This weekend, the men’s hockey team is set to face two very different teams. The Big Green will play No. 3 Quinnipiac University, the second-placed team in the ECAC, on Friday and will then host Princeton University, a team that has lost seven of its last eight games, Saturday night.
Quinnipiac, Grant Opperman ’17 said, plays an aggressive game.
“They’ve got a lot of skill on their team, but I think we match up well with them skill for skill,” he said. “It should be fun. It could turn into either a big shoot out or a big defensive game.”
Dartmouth (3-14-3, 2-10-1 ECAC) faces a tough battle against Quinnipiac (18-4-5, 8-2-3 ECAC), who will approach Friday with a must-win attitude. Quinnipiac is in a three-way race for first place with Union College and Colgate University. The Bobcats are tied with Colgate and trail Union by just one point.
“We’re pretty excited,” Geoff Ferguson ’16 said. “Quinnipiac’s always a fun game. It’s always good to test yourself against one of the best teams in the nation. I think we’re right there with them if we play our game.”
Quinnipiac was No. 4 last weekend but rose one spot after Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute stunned Union 2-1.
Despite the stiff competition the team will face on Friday, the Big Green is approaching it as if it were any other game.
“Every game is crucial,” Ferguson said. “What we need to do is improve each night and we’ll be there by the end of the year.”
The Bobcats score an average of 3.52 goals per game and allow only 1.82 goals. The Big Green, on the other hand, scores 2.55 goals per game, but gives up a hefty 3.8.
Dartmouth must capitalize on power play opportunities against Quinnipiac, which has a penalty kill percentage of 90 percent. Dartmouth’s last power play goal came on Dec. 30 in a wild 8-8 contest with then No. 17 Northeastern. The Big Green has gone 0-of-20 in its last six games.
Opperman, architect of the most exciting play in last week’s game against RPI, hopes to repeat his performance this weekend. Against RPI, Opperman scored immediately after coming out of the penalty box, fielding a stretch pass from Connor Dempsey ’16, dekeing out the RPI goalie and knocking the puck in. He was nominated for ECAC Rookie of the Week.
Princeton University (4-15-0, 3-9-0 ECAC) is ranked 11 out of 12 teams in the ECAC standings., just above Dartmouth. Princeton won both early season match-ups in overtime, 3-2 in October at the Liberty Invitational in Newark and 5-4 in November at Hobey Baker Rink in Princeton, N.J. Dartmouth currently leads 95-86-15 in the historic rivalry, which dates back to 1907.
The good news for Dartmouth is that Eric Neiley ’15 will return in time to play the Tigers. After Friday’s game, Neiley, Dartmouth’s top scorer, will finish serving his two game suspension, which he earned for a late-game altercation with a Cornell University player on Jan. 18.
If Dartmouth can stun Quinnipiac on Friday, the Big Green can then climb out of the ECAC cellar with a win over Princeton. Unfortunately, Dartmouth will need a surprising turnaround if head coach Bob Gaudet’s squad wants to host a playoff series in Hanover.
A large fan turnout and the tennis ball toss make the game a season highlight, Ferguson said.
Princeton has had little to smile about this season since squeaking by Dartmouth 3-2 to start the season. Overall, Princeton has been blown out in most of its losses, including being outscored 12-3 in two games by Michigan State University. The Tigers’ leading goal scorer is senior Andrew Ammon, but he has only six goals on the year. The Tigers have killed off less than 80 percent of their penalties this season. Dartmouth should be able to take advantage of Princeton’s poor defense, which has allowed 3.74 goals per game.
The puck drops at 7 p.m. at Thompson Arena both nights.
