Though UMD’s record and results are far from impressive, it is one of the hottest teams in the country right now. The second-seeded Bulldogs finished the regular season ranked seventh in the highly competitive Western Collegiate Hockey Association, but they defeated No. 19 Minnesota 2-1, No. 7 North Dakota 3-0 and Denver 4-0 in succession to become the first team in history to win three straight times at the WCHA final. To reach the tournament, the Bulldogs first swept Colorado College in a best-of-three series.
Similar to last year’s Princeton team, UMD rode the extraordinary play of its goaltender through the final weekend of its conference tournament. Against the top teams in the WCHA last weekend, UMD goalie Alex Stalock turned in the performance of a lifetime. Stalock, a first team All-WCHA selection and Most Valuable Player of the WCHA Championship Tournament, stopped 90 of 91 shots in UMD’s final three games.
Like the Bulldogs, the Tigers have relied on disciplined defense and outstanding goaltending all season. Princeton ranks just 31st nationally in goals per game, 2.79, but it still has the 12th-highest scoring margin at 0.96.
Princeton’s defensive prowess starts between the pipes with junior goalie Zane Kalemba. Kalemba is one of 10 finalists for the Hobey Baker Award, given to college hockey’s most outstanding player, and was recently named a first-team All-Ivy and first-team All-ECAC selection as well as the ECAC’s Player of the Year. While many of the Hobey Baker voters may not have seen Kalemba in person this year, his numbers are staggering. Kalemba ranks second in the nation with a .935 save percentage and third in the nation with a 1.74 goals-against average.
Opposing offenses looking for relief in the form of a man advantage have found themselves out of luck against both Princeton and UMD. The Tigers have allowed the fewest power-play goals in the nation, with 21, a statistic that is as much a tribute their penalty kill as it is to their discipline. The Tigers are the least penalized team in the nation, with just 10.6 penalty minutes per game. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs have killed off 19 straight power plays during their postseason run.
UMD may have made the NCAA Tournament because of its defense, but the Bulldog offense is not to be overlooked. Forward MacGregor Sharp leads the team with 47 points and 25 goals, including six game-winners. After recording just 17 points last season, Sharp has exploded this season. The center recorded a hat trick in the WCHA championship game against Denver and was one of three Bulldogs, along with Stalock and defenseman Josh Meyers, named to the All-Tournament team. Despite Sharp’s incredible playmaking abilities, the Tigers recognize that UMD boasts a number of stellar offensive threats, and Princeton has no plans to focus solely on defending Sharp.
“We’re just trying to play our best game,” head coach Guy Gadowsky said at a press conference in Minneapolis on Thursday. “I don’t think we’re going to single him out any more than any other player.”
While Kalemba and the defense have been the story for the Tigers all year, the team believes that it is multidimensional.
“We have a lot of team speed,” Kalemba said. “[Coach Gadowsky] likes to talk about our tempo and how we move pucks quickly.”
On the offensive end of the ice, Princeton’s Dan Bartlett is perhaps the hottest forward in the nation. The junior from Portland, Maine, has come alive in the playoffs, scoring seven times in Princeton’s five postseason games, including both tallies in the pivotal final game against St. Lawrence. Bartlett has scored in each of the Tigers’ last six contests and was named to the ECAC All-Tournament team last weekend.
The Tigers certainly have an edge in experience. No Bulldog has been to the NCAA Tournament, while all of Princeton’s non-freshmen, aside from sophomore forward Sam Sabky, traveled to Madison, Wis., for last year’s Midwest Regional game against North Dakota.
But it would be unfair to compare last year’s Tigers, who needed a strong finish to earn a berth to the national tournament, to the 2009 Orange and Black. Princeton hovered around the NCAA Tournament cutoff point all season, and its performance in Albany was just barely enough to earn a bid. After suffering a heartbreaking second-overtime loss to Cornell on Friday night, Princeton tied St. Lawrence on Saturday to secure an NCAA bid.
“They are two very different seasons,” Kalemba said. “We had to win the ECAC tournament last year to get in, and this year we just found a way to get in.”
Once in the NCAA Tournament, last season’s Princeton team faced a daunting first-round game against a North Dakota team loaded with professional-level talent. This year, the Tigers have the talent, experience and confidence to play their game in Minneapolis. Now a national contender, Princeton has an excellent opportunity to advance to the regional final on Saturday against the winner of the matchup betwen Denver and Miami.
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