After a weekend sweep, men’s ice hockey is nationally ranked for the first time since the 2019-2020 season at 17th. The Big Green defeated nationally-ranked Quinnipiac 4-2 on Nov. 8 and demolished Princeton 5-1 the next day to start the season 4-0-0 for the first time since the 1957-1958 season.
The Big Green last bested a nationally-ranked team on Jan. 17, 2020 when Dartmouth defeated No. 7 Clarkson University, another ECAC rival. Head coach Reid Cashman said he believes the team’s off-season training and team chemistry has allowed early success.
“Our guys really care for each other, love each other and compete for each other,” Cashman said. “A combination of how they came into the season and how much they want to be successful for each other has led to some early-season success.”
The last time the Big Green defeated the Quinnipiac Bobcats in their own rink was during the 2006-2007 season. Following their defeat on Nov. 8, the Bobcats dropped from 15th in the nation to 19th.
The first period was scoreless, which the Big Green expected.
“I knew to expect a tight game throughout and thought there would be limited opportunities for both sides,” goalie Roan Clarke ’27 said.
In the second, the Big Green was the first to get on the board after a turnover at the Quinnipiac blue line produced by co-captain Steven Townley ’25, Jack Silverberg ’28 and Alex Krause ’26. Krause would be the one to beat the Quinnipiac goalie for his first goal of the season to make it 1-0 Dartmouth.
“The great part about our team is that everyone on the roster is extremely hardworking and understands how to play the game,” Townley said about the turnover and goal.
Less than four minutes later, co-captain Sean Chisholm ’25 passed the puck behind his back to Nikita Nikora ’27 in front of Quinnipiac’s goal. With the Bobcat goalie focused on Nikora, Nikora passed it back to Chisholm — who scored easily for his second goal of the season.
With 37 seconds left in the second period and four seconds remaining on the only Quinnipiac power play of the game, the Bobcats scored — making it 2-1 at the end of the second period. Quinnipiac scored again seven minutes into the third period to tie the game.
“There’s probably a lot of outside pressure, but for me, my process hasn’t changed regardless of the score or time,” Clarke said. “My job is to stop the next puck and give my team an opportunity to win. I just try to keep present and stay in the same moment.”
Later in the third, Dartmouth came out successful on their second power play of the game, with Nikora finding John Fusco ’25 darting across the ice. The latter scored to put the Big Green back on top.
The Bobcats took their goalie out for the extra attacker, but defenseman CJ Foley ’27 fought through the Quinnipiac offense and scored an empty net goal just 55 seconds after Fusco’s goal, making it 4-2 Dartmouth.
“We talked to our players [and said] if they pull the goalie, we can go for the empty net,” Cashman said. “We want to go for the empty net and if it’s an icing, it’s no big deal.”
Foley was named the ECAC Hockey Defender of the Week.
“[Foley is] just more comfortable with how we play and he’s more comfortable with the league [than his freshman year],” Cashman said. “Combine that with a little bit of added strength and he’s looked really good early in the season.”
With a 4-2 win, the Big Green traveled down to Princeton the next day to face the Tigers. Cam MacDonald ’26 was the first to get on the scoreboard, securing his second goal of the season at the 18:24 mark of the first period.
The Big Green scored another three goals in the second period — from Chisholm on the power play, Hayden Stavroff ’28 and Chisholm again to make it 4-0 Dartmouth. Chisholm has scored four goals in four games this season.
“It’s nice to see the numbers coming,” Chisholm said. “But you can’t just focus on the numbers — the team winning is the biggest thing.”
Things got heated between both teams by the end of the second period. Princeton’s Kevin Anderson received a major for spearing at the 19:34.5 mark, while Dartmouth collectively received a penalty at the very end of the second for unsportsmanlike conduct.
Townley scored his first goal of the season at the 9:26 mark during the third period.
“I went my whole sophomore year without scoring,” Townley said. “It was nice to get the first goal out of the way.”
The rivalry continued to escalate between the two teams throughout the game. When Princeton’s Ian Devlin scored at the 15:26 mark, another Princeton player knocked goalie Emmett Croteau ’27 down, and players on both teams exchanged words. After the referees deliberated, the goal was good and Croteau was ejected from the game with a major for kicking.
That rivalry might still be on players’ minds when Princeton comes to Dartmouth on Feb. 1. At the home game against Princeton, students throw tennis balls on the ice after the first Dartmouth goal — a tradition since 1998.
Clarke finished the game in goal and did not let one puck past him.
“I was ready,” Clarke said. “It was definitely a unique situation. There wasn’t a whole lot of communication about what was going to happen there.”
The Big Green won 5-1, putting them firmly in first in the ECAC.
The Big Green are back at Thompson Arena this weekend to face No. 6 Cornell University on Friday and Colgate University on Saturday. While Cornell sent Dartmouth packing last year during the ECAC semifinals, Cashman said the Big Green is ready for them this time.
“The Cornell team looks the same every year, which is really physical, really detailed, really structured,” Cashman said. “It’s a really good matchup for us. It has nothing to do with last year’s results. We know the margin of error will be thin and we need to be the best versions of ourselves.”
