Season
St. Lawrence was well-positioned entering the 2023–24 season, as almost the entire team returned from the previous year. The only real question was in goal, where grad transfer Ben Kraws was expected to take over the starting role. However, once the season started, it became apparent that the Larries had lost something; the defense was unable to shield their goaltender. Kraws played credibly in goal but he came under siege from a barrage of opposing chances. The Saints were allowing an average of more than 32 shots against per game, more than 5 over what they had the year before and one of the worst marks in the nation. [1] Kraws played about as well as could be expected but, with the offense not providing much support the Larries won just three times in their first fourteen games.
After a poor showing in the first two months, St. Lawrence began to turn things around in December. Several good defensive performances in December and January allowed the Saints to win some of their conference games and climb into the middle of the standings. The Larries had an outside chance at earning a bye into the conference quarterfinals but a minor slump from the back end caused that opportunity to slip by the wayside. St. Lawrence stumbled to the finish, winning only two of their final ten games.
Even with the slide down the home stretch, the Larries were able to earn a home stand for the opening round of the postseason and opened against Yale. The defense did Kraws no favors, allowing 39 shots in the game, but stopped enough to allow the offense to carry the day in the final home game of the season. The next week sent the Larries to meet Colgate and, at times, the team looked completely outclassed. The Raiders ran over the Saints in the first period, outshooting St. Lawrence 17–3 but Kraws stood his ground. A strong second period gave the team a 2-goal lead but a regressing in the third saw Colgate tie the game and force overtime. Kraws was absolutely key in extra time, stopping 16 shots in over 27 minutes of play. His stellar goaltending allowed Luc Salem to fire a bouncing puck from the blueline through a maze of bodies for the winning goal. [2] The rematch saw Colgate come storming out of the gate and completely dominate the first period once more. This time, the Larries fell down by a goal but, once more, a solid middle period saw St. Lawrence take a lead into the third. A power play goal by the Raiders tied the score but, just a few minutes afterwards, a goal from Jan Olenginski on a breakaway restored the lead for the Larries and they rode Kraws the rest of the way to victory. [3]
In the semifinals, St. Lawrence faced Quinnipiac, the defending NCAA national champions. The Larries' defense limited the Bobcats to just 22 shots, which were all stopped by Ben Kraws. For the third consecutive game, St. Lawrence scored two in the second and that was more than enough to carry them to victory. With the Saints now just one win from the NCAA tournament, St. Lawrence entered the game with Cornell looking for a major upset. However, with the Big Red also fighting for their season, the Larries knew they would not have an easy challenge. The Saints played well but they were stymied by one of the best defensive teams in the nation. While Cornell was able to score in each period, St. Lawrence could only get a single marker in the third and saw their miracle run end just shy of a league championship and their first NCAA appearance since 2007.
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