| RPI Engineers men's ice hockey | |
|---|---|
 Current season | |
 | |
| University | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute |
| Conference | ECAC |
| First season | 1901–02 |
| Head coach | Eric Lang 1st season |
| Assistant coaches |
|
| Arena | Houston Field House Troy, New York |
| Colors | Cherry and white[1] |
| NCAA tournament champions | |
| 1954,1985 | |
| NCAA tournament Frozen Four | |
| 1953,1954,1961,1964,1985 | |
| NCAA tournament appearances | |
| 1953,1954,1961,1964,1984,1985,1994,1995,2011 | |
| Conference tournament champions | |
| ECAC: 1984, 1985, 1995 | |
| Conference regular season champions | |
| TSL: 1952, 1953, 1954, 1957, 1969, 1972 ECAC: 1984, 1985 | |
| Current uniform | |
 | |
TheRPI Engineers men's ice hockey team is aNational Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)Division Icollege ice hockey program that representsRensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI). The Engineers are a member ofECAC Hockey conference and play their home games atHouston Field House inTroy, New York.[2][3]
Men's ice hockey at RPI dates back to 1901 and is one of the oldest programs in the United States.[4] The team played as an independent NCAA Division I team from its inception in 1901 through 1938.[4] The team resumed afterWorld War II for the 1949–50 season, and in the following season Rensselaer joinedClarkson,Colgate,Middlebury,St. Lawrence, andWilliams to form the Tri-State League for the 1950–51 season.[4] The next three seasons, the 1952–1954 team won the Tri-State League season championships. RPI's first NCAA tournament berth in1953, coming in third, and the following season in 1954 the team won its firstNCAA Men's Division I Ice Hockey Championship.[4] After a six-year drought the program again made the NCAA tournament in 1961, finishing fourth.[4] The 1960–61 season would be the last season RPI competed in the Tri-State League, as RPI and fellow Tri-State League members Clarkson and St. Lawrence joined the newECAC Hockey League.[5]
Depending on how the rules are interpreted, the RPI men's ice hockey team may have the longest winning streak on record for a Division I team; in the 1984–85 season it went undefeated for 30 games, but one game was against theUniversity of Toronto, a non-NCAA team. Continuing into the 1985–86 season, RPI continued undefeated over 38 games, including two wins over Toronto.[6]Adam Oates andDaren Puppa, two players during that time, both went on to become stars in the NHL.Joe Juneau, who played from 1987 to 1991, also spent many years in the NHL.Graeme Townshend, who also played in the late 1980s, had a brief NHL career. He is the first person ofJamaican ancestry to play in theNational Hockey League.
The hockey team plays a significant role in the campus's culture, drawing thousands of fans each week to theHouston Field House during the season. The team's popularity even sparked the tradition of the hockey line, where students lined up for season tickets months in advance of the on-sale date. Today, the line generally begins a week or more before ticket sales.[7] Another tradition since 1978 has been the "Big Red Freakout!" game held close to the first weekend of February. Fans usually dress in the schools colors Red and White, and gifts such as tee-shirts are distributed en masse.
From 1995 to 2009, RPI's Division III teams were known as the Red Hawks. However the hockey, football, cross-country, tennis, and track and field teams all chose to retain the longstanding Engineers name. The Red Hawks name was, at the time, very unpopular among the student body; a Red Hawk mascot was frequently taunted with thrown concessions and chants of "kill the chicken!" This was a major factor behind "Engineers" being restored for all teams in 2009.
The official hockey mascot, The Puckman–an anthropomorphic hockey puck with an engineer's helmet–has always been popular.
The RPI Engineers men's ice hockey typically plays between 35 and 42 regular season games per season in the ECAC Hockey Conference. They also usually play one exhibition game against aCanadian college hockey team fromOntario,Nova Scotia, orQuebec. During the season, RPI will play 22 conference games against the other 11 teams in the ECAC. RPI will play each team home game at theHouston Field House and each away game at the respective university's campus. The conference games are typically played on Friday and Saturday nights, with the ECAC scheduling reflecting theIvy League scheduling of having traveling partners. RPI's travel partner has beenUnion College since they joined the league in the1991-92 season. They also play 10-12 non-conference games against teams not in the ECAC. These games typically take place at the beginning of the season in October and around theThanksgiving andNew Year holidays. RPI also plays one non-conference game against theirCapital District geographic rival,Union, at theTimes Union Center, typically on the last Saturday of January in what has become known as the Mayor's Cup. RPI has opened ECAC Hockey conference play on the last weekend of October against Union since the 2012–13 season. The first conference home game is known as Black Friday or Black Saturday which alternates each year. Other highlights of the season include the Big Red Freakout, which is played on the last or second to last Saturday home game in February.
At the conclusion of the regular season the team will play a minimum of two postseason games in theECAC Hockey men's ice hockey tournament in the beginning of March. If RPI wins the ECAC Tournament or is invited to theNCAA tournament as an at-large team, they would then play at least one postseason game in late March in the single elimination tournament. RPI last played in theNCAA tournament in2011.
Source:[8]
As of the completion of2018–19 season[9]
| School | Team | Away Arena | Overall record | Win % | Last Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brown University | Bears | Meehan Auditorium | 63–30–9 | .662 | 0-3 L |
| Clarkson University | Golden Knights | Cheel Arena | 51–97–11 | .355 | 2-5 L |
| Colgate University | Raiders | Class of 1965 Arena | 65–63–5 | .508 | 1-2 L (OT) |
| Cornell University | Big Red | Lynah Rink | 38–63–11 | .388 | 3-2 W |
| Dartmouth College | Big Green | Thompson Arena | 46–42–11 | .520 | 2-5 L |
| Harvard University | Crimson | Bright-Landry Hockey Center | 37–58–8 | .398 | 1-3 L |
| Princeton University | Tigers | Hobey Baker Memorial Rink | 69–37–11 | .637 | 6-2 W |
| Quinnipiac University | Bobcats | People's United Center | 7–17–9 | .348 | 1-2 |
| St. Lawrence University | Saints | Appleton Arena | 60–83–7 | .423 | 6-5 W |
| Union College | Dutchmen | Achilles Rink | 53–40–11 | .563 | 0-0 T |
| Yale University | Bulldogs | Ingalls Rink | 57–52–6 | .522 | 0-4 L |
As of the completion of 2024–25 season[10]
| Tenure | Coach | Years | Record | Pct. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1901–1904, 1906–1917, 1923–1924 | No Coach | 15 | 14–34–3 | .304 |
| 1917–1923 | Leroy Clark | 6 | 3–17–1 | .167 |
| 1924–1925 | W. J. Cook | 1 | 2–2–0 | .500 |
| 1925–1931, 1936–1937 | Marvin Callan | 8 | 6–20–2 | .250 |
| 1949–1963 | Ned Harkness | 14 | 176–96–7 | .643 |
| 1963–1964 | Rube Bjorkman | 1 | 18–8–0 | .692 |
| 1964–1969 | Garry Kearns | 5 | 44–63–4 | .414 |
| 1969–1972 | Leon Abbott | 3 | 41–31–4 | .566 |
| 1972–1979 | Jim Salfi | 7 | 103–94–7 | .522 |
| 1979–1989 | Mike Addesa | 10 | 186–124–9 | .597 |
| 1989–1994 | Buddy Powers | 5 | 94–63–13 | .591 |
| 1994–2006 | Dan Fridgen | 12 | 211–193–38 | .520 |
| 2006–2017 | Seth Appert | 11 | 152–221–48 | .418 |
| 2017–2025 | Dave Smith | 7 | 87–152–19 | .374 |
| Totals | 13 coaches | 105 seasons | 1,137–1,118–156 | .504 |
As of August 19, 2025.[11]
| No. | Nat. | Player | Class | Pos | Height | Weight | DoB | Hometown | Previous team | NHL rights |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 |  | Jimmy Goffredo | Sophomore | D | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | 2003-04-24 | Mount Laurel, New Jersey | Des Moines Buccaneers (USHL) | — |
| 4 |  | Matthew Jovanovic | Freshman | D | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 201 lb (91 kg) | 2004-09-22 | Toronto, Ontario | Saginaw Spirit (OHL) | — |
| 5 | | Kazimier Sobieski | Sophomore | D | 6' 1" (1.85 m) | 181 lb (82 kg) | 2004-04-12 | Deerfield, Massachusetts | Sioux Falls Stampede (USHL) | — |
| 6 |  | Thomas Klassek | Freshman | D | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 183 lb (83 kg) | 2005-02-18 | Klagenfurt, Austria | EC KAC (ICEHL) | — |
| 8 | | Gunnar VanDamme | Junior | F | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 182 lb (83 kg) | 2002-12-08 | Pittsford, New York | Alaska Anchorage (NCAA) | — |
| 9 | | Ethan Bono | Sophomore | F | 6' 3" (1.91 m) | 201 lb (91 kg) | 2004-01-15 | Port McNeill, British Columbia | Merrimack (HEA) | — |
| 10 |  | Gustavs Ozoliņš | Sophomore | D | 5' 10" (1.78 m) | 181 lb (82 kg) | 2003-06-19 | Riga, Latvia | Minnesota Wilderness (NAHL) | — |
| 11 | | Rainers Rullers | Sophomore | F | 6' 4" (1.93 m) | 194 lb (88 kg) | 2004-12-11 | Riga, Latvia | Madison Capitols (USHL) | — |
| 14 | | Trevor Russell | Graduate | D | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 197 lb (89 kg) | 2000-02-02 | Old Hickory, Tennessee | Michigan Tech (CCHA) | — |
| 16 | | Lucas Lemieux | Freshman | D | 6' 4" (1.93 m) | 201 lb (91 kg) | 2005-09-29 | Edmonton, Alberta | Trail Smoke Eaters (BCHL) | — |
| 18 | | Tyler Wallace | Junior | F | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 188 lb (85 kg) | 2002-05-19 | Calgary, Alberta | Niagara (AHA) | — |
| 19 | | Jackson Kyrkostas | Freshman | F | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | 2004-08-19 | Windham, New Hampshire | West Kelowna Warriors (BCHL) | — |
| 21 | | Matthew Buckley | Freshman | F | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 183 lb (83 kg) | 2005-05-21 | Oakville, Ontario | Oshawa Generals (OHL) | — |
| 22 | | Landen Hilditch | Freshman | D | 6' 4" (1.93 m) | 201 lb (91 kg) | 2005-08-17 | Surrey, British Columbia | Penticton Vees (BCHL) | — |
| 24 | | Jack Gorton | Junior | F | 6' 3" (1.91 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | 2002-02-13 | Granite Springs, New York | Boston University (HEA) | — |
| 25 | | Dovar Tinling | Senior (RS) | F | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | 2003-03-03 | Pointe-Claire, Quebec | Penticton Vees (BCHL) | — |
| 27 | | Cole Gordon | Sophomore | F | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | 2002-12-09 | Windsor, Colorado | Arizona State (NCHC) | — |
| 30 | | Nate Krawchuk | Freshman | G | 6' 3" (1.91 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | 2005-07-04 | Thunder Bay, Ontario | Sudbury Wolves (OHL) | — |
| 32 | | Carson Dorfman | Sophomore | G | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 179 lb (81 kg) | 2003-10-06 | Hermitage, Tennessee | Sioux City Musketeers (USHL) | — |
| 33 | | Bruno Brūveris | Junior | G | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | 2002-03-09 | Riga, Latvia | Cedar Rapids RoughRiders (USHL) | — |
| 43 | | Brad McNeil | Junior | F | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 181 lb (82 kg) | 2002-03-15 | Royal Oak, Michigan | Maryland Black Bears (NAHL) | — |
| 49 |  | Filip Sitar | Sophomore | F | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 183 lb (83 kg) | 2005-06-29 | Ljubljana, Slovenia | Malmö Redhawks J20 (J20 Nationell) | — |
| 61 | | Lucas Matta | Senior | D | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | 2002-10-04 | Kleinburg, Ontario | Western Michigan (BCHL) | — |
| 72 | | Jagger Tapper | Sophomore | F | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | 2004-10-01 | Calgary, Alberta | Okotoks Oilers (BCHL) | — |
| 82 | | Mathieu Bourgault | Freshman (RS) | F | 6' 2" (1.88 m) | 176 lb (80 kg) | 2003-03-31 | Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville, Quebec | Bismarck Bobcats (NAHL) | — |
| 86 |  | Alfred Lindberg | Junior | F | 5' 11" (1.8 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | 2002-01-28 | Hallsberg, Sweden | American International (AHA) | — |
| 91 | | Ian Scherzer | Freshman | F | 6' 0" (1.83 m) | 192 lb (87 kg) | 2005-07-03 | Villach, Austria | Madison Capitols (USHL) | — |
| 93 | | Luc Wilson | Graduate | F | 5' 8" (1.73 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | 2001-11-22 | Duncan, British Columbia | Minnesota State (CCHA) | — |
Source:[12]
| Player | Years | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frank Chiarelli | 1951–1955 | 80 | 155 | 110 | 265 | 43 |
| John Carter | 1982–1986 | 131 | 117 | 108 | 225 | 207 |
| Adam Oates | 1982–1985 | 98 | 66 | 150 | 216 | 52 |
| Bob Brinkworth | 1961–1964 | 71 | 110 | 106 | 216 | 20 |
| Joé Juneau | 1987–1991 | 124 | 69 | 144 | 213 | 157 |
| Paul Midghall | 1956–1959 | 63 | 93 | 118 | 211 | 118 |
| Abbie Moore | 1951–1954 | 61 | 102 | 104 | 206 | 22 |
| Bryan Richardson | 1992–1996 | 141 | 80 | 113 | 193 | 146 |
| Jerry Knightley | 1962–1965 | 71 | 90 | 97 | 187 | 99 |
| Mark Jooris | 1982–1986 | 117 | 84 | 99 | 183 | 70 |
GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; SV% =Save percentage; GAA =Goals against average
Minimum 30 games
| Player | Years | GP | Min | W | L | T | GA | SO | SV% | GAA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Owen Savory | 2018–2021 | 49 | 2839 | 18 | 24 | 5 | 107 | 6 | .929 | 2.26 |
| Jason Kasdorf | 2012–2016 | 88 | 5025 | 38 | 37 | 9 | 200 | 7 | .920 | 2.39 |
| Allen York | 2008–2011 | 83 | 4898 | 37 | 34 | 8 | 202 | 4 | .914 | 2.47 |
| Nathan Marsters | 2000–2004 | 115 | 6638 | 57 | 50 | 6 | 282 | 10 | .917 | 2.55 |
| Bryce Merriam | 2009–2013 | 56 | 3102 | 18 | 30 | 5 | 134 | 3 | .903 | 2.59 |
| Joel Laing | 1996–2000 | 90 | 5345 | 52 | 31 | 6 | 231 | 13 | .926 | 2.59 |
Statistics current through the end of the 2022–23 season.
Hockey Hall of Fame[edit]Source:[13]
| United States Hockey Hall of Fame[edit]Source:[14]
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AHCA Second Team All-Americans
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| Most Outstanding Player in tournament
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This is a list of Rensselaer alumni were a part of anOlympic team.
| Name | Position | Rensselaer Tenure | Team | Year | Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joé Juneau | Left Wing | 1987–1991 | CAN | 1992 |  Silver |
| Marty Dallman | Center | 1980–1984 | AUT | 1994 | 12th |
| Maurizio Mansi | Right Wing | 1984–1988 |  ITA | 1994,1998 | 9th, 12th |
| Mathias Lange | Goaltender | 2005–2009 | AUT | 2014 | 10th |
| Miloš Bubela | Forward | 2012–2016 |  SVK | 2018 | 11th |
As of July 1, 2025.[15]
| =NHL All-Star team | =NHL All-Star[16] | =NHL All-Star[16] andNHL All-Star team | =Hall of Famers |
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