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2023–24 St. Lawrence Saints men's ice hockey season

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2023–24 St. Lawrence Saints
men's ice hockey season
Conference7th ECAC Hockey
Home iceAppleton Arena
Rankings
USCHONR
USA HockeyNR
Record
Overall14–19–6
Conference8–10–4
Home10–5–2
Road3–13–4
Neutral1–1–0
Coaches and captains
Head coachBrent Brekke
Assistant coachesTommy Hill
Mike Aikens
Cam Doomany
Captain(s)
  • Josh Boyer
  • Justin Paul
  • Luc Salem
St. Lawrence Saints men's ice hockey seasons
« 2022–23 2024–25 »

The 2023–24 St. Lawrence Saints Men's ice hockey season was the 84th season of play for the program and the 63rd in ECAC Hockey. The Saints represented St. Lawrence University, played their home games at the Appleton Arena and were coached by Brent Brekke in his 5th season.

Season

[edit]

St. Lawrence was well-positioned entering the 2023-24 season, as almost the entire team returned from the previous year. The only real question was in goal, where grad transfer Ben Kraws was expected to take over the starting role. However, once the season started, it became apparent that the Larries had lost something; the defense was unable to shield their goaltender. Kraws played credibly in goal but he came under siege from a barrage of opposing chances. The Saints were allowing an average of more than 32 shots against per game, more than 5 over what they had the year before and one of the worst marks in the nation.[1] Kraws played about as well as could be expected but, with the offense not providing much support the Larries won just three times in their first fourteen games.

After a poor showing in the first two months, St. Lawrence began to turn things around in December. Several good defensive performances in December and January allowed the Saints to win some of their conference games and climb into the middle of the standings. The Larries had an outside chance at earning a bye into the conference quarterfinals but a minor slump from the back end caused that opportunity to slip by the wayside. St. Lawrence stumbled to the finish, winning only two of their final ten games.

Even with the slide down the home stretch, the Larries were able to earn a home stand for the opening round of the postseason and opened against Yale. The defense did Kraws no favors, allowing 39 shots in the game, but stopped enough to allow the offense to carry the day in the final home game of the season. The next week sent the Larries to meet Colgate and, at times, the team looked completely outclassed. The Raiders ran over the Saints in the first period, outshooting St. Lawrence 17–3 but Kraws stood his ground. A strong second period gave the team a 2-goal lead but a regressing in the third saw Colgate tie the game and force overtime. Kraws was absolutely key in extra time, stopping 16 shots in over 27 minutes of play. His stellar goaltending allowed Luc Salem to fire a bouncing puck from the blueline through a maze of bodies for the winning goal.[2] The rematch saw Colgate come storming out of the gate and completely dominate the first period once more. This time, the Larries fell down by a goal but, once more, a solid middle period saw St. Lawrence take a lead into the third. A power play goal by the Raiders tied the score but, just a few minutes afterwards, a goal from Jan Olenginski on a breakaway restored the lead for the Larries and they rode Kraws the rest of the way to victory.[3]

In the semifinals, St. Lawrence faced Quinnipiac, the defending NCAA national champions. The Larries' defense limited the Bobcats to just 22 shots, which were all stopped by Ben Kraws. For the third consecutive game, St. Lawrence scored two in the second and that was more than enough to carry them to victory. With the Saints now just one win from the NCAA tournament, St. Lawrence entered the game with Cornell looking for a major upset. However, with the Big Red also fighting for their season, the Larries knew they would not have an easy challenge. The Saints played well but they were stymied by one of the best defensive teams in the nation. While Cornell was able to score in each period, St. Lawrence could only get a single marker in the third and saw their miracle run end just shy of a league championship and their first NCAA appearance since 2007.

Departures

[edit]
Player Position Nationality Cause
Francis Boisvert Goaltender  Canada Graduate transfer to Robert Morris
Ashton Fry Forward  United States Graduation (retired)
Tim Makowski Defenseman  United States Graduation (retired)
Aleksi Peltonen Forward  Finland Graduation (signed with HC Davos)
Jordan Steinmetz Forward  United States Graduate transfer to Minnesota State
Emil Zetterquist Goaltender  Sweden Graduation (signed with Västerviks IK)

Recruiting

[edit]
Player Position Nationality Age Notes
Ben Kraws Goaltender  United States 23 Cranbury, NJ; graduate transfer from Arizona State
Mason Kucenski Goaltender  United States 21 Gill, MA
Jake Lammens Defenseman  United States 20 Norwalk, CT
Evan Mitchell Defenseman  Canada 21 Kanata, ON
Jan Olenginski Defenseman  United States 20 Philadelphia, PA
Cameron Smith Goaltender  United States 21 Westchester, NY
Gunnar Thoreson Forward  United States 21 Andover, MN

Roster

[edit]

As of September 19, 2023.[4]

No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team NHL rights
1 New York (state) Cameron Smith Freshman G 6' 2" (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2002-01-21 Westchester, New York P.A.L. Junior Islanders (USPHL)
2 Michigan Anthony Mollica Sophomore D 6' 3" (1.91 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 2001-06-07 Hudsonville, Michigan New Jersey (NAHL)
3 Minnesota Luke Erickson Senior D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1999-04-15 Woodbury, Minnesota Fairbanks (NAHL)
4 Manitoba Mason Waite Junior D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 2000-04-04 Winnipeg, Manitoba Prince George (BCHL)
7 California Luc Salem (C) Senior D 5' 10" (1.78 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1999-07-09 Santa Monica, California Topeka (NAHL)
8 Ontario Oak MacLeod Junior F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 2002-04-04 Caledonia, Ontario Jersey (NCDC)
9 Quebec Philippe Chapleau Junior D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 2000-07-06 Longueuil, Quebec Penticton (BCHL)
10 Czech Republic Tomáš Mazura Junior F 6' 4" (1.93 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 2000-09-23 Sezemice, Czech Republic Providence (HEA) EDM, 162nd overall 2019
11 New York (state) Will Arquiett Junior F 5' 8" (1.73 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 2000-06-25 Brasher Falls, New York Aberdeen (NAHL)
12 Quebec Greg Lapointe Junior F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2001-01-01 Granby, Quebec Coquitlam (BCHL)
14 Ontario Justin Paul (C) Senior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 188 lb (85 kg) 2000-04-10 Thunder Bay, Ontario Wellington (OJHL)
15 Manitoba Evan Mitchell Freshman D 5' 11" (1.8 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2002-02-13 Winnipeg, Manitoba Cranbrook (BCHL)
16 Ontario Drake Burgin Junior D 5' 11" (1.8 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 2000-10-22 Kanata, Ontario Blackfalds (AJHL)
17 Massachusetts Reilly Moran Senior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 176 lb (80 kg) 2000-04-24 Hingham, Massachusetts Powell River (BCHL)
18 British Columbia Tyler Cristall Sophomore F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 2002-05-13 Vancouver, British Columbia West Kelowna (NAHL)
19 Massachusetts Max Dorrington Senior F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 2001-08-30 North Reading, Massachusetts Cushing (USHS–MA)
20 Michigan Nicholas Trela Senior F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1999-08-26 Trenton, Michigan Amarillo (NAHL)
21 Minnesota Cameron Buhl Graduate F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1998-12-03 South St. Paul, Minnesota Minnesota Magicians (NAHL)
22 Manitoba Ty Naaykens Junior F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2001-01-27 Winnipeg, Manitoba Fairbanks (NAHL)
23 Pennsylvania Jan Olenginski Freshman F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 165 lb (75 kg) 2003-03-23 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Madison (USHL)
24 Ontario Tucker McIntosh Senior D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2001-05-20 Toronto, Ontario Ottawa (CCHL)
25 Latvia Fēlikss Gavars Sophomore F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 184 lb (83 kg) 2002-05-15 Riga, Latvia Fargo (USHL)
26 Connecticut Jake Lammens Freshman D 6' 1" (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2002-10-03 Norwalk, Connecticut Salmon Arm (BCHL)
27 Missouri Logan Ritchie Senior F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1999-07-27 O'Fallon, Missouri Kenai River (NAHL)
28 Alaska Josh Boyer (C) Graduate F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1999-10-07 Wasilla, Alaska Omaha (NCHC)
29 Minnesota Gunnar Thoreson Freshman F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2002-03-19 Andover, Minnesota Minnesota (NAHL)
32 Massachusetts Mason Kucenski Freshman G 6' 3" (1.91 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2002-04-08 Gill, Massachusetts Madison (USHL)
33 New Jersey Ben Kraws Graduate G 6' 5" (1.96 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 2000-08-02 Cranbury, New Jersey Arizona State (NCAA)
34 Slovakia Ján Lašák Sophomore F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 2002-08-11 Šurany, Slovakia Janesville (NAHL)
35 Indiana Grant Adams Senior G 6' 2" (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 2000-09-22 South Bend, Indiana Salmon Arm (BCHL)

Standings

[edit]
Conference record Overall record
GP W L T OTW OTL SW PTS GF GA GP W L T GF GA
#6 Quinnipiac 22 17 4 1 0 2 0 54 99 39 39 27 10 2 160 79
#9 Cornell * 22 12 6 4 1 2 3 44 74 45 35 22 7 6 115 65
Colgate 22 13 7 2 2 2 2 43 85 68 36 16 16 4 120 112
Dartmouth 22 9 6 7 1 1 3 37 66 60 32 13 10 9 92 91
Clarkson 22 12 9 1 4 2 1 36 62 58 35 18 16 1 95 97
Union 22 9 10 3 1 1 2 32 75 75 37 16 18 3 123 121
St. Lawrence 22 8 10 4 1 1 1 29 49 64 39 14 19 6 90 118
Harvard 22 6 10 6 1 2 3 28 49 64 32 7 19 6 70 106
Princeton 22 8 11 3 4 0 2 25 70 90 30 10 16 4 89 114
Yale 22 7 13 2 1 2 1 25 46 57 30 10 18 2 63 91
Brown 22 6 14 2 2 3 1 22 43 69 30 8 19 3 61 98
Rensselaer 22 6 13 3 0 0 0 21 58 89 37 10 23 4 93 150
Championship: March 23, 2024
† indicates conference regular season champion (Cleary Cup)
* indicates conference tournament champion (Whitelaw Cup)
Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll

Schedule and results

[edit]
Date Time Opponent# Rank# Site TV Decision Result Attendance Record
Regular Season
October 7 6:00 pm RIT* Appleton ArenaCanton, New York ESPN+ Kraws W 4–3  2,053 1–0–0
October 13 7:00 pm Vermont* Appleton ArenaCanton, New York ESPN+ Adams L 1–3  1,076 1–1–0
October 14 7:00 pm #18 Penn State* Appleton ArenaCanton, New York ESPN+ Kraws L 1–4  1,223 1–2–0
October 22 2:00 pm at Merrimack* J. Thom Lawler RinkNorth Andover, Massachusetts ESPN+ Kraws L 2–5  2,087 1–3–0
October 27 7:00 pm Michigan Tech* Appleton ArenaCanton, New York ESPN+ Kraws T 2–2 OT 1,073 1–3–1
October 28 7:00 pm Lake Superior State* Appleton ArenaCanton, New York ESPN+ Kraws L 2–5  1–4–1
November 3 7:00 pm at Ferris State* Ewigleben ArenaBig Rapids, Michigan FloHockey Kraws W 5–2  1,640 2–4–1
November 4 7:00 pm at Ferris State* Ewigleben ArenaBig Rapids, Michigan FloHockey Kraws L 1–2 OT 1,712 2–5–1
November 10 7:00 pm Union Appleton ArenaCanton, New York ESPN+ Kraws L 3–4  1,150 2–6–1 (0–1–0)
November 11 7:00 pm Rensselaer Appleton ArenaCanton, New York ESPN+ Kraws W 6–3  1,386 3–6–1 (1–1–0)
November 17 7:00 pm at Yale Ingalls RinkNew Haven, Connecticut ESPN+ Kraws L 0–5  1,368 3–7–1 (1–2–0)
November 18 7:00 pm at Brown Meehan AuditoriumProvidence, Rhode Island ESPN+ Kraws L 1–2  673 3–8–1 (1–3–0)
November 24 7:00 pm at #15 Western Michigan* Lawson ArenaKalamazoo, Michigan   Kraws L 1–5  2,340 3–9–1
November 25 7:00 pm at #15 Western Michigan* Lawson ArenaKalamazoo, Michigan   Kraws L 0–4  2,245 3–10–1
December 1 7:00 pm Dartmouth Appleton ArenaCanton, New York ESPN+ Kraws W 3–1  1,012 4–10–1 (2–3–0)
December 2 7:00 pm Harvard Appleton ArenaCanton, New York ESPN+ Kraws W 2–0  1,110 5–10–1 (3–3–0)
December 8 7:00 pm USNTDP Appleton ArenaCanton, New York (Exhibition) ESPN+ Kucenski L 4–8  1,154
December 30 7:00 pm Ottawa* Appleton ArenaCanton, New York (Exhibition) ESPN+ Kucenski W 5–2  830
January 5 7:00 pm at Canisius* LECOM HarborcenterBuffalo, New York FloHockey Kraws L 1–5  792 5–11–1
January 6 5:05 pm at #18 RIT* Gene Polisseni CenterHenrietta, New York FloHockey Kraws T 1–1 OT 2,816 5–11–2
January 12 7:00 pm at Rensselaer Houston Field HouseTroy, New York ESPN+ Kraws L 3–6  1,600 5–12–2 (3–4–0)
January 13 4:00 pm at Union Achilles RinkSchenectady, New York ESPN+ Kraws T 2–2 SOL 1,684 5–12–3 (3–4–1)
January 19 7:00 pm Brown Appleton ArenaCanton, New York ESPN+ Kraws W 2–1  914 6–12–3 (4–4–1)
January 20 7:00 pm Yale Appleton ArenaCanton, New York ESPN+ Kraws W 4–2  1,230 7–12–3 (5–4–1)
January 26 7:00 pm at Clarkson Cheel ArenaPotsdam, New York (Rivalry) ESPN+ Kraws L 1–4  3,602 7–13–3 (5–5–1)
January 27 7:00 pm Clarkson Appleton ArenaCanton, New York (Rivalry) ESPN+ Kraws W 2–1  2,826 8–13–3 (6–5–1)
February 2 7:00 pm at #13 Cornell Lynah RinkIthaca, New York ESPN+ Kraws L 1–5  3,726 8–14–3 (6–6–1)
February 3 7:00 pm at Colgate Class of 1965 ArenaHamilton, New York ESPN+ Kraws L 2–3  1,087 8–15–3 (6–7–1)
February 9 7:00 pm #5 Quinnipiac Appleton ArenaCanton, New York ESPN+ Kraws W 3–1  1,109 9–15–3 (7–7–1)
February 10 7:00 pm Princeton Appleton ArenaCanton, New York ESPN+ Kraws L 4–5 OT 1,168 9–16–3 (7–8–1)
February 16 7:00 pm at Harvard Bright-Landry Hockey CenterBoston, Massachusetts ESPN+ Kraws L 1–2  1,888 9–17–3 (7–9–1)
February 17 7:00 pm at Dartmouth Thompson ArenaHanover, New Hampshire ESPN+ Kraws T 4–4 SOL 2,253 9–17–4 (7–9–2)
February 23 7:00 pm Colgate Appleton ArenaCanton, New York ESPN+ Kraws W 4–3 OT 1,328 10–17–4 (8–9–2)
February 24 7:00 pm #11 Cornell Appleton ArenaCanton, New York ESPN+ Kraws T 2–2 SOL 1,579 10–17–5 (8–9–3)
March 1 7:00 pm at Princeton Hobey Baker Memorial RinkPrinceton, New Jersey ESPN+ Kraws T 4–4 SOW 1,258 10–17–6 (8–9–4)
March 2 7:00 pm at #7 Quinnipiac M&T Bank ArenaHamden, Connecticut ESPN+ Kucenski L 1–8  3,220 10–18–6 (8–10–4)
ECAC Hockey Tournament
March 8 7:00 pm Yale* Appleton ArenaCanton, New York (First Round) ESPN+ Kraws W 4–2  1,577 11–18–6
March 15 7:00 pm at Colgate* Class of 1965 ArenaHamilton, New York (Quarterfinal Game 1) ESPN+ Kraws W 3–2 2OT 763 12–18–6
March 16 7:00 pm at Colgate* Class of 1965 ArenaHamilton, New York (Quarterfinal Game 2) ESPN+ Kraws W 3–2  834 13–18–6
March 22 4:00 pm vs. #6 Quinnipiac* Herb Brooks ArenaLake Placid, New York (Semifinal) ESPN+ Kraws W 3–0  4,015 14–18–6
March 23 5:00 pm vs. Cornell* #14 Herb Brooks ArenaLake Placid, New York (Championship) ESPN+ Kraws L 1–3  4,912 14–19–6
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from USCHO.com Poll. All times are in Eastern Time.
Source:[5]

Scoring statistics

[edit]
Name Position Games Goals Assists Points PIM
Fēlikss Gavars F 39 13 12 25 14
Drake Burgin D 39 7 13 20 16
Tomáš Mazura C 34 6 14 20 12
Mason Waite D 39 4 16 20 14
Justin Paul LW 37 7 12 19 10
Tyler Cristall F 39 7 9 16 12
Philippe Chapleau D 39 5 11 16 8
Ty Naaykens F 39 7 7 14 45
Ján Lašák RW 35 6 7 13 2
Josh Boyer C 37 3 6 9 23
Reilly Moran F 34 2 6 8 19
Luc Salem D 38 3 5 8 30
Greg Lapointe F 25 6 2 8 6
Nick Trela F 28 2 5 7 10
Max Dorrington F 35 2 5 7 29
Cameron Buhl F 26 4 2 6 6
Jan Olenginski D 23 3 2 5 8
Tucker McIntosh D 34 0 5 5 12
Logan Ritchie F 28 1 3 4 4
Gunnar Thoreson C 27 2 2 4 2
Will Arquiett F 30 0 3 3 12
Anthony Mollica D 5 0 1 1 0
Jake Lammens F 7 0 1 1 4
Luke Erickson D 14 0 0 0 10
Mason Kucenski G 2 0 0 0 0
Grant Adams G 2 0 0 0 0
Oak MacLeod RW 5 0 0 0 2
Ben Kraws G 37 0 0 0 0
Evan Mitchell D 1 0 0 0 0
Total 90 149 239 326

[6]

Goaltending statistics

[edit]
Name Games Minutes Wins Losses Ties Goals Against Saves Shut Outs SV % GAA
Ben Kraws 37 2239:41 14 17 6 93 1061 2 .919 2.49
Grant Adams 2 72:50 0 1 0 5 27 0 .844 4.12
Mason Kucenski 2 60:00 0 2 0 8 38 0 .826 8.00
Empty Net - 33:28 - - - 12 - - - -
Total 39 2405:59 14 19 6 118 1126 2 .905 2.94

Rankings

[edit]
Poll Week
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 (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 Hockey 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 11 and 25.[7]
Note: USA Hockey did not release a poll in week 12.

Awards and honors

[edit]
Player Award Ref
Ben Kraws ECAC Hockey All-Tournament Team [8]
Tomáš Mazura

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "National Team Statistics". College Hockey Inc. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
  2. ^ "Men's ECAC Hockey Quarterfinals - St. Lawrence at Colgate (03.15.24)". YouTube. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
  3. ^ "St. Lawrence 3, Colgate 2 (Game Two | ECAC Quarterfinals) (men's hockey)". YouTube. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
  4. ^ "2023-24 Men's Hockey Roster". St. Lawrence Saints. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
  5. ^ "2023-24 Men's Hockey Schedule". St. Lawrence Saints. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  6. ^ "St. Lawrence Univ. 2023–2024 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
  7. ^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.
  8. ^ "#14 Men's Hockey Claims 13th Whitelaw Cup With Win Over St. Lawrence". Cornell Big Red. March 23, 2024. Retrieved March 25, 2024.