Picked by some to win the Bank One Badger Hockey Showdown (possibly because
they were the only team in the tournament with a winning record), the Big Red
found themselves down 2-0 after two periods to the Bowling Green Falcons,
fought back to tie the game, then lost in OT.  The next day, against the host
Wisconsin Badgers in the consolation game, Cornell again found themselves
behind after two and again tied things up in the third period, but this time it
was the Big Red getting the game-winner in the extra session.  Ryan Moynihan,
who scored twice against the Badgers, made the All-Tournament team.
 
More notes on the games:
 
Bowling Green 3, Cornell 2 (OT)
 
Cornell played the first two periods of this one like a team that hadn't seen
action in about 22 days -- which, in fact, they hadn't.  Nevertheless, the Big
Red were sluggish and sloppy for the first 40 minutes and were fortunate to be
going into the second intermission down by only two.  Cornell came alive in the
final period of regulation and scored twice to tie the game, but it was the
Falcons' Greg Day putting his team into the championship game with a goal 1:12
into overtime.
 
Adam Edinger got both of Bowling Green's goals in regulation, and both came on
deflections.  On the Falcons' first power play of the night, some pretty
passing ended with Grady Moore firing a shot from the blue line.  The puck
deflected off Edinger's stick and also off goaltender Ian Burt's, before
rolling across the line at 8:47 of the first.  Edinger's second goal was a bit
of a fluke, as he got the puck to the left of the Cornell goal and was
attempting to pass it out in front.  However, the puck hit Cornell's David
Kozier, who was coming back to help out on defense, and went through a
surprised Burt's pads.
 
This was the first time all season that the Big Red had gone into the third
period without scoring a goal, but they rectified that situation quickly
enough. Freshman Krzysztof Wieckowski corraled a rebound and sent the puck past
Bowling Green goalie Mike Savard to put Cornell on the board at 2:02 of the
third, and then the Big Red power-play unit evened things up at the 13:45 mark.
 Kyle Knopp skated behind the Falcon net, then quickly passed out in front to
Denis Ladouceur.  Savard stopped the initial shot, but Ladouceur lifted the
rebound over the fallen goalie.  It was the freshman winger's team-leading
sixth goal of the season, and fifth on the power play.
 
But yet another deflection would play a major part in dashing Cornell's hopes
of reaching the tournament final.  Greg Day tried to send a pass through the
crease to a teammate, but the play was broken up.  Day, however, followed the
puck behind the net and wrapped it around behind Burt and into the net at 1:12
of the extra session.  This marked the first time all year that Cornell had
lost a game in which they had scored a power-play goal.
 
Savard stopped 22 of the 24 shots he faced, and Burt made 23 saves.
 
 
Cornell 3, Wisconsin 2 (OT)
 
Junior center Ryan Moynihan, who had been counted on to help lead Cornell out
of the offensive slump it endured during the 1997-98 season, had posted only
two goals prior to Monday's game, but he added a pair against Wisconsin, with
the second one deciding the contest in overtime.  Once again, the Big Red got
off to a bit of a slow start, putting only 12 shots on goal over the first two
periods, but they closed with a flourish in the come-from-behind win.  This was
Cornell's third straight overtime game; the Big Red have gone 1-1-1.
 
Wisconsin opened the scoring at 6:40 of the first period.  Dan Bjornlie carried
the puck into the Cornell zone before two Big Red defenders checked him and
poked the puck away.  However, David Hukalo picked up the loose biscuit on his
backhand and snapped it through goaltender Matt Underhill's pads.  Cornell
responded with 2:15 left in the period, when Doug Stienstra stole the puck near
the Badger blue line, eluded defenseman Rob Vega, and beat goalie Graham
Melanson to the stick side.
 
Tim Rothering made it 2-1 in Wisconsin's favor at 3:59 of the second, thanks in
part to a bad decision by Underhill.  Dustin Kuk skated behind the Cornell net
with the puck, but he was checked into the boards and the puck squirted loose
in front.  Underhill dove at the puck to knock it away, but Rothering got to it
first and flipped it into the vacated net.
 
Cornell tied the game at 4:44 of the third, and this goal came with a bit of
controversy.  Moynihan skated in on Melanson on a mini-breakaway, wristing a
shot over the goalie's glove, but as Wisconsin head coach Jeff Sauer noted
later (and video replays confirmed), both of Moynihan's skates were across the
blue line before he brought the puck into the Badger zone.  Sauer argued that
the play should have been blown dead with an offsides call, but Cornell head
coach Mike Schafer mentioned a rule that allows this if the skater is carrying
the puck and has control of it, which Moynihan was and did.  (I've heard of
this rule before but I can't cite it chapter and verse... anybody have a rule
book handy?)
 
Underhill preserved the tie with some outstanding play through the rest of
regulation, particularly with four minutes left, when it looked like Kuk and
Rothering were going to combine on another one.  Kuk found Rothering alone in
front of the net with a beautiful cross-ice pass, and Underhill was down on the
ice, but the goaltender managed to get his skate on Rothering's shot to keep
the game deadlocked.
 
In the overtime period, Kyle Knopp set up the winning goal by skating down left
wing and leaving a pass for David Francis, who whiffed on the shot.  Moynihan
was trailing, however, and he poked the puck through Melanson's legs at the
3:56 mark.  This game marked the first time all year that Cornell won without
scoring a power-play goal.  Melanson had 24 saves, while Underhill stopped 29
shots.
 
Next up for Cornell is a rare Saturday-Sunday pair of games, on the always-
delightful North Country road trip.  The Big Red will take on Clarkson at Cheel
Arena Saturday night and will make the ten-mile trip to Appleton to play St.
Lawrence on Sunday.
 
--
Disclaimer -- Unless otherwise noted, all opinions expressed above are
              strictly those of:
 
Bill Fenwick
Cornell '86 and '95                                             DJF  5/27/94
LET'S GO RED!!                                                  JCF  12/2/97
"This can't be right.  Terry Felton started the game, and now they've got him
 relieving himself on the mound."
-- Fred White, Kansas City Royals radio announcer, on a wire-service report
   that erroneously listed the same pitcher starting and coming in from the
   bullpen
 
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