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Watch Yale at Holy Cross on Saturday

Watch Yale at Vermont on Monday

YALE TAKES ON CRUSADERS, CATAMOUNTS

NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- The No. 11 Bulldogs (4-2-2, 2-1-2 ECAC) don't have much time to digest their holiday meals with a tough, non-league road trip that goes to Worcester and then to Burlington. Yale, coming off an 8-2 win over Sacred Heart last Tuesday, takes on Holy Cross (4-7-2, 4-5-2 AH) on Saturday at 2 p.m. before battling Vermont (4-5-1, 3-4-1 HE) on Monday at 7 p.m. Both games can be seen live through video streams from the official websites for the two schools.

Crusaders-Bulldogs

Yale began skating against Holy Cross during the 1946-47 season and has a 3-0 record against the team from Worcester, the hometown of Yale head coach Keith Allain. The last meeting was the first as a Yale head coach for Allain on Oct. 27, 2006, a 2-1 Bulldog win.

Cats-Dogs

The Catamounts handed Yale a 4-1 loss in the NCAA East Regional at Bridgeport last March in the latest meeting. UVM and Yale began facing each other in 1975-76 and the Elis have a 26-24-4 edge in the series.

Yale Cruises Past Sacred Heart

Sophomore F Brian O'Neill had two goals and one assist and six other teammates hit the net as Yale raced past Sacred Heart 8-2 before 2,219 at Ingalls Rink on Tuesday. Senior F Sean Backman had three assists as Yale outshot the visitors 42-15. Yale freshman Jeff Malcolm stopped 13 of 15 shots to earn his first collegiate win in net. He got some help from special teams at the other end of the rink; Yale had a season-high three man-advantage goals on seven attempts.

The Pioneers, led by former Yale assistant coach CJ Marottolo, had just one power-play chance.The Elis, who had two goals on their first three shots, were four-for-eight midway through the opening period.

Most Goals In 9 Years

The eight goals against SHU were the most since an 8-2 win over Notre Dame on Jan. 27, 2001, at the New Haven Coliseum.

UMASS Takes OT Game

James Marcou's goal with 61 seconds left in overtime gave No. 11 UMass a 4-3 win over No. 9 Yale before 2,359 at Ingalls Rink on Nov. 19. Marcou fired a shot from the inside of the right circle that likely would have been saved if not for the action in front of Yale goalie Nick Maricic, who finished with 32 saves. Marcou's brother, Michael, was on the doorstep with a defenseman causing a distraction for the freshman netminder. UMass (8-2), which already had wins over defending national champion Boston University and New Hampshire, outshot Yale 36-31. The Bulldogs, who gave up a 1-0 lead before coming back from a goal deficit to take the lead back, had all they could handle in speedy Minutemen. Dan Meyers made 28 saves, including 11 in the third period, to earn the win for the Minutemen. He needed to stop six of seven power plays to get the victory.

Bulldog Bites

Nineteen different Bulldogs, including goalie Nick Maricic, have a point this season... Yale has outscored opponents 34-26... The Blue has 78 more shots on goal than opponents and are averaging 38 per game... The Elis have been outscored in the second period but have an advantage on opponents in the first (15-10) and third (13-5) periods... Twelve different players covering all four classes have scored for Yale this season... The Blue is 9-for-49 (18.4%) on the power play this year and has a 79.4 percent success rate on the penalty kill.

Lots of Little

Junior F Broc Little leads the Elis with eight goals and 12 points. He has a point in every game and four multiple-point outings this season. Little's 1.57 points per game are third in Division I. He and Blake Gallagher of Cornell are the only two players in the country to have a goal for every game played this season.

Kearney Lends Helping Hand

Junior F Denny Kearney, who has nine points in eight games, has recorded a point in all but one game. He is tied with sophomore F Brian O'Neill for the team lead with eight helpers this season. Kearney is second to Mark Arcobello (49) in active career assists with 44.

Goalie Du Jour

Four different Bulldogs have played in goal this season, and Yale may not have settled on one as the leading man. A year after Alec Richards '09 brought the team and his own game to a new level, the Elis have two freshmen, a junior and senior battling for the top job. Newcomers Nick Maricic (2.86, 894, 1-1-1) and Jeff Malcolm (2.01, .867, 1-0-0), junior Ryan Rondeau (3.84, .880, 1-1-1) and senior Billy Blase (3 saves, 1-0-0) have been in net.

Backman Hits Century Scoring Mark

F Sean Backman had three assists on Tuesday against SHU and now has 100 career points in 101 games, including 61 goals. Yale's active career goals leader was named to the College Hockey News (CHN) 2008-09 Pre-Season All-America squad. Backman, who has two multiple-point outings, has a point in six of eight games. He was second-team All-ECAC last year after leading his team with 20 goals. Backman tallied the team's lone hat trick in a 5-0 win over Cornell that gave the Blue the ECAC Hockey Tournament Title and made him tournament MVP.

Arcobello Making Point

Senior F Mark Arcobello has five points in eight outings. Arcobello, a second-team All-America pick last winter, has 36 goals and 85 points in three-plus seasons. He is second to Backman among active career leaders in goals and assists.

Century Mark

Senior F Mark Arcobello has 105 career games played. Most Eli seniors don't get a glimpse of triple digits until late in their final campaigns. Two of his teammates, F Sean Backman (101) and D Ryan Donald (97), should follow Arcobello. All three could break the record of 125 games shared by Jeff Hamilton '01 and Jeff Hristovski '06.

Captain Ryan Donald

Ryan Donald (St. Albert, ALB), a class of 2010 defenseman, is the captain of the 2009-10 Bulldogs. The 6-foot-3, 220-pound Bulldog skater is one of 20 NCAA hockey candidates for the 2009-10 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - classroom, character, community and competition. Donald has compiled a 2.93 grade point average as a political science major at one of the nation's top universities. He was recognized as a member of the ECAC All-Academic team in 2009.

On the Bench

Keith Allain '80, Yale's Malcolm G. Chace Head Coach of Hockey, has helped establish the Bulldogs on the national scene since he joined the program three years ago. In 2008-09 he led Yale to the best season in the program's history. A school-record 24 wins, Yale's first ECAC Tournament Championship and a school-best No. 5 national ranking in late March backs up that statement. The Elis' second ECAC regular-season title, a third NCAA Tournament appearance and an Ivy League crown confirm the status of the 2008-09 squad. He was honored by ECAC coaches as conference coach of the year (Tim Taylor Award) and College Hockey News named him national coach of the year.

Allain On Upcoming Games

"We are excited about playing Holy Cross and Vermont in this unusual non-league road trip. Both teams have been a force in their leagues and have had success in the NCAA Tournament, so it will be a great challenge. It will be fun to coach a game in my hometown with lots of family and friends around."

Ingalls Renovations

Dedication night for the renovated Ingalls Rink is Jan. 16 when the Yale men host Brown after the women play RPI. That is also alumni day for both squads. The Elis have added 13,000 square feet of varsity operational space. It includes locker rooms, a strength and conditioning center, student-athlete study area, training room, officials room, video room, coaches' offices, equipment room and more. There is a new Schley Room (reception area), historical displays, a concessions stand and bathrooms.

Release filed by Steve Conn, Yale Sports Publicity Director

Image by Mike Butler