By Bridget (Weide) Brooks
Omaha Hockey opens the 2026 calendar year on the road, traveling east to face No. 17 Cornell in a two-game non-conference series at Lynah Rink in Ithaca, New York. The Mavericks enter the weekend 7-11-0 overall (3-7-0 in the NCHC), while the Big Red sit at 7-4-0 (6-2-0 in the ECAC).
This series marks Omaha’s eighth series against a ranked opponent this season and its third consecutive road weekend (not counting the exhibition against the University of Manitoba at Baxter Arena on Tuesday night). The Mavericks defeated the Bison 4-1 in that game.
Through 19 games, the Mavericks have received offensive contributions from across the lineup. Nineteen of Omaha’s 26 skaters have scored this season, with three players recording five or more goals. Luke Woodworth leads the team with 13 points (3G, 10A), followed by Maxime Pellerin with 12 points (6G, 6A).
The Mavericks have been more comfortable away from Omaha so far, posting a 5-5-0 record on the road. Omaha is 1-1-0 against ECAC teams this season.
Cornell enters the weekend opening a program-record eight-game homestand, the longest single-season homestand in Big Red history. The Big Red are 4-0-0 at home this season and have won six straight games at Lynah Rink, dating back to last year.
Since the 2017-18 season, Cornell is 82-22-9 at home, ranking third nationally in home winning percentage. Lynah Rink has consistently been one of the toughest buildings in college hockey, both statistically and atmospherically.
Jon summed the challenge up succinctly on the most recent episode of the MavPuckCast: “Cornell has always had a reputation for being a tough team to play out of the ECAC.”
Profiling The Big Red
This season marks Casey Jones first year as head coach at Cornell, following the retirement of longtime coach Mike Schafer. Jones is no stranger to the program, returning for his third stint with Cornell after previous assistant and associate head coach roles.
Jones spent the previous 13 seasons as head coach at Clarkson, compiling a 234-185-56 record and leading the Golden Knights to multiple 20-win seasons, an ECAC tournament championship, and NCAA tournament appearances.
Through 11 games, Cornell’s 7-4-0 start represents one of the strongest openings by a first-year head coach in program history.
“They've always been super responsible when it comes to systems. This is not an easy outing for Omaha,” Jason said on the MavPuckCast.
Cornell’s defensive numbers back up its reputation.
The Big Red have allowed 19 goals through 11 games, ranking among the top teams nationally in scoring defense. Over the last two decades, Cornell has ranked in the top 10 nationally in scoring defense 12 times and has not allowed 100 goals in a season since 1997-98.
In net, freshman Alexis Cournoyer has been exceptional, posting a 1.69 goals-against average and a .937 save percentage through nine games. Among qualifying Division I goaltenders, his save percentage ranks among the national leaders.
Senior Remington Keopple provides an experienced option behind him, giving Cornell flexibility coming off a long break.
Jason noted Cornell’s goaltenders have put up “some seriously good numbers.”
Faceoffs are another area where Cornell has excelled. Jonathan Castagna leads the nation in faceoff win percentage among high-volume players and anchors a Big Red group that consistently starts with the puck.
These details feed directly into one of Omaha’s recurring discussion points this season: discipline and situational awareness.
Players to Watch (Or Stop)Cornell’s offensive production is balanced, but several names stood out in the MavPuckCast preview. Jon suggested retitling his “Players to Watch” to “Players to Stop.” These include:
Ryan Walsh, the Big Red captain, leads the team in points and recently participated in the Spengler Cup with the U.S. Collegiate Selects.
Jonathan Castagna leads Cornell in goals and dominates the faceoff circle.
Charlie Major has been especially efficient, scoring three game-winning goals this season.
Jason flagged Major specifically: “He’s only played nine games, but he has 11 points in those games.”
What Jon and Jason are WatchingWith Cornell coming off nearly a month without game action, both hosts focused on Omaha’s start as a potential swing factor.
Jason laid out the approach clearly: “The rust is real. So I think a key to success for Omaha is going to be to come out of the gate (with) lots of energy, you know, try to net goals early, like really put a lot of pressure on them right off the bat.”
The Mavericks are 3-2-0 on the season when leading after one period, and are 0-6-0 when trailing going into the second period.
At the same time, Jon cautioned that this may not be a free-flowing series: “This could be one of those low-scoring matchups. So they’ve gotta play smart.”
Interesting Tidbits:
- Rare international experience: Cornell captain Ryan Walsh recently competed in the Spengler Cup with the U.S. Collegiate Selects during the Big Red’s December break, gaining in-season international experience before returning to ECAC play.
Freshman influence: Cornell’s freshman class has accounted for more than one-third of the Big Red’s offensive production this season, including 14 of the team’s 34 goals.
Road resilience: Omaha enters the weekend having played its best hockey away from Baxter Arena so far, posting a .500 record on the road through the first half of the season.
Non-conference familiarity: Omaha and Cornell have met only four times since 2013, making this a relatively rare non-conference matchup for both programs.
Opening the year away: This series marks Omaha’s first games of the 2026 calendar year and is the last non-conference series of the 2025-26 season.
On this episode of the Mavpuckcast, Jon and Jason talk about the Omaha Maverick Hockey team’s recent road trip to Augustana (includes their picks for “Player of the Week”). They talk about some “Things You Missed at Midco Arena” during the Augustana series. Jon and Jason have a “6-7” debate regarding the start time for Omaha Hockey games on Saturday nights. They wrap up the episode with their preview and predictions for Omaha’s upcoming hockey series against Cornell University at Lynah Rink in Ithaca, New York.
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