Big Games on This Weekend's ECAC Hockey League Slate

ALBANY, N.Y. -- The regular season race is still as tight as ever in the ECAC Hockey League, and every team will be fighting for points in this weekend's games. All 12 teams are still able to claim home ice, and seven teams are still able to finish first. There are so many scenarios that can be typed out -- too many, in fact -- but it all comes down to one simple thing: just win. With that in mind, every game being played this weekend is sure to be intense.

While every game will be a battle this weekend, all-out warfare might be best to describe the games in Central New York this weekend. There are just four points separating first-place Cornell with fourth-place Harvard (tied), and in the middle are Colgate and Dartmouth, who are tied for second place.

Taking a look at the games in Hamilton first, the Raiders will face the Crimson on Friday, followed by Saturday's game with the Big Green. During the second weekend of the league schedule, Colgate lost to Harvard in Cambridge, giving the Crimson a 41-16-4 lead in the all-time series. Harvard has made itself at home in Hamilton, posting a 17-8-2 record at Starr Rink. However, Colgate has won four of the last seven meetings versus Harvard at home. Colgate's win against Dartmouth in November gave it a 38-33-3 lead in the series. The Raiders own a 19-9-2 record versus the Big Green in Hamilton, including a 19-7-2 mark at Starr Rink. Dartmouth won the last time it visited Central New York, but Colgate won the previous three meetings in Hamilton. Saturday night's game will be televised regionally in the CNY area on Time Warner Cable, channel 26.

Cornell starts its weekend against Dartmouth, a squad that claimed a big 6-1 win earlier in the year vs. the Big Red. While Cornell holds the overall lead in this series (65-38-2) which started back in 1909, the Big Green has had the upper hand as of late, claiming a 6-3-1 record in the last 10 meetings. The Cornell-Harvard game is usually a powerful affair on its own. Add in the importance the game has in terms of the league race along with the fact that the game is being televised nationally on CSTV, and it is sure to be even more intense. Cornell leads the all-time series 63-51-7 and has won two straight, including a 3-1 victory in the final of last season's ECACHL Championship. The Big Red scored twice in the final 5:04 to rally past Harvard, 4-3 earlier this season. The start time is different than usual for this game, with the puck dropping at 5:30 p.m. to accommodate CSTV's broadcast.

Four other games are also taking place in New York this weekend, as St. Lawrence and Clarkson play host to Brown and Yale. St. Lawrence enters the weekend tied with Harvard for fourth place in the standings with 21 points, and a good showing this weekend will help the Saints in their bid for a bye come playoff time. SLU kicks off its weekend against Brown, a team that puts up a tough fight. St. Lawrence will look to split this year's series after dropping the early season game to the Bears by a 3-1 score. If SLU earns the win, it will mark the third straight year that the teams have split the season series. The Saints have not swept the season series with Brown since the 1991-92 season, and Brown has taken at least one point from the Saints each year since then. The Saints are 2-0-1 in the second meeting of the year with the Bears in the last three seasons. The Saints will be out to sweep the season series with Yale for the first time since the 2000-01 season and snap a two-game home losing streak to the Elis. The Saints have won four straight at Ingalls Rink, but Yale prevailed 5-2 in Canton last season and 5-4 in 2003-04. The Saints won the first meeting this season 7-5 in New Haven.

Clarkson and Yale sit just two points away from each other in the standings and this weekend's game between the two is just as important as every other game in the league. Clarkson can still claim a first round bye for the playoffs, while Yale will be fighting for home ice in the first round. The Golden Knights come into the weekend riding on the momentum they gained by earning three points last weekend. The team will look to sweep this year's series with the Bulldogs, having won the early season matchup, 5-1, back in November. Clarkson holds the overall lead in the all-time series (63-28-4) and has won three of the last four games between the two squads. However, Yale had a five-game win streak in the series before the Golden Knights broke it with a win last February. Although Clarkson holds a commanding 48-13-6 lead in its overall series against Brown, which began in 1953, the Bears have played the Knights extremely tough in recent years and currently own their longest win streak of the series at three games. Brown posted a 4-3 victory in Providence on November 11, and last year swept the regular season for the first time since the 1991-92 campaign. The Bears, who are 3-13-3 at Cheel Arena, skated to a 4-2 victory in Potsdam on November 26, 2004 in their last trip to the North Country. In their last 10 meetings, Brown holds a 5-3-2 edge. Clarkson's last win in the rivalry was a 3-2 triumph at Cheel Arena on February 21, 2004.

The final games on the schedule this weekend have Union and Rensselaer traveling to Quinnipiac and Princeton. The Dutchmen and Engineers could still finish in the top four (including first), so they will be gunning for as many points as possible this weekend. The Bobcats and Tigers are out of bye contention, but will still vie for home ice in the first round.

In New Jersey, Rensselaer will be looking for the season sweep vs. Princeton, as the Engineers claimed a 4-1 win earlier this season in Troy. Keep in mind, though, Princeton swept both games a season ago and has won two of the last three games in the series played at Baker Rink. RPI leads the all-times series 55-24-8. The series between Princeton and Union is much closer, with the Tigers ahead four games, 17-13-4. The Dutchmen have a four-game unbeaten-streak in the series (3-0-1), dating back to a 4-0 Princeton win in December of 2003. Union has won three-straight in the series at Princeton. The Dutchmen posted a 6-2 win earlier this season.

In Connecticut, Quinnipiac and Union start things off on Friday in the first game played between the two somewhere other than the Dutchmen's Messa Rink. The teams have met twice before with each claiming a victory. Union won the earlier season league game 2-0, while a non-conference affair in during the 2000-01 season was claimed by Quinnipiac. The Bobcats will look to break Rensselaer's hold on Saturday night, as the Engineers have won the previous four meetings between the two schools. All four previous meetings were played in the Capital District. Saturday's game, while a home game for Quinnipiac, will actually be played at Yale's Ingalls Rink.