The following Cornell press release summarized the Cornell incoming class:
ITHACA, N.Y. -- Cornell head men's hockey coach Mike Schafer announced today that seven freshmen will be joining the Big Red when they enroll at the University in the fall. The group is broken down amongst five forwards and two defensemen.
"We're pleased with the outstanding group of freshmen who will get the opportunity to don the Big Red jersey in the fall," Schafer said. "The class has both size and talent and they are the kind of people we want to represent our program."
Forwards Kelly Hughes (Calgary, Alb.) and Jason Kuczmanski (Cheektowaga, N.Y.) lead the incoming freshmen after the two scored 78 and 77 points, respectively with their junior teams last year.
Hughes played for Victoria Salsa (BCHL) last year and recorded 28 goals and 50 assists in 60 games. He was his team's most improved player in 1998-99 and served as the team's captain this past season. The Salsa finished the 1999-2000 season on top of the Island Division of the Coastal Conference with a 36-20 regular-season record. At 6-3, 210, Kelly is a big power forward with soft hands. He is the oldest member of the incoming freshmen (DOB: 10-9-79) and will provide maturity in a relatively young class. He has a lot of character on the ice and, according to Schafer, plays the physical style that has become a Big Red trademark.
Kuczmanski (5-11, 185) led the Buffalo Lightning (OPJHL) in scoring this past year with 32 goals and 45 assists in 49 games. He was an OPJHL all-star selection and was voted his team's most valuable player. Jason is a skilled player who competes hard and is strong on his skates. Coach Schafer expects him to add depth to the Big Red's power-play unit.
Greg Hornby (Nanaimo, B.C.), Ryan Vesce (Lloyd Harbor, N.Y.) and Scott Krahn (Kelowna, B.C.) are three other forwards that are expected to make an impact with the Big Red.
Hornby (5-11, 200) may have led the Nanaimo Clippers (BCHL) in penalty minutes (154), but he was also one of the team's leading scorers with 51 points on 27 goals and 24 assists. A highly sought after recruit, six of his goals came on the power play, one was short-handed and four were game winners. He is a very physical player who possesses some good offensive talent. His team finished third in the Island Division but made a run in the postseason, defeating Kelly Hughes' team in the first round of the playoffs. The Clippers then went on to face the Chilliwack Chiefs (former team of current Big Red forward Shane Palahicky) and fell 3-2 in a hard-fought series. A hard worker, Hornby was selected to the BCHL all-star team at the end of the season.
Vesce led the New York Apple Core (former team of current Big Red defenseman Doug Murray) in scoring with 59 points on 28 goals and 31 assists in 38 games. He was ninth overall in scoring in the Eastern Junior Hockey League and was a league all-star. Vesce was also the captain of the of the U.S. Select-17 team that competed in Prague in 1999. He is a quick player with tremendous skills. For a player of his stature (5-8, 160), he plays a physical game and will go head-to-head with his opponents.
A highly skilled player who will add speed to the Big Red lineup, Krahn (5-8, 165) had 63 points (21 goals, 42 assists) for the Vernon Vipers (BCHL) this past season. Since joining the Vipers three seasons ago, Scott has increased his point production and was one of his team's leading scorers this year. His team won the Canadian National Junior Championships last year and lost in the provincial finals this season. Scott was also a member of the 1997 BC Select-16 team.
The Big Red's new defensemen are Ben Wallace (London, Ont.) and David Hughes (Great Neck, N.Y.).
Ben was one of the London Nationals' (WOJHL) (former team of current Big Red goalie Ian Burt) anchors on defense this past year, playing in nearly every game. In 50 games, he had four goals and 12 assists with just 25 penalty minutes. At 6-2, 190, he is a big, physical defenseman with good mobility. The youngest member of the incoming class (DOB: 6-6-82), the coaching staff looks for him to hit the weight room and get stronger before the start of the season.
David Hughes (5-10, 200) is familiar with the Big Red, as his father, John, was the captain of Cornell's 1970 undefeated and untied national championship team. David played for both the Rochester Americans (NAHL) and the Capital District (EJHL) teams last year and had four goals and four assists. He is a hard worker and needs to continue developing his skills as he makes the transition to Division I college hockey.
Ed. Note: David is also the older brother of Sarah Hughes, who may represent the US in figure skating at Salt Lake City in 2002.
The Big Red returns 21 veterans in 2000-01 and will look to make another run at the ECAC title. Cornell finished the 1999-2000 season with a 16-14-2 overall record and a fourth-place finish in the ECAC (10-9-1). The Big Red defeated Harvard in the best-of-three first round of the ECAC playoffs and then defeated Clarkson in the preliminary game in the championships at Lake Placid. The Big Red then lost to eventual champion St. Lawrence in overtime in the quarterfinals and fell to Colgate in the consolation game to finish fourth in the tournament.
Statistically, the Big Red was ranked among the nation's leaders in three team categories this past year. The Big Red's offense finished the year 20th in the nation with its 3.25 goals per game, while the defense held opponents to 2.69 goals per game, which was 17th nationally. The team was also ranked 17th in scoring margin with 0.56 goals per game more than its opponents. In his five years at the helm of the men's ice hockey program at Cornell, Schafer has coached his alma mater to an 85-63-17 record and two ECAC tournament championships.