The friendly confines of Thompson Arena will be a welcome sight to the men's hockey squad this weekend when they take the ice this weekend. The hostile rinks of upstate New York were not kind to the Big Green as they fell to Cornell and Colgate, dealing a big blow to their playoff hopes.
This weekend the Big Green hope to get back on track against St. Lawrence and Clarkson, two teams who took Dartmouth to school on a month ago on the road. This time the Big Green hope the magic of home ice will prompt a different result.
St. Lawrence is coming off a win over 5-2 Princeton last Saturday on the road in which goaltender Sean Knaub made 36 saves in only his fourth start. This was a pleasant surprise for the Saints, who have cycled through four goalies over the course of the season. Scoring has also been a problem for St. Lawrence this year, placing eighth in team offense with only 2.69 goals per game. Special teams are also a specific weakness for the Saints as they place last and second to last on the power play and penalty kill respectively.
The Golden Knights have played well of late, with three wins in their last five games, with their two close losses coming against Union and Yale. Their scoring has been spread out over the team, with no one in double digits in goals. Their leading scorer is sophomore defenseman Randy Jones with 25 points. Even with the lack of scoring punch, the Golden Knights have been strong on defense, allowing only 2.25 goals per game.
While both teams appear to be undermatched against Dartmouth's firepower, the Big Green should not take this weekend for granted. If one thing is certain, it's that Dartmouth's defense and goaltending will need to play better than the first meeting, where the Big Green allowed seven goals in each game.
Looking at the ECAC standings one sees a number of teams bunched around the middle of the pack. Dartmouth and both of its opponents this weekend are included in this group. Clarkson is positioned only one point ahead of the Green in a tie for fifth with Brown. St. Lawrence is four points behind, but not out of the playoff picture yet. With this in mind, it is essential for the Big Green to make the most of this weekend to improve its playoff lot.
Things don't get easier from here, with Harvard and Brown coming to town next weekend. The pressure is on if Dartmouth hopes to have any chance of home ice. A sense of urgency should be around the Dartmouth squad this weekend. Let's hope it translates in four points.
