Holy Cross Crusaders men's ice hockey

(Redirected from College of the Holy Cross men's ice hockey) College ice hockey team

Holy Cross Crusaders men's ice hockey
Current season

University	College of the Holy Cross
Conference	AHA NCAA Division I Division
Head coach	Bill Riga 4th season, 50–58–9 (.466)
Assistant coaches	Castan Sommer Drew Michals Connor Mauro
Arena	Hart Center Worcester, Massachusetts
Colors	Royal purple
NCAA Tournament appearances
2004, 2006
Conference Tournament championships
1999, 2004, 2006
Conference regular season championships
2003–04, 2005-06
Current uniform

The Holy Cross Crusaders men's ice hockey team is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I college ice hockey program that represents the College of the Holy Cross. The Crusaders are members of Atlantic Hockey America (AHA), formed shortly after the 2023–24 season by the merger of their former home of the Atlantic Hockey Association with the women-only College Hockey America. They play at the Hart Center in Worcester, Massachusetts.

History

Holy Cross men's ice hockey began in 1966 and a year later it joined ECAC 2. The Crusaders played in the second tier of college ice hockey for ten years before they played their first playoff game, but once they made it they didn't go very far. Over a six year period Holy Cross wen 2–5 in the conference postseason and never really got close to an NCAA tournament berth. When Division II ice hockey was abandoned in 1984 Holy Cross dropped down to Division III and was placed in ECAC East when ECAC 2 split. They made the ECAC tournament three out of four years under Peter Van Buskirk but couldn't manage a win. The team went through a down period under Bill Bellerose for six seasons but started winning again when Paul Pearl became head coach in 1994. After recording their best season in fifteen years Holy Cross promoted its program to Division I and joined the MAAC in 1998–99.

In their first year of D–I play Holy Cross won its first Conference Tournament, winning the inaugural MAAC Championship. Unfortunately, because the NCAA did not offer the MAAC an automatic bid at that time the Crusaders did not make the NCAA tournament. The next season Holy Cross dropped to seventh in the conference and lost 24 games over the course of the season (a program worst). After missing out on the conference tournament the next season Holy Cross returned to the playoffs for the final two years of the MAAC's existence before joining with all former MAAC programs in founding Atlantic Hockey.

Similar to their start with the MAAC, Holy Cross produced a great season, winning 22 games, and were able to win their first conference title. They then swept through the Atlantic Hockey playoffs and captured their second tournament championship, though this time they received a berth into the NCAA tournament for the first time.

Though their national championship experience was brief the Crusaders continued to play well and returned to the Championship in 2006 after winning both conference crowns. The met #2 overall seeded Minnesota in the first round and pushed the heavily favored Golden Gophers into overtime where Tyler McGregor scored 53 seconds in, winning what is usually noted as the biggest upset in tournament history.

Holy Cross would decline after their miraculous 2006 season, posting losing records for four consecutive years, but the program began to recover in the second decade of the 20th century. Paul Pearl resigned in 2014 and was replaced by David Berard who saw middling regular season results.

In the 2022-2023 regular season Holy Cross won their first Atlantic Hockey playoff round since the 2006 season against American International College. They would later upset Rochester Institute of Technology in the semifinals of the tournament but lose in the championship to Canisius.

Season-by-season results

Main article: List of Holy Cross Crusaders men's ice hockey seasons

Source:

Postseason

NCAA tournament results

The Crusaders have appeared in the NCAA tournament two times. Their combined record is 1–2.

Year	Seed	Round	Opponent	Results
2004	#4	West Regional semifinal	#1 North Dakota	L 3-0
2006	#4	West Regional semifinal West Regional Final	#1 Minnesota #2 North Dakota	W 4-3 (OT) L 5-2

Coaches

As of completion of 2023–24 season

Tenure	Coach	Years	Record	Pct.
2021–Present	Bill Riga	3	50–58–9	.466
2014–2021	David Berard	7	84–116–34	.432
1994–1996, 1997–2014	Paul Pearl	19	297–293–69	.503
1988–1994	Bill Bellerose	6	61–99–3	.383
1979–1988, 1996–1997	Peter Van Buskirk	10	167–146–8	.533
1976–1979	Mike Addesa	3	49–31–1	.611
1966–1976	Bill Kane	10	122–104–2	.539
Totals	7 coaches	58 seasons	830–847–126	.495

Awards and honors

NCAA

Individual Awards

Derek Hines Unsung Hero Award

Matt Vidal: 2016

Division I All-Americans

AHCA Second Team All-Americans

2023–24: Liam McLinskey, F

MAAC

Individual awards

Offensive Player of the Year

Patrick Rissmiller, F: 2002
Brandon Doria, F: 2003

Goaltender of the Year

Scott Simpson: 1999

Offensive Rookie of the Year

Tyler McGregor, F: 2003

Coach of the Year

Paul Pearl: 2002

Tournament Most Valuable Player

Mike Maguire, D: 1999

All-Conference teams

First Team All-MAAC

1998–99: Scott Simpson, G; Chris Fattey, F
2001–02: Patrick Rissmiller, F
2002–03: Brandon Doria, F

Second Team All-MAAC

1998–99: Mike Maguire, D
1999–00: Jim Whelan, D
2001–02: R. J. Irving, D; Brandon Doria, F

MAAC All-Rookie Team

1998–99: Patrick Rissmiller, F
2000–01: R. J. Irving, D; Greg Kealey, F
2002–03: Tyler McGregor, F

Atlantic Hockey

Individual awards

Player of the Year

Tyler McGregor: 2006
Liam McLinskey: 2024

Best Defensive Forward

Best Defenseman

Rob Godfrey: 2006
Jon Landry: 2007

Individual Sportsmanship Award

Tim Coskren: 2004
Tyler McGregor: 2006
James Sixsmith: 2007

Regular Season Goaltending Award

Regular Season Scoring Trophy

Tyler McGregor: 2006
Liam McLinskey: 2024

Best Defensive Forward

Greg Kealey, F: 2004
James Sixsmith, LW: 2006

Most Valuable Player in Tournament

Tyler McGregor: 2006

All-Conference teams

First Team All-Atlantic Hockey

2003–04: Jeff Dams, F
2004–05: Tyler McGregor, F
2005–06: Jon Landry, D; Tyler McGregor, F
2006–07: Jon Landry, D; James Sixsmith, F
2014–15: Matt Ginn, G
2017–18: Paul Berrafato, G
2023–24: Liam McLinskey, F

Second Team All-Atlantic Hockey

2003–04: Tony Quesada, G
2004–05: Pierre Napert-Frenette, F
2005–06: Tony Quesada, G; Pierre Napert-Frenette, F
2011–12: Adam Schmidt, F
2020–21: Matt Slick, D
2022–23: Jack Ricketts, F
2023–24: Jason Grande, G; Jack Ricketts, F

Third Team All-Atlantic Hockey

2007–08: Matt Burke, D; Brodie Sheahan, F
2016–17: Spencer Trapp, D; Danny Lopez, F
2021–22: Ryan Leibold, F
2022–23: Nick Hale, D

Atlantic Hockey All-Rookie Team

2003–04: James Sixsmith, F
2007–08: Mark Znutas, D; Everett Sheen, F
2010–11: Jeffrey Reppucci, F
2011–12: Matt Ginn, G
2012–13: Karl Beckman, D
2018–19: Matt Slick, D; Anthony Vincent, F
2022–23: Mack Oliphant, D
2023–24: Jack Stockfish, F

Statistical leaders

Source:

Career points leaders

Player	Years	GP	G	A	Pts
Joe Lunny	1982–1986		103	116	219
Jerry DeLeo	1982–1986		101	117	218
Larry Murphy	1966–1970		119	88	207
Matt Muniz	1982–1986		87	120	207
Glenn Graves	1973–1977		75	122	197
Gerry Curley	1977–1981		93	98	191
Bill Butler	1966–1969		91	89	180
Bill Bellerose	1973–1977		71	81	152
James Sixsmith	2003–2007	142	48	104	152
John Powell	1977–1981				147

Career goaltending leaders

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
Jason Grande	2022–2024	42	2413	25	13	3	87	2	.920	2.16
Tony Quesada	2002–2006	105	6034	61	33	8	251	7	.915	2.50
Paul Berrafato	2014–2018	114	6677	46	47	19	281	11	.911	2.51
Matt Ginn	2011–2015	129	7759	59	55	13	324	8	.917	2.51
Scott Simpson	1995–1999	38	1960	21	10	2	82	2	.903	2.51

Statistics current through the end of the 2023–24 season.

Holy Cross Varsity Club Hall of Fame

The following is a list of people associated with the Holy Cross men's ice hockey program who were elected into the Holy Cross Varsity Club Hall of Fame (induction date in parentheses).

Larry Murphy (1981)
Gerry Curley (1996)
Jim Stewart (1998)
Joe Lunny (1999)
Glenn Graves (2000)
Bill Bellerose (2002)
Dean Casagrande (2002)
Matt Muniz (2005)
Patrick Rissmiller (2010)
Tyler McGregor (2013)
Tony Quesada (2014)
James Sixsmith (2017)
Terrence Butt (2018)

Current roster

As of August 12, 2024.

No.	Player	Class	Pos	Height	Weight	DoB	Hometown	Previous team	NHL rights
1	Louden Hogg	Sophomore	G	5' 11" (1.8 m)	160 lb (73 kg)	2002-10-18	Cheyenne, Wyoming	Fargo Force (USHL)	—
2	Lachlan Getz	Junior	D	6' 3" (1.91 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	2002-02-01	Northfield, Illinois	Michigan Tech (CCHA)	—
3	Brody Gagno	Sophomore	D	6' 1" (1.85 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	2002-07-29	South Surrey, British Columbia	Surrey Eagles (BCHL)	—
5	Will Troutwine	Sophomore	D	6' 3" (1.91 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	2002-06-23	Eveleth, Minnesota	Janesville Jets (NAHL)	—
6	Timothy Heinke	Junior	F	6' 1" (1.85 m)	194 lb (88 kg)	2001-10-02	Kensington, Connecticut	Quinnipiac (ECAC)	—
7	Anthony Carone	Freshman	F	6' 1" (1.85 m)	183 lb (83 kg)	2003-07-30	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	Victoria Grizzlies (BCHL)	—
8	Ryan Buckley	Junior	D	6' 1" (1.85 m)	179 lb (81 kg)	2004-01-06	Warwick, Rhode Island	Alberni Valley Bulldogs (BCHL)	—
10	Liam McLinskey	Senior	F	6' 3" (1.91 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	2001-02-20	Pearl River, New York	Quinnipiac (ECAC)	—
11	Michael Abgrall	Junior	F	5' 11" (1.8 m)	172 lb (78 kg)	2003-10-25	Richmond, British Columbia	Omaha (NCHC)	—
12	Matt Kursonis	Freshman	F	6' 1" (1.85 m)	187 lb (85 kg)	2004-03-05	Worcester, Massachusetts	Alberni Valley Bulldogs (BCHL)	—
13	Will Elias	Sophomore	D	6' 0" (1.83 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	2003-01-28	Weston, Massachusetts	Cowichan Valley Capitals (BCHL)	—
14	Matt Shatsky	Senior	D	6' 0" (1.83 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	2001-04-29	Winnipeg, Manitoba	Sherwood Park Crusaders (AJHL)	—
15	Jarrod Smith	Freshman	F	5' 10" (1.78 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	2004-01-22	West Vancouver, British Columbia	Cranbrook Bucks (BCHL)	—
17	Matt DeBoer	Junior	F	6' 0" (1.83 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	2002-09-02	Las Vegas, Nevada	Green Bay Gamblers (USHL)	—
18	Ty Gagno	Sophomore	F	6' 2" (1.88 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	2003-10-01	Langley, British Columbia	Prince George Spruce Kings (BCHL)	—
19	Jack Stockfish	Sophomore	F	6' 4" (1.93 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	2002-09-30	North Bay, Ontario	Prince George Spruce Kings (BCHL)	—
20	Devin Phillips	Junior	F	5' 9" (1.75 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	2001-07-12	Raleigh, North Carolina	Brooks Bandits (AJHL)	—
21	Owen Kim	Freshman	F	5' 8" (1.73 m)	161 lb (73 kg)	2004-05-02	North Vancouver, British Columbia	Vernon Vipers (BCHL)	—
22	Edward Moskowitz	Freshman	F	5' 10" (1.78 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	2003-05-29	Toronto, Ontario	Blackfalds Bulldogs (BCHL)	—
23	Ben LeFranc	Freshman	F	5' 9" (1.75 m)	176 lb (80 kg)	2003-08-14	Penticton, British Columbia	Prince George Spruce Kings (BCHL)	—
24	John Gelatt	Senior	F	5' 11" (1.8 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	2001-04-29	Middletown, New Jersey	Johnstown Tomahawks (NAHL)	—
27	Mack Oliphant	Junior	D	6' 3" (1.91 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	2002-12-28	Northbrook, Illinois	Johnstown Tomahawks (NAHL)	—
28	Jack Seymour	Junior	F	5' 11" (1.8 m)	160 lb (73 kg)	2001-04-06	Chelsea, Quebec	Chilliwack Chiefs (BCHL)	—
29	Conner Welsh	Sophomore	F	5' 11" (1.8 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	2004-01-02	Greenwich, Connecticut	Vernon Vipers (BCHL)	—
31	Malachi Klassen	Freshman	G	6' 3" (1.91 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	2003-09-09	Winkler, Manitoba	Winkler Flyers (MJHL)	—
33	Thomas Gale	Senior	G	6' 1" (1.85 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	2000-06-10	Kirkland, Quebec	P.A.L. Jr. Islanders (NCDC)	—
34	Joe Solimine	Junior	F	5' 8" (1.73 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	2002-03-03	Middleton, Massachusetts	Boston Jr. Bruins (NCDC)	—
37	Nic Petruolo	Senior (RS)	D	6' 2" (1.88 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	2000-01-29	Neshanic Station, New Jersey	Union (ECAC)	—
40	Michael Hodge	Senior	F	5' 8" (1.73 m)	157 lb (71 kg)	2000-05-30	Calgary, Alberta	Union (ECAC)	—

Crusaders in the NHL

As of July 1, 2024.

Player	Position	Team(s)	Years	Games	Stanley Cups
Patrick Rissmiller	Left Wing	SJS, NYR, ATL, FLA	2003–2011	192	0
Jim Stewart	Goaltender	BOS	1979–1980	1	0

Source:

References

"Visual Identity Toolkit". College of the Holy Cross. Retrieved August 4, 2024.
"Atlantic Hockey and College Hockey America Join to Form Atlantic Hockey America" (Press release). Atlantic Hockey America. April 30, 2024. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
"Holy Cross Crusaders Men's Hockey". U.S. College Hockey Online. Retrieved April 10, 2011.
"Holy Cross Crusaders Men's Hockey 2021-2022 Team History | Statistics - College Hockey | USCHO.com". College Hockey | Uscho.com.
"Remembering the Holy Cross Upset 10 Years Later". SB Nation. November 24, 2016. Retrieved November 23, 2018.
"2023 Atlantic Hockey Postseason - Atlantic Hockey Association". atlantichockeyonline.com. Retrieved 2023-04-14.
"All Time Results" (PDF). Holy Cross Crusaders. Retrieved November 23, 2018.
"All-Time Career Records" (PDF). Holy Cross Crusaders. Retrieved November 26, 2018.
"Holy Cross Varsity Club Hall of Fame Members (Men's Ice Hockey)". Holy Cross Crusaders. 31 July 1999. Retrieved November 26, 2018.
"2024-25 MEN'S ICE HOCKEY ROSTER". Holy Cross Crusaders. Retrieved September 14, 2023.
"Alumni report for Holy Cross College". Hockey DB. Retrieved November 26, 2018.

External links

Official website

v t e Holy Cross Crusaders men's ice hockey
Playing venues	Hart Center (1975–present)
Head coaches	Bill Kane (1966–1976) Mike Addesa (1976–1979) Peter Van Buskirk (1979–1988, 1996–1997) Bill Bellerose (1988–1994) Paul Pearl (1994–1996, 1997–2014) David Berard (2014–2021) Bill Riga (2021–Present)
Seasons	1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–00 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
Conference affiliations	ECAC 2 (1967–1984) ECAC East (1984–1998) MAAC (1998–2003) Atlantic Hockey (2003–present)
All-time leaders	Statistical leaders Joe Lunny (219 Points) Larry Murphy (119 Goals) Tony Quesada (61 Wins)
NCAA Tournament appearances	2004 2006
Conference Tournament titles	MAAC: 1999 Atlantic Hockey: 2004 2006
College of the Holy Cross Worcester, MA

College of the Holy Cross

Athletics

Teams	Baseball Men's Basketball Women's Basketball Football Men's Ice Hockey Women's Ice Hockey Men's Lacrosse Softball
Venues	Fitton Field Hanover Insurance Park Hart Recreation Center Linda Johnson Smith Soccer Stadium
Rivalries	Boston University Boston College Fordham
Leagues	Patriot League Atlantic Hockey Hockey East

People

Student life

v t e Atlantic Hockey America
Teams	Air Force Falcons men American International Yellow Jackets men; leaving in 2025 Army Black Knights men Bentley Falcons men Canisius Golden Griffins men Holy Cross Crusaders men Lindenwood Lions women Mercyhurst Lakers men women Niagara Purple Eagles men Penn State Nittany Lions women RIT Tigers men women Robert Morris Colonials men women Sacred Heart Pioneers men Syracuse Orange women
Future teams	Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens women, joining in 2025
Venues	Cadet Ice Arena (Air Force) MassMutual Center (American International; leaving in 2025) Tate Rink (Army) Bentley Arena (Bentley) LECOM Harborcenter (Canisius) Hart Center (Holy Cross) Centene Community Ice Center (Lindenwood) Mercyhurst Ice Center (Mercyhurst) Dwyer Arena (Niagara) Pegula Ice Arena (Penn State) Gene Polisseni Center (RIT) Clearview Arena (Robert Morris) Martire Family Arena (Sacred Heart) Tennity Ice Skating Pavilion (Syracuse)
Future venues	Fred Rust Ice Arena (Delaware)
Men's seasons	2024–25
Women's seasons	2024–25
Predecessors	Atlantic Hockey Association College Hockey America
NCAA List of champions

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