Balanced team play, solid defense and a well-placed shot by junior forward Patrick Kennedy helped the men’s hockey team to a successful 2-1 victory over St. Lawrence (13-9-4, 7-4-2 ECAC) on Friday night.

“It's huge. It’s really big. It takes us one step closer to our goal. It’s the time of the year where wins are crucial. To get a win tonight at 2-1 –– it was a tough victory but a good victory and well deserved,” Kennedy said.

From the onset, the Lynah faithful quickly realized things were different on the ice. With junior forward Riley Nash out with an injury for the first time in his career, head coach Mike Schafer ’86 decided to alter the lineups to keep the action from becoming stale.

“[We decided to] break them up and see how much they miss each other or maybe … find some other combinations,” Schafer said.

Having dressed 11 forwards, the Red’s newest plan was to utilize seven defenders to allow for more flexibility while adding pressure to the Saints. In addition, this new strategy further enabled the Red to complete its latest mission –– displaying some of its best hockey for the remainder of the season. No need to get all riled up: With star forward Riley Nash out due to injury, Patrick Kennedy picked up the slack netting a game-winning third period goal.

Filled with scoring opportunities, the Red quickly netted its first goal a little after six minutes into the first period, when sophomore Sean Collins hit a slapshot from the left-circle before junior Joe Devin backhanded the rebound into the goal.

The Saints were quick to retaliate and tie the game after utilizing the one-man advantage when the Red was charged with too many men on the ice.

Throughout the second period, the Red continued to demonstrate its offensive spark and put pressure on St. Lawrence’s goaltender. However, the second period superstar was the Red’s goalie Ben Scrivens, who became Cornell’s all-time saves leader.

“I've been lucky that the teams I've played behind have been great in terms of blocking shots and penalty killing. It makes my job really easy,” Scrivens said.