2023–24 Union Garnet Chargers men's ice hockey season

The 2023–24 Union Garnet Chargers men's ice hockey season was the 83rd season of play for the program, the 32nd at the Division I level and the 32nd in the ECAC Hockey conference. The Garnet Chargers represented Union College, played their home games at Achilles Center and were coached by Josh Hauge in his 2nd season.

2023–24 Union Garnet Chargers
men's ice hockey season
Conference6th ECAC Hockey
Home iceAchilles Center
Rankings
USCHONR
USA TodayNR
Record
Overall16–18–3
Conference9–10–3
Home8–8–1
Road7–10–2
Neutral1–0–0
Coaches and captains
Head coachJosh Hauge
Assistant coachesJohn Ronan
Lennie Childs
Bryan McDonald
Captain(s)Ben Tupker
Alternate captain(s)Chaz Smedsrud
Tyler Watkins
Union Garnet Chargers men's ice hockey seasons
« 2022–23 2024–25 »

Season edit

Prior to the season, Union College announced that they had changed the moniker for their athletic teams from "Dutchmen / Dutchwomen" to "Garnet Chargers."[1] Garnet has been the school's official color for 150 years, and the name "chargers" is a reference to "Schenectady’s legacy as a leader in electrical technologies."[2]

Once the season began, Union found itself in a fortunate position as eight of its top nine scorers from '23 had returned. That solid foundation helped the team's offense flourish and average nearly a full goal more per game then they had the year before. The attack was led by defenseman John Prokop, who became the first blueliner in program history to lead the team in scoring twice.[3] The bright sport on offense was the power play, which converted on 21.2% of the teams chances. However, while Union ended the season with the #3 offense in ECAC Hockey, they also had the second-worst defense. While the Chargers allowed less than 30 shots against per game, slightly below what they managed to generate, Kyle Chauvette's first year as the starting goaltender was not something to write home about. The sophomore was inconsistent throughout the season, alternating very poor stretches with solid goaltending.

The result of being pulled in opposite directions was that Union hovered around the even mark all season. Though the team was able to string wins together, every streak was countered by a lull and by season's end the team sat one game under .500. While the team had no chance for an NCAA tournament berth without a conference title, they at least began their postseason chase with a home stand. In one of their best games of the season, the Garnet Chargers rolled over Brown 6–0 and ended up with two short-handed goals in the game. In the quarterfinals, it was the team's power play that let them down. Union went 1 for 8 in the two games with Caden Villegas providing the only real offense in the series. The two losses ended Union's season and ensure the team a losing record for the fourth straight campaign.

Departures edit

Player Position Nationality Cause
Trevor Adams Forward   United States Left program (retired)
Matt Allen Forward   United States Graduate transfer to (Stonehill)
Owen Farris Forward   United States Graduation (retired)
Michael Hodge Forward   Canada Transferred to (Holy Cross)
Greg Japchen Defenseman   United States Transferred to (Stonehill)
Connor Murphy Goaltender   United States Graduation (signed with Calgary Wranglers)
Nick Petruolo Defenseman   United States Transferred to (Holy Cross)
Merek Pipes Goaltender   Canada Graduation (retired)
Christian Sanda Forward   United States Graduation (retired)
Bram Scheerer Forward   United States Left program (retired)
Andrew Seaman Defenseman   United States Left program (retired)
Mason Snell Defenseman   Canada Graduation (retired)
Chris Théodore Forward   Canada Graduate transfer to (Vermont)

Recruiting edit

Player Position Nationality Age Notes
Brandon Buhr Forward   Canada 21 Burnaby, BC; transfer from Clarkson
D. J. Hart Defenseman   United States 21 Stamford, CT
Jacob Jeannette Forward   United States 20 Duluth, MN
Cole Kodsi Forward   United States 23 Boca Raton, FL; transfer from Bentley
Joe Messina Defenseman   Canada 21 Woodbridge, ON
Eli Pilosof Forward   Canada 21 Toronto, ON
Joey Potter Defenseman   United States 20 Los Angeles, CA
Aksel Reid Goaltender   United States 20 Minneapolis, MN

Roster edit

As of August 2, 2023.[4]

No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team NHL rights
2   D. J. Hart Freshman D 6' 3" (1.91 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 2002-02-23 Stamford, Connecticut Lincoln (USHL)
3   Cal Mell Sophomore D 5' 11" (1.8 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 2011-01-30 Alpharetta, Georgia Janesville (NAHL)
4   Josh Phillips Junior D 6' 2" (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 2001-05-24 Getzville, New York Minnesota Wilderness (NAHL)
5   Joey Potter Freshman D 5' 11" (1.8 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2003-05-09 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Fairbanks (NAHL)
6   Cullen Ferguson Junior D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2001-02-16 Binbrook, Ontario Aberdeen (NAHL)
7   Nick Young Sophomore D 6' 3" (1.91 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 2001-09-12 Raleigh, North Carolina St. Cloud (NAHL)
8   Chaz Smedsrud (A) Senior F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1998-06-04 Luverne, Minnesota Madison (USHL)
9   Thomas Richter Junior F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2000-06-06 Greenwich, Connecticut Penticton (BCHL)
10   Ethan Benz Sophomore F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 2001-03-29 Shakopee, Minnesota St. Cloud (NAHL)
11   Colby MacArthur Sophomore F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2001-11-02 Summerside, Prince Edward Island Summerside (MHL)
12   Carter Korpi Sophomore F 6' 0" (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2001-07-28 South Lyon, Michigan Wichita Falls (NAHL)
13   Tyler Watkins (A) Senior F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1999-12-19 Hermantown, Minnesota Minnesota Wilderness (NAHL)
14   Brandon Buhr Sophomore F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 2002-07-07 North Vancouver, British Columbia Alberni Valley (BCHL)
15   Josh Nixon Junior F 5' 9" (1.75 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 2000-05-09 Mississauga, Ontario Lake Superior State (CCHA)
17   Cole Kodsi Junior F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 2000-06-17 Delray Beach, Florida Bentley (AHA)
18   Ville Immonen Senior F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1999-06-18 Seinäjoki, Finland Minot (NAHL)
19   Liam Robertson Senior F 6' 2" (1.88 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 2000-05-14 Courtice, Ontario Youngstown (USHL)
20   Eli Pilosof Freshman F 5' 10" (1.78 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 2002-06-10 Toronto, Ontario Pickering (OJHL)
21   John Prokop Sophomore D 6' 3" (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2001-05-13 Wausau, Wisconsin Des Moines (USHL)
22   Jacob Jeannette Freshman F 6' 1" (1.85 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 2002-12-13 Duluth, Minnesota Tri-City (USHL)
23   Joseph Messina Freshman D 5' 9" (1.75 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2002-02-01 Woodbridge, Ontario Langley (BCHL)
24   Nate Hanley Sophomore F 5' 11" (1.8 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2002-05-30 Rocky Point, New York Cedar Rapids (USHL)
26   Nathan Kelly Senior D 6' 0" (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2000-11-22 South Delta, British Columbia Chilliwack (BCHL)
27   Ben Tupker (C) Senior F 6' 3" (1.91 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1999-12-23 Collingwood, Ontario Cornell (ECAC)
28   Caden Villegas Junior F 5' 8" (1.73 m) 167 lb (76 kg) 2001-02-19 Plano, Texas Tri-City (USHL)
30   Aksel Reid Freshman G 6' 1" (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 2003-08-05 Minneapolis, Minnesota Springfield (NAHL)
35   Joe Sharib Junior G 5' 11" (1.8 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 2001-08-16 Natick, Massachusetts Connecticut (NCDC)
36   Kyle Chauvette Sophomore G 6' 1" (1.85 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 2001-10-05 Goffstown, New Hampshire Youngstown (USHL)

Standings edit

Conference record Overall record
GP W L T OTW OTL SW PTS GF GA GP W L T GF GA
#8 Quinnipiac 22 17 4 1 0 2 0 54 99 39 39 27 10 2 159 79
#12 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
Exhibition
October 7 3:00 pm at Rensselaer* Houston Field HouseTroy, New York (Exhibition) ESPN+   T 2–2 SOL  
Regular Season
October 8 7:00 pm at Army* Tate RinkWest Point, New York FloHockey Chauvette W 6–0  2,033 1–0–0
October 13 9:00 pm at Colorado College* Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado SOCO CW Chauvette L 3–7  3,607 1–1–0
October 14 7:00 pm at Colorado College* Ed Robson ArenaColorado Springs, Colorado   Chauvette L 2–6  3,611 1–2–0
October 20 7:00 pm Connecticut* Achilles RinkSchenectady, New York ESPN+ Chauvette W 4–1  2,100 2–2–0
October 21 4:00 pm Connecticut* Achilles RinkSchenectady, New York ESPN+ Chauvette L 0–5  1,821 2–3–0
November 3 7:00 pm Rensselaer Achilles RinkSchenectady, New York (Rivalry) ESPN+ Reid L 6–8  1,979 2–4–0 (0–1–0)
November 4 7:00 pm at Rensselaer Houston Field HouseTroy, New York (Rivalry) ESPN+ Chauvette W 5–1  3,250 3–4–0 (1–1–0)
November 10 7:00 pm at St. Lawrence Appleton ArenaCanton, New York ESPN+ Chauvette W 4–3  1,150 4–4–0 (2–1–0)
November 11 4:00 pm at Clarkson Cheel ArenaPotsdam, New York ESPN+ Chauvette L 1–4  2,621 4–5–0 (2–2–0)
November 24 7:00 pm Stonehill* Achilles RinkSchenectady, New York ESPN+ Chauvette W 5–2  1,283 5–5–0
November 25 7:00 pm Stonehill* Achilles RinkSchenectady, New York ESPN+ Chauvette W 4–0  1,115 6–5–0
December 1 7:00 pm Princeton Achilles RinkSchenectady, New York ESPN+ Chauvette W 7–2  1,338 7–5–0 (3–2–0)
December 2 4:00 pm #5 Quinnipiac Achilles RinkSchenectady, New York ESPN+ Chauvette L 0–5  1,532 7–6–0 (3–3–0)
December 6 7:00 pm #8 Maine* Achilles RinkSchenectady, New York ESPN+ Chauvette L 1–3  1,192 7–7–0
December 8 7:00 pm at Vermont* Gutterson FieldhouseBurlington, Vermont ESPN+ Sharib W 5–4  2,061 8–7–0
December 9 7:00 pm at Vermont* Gutterson FieldhouseBurlington, Vermont ESPN+ Sharib L 1–4  2,122 8–8–0
December 30 7:00 pm at Bentley* Bentley ArenaWaltham, Massachusetts FloHockey Chauvette L 3–4  1,275 8–9–0
January 5 7:00 pm Brown Achilles RinkSchenectady, New York ESPN+ Chauvette L 2–3  1,822 8–10–0 (3–4–0)
January 6 4:00 pm Yale Achilles RinkSchenectady, New York ESPN+ Chauvette L 2–4  1,904 8–11–0 (3–5–0)
January 12 7:00 pm Clarkson Achilles RinkSchenectady, New York ESPN+ Chauvette W 5–1  2,056 9–11–0 (4–5–0)
January 13 4:00 pm St. Lawrence Achilles RinkSchenectady, New York ESPN+ Chauvette T 2–2 SOW 1,684 9–11–1 (4–5–1)
January 19 7:00 pm at Dartmouth Thompson ArenaHanover, New Hampshire ESPN+ Chauvette W 5–1  1,429 10–11–1 (5–5–1)
January 20 7:00 pm at Harvard Bright-Landry Hockey CenterBoston, Massachusetts ESPN+ Chauvette W 5–4  3,095 11–11–1 (6–5–1)
January 27 6:00 pm vs. Rensselaer* MVP ArenaAlbany, New York (Mayor's Cup)   Chauvette W 5–3  5,698 12–11–1
February 2 7:00 pm at Yale Ingalls RinkNew Haven, Connecticut ESPN+ Chauvette L 1–3  1,371 12–12–1 (6–6–1)
February 3 7:00 pm at Brown Meehan AuditoriumProvidence, Rhode Island ESPN+ Chauvette T 4–4 SOW 330 12–12–2 (6–6–2)
February 9 7:00 pm Colgate Achilles RinkSchenectady, New York ESPN+ Chauvette W 5–3  1,992 13–12–2 (7–6–2)
February 10 7:00 pm #13 Cornell Achilles RinkSchenectady, New York ESPN+ Chauvette L 1–6  2,230 13–13–2 (7–7–2)
February 16 7:00 pm at #9 Quinnipiac M&T Bank ArenaHamden, Connecticut ESPN+ Chauvette L 2–6  3,076 13–14–2 (7–8–2)
February 17 7:00 pm at Princeton Hobey Baker Memorial RinkPrinceton, New Jersey ESPN+ Chauvette T 2–2 SOL 1,196 13–14–3 (7–8–3)
February 23 7:00 pm at Harvard Achilles RinkSchenectady, New York ESPN+ Chauvette W 6–2  2,197 14–14–3 (8–8–3)
February 24 4:00 pm Dartmouth Achilles RinkSchenectady, New York ESPN+ Chauvette L 4–5  2,024 14–15–3 (8–9–3)
March 1 7:00 pm at #13 Cornell Lynah RinkIthaca, New York ESPN+ Chauvette W 3–2  3,855 15–15–3 (9–9–3)
March 2 7:00 pm at Colgate Class of 1965 ArenaHamilton, New York ESPN+ Chauvette L 3–4  1,100 15–16–3 (9–10–3)
ECAC Hockey Tournament
March 9 4:00 pm Brown* Achilles RinkSchenectady, New York (First Round) ESPN+ Chauvette W 6–0  2,035 16–16–3
March 15 7:00 pm at Dartmouth* Thompson ArenaHanover, New Hampshire (Quarterfinal Game 1) ESPN+ Chauvette L 1–3  1,625 16–17–3
March 16 7:00 pm at Dartmouth* Thompson ArenaHanover, New Hampshire (Quarterfinal Game 2) ESPN+ Chauvette L 2–4  2,007 16–18–3
*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
John Prokop D 36 8 27 35 43
Caden Villegas F 37 12 18 30 4
Josh Nixon RW 36 9 18 27 33
Nate Hanley C 37 4 22 26 10
Brandon Buhr F 35 11 13 24 4
Ville Immonen C 36 8 16 24 18
Liam Robertson C 34 10 13 23 20
Chaz Smedsrud LW 37 14 8 22 6
Ben Tupker LW 34 9 10 19 24
Cullen Ferguson D 37 3 15 18 60
Tyler Watkins F 36 8 8 16 4
Carter Korpi F 35 10 3 13 36
Colby MacArthur RW 29 4 6 10 4
Nathan Kelly D 35 1 7 8 23
Nick Young D 37 2 5 7 26
Jacob Jeannette RW 33 0 7 7 37
Cal Mell D 35 0 7 7 12
Ethan Benz F 15 4 1 5 10
D. J. Hart D 22 1 4 5 25
Cole Kodsi LW 16 3 1 4 8
Joseph Messina D 22 1 3 4 10
Joey Potter D 21 0 3 3 4
Thomas Richter F 2 1 0 1 0
Eli Pilosof C 1 0 0 0 2
Aksel Reid G 1 0 0 0 0
Josh Phillips D 2 0 0 0 2
Joe Sharib G 4 0 0 0 0
Kyle Chauvette G 36 0 0 0 0
Total 123 215 338 433

[6]

Goaltending statistics edit

Name Games Minutes Wins Losses Ties Goals Against Saves Shut Outs SV % GAA
Joe Sharib 4 135:27 1 1 0 5 60 0 .923 2.21
Aksel Reid 1 21:39 0 1 0 1 4 0 .800 2.77
Kyle Chauvette 36 2044:28 15 16 3 104 865 3 .893 3.05
Empty Net - 39:08 - - - 11 - - - -
Total 37 2240:42 16 18 3 121 929 3 .885 3.24

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 Today 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 Today did not release a poll in week 12.

References edit

  1. ^ "Union drops Dutchmen/Dutchwomen nickname, to be known as Garnet Chargers moving forward". USCHO. August 4, 2023. Retrieved August 11, 2023.
  2. ^ Singelais, Mark (August 3, 2023). "Union changes nickname to Garnet Chargers". Albany Times Union. Retrieved September 20, 2023.
  3. ^ "Union Men's Hockey History & Tradition". Union Garnet Chargers. Retrieved April 17, 2024.
  4. ^ "Men's Ice Hockey Roster". Union College.
  5. ^ "2023-24 Men's Ice Hockey Schedule". Union Garnet Chargers. Retrieved August 11, 2023.
  6. ^ "Union College 2023-2024 Skater Stats". Elite Prospects. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
  7. ^ "USCHO Division I Men's Poll". USCHO.com. Retrieved November 26, 2019.