Dartmouth and women's hockey meet at Baker Rink

In the world of sports, dynasties are not uncommon. The New York Islanders of the early 1980s, the Chicago Bulls of the 1990s and the New York Yankees from the beginning of time are all examples of teams that seemed to have one-way tickets to success and prosperity. Professional sports do not hold a monopoly on dynasties, however, and lately in women's college ice hockey the team to beat has been Dartmouth.

The Big Green took home first place in the Eastern Coast Athletic Conference last season with an overall record of 26-5-1, and over its 25-year history holds an all-time 356-222-32 record. It has either won outright or shared five Ivy League titles in the last ten years, including last year.

Dartmouth (18-4-2 overall, 10-2-0 ECAC) will come to Princeton Saturday night in a familiar position, atop both the ECAC and the Ivy League, for a match-up between two of the top three Ivy teams. The game will also be the seniors' final regular-season appearance at Baker Rink in what senior captain Melissa Deland calls "the best year of our careers."

At the conclusion of the ECAC season, the eight teams with the most points in the league face off in successive best-of-three playoff series to determine the winner.

The Ivy League holds no playoffs to determine its champion, however, and the team with the most points at the end of the season is simply awarded the crown.

The Big Green currently leads the ECAC with 20 points, followed closely by Brown and St. Lawrence with 19 points apiece and Princeton with 18.

With two points being awarded for every win, a victory over Dartmouth would be a four point swing for the Tigers and would leapfrog them to the top of the ECAC.

"If we beat them, we almost are gaining four points because we move up two and they drop two," senior captain Aviva Grumet-Morris said.

Deland echoed her teammate's views about the importance of the contest.

"The Dartmouth game on Saturday night is the biggest game of our season," she said. "If we win, we will be one game away from winning the Ivy League title, as well as positioning ourselves in an excellent spot to earn home-ice for the ECAC playoffs."

The Tigers have a psychological advantage heading into the game, as they have already defeated Dartmouth once this season. On Jan. 5, Princeton became the first team to take down the Big Green at Thompson Arena since Mar. 4, 2000, an unbeaten streak which had spanned a season and a half.

In addition to wielding any psychological weapons they may possess, the Tigers are "focusing on playing with intensity, moving the puck quickly, and skating fast through the neutral zone," Deland said.

Get the best of the ‘Prince’ delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe now »

Although a win over Dartmouth would greatly help Princeton in its Ivy League title chase, there is more than simply two points at stake. As a by-product of its winning ways, the Big Green seem to have developed a swagger that the Tigers would like to stop in its tracks.

"Dartmouth has not always given us the respect that we deserve, which only serves to fuel our desire to beat them even more," Deland said.

The seniors' final regular-season game at Baker Rink seems to present the perfect opportunity for the Tigers to gain that respect.

"We always play better in front of the home fans," Grumet-Morris said.

Before clashing with the Big Green, Princeton will take on ECAC doormats Vermont on Friday night.

The Catamounts are currently 0-14-0 in the ECAC and 1-26-1 overall. In the first meeting between the two teams on Jan. 6, Princeton defeated Vermont, 5-1, and outshot the Catamounts 39-14. Despite this wide discrepancy in shots and the difference in their records, the Tigers know that a win over Vermont awards them the same two points as a victory over a more challenging foe, and therefore the game cannot be taken lightly.

"Every game counts," Grumet-Morris said. "Beating Vermont is just as important as beating Dartmouth."