The 2020–21 Clarkson Golden Knights Men's ice hockey season was the 99th season of play for the program and the 60th season in the ECAC Hockey conference. The Golden Knights represented the Clarkson University and played their home games at Cheel Arena, and were coached by Casey Jones, in his 10th season.

Season As a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic the entire college ice hockey season was delayed. Because the NCAA had previously announced that all winter sports athletes would retain whatever eligibility they possessed through at least the following year, none of Clarkson's players would lose a season of play. However, the NCAA also approved a change in its transfer regulations that would allow players to transfer and play immediately rather than having to sit out a season, as the rules previously required.

Clarkson was up and down all season, ending their non-conference schedule with just a 5–3 record despite playing mostly Atlantic Hockey teams. The offense began to sputter once the team began its conference slate but the goaltending was strong enough to keep them in most games. Clarkson ended the season in second place in the conference and was on the bubble to make the NCAA Tournament. Just as the team was getting ready to play in the ECAC Hockey Tournament, several team members gathered on campus, violating the school's COVID-19 protocols. As a result, the school ended the team's season and caused the Golden Knights to withdraw from postseason competition. While Clarkson wasn't the first team to end their season prematurely, they were the first ranked team to do so.

Chris Klack, Tommy Pasanen and Jordan Robert sat out the season.

Departures Jere Astrén Defenseman Left program Devin Brosseau Forward Graduation (signed with Bakersfield Condors) Haralds Egle Forward Graduation (signed with Manitoba Moose) Shane Kuzmeski Defenseman Graduation (signed with Wheeling Nailers) Nicholas Latinovich Goaltender Left program Frank Marotte Goaltender Graduation (signed with Allen Americans) Greg Moro Defenseman Graduation (signed with Stockton Heat) Jordan Schneider Defenseman Graduation Adam Tisdale Forward Transferred to Sacred Heart

Recruiting Noah Beck Defenseman 19 Richmond Hill, ON; Selected 194th overall in 2020 Alex Campbell Forward 19 Châteauguay, QC; Selected 65th overall in 2019 Charlie Campbell Forward 20 Châteauguay, QC Ethan Haider Goaltender 19 Maple Grove, MN; Selected 148th overall in 2019 Luke Mobley Forward 20 St. Louis Park, MN Jake Mucitelli Goaltender 20 Deerfield, NY Tommy Pasanen Defenseman 19 Schweinfurt, DEU Jordan Power Defenseman 19 Ottawa, ON David Silye Forward 21 Arnprior, ON Kaelan Taylor Defenseman 21 Oceanside, CA Nick Wicks Forward 22 Delta, BC; transfer from Alaska Anchorage

Roster As of December 30, 2020.

Standings

Schedule and results

!colspan=12 style=";" | Regular season

!colspan=12 style=";" | |- align="center" bgcolor="#e0e0e0" |colspan=12|Participation Cancelled

Scoring statistics C 22 4 14 18 4 F 22 9 8 17 16 C/LW 22 4 13 17 2 RW 22 4 11 15 2 C/RW 22 9 5 14 10 LW 22 8 6 14 10 RW 22 6 6 12 20 D 22 3 5 8 12 F 22 3 5 8 6 C 22 3 2 5 21 C 14 2 3 5 26 D 22 1 3 4 8 F 12 1 2 3 0 F 16 1 2 3 6 D 20 1 2 3 2 D 22 1 2 3 26 C 17 0 3 3 6 D 19 0 3 3 19 D 20 1 1 2 8 F 6 1 0 1 0 D 21 0 1 1 8 G 1 0 0 0 0 C 8 0 0 0 2 G 8 0 0 0 0 G 16 0 0 0 0 Bench - - - - - 4 Total 62 95 157 220

Goaltending statistics 16 960 7 5 4 32 373 0 .921 2.00 8 379 4 2 0 18 172 0 .905 2.85 1 8 0 0 0 1 4 0 .800 7.00 Empty Net - 5 - - - 1 - - - - Total 22 1353 11 7 5 52 549 0 .913 2.31

Rankings

PollWeekPre123456789101112131415161718192021 (Final) USCHO.com889977810101314121314131514141820-20 USA Today88987891210121414131513131414NRNRNRNR USCHO did not release a poll in week 20.

Awards and honors Zach Tsekos ECAC Hockey Best Defensive Forward Ethan Haider ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Year Connor McCarthy ECAC Hockey First Team Zach Tsekos Ethan Haider ECAC Hockey Rookie Team

Players drafted into the NHL 2021 NHL entry draft 3 73 Ayrton Martino† Dallas Stars † incoming freshman

References