Gaining three points on the road in the opening weekend of ECAC Hockey play has lifted the Clarkson University Hockey team's spirits and generated some momentum as the Green and Gold make the trip to Central NY, historically their toughest weekend series in league play.

Guided by fourth-year head coach Casey Jones and assistants Phil Roy '00 and Andy Jones, the Golden Knights own a 3-4-3 overall record and are tied for fifth place in the ECAC Hockey standings at 1-0-1. Clarkson will look to build upon its success in New England this past weekend when it battles Cornell and Colgate this Friday and Saturday. Both games are 7:00 p.m. faceoffs at Lynah Rink in Ithaca and at Starr Rink in Hamilton.

Led by junior captain Paul Geiger (Stouffville, ONT) and assistant captains, senior James Howden (Edgeley, SASK) and junior Jeff DiNallo (Aurora, ONT), Clarkson skated in another pair of tight games to begin league play, tying Yale 2-2 in New Haven, CT on Friday and then defeating Brown 2-1 in Providence, RI on Saturday to break out of a seven-game winless stretch (0-4-3).

Scouting Cornell

Cornell, picked to finish third in ECAC Hockey by the league's coaches, is looking for its first win of the season. The Big Red stand at 0-3-1 (0-2 in the league) and have lost three straight. With a favorable bounce here or there, Cornell could be undefeated as each of its games as been decided by one-goal-or-less. This past weekend the Big Red dropped a 2-1 decision at Princeton and were shut out at Quinnipiac 1-0. Cornell as the lowest scoring team in Division I has yet to score more than one goal per game, averaging 0.75 gpg. Mike Schafer, in his 20th year as Cornell's head coach, will miss Friday's game serving a one-game suspension by ECAC Hockey.

Scouting Colgate

Ranked sixth in the national polls, Colgate enters the weekend with a 7-3 overall record and a 1-1 conference mark. The Raiders, guided by 22nd-year head coach Don Vaughan, snapped a two-game losing skid with Saturday's 5-1 win at Princeton. On Friday, Colgate was shut out 5-0 at Quinnipiac. The Raiders, who host St. Lawrence on Saturday, are 3-1 at Starr Rink this season, outscoring their opponents 11-2 on their home ice. All three of their wins in Hamilton have been shutouts. The lone home loss was a 2-1 setback to Mercyhurst on November 1

• The Knights have struggled on the trip to Central NY, managing just two points (3-3 tie at Colgate on December 6, 2008 and a 0-0 draw at Cornell on December 3, 2011) in the previous six regular seasons. Clarkson gained three points on the trip in 2007-08 with a 1-1 tie against the Raiders and a 4-2 victory over Cornell. The last time, the Green and Gold swept the weekend road series at Colgate and Cornell was during the 1996-97 campaign on February 28 (3-1 over the Big Red) and March 1 (7-3 over the Raiders). Clarkson came close last year, losing at Colgate and Cornell by 3-2 scores.

• Friday's game will be the 128th meeting between Clarkson and Cornell in the Knights' oldest current rivalry dating back to the 1922-23 campaign. The Big Red lead the series 61-52-14, but the are just 5-3-2 against Clarkson over the past 10 meetings.

• Other than St. Lawrence (195), Clarkson has played Colgate the most of any other team with Saturday's game being the 147 meeting between the New York State rivals. The Knights lead the series, which started in 1927-28, 81-49-16. The Raiders, however, have enjoyed the better of the recent play going 10-2-5 since 2008-09.

• Defense is projected to be Clarkson's strength this season with five veterans and three freshmen, including three NHL Draft picks, anchoring the unit. The Knights are allowing only 23.8 shots per game, which is fifth-best in Division I.

• Clarkson got two solid efforts in the crease over the weekend as sophomores Ville Runola (Raisio, Finland) and Steve Perry (Ligonier, PA) both earned a start. Runola made 30 saves in the 2-2 tie at Yale, posting a .938 save percentage. Perry turned aside 27 of 28 shots, including a penalty shot, in the one-goal win at Brown to record a .964 save percentage. Perry has started eight games and holds a .896 save percentage, a 2.30 GAA and a 3-3-1 record. Through three games, including two starts, Runola owns a .932 save percentage, a 1.78 GAA and a 0-1-2 record.

• A young Clarkson team is still struggling to find itself offensively, averaging only1.90 goals per game. The Knights have scored over three goals in just one game this season and have been shut out twice.

• Seventeen Knights have recorded at least one point this season with 10 players scoring at least one goal. Clarkson had four different goal scorers this past weekend, including Paul Geiger and junior Todd Christian (Norwalk, CT), who both tallied their first goals of the season.

• Senior Joe Zarbo (Grand Island, NY) leads the Knights in scoring with nine points on a team-high five goals and four assists. Zarbo, who tallied a goal at Yale, has 55 career points (27-28) in 114 games.

• Sophomore defenseman James de Haas (Mississauga, ONT) assisted on three of the four goals over the weekend. He leads the Knights in scoring from the blueline and is second on the team with six points, including two goals.

• In each of the previous four seasons Clarkson was ranked among the 11 most penalized teams in the country. Through 10 games of the 2014-15 campaign, the Knights are the third least penalized team, averaging only 6.8 minutes in the box. Clarkson and St. Lawrence skated to a penalty-free 2-2 tie in Canton on October 31.

• Clarkson has just two seniors, defenseman James Howdenand forward Joe Zarbo on the roster. Eight juniors, eight sophomores and nine freshmen make up the remainder of the 2014-15 Golden Knight roster.

• Brandon DeFazio '11 became the latest former Golden Knight to reach the NHL when he was called up from the AHL to the Vancouver Canucks. He played in Vancouver's 2-1 win over Anaheim on November 9 and was slated to be in the

Canucks' lineup when they hosted Ottawa Tuesday. He joins Mark Borowiecki '11 (Ottawa), Grant Clitsome '08 (Winnipeg), Erik Cole '00 (Dallas) and Willie Mitchell '99 (Florida) among former Clarkson players currently skating in the NHL.

• Four current Golden Knights have been selected in the NHL Draft -James de Haas(2012 Detroit - 6th rd, 170), Terrance Amorosa(2013 Philadelphia - 5th rd, 189),Troy Josephs (2013 Pittsburgh - 7th rd, 209) and Kelly Summers (2014 Ottawa - 7th rd, 189).

• In its 93rd season, Clarkson boasts 70 winning campaigns and a 1,366-804-144 all-time record for a .622 winning percentage since 1920-21.