Not much compares to the excitement of a live hockey game, where the violence on the ice engenders a fever in the stands. For Dartmouth fans, though, a televised game can be a similarly thrilling experience, as our athletics only rarely hit any major broadcasts.
After determining that the seven-hour drive to Atlantic City for the semifinals of the ECAC men's hockey tournament just wasn't in the works, I tuned in to CBS College Sports with high expectations.
Cornell had earned the upper hand in face-to-face matchups over the regular season, but Dartmouth had a better record in both the overall season and conference play, so the chances seemed good. Plus, the Big Green had been the first to get onto the scoreboard in each game against the Big Red a tie and a loss that both went into overtime. And thus I was surprised by Cornell's early first-period goal and shaken by the follow-up shocker 14 seconds later.
Just like any big game I've been to at Thompson Arena, this one suddenly felt urgent, and I couldn't change the channel even as my initial excitement faded into some serious frustration. Even the impartial announcers began to grate on my nerves with their analysis of minor rule changes and wealth of barely tangential anecdotes. To be fair, the Big Green showed little fire and was scoreless on all of its several power-play chances and, in hindsight, the announcers didn't have much to talk about.
When the officials spent minutes looking over video of a close Dartmouth shot, I craved the ecstatic partisanship of the student section, where the eventual decision of no goal would have been met with boos. Playoffs on the big screen are still no match for the real thing.
Finally, the ultimate 3-0 score marked the first career shutout for junior Mike Garman, who stopped all 37 of the Big Green's shots while controlling the game's tempo and rarely letting up a rebound. On the other side of the ice, Cornell took advantage of just 18 shots to secure the game. The game was painful enough as it was without additionally conceding these bragging rights.
Statistically, Dartmouth would have been a clear underdog in the ECAC finals, where hockey powerhouse Yale ended up trouncing the Big Red. Nevertheless, recalling that we have made a total of four Frozen Four appearances in the past 63 years, I let my hopes fly high for our chances at the NCAA tournament.
I learned that once the winners of five top conferences (including the ECAC) secure their bids to the NCAA tournament, there's not much room left in the 16-team field. Based on a relatively complex ratings system, Dartmouth could have just barely made the tournament, even with the loss to Cornell in the semis. An upset in the Atlantic Hockey League, however, threw off the Big Green's chances when underdog Air Force defeated the Rochester Institute of Technology in the conference championship.
Two of the Big Green's top five scorers will be returning for the next campaign. Talented young bodies will hopefully fill the void left by graduating defensemen, including Joe Stejskal '11, who was recently signed by the Montreal Canadiens. Anchored by the dependable James Mello '12 in goal, I'm hoping to see Dartmouth men's hockey push even further in postseason play in 2012 until the basketball team steps up, this is the closest Hanover will get to March Madness.
Anyway, I'm glad I didn't have to drive home from Atlantic City after that game.
