Sophomore goaltender Jason Elliott, center, is surrounded by happy teammates after Cornell's 2-1 defeat of Harvard in the ECAC hockey championship game March 16 in Lake Placid. Elliott was named the tournament's most valuable player. Associated Press
By Dave Wohlhueter
The Cornell men's hockey team will be making its 11th appearance in the NCAA Division I Hockey Championship when it travels to the Eastern Regionals Friday at the Knickerbocker Arena in Albany.
The Big Red brings a five-game winning streak into the tournament, capped off by its winning the ECAC championship for a record eighth time this past weekend, defeating Harvard 2-1 in the finals Saturday in Lake Placid.
In the first game of the NCAA Eastern Regionals at 5 p.m. on Friday in Albany, Cornell (seeded No. 6 with a 21-8-4 record) will face Lake Superior State (seeded No. 3 at 29-7-2). The winner will play Vermont (No. 2, at 25-6-4) at 5 p.m. Saturday, with the victor going on to the Final Four in Cincinnati on March 28.
In the other Eastern Regional matchup, Clarkson (No. 5, 23-9-3) faces Western Michigan (No. 4, 25-10-3) at 8:30 p.m. Friday, with the winner playing defending national champion Boston University (No. 1, 29-6-3) at 8:30 Saturday night.
To make to the ECAC finals, the Big Red, which finished in fourth place in the ECAC regular season, defeated Clarkson 3-0 in Lake Placid Friday. Sophomore goaltender Jason Elliott recorded his second shutout of the season in that game, making 27 saves.
On Saturday, Cornell defeated rival Harvard in the first Ancient Eight ECAC final since the Big Red faced Dartmouth in 1980. Harvard, which earned a spot in the final by beating regular season champion Vermont 4-3, took a 1-0 lead over Cornell just 36 seconds into the game, but Elliott (25 saves) shut out the Crimson the rest of the way.
Junior left wing Matt Cooney tied the contest at 10:05 of the first period, and senior center Mike Sancimino scored his second goal in two nights for the game-winner at 2:06 of the middle stanza.
Elliott, who allowed just five goals in four tournament games, was named the ECAC tournament's most valuable player and was voted to the all-tournament team. Junior defenseman Steve Wilson and Sancimino joined Elliott on the all-tournament team.
Cornell last played in the NCAAs in 1991. The Big Red was the national champion in 1967 and 1970. The 1970 team was 29-0 and the only team to go unbeaten through an entire season. Cornell was also the runner-up in 1969.
First-year head coach Mike Schafer, who had been an assistant at Western Michigan for five years before returning to his alma mater this past summer, looks forward to the NCAA regionals.
"We're excited about playing in Albany," Schafer said. "Our team has achieved so many of its goals this season, and we keep on making new ones each week. I'm very familiar with Lake Superior State, and it's an excellent hockey team. I'm looking for an outstanding hockey game on Friday night."