Photo credit: Scott Kinville/315 Hockey.
All of the college hockey programs in Central New York are on their end-of-semester break. While they take a well-deserved rest, 315 Hockey takes a look at each program’s season to this point. This is our look at the Colgate Raiders Men’s Hockey Team’s season so far.
By Scott Kinville/315 Hockey.
The Colgate Raiders Men’s Hockey Team (8-9-1 overall, 6-2-0 ECAC) has had an up-and-down first half of their 2022-23 season. This often happens with young teams which is what the Raiders are – they have only six seniors and thirteen combined freshmen and sophomores. Through this, the underclassmen are getting valuable experience and the team appears to be trending in the right direction.
Head coach Don Vaughn, now in his thirtieth season behind the Raiders bench, saw his team lose four of their first five games this season. They then picked up their first big win of the season over the now sixth-ranked Merrimack Warriors in North Andover, Massachusetts by a score of 5-3. Two weeks later, they nearly upset the now second-ranked Quinnipiac Bobcats in Hamden, Connecticut. The Raiders led that game 2-0 in the second period before eventually losing 3-2 after a spirited comeback by the Bobcats.
The Raiders started the season 3-7-1, but have proven to be a resilient group. After a 4-0 loss at the hands of the Clarkson Golden Knights on November 11th, coach Vaughn’s group has really turned it around – winning five of their last seven games heading into the break. They closed the first half of their season in style, defeating the ninth-ranked Harvard Crimson 6-4 in the Teddy Bear Toss game at the Class of 1965 Arena on December 3rd.
Another bright spot for the Raiders so far this season is their play within the ECAC. There, they have a record of 6-2-0 which is good for sixteen points and third place in the conference. They are within three points of the Harvard Crimson for second place – the team they just took down before the break. This strong first half within the conference has put Colgate in a great position to potentially receive a first-round bye or at least host a first-round playoff game in the ECAC postseason tournament.
Team Statistics
- Goals For: 50
- Goals Per game: 2.8
- Shots: 557
- Shots Per Game: 30.9
- Goals Allowed: 45
- Goals Allowed Per Game: 2.5 – Colgate is 20th in Division I in goals allowed per game.
- Shots Allowed: 539
- Shots Allowed Per Game: 29.9
- Power Play: 21.1% (16 for 76)
- Penalty Kill: 84.1% (58 for 69) – Colgate is 16th in Division I on the penalty kill.
Individual Leaders
- Goals: Alex Young and Matt Verboon with 9 each.
- Assists: Ross Mitton with 12.
- Points: Alex Young with 18.
- Shots: Colton Young with 75.
- Game-Winning Goals: Colton Young and Ryan McGuire with 2 each.
- Power Play Goals: Alex Young with 6. Young is 4th in Division I in power-play goals.
- +/-: Alex DiPaolo at +8.
Goaltending
- Carter Gylander has a record of 8-8-1 with a GAA of 2.41, a 0.921 save percentage, and one shutout. Gylander is 16th in Division I in wins and 19th in save percentage.
- Andrew Takacs has a record of 0-1-0 with a GAA of 2.67, and a 0.864 save percentage.
Milestones In Sight
Head coach Don Vaughn is 34th wins all-time in NCAA Men’s Hockey history with 461. He is two wins behind Murray Armstrong for 33rd on the list.
The Schedule Ahead
The Raiders will play a total of sixteen games in the second half of the regular season. They return to action on December 30th for a two-game series at home against the Maine Black Bears of the Hockey East conference. After those two games, the rest of the schedule is against ECAC opponents, with two games against teams that are currently ranked in the USCHO top twenty. On January 21st, they will host number two Quinnipiac, then on January 27th, they will travel to Cambridge, Massachusetts for a rematch with the ninth-ranked Harvard Crimson. The ECAC postseason tournament begins on March 4th.
For more information about Colgate Raiders hockey, visit https://colgateathletics.com.
