2021–22 Brown Bears men's ice hockey season Ice hockey season
The 2021–22 Brown Bears Men's ice hockey season was the 104th season of play for the program and the 60th in the ECAC Hockey conference. The Bears represented Brown University and were coached by Brendan Whittet , in his 12th season.
Season
Brown's return to the ice after losing the entire 20–21 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic began well with Luke Kania posting a shutout in the opening match. Afterwards, the Bears took a sharp turn downwards and lost seven straight games. In the stretch neither Kania nor freshman Mathieu Caron played particularly well but the later did perform better overall so the team began to lean more towards Caron as the starter. The biggest problem for Brown was their woeful offense that was shutout in three of those games and would remain inadequate for the remainder of the season.
In early December, Brown finally ended its losing streak when Caron posted back-to-back shutouts with the first coming in surprise fashion against Harvard , a team that would eventually make the NCAA tournament. The short winning streak ended shortly thereafter and the team tried to turn back to Kania but the results were very poor.
An uptick in the number of positive COVID-19 tests in January caused several of Brown's games to be postponed. When they finally got back onto the ice later in the month, Brendan Whittet had settled on Caron as the team's starter and he kept the team in several games, giving them multiple chances to post victories. In their final 14 games, Brown went 3–7–4, a poor record but good enough to get the Bears out of the conference cellar.
The Bears ended the year in 9th place and set them up against St. Lawrence in the First Round of the conference tournament. After losing the first game, Brown fought back to tie the series with an overtime victory and then built a 3–1 lead midway through the deciding match. Unfortunately, the Bears couldn't hold the advantage and after the Saints tied the game things looked bleak for the Brunos. While the game went into overtime, Brown had not scored more than three goals all season. To continue their campaign, the offense would have to rise to the occasion. However, before the Bears had a chance to generate any opportunities, St. Lawrence scored on the first shot of the extra period and ended Brown's season.
Departures
Recruiting
Roster
As of August 19, 2021.[ 1]
No.
S/P/C
Player
Class
Pos
Height
Weight
DoB
Hometown
Previous team
NHL rights
1
James Durham
Sophomore
G
6' 2" (1.88 m)
195 lb (88 kg)
1999-03-27
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Des Moines (USHL )
—
2
Luke Krys
Junior
D
6' 2" (1.88 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
2000-09-27
Ridgefield, Connecticut
Muskegon (USHL )
—
3
Luke Albert
Junior
D
6' 2" (1.88 m)
201 lb (91 kg)
1998-08-17
Fergus, Ontario
Bonnyville (AJHL )
—
4
Brett Bliss
Freshman
D
6' 2" (1.88 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
2001-12-29
Chelmsford, Massachusetts
Surrey (BCHL )
—
7
Justin Jallen
Junior
F
5' 9" (1.75 m)
178 lb (81 kg)
1998-01-06
St. Paul, Minnesota
Northeast (NAHL )
—
8
Thomas Manty
Freshman
F
5' 10" (1.78 m)
175 lb (79 kg)
2000-02-04
Andover, Massachusetts
Aberdeen (NAHL )
—
9
Connor Marshall
Junior
F
5' 11" (1.8 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
1998-10-10
Parkland, Florida
Northeast (NAHL )
—
10
Jonny Russell
Junior
F
5' 11" (1.8 m)
173 lb (78 kg)
1998-01-31
Traverse City, Michigan
Des Moines (USHL )
—
11
Nathan Plessis
Junior
F
6' 4" (1.93 m)
205 lb (93 kg)
1998-02-28
Salmon Arm, British Columbia
Brooks (AJHL )
—
12
Matt Sutton
Sophomore
F
5' 11" (1.8 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
2001-05-26
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Omaha (USHL )
—
13
Lynden Grandberg
Freshman
F
6' 0" (1.83 m)
173 lb (78 kg)
2001-05-21
Calgary, Alberta
Camrose (AJHL )
—
14
Spence Evans
Freshman
D
6' 3" (1.91 m)
195 lb (88 kg)
2002-04-29
Oyster Bay Cove, New York
Johnstown (NAHL )
—
15
Tony Andreozzi
Sophomore
D
5' 11" (1.8 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
2000-04-16
Winchester, Massachusetts
Salmon Arm (BCHL )
—
16
Tristan Crozier (C )
Senior
F
5' 11" (1.8 m)
184 lb (83 kg)
1998-02-23
Calgary, Alberta
Nanaimo (BCHL )
—
17
Bradley Cocca
Junior
F
5' 8" (1.73 m)
170 lb (77 kg)
1999-08-13
Toronto, Ontario
Merritt (BCHL )
—
18
Jake Harris
Senior
F
5' 9" (1.75 m)
177 lb (80 kg)
1998-04-10
Toronto, Ontario
Nanaimo (BCHL )
—
19
Samuli Niinisaari
Junior
D
6' 1" (1.85 m)
187 lb (85 kg)
1998-08-11
Hamina, Finland
Lincoln (USHL )
—
20
Noah Wakeford
Freshman
F
5' 8" (1.73 m)
175 lb (79 kg)
2000-06-29
Okotoks, Alberta
Trail (BCHL )
—
21
Wyatt Schlaht
Freshman
F
6' 2" (1.88 m)
200 lb (91 kg)
2000-06-04
Cherry Hills Village, Colorado
Surrey (BCHL )
—
22
Matty Holmes
Junior
F
6' 2" (1.88 m)
200 lb (91 kg)
1999-02-22
Rye, New York
Chilliwack (BCHL )
—
23
Jackson Munro
Freshman
D
5' 11" (1.8 m)
180 lb (82 kg)
2000-02-11
Vancouver, British Columbia
Chilliwack (BCHL )
—
24
Dorian Dawson
Senior
D
6' 2" (1.88 m)
205 lb (93 kg)
1997-05-29
Collingwood, Ontario
Sioux City (USHL )
—
25
Michael Maloney
Senior
F
5' 10" (1.78 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
1998-02-17
McHenry, Illinois
Omaha (USHL )
—
26
James Crossman
Junior
D
6' 3" (1.91 m)
200 lb (91 kg)
1998-11-23
Denver, Colorado
Jamestown (NAHL )
—
27
Jordan Tonelli
Sophomore
F
6' 0" (1.83 m)
180 lb (82 kg)
2000-06-30
Armonk, New York
Cedar Rapids (USHL )
—
28
Brenden Clark
Freshman
F
6' 0" (1.83 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
2002-01-16
Morris Plains, New Jersey
Johnstown (NAHL )
—
29
Cole Quisenberry
Junior
F
5' 11" (1.8 m)
180 lb (82 kg)
1999-03-22
Denver, Colorado
Chicago (USHL )
—
31
Mathieu Caron
Freshman
G
6' 0" (1.83 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
2000-03-29
Abbotsford, British Columbia
Chilliwack (BCHL )
—
33
Gabriel Vinal
Senior
G
6' 2" (1.88 m)
185 lb (84 kg)
1999-01-12
Syracuse, New York
Aberdeen (NAHL )
—
35
Luke Kania (A )
Graduate
G
6' 2" (1.88 m)
190 lb (86 kg)
1996-01-24
Chicago, Illinois
Minnesota Wilderness (NAHL )
—
Standings
Conference record
Overall record
GP
W
L
T
OTW
OTL
3/SW
PTS
GF
GA
GP
W
L
T
GF
GA
#8 Quinnipiac †
22
17
4
1
0
1
1
54
71
14
42
32
7
3
139
53
#17 Clarkson
22
14
4
4
0
2
3
51
86
47
37
21
10
6
123
85
#15 Harvard *
22
14
6
2
0
0
2
46
69
46
35
21
11
3
116
82
Cornell
22
12
6
4
2
1
0
39
73
47
32
18
10
4
100
72
Colgate
22
9
9
4
1
0
3
33
55
57
40
18
18
4
111
112
Rensselaer
22
10
12
0
0
0
0
30
58
63
44
18
23
3
114
119
Union
22
9
11
2
3
1
0
27
52
66
37
14
19
4
89
110
St. Lawrence
22
7
10
5
2
0
2
26
44
60
37
11
19
7
72
110
Brown
22
6
12
4
0
1
2
25
36
61
31
7
20
4
50
100
Princeton
22
7
14
1
0
1
0
23
54
89
31
8
21
2
70
122
Yale
22
7
14
1
3
1
1
21
38
60
30
8
21
1
55
90
Dartmouth
22
5
15
2
0
3
1
21
45
71
32
7
22
3
69
110
Championship : March 19, 2022 † indicates conference regular season champion (Cleary Cup ) * indicates conference tournament champion (Whitelaw Cup ) Rankings: USCHO.com Top 20 Poll
Schedule and results
Date
Time
Opponent#
Rank#
Site
TV
Decision
Result
Attendance
Record
Regular Season
October 30
7:00 PM
Yale
Meehan Auditorium • Providence , Rhode Island
Kania
W 2–0
743
1–0–0 (1–0–0)
November 5
7:00 PM
Princeton
Meehan Auditorium • Providence , Rhode Island
Kania
L 3–6
427
1–1–0 (1–1–0)
November 6
7:00 PM
#6 Quinnipiac
Meehan Auditorium • Providence , Rhode Island
Caron
L 0–1
383
1–2–0 (1–2–0)
November 19
7:00 PM
at #10 Cornell
Lynah Rink • Ithaca , New York
Caron
L 2–3 OT
2,362
1–3–0 (1–3–0)
November 20
7:30 PM
at Colgate
Class of 1965 Arena • Hamilton , New York
Caron
L 0–6
523
1–4–0 (1–4–0)
November 23
7:00 PM
at #16 Harvard
Bright-Landry Hockey Center • Boston , Massachusetts
Kania
L 2–5
1,498
1–5–0 (1–5–0)
November 26
2:05 PM
at Holy Cross *
Hart Center • Worcester , Massachusetts
Caron
L 1–5
261
1–6–0
November 27
7:00 PM
#14 Providence *
Meehan Auditorium • Providence , Rhode Island (Mayor's Cup )
NESN+
Kania
L 0–4
842
1–7–0
December 3
7:00 PM
#17 Harvard
Meehan Auditorium • Providence , Rhode Island
Caron
W 2–0
416
2–7–0 (2–5–0)
December 4
7:00 PM
Dartmouth
Meehan Auditorium • Providence , Rhode Island
Caron
W 4–0
357
3–7–0 (3–5–0)
December 7
7:00 PM
at Boston College *
Conte Forum • Chestnut Hill , Massachusetts
Caron
L 2–5
2,597
3–8–0
December 10
7:00 PM
at Yale
Ingalls Rink • New Haven , Connecticut
Kania
L 3–4
1,127
3–9–0 (3–6–0)
December 31
2:00 PM
Boston University *
Meehan Auditorium • Providence , Rhode Island
Kania
L 1–5
473
3–10–0
January 2
4:00 PM
Merrimack *
Meehan Auditorium • Providence , Rhode Island
Kania
L 1–7
160
3–11–0
January 21
7:00 PM
at Union
Achilles Rink • Schenectady , New York
Caron
L 1–3
1,493
3–12–0 (3–7–0)
January 22
7:00 PM
at Rensselaer
Houston Field House • Troy , New York
Caron
W 3–2
0
4–12–0 (4–7–0)
January 28
1:00 PM
at Princeton
Hobey Baker Memorial Rink • Princeton , New Jersey
Caron
L 1–6
0
4–13–0 (4–8–0)
January 30
4:00 PM
Long Island *
Meehan Auditorium • Providence , Rhode Island
Kania
L 3–4
170
4–14–0
February 1
3:00 PM
#11 Cornell
Meehan Auditorium • Providence , Rhode Island
Caron
W 2–1
262
5–14–0 (5–8–0)
February 4
7:00 PM
#20 Clarkson
Meehan Auditorium • Providence , Rhode Island
Caron
L 0–5
195
5–15–0 (5–9–0)
February 5
7:00 PM
St. Lawrence
Meehan Auditorium • Providence , Rhode Island
Caron
T 1–1 SOL
417
5–15–1 (5–9–1)
February 8
7:00 PM
at #2 Quinnipiac
People's United Center • Hamden , Connecticut
Caron
L 1–4
1,813
5–16–1 (5–10–1)
February 11
8:00 PM
at Dartmouth
Thompson Arena • Hanover , New Hampshire
Caron
W 3–2 OT
878
6–16–1 (6–10–1)
February 14
5:00 PM
Colgate
Meehan Auditorium • Providence , Rhode Island
Caron
T 1–1 SOL
207
6–16–2 (6–10–2)
February 18
7:00 PM
Rensselaer
Meehan Auditorium • Providence , Rhode Island
Caron
L 2–4
291
6–17–2 (6–11–2)
February 19
7:00 PM
Union
Meehan Auditorium • Providence , Rhode Island
Caron
T 2–2 SOW
537
6–17–3 (6–11–3)
February 25
7:00 PM
at St. Lawrence
Appleton Arena • Canton , New York
Caron
T 1–1 SOW
905
6–17–4 (6–11–4)
February 26
7:00 PM
at #17 Clarkson
Cheel Arena • Potsdam , New York
Caron
L 0–4
2,429
6–18–4 (6–12–4)
ECAC Hockey Tournament
March 4
7:00 PM
at St. Lawrence *
Appleton Arena • Canton, New York (First Round game 1)
Caron
L 1–4
1,142
6–19–4
March 5
7:00 PM
at St. Lawrence *
Appleton Arena • Canton, New York (First Round game 2)
Caron
W 2–1 OT
1,265
7–19–4
March 6
7:00 PM
at St. Lawrence *
Appleton Arena • Canton, New York (First Round game 3)
Caron
L 3–4 OT
894
7–20–4
Brown Lost Series 1–2
*Non-conference game. # Rankings from USCHO.com Poll . All times are in Eastern Time . Source:[ 2]
Scoring statistics
Name
Position
Games
Goals
Assists
Points
PIM
Justin Jallen
F
30
10
7
17
6
Tristan Crozier
F
26
6
9
15
23
Michael Maloney
F
31
10
3
13
18
Luke Krys
D
31
3
10
13
38
Samuli Niinisaari
D
29
1
11
12
10
Jake Harris
LW
30
3
7
10
8
Brett Bliss
D
30
2
7
9
18
Nathan Plessis
F
31
3
4
7
16
Thomas Manty
F
25
3
2
5
4
Jordan Tonelli
C /LW
26
3
2
5
14
Cole Quisenberry
F
19
2
3
5
6
Luke Albert
D
31
0
5
5
29
Jackson Munro
D
16
1
3
4
31
Matt Sutton
F
22
1
3
4
2
James Crossman
D
19
1
2
3
14
Lynden Grandberg
F
26
0
3
3
4
Wyatt Schlaht
F
28
0
3
3
16
Jonny Russell
RW
30
1
0
1
18
Tony Andreozzi
D
31
0
1
1
6
Gabriel Vinal
G
2
0
0
0
0
Spencer Evans
D
4
0
0
0
0
Luke Kania
G
9
0
0
0
0
Connor Marshall
F
10
0
0
0
0
Bradley Cocca
C
14
0
0
0
8
Brendan Clark
F
22
0
0
0
8
Noah Wakeford
F
23
0
0
0
2
Mathieu Caron
G
26
0
0
0
0
Bench
-
-
-
-
-
0
Total
50
85
135
299
[ 3]
Goaltending statistics
Name
Games
Minutes
Wins
Losses
Ties
Goals Against
Saves
Shut Outs
SV %
GAA
Mathieu Caron
26
1402
6
14
2
64
654
2
.911
2.74
Luke Kania
9
420
1
6
0
26
203
1
.886
3.71
Gabriel Vinal
2
48
0
0
0
4
20
0
.833
4.96
Empty Net
-
12
-
-
-
6
-
-
-
-
Total
31
1884
7
20
4
100
877
3
.898
3.19
Rankings
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 (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 week 24. [ 4]
References
Playing venues Head coaches Seasons Conference affiliations Rivalries Culture & lore All-time leaders Frozen Four appearances NCAA Tournament appearances