Tigers go north for the weekend

This weekend, the men's hockey team is looking to "make a brand new start of it" in New York, a place that has not been a kind host to Princeton in the past. The Tigers have lost all four road games in the state this season by a combined nine goals. Nevertheless, Princeton's competition does not get much easier this weekend.

The Tigers will go on the road to battle No. 11 Cornell on Friday and No. 13 Colgate on Saturday. Both games take place in New York.

Princeton (3-7 overall, 2-6 Eastern College Athletic Conference Hockey League), having completed one third of its schedule in only its first month of play, looks to extend its winning streak to two games after thumping Quinnipiac, 3-0, last weekend and picking up its third win of the season. Down 2-0 against the Bobcats, the Tigers rallied back and scored the next six goals to win the game.

The offensive production Princeton displayed in that game, however, has been lacking in the majority of Princeton's road games. The six goals scored were equal to one third of the Tigers' total output in their previous nine games.

The two games this weekend will cap a stretch of eight road games. Princeton will have to overcome the mental and physical toll its road games have inevitably taken on the team if the Tigers hope to change their stars.

"There is definitely some mental drain, especially [cramming in school work] week after week most of the fall," junior forward Kevin Westgarth said. "As for physically, there definitely is some effect from riding a bus for eight hours, but we can usually get rid of that the next day ... Fridays are nice, as we have a pre-game skate to get rid of the bus legs."

The Princeton players must shake off those bus legs quickly if they hope to beat the Big Red (6-3-1, 3-2-1) on Friday night. Cornell is the highest ranked ECACHL team and has momentum on its side after sweeping Niagara, 5-3, last week.

Over the years, the Tigers have recorded an all-time record of 41-71-7 against Cornell. Even more disheartening for Princeton is the fact that the Tigers have lost the last 10 meetings between the two teams dating back to 2001.

Colgate (8-2-3, 4-1-1), two places behind Cornell in the national rankings, is one of the hottest teams in the nation thus far, having lost just one of its past 10 games on the season.

History is not on the Tigers' side in this contest either, as Princeton is 34-43-6 all-time against the Raiders. In its past seven meetings against the Tigers, dating back to 2001, Colgate is unbeaten. The Raiders have swept the season series in the past two years.

Princeton will depend on its offensive output more this weekend in upstate New York than it has in recent games. No dominant scorer has yet emerged for the Tigers, though. Princeton's 25 goals this season have been scored by 13 different players.

"When you lose players like Dustin Sproat '05 and Luc Paquin '05, it's very difficult to have someone fill those shoes," Westgarth said. "We are trying to get the job done by committee, with everyone chipping in. However, it would be fantastic to start scoring more goals all around."

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

Junior forward Grant Goeckner-Zoeller leads the team in scoring with five goals. Freshman forward Brett Wilson, who has a six-game scoring streak, is tied for second on the team in goals with senior captain and forward Patrick Neundorfer with three goals apiece.

Led by these three goal-scorers, the Tigers' offense will have to get more shots on net this weekend and give themselves rebound opportunities in front of the net.

Unlike the first seven games, Princeton has outshot its opponents in its last three contests.

"We definitely have to get the puck, and ourselves, to the net," Westgarth said. "It's no shock that the team with more shots usually wins."

"Another key is to make sure we do not turn the puck over in the danger areas, such as around the bluelines, and to take quick advantage of it when they do."

Defensively, Princeton has been brilliant, holding its opponents to three goals or fewer (not counting empty-net goals) in eight of its first 10 games.

"Although both teams are extremely good, especially defensively, in recent years," Westgarth said, "we will play our own game and beat them our way, playing exciting hockey that Princeton will soon be known for."

The Tigers are 0-2 against teams that are ranked in the top 15 nationally this season. Princeton must be able to pull off a few wins against these top-tier teams, though, as the Tigers have nine more games on their schedule against teams that are currently ranked.