Men's ice hockey: narrow loss to St. Lawrence, senior night vs. Clarkson ends regular season

They won against Ivy League rivals Yale (10-17-2 overall, 7-13-2 in the Eastern University Athletic Conference) and Brown (8-18-3, 6-14-3). Princeton men's ice hockey (10–15–4, 8–11–3) returns to its home Hobey Baker Rink this weekend to celebrate the senior class of 2024 and play its final two games of the regular season. I did.

The Tigers started the weekend Friday against the Saints (10-18-6, 8-10-4), trailing 4-4 ​​before falling 1-0 in a sudden-death shootout. They suffered a dramatic defeat. The clock has run out.

The Orange and Black returned home for Senior Night on Saturday, celebrating seven team members from the Class of 2024. Princeton faced a tough battle against the Clarkson Golden Knights (18-15-1, 12-9-1). However, they were unable to overcome their opponent and lost 6-2.

Tigers lose to Saints in penalty shootout

After Tiger scored nine cumulative goals last weekend, Princeton entered the penultimate game of the regular season expecting another strong performance.

Three minutes into the game, St. Lawrence capitalized on a 2-on-1 rush and got the back of the net first, finishing a five-hole puck through the legs of first-year goaltender Arthur Smith.

But the Tigers responded quickly, scoring twice in the first 38 seconds to change the course of the game.

Princeton's first goal was the first of many from the line of sophomore forward David Jacobs, freshman forward Kai Daniels and sophomore forward Brendan Gorman. Gorman began the sequence by sliding through the offensive zone and took a shot toward the net, but Jacobs tucked in the rebound to make the score 1-1.

“We've been working on set breakouts all week,” Jacobs told the Daily Princetonian. “Brendan [Gorman] Kai passed by at great speed. [Daniells] We had great support and were able to get off to a good start by hitting the net. ”

On the next shift, senior forward Ian Murphy took a pass from senior forward Nick Seitz across the circle and slammed the puck into the net for Princeton's second goal of the night. This gave the Tigers a 2-1 lead with 12 minutes remaining.

After a high-scoring first 20 minutes of play, St. Lawrence added two more goals. The first was the result of a faceoff win in the offensive zone, and the second was a scramble in the crease that outscored Smith to start the middle frame for the 3-2 Saints.

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Less than a minute into the second period, St. Lawrence scored its fourth goal of the night. Forward Felix Gavars took a penalty shot to Princeton junior netminder Ethan Pearson after Tiger's slashing penalty in front of the net was blocked by an initial breakaway.

However, the Orange and Black did not settle for a 4-2 deficit and thwarted the Saints defensively for the rest of the period, missing eight shots on goal to maintain the pressure.

In the third frame, it was again the combination of Jacobs, Daniels and Gorman that helped the Tigers come back. With about 12 minutes left in the game, Jacobs took a one-time pass from behind the goal line from Gorman and found the back of the net, making the score 4-3 St. Lawrence.

With less than four minutes remaining, it was Daniels' turn to score. Aided by Gorman's keeping at the blue line and Jacobs' sliding pass, Daniels tied the game at 4-all.

All three attackers were on the ice for a combined nine points on the night, with Gorman and Jacobs matching career-high three-point performances and Daniels setting a career-high with one goal and two assists.

Men's hockey head coach Ron Fogarty told “Prince” of the line, “Those players compliment each other.” “We are fortunate to have them in our program for the next several years.”

After a scoreless overtime period, the night was officially recorded as a 4-4 tie, as Princeton and St. Lawrence entered a sudden-death shootout. After five rounds of impressive stops from both netminders, the Saints ultimately won the contest 1-0 and recorded an extra point in the ECAC Conference standings.

Senior night wasted by Clarkson

Returning to Hobey Baker Rink on Saturday for Princeton's final regular season game, forwards MacKenzie Merian, Ian Murphy, Nick Seitz, Adam Robbins and Joe Berg and defensemen Nick Carabin and Mike Kennedy The event began with a celebration for the team's seven senior skaters. With many families in the stands and a crowd celebrating four years of Princeton hockey, the Tigers entered the night on a high against the Clarkson Golden Knights.

“The seven seniors were instrumental in making this program relevant for the next 100 years,” Fogerty told The Prince. “They laid a great foundation for us and will be greatly missed.”

It's no surprise that the first goal of the night was made by team leaders Robbins, Seitz and Murphy. Seven minutes into the first period, Robbins and Seitz assisted Murphy to give the Tigers a 1-0 lead. Murphy slipped into the crease and deftly flipped the puck with one hand just over the goalie for his 11th goal of the season.

“It was a great goal and a special goal for me,” Murphy said. “I love this rink, this team, this program and this school so much. The last four years have meant so much to me and I am so grateful for the time I spent at Princeton.”

In the second period, the Tigers went on a 5-on-3 penalty kill and the Golden Knights successfully passed the puck past Pearson to tie the game at 1-1. Clarkson completely took over from that point on, scoring three more goals during this period to take a 4–1 lead.

Seven and a half minutes into the third period, the Tigers tried to fight back. Sophomore defenseman Tyler Rubin hit a long stretch pass through the neutral zone directly onto Daniels' tape, and Daniels placed the puck perfectly for freshman forward Carson Bidens to score in the back of the net.

“I really like the way the Bidens won,” Fogerty said. “He's a very powerful player.”

Following Biden's second career goal, the Golden Knights responded with two more goals, ending the night with a 6-2 loss to Princeton.

“We've got great habits. I really like where our game is right now,” Jacobs said. “We have to put together a full 60 minutes to get the job done.”

The regular season is now over and the Tigers sit in ninth place in the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference. Heading into the hockey playoffs, Princeton hopes to survive its season this Friday, March 8, in a single-elimination first round matchup against the No. 8 seed Harvard Crimson.

“We’re going to play a lot of games,” Murphy emphasized in preparation for the road game at the Bright Landry Hockey Center. Our plan is to go to someone else's link and ruin their day. ”

Eva Siegel is a sports editorial assistant at The Prince.

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