. Jack Berger has a team-high seven goals and
13 points. The Tigers, like the Elis, are one of the least
penalized teams in the country.
YALE BEATS RUSSIANS
The Bulldogs dusted off the rust from a 22-day break between games
to register a 6-4 exhibition victory over the Russian Red Stars
before 3,319 at Ingalls Rink on Dec. 28. Kenny Agostino (Flanders,
N.J.) scored twice while Brian O'Neill (Yardley, Pa.) had three
assists and Andrew Miller (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.) handed out a
pair in the Bulldogs' second straight win over the all-star team
from the Russian professional league known as the MHL. Yale, which
used a different goalie each period, outshot the Red Stars 40-34
and never trailed. Both squads scored a pair of power-play
goals.
RANKS
Yale ranks sixth in scoring offense (3.54) and 29th in defense
(2.85) while its combined special teams rank No. 1 in Division I at
60.9 percent. The Bulldog penalty-kill is first (94.4), while only
two teams have been penalized less than the Bulldogs. The Elis'
power play unit is second (28.6) and trails only Harvard (32.2). In
the polls, the Blue is 20th in the uscho.com Division I list. Yale
received 15 votes for the USA Today/American Hockey Magazine Poll
but did not crack its top 15.
ECAC HOCKEY
Yale (8 points) is fourth in ECAC Hockey after playing six games.
First-place Cornell has 13 points in eight games, Colgate, the
hottest (6-0-1 in last 7) team in the conference, is second with 12
points after eight contests while Quinnipiac (9) is third.
LAGANIERE
Junior F Antoine Laganiere (Ile Cadieux, Que.) is the
hottest Bulldog with 4-5-9 over his last five games. His six goals
are second on the team. Laganiere, who leads the team with 44 shots
taken, had a career-high four points (2-2) at Brown on Dec. 3,
matching his best goal outing (at Princeton, 2009-10).
MALCOLM IN MIDDLE
Junior Jeff Malcolm has started every game this season and has all
seven wins. He had a shutout streak of three (Colgate, RPI, Union)
games and 226:39 minutes (parts of 5 games) in November and was
named ECAC Hockey Goalie of the Week after stopping all 72 shots in
wins at No. 8 Union and RPI on Nov. 11-12. The three straight SHOs
tied the school record set by Ryan Rondeau '11 last winter. His
scoreless streak fell short of the 240:53 by Rondeau. His career
record is 13-9-1 with a 2.95 GAA and three shutouts. Malcolm has a
2.54 GAA (29th in Division I) with a .921 SP (34th) this year.
MILLER TIME
Junior F Andrew Miller (82 gp, 19-73-92) is one of college
hockey's premier offensive catalysts. Not known for his goal
scoring, Miller, who leads the team with 11 helpers and is ninth on
the school's career assist list, is best at creating space, setting
up teammates and winning draws. Miller, a 2010-11 first-team
All-ECAC pick, was voted "best passer" by his teammates last season
while he had 12-33-45. He was No. 4 in the nation with .97 assists
per game (tops in ECAC). More impressive is that 22 of his 33
assists were primary ones. His team-high 33 helpers (2nd best at
Yale and five behind Mark Kaufmann '93) were a sophomore school
record while 45 points were second on the team. He probably had his
best offensive weekend as a collegian on Feb. 25-26 when he hit the
net three times against Colgate/Cornell combined. Miller
(Bloomfield Hills, Mich.), was 12th in the nation with 1.29 points
per contest and registered the most (34 as a freshman) points by a
Yale rookie since Tom Walsh set the bar with 41 in 1984-85. The
speedy forward was the 2008-09 USA Junior Player of the Year and
2007 Michigan High School Mr. Hockey. In 2009-10 he was second
among conference rookies with one point per game, which also put
him fourth in the country for newcomers. He ranked eighth in
Division I that year with .85 assists per outing.
CAPTAIN O'NEILL
Yale's captain, Brian O'Neill (116 gp, 57-75-132), leads the squad
with nine goals and 15 points. He is seventh on Yale's career
points list and is 11th on the career goals list (2nd among active
ECAC players). He was a 2010-11 first-team All-ECAC selection and
has led the team in scoring the last two seasons. O'Neill had a
career-high four goals (most by a Bulldog since 2003) this year
against Bentley. His four tallies against the Falcons on Jan. 1,
2012, were on consecutive scores. That eclipsed his hat trick at
Clarkson on Feb. 12, 2011. He ranked 15th nationally with 1.29
points per game last year. He began 2010-11 with a 3-2-5 weekend in
the two wins including 2-1-3 and the GWG against Dartmouth on Oct.
30. The year before, he led the Elis with 29 assists and 45 points
while ranking seventh in the country with 1.32 PPG. O'Neill
(Yardley, Pa.) made the 2008-09 CHN and ECAC Hockey All-Rookie
teams after going 12-14-26.
NET MIX
Junior Nick Maricic (Alta Loma, Calif.) saw his
first action of the year at SHU (2 saves, 24 minutes) but has not
made a start this season. Maricic owns a 2.89 career GAA and an
.885 SP. Freshman Connor Wilson (Cary, NC) is looking for his
first opportunity. He stopped 11 of 12 shots in one period of work
against the exhibition against the Russian Red Stars on Dec.
28.
BLUE LINE
There are seven defensemen on the Yale roster: two seniors, a
junior, a sophomore and three freshmen. They have combined to score
six goals while allowing 37 in 13 games. Two of the newcomers, Tommy Fallen (Plymouth, Minn.) and Matt Killian (Basking Ridge, NJ) scored
goals against SHU. Three of the seven have a depth of experience.
Seniors Kevin Peel (Onoway, Alb.) and Nick Jaskowiak (Bloomington, Minn.) have
been regulars since arriving in New Haven. Junior Colin Dueck (Calgary, Alb.) became a
mainstay last winter and sophomore Gus Young (Dedham, Mass.) has seen action in
every game this season.
AGOSTINO
Yale sophomore forward Kenny Agostino (Flanders, NJ), who came
within a step of making the U.S. National Junior Team this winter,
has five goals and 12 points this season in 11 games. Agostino, who
missed the last three games before the break with an injury, has
five goals over the last five games. His best game this year was
2-2-4 vs. UConn. Agostino became the first Yale newcomer in 30
years to record five points in one game on Jan. 2, 2011. He notched
three goals and two assists against Holy Cross and became the
school's first freshman to tally five points since former Olympian
and NHL star Bob Brooke '83 established the school rookie record
against Dartmouth in 1980. Yale's rookie of the year last winter
after scoring 11 goals and 25 points, Agostino was the HCA National
Rookie of the Month for January (8-4-12), the first Bulldog to
receive that award. He was ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Week on Jan.
23 (3 goals vs. Clarkson/SLU), becoming the only Bulldog to earn
conference rookie honors in 2010-11. The former Delbarton School
star had a goal and three assists before the holiday break, and 10
goals and 11 assists after. He ranked 11th nationally among rookies
with .86 points per game.
BULLDOG BITES
Senior Dan Otto (Lake Zurich, Ill.) missed the last
two games with an injury... Sophomore Brad Peltz (Mount Kisco, NY) and freshman Trent Ruffolo (Coral Springs, Fla.) scored
their first regular season goals against Bentley. Ruffolo notched
two points 10 seconds apart... There are four Bulldogs with more
than 100 career games played: Brian O'Neill, Charles Brockett, Kevin Limbert and Kevin
Peel.
BEHIND THE BENCH
Assistant coach Dan Muse is in his third season season under Keith
Allain. He joined the Bulldog staff when C.J. Marottolo left to
take the top job at Sacred Heart. Former University of New
Hampshire star Eric Lind has been with Allain every season at Yale.
There is one new face on the Yale bench this season, Dennis "Red"
Gendron, who replaced Kyle Wallack as the Bulldogs' associate head
coach. Gendron, an assistant at the University of Massachusetts the
last six seasons and a former University of Maine coach from 1990
to 1993, helped the Black Bears win a 1993 NCAA Championship.
LOOKING AHEAD
The Elis are on the road next weekend for the longest trip of the
year at Clarkson and St. Lawrence.
ACCOMPLISHED LEADERS
The current Yale roster is comprised of leaders and scholars. Here
are some examples.
22 were captains of hockey teams before coming to New
Haven
13 captained another sports team
17 won a scholar-athlete award
14 graduated in top 10 percent of their senior class
SURVEY SAYS
The Yale players were surveyed about each other, and here are the
results:
Best Passer:
Andrew Miller (Jr, F)
Fastest on Skates: Brian
O'Neill (Sr, F)
Hardest Shot:
Antoine Laganiere (Jr, F)
Best Forechecker: Chad
Ziegler (Sr, F)
Strongest:
Josh Balch (Jr, F)
Most Likely to become a coach: Josh Balch
Best Singer:
Colin Dueck (Jr, D)
Most Unique Hobby: Brian
O'Neill (model airplanes)
Best Sense of Humor: Charles
Brockett (Sr, F)
Biggest Appetite: Charles
Brockett
Best Dresser:
Andrew Miller
Want your sister to date: Anthony Day (Fr, F)
GEOGRAPHIC BALANCE
The Yale roster includes players from 13 different states and
three provinces. New York and Minnesota are represented by three
players from each state while Alberta brings in four players.
FROM WHENCE THEY CAME
The United States Hockey League contributed 10 players to the
Bulldog roster. There are four from the British Columbia Hockey
League, one from the Atlantic Junior Hockey League and another from
the Eastern Junior Hockey League. Ten Yale student-athletes came
directly from prep schools.
BULLDOGS IN THE PROS
There are 23 former Yale hockey players skating professionally,
including eight from the class of 2011. Here are the Bulldog pros,
youngest to oldest:
Chris Cahill '11 (Cincinnati Cyclones, ECHL)
Denny Kearney '11 (Trenton Titans, ECHL)
Broc Little '11 (HockeyAllsvenskan, VIK Västerås HK,
Sweden)
Jimmy Martin '11 (Florida Everblades, ECHL)
Brendon Mason '11 (Nybro Vikings, Sweden)
Mike Matczak '11 (Kalamazoo Wings, ECHL)
Ryan Rondeau '11 (Laredo Buck, CHL)
Ken Trentowski '11 (Brooklyn Aviators, FHL)
Sean Backman '10 (Bridgeport Sound Tigers, AHL)
Ryan Donald '10 (Florida Everblades, ECHL)
Mark Arcobello '10 (Oklahoma City Barons, AHL)
Billy Blase '10 (Neuilly-sur-Marne, France)
Tom Dignard (Belfast Giants, EIHL)
Alec Richards '09 (Rockford Icehogs, AHL)
Brennan Turner '09 (Dundee Stars, EIHL)
David Meckler '09 (Manchester Monarchs, AHL)
Blair Yaworski '08 (Utah Grizzlies, ECHL)
Jean-Francois Boucher (Saint-George COOL-FM, LNAH)
Matt Cohen '07 (Fife Flyers, EIHL)
Brad Mills '07 (New Jersey Devils, NHL)
Chris Higgins '05 (Vancouver Canucks, NHL)
Joe Callahan '05 (Hamilton Bulldogs, AHL)
Ray Giroux '98 (ChelyabinskTraktor, KL)
CURRENT NHL CONNECTIONS
Three players on the current Yale roster have been drafted by NHL
teams: Gus Young (Colorado, 7th, 184, 2009); Kenny Agostino
(Pittsburgh, 5th, 140, 2010); Brad Peltz (Ottawa, 7th, 190,
2009).
9 GRADS
It's not fair to compare recent Yale teams to the 2011-12
Bulldogs, who lost nine standout class of 2011 players. Eight of
the graduates are skating professionally. The current squad isn't
lacking talent, but nobody re-loads with equal force after losing
nine seniors from a championship team. There are seven seniors
seeing regular duty, though one of them seeks his first varsity
letter. Four of the five sophomores and five of the six juniors
have been in almost every game while five freshmen have been needed
to fill the largest void.
YALE'S LAST 3
The Yale men have left a mark on Division I over the last three
seasons under Keith Allain '80, the Malcolm G. Chace Head Coach of
Hockey. The combined statistics from 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2010-11
make the last three years the best in the history of the sport in
New Haven and among the best in the nation over that span.
The Numbers From 2008-11
Accomplishments
Overall Record:
73-25-6 (.729)
Top Winning Percentage
in Division I
ECAC Record:
47-14-5 (.749)
Two-time Division I
Scoring Leader (2009-10, 2010-11)
Scoring:
405 goals, 104 games (3.89)
Led nation in scoring defense 2010-11
All-Americans:
4
2 ECAC Hockey
Tournament Championships (2009, 2011)
All-ECAC:
8
2 ECAC Hockey Regular
Season Titles (2008-09, 2009-10)
All-Ivy League:
10
3 NCAA Tournament
Appearances
YALE HOCKEY BROADCASTS
Pay-per-view broadcasts of Yale hockey regular season home games
are available on yalebulldogs.com. The Yale Athletic Department
production is almost entirely student run: Sam Dorward '13 is the
producer; Tom Stokes '12 and Patrick Ouziel '13 are the
cameramen; Evan Ellis '12, the Voice of Yale Hockey, and Max
Valenstein '13 are the broadcasters.
HARBOR YARD
Yale and Fairfield hosted the 2009 and 2011 NCAA East Regional
Tournaments in Bridgeport at Webster Bank's Arena at Harbor Yard,
and the Bulldogs participated in both. The 2012 East Regional is
slated for the Yard, which has hosted numerous NCAA events.
INGALLS
Yale hockey celebrated the re-dedication of Ingalls Rink (3,500
capacity) on Jan. 16, 2010. The rink built in 1958 has been
modernized while adding 13,000 square feet of operational
space. The additions include locker rooms and space for strength
& conditioning (including skating treadmill), student-athlete
study area, medical & training, officials, video, coaches,
equipment, reception and more. There are new historical displays,
concession stands and bathrooms for the building nicknamed the
"Whale" because of its humpback-shaped roof.
WHALE OF A TIME
The Whale (Ingalls Rink) has been a tough place for visitors in
recent years. Yale, which enjoyed its first undefeated (15-0-1,
only Division I team to do that) regular season at Ingalls last
winter, finished 17-1-1 at home (2-2 this year). That is the most
wins ever in New Haven for a Yale team (The Blue went unbeaten at
New Haven in 1928-29). The Bulldogs are 42-11-3 over the last
three-plus seasons at the Whale and 12-10-3 in home ECAC playoff
games all time.
SOLD OUT
Ingalls Rink was sold out for the last 12 games of the 2010-11
regular season and three (Cornell, Colgate, BC) of the first five
games this season. There are tickets available for the rest of the
home campaign, but only G.A. and S.R.O. tickets remain for contests
with Harvard and Dartmouth.
ATTENTION MEDIA
Here are some important things to know if you are covering the
Bulldogs or just working a game at Ingalls. Interviews: Yale head
coach Keith Allain and select players are available on a
semi-regular basis each week at Ingalls Rink, typically Thursdays
at 2:30 p.m. If you would like to attend these informal media
sessions, please contact Sports Publicity Director Steve Conn.
Post-game:interviews with Yale personnel are conducted in one of
the youth locker rooms at ice level on the home side of the
building. Let Steve Conn know who you would like to speak with
immediately after the game. Media Gate List: Attendants stationed
at the front and back of the rink have a media gate list to check
off your name. Parking: The same list is used for PARKING in the
garage (entrance off Prospect Street) behind the rink.
filed by Steve Conn, Yale Sports Publicity Director
