Hanging Up His Skates  HOCKEY GREAT JOE NIEUWENDYK '88 RETIRES

hE WAS A SKINNY KID WHO came late to campus," remembers men's hockey coach Mike Schafer '86. "I thought, How can he be so good? He's so skinny!" The kid was Joe Nieuwendyk '88, a Cornell standout who went on to a twenty-year NHL career that many believe will land him in the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Nieuwendyk was late that fall because he was playing in the Canadian Lacrosse Junior Championship, where he was named the MVP. (He had intended to play both hockey and lacrosse at Cornell, but soon learned that hockey was a full-time commitment.) After Nieuwendyk arrived, he felt that he had to prove himself to Schafer, who was then captain of the team. It didn't take long. "He was a dynamic player--one of the best goal scorers who ever played here, and as fierce a competitor as you'll ever see," says Schafer. By the end of the freshman forward's first season, he had helped the Big Red to its third straight Ivy League title and won Ivy Rookie of the Year honors.

The next year,Nieuwendyk led Cornell to a 21-7-4 record and the ECAC title. "The Harvard rivalry was big," he remembers. "They had a good team.We won 4-3 at Harvard in my sophomore year, and the students flooded the rink with tennis balls." Professional scouts soon noted Nieuwendyk's skills, and he was drafted by the NHL's Calgary Flames. "Coach [Lou] Reycroft's advice was to stay in school," says Nieuwendyk. "It was sound advice. I knew I wasn't ready to leave. I was still growing and my game was still improving." He was named first-team All-Ivy, All- ECAC, and All-American in both 1985–86 and 1986–87, and was the Ivy League and ECAC Player of the Year in 1986–87.

After his junior year, Nieuwendyk left for the NHL. "I felt I had accomplished everything I could at the college level and was ready to move on," he says.He continued to excel in the pros, becoming only the second rookie to score more than 50 goals in his first season (he netted 51) and winning the Calder Trophy as the league's top rookie. In his second season, he matched his goal total and the Flames won the Stanley Cup.

Nieuwendyk would never again top the fifty-goal mark ("the game changed and became a lot more advanced defensively," he says). Even so, he would have a long and productive career with five different NHL teams despite multiple knee injuries, the first occurring in 1990 when he was playing for Canada in the world championships. He would win two more Stanley Cups, in 1999 with the Dallas Stars and in 2003 with the New Jersey Devils, becoming one of only nine players to win the league championship with three different teams.

By tradition, each player on a winning Stanley Cup team gets the Cup for one day; Nieuwendyk has used these opportunities to bring the famed trophy to Ithaca. In 1999 his favorite teacher, agricultural economics professor Dan Sisler, was on hand. Sisler is blind, and Nieuwendyk says that "seeing him running his hands over the Cup was pretty incredible." In 2003 he brought the Cup to an alumni hockey fundraiser for teammate Mike Tallman '90, who had suffered a spinal cord injury in a pickup game. For a five-dollar donation, attendees could pose for a photo with Nieuwendyk and the Cup. "For more than four hours, he had his picture taken with everybody who wanted one," says Schafer. "It shows you his true character."

By December 2006 Nieuwendyk's back was hurting constantly, and doctors at the Cleveland Clinic advised him to retire. So he did. He finished his NHL career with 564 goals, nineteenth on the all-time list. In addition to the three Stanley Cups, he won the 1999 Conn Smythe Award, given to the NHL playoff MVP, and a gold medal for Canada in the 2002 Olympics.

What's next? "I don't know," says the forty-year-old Nieuwendyk, who has a summer home on Cayuga Lake. "For now I'm content to be with my family. I have some opportunities in hockey, though, and I'm leaning toward staying in the game."

-- Stephen Eschenbach

STEPHEN ESCHENBACH writes frequently about Ivy League sports and is a contributor to www.ivy50.com, the league's 50th anniversary website.

Sports Shorts

BATTER UP  The Cornell baseball team will enjoy a newly renovated home this season, as Hoy Field has been realigned and improved. Home plate has been moved to the east, toward Schoellkopf Field, and now sits at the corner of the Grumman Squash Courts and the parking garage. As a result, the diamond now faces southwest, with the third-base line running roughly parallel to the parking garage. In addition, the natural grass has been replaced with FieldTurf, a synthetic system designed to feel and play like grass. This will allow the Big Red to get in more practices and games during Ithaca's unpredictable spring weather. New dugouts, batting cages, bleachers, and a press box were also included in the project.

GOING THE DISTANCE  Two months after placing third in the IC4A Cross Country Championships, Sage Canaday '08 made his marathon debut in impressive fashion. Canaday broke a 26-year-old school record when he finished the Chevron Houston Marathon in 2:22:20 on January 14. Dan Predmore '80, MS '85, had set the previous record of 2:27:29 in 1980. Canaday finished 20th overall and sixth in the 21–24 age division.

TOP FROSH  Cornell is dominating the honors for first-year Ivy League men's basketball players. Before the end of January, freshman forward Ryan Wittman had been named Rookie of the Week five times and classmate Louis Dale, a guard, had captured the award four times.Wittman leads the Big Red in scoring, averaging 15.5 points per game, and is the top free-throw shooter in the Ivy League with a .950 percentage. Dale has dished out 3.7 assists per game and is averaging 12.8 points.

SCHOLAR-ATHLETE  In honor of his success in the classroom as well as on the football field, Luke Siwula '08 was named a first-team Academic All-American by the College Sports Information Directors of America. This year, Siwula was a second-team All-Ivy pick after rushing for 885 yards and four touchdowns, including two games with more than 140 yards gained. Siwula also posted a 3.60 grade-point average in the School of Industrial and Labor Relations. He is the fifth Cornell football player to earn first-team Academic All- American honors, joining Joe Holland '79, Derrick Harmon '84, Dave Van Metre '86, and Kevin Rooney '04.

SPRINT STARS  After the sprint football team posted its first undefeated season since 1982, it's not surprising that the College Sprint Football League postseason teams would be colored red. Cornell garnered 22 selections to All-CSFL teams, including seven first-team honorees. Two-way star Jason Remillard '08 was named the CSFL Player of the Year after catching 22 passes for 254 yards and also recording 22 tackles and two interceptions. Jason Zittel '07 was honored three times, earning first-team honors as a linebacker, second-team honors as a place kicker, and honorable mention as punter. Other firstteam selections were quarterback Zak Dentes '09, offensive lineman Robert Kurucza '08, defensive lineman Matthew Collin '08, and defensive backs John Samuel '08 and Ian Murray '08.

WET WONDERS  The 2006–07 season has been one of firsts for the men's swimming team. The Big Red went undefeated in dual meets, winning the Eastern Intercollegiate Swimming League title and ending a 14- year run in which either Harvard or Princeton was the league champ. The first sign the season would be special came when Cornell beat Harvard 167-131, its first win over the Crimson in 20 years. Dave McKechnie '08 set school and Teagle Pool records in the 100-meter breaststroke and also swam on the 200 medley relay and 400 freestyle relay teams that set pool records. One week later, Cornell topped Princeton 160-140, its first victory over the Tigers since the 1983–84 season. The Big Red won 12 of 16 events and set five pool records in the process. Wes Newman '09 collected two of the new pool records while winning the 200 and 500 freestyle races.

Big Game  January 27, 2007

Mike Schafer '86 moved to the top of the wins list for head coaches of men's hockey when his team defeated Colgate 2-1. The victory was the 231st in Schafer's 12-year career, moving him past Dick Bertrand '70, who compiled 230 wins between 1970 and 1982. Schafer had tied Bertrand's total on December 29 when Cornell downed New Hampshire (then ranked number two in the country) at the Florida College Classic tournament. The team then struggled through its longest winless streak in 14 years (0-5-2) before topping Colgate at Lynah Rink. Two freshmen led the way, with Ben Scrivens making 24 saves in goal and forward Justin Milo notching the game winner with 6:22 remaining in the third period. The win lifted the Big Red's record to 10-8-3.