ESPN

Joe Gladziszewski

  (1:31 PM)

Hello again everyone. Welcome to the Inside College Hockey portion of The Show on ESPN.com. Today we are joined by Matt Moulson of Cornell. He'll be taking your questions for the next 30 minutes.

John, Ithaca, NY

Of the CU freshman class, who looks like they will make the biggest impact on the ice?

Matt Moulson

  (1:32 PM)

All of them have a chance to make an impact, but you can't really tell until the season gets going and they start to find a comfort level. We won't really be able to tell until the season gets going, but all of them have a chance to make an impact.

Karen Acker, Raleigh, N.C

Hi Matt. What advice would you give my son Tim, who plays AAA travel ice hockey, and who wants to become an NHL player someday.

Matt Moulson

  (1:33 PM)

Keep working hard, work on the things he needs to improve on, and don't let minor setbacks throw him off of the path.

Matt Moulson

  (1:34 PM)

Thank you for the note Karen.

Danny, New York

What do you do before games to get yourself prepared? Is there anything special that you watch or people that you call? What is your pregame ritual?

Matt Moulson

  (1:35 PM)

Usually I call one of my close friends before the game and talk to him. He graduated last year and we used to watch the Ali G Show together. He wasn't on the hockey team, but he lived with me.

Bob, New York, New York

Do you have much contact with non-hockey players? Have you spent your whole Cornell career living with hockey players?

Matt Moulson

  (1:36 PM)

We have 15 hockey players that live in one house at our school, but I do have a lot of contact with non-hockey players. We're pretty close to the lacrosse team and other sports teams here. A lot of my friends aren't on the hockey team. There are some extraordinary people at Cornell, so you're limiting yourself if you don't get out and meet people here.

Hurley (nyc)

Matt, what's it like to kick off the season against a powerhouse like Michigan State that's already played several big games, when you've only had a few practices and one exhibition? Do you guys feel prepared out there, or does it feel like you're at a disadvantage?

Matt Moulson

  (1:38 PM)

Every year we're kind of confronted with this. We start later than other teams because we're in the Ivy League. It's going to be a challenge, but we feel that we are ready. We can't look at it as a disadvantage. We've been battling against each other for a while and we're ready as a team and guys are excited to play against a team like Michigan State to kick off the season.

Olivia: Pittsburgh, PA

You were drafted by the Pens. What do you imagine it will be like playing one day soon with Sidney Crosby in the Igloo?

Matt Moulson

  (1:40 PM)

The Penguins organization is rebuilding and it has a great tradition. Sydney Crosby is a great player and it would be an honor to play with him, but right now I'm concentrating on this year and winning a national championship. I'm hoping to improve my game on the way to that level and hopefully someday winning a Stanley Cup with Sydney.

Zach '01, NYC

Matt,Although I know we have a good shot of making the final four this year, what do you think our prospects of going all the way are with the loss of some solid defenders in Cook and Downs?Thanks and good luck this season.

Matt Moulson

  (1:42 PM)

Obviously with the loss of those two guys and the other seniors last year. They were key contributors and a big part of the success. Now we have to step up and fill those roles and the younger guys need to make an impact. That's something you deal with in college hockey every year, seniors leaving, and you have to fill those gaps as quickly as you can.

Notch, Montreal

What do you and the rest of the team do to relax and get your mind off of hockey?

Matt Moulson

  (1:43 PM)

We play a lot of XBox, a couple of us are big XBox fans. Hockey is always on the mind and we're always watching the NHL. In the offseason we go paintballing and golfing as a team, and go down to the beautiful gorges. Besides hockey and school work it doesn't leave much time for anything else.

Robb, Lancaster, CA

According to Google, my new apartment is 2689 miles from Lynah Rink, but I'll be following the team as closely as always - best of luck for the new season! Did the players and/or coaches set out any specific goals for the year that you can share with us?

Matt Moulson

  (1:45 PM)

I think our main goal is to win the national championship. That's why I came to the university and that's the main goal we have. From the start of the season we've worked hard every single day to win the national championship. We also set other goals along the way, but the big one is to win the national championship.

"Uncle" Guy Goffredo

With the new NHL Hockey and its new rules and speed of the game, how will this change your game in your senior year in cornell and or potentially your mind set for the NHL.Have a great season Matt!

Matt Moulson

  (1:46 PM)

I don't think it changes us much in college. We practice with a mind on those rules, about moving our feet and not hooking, but our game rules haven't changed much.

Travis, Canada

How many campuses did you tour before deciding on Cornell?

Matt Moulson

  (1:48 PM)

Actually, including Cornell, it was zero. Brent Brekke gave me a call and offered me a spot. I talked to my dad about it, and my dad said, "Call him back right away and say you're coming!" That was before we knew how much we were going to pay and then it was up to me to get my marks up and stuff. I didn't actually talk to any other schools.

Mike, Ithaca

Matt, I was at the red white game and i saw you get into a fight with Jon gleed. How serious was that fight and have you guys worked things out?

Matt Moulson

  (1:50 PM)

Me and Jon are really close friends and we have been from our freshman to our senior year. People don't realize that we've been going at each other for two months and we have a lot of pride. We were competing and I gave him a slash and he gave me a cross check, and things got a little heated. It might have been a shock to people in the stands because they don't watch our practices, but those things are going to happen when you're competing and working hard. We worked it out, and we laugh about it now.

Bob (Upstate NY)

Matt, from a player's perspective, what's it like playing your home games in Lynah Rink? During a game, is the home-ice advantage all it's cracked up to be in Lynah?

Matt Moulson

  (1:53 PM)

I definitely think it's everything it's cracked up to be. The Lynah Faithful are the best crowds to play in front of in the entire nation. We get really fired up to play in front of them. They appreciate how hard we work and I think that makes us want to work even harder and compete in front of them. It gets so loud in here and you can see the frustration in the other team sometimes when the crowd gets on them. We kind of feed off each other.

Steve (Washington, DC)

Can yuo give us your impressions of Sasha Pokulok? What makes him such a good player?

Matt Moulson

  (1:54 PM)

I think he has a great mind for the game. Sometimes you don't see that with big guys his size. He has incredible hands and he's good defensively and tremendous offensively. He has skills that other big guys his size don't have - great vision and scoring touch.

Joe Gladziszewski

  (1:55 PM)

We have time for a couple of questions before we have to go.

Mollie Spencer, NY

Do you still stay in contact with some of the players that have graduated...for instance David Leneveu who now is up with the NHL ?

Matt Moulson

  (1:57 PM)

I do keep in touch with some of the players that have graduated, but not David so much. He was only here for one of the years that I was on the team, so I don't keep in touch with him as much as some of the other guys that have gone. Ryan Vesce and Ben Wallace and Mike Knoepfli, Jeremy Downs, Mike Iggulden, Charlie Cook - we text each other quite often.

Jamison, Worcester, MA

What's your favorite road trip or rink to play in?

Matt Moulson

  (1:58 PM)

It used to be Brown/Harvard, but now it's Dartmouth/Harvard. That's our favorite road trip because it's a big rival. We always have a lot of fans out there and get fired up for those games, so that's our favorite road trip.

Matt Moulson

  (1:59 PM)

Thanks for the questions and took the time to write in. Hopefully I gave you some insight into the team and college hockey. Thanks to all of the Lynah Faithful for your support of the team.

Joe Gladziszewski

  (1:59 PM)

Thanks Matt for the time, and thanks for all of the questions. Be sure to read my ECACHL Notebook later tonight for more about the Big Red, and follow college hockey at InsideCollegeHockey.com