Offense has been hard to come by for Colgate for several seasons.
While the Raiders usually had solid defense and goaltending, their struggle to score put them at a disadvantage.
But it’s been a different story so far this year. Colgate enters its final weekend of the first half 25th in Division I in goals per game. That might seem like a modest output, but over the last six seasons the Raiders finished in the bottom ten nationally in scoring four times and never finished higher than 34th.
That offensive improvement can be tied to a number of upperclassmen producing at higher levels so far this season.
Junior Colton Young leads the Raiders and all ECAC players with nine goals and 17 points after only scoring one goal during the 2020-21 season.
“He’s gotten stronger,” Raiders coach Don Vaughan said of Young. “He had a great summer. He’s always been deceptively strong, but it’s really apparent now. He’s put on muscle and he’s making a ton of plays.”
After playing on a line with younger brother Alex last season, Colton has been skating with Ethan Manderville and Jeff Stewart, giving the Raiders a heavy second line.
“He’s had more confidence,” Vaughan said. “He’s on a mission, (and) he wants to prove that he can play at the next level.”
Graduate students Josh McKechney and Paul McAvoy have been important contributors. McKechney, a forward, is second on the Raiders in scoring and only three points shy of his career high in points. McAvoy has been a steady presence on the back end, although he hasn’t played since Oct. 30 due to an injury. Vaughan said he hopes to have him back in the lineup after the holiday beak.
The Raiders have seen improved production from other returners as well.
Sophomore and reigning top defensive defenseman Pierson Brandon has five goals this season after not scoring one during his freshman season, while junior Matt Verboon has as many goals (five) as he did during his first two collegiate seasons combined.
Despite the improved offense production so far this season, Colgate is looking to find some more consistency as its head north to face Clarkson and St. Lawrence this weekend. The Raiders are 8-8-0 but had four straight one-goal losses at the end of October and into November, including two in overtime.
Turnovers have plagued the Raiders during the games that they’ve struggled in.
“We’ve turned the puck over way too much,” Vaughan said of the losses. “We can’t do that against quality teams. We’re a team that wants to possess the puck, but we’ve got make sure we manage it as well. That is where the inconsistency has been. On the nights we’ve played well, we possessed the puck and been able to get it out of our own end cleaner.”
Colgate will need to be especially careful with the puck against Clarkson, a team that plays a heavy style of hockey. And while St. Lawrence has struggled in the early part of the season, the Saints rode strong goaltending and defense to an ECAC title last year.
Vaughan said the Raiders will focus on Clarkson this week and worry about preparing for St. Lawrence on Saturday. While some coaches might see that as a disadvantage, Vaughan is in favor of the league’s scheduling style.
“I’m in support of our conference and travel partner scheduling,” he said. “It’s the most balanced schedule that you can have in college hockey.”
