By: Cameron Levasseur and Tyler Platz
Quinnipiac men’s hockey and Dartmouth entered Friday’s matchup in Hanover, N.H. separated by just three points atop the ECAC Hockey standings, the Big Green one win away from possession of the No. 1 spot.
The teams left the ice with a four-point gap between them, the Bobcats winning a back-and-forth affair 5-4 in overtime thanks to a hat trick from graduate student forward Jack Ricketts.
With just one month left in the regular season, the win gives Quinnipiac breathing room from its biggest challenger as they look for a fifth consecutive Cleary Cup as ECAC regular season champions.
Here’s five takeaways from the marquee battle as both sides gear up for the home stretch.
Dartmouth takes tie-breaker
Because they lost in overtime instead of regulation, the Big Green took a point from Friday’s contest. That gives them four out of a possible six points from the season series with Quinnipiac after a 4-2 win over the Bobcats in November.
This is the first time since 2017-18 that Dartmouth has taken the season series against Quinnipiac. More importantly, it also means the Big Green hold the tiebreaker if the teams end up deadlocked in the ECAC standings at the end of the regular season.
–Cameron Levasseur
The Bobcats’ penalty kill will be a strength down the stretch
Quinnipiac’s power play might draw more attention, as the Bobcats have a 28.9% scoring percentage with the man advantage. Still, the poise Quinnipiac displayed on its penalty kill against Dartmouth could be a key strength for this team in the final month of the regular season.
Quinnipiac already boasts the second-best penalty-killing percentage in the ECAC, quelling power plays 88% of the time. Against Dartmouth, Quinnipiac’s penalty killers showed attention to detail, consistently clearing pucks from the defensive zone.
During the second penalty kill following a hooking minor by Ricketts, sophomore forward Mason Marcellus made a strong hustle play, creating a breakaway opportunity in the second period. As Ricketts’ penalty expired, the Quinnipiac defense knew to clear the puck into the offensive zone, setting up Ricketts for another shorthanded opportunity.
-Tyler Platz
Youth in net shows again
No team in the ECAC has a younger goaltending presence than Quinnipiac. The only program on par is Dartmouth, whose tandem of freshman Emmett Croteau and sophomore Roan Clarke matches the Bobcats’ duo of freshman Dylan Silverstein and sophomore Matej Marinov.
Both sides have struggled in net at times this season, but it was for Silverstein and Quinnipiac that those issues showed the most this weekend.
All four goals Silverstein allowed snuck through his pads after it looked like he made the initial save. And his shake in composure nearly got worse, as a likely fifth goal off a flubbed save was prevented thanks to an early whistle from an official in the third period.
But it’s the first lapse in a month for Silverstein, who gave up just eight goals in his previous five starts. The Bobcats must hope that this is an outlier and not a trend.
–Cameron Levasseur
Dartmouth’s big guns are dangerous
There are few forward lines in the ECAC that compare to Dartmouth’s top unit of juniors Cooper Flinton and Luke Haymes and sophomore Nikita Nikora. There are fewer defensive pairings that can match the offensive prowess of sophomore CJ Foley and senior Ian Pierce, with the former leading the conference in points among blueliners.
Put all five players on the ice together and you’ve got an attacking juggernaut that utilizes every inch of the offensive zone to work the puck from low to high and create high-quality scoring chances.
That’s exactly how the Big Green struck first against Quinnipiac. Nikora threaded a centering pass from the right corner to Pierce, who shoveled the puck past a defender and delivered a shot for Haymes to finish the rebound.
In order to beat Dartmouth, those five have to be taken out of the equation. To do that, opposing teams have to limit their time and space. The Bobcats figured that out as Friday’s game went on, a piece of the puzzle that ultimately led to the win.
–Cameron Levasseur
Regroup and respond
Each time Dartmouth scored, Quinnipiac responded with energy, refusing to let the momentum swing entirely in the Big Green’s favor.
After Dartmouth’s first goal, scored with just over two minutes remaining in the first period, Quinnipiac quickly regrouped in the defensive zone and surged up the ice on the next rush. It created back-to-back opportunities—a shot from first-year forward Chris Pelosi that just missed wide, followed by Marcellus firing low, stick-side off a shot from the point.
Following Dartmouth’s second goal midway through the second period, the Bobcats won the ensuing faceoff. They then dumped the puck into Dartmouth’s defensive zone and senior defenseman Davis Pennington’s forecheck forced a turnover in front of the net. Croteau barely was able to swipe the puck off Ricketts’ stick to prevent Quinnipiac from getting right back on the board.
Dartmouth’s third goal tied the game at 3-3 with about nine minutes left in regulation. On the following shift, Quinnipiac once again dumped the puck into the offensive zone before making a line change. As Dartmouth attempted to break out, junior forward Victor Czerneckianair disrupted the play, nearly forcing a turnover behind the net before tucking the puck out front for a scoring opportunity.
–Tyler Platz