Quinnipiac Bobcats men's ice hockey

Quinnipiac Bobcats men's ice hockey
Current season
Quinnipiac Bobcats athletic logo
UniversityQuinnipiac University
ConferenceECAC Hockey
Head coachRand Pecknold
30th season, 615–337–103 (.632)
Assistant coaches
ArenaFrank Perrotti, Jr. Arena at the M&T Bank Arena
Hamden, Connecticut
ColorsNavy and gold
   
MascotBoomer the Bobcat
NCAA Tournament championships
2023
NCAA Tournament Runner-up
2013, 2016
NCAA Tournament Frozen Four
2013, 2016, 2023
NCAA Tournament appearances
2002, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024
Conference Tournament championships
2002, 2016
Conference regular season championships
1999, 2000, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024
Current uniform

The Quinnipiac Bobcats men's ice hockey team is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I college ice hockey program that represents Quinnipiac University. The Bobcats are a member of ECAC Hockey. They play at the M&T Bank Arena in Hamden, Connecticut.[1]

History

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Quinnipiac College began sponsoring men's ice hockey as a varsity sport for the 1975–76 season. The program began as an independent team before joining ECAC 3 the following year. The program remained with the third-tier conference for over 20 years despite being a Division II school for much of that time. The Braves left ECAC 3 in 1997 and spent a year as a D-II independent before moving up to Division I as part of the university's transition to the top level. Quinnipiac was a founding member of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference ice hockey division, joining the conference as an affiliate member. The Braves won the MAAC Regular season Championship in their first season in the league. The trend continued as Quinnipiac won the title the follow two seasons.[2] In 2002 The Braves won the team's first playoff series, winning the MAAC Playoff Championship with a 6–4 win over Mercyhurst.[3] With the win, Quinnipiac received an automatic bid to the 2002 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey tournament, the first NCAA postseason appearance in program history.[3] Quinnipiac faced off against Cornell in the first round of the East Regional, held in Worcester, Massachusetts.[4] Quinnipiac's run into the NCAA tournament ended early in a 1–6 loss to the Big Red.[5] The game was the first NCAA tournament appearance for the Braves.[6] Quinnipiac finished the 2001–02 season 20–13–5, marking the team's fourth consecutive season with at least 20 wins.[7]

The Quinnipiac Bobcats men's ice hockey team battles Dartmouth College at the then-named TD Banknorth Sports Center, February 2007. Quinnipiac student section is on right.

In 2003 the MAAC Hockey league split off from the main athletic conference to form Atlantic Hockey.[8] After two years in Atlantic Hockey Quinnipiac left to join the ECAC, replacing Vermont who left the league for Hockey East[9] and changed their name to the Bobcats. QU was chosen over a number of applicants in large part to the university's commitment to build a new multipurpose sports arena to replace the civic-owned Northford Ice Pavilion.[9] The Bobcats moved into the new 3,386-seat TD Bank Sports Center (then known as TD Banknorth Sports Center) in 2007.[10]

The 2012–13 season has brought Quinnipiac to national prominence. The program reached a new high becoming the number one team in the country on February 11, 2013 in both the USCHO.com poll and USA Today College Hockey poll. Quinnipiac retained the ranking the following week despite losing their first game as the top ranked team to St. Lawrence University as the 2nd and 3rd ranked teams also fell the same weekend. The Bobcats also won their first ever Cleary Cup presented to the ECAC regular season champion. On March 24, 2013, the Bobcats received the number one overall seed in the 2013 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey tournament. The Bobcats won the East Region with wins over Canisius (4-3) and Union (5-1) to advance to the school's first ever Frozen Four in Pittsburgh, Pa. In the national semifinals, Quinnipiac defeated St. Cloud State (4-1) to advance to the national championship game against archrival Yale. The Bobcats fell 4–0 to Yale to end the 2012-13 as the national runner-up.

In the 2013–14 season the Bobcats once again reached the NCAA tournament yet were defeated in the first round by Providence College 4–0. The team finished the season with a 24-10-6 record.

Quinnipiac once again had a successful 2014–15 season when they won their second ECAC regular season title in 3 years but lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament to North Dakota 4–1. The team finished the season with a 23-12-4 record.

The 2015–16 season saw Qunnipiac set a school record for wins with 32 along with winning their 3rd ECAC regular season title in 4 years and winning the ECAC tournament championship for the first time. Quinnipiac blew through the East Regional with wins over RIT 4-0 and UMass Lowell 4–1 to capture the regional championship and advance to the Frozen Four in the Tampa for the 2nd time in 4 seasons. In the national semifinals the Bobcats withheld a late charge by Boston College to win 3-2 and advance to the second national championship game in program history. Once again Quinnipiac was denied a national championship this time at the hands of North Dakota in a 5–1 defeat. The team finished the season with a record of 32-4-7.

On April 8, 2023, the Bobcats won their first-ever NCAA Division I men's ice hockey tournament championship, defeating the Minnesota Golden Gophers 3–2, scoring the winning goal just ten seconds into overtime.

Lineup of Quinnipiac Bobcats players
2023-2024 Quinnipiac Bobcats at Brown's Meehan Auditorium

Rivals

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Since moving to the ECAC, Quinnipiac's biggest rival has been the Yale Bulldogs. The rivalry is dubbed the War on Whitney Avenue as the two campuses are separated by a mere 8 miles on Whitney Avenue in Hamden, Connecticut, to New Haven, Connecticut. The rivalry has reached its highest point in 2013 as both the Bobcats and the Bulldogs rank in the top 10 nationally and are 1 and 2 in the ECAC standings. The winner of the final game between the two teams receives the Heroes Hat which honors those who risked their lives during the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The two teams met on April 13, 2013 for the fourth time in the 2012–13 season in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to play for the national championship. Quinnipiac won the previous three meetings by a combined score of 13–3, but was upset in the national championship game, 4–0.

The Cornell Big Red have also become a rival of Quinnipiac with the teams meeting in five ECAC Hockey Playoff series since the 2007 season having won in 2007 at Lynah Rink and in 2013 and 2016 in Hamden with the latter two coming with Quinnipiac as the ECAC number one seed and seasons in which Quinnipiac reached the Frozen Four. Cornell won series in 2011 and 2018 both at Lynah Rink. Quinnipiac is 3–2 in those series against Cornell with three of the series going the maximum three games. Things on the ice have been heated at times with a lot of physical play and both Rand Pecknold and Cornell head coach Mike Schafer jawing at each other as well.

Records vs. current ECAC Hockey teams

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As of the completion of 2023–24 season[11]

School Team Away Arena Overall record Win % Last Result
Brown University Bears Meehan Auditorium 29–10–7 .707 -
Clarkson University Golden Knights Cheel Arena 19–19–5 .500 -
Colgate University Raiders Class of 1965 Arena 32–19–3 .620 -
Cornell University Big Red Lynah Rink 19–26–4 .429 -
Dartmouth College Big Green Thompson Arena 25–10–4 .692 -
Harvard University Crimson Bright-Landry Hockey Center 18–18–5 .500 -
Princeton University Tigers Hobey Baker Memorial Rink 24–11–1 .681 -
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Engineers Houston Field House 22–7–9 .697 -
St. Lawrence University Saints Appleton Arena 26–19–6 .569 -
Union College Dutchmen Achilles Rink 24–17–5 .576 -
Yale University Bulldogs Ingalls Rink 28–7–5 .763 -

Season-by-season results

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Main article: List of Quinnipiac Bobcats men's ice hockey seasons

Source:[12]

All-time coaching records

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Coaches
Rand Pecknold
Head Coach
Rick Bennett
Assistant Coach
Joe Dumais
Associate Head Coach
As of 2024–2025 season

As of completion of 2023–24 season[12]

Tenure Coach Years Record Pct.
1975–1979 Jim Kennedy 4 22–48–1 .317
1979–1980 Ralph O'Connor 1 5–13–1 .289
1980–1994 Jim Armstrong 14 139–188–8 .427
1994–Present Rand Pecknold 30 642–347–105 .635
Totals 4 coaches 49 Seasons 808–596–115 .570

Statistical leaders

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Source:[13]

Career points leaders

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Player Years GP G A Pts PIM
Chris Cerrella 1997–2001 126 99 106 205 230
Todd Johnson 1985–1989 109 90 112 202 128
Jim Hanscom 1976–1980 83 109 192
Bill Verneris 1978–1982 92 94 186
Brian Herbert 1999–2003 136 56 113 169 254
Bryan Leitch 2005–2009 157 53 116 169 124
Odeen Tufto 2017–2021 139 39 129 168 58
Rick Ciardiello 1983–1987 61 97 158
Reid Cashman 2003–2007 151 23 125 148 246
Ethan De Jong 2018–2023 184 61 83 144 76

Career goaltending leaders

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GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; SV% = Save percentage; GAA = Goals against average

Minimum 30 games

Player Years GP Min W L T GA SO SV% GAA
Yaniv Perets 2020–2023 74 4291 56 9 5 137 21 .935 1.34
Michael Garteig 2012–2016 124 7261 78 25 16 237 19 .917 1.96
Eric Hartzell 2009–2013 106 6139 58 27 17 201 10 .924 1.96
Andrew Shortridge 2016–2019 78 4235 42 26 4 139 10 .923 1.97
Keith Petruzzelli 2017–2021 94 5280 51 27 8 191 10 .915 2.17

Statistics current through the start of the 2023–24 season.

Roster

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As of September 10, 2024.[14]

No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team NHL rights
3 Connecticut Cooper Moore Graduate D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 187 lb (85 kg) 2001-02-16 Greenwich, Connecticut North Dakota (NCHC) DET, 128th overall 2019
4 Michigan Davis Pennington Senior D 5' 10" (1.78 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2001-05-27 Saline, Michigan Omaha (NCHC) —
5 New York (state) Aaron Bohlinger Graduate D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 2000-08-25 Walden, New York Massachusetts (HEA) —
6 Connecticut Charlie Leddy Junior D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2004-01-11 Fairfield, Connecticut Boston College (HEA) NJD, 126th overall 2022
7 Vermont Elliott Groenewold Freshman D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 201 lb (91 kg) 2006-02-04 Bellows Falls, Vermont Cedar Rapids RoughRiders (USHL) BOS, 110th overall 2024
8 Connecticut Matthew McGroarty Sophomore F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 172 lb (78 kg) 2003-01-30 Westport, Connecticut Madison Capitols (USHL) —
10 Michigan Tyler Borgula Freshman F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 2005-10-06 Livonia, Michigan Sioux Falls Stampede (USHL) —
11 Florida Aaron Schwartz Freshman F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 174 lb (79 kg) 2004-03-22 Parkland, Florida Surrey Eagles (USHL) —
12 New York (state) Ryan Smith Freshman F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 179 lb (81 kg) 2005-10-03 Pendleton, New York Tri-City Storm (USHL) —
13 Virginia Noah Eyre Freshman F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 176 lb (80 kg) 2004-06-22 Vienna, Virginia Sioux Falls Stampede (USHL) —
14 Connecticut Victor Czerneckianair Junior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 174 lb (79 kg) 2002-02-17 Southington, Connecticut Tri-City Storm (USHL) —
15 Ontario Jack Ricketts Graduate F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1999-09-08 Oakville, Ontario Holy Cross (AHA) —
16 New York (state) Jeremy Wilmer Junior F 5' 8" (1.73 m) 155 lb (70 kg) 2003-08-16 Rockville Centre, New York Boston University (HEA) —
17 Sweden Travis Treloar Graduate F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 176 lb (80 kg) 2001-05-12 Kalmar, Sweden Ohio State (Big Ten) —
18 New York (state) Anthony Cipollone Junior F 5' 6" (1.68 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 2002-05-14 Purchase, New York Brooks Bandits (AJHL) —
19 New York (state) Chase Ramsay Sophomore D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 181 lb (82 kg) 2003-06-10 Granite Springs, New York Des Moines Buccaneers (USHL) —
20 Ontario Mason Marcellus Sophomore F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 2002-07-19 Greely, Ontario Lincoln Stars (USHL) —
22 British Columbia Braden Blace Freshman D 6' 3" (1.91 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 2003-09-09 Duncan, British Columbia Alberni Valley Bulldogs (BCHL) —
23 New York (state) Michael Salandra Freshman F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 187 lb (85 kg) 2003-06-13 Pleasantville, New York West Kelowna Warriors (BCHL) —
24 Newfoundland and Labrador Alex Power Junior F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2002-01-04 St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador Bonnyville Pontiacs (AJHL) —
25 New Hampshire Nate Benoit Sophomore D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 183 lb (83 kg) 2002-11-26 Bow, New Hampshire North Dakota (NCHC) MIN, 182nd overall 2021
27 Connecticut Andon Cerbone Sophomore F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 163 lb (74 kg) 2004-04-13 Stamford, Connecticut Youngstown Phantoms (USHL) —
28 New Jersey Chris Pelosi Freshman F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 181 lb (82 kg) 2005-03-05 Sewell, New Jersey Sioux Falls Stampede (USHL) BOS, 92nd overall 2023
29 California Dylan Silverstein Freshman (RS) G 6' 0" (1.83 m) 179 lb (81 kg) 2004-02-07 Calabasas, California Sioux City Musketeers (USHL) —
31 California Noah Altman Senior G 6' 7" (2.01 m) 209 lb (95 kg) 2000-08-16 Los Angeles, California Bismarck Bobcats (NAHL) —
33 Slovakia Matej Marinov Sophomore G 6' 0" (1.83 m) 157 lb (71 kg) 2003-06-16 Nitra, Slovakia Fargo Force (USHL) —

Awards and honors

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NCAA

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Individual awards

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All-Americans

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AHCA First Team All-Americans

AHCA Second Team All-Americans

MAAC

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Individual awards

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All-Conference Teams

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First Team All-MAAC

Second Team All-MAAC

MAAC All-Rookie Team

Atlantic Hockey

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Individual awards

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All-Conference Teams

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First Team All-Atlantic Hockey

Second Team All-Atlantic Hockey

Atlantic Hockey All-Rookie Team

ECAC Hockey

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Individual awards

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All-Conference

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First Team All-ECAC Hockey

Second Team All-ECAC Hockey

Third Team All-ECAC Hockey

ECAC Hockey All-Rookie Team

Quinnipiac Bobcats Hall of Fame

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The following is a list of people associated with the Quinnipiac men's ice hockey program who were elected into the Quinnipiac Bobcats Hall of Fame (induction date in parentheses).[15]

Bobcats in the NHL

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As of July 1, 2024

= NHL All-Star team = NHL All-Star[16] = NHL All-Star[16] and NHL All-Star team
Player Position Team(s) Years Games Stanley Cups
Connor Clifton Defenseman BOS, BUF 2018–Present 311 0
Connor Jones Forward NYI 2016–2017 4 0
Collin Graf Right Wing SJS 2023–Present 7 0
Matthew Peca Center TBL, MTL, OTT, STL 2016–2022 83 0
Yaniv Perets Goaltender CAR 2023–Present 1 0
Chase Priskie Defenseman FLA 2021–2022 4 0
Brogan Rafferty Defenseman VAN 2018–2021 3 0
Devon Toews Defenseman NYI, COL 2018–Present 397 1
Bryce Van Brabant Left Wing CGY 2013–2014 6 0

Source:[17]

See also

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References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Quinnipiac Bobcats, Union Dutchmen play 5-overtime hockey game, longest in NCAA history - ESPN". ESPN. 2010-03-13. Retrieved 2012-08-05.
  2. ^ "Statistics :: USCHO.com :: U.S. College Hockey Online". USCHO.com. Retrieved 2013-06-13.
  3. ^ a b [1] Archived November 22, 2005, at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ "2002 NCAA tournament". Inside College Hockey. Retrieved 2010-09-13.
  5. ^ [2] Archived December 8, 2005, at the Wayback Machine
  6. ^ "Statistics :: USCHO.com :: U.S. College Hockey Online". USCHO.com. Retrieved 2012-08-05.
  7. ^ "Bobcat hockey looking for repeated success | The Quinnipiac Chronicle". 2002-10-10. Retrieved 2012-08-05.
  8. ^ "Atlantic Hockey : ATLANTIC HOCKEY HISTORY". Atlantichockeyonline.com. Retrieved 2012-08-05.
  9. ^ a b "Quinnipiac Officially Admitted to ECAC :: USCHO.com :: U.S. College Hockey Online". USCHO.com. 2004-08-24. Retrieved 2012-08-05.
  10. ^ Holtz, Jeff (2007-01-27). "Arena Fit for Quinnipiac's Ambition". The New York Times.
  11. ^ "2023–24 Quinnipiac Hockey Record Book" (PDF). Quinnipiac Athletics. Retrieved August 10, 2024.
  12. ^ a b "Quinnipiac Bobcats men's Ice Hockey 2014-15 Media Guide". Quinnipiac Bobcats. Retrieved Aug 15, 2019.
  13. ^ "All-Time Individual Career Records". Quinnipiac Bobcats. Retrieved August 16, 2019.
  14. ^ "2024-25 Men's Ice Hockey Roster". Quinnipiac Bobcats. Retrieved September 10, 2024.
  15. ^ "Hall of Fame". Quinnipiac Bobcats. Retrieved August 17, 2019.
  16. ^ a b Players are identified as an All-Star if they were selected for the All-Star game at any time in their career.
  17. ^ "Alumni report for Quinnipiac University". Hockey DB. Retrieved August 17, 2019.
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