Yale Athletics

The Yale men’s hockey team (9–13–1, 6–9–1 ECAC) returned to Ingalls Rink this past weekend and proceeded to add two big in-conference wins against Union (12–12–2, 6–6–2 ECAC) and RPI (8–16–2, 5–8–1 ECAC). Both contests came down to the wire, and the Bulldogs proved their ability to grind out close, hard-fought games.

“What I liked about our team’s resiliency and grit was really shown in the way we played the third period of each game this weekend,” Head Coach Keith Allain told the News. “On Friday we had the lead and came out in the third and added another goal and completely shut them down with an aggressive defensive structure. On Saturday we were behind going into the third, again came out with an attack mindset scored the tying goal and had them on their heels for most of the period.”

In the game on Friday night, the Bulldogs jumped out to a 1–0 lead with a stellar short-handed goal from senior forward Will Dineen ’25. To pot his second shorty of the season and fifth goal of the season, Dineen swiped the puck from a Union defender and flew in on a breakaway. Showcasing his explosiveness and quick feet, Dineen raced in on net and fired a shot past the goalie low blocker side.

Then it was Kalen Szeto’s ’26 turn early in the third period, when he crashed the net hard and received a beautiful back-door pass from Henry Wagner ’24. For Allain, both Wagner and Szeto have established themselves as dependable two-way forwards. They may be key players to watch as the postseason approaches.

“It was great that Kalen scored after Henry blocked a shot and made a nice play. Their line has done a really good job for us since the new year,” said Allain. “They are responsible defensively, are very good on the fore-check and create offensive opportunities every night. They have become valuable contributors to our team.”

While Union got one back later in the period, an Ian Carpentier ’24 power-play snipe sealed a 3–1 Eli win in a game that was fought tooth and nail. Once again, first-year Jack Stark ’27 was rock solid in net as he stopped 30 of 31 shots against the Garnet Chargers.  

On Saturday, the Bulldogs fell behind 1–0 eight minutes into the game. However, Dineen came up big again with a goal early in the third period as time expired on a powerplay — his fourth goal in his last six games.

“I was hurt for about a month at the beginning of the year, but I’ve started to find my game over the past three weekends,” Dineen told the News. 

Allain has certainly come to rely upon the senior forward for offensive production, and Dineen has more than stepped up to the challenge.

“Will is playing at a high level, he is mentally engaged, using his size and speed to his advantage, winning 1-v-1 battles and just competing on both side of the puck,” Allain said.

RPI and Yale remained tied at 1-1 through three periods and overtime, but the Elis pulled out the extra point with a shootout victory when Briggs Gammill ’25, the fourth Eli shooter, came down and buried the puck five-hole on a nifty shot. Stark then closed the door on RPI forward Ryan Brushett to cement the win.

Stark not only stopped all four RPI players in the shootout, but he also put on another thirty-save performance during regulation. With Stark in net, the Bulldogs seem to play with an extra boost knowing that their netminder is always there to come up with a big save.

“Starky has been rock solid for us all year, but he has taken his game to another level within the past month,” Dineen said. “He’s very level-headed and mature for his age. When you have someone with his calm demeanor in the net, it rubs off on the whole group and gives all of us confidence out there. Off the ice, he’s a great guy, very humble, and always has a smile on his face.”

For his strong performances on the week, Stark earned ECAC Goaltender of the Week Honors with a .962 save percentage in the two games. The rookie goalie was also recently named to the Tim Taylor Rookie of the Year Watchlist, an award given to the best first-year in all of Division 1 men’s hockey. 

Stark and the Bulldogs will lace up the skates next against Brown on Friday, Feb. 9 at Ingalls Rink as they look to push their undefeated streak past four.

TOMMY GANNON
Tommy Gannon covers men's ice hockey. He is a first-year in Branford college majoring in history and economics.