Tigers Face Miami For First Time
Colorado College continues its schedule in the NCHC Pod against Miami University on Tuesday, Dec. 15, at Baxter Arena in Omaha, Neb. The puck drops at 7:35 p.m. (CT). The game will be broadcast in Colorado Springs on KRDO NewsRadio 105.5 FM, 1240 AM and 92.5 FM and televised live on AT&T SportsNet Rocky Mountain, Root Sports Northwest and TSN2.

Last Time Out
Grant Cruikshank scored twice and added an assist and Dominic Basse had 30 saves in his first career start to lead Colorado College to a 4-1 victory over 3rd-ranked and previously undefeated Minnesota Duluth Sunday at Baxter Arena. The Tigers turned the tables in the special teams area on Sunday as Cruikshank scored a shorthanded goal and a power-play goal within a span of 1:23 late in the first period to give the Tigers a 2-0 advantage after 20 minutes. Cruikshank's PPG was the only power play the Tigers had in the game, and they wiped out both of UMD's man-advantage opportunities. The junior captain opened the scoring at the 16:00 mark when he stole the puck at the UMD blue line, skated in alone on Bulldog goalie Ryan Fanti and beat him with a wrister from the top of the right circle. Following a tripping call to UMD's Nick Swaney, CC's Jack Millar fired a shot from the left point that Fanti stopped, but the puck went right to Cruikshank on the right side and he buried a shot into the open net to double the Tiger lead at 17:23 of the opening frame. Josiah Slavin made it 3-0 just 1:16 into the second period as he knocked in a rebound after Cruikshank's breakaway attempt was stopped by Fanti, and Troy Conzo notched his first of the season at the 10:13 mark of the third period for a 4-0 lead off assists from Ben Copeland (two assists) and Brian Hawkinson (first point as a Tiger). Basse was outstanding throughout the game and came within 1:56 of posting CC's first shutout since late in the 2018-19 campaign when UMD's Luke Loheit scored to put the Bulldogs on the board. The freshman from Alexandria, Va., relieved Matt Vernon in Wednesday's 6-1 loss to Omaha, but this one belonged all to himself.

Tigers At The "NCHC Pod"
Due to the ramifications of the COVID-19 pandemic, the NCHC announced the 2020-21 season will start with all eight teams playing in Omaha, Neb. With the focus on the health and safety of student-athletes, coaches, staff, and officials, the conference has intentionally attempted to limit team travel. Because of this, NCHC teams have been divided into two divisions based on geography for 2020-21 scheduling purposes: East and West. The East Division consists of Miami, Minnesota Duluth, St. Cloud State and Western Michigan. The West Division consists of Colorado College, Denver, North Dakota and Omaha. Teams will play each of their divisional opponents six times (18 games total) and each cross-division opponent twice (8 games total).

Up Next
The Tigers battle St. Cloud State on Friday, Dec. 18 at 7:35 p.m. (CT).

Tiger Tales
CC posted its first victory over a top-three nationally-ranked team, also a 4-1 win over No. 3 Minnesota Duluth, since Feb. 1, 2019 in Colorado Springs ... Millar is the first CC freshman defenseman to score two goals in the first three games of a season in the last 20 years and the first freshman since Alex Berardinelli in 2016-17 ... Cruikshank tied his career-high with three points vs. UMD, equaling his hat trick in the outdoor game at Air Force last season ... Cruikshank's SHG was the first by a Tiger since Slavin against St. Cloud State on Feb. 8, 2020 ... Basse's 30 saves were the most by a Tiger goalie in his first career start since Jacob Nehama had 34 vs. UMass on Oct. 10, 2015.

For the Record
Colorado College is 1-2-1 after Sunday's victory over Minnesota Duluth ... Miami is 1-5-0 after defeating Omaha, 1-0, on Saturday.   

Previous Meetings
The Tigers and Miami have met 20 times, with the RedHawks holding a 10-8-2 advantage in the series. The teams only played twice last year, with each team winning one game in Colorado Springs.

Scouting the Redhawks
Matthew Barbolini (1g,2a) and Matt Barry (3a) lead the RedHawks in scoring with three points apiece. Ludwig Persson and Ben Kraws have each started three games in net this season. Persson leads the duo with a 1.68 goals-against average and .946 saves pct.  

The Coaches
Mike Haviland (Elmira College, '90) is in his seventh season at the helm of the Tigers. He came to Colorado College after serving one year as head coach of the Hershey Bears (AHL). Haviland was an assistant coach for the Chicago Blackhawks from 2008-12, helping the team win the Stanley Cup in 2010 … Chris Bergeron (Miami, '93) is in his second season as head coach at his alma mater. He served as head coach at Bowling Green for the previous nine seasons after 10 years as an assistant coach at Miami.

Cruikshank, Berzolla to Wear the "C"
Junior forward Grant Cruikshank and senior defenseman Zach Berzolla will serve as team captains in 2020-21. Cruikshank, who will be a captain for the second straight year, was the first sophomore in program history to wear the "C". Berzolla was an assistant captain in 2019-20.

Another Tough Schedule
The Tigers' 2020-21 schedule includes 22 of their 26 regular-season games against teams that are ranked in this week's USCHO.com Top 20 Poll. Colorado College also has two games scheduled against teams that received votes and 14 contests against the last four national champions (North Dakota, Denver and Minnesota Duluth (x2)).   

14 Newcomers Join the Program
The Tigers welcome transfers Hugo Blixt (Boston University) and Brian Hawkinson      (Miami University) and 12 incoming freshmen to the program. At one point last spring, the incoming class was ranked No. 2 in the country by Neutral Zone.

Robson Arena Coming October of 2021
Never in the storied 80-plus years history of Colorado College Tiger Hockey has the team played its home games on campus. Thanks to the generosity of donors, including former CC hockey player Ed Robson '54, P'79, G'11, along with the vision of former President Jill Tiefenthaler and the Board of Trustees, that will change in 2021. The Ed Robson Arena will be a state-of-the-art, multi-purpose arena with a capacity of 3,400, including bar rail and club level seating.