# 2022–23 RPI Engineers men's ice hockey season

The 2022–23 RPI Engineers Men's ice hockey season was the 103rd season of play for the program and the 61st in the ECAC Hockey conference. The Engineers represented Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, played their home games at Houston Field House and were coached by Dave Smith, in his 5th season.

## Season

Entering the season, Rensselaer had to contend with the loss of each of their top 6 goal-scorers from last season. Early on, at least, the Engineers didn't appear to miss those players as RPI began the season 4–0. Unfortunately, as soon as the team left the friendly confines of the Houston Field House, the Engineers began to lose. Rensselaer lost its first 9 away game on the year and tumbled down the national rankings. During that stretch a slight lack of offense was apparent for the team and the Engineers scored 30 fewer goals than they had the year before, albeit in 9 fewer games. The bigger problem for the team was the decline in performance in goal. While the defense allowed an average of less the 30 shots against per game, the team saw its goals against average increase by more than half a goal. Jack Watson's less-than-stellar performance in the leading role saw the team regress and finish well below .500.
RPI ended the season in a tie for 7th in the conference standings but were able to receive a home site for the first round. They played host to one of the worst offenses in the nation, Yale, and had a good chance to at least make the quarterfinals. Unfortunately, the troubles with the offense and goaltending were on full display and the Engineers were knocked out with a 1–4 defeat.

## Departures

| Player | Position | Nationality | Cause |
| Justin Addamo | Forward | France | Graduation (signed with Wheeling Nailers) |
| Anthony Baxter | Defenseman | Canada | Graduation (retired) |
| Nick Bowman | Forward | United States | Graduate transfer to Canisius |
| Zach Dubinsky | Forward | United States | Transferred to Michigan State |
| Jake Johnson | Defenseman | United States | Graduate transfer to Quinnipiac |
| Simon Kjellberg | Defenseman | Sweden | Transferred to Northern Michigan |
| Jakub Lacka | Forward | Slovakia | Graduation (signed with HK Nitra) |
| Ottoville Leppänen | Forward | Finland | Graduate transfer to Merrimack |
| Ture Linden | Forward | United States | Graduate transfer to Penn State |
| Linden Marshall | Goaltender | Canada | Graduation (signed with Greenville Swamp Rabbits) |
| Shane Sellar | Forward | United States | Graduation (signed with Reading Royals) |

## Recruiting

| Player | Position | Nationality | Age | Notes |
| Nicolas Ardanaz | Defenseman | Canada | 20 | Surrey, BC |
| Finn Brown | Forward | Canada | 20 | North York, ON |
| Brendan Budy | Forward | Canada | 22 | Langley, BC; transfer from North Dakota |
| Carson Cherepak | Goaltender | Canada | 19 | Winnipeg, MB |
| Danny Ciccarello | Forward | Canada | 21 | Kirkland, QC |
| John Evans | Forward | Canada | 20 | South Surrey, BC |
| Austin Heidemann | Forward | United States | 23 | Maple Grove, MN; transfer from Mercyhurst |
| Sutter Muzzatti | Forward | United States | 19 | Okemos, MI |
| Max Smolinski | Defenseman | United States | 19 | Bloomfield Hills, MI |
| Nick Strom | Defenseman | United States | 22 | Dayton, MN; transfer from Western Michigan |

## Roster

As of December 24, 2022.

## Standings

2022–23 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 |
| #1 Quinnipiac † | 22 | 20 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 60 | 87 | 30 | 41 | 34 | 4 | 3 | 162 | 64 |
| #10 Harvard | 22 | 18 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 49 | 86 | 48 | 34 | 24 | 8 | 2 | 125 | 81 |
| #9 Cornell | 22 | 15 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 47 | 78 | 42 | 34 | 21 | 11 | 2 | 112 | 66 |
| St. Lawrence | 22 | 12 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 37 | 56 | 58 | 36 | 17 | 19 | 0 | 88 | 102 |
| #18 Colgate * | 22 | 11 | 8 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 36 | 71 | 58 | 40 | 19 | 16 | 5 | 113 | 109 |
| Clarkson | 22 | 9 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 31 | 60 | 60 | 37 | 16 | 17 | 4 | 102 | 98 |
| Rensselaer | 22 | 9 | 13 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 26 | 52 | 74 | 35 | 14 | 20 | 1 | 84 | 115 |
| Union | 22 | 8 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 26 | 45 | 68 | 35 | 14 | 19 | 2 | 86 | 117 |
| Princeton | 22 | 8 | 14 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 26 | 57 | 73 | 32 | 13 | 19 | 0 | 89 | 112 |
| Yale | 22 | 6 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 22 | 35 | 62 | 32 | 8 | 20 | 4 | 57 | 94 |
| Brown | 22 | 5 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 20 | 41 | 69 | 30 | 9 | 18 | 3 | 65 | 91 |
| Dartmouth | 22 | 4 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 16 | 44 | 70 | 30 | 5 | 24 | 1 | 64 | 106 |
| Championship: March 18, 2023 † 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 2 | 3:00 PM | Toronto* | Houston Field House • Troy, New York (Exhibition) | ESPN+ | Cherepak | L 1–2 | 1,087 | |
| Regular Season ||||||||||
| October 7 | 7:00 PM | Mercyhurst* | Houston Field House • Troy, New York | ESPN+ | Watson | W 6–3 | 1,278 | 1–0–0 |
| October 8 | 7:00 PM | Mercyhurst* | Houston Field House • Troy, New York | ESPN+ | Watson | W 3–2 | 1,732 | 2–0–0 |
| October 14 | 7:00 PM | Long Island* | Houston Field House • Troy, New York | ESPN+ | Watson | W 1–0 | 1,549 | 3–0–0 |
| October 15 | 7:00 PM | Army* | Houston Field House • Troy, New York | ESPN+ | Watson | W 7–4 | 2,085 | 4–0–0 |
| October 18 | 7:00 PM | at Canisius* | LECOM Harborcenter • Buffalo, New York | FloHockey | Watson | L 2–3 | 647 | 4–1–0 |
| October 21 | 7:00 PM | USNTDP* | Houston Field House • Troy, New York (Exhibition) | ESPN+ | Miller | L 4–7 | 0 | |
| October 28 | 7:00 PM | Union | Houston Field House • Troy, New York (Rivalry) | ESPN+ | Watson | W 2–1 | 4,700 | 5–1–0 (1–0–0) |
| October 29 | 7:00 PM | at Union | Achilles Rink • Schenectady, New York (Rivalry) | ESPN+ | Watson | L 0–6 | 2,115 | 5–2–0 (1–1–0) |
| November 4 | 7:00 PM | at St. Lawrence | Appleton Arena • Canton, New York | ESPN+ | Watson | L 2–3 | 1,732 | 5–3–0 (1–2–0) |
| November 5 | 7:00 PM | at Clarkson | Cheel Arena • Potsdam, New York (Rivalry) | ESPN+ | Watson | L 0–3 | 2,659 | 5–4–0 (1–3–0) |
| November 11 | 7:00 PM | at #13 Harvard | Houston Field House • Troy, New York | ESPN+ | Watson | L 2–3 | 2,425 | 5–5–0 (1–4–0) |
| November 12 | 7:00 PM | at Dartmouth | Houston Field House • Troy, New York | ESPN+ | Watson | W 2–1 | 1,810 | 6–5–0 (2–4–0) |
| November 18 | 7:00 PM | Alaska* | Houston Field House • Troy, New York | ESPN+ | Watson | L 1–3 | 1,965 | 6–6–0 |
| November 19 | 7:00 PM | Alaska* | Houston Field House • Troy, New York | ESPN+ | Watson | T 3–3 | 1,711 | 6–6–1 |
| November 25 | 7:00 PM | at Vermont* | Gutterson Fieldhouse • Burlington, Vermont | ESPN+ | Watson | L 3–4 $^{OT}$ | 2,316 | 6–7–1 |
| November 27 | 4:00 PM | Vermont* | Houston Field House • Troy, New York | ESPN+ | Watson | W 2–1 | 1,861 | 7–7–1 |
| December 9 | 7:00 PM | at #2 Quinnipiac | M&T Bank Arena • Hamden, Connecticut | ESPN+ | Cherepak | L 3–8 | 2,921 | 7–8–1 (2–5–0) |
| December 10 | 7:00 PM | at Princeton | Hobey Baker Memorial Rink • Princeton, New Jersey | ESPN+ | Watson | L 5–6 | 1,575 | 7–9–1 (2–6–0) |
| December 29 | 7:00 PM | at Bowling Green* | Slater Family Ice Arena • Bowling Green, Ohio | FloHockey | Cherepak | L 1–3 | 1,678 | 7–10–1 |
| December 30 | 7:00 PM | at Bowling Green* | Slater Family Ice Arena • Bowling Green, Ohio | FloHockey | Watson | L 2–5 | 1,989 | 7–11–1 |
| January 6 | 7:00 PM | Colgate | Houston Field House • Troy, New York | ESPN+ | Watson | W 5–3 | 1,847 | 8–11–1 (3–6–0) |
| January 7 | 7:00 PM | #18 Cornell | Houston Field House • Troy, New York | ESPN+ | Watson | L 4–6 | 2,724 | 8–12–1 (3–7–0) |
| January 13 | 7:00 PM | at Yale | Ingalls Rink • New Haven, Connecticut | ESPN+ | Watson | L 1–4 | 1,400 | 8–13–1 (3–8–0) |
| January 14 | 7:00 PM | at Brown | Meehan Auditorium • Providence, Rhode Island | ESPN+ | Cherepak | L 0–3 | 798 | 8–14–1 (3–9–0) |
| January 20 | 7:00 PM | Clarkson | Houston Field House • Troy, New York (Rivalry) | ESPN+ | Watson | W 3–2 | 2,723 | 9–14–1 (4–9–0) |
| January 21 | 7:00 PM | St. Lawrence | Houston Field House • Troy, New York | ESPN+ | Miller | W 4–3 | 1,989 | 10–14–1 (5–9–0) |
| January 28 | 6:00 PM | vs. Union* | MVP Arena • Albany, New York (Mayor's Cup) | | Watson | L 0–6 | 5,883 | 10–15–1 |
| February 3 | 7:00 PM | at #11 Cornell | Lynah Rink • Ithaca, New York | ESPN+ | Miller | L 1–3 | 3,723 | 10–16–1 (5–10–0) |
| February 4 | 7:00 PM | at Colgate | Class of 1965 Arena • Hamilton, New York | ESPN+ | Watson | W 2–1 | 959 | 11–16–1 (6–10–0) |
| February 10 | 7:00 PM | Brown | Houston Field House • Troy, New York | ESPN+ | Watson | L 2–3 | 2,325 | 11–17–1 (6–11–0) |
| February 11 | 7:00 PM | Yale | Houston Field House • Troy, New York | ESPN+ | Watson | W 4–2 | 4,117 | 12–17–1 (7–11–0) |
| February 17 | 7:00 PM | at Dartmouth | Thompson Arena • Hanover, New Hampshire | ESPN+ | Watson | W 3–1 | 1,267 | 13–17–1 (8–11–0) |
| February 18 | 7:00 PM | at #9 Harvard | Bright-Landry Hockey Center • Boston, Massachusetts | ESPN+ | Watson | L 0–4 | 3,095 | 13–18–1 (8–12–0) |
| February 24 | 7:00 PM | Princeton | Houston Field House • Troy, New York | ESPN+ | Watson | W 6–4 | 2,155 | 14–18–1 (9–12–0) |
| February 25 | 7:00 PM | #2 Quinnipiac | Houston Field House • Troy, New York | ESPN+ | Cherepak | L 1–4 | 2,225 | 14–19–1 (9–13–0) |
| ECAC Hockey Tournament ||||||||||
| March 4 | 7:00 PM | Yale* | Houston Field House • Troy, New York (First Round) | ESPN+ | Watson | L 1–4 | 1,556 | 14–20–1 |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Eastern Time. Source: ||||||||||

## Scoring statistics

| Name | Position | Games | Goals | Assists | Points | PIM |
| Ryan Mahshie | F | 31 | 15 | 7 | 22 | 6 |
| Jakob Lee | C | 28 | 10 | 12 | 22 | 61 |
| Sutter Muzzatti | F | 35 | 7 | 15 | 22 | 42 |
| Austin Heidemann | F | 34 | 10 | 10 | 20 | 6 |
| T. J. Walsh | LW | 35 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 4 |
| Jake Gagnon | RW | 31 | 6 | 10 | 16 | 4 |
| Lauri Sertti | D | 35 | 4 | 11 | 15 | 31 |
| Max Smolinski | D | 35 | 3 | 11 | 14 | 16 |
| Kyle Hallbauer | D | 35 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 14 |
| Jack Agnew | D | 32 | 2 | 10 | 12 | 24 |
| John Evans | F | 29 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 6 |
| John Beaton | C | 31 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 4 |
| Mason Klee | D | 31 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 39 |
| Jack Brackett | F | 23 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 2 |
| Nick Strom | D | 35 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 6 |
| Brendan Budy | LW | 30 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 6 |
| Altti Nykänen | F | 20 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 17 |
| Nick Ardanaz | D | 20 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 8 |
| James McIsaac | C/RW | 16 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 23 |
| Danny Ciccarello | F | 24 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 8 |
| Henri Schreifels | F | 21 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| Rory Herrman | F | 16 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| Dylan Davies | D/F | 21 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 23 |
| Reid Leibold | F | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brett Miller | G | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Carson Cherepak | G | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Finn Brown | F | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jack Watson | G | 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | | | 84 | 143 | 227 | 383 |

## Goaltending statistics

| Name | Games | Minutes | Wins | Losses | Ties | Goals Against | Saves | Shut Outs | SV % | GAA |
| Jack Watson | 30 | 1695:02 | 13 | 15 | 1 | 87 | 740 | 1 | .895 | 3.08 |
| Carson Cherepak | 7 | 250:37 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 13 | 112 | 0 | .896 | 3.11 |
| Brett Miller | 6 | 149:06 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 50 | 0 | .847 | 3.62 |
| Empty Net | - | 19:56 | - | - | - | 6 | - | - | - | - |
| Total | 35 | 2114:41 | 14 | 20 | 1 | 115 | 902 | 1 | .887 | 3.26 |

## 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 | 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 | 27 (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 Today | 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 | NR | NR |
Note: USCHO did not release a poll in weeks 1, 13, or 26.

## Awards and honors

| Player | Award | Ref |
| Sutter Muzzatti | ECAC Hockey Rookie Team | |

## Players drafted into the NHL
### 2023 NHL Entry Draft

| Round | Pick | Player | NHL team |
| 5 | 143 | Sutter Muzzatti | Nashville Predators |
† incoming freshman