Game
23
No.
3 Harvard Crimson (17-2-1, 14-1-0 ECAC Hockey/ 6-0-0 Ivy League) at
Dartmouth
Big Green (12-7-3, 7-6-2 ECAC Hockey / 4-2-0 Ivy League)
Friday, Feb. 1 - 7 p.m.
Hanover, N.H. - Thompson Arena (4,500)
Home Sweet Home
Dartmouth
returns to the friendly confines of Thompson Arena after being swept in a
conference road weekend for the first time since Jan. 8-9, 2010. The Big
Green's late third-period surge fell short against St. Lawrence, as they lost,
2-1, on Jan. 25. The next afternoon, Clarkson raced out of the gates inside
Cheel Arena and scored a 5-0 victory against head coach Mark Hudak's squad. The
team welcomes the return trip home where it is 4-1-3 this season, having
registered at least one point in seven of the last eight contests in Hanover.
In 2013, they are making the most of having the final change, riding a four-game
unbeaten streak in front of their home crowd.
Rank and File
Heading into the game against No. 3 Harvard,
the team from the Upper Valley is still in search of their first win against a
ranked opponent this season. They are 0-4-1 when facing top-10 programs,
erasing a two-goal third period deficit to draw a tie against No. 5 Boston
College at Thompson Arena on Nov. 12. The team's last win against a nationally-ranked
foe was on Nov. 26, of last season as they topped No.10 Northeastern, 4-3, in
overtime at home.
Leading by Example
Dartmouth is led by a strong core of
experienced seniors, with eight players seeing action in over 100 contests. The
class of 2013 paces a balanced offensive attack for the Big Green as four of
the team's five leading scorers are set to graduate. Co-captain Reagan Fischer
leads the team with 13 markers, while Camille Dumais has a team-best four
power-play goals. Co-captain Jenna Hobeika is second on the team with 12
helpers and defenseman Sasha Nanji has found the back of the net in three of
the last four home contests. During her run, the Markham, Ontario, native has
had a pair of multi-point games, while scoring all three of her markers in the
first period.
Top of the Line
Dartmouth's
top line of Hobeika, Fischer and Dumais has carried the offensive load for the
team over the last six games, tallying 11 of the squad's 17 goals. When the
trio skates together this season they have produced 43 points (20g-23a), while
leading the team to a 7-3-1 mark. Over the last six games, Fischer has five
tallies and two multi-point contests. In her final season on campus, the Irma,
Alberta, native is averaging a point a game, while racing up the program's
career points list (she currently is tied for 27th with 109 points). Not to be
outdone, Dumais is putting an exclamation point on her career, currently
sitting in 21st on the all-time list with 123 points.
Fast Starts
During
their four-game unbeaten streak at home, the Big Green have scored eight goals
in the first period. Only once have they failed to hold on to the first period
lead as the Engineers rallied to score a pair of third-period markers to force
overtime and the eventual tie on Jan.19. The team from the Upper Valley has
scored first in six of their eight home games in 2012-13, while outscoring
their opponents, 8-1, in the opening period over the last four at Thompson
Arena.
Freshman Firepower
The Green
and White boast a strong core of first-year players led by Laura Stacey.
Through the first 19 games of her collegiate career the Kleinburg, Ontario,
native has four tallies and a team-leading 13 assists. Stacey has five multi-point
games this season and has registered points in three straight home games. Other
newcomers making an impact this season are Ailish Forfar and Lindsey Allen.
Forfar has twice been named ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Week and leads all
freshmen in the conference with three game-winning goals, while Allen is tied
for fifth on the team with 12 points (5g-7a). Defenseman Olivia Whitford is
settling into the system nicely picking up seven helpers in her first year on
campus.
With the Man-Advantage
Dartmouth's
power play struggled over the weekend going 0-for-18 against the Saints and
Golden Knights. The losses over the weekend marked the only time in 2013 the
squad failed to tally man-advantage goals. Dating back to Jan. 19, the Big
Green are 0-for- 21 on the power play. The team hasn't tallied a special teams goal
since the first period against Rensselaer. Things won't get any easier as
Harvard boasts the top penalty kill in the conference (94.0%), allowing just
four goals when a man down this year.
Special Teams
The Green
and White's penalty killers continued their impressive run, killing 10-of-11
penalties last weekend. They have now killed off 25-of-27 power-play chances
over the last four games. In the opener, the Big Green killed all six of the
Saint's power-play chances. Against the Golden Knights, the Green and White committed
five penalties. After allowing an early power-play goal, Dartmouth killed off
the final three chances. The special teams ranks third in the conference,
killing 87.2% of opponents' man-advantage opportunities this season. They are
also the third-most penalized team in the league with 238 penalty minutes
through 22 games.
First 40 Minutes
The key
for the Big Green is to hold a lead after 40 minutes of play. When leading
through two periods, the Green and White are 11-0-1 this season, a figure that
reached its current state after the team held a 2-0 advantage going into the
third against RPI. The Engineers were the first team all season to battle back
from a second-period deficit against the Green and White to earn a point. On
the other hand, when trailing after two periods Dartmouth is 0-5-1. When the
team is tied after two periods this season they are 1-2-1. The Big Green
haven't won when trailing after two periods since Feb. 27, 2011, when they
rallied to beat Clarkson, 4-3, in overtime.
Scouting the Crimson
Harvard
visits Hanover having won five straight games against Dartmouth inside Thompson
Arena. The last time the Big Green topped the Crimson in front of their home
crowd was Dec. 15, 2006. The Crimson are coming off their first conference loss
of the season last weekend, falling, 3-1, at Clarkson. They bounced back in the
weekend finale, topping St. Lawrence, 3-2, in overtime. Harvard enters the
contest the only undefeated team in Ivy League play, having topped its
opponents by a combined score of 28-2. The team from Cambridge posts a potent
offensive attack led by Jillian Dempsey, the leading goal-scorer in ECAC
Hockey. Dempsey is the only player in the conference to earn Player of the Week
honors three times this season. Junior Lyndsey Fry has a team-high 17 assists,
while classmate Kalley Armstrong leads the squad with five game-winning goals. Between
the pipes, Harvard has a talented one-two punch. Senior Laura Bellamy is 10-1-0
with five shutouts this season and a league-best .068 goals-against average,
while freshman Emerance Maschmeyer is 7-1-1 with a pair of shutouts and a .939
save percentage.
Against Harvard Earlier this Season
The Big Green
and the Crimson met on Nov. 30 in Cambridge. Harvard scored a trio of first
period goals and never looked back, skating to a 6-0 victory at the Bright
Hockey Center. Fry netted two goals, including the game-winner, while Dempsey
added a marker and two helpers. Bellamy turned aside 16 shots to earn the
shutout. Dartmouth had chances, but tied a season-worst in going 0-for-10 with
the man-advantage.
All-Time record
Dartmouth
is 44-38-3 all-time and 7-14-1 under head coach Mark Hudak against Harvard.
