Quinnipiac Bobcats men's ice hockey

The Quinnipiac Bobcats men's ice hockey team is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I college ice hockey program that represents Quinnipiac University. The Bobcats are a member of ECAC Hockey. They play at the People's United Center in Hamden, Connecticut.
==History==
Quinnipiac College began sponsoring men's ice hockey as a varsity sport for the 1975–76 season. The program began as an independent team before joining ECAC 3 the following year. The program remained with the third-tier conference for over 20 years despite being a Division II school for much of that time. The Braves left ECAC 3 in 1997 and spent a year as a D-II independent before moving up to Division I as part of the university's transition to the top level. Quinnipiac was a founding member of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference ice hockey division, joining the conference as an affiliate member. The Braves won the MAAC Regular Season Championship in their first season in the league. The trend continued as Quinnipiac won the title the follow two seasons. In 2002 The Braves won the team's first playoff series, winning the MAAC Playoff Championship with a 6–4 win over Mercyhurst. With the win, Quinnipiac received an automatic bid to the 2002 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament, the first NCAA postseason appearance in program history. Quinnipiac faced off against Cornell in the first round of the East Regional, held in Worcester, Massachusetts. Quinnipiac's run into the NCAA Tournament ended early in a 1–6 loss to the Big Red. The game was the first NCAA Tournament appearance for the Braves. Quinnipiac finished the 2001–02 season 20–13–5, marking the team's fourth consecutive season with at least 20 wins.
In 2003 the MAAC Hockey league split off from the main athletic conference to form Atlantic Hockey. After two years in Atlantic Hockey Quinnipiac left to join the ECAC, replacing Vermont who left the league for Hockey East and changed their name to the Bobcats. QU was chosen over a number of applicants in large part to the university's commitment to build a new multipurpose sports arena to replace the civic-owned Northford Ice Pavilion. The Bobcats moved into the new 3,386-seat TD Bank Sports Center (then known as TD Banknorth Sports Center) in 2007.
The 2012–13 season has brought Quinnipiac to national prominence. The program reached a new high becoming the number one team in the country on February 11, 2013 in both the USCHO.com poll and USA Today College Hockey poll. Quinnipiac retained the ranking the following week despite losing their first game as the top ranked team to St. Lawrence University as the 2nd and 3rd ranked teams also fell the same weekend. The Bobcats also won their first ever Cleary Cup presented to the ECAC regular season champion. On March 24, 2013, the Bobcats received the number one overall seed in the 2013 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament. The Bobcats won the East Region with wins over Canisius (4-3) and Union (5-1) to advance to the school's first ever Frozen Four in Pittsburgh, Pa. In the national semifinals, Quinnipiac defeated St. Cloud State (4-1) to advance to the national championship game against archrival Yale. The Bobcats fell 4–0 to Yale to end the 2012-13 as the national runner-up.
In the 2013–14 season the Bobcats once again reached the NCAA tournament yet were defeated in the first round by Providence College 4–0. The team finished the season with a 24-10-6 record.
Quinnipiac once again had a successful 2014–15 season when they won their second ECAC regular season title in 3 years but lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament to North Dakota 4–1. The team finished the season with a 23-12-4 record.
The 2015–16 season saw Qunnipiac set a school record for wins with 32 along with winning their 3rd ECAC regular season title in 4 years and winning the ECAC tournament championship for the first time. Quinnipiac blew through the East Regional with wins over RIT 4-0 and UMass Lowell 4–1 to capture the regional championship and advance to the Frozen Four in the Tampa for the 2nd time in 4 seasons. In the national semifinals the Bobcats withheld a late charge by Boston College to win 3-2 and advance to the second national championship game in program history. Once again Quinnipiac was denied a national championship this time at the hands of North Dakota in a 5–1 defeat. The team finished the season with a record of 32-4-7.
==Rivals==
Since moving to the ECAC, Quinnipiac's biggest rival has been the Yale Bulldogs. The rivalry is dubbed the War on Whitney Avenue as the two campuses are separated by a mere 8 miles on Whitney Avenue in Hamden, Connecticut to New Haven, Connecticut. The rivalry has reached its highest point in 2013 as both the Bobcats and the Bulldogs rank in the top 10 nationally and are 1 and 2 in the ECAC standings. Quinnipiac holds a 9-5-2 all-time record against the Bulldogs. The winner of the final game between the two teams receives the Heroes Hat which honors those who risked their lives during the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. The two teams met on April 13, 2013 for the fourth time in the 2012–13 season in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to play for the national championship. Quinnipiac won the previous three meetings by a combined score of 13–3, but was upset in the national championship game, 4–0.
The Cornell Big Red have also become a rival of Quinnipiac with the teams meeting in five ECAC Hockey Playoff series since the 2007 season having won in 2007 at Lynah Rink and in 2013 and 2016 in Hamden with the latter two coming with Quinnipiac as the ECAC number one seed and seasons in which Quinnipiac reached the Frozen Four. Cornell won series in 2011 and 2018 both at Lynah Rink. Quinnipiac is 3–2 in those series against Cornell with three of the series going the maximum three games. Things on the ice have been heated at times with a lot of physical play and both Rand Pecknold and Cornell head coach Mike Schafer jawing at each other as well.
== Records vs. Current ECAC Hockey Teams ==
As of the completion of 2018–19 season
School	Team	Away Arena	Overall Record	Win %	Last Result
 	 	 	24–10–6 	 	3-4 L
 	 	 	16–12–3 	 	3-5 L
 	 	 	23–16–2 	 	4-5 L (OT)
 	 	 	17–22–4 	 	2-2 T (OT)
 	 	 	21–10–2 	 	5-1 W
 	 	 	14–15–5 	 	1-2 L
 	 	 	17–12–1 	 	6-3 W
 	 	 	17–7–9 	 	2-1 W
 	 	 	15–15–4 	 	7-2 W
 	 	 	18–17–5 	 	1-1 T (OT)
 	 	 	22–7–5 	 	4-1 W
==Season-by-season results==
== All-time coaching records ==
As of completion of 2019–20 season
Tenure 	Coach 	Years 	Record 	Pct.
1975–1979 	Jim Kennedy 	4 	22–48–1 	
1979–1980 	Ralph O'Connor	1 	5–13–1 	
1980–1994 	Jim Armstrong 	14 	139–188–8 	
1994–Present	Rand Pecknold 	26 	532–318–93 	
Totals 	4 coaches 	45 Seasons	698–567–103	
==Statistical Leaders==
===Career points leaders===
Player	Years 	GP 	G 	A 	Pts	PIM
 	1997–2001	126	99	106	205	230
 	1985–1989	109	90	112	202	128
 	1976–1980	 	83	109	192	
 	1978–1982	 	92	94 	186	
 	1999–2003	136	56	113	169	254
 	2005–2009	157	53	116	169	124
 	1983–1987	 	61	97 	158	
 	2003–2007	151	23	125	148	246
 	2006–2010	147	68	75 	143	92
 	2011–2015	157	42	101	143	91
===Career Goaltending Leaders===
GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; SV% = Save percentage; GAA = Goals against average
Minimum 30 games
Player	Years 	GP 	Min 	W 	L 	T 	GA 	SO	SV% 	GAA
 	2012–2016 	124	7261	78	25	16	237	19	.917	1.96
 	2009–2013 	106	6139	58	27	17	201	10	.924	1.96
 	2016–2019 	78 	4235	42	26	4 	139	10	.923	1.97
 	2017–Present	65 	3565	34	19	4 	137	6 	.910	2.31
 	2001–2005 	107	5974	59	34	10	248	7 	.921	2.49
Statistics current through the start of the 2020–21 season.
==Roster==
As of September 11, 2020.
==Awards and honors==
===NCAA===
====Individual Awards====
Spencer Penrose Award
*Rand Pecknold: 2016
Tim Taylor Award
*Sam Anas: 2014
NCAA Scoring Champion
*Bryan Leitch: 2009
====All-Americans====
AHCA First Team All-Americans
*2006-07: Reid Cashman, D
*2012-13: Eric Hartzell, G
*2015-16: Sam Anas, F
AHCA Second Team All-Americans
*2005-06: Reid Cashman, D
*2014-15: Sam Anas, F
*2018-19: Andrew Shortridge, G
===MAAC===
====Individual Awards====
Offensive Player of the Year
*Shawn Mansoff: 2000
Defensive Player of the Year
*Dan Ennis: 1999
*Wade Winkler: 2003
Defensive Rookie of the Year
*Dan Ennis: 1999
*Jamie Holden: 2002
Tournament Most Valuable Player
*Matt Craig: 2002
====All-Conference Teams====
First Team All-MAAC
*1998–99: J. C. Wells, G; Dan Ennis, D; Kris Cumming, D; Chad Poliquin, F
*1999–00: Anthony DiPalma, D; Shawn Mansoff, F; Chris Cerrella, F
*2000–01: Chris Cerrella, F
*2002–03: Wade Winkler, D; Matt Craig, F
Second Team All-MAAC
*1998–99: Neil Breen, F
*2001–02: Brian Herbert, F
*2002–03: Brian Herbert, F
MAAC All-Rookie Team
*1998–99: Dan Ennis, D; Neil Breen, F
*1999–00: Matt Erhart, D; Brian Herbert, F
*2000–01: Justin Eddy, G
*2001–02: Jamie Holden, G
*2002–03: Conrad Martin, D; Scott Reynolds, F
===Atlantic Hockey===
====Individual Awards====
Player of the Year
*Reid Cashman: 2005
Regular Season Goaltending Award
*Jamie Holden: 2004
Regular Season Scoring Trophy
*Reid Cashman: 2005
Coach of the Year
*Rand Pecknold: 2005
====All-Conference Teams====
First Team All-Atlantic Hockey
*2003–04: Jamie Holden, G
*2004–05: Reid Cashman, D
Second Team All-Atlantic Hockey
*2003–04: Reid Cashman, D
*2004–05: Jamie Holden, G; Matt Craig, F
Atlantic Hockey All-Rookie Team
*2003–04: Reid Cashman, D
*2004–05: Matt Sorteberg, D; Ben Nelson, F
===ECAC Hockey===
====Individual Awards====
Player of the Year
* Eric Hartzell: 2013
Rookie of the Year
* Bryan Leitch: 2006
* Brandon Wong: 2008
* Sam Anas: 2014
Ken Dryden Award
* Eric Hartzell: 2013
* Andrew Shortridge: 2019
Student-Athlete of the Year
* Derek Smith: 2017
* Bo Pieper: 2018
Best Defensive Defenseman
* Zach Davies: 2013
Tim Taylor Award
* Rand Pecknold: 2013, 2016
Most Outstanding Player in Tournament
* Connor Clifton: 2016
====All-Conference====
First Team All-ECAC Hockey
* 2005–06: Reid Cashman, D
* 2006–07: Reid Cashman, D
* 2012–13: Eric Hartzell, G
* 2014–15: Matthew Peca, F
* 2015–16: Sam Anas, F
* 2018–19: Andrew Shortridge, G; Chase Priskie, D
Second Team All-ECAC Hockey
* 2008–09: Bryan Leitch, F
* 2013–14: Kellen Jones, F; Sam Anas, F
* 2014–15: Sam Anas, F
* 2015–16: Devon Toews, D; Tim Clifton, F; Travis St. Denis, F
* 2017–18: Chase Priskie, D
* 2018–19: Odeen Tufto, F
Third Team All-ECAC Hockey
* 2006–07: Brandon Wong, F
* 2011–12: Connor Jones, F
* 2012–13: Zach Davies, D; Jeremy Langlois, F
* 2014–15: Michael Garteig, G; Danny Federico, D
* 2015–16: Michael Garteig, G
* 2016–17: Chase Priskie, D
* 2017–18: Odeen Tufto, F
ECAC Hockey All-Rookie Team
* 2005–06: Bryan Leitch, F
* 2006–07: Brandon Wong, F
* 2011–12: Matthew Peca, F
* 2013–14: Sam Anas, F
* 2014–15: Landon Smith, F
* 2015–16: Chase Priskie, D
* 2017–18: Odeen Tufto, F
* 2018–19: Peter DiLiberatore, D; Wyatt Bongiovanni, F
==Quinnipiac Bobcats Hall of Fame==
The following is a list of people associated with the Quinnipiac men's ice hockey program who were elected into the Quinnipiac Bobcats Hall of Fame (induction date in parenthesis).
*Michael Barrett (1990)
*Richard Buckholz (2010)
*Chris Cerrella (2010)
*Russell Certo (1998)
*Richard Ciardiello (2003)
*Jim Hanscom (1994)
*Todd Johnson (2000)
*Ed Muzyka (2009)
*Rand Pecknold (2012)
*Bob Serenson (1993)
*2001-02 Team (2012)
*Bill Verneris (1986)
==Bobcats in the NHL==
	= NHL All-Star Team		= NHL All-StarPlayers are identified as an All-Star if they were selected for the All-Star game at any time in their career.			= NHL All-Star and NHL All-Star Team
Player 	Position 	Team(s) 	Years 	
Connor Clifton 	Defenseman	BOS 	2018–Present	0
Connor Jones 	Forward 	NYI 	2016–2017 	0
Matthew Peca 	Center 	TBL, MTL	2016–Present	0
Brogan Rafferty 	Defenseman	VAN 	2018–Present	0
Devon Toews 	Defenseman	NYI 	2018–Present	0
Bryce Van Brabant	Left Wing 	CGY 	2013–2014 	0
File:Matthew Peca.jpg|Matthew Peca
File:Brogan Rafferty.jpg|Brogan Rafferty
File:Devon Toews (32600001085).jpg|Devon Toews
File:Bryce Van Brabant 140407.png|Bryce Van Brabant
==See also==
*Quinnipiac Bobcats women's ice hockey
==References==
==External links==
*Bobcats men's ice hockey
 
Category:Ice hockey teams in Connecticut