The Cornell hockey class of 2009 graduated without an Ivy League title, ECAC Hockey regular season title, or ECAC Hockey tournament championship during its four years on the hill. The last time this happened? 2001.

These Cornell teams did not suffer from lack of opportunity. Between 2006 and 2009, Cornell reached the ECAC Hockey final weekend three times and the NCAA tournament twice, but returned home without any ECAC championships or Frozen Four appearances.

Talented players like Matt Moulson ’06 (now with the New York Islanders), Byron Bitz ’07 (Boston Bruins), Topher Scott ’08, senior Colin Greening and junior Riley Nash skated at Lynah during these four years, but in each season, Cornell came out empty-handed in the hardware department.

Yet, Cornell’s hockey team has improved in each of our first three years on campus. The 2006-07 team, swept by Quinnipiac in the ECAC Hockey quarterfinals, gave way to the 2007-08 team, which reached the ECAC Hockey semifinals in Albany. Last season, Cornell was one period of hockey away from reaching the Frozen Four.

In each season, defensive improvements resulted in fewer goals-against per game. This is partially a result of senior goalie Ben Scrivens, a Hobey Baker Award contender after his strong first half of the season last year, and the addition of puck-moving defensemen. Up front, forwards Greening and Nash have led the team in goals for two consecutive seasons.

These teams have been hurt, however, by unbalanced scoring. For example, last season Greening, Nash, Evan Barlow ’09 and Michael Kennedy ’09 combined to score 55 percent of the team’s goals. In fact, only 12 of 23 players scored more than once last year.

Reflecting on Cornell’s season-ending loss to Bemidji State in the NCAA tournament, head coach Mike Schafer ’86 remarked that “it was comical that we had so many guys playing in the Elite 8 game who hadn’t scored [all season].”

The team became too reliant on its top players; when opposing teams contained Nash and Greening, the rest of the offense often appeared helpless.

The team has stated that its goals are to win the league and advance to the Frozen Four. To do this, the Big Red will need more offensive production from regular players like sophomore Locke Jillson, senior Joe Scali and senior Justin Krueger. Each appeared in at least 30 games last season but combined for just two goals.

The transition from a “grind-it-out” style to a more offensive-centric formula will signal a shift in of coaching tactics from Schafer. Throughout Schafer’s tenure at Cornell, the program built a reputation for superior goaltending, defensive-minded forwards and oversized defensemen who controlled the neutral zone and shut down top-line scorers.

The approach to winning games included systematically wearing down the opponent through relentless cycling, capitalizing on the best opportunities, and playing a trap game in the third period.

With stronger league competition and national contenders like North Dakota and Boston University on the schedule this year, Schafer understands that to win, the team must run four lines that consistently threaten to score. Without a checking line, the team may sacrifice the best counter-punch to top scorers, but it gains a level of offense perhaps unseen in Schafer’s 15 years on East Hill. A hybrid approach, balancing the need for strong defense with the need to score more goals, makes Cornell a legitimate threat to make a deep run this year.

Those who attended the annual Red/White scrimmage last weekend quickly realized that complementing a strong returning roster will be a highly touted freshman class with immense skill. It was difficult not to notice the size of 6-4 Braden Birch and 6-2 Nick D’Agostino ’13, as both rookie defensemen effortlessly led breakout plays through the neutral zone. Many have criticized previous teams for both timidity in breaking out of our zone and an inability to make tape-to-tape passes through the neutral zone. These puck moving defensemen provide great opportunity to overcome past blunders.

Furthermore, freshman forwards John Esposito, Chris Moulson and Greg Miller all have noses for finding the net that will ease the transition into four scoring lines. In the scrimmage, each player found open patches of ice and capitalized on key scoring opportunities. Cornell will succeed this season if the team generates secondary scoring beyond Greening and Nash.

This year’s team is loaded with talent and experience, and the freshmen seem poised to contribute immediately. The Red also has the luxury of a strong schedule that will better prepare the team for postseason play and provide a cushion in the PWR rankings, which determine NCAA tournament seedings. For now, the team’s great expectations seem attainable. It’s time to break the title drought.