Steady Goings in the ECACHL
Expect an Exciting Run Down the Stretch
ALBANY, N.Y. -- There were some surprises over the weekend in the ECAC Hockey League, but overall, it didn't change much in the standings. The top two teams, Cornell and Colgate, claimed just one point on the weekend, but it was enough to hold their positions in the standings. Dartmouth swept its weekend series and is now in a tie for second, up one spot, while St. Lawrence made a similar move with its three-point weekend and is now in a tie for fourth. Other slight changes have Rensselaer all by itself in seventh after its weekend sweep, and Clarkson moved ahead of Yale, into eighth place, with its three-point effort.
When it comes down to it, what exactly does this all mean? Basically, it's still anyone's guess as to how the league standings will shake out. After the past weekend's games, seven teams can still claim first place, and all 12 still have a chance at a top-eight finish, which also brings home ice in the playoffs.
In reviewing the recent games, let's first go to the New York Capital District, where home teams Rensselaer and Union swept their games vs. Brown and Yale.
The Engineers started off the weekend with a 2-1 win over the Bulldogs and then claimed a 4-2 victory over Brown in the annual Freakout! game. Matt Angers-Goulet scored both RPI goals on Friday and then had an assist on Saturday's game winner. His three-point weekend earned him Rookie of the Week honors. Classmate Mathias Lange was also in top form, claiming both wins between the pipes, making a total of 49 saves in the two games. Andrew Lord, who also had a multiple-point weekend (1-2-3), netted the winner in front of a sold out Big Red Freakout! crowd of 5,317. Four different players scored in the win.
For Union, senior netminder Kris Mayotte turned in two outstanding performances to earn his 14th and 15th wins of the year. Mayotte stopped 55 of the 57 shots he faced (.965) in the two wins and allowed just two goals on the weekend. His two-game showing earned him Goaltender of the Week honors for the third time this season. Union is now riding a five-game unbeaten streak, and along with Mayotte, Jonathan Poirier and Olivier Bouchard are keys to their recent success. The duo combined for eight points on the weekend (four each), with Bouchard netting three goals -- all vs. Yale for his second hat trick of the season.
For the opposition, Brown's Jeff Prough scored a goal each night for the Bears, while Jeff Hristovski and Michael Karwoski had one goal each for the Bulldogs.
Heading up to New England, Dartmouth also swept its weekend series, downing Quinnipiac and Princeton. The game vs. the Tigers went to OT on Saturday in a game played before a national audience on ESPNU. Christian Read scored early in the third to tie it up before Dartmouth's Tanner Glass came through with the winner at 3:58 in the extra period.
The Big Green has quietly made its way up the ranks and is currently riding a six-game unbeaten streak and a 10-game unbeaten streak in league play. Sophomore forward David Jones has scored in the last six Dartmouth games, picking up 12 points in those games. Over the weekend, he had a goal in each game, while picking up a total of three assists. Two of his assists came on the winning goals. Glass was also a factor in the Green's wins, with two goals and two assists for a four-point series. Nick Johnson had Friday's game winner.
Princeton also faced Harvard over the weekend and went to overtime in that game as well. The two teams traded scores throughout the contest, with the Crimson's Kevin Du netting his first career hat trick in the process. The Tigers' Grant Goeckner-Zoeller tied it up at 4-all mid-way through the third and the Orange and Black held tough, forcing the extra period. A delay of game penalty in overtime gave Harvard a penalty shot (taken by Du) at :48, but the Crimson was denied by Eric Leroux's stop. Harvard came back, however, at 1:46 with Jon Pelle netting the game winner.
In the North Country, Cornell and Colgate went into the weekend looking to gain points - and possibly trade spots in the standings, but were stymied by Clarkson and St. Lawrence, going home with just one point each. The Golden Knights and Saints each scored three goals in their opening stands, with Clarkson downing the Big Red 3-1 and St. Lawrence beating the Raiders 3-2. The next evening, in Potsdam, Clarkson got on the board first, scoring in the opening period and had the lead until 8:06 in the third with Colgate tied it up. In Canton, it was a higher-scoring affair with the Saints and Big Red skating to a 4-all draw. SLU had a 3-0 lead through the early part of the second period, before Cornell reeled of three of its own. The two teams traded power-play goals in the third to keep it knotted at 4-4, and it remained that way, even with a Saint power-play that started with 57 seconds to go in OT.
T.J. Trevelyan turned in two more big performances, helping his Saints earn the three points. He had a goal and assisted on the winner vs. the Raiders and then picked up two more goals against Cornell the following night. His four points against the top two defensive teams in the league, along with his help defensively, that held Colgate to just 12 shots overall, earned him Player of the Week honors.
Goalie David Leggio was Clarkson's outstanding performer, as he stopped 47 shots while posting a 0.96 goals against average. Colgate's Kyle Wilson knotted the score vs. the Knights and Cornell's Byron Bitz tied it up vs. the Saints.
The only other game that was played last week was a non-league affair, with Harvard falling to Boston University in the semifinals of the annual Beanpot Tournament. Three different players scored for the Crimson in the loss, including Paul Dufault, who also had an assist for a two-point night.
Harvard has the early game again this week, as it opens up play on Monday in the third-place game of the Beanpot vs. Northeastern. The Crimson then travels to Colgate and Cornell for weekend games, as does Dartmouth. Quinnipiac and Princeton will play host to Union and Rensselaer, while Clarkson and St. Lawrence are home vs. Yale and Brown.
