(Click Here To View Complete Release In PDF Format)

ALBANY, NY  -- It was inevitable that the balanced play throughout the season in ECAC Hockey would lead to the final weekend of the season to crown a regular-season champion and determine the seeds for postseason play. 

No. 12 Princeton/Quinnipiac at No. 9 Clarkson/St. Lawrence:  Winners of 14 of its last 16, Princeton has been narrowing the gap to the league's top spot and climbing in the national polls over the last several weeks.  Just one point separates the Tigers from the Golden Knights for the league lead.  The two teams will battle Friday evening at Cheel Arena, where Clarkson has been virtually unbeatable compiling a record of 12-1-1 this season.  Princeton's 14 league wins sets a program record for league wins in a season.  All eyes will be on Clarkson's netminder senior David Leggio as he looks to halt Princeton's offense, which leads the league in scoring with 70 goals.  Clarkson is gunning for its 10th regular season title.  Quinnipiac will also make the trip the North Country with hopes of a possible sweep and getting some help from other league teams to earn a first-round bye in the postseason.  The Bobcats will look to gain momentum against Clarkson and St. Lawrence, two teams from which they earned three league points earlier in the season.  The Saints are looking to gain some energy from two teams that they have experienced some success against to take them in the postseason.  St. Lawrence leads the all-time series against Princeton 55-17-5 and owns a 29-6-2 advantage against the Tigers at home, while boasting a 3-2-2 record all-time against Quinnipiac. 

No. 20 Harvard/Dartmouth at Colgate/Cornell:  Making its way back into the national spotlight with a No. 20-ranking, Harvard will travel to Colgate and Cornell to finish its regular season.  The Crimson and the Big Red find themselves in the middle of the battle for a playoff bye.  Harvard enters the weekend winners of its last four games overall and seven of its last nine.  The streaky Crimson opened the season 6-2-1 before embarking on a 10-game stretch that saw them go winless (0-8-2) before building their current streak of 7-2-0 in the last nine games.  Look for three-time ECAC Hockey Goaltender of the Week Kyle Richter to anchor a defense that has yielded a stellar 1.85G/GM in league play.  Watch for Cornell to bring rock-solid special teams play into both match-ups this weekend.  The Big Red sit in the number two spot converting on 20.4% of power-play chances and rank number two in penalty kills with an 86.8% success rate.  Colgate can grab one of the two unclaimed first-round byes with a bit of help.  The Raiders have been fastened on the defensive end by senior goaltender Mark Dekanich, who had a grand shutout streak recently snapped at 217:16 last weekend.  The Big Green will wrap up its regular-season play as well.  They have benefitted on the offensive end from senior leadership, as its two top scorers Nick Johnson has paced the team with 32 points, including 24 assists, while J.T. Wyman has a squad-best 15 goals and 29 points. 

Rensselaer/Union at Brown/Yale:  Brown's and Yale's seniors will skate on the ice for the last time this weekend in regular-season action.  The Bulldogs can finish anywhere from the fourth to the eighth position as the season winds down.  The Bulldogs have received contributions from several young players, including sophomore forward Sean Backman leads the Bulldogs with 17 goals and seven assists and freshman Denny Kearney and sophomore Mark Arcobello who each have 19 points on the season.  Brown has split its last 11 meetings with the Engineers going 5-5-1.  The Bears have been paced at both ends of the ice by senior leadership this season with forward Jeff Prough netting six goals and 13 assists and defenseman Sean Hurley, who as recorded two goals and 14 assists.  Union has secured home ice for the fifth time in the last six seasons.  Winners of nine league games thus far, the Dutchmen can finish anywhere from third to eighth in the final standings.  The Engineers will look to a pair of freshmen Tyler Helfrich (8 goals, 19 assists) who leads the team with 27 points and Chase Polacek (7 goals, 18 assists) to give them an offensive boost, as they can finish anywhere from ninth to 12th in the standings.