Quinnipiac Bobcats men's ice hockey

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Quinnipiac Bobcats men's ice hockey
Current season
Quinnipiac Bobcats men's ice hockey athletic logo
UniversityQuinnipiac University
ConferenceECAC Hockey
Head coachRand Pecknold
28th season, 549–326–97 (.615)
CaptainOdeen Tufto
Alternate captain(s)Wyatt Bongiovanni
ArenaFrank Perrotti, Jr. Arena at the People's United Center
Capacity: 3,086
Surface: 200' x 85'
LocationHamden, Connecticut
ColorsNavy and gold
   
NCAA Tournament Runner-up
2013, 2016
NCAA Tournament Frozen Four
2013, 2016
NCAA Tournament appearances
2002, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2021
Conference Tournament championships
2002, 2016
Conference regular season championships
1999, 2000, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2021
Current uniform
ECAC-Uniform-Quinnipiac.png

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 People's United Center in Hamden, Connecticut.[1]

History[]

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.

Rivals[]

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. Quinnipiac holds a 9-5-2 all-time record against the Bulldogs. 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[]

As of the completion of 2018–19 season[11]

School Team Away Arena Overall Record Win % Last Result
Brown University Bears Meehan Auditorium 24–10–6 .675 3-4 L
Clarkson University Golden Knights Cheel Arena 16–12–3 .565 3-5 L
Colgate University Raiders Class of 1965 Arena 23–16–2 .585 4-5 L (OT)
Cornell University Big Red Lynah Rink 17–22–4 .442 2-2 T (OT)
Dartmouth College Big Green Thompson Arena 21–10–2 .667 5-1 W
Harvard University Crimson Bright-Landry Hockey Center 14–15–5 .485 1-2 L
Princeton University Tigers Hobey Baker Memorial Rink 17–12–1 .583 6-3 W
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Engineers Houston Field House 17–7–9 .652 2-1 W
St. Lawrence University Saints Appleton Arena 15–15–4 .500 7-2 W
Union College Dutchmen Achilles Rink 18–17–5 .513 1-1 T (OT)
Yale University Bulldogs Ingalls Rink 22–7–5 .721 4-1 W

Season-by-season results[]

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

Source:[11]

All-time coaching records[]

As of completion of 2020–21 season[11]

Tenure Coach Years Record Pct.
1975–1979 4 22–48–1 .317
1979–1980 1 5–13–1 .289
1980–1994 14 139–188–8 .427
1994–Present Rand Pecknold 27 549–326–97 .615
Totals 4 coaches 46 Seasons 715–575–107 .550

Statistical leaders[]

Source:[12]

Career points leaders[]

Player Years GP G A Pts PIM
1997–2001 126 99 106 205 230
1985–1989 109 90 112 202 128
1976–1980 83 109 192
1978–1982 92 94 186
1999–2003 136 56 113 169 254
Bryan Leitch 2005–2009 157 53 116 169 124
Odeen Tufto 2017–Present 139 39 129 168 58
1983–1987 61 97 158
Reid Cashman 2003–2007 151 23 125 148 246
Brandon Wong 2006–2010 147 68 75 143 92

Career goaltending leaders[]

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
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
2016–2019 78 4235 42 26 4 139 10 .923 1.97
2017–Present 94 5280 51 27 8 191 10 .915 2.17
2001–2005 107 5974 59 34 10 248 7 .921 2.49

Statistics current through the start of the 2021–22 season.

Roster[]

As of August 19, 2021.[13]

No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team NHL rights
1 Quebec Yaniv Perets Sophomore G 6' 1" (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 2000-03-04 Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Quebec Penticton (BCHL) —
2 Finland Iivari Räsänen Sophomore D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 2001-05-23 Tampere, Finland Muskegon (USHL) —
3 New York (state) Jack Babbage Freshman D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 192 lb (87 kg) 2000-08-30 Tully, New York Chicago (USHL) —
4 Rhode Island Michael Lombardi Senior D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1998-08-20 Barrington, Rhode Island West Kelowna (BCHL) —
5 New York (state) C. J. McGee Junior D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1999-03-12 Pearl River, New York Shreveport (NAHL) —
6 British Columbia Griffin Mendel Graduate D 6' 6" (1.98 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1999-02-18 Kelowna, British Columbia Denver (NCHC) —
7 Minnesota Marcus Chorney Senior D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1997-09-16 Hastings, Minnesota Amarillo (NAHL) —
8 British Columbia Nick Bochen Sophomore D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 2001-08-29 North Vancouver, British Columbia Prince George (BCHL) —
10 British Columbia Ethan de Jong (A) Senior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1999-07-12 North Vancouver, British Columbia Prince George (BCHL) —
11 Michigan Wyatt Bongiovanni (C) Senior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1999-07-24 Birmingham, Michigan Muskegon (USHL) —
12 Ontario Oliver Chau Graduate F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 164 lb (74 kg) 1997-08-21 Oakville, Ontario UMass (HEA) —
13 Quebec Christophe Fillion Sophomore F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2000-06-18 Sherbrooke, Quebec Muskegon (USHL) —
14 British Columbia Ethan Leyh Junior F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 2001-06-07 Anmore, British Columbia Langley (BCHL) —
15 British Columbia Jayden Lee Junior D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 155 lb (70 kg) 2001-01-10 North Vancouver, British Columbia Powell River (BCHL) —
16 Nova Scotia Jacob Quillan Freshman F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 201 lb (91 kg) 2002-02-02 Dartmouth, Nova Scotia Penticton (BCHL) —
17 New York (state) Joey Cipollone Junior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1999-07-12 Purchase, New York Tri-City (USHL) —
18 Wisconsin Tony Stillwell Senior D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1997-04-18 Green Bay, Wisconsin Brown (ECAC) —
19 Missouri T. J. Friedmann Senior F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1998-02-27 St. Louis, Missouri Victoria (BCHL) —
22 North Carolina Skyler Brind'Amour Junior F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1999-07-27 Raleigh, North Carolina Chilliwack (BCHL) EDM, 177th overall 2017
23 Wisconsin Zach Metsa (A) Senior D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1998-10-19 Delafield, Wisconsin Central Illinois (USHL) —
24 New Jersey Brendan Less Graduate D 5' 11" (1.8 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1998-04-24 Kinnelon, New Jersey Dartmouth (ECAC) —
26 Netherlands Guus van Nes Junior (RS) F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 205 lb (93 kg) 1997-02-14 Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht, Netherlands Boston Jr. Bruins (NCDC) —
27 British Columbia Desi Burgart Senior F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1998-09-28 North Vancouver, British Columbia Surrey (BCHL) —
28 New York (state) Liam McLinskey Freshman F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 2001-02-20 Pearl River, New York Jersey (NCDC) —
29 Quebec Cristophe Tellier Freshman F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 172 lb (78 kg) 2000-05-23 Sherbrooke, Quebec Muskegon (USHL) —
30 Michigan Dylan St. Cyr Graduate G 5' 8" (1.73 m) 167 lb (76 kg) 1999-05-23 Northville, Michigan Notre Dame (Big Ten) —
31 California Noah Altman Freshman G 6' 7" (2.01 m) 209 lb (95 kg) 2000-08-16 Los Angeles, California Bismarck (NAHL) —
96 Colorado Ty Smilanic Sophomore F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 178 lb (81 kg) 2002-01-20 Denver, Colorado USNTDP (USHL) FLA, 74th overall 2020

Awards and honors[]

NCAA[]

Individual awards[]

All-Americans[]

AHCA First Team All-Americans

  • 2006–07: Reid Cashman, D
  • 2012–13: Eric Hartzell, G
  • 2015–16: Sam Anas, F
  • 2020–21: Odeen Tufto, F

AHCA Second Team All-Americans

MAAC[]

Individual awards[]

All-Conference Teams[]

First Team All-MAAC

  • 1998–99: , G; , D; , D; , F
  • 1999–00: , D; , F; , F
  • 2000–01: , F
  • 2002–03: , D; , F

Second Team All-MAAC

  • 1998–99: , F
  • 2001–02: , F
  • 2002–03: , F

MAAC All-Rookie Team

  • 1998–99: , D; , F
  • 1999–00: , D; , F
  • 2000–01: , G
  • 2001–02: , G
  • 2002–03: , D; , F


Atlantic Hockey[]

Individual awards[]

All-Conference Teams[]

First Team All-Atlantic Hockey

Second Team All-Atlantic Hockey

Atlantic Hockey All-Rookie Team


ECAC Hockey[]

Individual awards[]

All-Conference[]

First Team All-ECAC Hockey

Second Team All-ECAC Hockey

Third Team All-ECAC Hockey

ECAC Hockey All-Rookie Team

  • 2005–06: Bryan Leitch, F
  • 2006–07: Brandon Wong, F
  • 2011–12: Matthew Peca, F
  • 2013–14: Sam Anas, F
  • 2014–15: , F
  • 2015–16: , D
  • 2017–18: Odeen Tufto, F
  • 2018–19: , D; , F
  • 2020–21: , F

Quinnipiac Bobcats Hall of Fame[]

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 parenthesis).[14]

  • (1990)
  • (2010)
  • (2010)
  • (1998)
  • (2003)
  • (1994)
  • (2000)
  • (2009)
  • Rand Pecknold (2012)
  • (1993)
  • (2012)
  • (1986)

Bobcats in the NHL[]

Source:[15]

= NHL All-Star Team = NHL All-Star[16] = NHL All-Star[16] and NHL All-Star Team
Player Position Team(s) Years Stanley Cups
Connor Clifton Defenseman BOS 2018–Present 0
Connor Jones Forward NYI 2016–2017 0
Matthew Peca Center TBL, MTL 2016–Present 0
Brogan Rafferty Defenseman VAN 2018–Present 0
Devon Toews Defenseman NYI 2018–Present 0
Bryce Van Brabant Left Wing CGY 2013–2014 0

  • Bryce Van Brabant

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ "Quinnipiac Bobcats, Union Dutchmen play 5-overtime hockey game, longest in NCAA history - ESPN". Sports.espn.go.com. 2010-03-13. Retrieved 2012-08-05.
  2. ^ "Statistics :: USCHO.com :: U.S. College Hockey Online". USCHO.com. Retrieved 2013-06-13.
  3. ^ Jump up to: 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. ^ Jump up to: 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. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Quinnipiac Bobcats men's Ice Hockey 2014-15 Media Guide". Quinnipiac Bobcats. Retrieved Aug 15, 2019.
  12. ^ "All-Time Individual Career Records". Quinnipiac Bobcats. Retrieved August 16, 2019.
  13. ^ "2020–21 Men's Ice Hockey Roster". Quinnipiac Athletics. Retrieved January 16, 2016.
  14. ^ "Hall of Fame". Quinnipiac Bobcats. Retrieved August 17, 2019.
  15. ^ "Alumni report for Quinnipiac University". Hockey DB. Retrieved August 17, 2019.
  16. ^ Jump up to: a b Players are identified as an All-Star if they were selected for the All-Star game at any time in their career.

External links[]

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