Men's Hockey: Lengthy game at Baker Rink ends in 3-3 draw

Princeton (7-10-6 overall, 5-8-3 ECAC Hockey) took first blood, but Dartmouth (9-10-4, 6-7-3) equalized before the end of the period, a pattern that would repeat itself in the second and third frames. Junior defenseman Michael Sdao found the back of the cage less than one minute into the game for his seventh goal of the season, but Dartmouth forward Eric Nieley answered with a quick shot midway through the first period.

Three minutes after the first break, junior forward Rob Kleebaum gave the hosts another lead. Kleebaum circled the cage and beat Dartmouth goalie Jody O’Neill to match Sdao with seven goals, tied for third on the Tigers. Again, the advantage stood for about 10 minutes before Neiley netted his second goal, flicking the puck past the glove of junior netminder Mike Condon on a power play. Though each team drew four penalties, Neiley’s goal was the only one to come with a man advantage.

O’Neill turned away 36 shots in the game, but he could not stop the Tigers’ offense at the beginning of periods. Princeton struck for yet another early goal in the third frame, as senior forward and captain Marc Hagel altered a shot from sophomore defenseman Jeremy Goodwin, sending it into the netting for his sixth score of the season. This time, the Big Green wasted no time in responding, equalizing with defenseman Connor Goggin’s goal one minute later.

Midway through the third frame, the crowd of 2,292 fans — the second-largest at Baker Rink this season — sat through an unexpected break when a stray shot attempt from Dartmouth forward Jesse Beamish flew over the left side of Princeton’s cage and shattered a pane of glass behind the goal. After waiting for an hour, the two sides played without much drama for the rest of the period. Dartmouth took two shots on goal in overtime while the Tigers managed one, but both goalies kept their nets clean to finish with a draw.

The Tigers will hit the road for four consecutive games before wrapping up ECAC play at Baker Rink in three weeks. With just a 2-5 record away from home in league play, Princeton will need to improve on its recent road performance to keep pace with the rest of the pack.

With six contests remaining, Princeton is tied for ninth place at 13 points; the standings are likely to shuffle significantly by the end of the season, however, as nine teams in the middle of the league are separated by only seven points. The top four teams in the conference receive a bye in the first round of the ECAC Tournament; the next four play at home in the opening round. Every team in the conference has at least 10 points, four wins and three losses, suggesting that the tournament may feature several upsets.

The Tigers will visit Clarkson on Friday before head coach Bob Prier returns to his alma mater and previous employer, St. Lawrence, for the first time on Saturday.