# 2023–24 Union Garnet Chargers men's ice hockey season

The 2023–24 Union Garnet Chargers men's ice hockey season was the 83rd season of play for the program, the 32nd at the Division I level and the 32nd in the ECAC Hockey conference. The Garnet Chargers represented Union College, played their home games at Achilles Center and were coached by Josh Hauge in his 2nd season.

## Season

Prior to the season, Union College announced that they had changed the moniker for their athletic teams from "Dutchmen / Dutchwomen" to "Garnet Chargers." Garnet has been the school's official color for 150 years, and the name "chargers" is a reference to "Schenectady’s legacy as a leader in electrical technologies."
Once the season began, Union found itself in a fortunate position as eight of its top nine scorers from '23 had returned. That solid foundation helped the team's offense flourish and average nearly a full goal more per game then they had the year before. The attack was led by defenseman John Prokop, who became the first blueliner in program history to lead the team in scoring twice. The bright sport on offense was the power play, which converted on 21.2% of the teams chances. However, while Union ended the season with the #3 offense in ECAC Hockey, they also had the second-worst defense. While the Chargers allowed less than 30 shots against per game, slightly below what they managed to generate, Kyle Chauvette's first year as the starting goaltender was not something to write home about. The sophomore was inconsistent throughout the season, alternating very poor stretches with solid goaltending.
The result of being pulled in opposite directions was that Union hovered around the even mark all season. Though the team was able to string wins together, every streak was countered by a lull and by season's end the team sat one game under .500. While the team had no chance for an NCAA tournament berth without a conference title, they at least began their postseason chase with a home stand. In one of their best games of the season, the Garnet Chargers rolled over Brown 6–0 and ended up with two short-handed goals in the game. In the quarterfinals, it was the team's power play that let them down. Union went 1 for 8 in the two games with Caden Villegas providing the only real offense in the series. The two losses ended Union's season and ensure the team a losing record for the fourth straight campaign.

## Departures

| Player | Position | Nationality | Cause |
| Trevor Adams | Forward | United States | Left program (retired) |
| Matt Allen | Forward | United States | Graduate transfer to (Stonehill) |
| Owen Farris | Forward | United States | Graduation (retired) |
| Michael Hodge | Forward | Canada | Transferred to (Holy Cross) |
| Greg Japchen | Defenseman | United States | Transferred to (Stonehill) |
| Connor Murphy | Goaltender | United States | Graduation (signed with Calgary Wranglers) |
| Nick Petruolo | Defenseman | United States | Transferred to (Holy Cross) |
| Merek Pipes | Goaltender | Canada | Graduation (retired) |
| Christian Sanda | Forward | United States | Graduation (retired) |
| Bram Scheerer | Forward | United States | Left program (retired) |
| Andrew Seaman | Defenseman | United States | Left program (retired) |
| Mason Snell | Defenseman | Canada | Graduation (retired) |
| Chris Théodore | Forward | Canada | Graduate transfer to (Vermont) |

## Recruiting

| Player | Position | Nationality | Age | Notes |
| Brandon Buhr | Forward | Canada | 21 | Burnaby, BC; transfer from Clarkson |
| D. J. Hart | Defenseman | United States | 21 | Stamford, CT |
| Jacob Jeannette | Forward | United States | 20 | Duluth, MN |
| Cole Kodsi | Forward | United States | 23 | Boca Raton, FL; transfer from Bentley |
| Joe Messina | Defenseman | Canada | 21 | Woodbridge, ON |
| Eli Pilosof | Forward | Canada | 21 | Toronto, ON |
| Joey Potter | Defenseman | United States | 20 | Los Angeles, CA |
| Aksel Reid | Goaltender | United States | 20 | Minneapolis, MN |

## Roster

As of August 2, 2023.

## Standings

2023–24 ECAC Hockey Standingsvte :
| | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Conference record | Overall record | Overall record | Overall record | Overall record | Overall record | Overall record |
| | GP | W | L | T | OTW | OTL | SW | PTS | GF | GA | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA |
| #6 Quinnipiac † | 22 | 17 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 54 | 99 | 39 | 39 | 27 | 10 | 2 | 160 | 79 |
| #9 Cornell * | 22 | 12 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 44 | 74 | 45 | 35 | 22 | 7 | 6 | 115 | 65 |
| Colgate | 22 | 13 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 43 | 85 | 68 | 36 | 16 | 16 | 4 | 120 | 112 |
| Dartmouth | 22 | 9 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 37 | 66 | 60 | 32 | 13 | 10 | 9 | 92 | 91 |
| Clarkson | 22 | 12 | 9 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 36 | 62 | 58 | 35 | 18 | 16 | 1 | 95 | 97 |
| Union | 22 | 9 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 32 | 75 | 75 | 37 | 16 | 18 | 3 | 123 | 121 |
| St. Lawrence | 22 | 8 | 10 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 29 | 49 | 64 | 39 | 14 | 19 | 6 | 90 | 118 |
| Harvard | 22 | 6 | 10 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 28 | 49 | 64 | 32 | 7 | 19 | 6 | 70 | 106 |
| Princeton | 22 | 8 | 11 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 25 | 70 | 90 | 30 | 10 | 16 | 4 | 89 | 114 |
| Yale | 22 | 7 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 25 | 46 | 57 | 30 | 10 | 18 | 2 | 63 | 91 |
| Brown | 22 | 6 | 14 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 22 | 43 | 69 | 30 | 8 | 19 | 3 | 61 | 98 |
| Rensselaer | 22 | 6 | 13 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 58 | 89 | 37 | 10 | 23 | 4 | 93 | 150 |
| Championship: March 23, 2024 † indicates conference regular season champion (Cleary Cup) * indicates conference tournament champion (Whitelaw Cup) Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll |||||||||||||||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date | Time | Opponent$^#$ | Site | TV | Decision | Result | Attendance | Record |
| Exhibition ||||||||||
| October 7 | 3:00 pm | at Rensselaer* | Houston Field House • Troy, New York (Exhibition) | ESPN+ | | T 2–2 $^{SOL}$ | | |
| Regular Season ||||||||||
| October 8 | 7:00 pm | at Army* | Tate Rink • West Point, New York | FloHockey | Chauvette | W 6–0 | 2,033 | 1–0–0 |
| October 13 | 9:00 pm | at Colorado College* | Ed Robson Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado | SOCO CW | Chauvette | L 3–7 | 3,607 | 1–1–0 |
| October 14 | 7:00 pm | at Colorado College* | Ed Robson Arena • Colorado Springs, Colorado | | Chauvette | L 2–6 | 3,611 | 1–2–0 |
| October 20 | 7:00 pm | Connecticut* | Achilles Rink • Schenectady, New York | ESPN+ | Chauvette | W 4–1 | 2,100 | 2–2–0 |
| October 21 | 4:00 pm | Connecticut* | Achilles Rink • Schenectady, New York | ESPN+ | Chauvette | L 0–5 | 1,821 | 2–3–0 |
| November 3 | 7:00 pm | Rensselaer | Achilles Rink • Schenectady, New York (Rivalry) | ESPN+ | Reid | L 6–8 | 1,979 | 2–4–0 (0–1–0) |
| November 4 | 7:00 pm | at Rensselaer | Houston Field House • Troy, New York (Rivalry) | ESPN+ | Chauvette | W 5–1 | 3,250 | 3–4–0 (1–1–0) |
| November 10 | 7:00 pm | at St. Lawrence | Appleton Arena • Canton, New York | ESPN+ | Chauvette | W 4–3 | 1,150 | 4–4–0 (2–1–0) |
| November 11 | 4:00 pm | at Clarkson | Cheel Arena • Potsdam, New York | ESPN+ | Chauvette | L 1–4 | 2,621 | 4–5–0 (2–2–0) |
| November 24 | 7:00 pm | Stonehill* | Achilles Rink • Schenectady, New York | ESPN+ | Chauvette | W 5–2 | 1,283 | 5–5–0 |
| November 25 | 7:00 pm | Stonehill* | Achilles Rink • Schenectady, New York | ESPN+ | Chauvette | W 4–0 | 1,115 | 6–5–0 |
| December 1 | 7:00 pm | Princeton | Achilles Rink • Schenectady, New York | ESPN+ | Chauvette | W 7–2 | 1,338 | 7–5–0 (3–2–0) |
| December 2 | 4:00 pm | #5 Quinnipiac | Achilles Rink • Schenectady, New York | ESPN+ | Chauvette | L 0–5 | 1,532 | 7–6–0 (3–3–0) |
| December 6 | 7:00 pm | #8 Maine* | Achilles Rink • Schenectady, New York | ESPN+ | Chauvette | L 1–3 | 1,192 | 7–7–0 |
| December 8 | 7:00 pm | at Vermont* | Gutterson Fieldhouse • Burlington, Vermont | ESPN+ | Sharib | W 5–4 | 2,061 | 8–7–0 |
| December 9 | 7:00 pm | at Vermont* | Gutterson Fieldhouse • Burlington, Vermont | ESPN+ | Sharib | L 1–4 | 2,122 | 8–8–0 |
| December 30 | 7:00 pm | at Bentley* | Bentley Arena • Waltham, Massachusetts | FloHockey | Chauvette | L 3–4 | 1,275 | 8–9–0 |
| January 5 | 7:00 pm | Brown | Achilles Rink • Schenectady, New York | ESPN+ | Chauvette | L 2–3 | 1,822 | 8–10–0 (3–4–0) |
| January 6 | 4:00 pm | Yale | Achilles Rink • Schenectady, New York | ESPN+ | Chauvette | L 2–4 | 1,904 | 8–11–0 (3–5–0) |
| January 12 | 7:00 pm | Clarkson | Achilles Rink • Schenectady, New York | ESPN+ | Chauvette | W 5–1 | 2,056 | 9–11–0 (4–5–0) |
| January 13 | 4:00 pm | St. Lawrence | Achilles Rink • Schenectady, New York | ESPN+ | Chauvette | T 2–2 $^{SOW}$ | 1,684 | 9–11–1 (4–5–1) |
| January 19 | 7:00 pm | at Dartmouth | Thompson Arena • Hanover, New Hampshire | ESPN+ | Chauvette | W 5–1 | 1,429 | 10–11–1 (5–5–1) |
| January 20 | 7:00 pm | at Harvard | Bright-Landry Hockey Center • Boston, Massachusetts | ESPN+ | Chauvette | W 5–4 | 3,095 | 11–11–1 (6–5–1) |
| January 27 | 6:00 pm | vs. Rensselaer* | MVP Arena • Albany, New York (Mayor's Cup) | | Chauvette | W 5–3 | 5,698 | 12–11–1 |
| February 2 | 7:00 pm | at Yale | Ingalls Rink • New Haven, Connecticut | ESPN+ | Chauvette | L 1–3 | 1,371 | 12–12–1 (6–6–1) |
| February 3 | 7:00 pm | at Brown | Meehan Auditorium • Providence, Rhode Island | ESPN+ | Chauvette | T 4–4 $^{SOW}$ | 330 | 12–12–2 (6–6–2) |
| February 9 | 7:00 pm | Colgate | Achilles Rink • Schenectady, New York | ESPN+ | Chauvette | W 5–3 | 1,992 | 13–12–2 (7–6–2) |
| February 10 | 7:00 pm | #13 Cornell | Achilles Rink • Schenectady, New York | ESPN+ | Chauvette | L 1–6 | 2,230 | 13–13–2 (7–7–2) |
| February 16 | 7:00 pm | at #9 Quinnipiac | M&T Bank Arena • Hamden, Connecticut | ESPN+ | Chauvette | L 2–6 | 3,076 | 13–14–2 (7–8–2) |
| February 17 | 7:00 pm | at Princeton | Hobey Baker Memorial Rink • Princeton, New Jersey | ESPN+ | Chauvette | T 2–2 $^{SOL}$ | 1,196 | 13–14–3 (7–8–3) |
| February 23 | 7:00 pm | Harvard | Achilles Rink • Schenectady, New York | ESPN+ | Chauvette | W 6–2 | 2,197 | 14–14–3 (8–8–3) |
| February 24 | 4:00 pm | Dartmouth | Achilles Rink • Schenectady, New York | ESPN+ | Chauvette | L 4–5 | 2,024 | 14–15–3 (8–9–3) |
| March 1 | 7:00 pm | at #13 Cornell | Lynah Rink • Ithaca, New York | ESPN+ | Chauvette | W 3–2 | 3,855 | 15–15–3 (9–9–3) |
| March 2 | 7:00 pm | at Colgate | Class of 1965 Arena • Hamilton, New York | ESPN+ | Chauvette | L 3–4 | 1,100 | 15–16–3 (9–10–3) |
| ECAC Hockey Tournament ||||||||||
| March 9 | 4:00 pm | Brown* | Achilles Rink • Schenectady, New York (First Round) | ESPN+ | Chauvette | W 6–0 | 2,035 | 16–16–3 |
| March 15 | 7:00 pm | at Dartmouth* | Thompson Arena • Hanover, New Hampshire (Quarterfinal Game 1) | ESPN+ | Chauvette | L 1–3 | 1,625 | 16–17–3 |
| March 16 | 7:00 pm | at Dartmouth* | Thompson Arena • Hanover, New Hampshire (Quarterfinal Game 2) | ESPN+ | Chauvette | L 2–4 | 2,007 | 16–18–3 |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Eastern Time. Source: ||||||||||

## Scoring statistics

| Name | Position | Games | Goals | Assists | Points | PIM |
| John Prokop | D | 36 | 8 | 27 | 35 | 43 |
| Caden Villegas | F | 37 | 12 | 18 | 30 | 4 |
| Josh Nixon | RW | 36 | 9 | 18 | 27 | 33 |
| Nate Hanley | C | 37 | 4 | 22 | 26 | 10 |
| Brandon Buhr | F | 35 | 11 | 13 | 24 | 4 |
| Ville Immonen | C | 36 | 8 | 16 | 24 | 18 |
| Liam Robertson | C | 34 | 10 | 13 | 23 | 20 |
| Chaz Smedsrud | LW | 37 | 14 | 8 | 22 | 6 |
| Ben Tupker | LW | 34 | 9 | 10 | 19 | 24 |
| Cullen Ferguson | D | 37 | 3 | 15 | 18 | 60 |
| Tyler Watkins | F | 36 | 8 | 8 | 16 | 4 |
| Carter Korpi | F | 35 | 10 | 3 | 13 | 36 |
| Colby MacArthur | RW | 29 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 4 |
| Nathan Kelly | D | 35 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 23 |
| Nick Young | D | 37 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 26 |
| Jacob Jeannette | RW | 33 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 37 |
| Cal Mell | D | 35 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 12 |
| Ethan Benz | F | 15 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 10 |
| D. J. Hart | D | 22 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 25 |
| Cole Kodsi | LW | 16 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 8 |
| Joseph Messina | D | 22 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 10 |
| Joey Potter | D | 21 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 |
| Thomas Richter | F | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Eli Pilosof | C | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Aksel Reid | G | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Josh Phillips | D | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Joe Sharib | G | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kyle Chauvette | G | 36 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | | | 123 | 215 | 338 | 433 |

## Goaltending statistics

| Name | Games | Minutes | Wins | Losses | Ties | Goals Against | Saves | Shut Outs | SV % | GAA |
| Joe Sharib | 4 | 135:27 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 60 | 0 | .923 | 2.21 |
| Aksel Reid | 1 | 21:39 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | .800 | 2.77 |
| Kyle Chauvette | 36 | 2044:28 | 15 | 16 | 3 | 104 | 865 | 3 | .893 | 3.05 |
| Empty Net | - | 39:08 | - | - | - | 11 | - | - | - | - |
| Total | 37 | 2240:42 | 16 | 18 | 3 | 121 | 929 | 3 | .885 | 3.24 |

## Rankings

| Poll | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 (Final) |
| USCHO.com | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | – | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | – | NR |
| USA Hockey | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | – | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR | NR |
Note: USCHO did not release a poll in weeks 11 and 25. Note: USA Hockey did not release a poll in week 12.

## Awards and honors

| Player | Award |
| John Prokop | AHCA East Second Team All-American |
| Ben Tupker | Wayne Dean Sportsmanship Award |
| John Prokop | ECAC Hockey First Team |
| Liam Robertson | ECAC Hockey Second Team |