# 1947–48 St. Lawrence Saints men's ice hockey season

The 1947–48 St. Lawrence Saints men's ice hockey season was the 11th season of play for the program but 1st under NCAA oversight. The Saints represented St. Lawrence University and were coached by Paul Patten in his 1st season.

## Season

While the program made its return following World War II the year before, the school took the club seriously by bringing in Paul Patten to take over as coach from team captain Jack Klemens. This was necessary not only to help the club to move forward but also because Klemens was absent early in the year. The defensive stalwart was attending the training camp of the United States men's national ice hockey team in the hope of appearing at the upcoming Winter Olympics. While Klemens was away, another defensive player came to the fore when Gene DelVeccio, the team goaltender made a name for himself in the exhibition season.
After returning from the winter break, with Klemens back in a Saints uniform, the Larries opened against Westchester of the Amateur Hockey League and posted a solid victory. The next game was a prestige match against Princeton and the relatively inexperienced Saints managed to overcome one of the top teams in the nation. As if to demonstrate that the outcome wasn't a fluke, St. Lawrence then trounced Paul Smith's College 15–0, though it was only the second year of existence for the opposing college.
St. Lawrence fell from the ranks of the unbeaten in the next game but the team had put itself in a hole early by getting down 0–3 to Colgate early. They followed a similar pattern versus Clarkson and lost by an identical score. Needing to arrest their slide, the Saints got the jump on Williams at the end of the month shot into the lead. They never relinquished their advantage and managed to build a 5–1 edge in the third before two late goals made the score closer than the game was. The Larries followed that game with a tight defensive battle against Army with Klemens spotting the team a lead early in the first. Unfortunately, the Saints were unable to add to their lead and, despite DelVeccio's efforts, could not keep the Cadets from tying the game late. An interference call in overtime gave Army a penalty shot and they were able to capitalize and send St. Lawrence packing.
The ire at how that game ended boiled over into the next match which saw SLU hammer Union 17–0. Tom Gerard paced the team with 5 goals and 4 assists, tying two programs records that still stand as of 2023. The Larries continued their high-scoring pace in a tie with Cornwall and then avenged their earlier loss to Clarkson, hanging a 7–5 win over the Knights after being down 2–5 with just 15 minutes left in the match. Unfortunately, there was a bit of melancholy amidst the wins. Because Jack Klemens graduated after the fall session, he was no longer on the team and the Saints would have to soldier on without their top defender.
Doing his best to take over the leadership role, Gerard had another outstanding game against the Clinton Hockey Club. In what was a wild affair, both he and Ed Garbers scored 4 goals apiece while Gerard added 3 assists. The team's hot streak ended with a loss to Cornwall when they surrendered 4 goals in the final frame. After a rematch with Colgate was cancelled on an account of warm weather, S. Lawrence finished out their season with a win over Hamilton as the team got contributions from up and down the lineup.
The team was able to post the first winning season in program history despite not having a home rink. The Saints were forced to play on the road for most of the year and, aside from the temporary skating rink used during the Winter Carnival, they had to play any 'home' games at the Clarkson Arena.
Hal Schulley served as team manager.

## Standings

1947–48 NCAA Independent ice hockey standingsvte :
| | Intercollegiate | Intercollegiate | Intercollegiate | Intercollegiate | Intercollegiate | Intercollegiate | Intercollegiate | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall |
| | GP | W | L | T | Pct. | GF | GA | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA |
| Army | 16 | 11 | 4 | 1 | .719 | 78 | 39 | 16 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 78 | 39 |
| Bemidji State | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | .000 | 13 | 36 | 10 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 37 | 63 |
| Boston College | 19 | 14 | 5 | 0 | .737 | 126 | 60 | 19 | 14 | 5 | 0 | 126 | 60 |
| Boston University | 24 | 20 | 4 | 0 | .833 | 179 | 86 | 24 | 20 | 4 | 0 | 179 | 86 |
| Bowdoin | 9 | 4 | 5 | 0 | .444 | 45 | 68 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 56 | 73 |
| Brown | 14 | 5 | 9 | 0 | .357 | 61 | 91 | 14 | 5 | 9 | 0 | 61 | 91 |
| California | 10 | 2 | 8 | 0 | .200 | 45 | 62 | 17 | 5 | 12 | 0 | 87 | 89 |
| Clarkson | 12 | 5 | 6 | 1 | .458 | 67 | 39 | 17 | 10 | 6 | 1 | 96 | 54 |
| Colby | 8 | 2 | 6 | 0 | .250 | 28 | 41 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 28 | 41 |
| Colgate | 10 | 7 | 3 | 0 | .700 | 54 | 34 | 13 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 83 | 45 |
| Colorado College | 14 | 9 | 5 | 0 | .643 | 84 | 73 | 27 | 19 | 8 | 0 | 207 | 120 |
| Cornell | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | .000 | 3 | 43 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 43 |
| Dartmouth | 23 | 21 | 2 | 0 | .913 | 156 | 76 | 24 | 21 | 3 | 0 | 156 | 81 |
| Fort Devens State | 13 | 3 | 10 | 0 | .231 | 33 | 74 | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Georgetown | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | .667 | 12 | 11 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 37 | 21 |
| Hamilton | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 14 | 7 | 7 | 0 | – | – |
| Harvard | 22 | 9 | 13 | 0 | .409 | 131 | 131 | 23 | 9 | 14 | 0 | 135 | 140 |
| Lehigh | 8 | 0 | 8 | 0 | .000 | 8 | 95 | 10 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 12 | 108 |
| Massachusetts | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | .000 | 1 | 23 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 30 |
| Michigan | 18 | 16 | 2 | 0 | .889 | 105 | 53 | 23 | 20 | 2 | 1 | 141 | 63 |
| Michigan Tech | 19 | 7 | 12 | 0 | .368 | 87 | 96 | 20 | 8 | 12 | 0 | 91 | 97 |
| Middlebury | 14 | 8 | 5 | 1 | .607 | 111 | 68 | 16 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 127 | 74 |
| Minnesota | 16 | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 78 | 73 | 21 | 9 | 12 | 0 | 100 | 105 |
| Minnesota–Duluth | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | .500 | 21 | 24 | 9 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 36 | 28 |
| MIT | 19 | 8 | 11 | 0 | .421 | 93 | 114 | 19 | 8 | 11 | 0 | 93 | 114 |
| New Hampshire | 13 | 4 | 9 | 0 | .308 | 58 | 67 | 13 | 4 | 9 | 0 | 58 | 67 |
| North Dakota | 10 | 6 | 4 | 0 | .600 | 51 | 46 | 16 | 11 | 5 | 0 | 103 | 68 |
| North Dakota Agricultural | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | .600 | 27 | 28 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 37 | 29 |
| Northeastern | 19 | 10 | 9 | 0 | .526 | 135 | 119 | 19 | 10 | 9 | 0 | 135 | 119 |
| Norwich | 9 | 3 | 6 | 0 | .333 | 38 | 58 | 13 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 56 | 70 |
| Princeton | 18 | 8 | 10 | 0 | .444 | 65 | 72 | 21 | 10 | 11 | 0 | 79 | 79 |
| St. Cloud State | 12 | 10 | 2 | 0 | .833 | 55 | 35 | 16 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 73 | 55 |
| St. Lawrence | 9 | 6 | 3 | 0 | .667 | 65 | 27 | 13 | 8 | 4 | 1 | 95 | 50 |
| Suffolk | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Tufts | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | .750 | 17 | 15 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 17 | 15 |
| Union | 9 | 1 | 8 | 0 | .111 | 7 | 86 | 9 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 7 | 86 |
| Williams | 11 | 3 | 6 | 2 | .364 | 37 | 47 | 13 | 4 | 7 | 2 | – | – |
| Yale | 16 | 5 | 10 | 1 | .344 | 60 | 69 | 20 | 8 | 11 | 1 | 89 | 85 |

## Schedule and results

| Date | Opponent | Site | Result | Record |
| Exhibition |||||
| December 6 | at Cornwall Calumets* | Cornwall, Ontario (Exhibition) | L 2–4 | |
| December 13 | at Canadian Army* | Cornwall, Ontario (Exhibition) | W 15–2 | |
| Regular Season |||||
| January 2 | at Westchester* | Playland Arena • Rye, New York | W 8–3 | 1–0–0 |
| January 3 $^†$ | at Princeton* | Hobey Baker Memorial Rink • Princeton, New Jersey | W 6–3 | 2–0–0 |
| January 9 | at Paul Smith's College* | Olympic Stadium • Lake Placid, New York | W 15–0 | 3–0–0 |
| January 16 | Colgate* | Clarkson Arena • Potsdam, New York | L 4–5 | 3–1–0 |
| January 22 | at Clarkson* | Clarkson Arena • Potsdam, New York (Rivalry) | L 4–5 | 3–2–0 |
| January 30 | at Williams* | Cole Field House Pond • Williamstown, Massachusetts | W 5–3 | 4–2–0 |
| January 31 | at Army* | Smith Rink • West Point, New York | L 1–2 $^{OT}$ | 4–3–0 |
| February 2 | at Union* | Schenectady, New York | W 17–0 | 5–3–0 |
| February 6 | Cornwall Calumets* | Potsdam, New York (Winter Carnival) | T 5–5 | 5–3–1 |
| February 7 | at Clarkson* | Clarkson Arena • Potsdam, New York (Rivalry) | W 7–5 | 6–3–1 |
| February 10 | at Clinton Hockey Club* | Clinton, New York | W 13–9 | 7–3–1 |
| February | at Cornwall Calumets* | Cornwall, Ontario | L 4–6 | 7–4–1 |
| February 21 | at Hamilton* | Russell Sage Rink • Clinton, New York | W 6–4 | 8–4–1 |
| *Non-conference game. |||||
† Princeton and St. Lawrence records disagree on the date of the game with the match being held on either January 3 or 5.

## Scoring statistics

| Name | Position | Games | Goals | Assists | Points |
| Tom Gerard | F | 15 | 23 | 19 | 42 |
| Bill Andes | F | - | - | - | - |
| Bob Borab | F | - | - | - | - |
| Bud Crutchley | F | - | - | - | - |
| Ed Garber | F | - | - | - | - |
| Tom Green | F | - | - | - | - |
| Ed Gunthrope | | - | - | - | - |
| Jack Klemens | D | - | - | - | - |
| Jack Moten | D | - | - | - | - |
| Mike Nardello | F | - | - | - | - |
| Bob Tobin | | - | - | - | - |
| Jim Weeden | F | - | - | - | - |
| Jack Weeden | F | - | - | - | - |
| Doug Westerberg | | - | - | - | - |
| Bob Yeaton | | - | - | - | - |
| Gene Del Veccio | G | - | - | - | - |
| Total | | | | | |
Note: St. Lawrence records include the totals from the two exhibition games.

## Goaltending statistics

| Name | Games | Minutes | Wins | Losses | Ties | Goals Against | Saves | Shut Outs | SV % | GAA |
| Gene Del Veccio | 14 | 803:50 | - | - | - | 52 | - | 2 | - | 3.88 |