It’s safe to say that men’s hockey has the firepower to achieve big things in Head Coach Casey Jones’ ‘90 second season at the helm.
Seven Red skaters from last year’s roster scored 20 or more points. This year, all but two have returned. In the goaltending department, standout freshman Alexis Cournoyer left for the University of Wisconsin, while Remington Keopple ’26 graduated. However, Maine transfer junior Mathis Rousseau has the potential to fill their skates.
The Red achieved success in its 2025-2026 season, including victories over No. 18 Princeton and No. 10 Dartmouth. However, the season ended on a sour note after disappointing results in the ECAC Semifinals and the NCAA Regional Semifinals.
If the Red wants to achieve all its desired feats this season, triumphing in tossup matches will likely be a good omen. The Sun has selected three games to keep an eye on.
Vs. Quinnipiac, Nov. 6
Any game between the Red and the Bobcats is likely to be a competitive affair with massive implications on ECAC standings. But this year’s first matchup between the two perennial contenders carries particular significance: it is the Red’s first conference game of the season.
The Red must sharpen its senses quickly. Only three games precede the Quinnipiac outing, one being an exhibition match. The opponent in the competitive series, Sacred Heart, while competitive in the Atlantic Hockey America conference, cannot compare to Quinnipiac’s usual firepower.
The Bobcats led the ECAC in the 2025-2026 season with 162 goals, 22 more than any other team.
Quinnipiac is not just effective as a team. Ethan Wyttenbach and Antonin Verrault, both freshmen last season, finished first and third in ECAC scoring. Wyttenbach himself scored the third goal in the Bobcats’ 4-1 win over the Red on Jan. 17, 2026. At the conclusion of last season, Wyttenbach added the Tim Taylor Award, or National Rookie of the Year honors, and will hope to enlarge his trophy case in his sophomore season.
Elliot Groenewold is Quinnipiac’s stalwart on defense and was named to the All-ECAC First Team at the conclusion of last season.
If Quinnipiac has a weakness, it’s in net. While Lake Superior State transfer Rourke Applebee was on the Richter Award watch list last year, he is the only experienced goaltender on the roster. The other two netminders have a combined nine minutes and 54 seconds of collegiate ice time.
Last season, Quinnipiac claimed the first matchup, but the Red bounced back emphatically, demolishing the Bobcats 6-1 in the return meeting.
Should the Red win on Nov. 6, it announces to the ECAC that Cornell is the team to be feared in the 2026-27 season.
Vs. Boston University, Dec. 4
For the first time since Dec. 1, 2002, the Boston University Terriers will take the ice at Lynah Rink.
Though it’s been a long time since the Terriers have come to Ithaca, they are by no means an unfamiliar opponent. The two schools have contested the Red Hot Hockey series since 2007 and have been title rivals since the 1960s.
B.U. has a history of enlisting future NHL superstars. Since the pandemic alone, former Terriers Macklin Celebrini, defenseman Lane Hutson and goaltender Jake Oettinger have emerged as All-Star caliber players at the NHL level. Last season, Celibrini finished fourth in NHL scoring.
Five Terrier freshmen, out of a class of six, were selected in the 2026 NHL Entry Draft. The most notable among them, Caleb Malhotra, was selected third overall by the Vancouver Canucks. Three others were selected in the second round and one was chosen in the fourth round.
It is safe to say that B.U. will not be lacking high-end talent this year.
Though B.U. usually has the edge in talent, wins have not entirely eluded the Red. It managed a 2-1 victory in 2023 and a back-and-forth 6-4 victory in 2021.
Despite some Red success, the Terriers have claimed the two most recent matchups. B.U. eliminated the Red in overtime during the 2025 NCAA Regional Final, ending the tenure of former head coach Mike Schafer ’86. In November 2025, the Terriers beat the Red 2-1 at the Garden.
Should the Red best B.U. on Dec. 4, it will have beaten arguably the most talented team in the country. Not every team gets to field the third overall pick in the most recent NHL draft, after all.
At Dartmouth, Feb. 19
The Dartmouth Big Green and the Red have been contesting the “Battle of the Bigs” long before the Ivy League was even a concept. The historical winner of this battle is often the Red, who has beaten the Big Green 89 times since 1909, compared to 53 defeats and nine ties.
Over the past two years, however, the Big Green has finished ahead of the Red at the end of the regular season, though by small margins.
Recent head-to-head contests have been competitive, chippy affairs. Of the past 13 outings, 11 of them have been decided by one goal or fewer. Dartmouth’s 6-1 demolition of the Red on Jan. 25, 2025, one of the few uncompetitive entries on the list, ended in a benches-clearing brawl.
Dartmouth takes the old adage that “the best offense is a great defense” to heart.
The Big Green conceded only 75 goals last season, the second-fewest in the league only behind the Red. The Big Green’s penalty kill was successful 88% of the time, the second-most efficient, only behind Union.
Returning goaltender Emmett Croteau was a crucial part of Dartmouth’s dogged defense, posting a .922 save percentage on the season. Moreover, Croteau was named ECAC Tournament MVP after conceding only 3 goals all tournament.
It is hard to lose if the other team can’t score.
In addition to its defensive wall, Dartmouth has immense offensive firepower in its own right. Returning junior Hayden Stavroff led the country with 29 goals last season and scored the second-most points in the conference with 48.
Stavroff menaced the Red in Dartmouth’s 2-1 victory on Nov. 8, 2025, scoring the first goal of the game and nearly adding another off a breakaway.
While Stavroff is only one man, the Red must limit his impact as much as possible if it wants to emerge victorious on Feb. 19. This game is a must-win for the Red — it hasn’t beaten Dartmouth in Hanover, New Hampshire since a 3-2 victory in January 2023.
Though having not performed well in Hanover, the Red have performed much better at Lynah. Last February, then junior forward Jake Kraft scored both goals in a 2-1 overtime triumph over the Big Green, bringing victory to the Red in the most recent installment of the series.
Should the Red emerge victorious, it will prove its sharpness to the conference only a week before the ECAC tournament commences.
