Worcester, Mass. – For Yale, it could have been a trap game and one of those weird results that often litter the beginning of the second half. But on this night, the Bulldogs held and dominated Atlantic Hockey foe, Holy Cross. The first period was all Yale and they were rewarded for it. Trent Ruffolo opened the scoring for the Elis at 11 minutes 23 seconds, backhanding a rebound home. Yale outshot Holy Cross 19-7 in the first period and took the 1-0 lead to the locker room.

Holy Cross played better in the second period, but penalties proved costly. The Crusaders’, Tommy Dwyer took a five minute major midway through the period. Yale capitalized halfway through the power-play to take a 2-0 lead. Later in the period another ill-advised cross-check to the boards gave Yale another power-play. The Elis again capitalized off the stick of Mike Doherty. Yale led 3-0 into the second intermission. The Bulldogs held serve in the third period for the win and Alex Lyon picked up his first shutout of the season. Holy Cross senior netminder, Matt Ginn, made 37 saves in the loss, while Rob O Gara picked up two points in the win. Yale improved its record to 7-3-2, while Holy Cross dropped to 7-6-4 on the year.

What I Saw

• Holy Cross struggled to skate with Yale in the first period, but it improved in the second. If not for penalties the Crusaders probably stood a better chance. As the penalty minutes mounted in the second, it looked gassed. Yale is a top notch club, it capitalized and smelled blood. The ill-advised penalties were ultimately what cost the Crusaders any chance after the second period.
• Yale moved the puck well on the power-play and at five on five Holy Cross had trouble keeping up with them. Yale is a team that is built from the net out and one that is built for success. Tonight that was on full display. It dominated from the get-go and gave its opponent no wiff of a chance. This is how Yale should be playing against a team that it should beat. For them it didn’t have a let-down to begin the second half, which often happens in college hockey.

What I Thought

• Holy Cross entered the night as one of the hottest teams in the country, but for them it may have been a case of the break coming at the wrong time. Entering the break, the Crusaders were 6-1-3 i its last ten contests, it also had a four game wining streak. Tonight it seemed that confidence was gone, as it just couldn’t catch a break and the penalties mounted.
• Yale was without top forward John Hayden, who is playing with team USA at the World Junior Championships. The loss looked like a big one early, as the Bulldogs sent shot after shot at the Holy Cross net but to no avail. As it pulled away however, the loss seemed to sting a bit less. Yale is built upon its tough, hard-nose defense and its best in the ECAC goaltending from Alex Lyon. Both of which have been very impressive to me in the thre times I have seen them. In my experience, teams built from the net out in college hockey are successful ones. Yale has it, hence I think they are going to be ever dangerous going forward. Big games are looming later in the week,as it hosts Vermont and travels to Northeastern.
• One of the things I realized quickly for Holy Cross, was that its goaltender was also its captain. Matt Ginn is one of three seniors on the roster for the Crusaders and his presence is a big one, because he is also its best player.  Ginn has played in 114 games for his squad over his four year career, which is a huge number among goaltenders. That averages out to nearly 30 games a year, or almost all of Holy Cross’ games over his four year career. That is quite the accomplishment for a goalie. His numbers are also good by Atlantic Hockey standards a 2.08 this season, entering tonight, and a .931 save percentage. His presence for Holy Cross is huge, he kept his team in it for large portions of the game.

What They Said

Yale coach Keith Allain said,

“I was really pleased with the way we came right out of the gate. We like to play an uptempo game and I could tell the first couple of shifts that we were skating well tonight. That’s what we need to do to be successful.”

“They are a good team and they entered on a bit of a role. But I think we were clicking on all cylinders tonight.”

“It is really important to win anytime. Our last game before the break was kind of a disappointment, losing at home and we didn’t feel like played that well. We got back Friday night, had the exhibition game against the Russians which was a little bit of a step forward for us. Tonight I felt we took another step, and we have Vermont on Saturday.”

Holy Cross coach David Berard said,

“Yale is a great hockey team and they pretty much beat us in every facet of the game. They had great legs, were very heavy on the pucks and it made it difficult on us to generate much. We were a little bit sluggish to start tonight, as well.”

“We really have made a lot of gains from the end of October until the break but the break is the break, Yale had the same one that we did.I believe we are going to be a lot better on Friday than tonight. The break is no excuse.”

“We just didn’t move the puck well enough tonight.”

What Else You Should Know

Holy Cross will return to Atlantic Hockey action this weekend, as it will host Air Force for a pair. Air Force is a struggling team, which has lost four games straight. Holy Cross is second in the Atlantic heading into the weekend.

Yale will host Vermont on Saturday at Ingalls Rink, in New Haven. The Bulldogs have won four of five games and Vermont will enter off a loss to Providence in its own tournament.

Tuesday, December 30th, 2014 - 10:14 pm | Atlantic Hockey, Blogs, ECAC, Notes, Thoughts, Ramblings