Strong finish goal for m. hockey vs. Union

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow once said, "Great is the art of beginning, but greater is the art of ending." For the men's hockey team this season's start exceeded most observers' expectations and, with five wins prior to this calendar year, perhaps even those held by the Tiger skaters themselves.

Princeton, though, has since faltered and fallen to the bottom of the Eastern College Athletic Conference standings by failing to record a single win in 2004. When Princeton (5-20-2 overall, 5-13-2 ECAC) hosts Rensselaer (17-13-2, 11-8-1) and Union (13-14-5, 6-11-3) this weekend, it is crucial for its postseason hopes and team psyche that the Tigers demonstrate some impressive and impassioned late-season play.

"We need to focus on creating momentum, which will then help our confidence and courage for the postseason," head coach Len Quesnelle '88 asserted.

When Princeton played Rensselaer earlier this season, the team once again succumbed to its lethargic first-period tendencies and suffered accordingly. The Engineers catapulted to a three-goal, first-period lead and never relinquishediy. Although the Tigers finally clawed onto the scoreboard and into the game with a flurry of late scores, they eventually fell by a 6-4 margin.

Rensselaer relies on forwards Kevin Croxton and Kirk MacDonald to initiate their offensive spark, and these two players consistently have delivered. Their offensive mentality has been infectious as the Engineers have outshot nearly all of their opponents this season. The opposite is true for Princeton, which has accumulated a total season deficit of 295 shots. If the defense, led by sophomore goalie Eric Leroux or freshman goalie B.J. Sklapsky, can withstand this barrage and keep the Tigers in the hunt, the team has a chance to pull off the upset.

"Of late, our goaltending is getting back to the point where it's helping us to stay in and win games," Quesnelle said. "Goaltending is absolutely critical. A quality team needs to have good goaltending, especially at this point in the year."

Princeton has an opportunity to record its first Saturday win (0-13-0) of the season when it faces Union, against whom the Tigers recorded their most lopsided win this year. In the process of crushing the Dutchmen, 4-0, the first time they met, the Tigers demonstrated to the league that they could play three periods of two-way hockey. However, the two teams' fortunes then diverged.

While Princeton's winning malaise has been well documented, Union has since posted impressive wins over Dartmouth, Clarkson, St. Lawrence and Cornell. Although the Dutchmen rank only two spots and three points ahead of the Tigers, they seem to have embraced more fully Longfellow's words about the art of ending.

"The players might look at [Union] and get some confidence from the fact that we've beaten them before," Quesnelle said. "But that doesn't affect how we approach this game. It's a new game, and it's later in the year, so we'll be prepared."

The Dutchman offense has not been particularly explosive this season, having been held to two or fewer goals in 19 of their 32 games. Although they do possess some sniper power from the stick of forward Scott Seney, scoring is not nearly enough to assure them victory. Goalie Kris Mayotte is a talented but erratic player, and he often lacks the big-game presence to completely shut down the opposition.

"If we get the goaltending that I think we should, we should have a weekend at home where we can create chances," Quesnelle said. "When effort and execution are there, good things are bound to happen."