Tigers break the ice in Monmouth Junction

Hockey season is near. You can tell from the cooler temperatures, dropping leaves and crisp air, but if you want more evidence, you need look no further than Monmouth Junction, where the men's hockey team opened its season with an intense intrasquad scrimmage Sunday.

At Princeton Sports Center, a rink owned by two Princeton hockey alumni, the Tigers put on a brief skills competition with local youths before engaging in a high-adrenaline scrimmage that left one player in need of stitches and a few others banged up.

"We really beat each other up," senior defenseman Mike Moore said. "The intrasquad scrimmage is the first real chance for the team to come together and get used to each other on the ice. There was a lot of intensity. It was great to see."

The setup for an intrasquad scrimmage is simple. The coaches break the Princeton squad into two teams, Black and White, making sure to keep both offensive lines and defensive pairings intact.

When the dust settled after the scrimmage, the Black team had beaten the White team 3-1, behind a hat trick from sophomore forward Dan Bartlett. The lone White goal was scored by sophomore forward Cam MacIntyre.

"We don't get many chances to play games before we get right into NCAA games [in two weeks]," head coach Guy Gadowsky said. "So it is a good opportunity for us to examine where we are in a game-like situation."

The team's first on-ice action showed some positive team characteristics. The Tigers exhibited excellent overall speed, and their high-octane, high-intensity style of play is becoming the team's trademark.

"Guys were talking penalties, getting away with penalties and really working hard," said Moore, who was second on the team with 50 penalty minutes last season.

Gadowsky, however, said a few areas still need work, especially the defense's cohesion, which is rebuilding from losing four players to graduation last season. Until the younger players can fully adjust to the college game, this year's blueliners will be forced to lean heavily on Moore, the only Tiger defenseman with more than one year of college experience.

"A good defense starts with good strong goaltending, which we have," Moore said. "And in front of the goalie, we have a lot of talent. There are a lot of new guys back there, and it is going to take a bit of time for us to get used to each other, but that's why we play these games."

The intrasquad scrimmage was also the first time this year's seven freshmen had the chance to don Princeton uniforms. Strong contributions from those seven — which include three forwards, three defensemen and a goalie — will be vital to the Tigers' success this season.

"The skaters are all seasoned junior players in possibly the best two junior leagues in North America," said Gadowsky of his first-year players. "I think they should adapt quickly to the pace of college hockey."

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"The scrimmage is a great chance for freshmen to prove themselves to the coaching staff," Moore added. "We expect them all to contribute from the start, and I saw nothing on Sunday that changes those expectations."

The pre-game skills competition, on the other hand, was a great chance to see a different side of the Tigers. Working with youth hockey players, Princeton competed in three competitions designed to showcase individual talent. Junior forward Lee Jubinville won the fastest skater competition, sophomore forward Mark Magnowski won the breakaway competition and sophomore defenseman Jody Pederson, the tallest player on the team, registered a 96 mph slap shot to win the hardest shot competition.

These playful competitions were a perfect complement to the intensity of the scrimmage. The players joked around and had fun while showcasing their own talent, but when it came time for team hockey, the Tigers flew around the ice finishing checks and landing hits, preparing to prove themselves this season.