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1925–26 Yale Bulldogs men's ice hockey season

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1925–26 Yale Bulldogs
men's ice hockey season
Conference3rd THL
Home iceMadison Square Garden
Record
Overall4–9–1
Conference0–4–0
Home2–3–0
Road1–4–0
Neutral1–2–1
Coaches and captains
Head coachClarence Wanamaker
Captain(s)Frederick Potts
Yale Bulldogs men's ice hockey seasons
« 1924–25 1926–27 »

The 1925–26 Yale Bulldogs men's ice hockey season was the 31st season of play for the program. The Bulldogs represented Yale University and were coached by Clarence Wanamaker in his 5th season.

Season

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While the team was coming off its second consecutive collegiate championship, the Bulldogs were still without a home. Plans for a replacement ice hockey rink in New Haven were put on hold when the replacement project went bankrupt.[1] After last season's debacle with the Woodbridge Rink, Yale managed to arrange a deal with the operators of Madison Square Garden to use the large venue for the team's home games. the Elis' history of playing in New York City as well as a sizable contingent of alumni in the area likely made the prospect amenable despite the fact that Yale still had ice hockey classified as a minor sport. Similar to the year before, a few Bulldogs were already dealing with injuries from their time on the football team as Cutler was out with a knee injury while Noble was nursing a bum ankle.[2]

While the team had to contend with the loss of their star goaltender, the '26 squad knew that they had a capable understudy coming into the season. The bigger question mark was who would replace the two starting wingers who were now lost through graduation. The Elis were again allowed to use the Hobey Baker Memorial Rink as a practice facility prior to the winter break and were gearing up for a 4-game series with Williams up in Lake Placid. Cutler was still out with his ailment but Noble had recovered in time for the first game with the Ephs. The team played its first match just before New Year's and while their defense was still formidable, the offense was lacking. John Frey kicked off the scoring but the Elis were unable to summon up any further goals and fell to the purple 1–3. Yale performed better in the second match and despite losing Cole to a foot injury, were able to even the series. The third game was a close affair and the team was further degraded as Stout was playing through a cold. Even with that handicap the Bulldogs finished regulation in a tie. Ordinarily an overtime session would have been played but it was called off due to the onset of darkness. That left the fourth and final game as the deciding factor between the two teams. Yale attacked the Williams cage repeatedly but could get nothing past Chapman, instead, the Ephs' only goal from Popham gave them the victory.[3]

The early losses made it unlikely that Yale could win a third consecutive championship, however, the team had little time to lick its wounds and the Elis found themselves on a train to Cleveland immediately after their 4th game. With little time to rest, the team took on the Cleveland Collegians, an amalgamation of former college players who were living in the region. The team was captained by former Bulldog David Ingalls and fell to the Elis, allowing the team to climb back up to .500. Two days later, Yale played its first game at Madison Square Garden against a vaunted McGill team. The Eli's oppressive defense led them to victory and gave hope to the fans that the early-season troubles were over.

The team had some time off before their next match and tried to sort out its offense. Stout was inserted as a starting winger instead of an injured Frey, however, all of their plans had to be thrown out as soon as the game started because Cottle broke a rib at the start of the game. The loss of both their starting wingers put Yale on the back foot and left the team unable to solve the Dartmouth defense. Near the end of the match, starting center Sam Ferguson was forced out with a knee injury, curtailing any real chance at a late tying goal.[4] Cottle was able to return for the next game but Cole went back on the shelf, leaving the team without half of its starters. Even then the Elis gave Princeton a fight but couldn't overcome a sluggish start that saw them surrender a pair of goals in each of the first two periods. Frey got into the game in the latter stages, scoring the first goal for the Elis, but it was too little to late for the Bulldogs.[5]

Yale got a bit of a reprieve and had a week and a half before their next match, giving the players some time to recover from their various injuries. While Ferguson was still out, Cole returned while Frey had seemingly fully recovered and was again a starting winger. The nearly-whole Elis swamped New York A. C. with Wheelock earning the shutout in place of Ives.[6]

After the exam break, the team returned with a rematch against Dartmouth. Wheelock was again starring in goal and had the Elis ahead by a single goal in the later part of the third period before the Indians finally broke through and opposing captain Manser notched a hat-trick in about 6 minutes to steal the game from Yale.[7] The continued lack of scoring and practice time did not set the team up well for their showdown with Harvard, who were looking for revenge after missing out on the title the year before. Coach Wanamaker seemingly tried every lineup combination he could but nothing was able to get through the stingy Crimson defense and Harvard skated to a comfortable win.[8]

After a loss to the George Owen-led Boston A. A. squad, Yale ended it season attempting to win at least one of the Triangular League series. First up was the Princeton rematch, and while the team was at its full complement of players, the Elis didn't have much practice time beforehand. Frey got an early goal but Princeton answered quickly. The rest of the game saw several opportunities but neither netminder gave in. Overtime was needed but it too was scoreless until just before the full 5 minutes had elapsed when Princeton's Hallock notched his second of the match.[9]

Coming into the final game against Harvard, Yale had little to play for other than pride but that didn't stop some 11,000 fans from attending the game. The Elis did what that had done all season; play solid defense but fail to get much going on the offensive side of the puck. The Bulldogs didn't make it easy for their hated rivals and fought them tooth and nail all game long. Unfortunately, they could never get past the Crimson defense and were shutout by Harvard for the second time that season.[10] While injuries and lack of ice were primary malefactors in the team's season, Yale still ended with its worst record in over 20 years.

W. H. West Jr. served as team manager with G. H. Walker as his assistant.

Roster

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No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team
Massachusetts Horace W. Cole Senior D Hyde Park, Massachusetts
New York (state) Edmund P. Cottle Jr. Senior LW Buffalo, New York
Maryland William H. Cushing Junior Baltimore, Maryland
Massachusetts Benjamin C. Cutler Senior C/RW 1904-07-19 Winchester, Massachusetts
Connecticut Samuel Ferguson Jr. Senior C Greenwich, Connecticut
New York (state) John T. M. Frey Junior RW 1904-10-12 Brooklyn, New York
John A. Herrman Sophomore
New York (state) Richard M. Hurd Jr. Sophomore New York, New York
New York (state) Kenneth W. Ives Senior G 1904-05-21 Albany, New York
Michigan Lawrence M. Noble Junior LW/D 1903-12-11 Monroe, Michigan
New York (state) Frederick A. Potts II (C) Senior D New York, New York
Sidney S. Quarrier Sophomore C/D
New York (state) Frederick F. Robinson Junior LW Watertown, New York
Joseph Roby Jr. Sophomore
New York (state) A. Varick Stout Senior RW New York, New York
Wisconsin Richard F. Vaughan Sophomore C Rock, Wisconsin
Joseph A. Wheelock Junior G

[11]

Standings

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Intercollegiate Overall
GP W L T Pct. GF GA GP W L T GF GA
Amherst 7 1 5 1
Army 8 3 5 0 .375 12 22 9 3 6 0 15 29
Bates 10 3 6 1 .350 18 38 10 3 6 1 18 38
Boston College 3 2 1 0 .667 9 5 16 6 9 1 46 54
Boston University 11 7 4 0 .636 28 11 15 7 8 0 31 28
Bowdoin 6 4 2 0 .667 15 12 7 4 3 0 15 17
Clarkson 5 2 3 0 .400 10 13 8 4 4 0 25 25
Cornell 6 2 4 0 .333 10 21 6 2 4 0 10 21
Dartmouth 15 12 3 0 72 34
Hamilton 10 7 3 0
Harvard 9 8 1 0 .889 34 13 11 8 3 0 38 20
Massachusetts Agricultural 8 3 4 1 .438 10 20 8 3 4 1 10 20
Middlebury 8 5 3 0
MIT 9 3 6 0 .333 16 32 9 3 6 0 16 32
New Hampshire 4 1 3 0 6 20
Norwich 2 1 1 0
Princeton 16 7 9 0
Rensselaer 6 2 4 0
Saint Michael's
St. Lawrence 2 0 2 0 .000 1 4 2 0 2 0 1 4
Syracuse 6 2 2 2 .500 8 7 7 3 2 2 10 7
Union 6 2 3 1 .417 18 24 6 2 3 1 18 24
Vermont 5 2 3 0 .400 20 11 5 2 3 0 20 11
Williams 15 10 4 1 .700 59 23 18 12 5 1 72 28
Yale 10 1 8 1 .150 9 23 14 4 9 1 25 30
Conference Overall
GP W L T PTS SW GF GA GP W L T GF GA
Harvard * 4 4 0 0 1.000 2 14 6 11 8 3 0 38 20
Princeton 4 2 2 0 .500 1 12 11 16 7 9 0 44 61
Yale 4 0 4 0 .000 0 3 12 14 4 9 1 25 30
* indicates conference champion

Schedule and results

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Date Opponent Site Result Record
Regular Season
December 29 vs. Williams* Lake Placid ArenaLake Placid, New York L 1–3  0–1–0
December 30 vs. Williams* Lake Placid ArenaLake Placid, New York W 3–2  1–1–0
December 31 vs. Williams* Lake Placid ArenaLake Placid, New York T 1–1  1–1–1
January 1 vs. Williams* Lake Placid ArenaLake Placid, New York L 0–1  1–2–1
January 2 at Cleveland Collegians* Elysium ArenaCleveland, Ohio W 4–2  2–2–1
January 4 McGill* Madison Square GardenManhattan, New York W 3–1  3–2–1
January 12 Dartmouth* Madison Square GardenManhattan, New York L 0–1  3–3–1
January 16 Princeton Madison Square GardenManhattan, New York L 2–4  3–4–1 (0–1–0)
January 27 New York A. C.* Madison Square GardenManhattan, New York W 6–0  4–4–1
February 6 at Dartmouth* Occom Pond • Hanover, New Hampshire L 1–3  4–5–1
February 13 at Harvard Boston ArenaBoston, Massachusetts L 0–4  4–6–1 (0–2–0)
February 11 at Boston A. A.* Boston ArenaBoston, Massachusetts L 3–4  4–7–1
February 22 at Princeton Hobey Baker Memorial RinkPrinceton, New Jersey L 1–2 OT 4–8–1 (0–3–0)
February 27 Harvard Madison Square GardenManhattan, New York L 0–2  4–9–1 (0–4–0)
*Non-conference game.

† Game limited to two 20-minute periods due to poor ice conditions.
Note: Yale's contemporary classification of their games as 'practice' or 'exhibition is misleading. The program referred to any contest before or during the winter break as such despite being official matches.
[12]

References

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  1. ^ Ethnic Heritage Center (2016). Walk New Haven Cultural History Tours: Downtown & Downtown North. New Haven, Conn.: Walk New Haven. p. 37. ISBN 978-0-9979091-1-1.
  2. ^ "UNIVERSITY Hockey Squad Takes First Practice Trip". Yale Daily News. December 7, 1925. Retrieved May 30, 2023.
  3. ^ "HOCKEY TEAM RETURNS FROM CHRISTMAS TRIP". Yale Daily News. January 5, 1926. Retrieved May 30, 2023.
  4. ^ "UNIVERSITY HOCKEY TEAM LOSES TO DARTMOUTH 1-0". Yale Daily News. January 13, 1926. Retrieved May 30, 2023.
  5. ^ "HOCKEY TEAM DEFEATED BY PRINCETON 4 TO 2". Yale Daily News. January 18, 1926. Retrieved May 30, 2023.
  6. ^ "BLUE SEXTET TRIUMPS OVER N. Y. A. C. SKATERS". Yale Daily News. January 28, 1926. Retrieved May 30, 2023.
  7. ^ "DARTMOUTH Hockey Team Defeats Eli Skaters, 3-1". Yale Daily News. February 11, 1926. Retrieved May 30, 2023.
  8. ^ "HARVARD SEXTET DEFEATS UNIVERSITY BY 4-0 SCORE". Yale Daily News. February 15, 1926. Retrieved May 30, 2023.
  9. ^ "PRINCETON SKATERS WIN FROM HOCKEY TEAM 2-1". Yale Daily News. February 23, 1926. Retrieved May 30, 2023.
  10. ^ "HARVARD SIX DEFEATS YALE TO ON ICE". Yale Daily News. March 1, 1926. Retrieved May 30, 2023.
  11. ^ "1925-1926 Roster". Elite Prospects. Retrieved December 30, 2019.
  12. ^ "YALE MEN'S HOCKEY RESULTS, 1895 -2019" (PDF). Yale Bulldogs. Retrieved December 30, 2019.