HAMDEN, Conn. — Sophomore defenseman Brendan Smith and freshman forward Morgan Barron scored goals and the Cornell men’s hockey team opened ECAC Hockey play by staving off Quinnipiac, 2-1, on Friday night at High Point Solutions Arena.
Cornell (3-0, 1-0), which entered the weekend ranked 18th in the country in the latest USCHO.com poll, embraced its first test on the road and largely kept #11/12 Quinnipiac (3-2-1, 0-1) at bay until the hosts made a late push. Freshman Matthew Galajda made 28 saves.
“First two periods of our first road game of the year, and we played exactly the way we wanted to play,” said Mike Schafer, the Jay R. Bloom Head Coach of Men’s Hockey. “We were strong, and we were quick to pucks. We made a lot of poised plays and I was really pretty happy.”
Cornell had the first quality scoring chance with freshman forward Cam Donaldson’s quick stickwork on the rush setting up a breakaway for sophomore defenseman Yanni Kaldis. He made a move to his backhand, but Quinnipiac goalie Andrew Shortridge made the save with his left pad.
Galajda wasn’t tested often in the first period, but he came up big on Quinnipiac’s best chance after a turnover behind the Big Red net. The Bobcats’ Brogan Rafferty made a move from point-blank range, but Galajda kicked out his right pad to make the stop.
The best scoring chance in the opening period actually came in the final minute, with senior forward Jared Fiegl leading a three-on-one up the right wing. He took a smart shot toward the far post that created a rebound right up the slot, but the puck skipped over the stick of a primed junior forward Anthony Angello.
After Smith gave Cornell the lead in the second period, Quinnipiac gradually started to find some momentum in the latter half of the stanza. A pass sequence set up a one-time slap shot from Karlis Cukste in the slot, but it bounded off Galajda’s left pad. The Big Red then had a golden opportunity to double its lead just 2:13 before the intermission, but freshman forward Morgan Barron’s backhand shot on a breakaway was a little too strong and zipped over the crossbar.
Cornell’s feet were put to the proverbial fire just 63 seconds into the third period when Quinnipiac was awarded first of two power plays in the final frame. But the Big Red penalty kill was a perfect 4-for-4 and has extended its streak of successful kills to start the season to 16.
Meanwhile, Cornell’s power play delivered the winner on Barron’s goal with 7:24 to play. Quinnipiac answered quickly with Matt Forchuk’s rebound goal less than two minutes later.
“They came at us harder in the third, and at different points in time we didn’t handle it well,” Schafer said. “But it’s a tough place to play and a great road win. Thought the guys did an excellent job.”
How The Goals Were Scored:
Cornell’s 1st Goal
2nd period, 8:34 • Cornell 1, Quinnipiac 0
• Quinnipiac was building to a scoring chance just after a power play expired, but Alec McCrea’s stickcheck broke up the play while simultaneously starting a Big Red rush the other way. Mitch Vanderlaan entered the zone on the right side, and chipped an aerial backhand pass back to Beau Starrett skating toward the top of the right circle. Starrett alertly made one more pass to Brendan Smith coming open down the left side of the slot, and Smith buried a shot past Andrew Shortridge’s blocker.
Cornell’s 2nd Goal
3rd period, 12:36 (PP) • Cornell 2, Quinnipiac 0
• In the latter stages of a power play, McCrea knifed down an attempted clear at the right point. With traffic already set up in the slot, he quickly took a shot that hit the back side of Barron and deflected high in the air. With Shortridge unable to find the puck in the air, it descended behind the goalie and dropped into the net.
Quinnipiac’s 1st Goal
3rd period, 14:24 • Cornell 2, Quinnipiac 1
• Scott Davidson worked the puck from behind the net with a jam attempt to Galajda’s right. The goaltender made the stop, but the puck slid across the crease for Forchuk to jam in for his first collegiate goal.
Up Next:
Cornell opens Ivy League play at 7 p.m. Saturday, when it wraps up the weekend with a trip to Princeton. The game will be broadcast on the Ivy League Network.
