Brian L. Cornell was a Canadian ice hockey winger who was a two-time All-American for

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...

Career

Cornell was not a star player in juniors, averaging less than a point per game for the

Niagara Falls Flyers The Niagara Falls Flyers were two junior ice hockey franchises that played in the top tier in the Ontario Hockey Association. The first, a Junior "A" team existed from 1960 until 1972, and the second in Tier I Junior "A" from 1976 until 1982. ...

. Despite the low production, he was recruited to

and began attending in the fall of 1965. Cornell played on a freshman team alongside

Ken Dryden Kenneth Wayne Dryden (born August 8, 1947) is a Canadian politician, lawyer, businessman, author, and former National Hockey League (NHL) goaltender. He is an Officer of the Order of Canada and a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame. He was a Liber ...

that went undefeated. A year later Cornell was a member of the varsity squad and began the season as a depth scorer for the team. In the first ten games he recorded 13 points but, in the first game of the Boston Arena Christmas Tournament, Cornell tore ligaments in his knee and missed the remainder of the season. Cornell was forced to watch as the Big Red nearly ran the table without him and captured the program's first

NCAA Championship The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges and ...

and the first championship of any kind since

1911 A notable ongoing event was the Comparison of the Amundsen and Scott Expeditions, race for the South Pole. Events January * January 1 – A decade after federation, the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory ...

. Cornell was ready for the start of the following season and, with many of the '67 Big Red's top scorers graduating, he was able to assume a more prominent role in the offense. Cornell had a breakout season, leading the team with 29 goals and 61 points in 28 games. He was named Second Team All-conference and All-American and helped Cornell compile an astounding 26–1 record heading into the national tournament. The team, however, was stifled by

Mike Curran Michael Vincent Curran (born April 14, 1944) is a retired American ice hockey goaltender. He led the United States to a surprising silver medal at the 1972 Winter Olympics after representing the USA at the 1970 and 1971 Ice Hockey World Champio ...

in the semifinal and lost 1–3. The Big Red finished 3rd in the tournament and Cornell was the only player not in the title match to appear on the All-Tournament First Team. As a senior, Cornell was named team co-Captain with

Bruce Pattison D. Bruce Pattison is a Canadian retired ice hockey defenseman who was an All-American for Cornell. Career Pattison was recruited by Ned Harkness out of Upper Canada College, a private high school in Toronto with very high academic standards. Pa ...

and responded by setting a program record for points in a season with 74. He finished third in the nation and was an All-American once more. The Big Red again entered the NCAA Tournament 26–1 but, despite a scare from

Michigan Tech Michigan Technological University (Michigan Tech, MTU, or simply Tech) is a public research university in Houghton, Michigan, founded in 1885 as the Michigan Mining School, the first post-secondary institution in the Upper Peninsula of Michiga ...

, reached the championship match. Cornell scored his final collegiate goal in the second period to tie the score at 2-all, but

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

carried the day in the third and skated away with the championship. After graduating, Cornell remained at the University in the Graduate School of Business and Public Administration. While he continued his studies he both coached the freshman team in its final year of existence and played for the Syracuse Stars in the team's last season. He was inducted into the Cornell Athletic Hall of Fame in 1969.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cornell, Brian 1946 births Living people Canadian ice hockey forwards Ice hockey people from Ontario Sportspeople from Niagara Falls, Ontario Niagara Falls Flyers players Cornell Big Red men's ice hockey players AHCA Division I men's ice hockey All-Americans NCAA men's ice hockey national champions