Men's Hockey: Tigers shine against ranked opponents

Facing No. 9 Cornell at Baker Rink on Saturday night, the men’s hockey team rallied from a three-goal deficit to salvage a 3-3 tie. Sophomore defenseman Kevin Ross netted the equalizer at 12 minutes, 14 seconds in the third period, just one night after Princeton overwhelmed No. 12 Colgate 6-2 at Baker Rink. The Tigers finished their best weekend yet with a 1-0-1 record against two nationally ranked teams.

Friday, Jan. 13 proved to be a lucky night for the Tigers (6-10-5 overall, 5-8-2 ECAC Hockey), who snatched a big lead against Colgate (12-8-2, 6-4-0) in the second period. Freshman forward Aaron Kesselman and sophomore forward Jack Berger led the hosts with two goals apiece. Kesselman enjoyed a three-point game, as he assisted senior forward Brodie Zuk in the second period.

The last time Princeton defeated a ranked team was Feb. 25, 2011, when the Tigers beat then-No. 14 Rensselaer 4-3 in Troy, N.Y. The hosts also set a new season high with six goals.

Kesselman took a 1-0 lead with 10:34 left in the first period with help from Ross. Colgate netminder Eric Mihalik saved Ross’ screen shot from the high slot, but Kesselman snatched the rebound and fired the puck into the net.

Colgate forward Austin Smith, the nation’s leading scorer, took advantage of a power play with just 20 seconds remaining in the first frame to tie the score. But the Tigers came out strong in the second, scoring four unanswered goals to expand their 5-1 advantage.

“We really didn’t make many changes going into the second period from the first,” Kesselman said. “We kept to our game plan and continued to smother Colgate as we had in the first. We just took better advantage of our scoring opportunities in the second.”

Princeton reclaimed its edge 6:37 into the second frame. Sophomore defenseman Jeremy Goodwin backchecked a Colgate offender’s wrist shot from the slot and recovered the puck for sophomore forward Matt Farris. The Raiders failed to skate back to their defensive zone, creating an odd-man situation for the Tigers. Farris seized on the opportunity and slipped the puck in on the glove side, putting the Tigers back in the lead at 2-1 with his first goal of the year.

Kesselman tallied his second goal of the night just 16 seconds later, effortlessly backhanding a pass from Zuk past Mihalik. Later in the period, Mihalik blocked two shots from Zuk, but the senior slipped it into the net on his third chance to extend the lead to 4-1.

Berger took the fourth Tiger goal of the period and the second on a power play. Senior forward Marc Hagel and sophomore forward Andrew Calof made the proverbial tic-tac-toe play, passing to Berger for a goal with just 17 seconds remaining in the frame.

“Once I heard the goal horn go off for Berger’s second of the night, I knew that we wouldn’t permit Colgate to come back in the game,” said Kesselman, who was forced to take the bench with a knee injury.

Smith accumulated his 22nd goal of the season in the third period, but Colgate would not make a comeback on Friday night. Berger netted a short-handed goal late in the game to complete the scoring.

Princeton was equally impressive in the final period on Saturday against the ninth-ranked Big Red (10-4-3, 7-1-2). After some evenly matched offensive and defensive play early in the game, the Big Red gradually edged out Princeton at the end of the first period.

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Princeton earned a man advantage in the 16th minute after Cornell’s forward Greg Miller took the penalty box for hooking, but junior defenseman Michael Sdao ended the power play seconds later for the same infraction. With both sides down a man, the Big Red broke the scoreless tie. Sophomore defenseman Alec Rush took a shot in the Tigers’ offensive zone, but Cornell forward Vince Mihalek blocked the shot and raced down the wing to create a 2-on-1 advantage. Mihalek slipped the puck to forward Dustin Mowrey, who chipped it over junior goalie Mike Condon at the crease, giving the Big Red a 1-0 lead.

Princeton looked to match Cornell 13 minutes into the second frame in a chaotic series of plays, but netminder Andy Iles kept his cage clean. The visitors responded to the Tigers’ offensive fury when forward Joel Lowry started the play on a breakout. Defenseman Mathieu Brisson skated in the slot, received a pass and beat Condon on his stick side for a 2-0 lead at 14:17.

Big Red forward Cole Bardreau extended the lead to 3-0 on a power play just before the second intermission, slotting home a rebound after one of Condon’s 27 saves. But the Tigers emerged onto the rink in the third frame and prepared for a three-goal comeback.

Sophomore forward Eric Carlson quickly got Princeton on the board three minutes into the period, waiting on the doorstep for Farris’ pass and sending a one-time shot past the Big Red goalie. With both teams down a man later in the frame, Berger poke-checked the puck away from Joel Lowry to gain possession on the left side and sent it across the cage to Calof, who cut the lead to 3-2 at 9:38.

Ross netted the tying tally at 12:14 on a power play, blasting the puck past a huddle of Cornell defensemen and into the net. It was the second time this season the Tigers have overcome a three-goal deficit in the third period against a top-10 team, as they did the same against then-No. 9 Union at Baker Rink on Dec. 3.

Condon made three key saves in the five-minute overtime to preserve Princeton’s comeback, including a last-minute stop on forward Sean Collins’ breakaway.

Princeton, which is now tied for fourth in the conference, will return to Baker Rink after a two-week hiatus to face Connecticut on Jan. 31.