Return of Jaden Schwartz not enough for CC in tie vs. Cornell

Another Schwartz on the ice made all the difference for Colorado College. Just not quite a big enough transformation to place the now-wavering Tigers back into the win column.

Jaden Schwartz scored twice, his second tally with an extra attacker with 29 seconds left to force overtime, but goaltender Joe Howe struggled Saturday in earning an unexpected start, and No. 6 CC trudged to a 3-3 tie against No. 13 Cornell at World Arena.

CHECK OUT PHOTOS FROM THE GAME!

CC (12-7-1) went 4-2 without Schwartz, who missed the past month while he captained Canada at the world junior championships, and Schwartz declined to dress Friday in a 3-1 defeat, too fatigued after a long day of travel from Calgary. Schwartz reclaimed his left wing position on the top line from Archie Skalbeck, and thanks to some more spunk from his older brother and increased activity from William Rapuzzi, his impact was immediate.

When Rylan Schwartz beat Andy Iles (9-4-2) on the power play for his team-leading 17th goal midway through the first period, Jaden Schwartz marked the assist. And when Jaden Schwartz buried a rebound minutes into the second, Rylan Schwartz was supporting him on the power play. In total, CC got 11 attempts from its top line, part of the reason why it held a 26-22 advantage in shots. Plus, the Tigers killed all four of Cornell’s power plays.

“It’s an out-of-conference game, and that’s our last one,” said Jaden Schwartz, who has 21 points, with seven goals in 14 games. “For the PairWise, it was an important weekend, and it wasn’t quite what we wanted. … They’re a good team, and it was a tough series.”

Unlike Friday, when Iles was practically untouchable in making 39 saves, CC did a much better job of dictating the tempo, with quicker feet in the neutral zone, with more physical play on the walls and with more aggression in chasing down loose pucks in the corners. No doubt, CC’s power play was energized in a 2-for-5 effort, as the Tigers had converted one of their previous 10 chances and been limited to four goals in the prior three games.

In his first start in nearly a month, Howe (5-4-1) wasn’t as sharp as Josh Thorimbert, who played all six games that Jaden Schwartz was out. He breezed through the first, having to make only four saves, then ECAC-leading Cornell (9-4-2) erased a 2-0 deficit with goals by Joel Lowry and Sean Collins in the second, and Greg Miller gave the Big Red a 3-2 lead with eight minutes left, blasting a shot to Howe’s stick side from the right circle.

On Miller’s goal, “I saw it, and I just tried to get my arm up,” Howe said. “I might have gotten a little bit of a piece of it. That’s one you’ve got to have for your team.” He added, “Anything less than a sweep at this time of the year is disappointing. It’s not acceptable.”

Tigers coach Scott Owens bemoaned his team not scoring during an overtime power play, in which Rapuzzi twice missed wide, and he stressed that he’s “disappointed that we only got one point,” even against the nation’s second-rated defense. “If you look at the game,” he said, “I’ll take that tie. … I think we will be a better team because of this series.”

COLORADO COLLEGE 3, CORNELL 3

Cornell                         0          2          1          0 – 3

Colorado College       1          1          1          0 – 3

First period – 1. CC, R. Schwartz 17 (J. Schwartz, Guentzel), 10:58 (pp). Penalties – Bardreau, Cornell (holding), 9:59. Marciano, CC (tripping), 17:49. Esposito, Cornell (high-sticking), 19:51.

Second – 2. CC, J. Schwartz 6 (Dineen, Winkler), 2:49 (pp). 3. Cornell, Lowry 3 (McCarron, Collins), 6:33. 4. Cornell, Collins 5 (McCarron, Ross), 14:47. Penalties – Ferlin, Cornell (tripping), 2:22. McCarron, Cornell (roughing), 3:22. Civitarese, CC (holding), 3:22. Winkler, CC (delay of game), 16:17.

Third – 5. Cornell, Miller 6 (Gotovets, Whitney), 11:54. 6. CC, J. Schwartz 7 (Guentzel, Boivin), 19:30 (ex). Penalties – Ferlin, Cornell (interference and 10-minute misconduct), 1:35. J. Schwartz, CC (cross-checking), 5:26. Rapuzzi, CC (interference), 7:56.

Overtime – None. Penalties – Ryan, Cornell (hooking), 1:18.

Shots on goal – Cornell: 4-11-7-0-22. CC: 5-9-9-3-26. Power-play opportunities – Cornell: 0 of 4. CC: 2 of 5. Goalies – Cornell: Iles 4-8-8-3 (26 shots-23 saves). CC: Howe 4-9-6-0 (22-19). Attendance – 7,021. Time – 2:28. Referees – Pete Friesema, Butch Mousseaux. Linesmen – Bob Keltie, Stephen Stankevich.

Contact Brian Gomez: 719-636-0256 or brian.gomez@gazette.com. Facebook: Brian Gomez. Twitter: @gazettehockey. Google+: Brian Gomez. YouTube: Colorado College Hockey, Covered by The Gazette. For the CC hockey homepage, visit www.gazette.com/sections/sports/cchockey. For the CC hockey blog, visit http://cchockey.freedomblogging.com.