Trip Update: Big Green Tours 16th Century Warship, Ties Elite Team

STOCKHOLM, Sweden -- The Dartmouth men's hockey team had just one excursion planned for its eighth day. The entire group was scheduled to tour the Vasa Museum, considered one of Sweden's prized treasures.

The Vasa was considered the most expensive and richly ornamented naval vessel ever built in Sweden at its time. When the Vasa sailed forth on her maiden voyage on August 10, 1628, members young and old stood along the shore to wish her luck. Instead they were eyewitnesses to a major disaster as the Vasa was struck by a powerful gust of win that capsized and sank her to the bottom of the bay, just minutes after leaving port.

The musuem was dedicated to the restoration of the Vasa that was brought out of the water in 1961. It took almost two years to raise the almost fully intact battleship. But she was so well-preserved that, after being salvaged, she was able to float unaided. She was dry-docked for salvaging before being sailed to the old Naval shipyard where she now sits. The musuem was opend in 1990 and it details not only the ship in its entirety but life during the 1600's, naval warfare at the time, how the ship was built, what life was like on her and why she would have sank.

The two and a half hours at the museum was almost not quite enough time as there was so much to see. They've included replicas throughout the building of what the ornaments and statues still on the ship would have looked like when she set sail. You can travel down to the bottom floor and actually view restoration that is still going on today. The musuem sits on the site where the Vasa was actually built and it is only a few hundred meters from the spot where she sank. The musuem occupies the site of the former naval dockyard and sits adjacent to a former palace that is now another historical musuem.

After touring the Vasa it was back to the bus for the return trip to the hotel. After lunch a brief nap it was back on the coach for what was supposed to be a short drive to Hontvet for the Big Green's third game of the trip against Djurgardens. Unfortunately a car fire and traffic had our driver taking the back roads as we rolled up to the rink almost 30 minutes late.

The home team came out firing quickly as Djurgardens is an elite club level hockey team that was very well matched with the Green. It was a quick tempo, very physical game as the competition was much like what Dartmouth faces every night in the ECAC.

Just 9:15 into the frame the home team lit the lamp, putting the only tally of the period on the scoreboard. Doug Jones attempted to get his team on the board with a high slap shot but was unable to get the score. The Big Green had the lead in shots, 13-7.

Early in the second Danny Markowitz had two straight power play shots but terrific defense by Djurgardens prevented the score. Dartmouth had to kill off a 5-on-3 midway through the frame as the game started to get extremely physical. Rob Pritchard was on the receiving end of a welcome to our rink by a Djurrgardens player but Pritchard held his own and was able to get a few shots in before both players were ejected.

Scott Fleming was able to tie the game with less than nine minutes to go when the sophomore picked up a turnover at center ice, skating in one-on-one with the netminder for the goal.

In the third period the Big Green was able to continue with the pressure, matching Djurgardens in the physical department. Dan Goulding was Dartmouth's goalie in net as he made several terrific saves but was unable to prevent the second goal that included a wraparound where the puck was able to squeeze through Goulding's legs.

Just a minute later the game was suddenly tied. Paul Lee brought the puck down to the side of the net shooting up to Evan Stephens who was streaking straight down. Stephens deked around his defender blasting the puck into the back of the net.

The extra frame was to be a four minute, 4-on-4 stanza. Despite outshooting the home team, the Big Green was unable to get the winning goal as the contest ended in a 2-2 tie. Dartmouth held the advantage in shots, 40-25.