The last time the men's ice hockey team made it past the first round of the Eastern College Athletic Conference tournament was the 1998-99 season, when the team was led by the NHL's Jeff Halpern '99 and the AHL's Syl Apps '99. The members of this year's senior class were just freshmen that season, watching from behind the bench and trying to learn so that when they were in those seniors' shoes they might be able to go farther.
The next season the team lost in the first round of the tournament, then suffered a similar fate last season by falling in two straight to Cornell.
As the senior class came into this weekend's showdown in Troy, NY, against RPI in the first round of the ECAC tournament, it was trying not to repeat history — to somehow change the fate of its team.
However, it was not to be. Leading 2-1 in the playoff opener Friday night, Princeton lost its slim one-goal lead midway through the second period and gave up three more goals en route to a 5-3 loss. The next night, in a win-or-out situation, the team was shutout in a 6-0 romp — a somber way to say goodbye.
Princeton was outshot 16-9 by RPI in the first period Friday night, though it was able to keep the game scoreless until 11 minutes, 43 seconds of the first period when the Engineers put home a rebound for a 1-0 lead.
The Tigers came out for the second period fired up, though, grabbing a 2-1 lead early. Just 20 seconds into the period, sophomore forward Sharam Fouladgar-Mercer scored on what seemed to be an innocent shot on RPI goalie Nathan Marsters. Sophomore defenseman Steve Slaton then gave the Tigers a one-goal lead at 4:27 of the second.
Slaton's power-play goal, his first goal of the season, came off a Brad Parsons pass. Slaton's one-timer found a wide-open left half of the goal.
RPI tied the game at 2-2 at 10:03 of the second.
The Engineers then exploded in the third, running away from the Tigers and never looking back. Rensselaer jumped out to a two-goal lead just 1:18 seconds into the third period, posting a lead which proved insurmountable.
RPI forward Chris Migliore gave the Engineers the lead just a minute into the third period. Remaining on the ice after his goal, the senior knocked in a rebound to put his team up, 4-2. His goals came just 13 seconds apart.
"We came out and scored a big goal early in the second period," head coach Len Quesnelle '88 said. "Then they came out and did the same thing in the third period. I think we let our guard down for a second."
The deciding factor in the game was Princeton letting its guard down.
Senior forward Josh Roberts brought Princeton one goal closer to RPI just 42 seconds after Migliore's second goal, but his team was never able to get the equalizer. The Engineers put the game out of reach with just under eight minutes remaining, and the game finished 5-3.
The next night, Princeton lost, 6-0, suffering its worst playoff loss in an elimination game since the 8-0 loss at Harvard in 1993. For senior goalie Dave Stathos, it was a game that he will not soon wish to remember. In his last game as a college player, he was pulled after the first period.
The senior, named to the All-Ivy team along with senior defenseman David Schneider this week, gave up three goals on eight shots in the first period. Junior Nate Nomeland replaced Stathos in goal to start the second, but did not do much better, letting in three goals over a two-period span.
Princeton couldn't put a single shot past Marsters in the contest, even though the team had 21 shots on net.
"They sprinted, we just skated," Quesnelle said. "I think RPI came out hungrier and capitalized on turnovers and our mistakes."
"We put together a pretty good run heading into the playoffs but we couldn't sustain it. We didn't bring our best this weekend and RPI did."
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