Men's Hockey - ECAC Quarterfinals (11/12 Mar)

Throughout his career at RPI, Jason Kasdorf has been the most important player on the team, period. When healthy, and playing well, the Engineers were difficult for even the very best teams in the country to beat. When he was not healthy, RPI was a far less dangerous team. Perhaps the final three games of his college career against Harvard illustrate this perfectly. Healthy on February 12, he backstopped an improbable victory by making 49 saves. After injuring his groin ahead of the ECAC Quarterfinals, he was far less effective on Friday, giving up four goals before coming out of what would become a 5-2 loss, and unable to go on Saturday, the Crimson simply overwhelmed the Engineers, ending their season with an 8-2 drubbing that was difficult to swallow not because of the way it happened, but because of what could have been different.

Game 1
Bourbonnais-Schroeder-Nanne
Liljegren-Bubela-DeVito
Wood-Miller-Ohrvall
Rodriguez-Fulton-Gillespie

Bradley-Prapavessis
Wilson-Grant
Moore-Hampton

Kasdorf

We didn't know really anything about Kasdorf's injury on Friday. He started, fully as expected, and the Engineers fielded the same lineup they had against the Crimson when they pulled off the big upset a few weeks earlier in Boston.

And, early on, things actually looked much better for RPI than they had back on February 12, where they were absolutely manhandled in practically every possible statistic, save one - the score. The first period, by and large, was about as evenly played as you can get. The Engineers actually outshot Harvard 11-10 in the opening 20 minutes and were practically even on faceoffs.

RPI was unlucky not to have picked up the game's first goal on a number of different opportunities in the game's opening 15 minutes or so. The biggest difference maker was Harvard's Merrick Madsen, who brought his "A" game all weekend long as perhaps the best young netminder in the ECAC. He constantly frustrated the Engineers all weekend long, but his strong play early in Game 1 set the tone for what was to come.

The Crimson struck first late in the first period as another Harvard hero-to-be, Sean Malone, scored seconds after an RPI penalty to Mike Prapavessis ended to put the home team ahead 1-0, but even once the first period was over, things appeared to be setting up for a good back-and-forth game.

Harvard quickly disabused everyone of that notion in the middle frame, which looked far more like their dominating performance the last time these sides met in Boston. The Crimson unleashed 22 shots on goal in the second period, scoring three times in the first 15 minutes of the period to grab a commanding 4-0 edge, many on shots that Kasdorf frequently would get to under normal situations.

It did seem that the game was pretty much over when Jake Wood picked up a five-minute major and a game misconduct for kneeing at 13:27 of the second, setting up the fourth goal for Harvard on the power play. Following that goal, Kasdorf was pulled from the net in favor of Cam Hackett, who hadn't played since beating Arizona State in December. It was thought at the time that it was a similar move to what happened against Clarkson in last year's playoffs - where Kasdorf was pulled from a game that had gotten away from the Engineers if only to keep him mentally fresh for the next night's elimination game. It would ultimately be the final moments of ice time for his collegiate career.

Despite the huge hole, RPI did not quit. Later on the major penalty, with about two minutes remaining in the period, Milos Bubela slipped past Harvard's five-forward power play unit and had a breakaway before he was at the center red line, and he beat Madsen to get the Engineers on the board. In the final minute of the period, back at even strength, Madsen had to be keen with his glove to keep RPI out of the goal - an important save that could have clawed the Engineers within two, a more manageable deficit, with 20 minutes left.

That second goal for the Engineers did come early in the third period as Phil Hampton put back a rebound off a shot by Mark Miller to make the score 4-2 after Harvard came out rather flat for the beginning of the period. For a few minutes, it looked like RPI had some of the same fight they had in their previous game to effect a big comeback, but Malone scored his second of the night against the flow of play five minutes after Hampton's goal to re-open a three-goal edge. That was as close as the Engineers would get, but at no time did they look like they were ready to give in.

Game 2
Bourbonnais-Schroeder-Nanne
Liljegren-Bubela-DeVito
Wood-Miller-Ohrvall
Rodriguez-Fulton-Gillespie

Bradley-Prapavessis
Wilson-Grant
Moore-Hampton

Hackett

Expectations that Kasdorf would be back in net were not immediately dismissed before Game 2, with Seth Appert even indicating in a pre-game interview that he would be back in net. However, something changed between warmups and the beginning of the game, as the alert came just before the teams took the ice for the start of the game that Hackett would be starting - the first inkling that something was not quite right, although the full explanation (a groin injury) didn't come out until after the game was over.

The first period in Game 2 played out largely the same as it had in Game 1, with RPI again unable to establish the 1-0 lead in the first despite the lion's share of the quality scoring opportunity in the opening 15 minutes, once again squelched by the terrific play of Madsen in net for Harvard. And, once again, it was Harvard scoring first with Jake Horton beating Hackett at 15:02 to give the Crimson the 1-0 edge for the second night in a row.

Things began to get hectic seconds later, as Jake Wood was sent off for a hook and Seb Lloyd followed behind on the subsequent dive, setting up a 4-on-4 situation. About a minute later, Riley Bourbonnais struck for his 15th goal of the year, a rebound off a shot by Lou Nanne to tie things back up at one, although a lengthy review persisted afterwards.

The Engineers attacked off the ensuing faceoff, and just 23 seconds later, a goal by Jesper Ohrvall had RPI ahead 2-1, and it seemed that their hard work and dedication was beginning to pay off just a bit. But that lead held for all of 59 seconds. Just a few moments after Wood and Lloyd returned to the ice, Viktor Dombrovskiy scored his first collegiate goal on a bomb of a shot from the blue line, tying the game back up. Regardless of the sequence, a 2-2 scoreline heading into the first intermission was still a bit of an improvement over the previous night's showing.

Perhaps it was some kind of karmic balance being struck for RPI's win against the Crimson in February - a dominant performance by Harvard, yet all but even (and uneven in RPI's favor) on the scoreboard. The remaining 40 minutes, honestly, were very, very even in most respects except the scoreboard - which was instead dominated soundly by the home team. The Crimson would go on to score six goals against none scored by the Engineers (although an apparent RPI goal in the second period, when it still would have very much mattered for the Engineers, was waved off with no real explanation).

Malone potted his third goal of the weekend a minute and a half into the second period to break the tie, and then Harvard really established their dominance on the scoresheet eight minutes later on a horrifying turnover by Prapavessis in front of his own net while the Engineers were looking to break out of their own end. Just moments after Bourbonnais missed the net on a breakaway shot that beat Madsen (and would have tied the game), the miscue deep in their own end was buried by Harvard's Clay Anderson, turning the game significantly by making it 4-2.

Even as the game, the series, and the season were slipping away, the Engineers notably never showed even the slightest little drop of quit, even though Harvard began racking up the goals in the third period, frequently on odd-man rushes as RPI pushed forward in vain search of a breakthrough chance. Another defensive zone turnover in the opening seconds of the third period ended up on Jimmy Vesey's stick, and the Hobey Baker finalist from last year finally made his presence felt, scoring on a pro shot that slipped through the smallest crack between Hackett and the post to make it 5-2.

An aforementioned push forward allowed Vesey to score a second unassisted goal 13 minutes later, a goal that looked very similar to Bubela's from the previous night as the Harvard senior was broken away before reaching the center red line. The Crimson would add a power play goal three minutes later and an 8th tally a minute after that to put a serious seal on things and send a message to the remainder of the league - they will be a force to be reckoned with in Lake Placid.

That Hackett stayed in the game throughout the onslaught pretty much confirmed that an injury had sidelined Kasdorf. With no hope remaining in the final minute, Seth Appert did at least pull him from the cage to allow senior Sam Goodman to log some official Division I playing time. The third-string netminder for the last three seasons, Goodman played the final 46 seconds and did not face any shots as RPI held the puck in the attacking zone late, still probing the Harvard net in search of a futile but still desired goal - a microcosm of a season for a team that never gave up.

Lake Placid waits another season for a team that, had they been blessed with this level of dedication in some previous years, could have broken its drought already. Ultimately, the story was the injury to Kasdorf combined with a road series against a very, very strong Harvard team that simply could not be denied. The lesson is simple - sometimes, the other team is just better, and RPI ran into a better team. But hope lives on that in the near future, RPI will be that better team.

ECAC Semifinals
#7 Dartmouth vs #1 Quinnipiac
#4 St. Lawrence vs #3 Harvard

RPI at #12 Harvard

ECAC Quarterfinals Game 1 - Bright-Landry Hockey Center (Boston, MA)
3/11/16 - 7:00pm

RESULT: Harvard 5, RPI 2

BOX SCORES
College Hockey Stats
USCHO

RECAPS
RPI
USCHO
Troy Record
Albany Times Union

RECORD: 18-14-7

RPI at #12 Harvard
ECAC Quarterfinals Game 2 - Bright-Landry Hockey Center (Boston, MA)
3/12/16 - 7:00pm

RESULT:  Harvard 8, RPI 2

BOX SCORES
College Hockey Stats
USCHO

RECAPS
RPI
Troy Record
Albany Times Union

RECORD: 18-15-7

Remaining Semifinal Outcomes

With only one series still outstanding before Lake Placid begins, only two possibilities remain for how the semis look next weekend.

A Dream of Spring

How about looking at things this way: it may be a blessing in disguise that the Engineers were at home last weekend instead of this weekend.

Seriously.

Spin it any way you like, the home drought was real and it weighed on everyone's mind - even those who had never experienced it. And unlike in 2013, when RPI had a bye to the quarterfinals at home, the ECAC is deep this year - very deep.

Let's say the Engineers had been the ones to score first against St. Lawrence on Freakout! Eve. RPI finishes with 25 points, St. Lawrence with 23, the Engineers get the bye. They're playing at home this weekend, but it's against probably Clarkson. And the monkey is still there on the back.

Still think that's better than playing Brown and getting over that first hill?

Let's be brutally honest. The quarterfinals were going to be a bear no matter how you sliced it - being at home wasn't going to be some magic potion. So in that light, beating Brown last weekend, as difficult as that proved to be, might have been a bit of a boost heading into the quarterfinals.

Look, Harvard won't be easy. No one has pegged RPI as the favorites to finally hit Lake Placid and that's rightfully the case. The Crimson are very good, they're at home, they're rested, and they unleashed 50 shots the last time they played the Engineers.

But this is a team that is already farther than they were supposed to go when the season started. And they've got a difference maker in net.

Why not push this as far as we can?

It's been said over and over again. Lake Placid's eluded RPI longer than any other team in the league.

Go for broke. And return with your shield, or on it. Good luck, gentlemen. Blow our minds. And let all the children boogie.

(Yup, sticking with the power of Bowie.)

Potential Semifinal Matchups

Four more best-of-three series to come in the ECAC, with the winners advancing to Lake Placid for single elimination. Basically, the highest remaining seed plays the lowest remaining seed in the early game (theoretically, to give the highest seed slightly more rest before the championship game the next night) while the other two teams play in the nightcap. This may be entirely up to the highest seed, but if that is the case they practically always take the early game.

Here's what the schedule will look like for Lake Placid depending on the results of this coming weekend's games.

Men's Hockey - ECAC First Round (4/5 Mar)

For over a decade, RPI's playoff bugaboos have been two-fold - an inability to reach the semifinals, exacerbated by an inability to win a playoff series at home. One of those roadblocks has now been overcome, although it wasn't easy. The Engineers, some would argue, managed to escape in the first round this year at Houston Field House, claiming a 3-2 victory on Friday night despite being outplayed for large swaths of the game, and completing a two-game sweep by overcoming a 3-0 deficit for the second time this year against the Brown Bears for a 4-3 victory.

Game 1
Bourbonnais-Schroeder-Nanne
Liljegren-Bubela-DeVito
Wood-Miller-Ohrvall
Rodriguez-Fulton-Gillespie

Bradley-Prapavessis
Wilson-Reno
Moore-Hampton

Kasdorf

Travis Fulton and Zach Schroeder both returned to the RPI lineup in time for the playoffs, which necessitated Lonnie Clary and Tommy Grant coming out.

Looking back, it seems odd to say that the Engineers never trailed on Friday night, especially considering the near total dominance of Brown during the first period, especially the first 15 minutes or so. Indeed, RPI was badly outshot in the opening frame, 17-5, a figure that's especially bad when you consider that Brown usually gives up a good chunk of shots.

But it was the Engineers who struck first, well against the flow of play - naturally, on a counter-attack. Alex Rodriguez moved the puck out of the defensive zone and pushed it up for Kenny Gillespie. The sophomore winger gained the zone, but lost the handle on the puck as he went to cut toward the net. Fortunately, Meirs Moore was trailing the play, and he picked up the loose puck as though it had been a drop pass. The freshman d-man turned himself into a forward and raced it up the boards, ripping a shot when he reached the outer edge of the faceoff circle. The shot beat Tim Ernst over his glove on the far side, putting RPI ahead 1-0 at 7:37 of the first period.

Brown evened it up early in the second period even as the Engineers started tilting the ice back in the other direction. Moments after Max Gottlieb failed to pot a backhander into a gaping net, Brown's other Max (Willman) struck twine after a shot from the top of the faceoff circle, beating Jason Kasdorf through a screen to make it 1-1.

That was easily the brightest moment of the period for the visitors, as RPI basically turned the first period on its ear, outshooting the Bears 12-2 in the middle frame. But for much of the period, it seemed that the Engineers' dominance was destined to be as effective as Brown's was in the first 20 minutes, as the possession and shot control was not adding up to additional points on the board. It wasn't until the final minute of the second period that RPI was able to pounce on a defensive miscue to retake the lead.

Mike Prapavessis took the puck along the side boards, then took advantage of a pick thrown by Zach Schroeder on Tommy Marchin and caught Mark Naclerio moving in the wrong direction to move into a wide open spot at the top of the slot. The sophomore defenseman paused, set up his spot, and then roofed one to make it 2-1 at the end of the second.

RPI opened some breathing room early in the second period as Jared Wilson put one home from almost the same exact spot on the ice that Willman had scored the previous period, and in much the same way - through a screen. Wilson's fifth goal of the season gave the Engineers a much-needed two-goal edge.

That goal would prove crucial later in the period, as the Bears pulled back within one on the power play. Sam Lafferty maneuvered the puck from the blue line into the slot, then got Kasdorf to hesitate ever so slightly when dishing the puck through traffic to Charlie Corcoran, standing just to the right of the crease. The hesitation gave Corcoran enough time to one-time the puck home to make it 3-2.

Less than a minute later, Brown believed they'd tied the game up on a wraparound try by Willman. While Kasdorf usually does a pretty solid job of sealing up the post on wraparounds, this time his foot ended up in the side-netting, allowing a bare amount of space, and Willman thought he made it through. The try was waved off on the ice, and while several replays, from both overhead and in front showed that the puck probably went in, there was no angle by which it could be said definitively that it was in and fully over the line. The wave-off stood.

That stands in stark contrast to the goal review in Brown's previous game in Troy - in which there was exceptionally clear evidence that a goal should have been awarded despite having been waved-off on the ice. In this case, a gut feeling that a goal happened was not enough to overturn a wave-off.

The ice must have been tilted toward the west end of the Field House all night, because the same dynamic of the team shooting that way coming away with the lion's share of the shot total continued in the third period - 16-6 (and 45-13 for the evening). But RPI managed to hang onto their lead throughout. Kasdorf stood especially tall during the final 1:24 with the extra skater, and the Engineers managed to escape with the 3-2 victory and a 1-0 series lead.

Game 2
Bourbonnais-Schroeder-Nanne
Liljegren-Bubela-DeVito
Wood-Miller-Ohrvall
Clary-Fulton-Rodriguez

Bradley-Prapavessis
Wilson-Grant
Moore-Hampton

Kasdorf

Parker Reno is probably still not back to 100%, and it looked it on Friday night - whether he was reinjured or not remains to be seen, but he was pulled in favor of Tommy Grant, while Kenny Gillespie came out for Lonnie Clary's return.

While the first 15 minutes of the first period on Saturday weren't exactly as dominating for RPI as they had been for Brown the previous night, it's probably fair to say that the Engineers at least had the better of play. And as with Friday, it was the team opposite the momentum who managed to strike first - and in Brown's case, struck multiple times to put an emphatic stamp that they were still very much a part of the proceedings despite the first night loss.

Penalty troubles for the Engineers in the first period certainly didn't help matters, as Brown got on the board first with a goal by Sam Lafferty on the power play 7:25 into the game - roughly the same time that Meirs Moore had scored the previous night to establish the 1-0 lead. Just a couple of minutes later, a lost defensive zone faceoff turned into a general defensive let-down as a pass through the front of the crease was not cleared by two defenders in front, getting picked up by Nick Lappin instead and one-timed home to make it 2-0 Brown just after the game became 10 minutes old.

A tripping call on Tommy Grant late in the period turned into a second power play goal for the Bears as Tyler Bird took advantage of poor defense off a faceoff in the RPI end, slipping behind everyone and then receiving the pass after the faceoff win, roofing it to make the score 3-0 Brown just seconds from the end of the first period.

But as with the last time Brown went up 3-0 on RPI - in Providence - the silver lining for the Engineers was that it happened relatively early, giving the Engineers 40 minutes to start their comeback. They used nearly all of it, but come back they absolutely did.

It started early in the second period with a herculean individual effort by Milos Bubela. Off a save by Kasdorf, Mike Prapavessis moved the puck to the RPI senior, who fought his way through the neutral zone and up the boards, speeding into the zone and then gliding into the slot one-on-one. He picked his spot, and then snapped a shot that beat Ernst to get the Engineers on the board and set the tone early that RPI was not yet beaten. Incidentally, the save by Kasdorf ended up being the secondary assist on the play, which was the first point recorded by an RPI netminder since October 25, 2008, when freshman Allen York had the lone assist on a goal by Erik Burgdoerfer.

Seven and a half minutes later, it was Bubela scoring again in almost the same exact fashion - using his speed into the zone along the boards (this time the feed coming via linemate Jimmy DeVito) and cutting to the net to wrist one in to make it 3-2 RPI, confirming the comeback try.

A number of times, the Engineers looked ready to tie things up, but it would take over 20 minutes more down just one goal to complete the comeback. Bubela took a shot on the power play midway through the third period that was saved by Ernst, but the puck bounced free to Riley Bourbonnais, who immediately shoved it home to level things up.

Brown appeared to have retaken the lead minutes later off a goal by Lafferty, but it was immediately waved off due to goaltender interference. From there, the game evolved into more of a back and forth, and minutes later, RPI had to defend their newly-procured tie on the penalty kill following a boarding call against Grant, but they managed to emerge unscathed.

As time ticked by, it seemed increasingly likely that the next goal would be the game winner, and the Engineers would be the beneficiaries. With 1:42 left in regulation, a total laser shot by Jared Wilson - who'd also earned the game winning goal the previous night - got through traffic and past Ernst to give RPI the lead for the first time on the evening at 4-3.

The Engineers staved off the final rush by Brown, and despite being dominated for two periods on Friday and going down 3-0 on Saturday, RPI had a series sweep, and their first home playoff series victory in 12 years.

That's one monkey off the back. There's another one that can be removed this coming weekend, although it certainly won't be easy. The last time RPI saw the Crimson, it was an absolute offensive barrage - one that the defense stood up to and pulled out a 2-1 victory. You're not going to see those materialize in that fashion very frequently, let alone twice in one weekend, so the Engineers are certainly going to have to be a lot stronger for a lot longer if they're going to build upon the home win and return the program to the promised land.

ECAC Quarterfinals
#8 Cornell at #1 Quinnipiac
#7 Dartmouth at #2 Yale
#6 RPI at #3 Harvard
#5 Clarkson at #4 St. Lawrence

Brown at RPI

ECAC First Round Game 1 - Houston Field House (Troy, NY)
3/4/16 - 7:00pm

RESULT: RPI 3, Brown 2

BOX SCORES
College Hockey Stats
USCHO

RECAPS
RPI
Troy Record

VIDEO
Full game
Highlights
Appert post-game interview

RECORD: 17-13-7

Brown at RPI
ECAC First Round Game 2 - Houston Field House (Troy, NY)
3/5/16 - 7:00pm

RESULT: RPI 4, Brown 3

BOX SCORES
College Hockey Stats
USCHO

RECAPS
RPI
Troy Record

VIDEO
Full game
Highlights
Appert/Bradley post-game interviews

RECORD: 18-13-7

Upcoming games
11 Mar - at #12 Harvard (ECAC Quarterfinals Game 1)
12 Mar - at #12 Harvard (ECAC Quarterfinals Game 2)
13 Mar - at #12 Harvard (ECAC Quarterfinals Game 3, if necessary)
18 Mar - vs. #1 Quinnipiac/#18 St. Lawrence/Clarkson/Dartmouth (ECAC Semifinal, Lake Placid, NY - if qualified)
19 Mar - ECAC Championship (Lake Placid, NY - if qualified)

Potential Round Two Matchups

All four top seeds picked up game one victories this evening, but as countless series have shown, anything can happen. Below is our annual table of potential round two matchups based on the outcomes of this weekend's games.

Only two potential second round matchups for the Engineers if they manage to move past Brown. Harvard if Clarkson beats Princeton, and SLU if the Tigers come back to win that series.

Heroes Are Born Here

We've been down this road before. You know the names.

For every George Servinis, John Carter, and Gordie Peterkin, there's a Christian Morrisette, there's a Chris Migliore, there's a Mike Tamburro.

You pull on that sweater in a game that has meaning, you give yourself that opportunity to become a hero. Some games have more meaning than others.

Tonight is one. Tomorrow will be another. God willing, there will be more.

It's been 12 years since a home playoff series win and another two on top of that for the last semifinals experience. It's embarrassing. That's nearly an entire generation. But what better opportunity for a nobody to become a somebody?

Doug Hearns took his shot on Ken Dryden, and in doing so ushered in a new era for RPI Hockey. This is a program that has been in need of that new era. And there are 26 men eligible to kick it off in that locker room. It's a team effort to ensure that one - or more - can be the one to write their name. The one that, 20 years from now, people will look back and say, "Hey, you remember when (HERO) scored that goal? Made that save? Threw that hit? Blocked that shot? The one that led to (GLORY)?"

This isn't the first time here at WaP that we've talked about the playoffs as a time when heroes are born. But just because we're still waiting, doesn't mean it's not true.

It can be true. Now. Even if it's not forever, it can just be tonight - and we'll be in need of another one tomorrow. Anyone ready to claim the mantle?

Women's Hockey - ECAC Quarterfinals (26/27 Feb)

RPI - and more specifically Lovisa Selander - gave a valiant effort in the Engineers' ECAC Quarterfinal matchup against Quinnipiac, but in the end fell short in a pair of overtime games.

The Bobcats defeated RPI 3-2 in overtime on Friday afternoon, then the Engineers held on well into double-overtime on Saturday before eventually succumbing in a 2-1 loss.

Friday

Wash/Gruschow/Tomlinson
Rooney/Schwalbe/Thomas
Grigsby/Mankey/Raspa
Hylwa/Horwood/Tremblay

Hansen/Godin
Behounek/Banks
Kimmerle/Renn

Selander

A pair of late second period goals gave RPI an unlikely 2-0 lead, but Quinnipiac scored two in the first half of the third to tie things up before eventually going on to win it in overtime with Emma Woods' goal at 2:04 of the extra period.

Lovisa Selander finished with 57 saves on 60 shots, while the Engineers managed a record-low seven shots against Sydney Rossman.

The first RPI goal came off the stick of Jaimie Grigsby when she broke in all alone on Rossman with two minutes left in the second period. Taking the puck straight down the middle, she fired a quick wrister past Rossman for the 1-0 lead.

Josefine Hansen made that lead 2-0 a short 1:29 later with a rocket of a slapshot from the blue line that found the top corner of the net.

The Engineers ended the second period up 2-0 despite being outshot 36-5. Unfortunately that would catch up with them in the third as the Bobcats bounced back to tie the game.

In addition to the overtime game winner, Emma Woods got the Bobcats on the board at 3:52 of the third, on a third try in front of the crease after Selander stopped Taylar Cianfarano's point blank chance.

Nicole Connery tied the game at two at 7:39 with a sharp angle shot that snuck over Selander's shoulder and just under the crossbar.

After regulation ended with the teams tied at two, it didn't take a lot of overtime for Quinnipiac to earn the win. At 2:04 of extra time, Cianfarano put another shot on Selander which was turned away, but the puck caromed off a crashing Woods' leg and into the net. Though the officials reviewed the play, the goal stood and the Bobcats took a 1-0 series lead heading into Saturday's game.

Saturday

Rooney/Gruschow/Grigsby
Tomlinson/Schwalbe/Thomas
Horwood/Mankey/Raspa
Hylwa/Orzechowski/Tremblay

Hansen/Godin
Behounek/Banks
Kimmerle/Renn

Selander

If 57 saves weren't enough on Saturday, Selander made 66 more on Saturday, but it still wasn't enough to carry RPI to a win on Saturday as Quinnipiac defeated them 2-1 in double overtime, ending the Engineers' season.

Jaimie Grigsby scored her second goal of the weekend just 25 seconds in, getting the puck past the defense to beat Rossman in similar fashion to her goal the day before, but Quinnipiac tied it before the midpoint of the first, then the teams went scoreless for over four periods before Nicole Brown finally won it for the Bobcats.

Cianfarano's goal came after she nearly turned the puck over in the RPI zone, but recovered it and put it through traffic in the slot to beat Selander.

After facing an onslaught of shots from the Bobcats, turning away 50 from the start of the second period through the second overtime, Selander was finally solved again at 13:24 of the fifth period when Brown picked up her own rebound and snuck it backhand past the sliding RPI netminder.

With the other series complete, St. Lawrence will face Quinnipiac in the ECAC semifinals while Colgate will go up against Clarkson. Both games, along with the championship game, will take place in Hamden as Quinnipiac hosts as the #1 seed.

The losses spelled the end of the Engineers' season and they will look toward next year with a positive outlook with Selander in net, but needing to solve some offensive and defensive woes if they are to move up in the ECAC.  It was a common theme for RPI to be heavily outshot this season, reflected in Selander setting the school record for saves in a season with 1058, and a .939 save percentage that was good for seventh in the nation, despite the team finishing eighth in the ECAC.

Outstanding goaltending will not take the Engineers anywhere if they can't shore up the play in front of Selander in the coming seasons, as Union has proven over several years with dismal finishes despite having several top notch goaltenders come through the program.

-----

RPI at Quinnipiac
ECAC Quarterfinals - TD Bank Sports Center (Hamden, CT)
2/26/16 - 2pm
QU 3, RPI 2 (OT)

BOX SCORES:
RPI: http://www.rpiathletics.com/boxscore.aspx?path=whock&id=5618
College Hockey Stats: http://collegehockeystats.net/1516/boxes/wquiren1.f26

RECAPS:
RPI: http://www.rpiathletics.com/news/2016/2/26/womens-ice-hockey-no-4-quinnipiac-edges-womens-hockey-in-ot.aspx
QU: http://quinnipiacbobcats.com/news/2016/2/26/no-1-qu-womens-ice-hockey-overcomes-two-goal-deficit-to-beat-no-8-rensselaer-in-overtime-3-2.aspx
Video Highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FsPBqlwVfhY

RECORD: 10-16-7

-----

RPI at Quinnipiac
ECAC Quarterfinals - TD Bank Sports Center (Hamden, CT)
2/27/16 - 2pm
QU 2, RPI 1 (2OT)

BOX SCORES:
RPI: http://www.rpiathletics.com/boxscore.aspx?path=whock&id=5619
College Hockey Stats: http://collegehockeystats.net/1516/boxes/wquiren1.f27

RECAPS:
RPI: http://www.rpiathletics.com/news/2016/2/27/womens-ice-hockey-womens-hockey-sees-season-end-in-double-overtime.aspx
QU: http://quinnipiacbobcats.com/news/2016/2/27/nicole-brown-lifts-no-1-qu-womens-ice-hockey-past-no-8-rensselaer-in-double-overtime-2-1.aspx
Video Highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_cWql2dydO0

RECORD: 10-17-7

-----

ECAC Semifinals

#6 St. Lawrence vs. #1 Quinnipiac
#4 Colgate vs. #2 Clarkson

Men's Hockey - ECAC Quarterfinals (13/14 Mar)

The Engineers needed an outstanding effort if they were going to survive a second consecutive weekend in the North Country get to Lake Placid. They got one on Friday, but it wasn't enough to overcome a St. Lawrence team that was right back on top of their game as RPI endured a heartbreaking, literally last minute 1-0 loss. That loss that proved too difficult to bounce back from on Saturday as their season ended with a 5-1 defeat in Canton.

Game 1
Liljegren-Schroeder-Bubela
Melanson-Miller-Nanne
Neal-McGowan-Laliberte

Wood-Bourbonnais-DeVito

Leonard-Bradley
Curadi-Bell
Prapavessis-Wilson

Kasdorf

The conventional wisdom coming into the weekend had the play of Jason Kasdorf as the key for RPI - if he played up to his potential, the Engineers had a chance. On Friday night, facing off with the obvious choice for the ECAC's Ken Dryden Award given to the goaltender of the year, St. Lawrence freshman Kyle Hayton, RPI got the kind of play from Kasdorf that they needed to have that chance.

The RPI offense was grooving as well, controlling play and putting pucks on net. In fact, outside of a pair of penalty kills the Engineers needed to get through in the first 20 minutes, RPI had a pretty solid grip on possession throughout the first period. But while Kasdorf was playing well in net for RPI, so was Hayton for St. Lawrence. The freshman netminder made a number of acrobatic robberies throughout the first two periods to frustrate an Engineer attack that was otherwise functioning just as well, if not better, than it had for much of the season to that point.

No doubt, with the offense working hard, moving the puck well and taking shots, and with Kasdorf frustrating St. Lawrence's offense on the other end, RPI had the formula that they needed for victory. But Hayton's unrelenting play on the other end turned the contest into the consummate chess match as neither team wanted to be the one to blink first. In the first two periods of the game, each netminder made 21 saves on 21 shots. It was the very definition of a goaltender's duel.

Possession slowly started moving in the opposite direction midway through the second period, and where the Engineers had dominated the game early on, St. Lawrence began getting their opportunities later in the contest. But just as Hayton had generally weathered the storm well early, Kasdorf did the same for the Engineers. As time wound down, it became fairly obvious that the first goal of the game could well be the last as well, and that the tally would easily be the most momentous of the series, one on which the fortunes of both teams would rest.

RPI got their golden opportunity to be the one to score that goal with about 4:30 or so left in regulation. The Engineers, moving quickly in transition, took a shot that Hayton saved, but the rebound came free and a number of RPI players had the opportunity to pounce on it and potentially score. St. Lawrence captain Gunnar Hughes was not willing to let that happen, and he tossed the cage to stop play. That earned him a penalty for delay of game at a crucial point of the game, but the RPI power play was unable to capitalize.

As time drained away and overtime started to look inevitable, the game changed in a manner so common to hockey - a bounce. SLU's Chris Martin sent the puck weakly toward the net through traffic in an attempt to try and make something happen, and that's exactly what he got. The puck deflected off of Chris Bradley and into the back of the net with 51.5 seconds remaining in regulation, a bounce that St. Lawrence earned with strong penalty killing and the possession advantage late in the game.

The Engineers pulled Kasdorf from the net with 20 seconds left, but they were unable to get on past Hayton, who finished with 27 saves against 33 for Kasdorf.

Game 2
Liljegren-Schroeder-Bubela
Nanne-Miller-Gillespie
Neal-McGowan-Laliberte

Wood-Bourbonnais-DeVito

Leonard-Bradley
Curadi-Bell
Prapavessis-Wilson

Kasdorf

The ominous pre-game news was the loss of freshman forward Drew Melanson, the team's leading scorer, to an injury sustained the previous night. Kenny Gillespie, who had previously only seen time on the fourth line, slotted in on the right wing of Melanson's line, moving Lou Nanne to the left wing as Seth Appert sought to avoid disrupting the chemistry of the team's other three lines, which have been fairly static for the last couple of weeks.

RPI got their opportunity to put their stamp on a bounce-back effort early as SLU's Woody Hudson took a holding call 1:52, giving the Engineers a quick power play chance. That power play, however, went nowhere at all for an RPI team that would go 0-for-4 on the man advantage in Game 2 and conclude their season with just one power play goal in their final 17 games.

The Engineers certainly didn't back down after Friday night's loss. They sought to take the game to the hosts early, and for the second straight night, they peppered Kyle Hayton with shots in the first period, but once again, he was up to the task. Hayton made 16 saves in the first period alone, giving him 43 saves on 43 shots across the first four periods on the weekend. RPI was putting up a goose-egg on the scoreboard, but it wasn't for lack of trying.

Meanwhile, St. Lawrence took advantage of their opportunities in the first period, limited though they were. Another fortunate bounce for the Saints turned into the game's first goal at 5:45, and then a far more intentional redirection put SLU up 2-0 just 1:05 later, a devastating turn of events for an RPI team that had still been doing just about everything right on the weekend.

RPI finally got one past Hayton early in the second period as Mark Miller picked up his seventh goal of the year 2:02 into the middle frame to cut SLU's lead in half at 2-1. The Engineers were very much alive at that point, and they pressed looking for the equalizer. That was, however, destined to be the only puck they could get past the Saints' netminder on the weekend. Hayton made another 11 saves in the second period, and added 11 more in the third period, giving him 65 saves on 66 shots over the course of the weekend. As good as Jason Kasdorf was, Kyle Hayton was simply even better, and that was the difference.

The Saints iced the series with two more goals, one late in the second and another late in the third to make the score 4-1, then with the Engineers pulling out all stops, added an empty netter with about 15 seconds remaining to make the final scoreline 5-1. The Engineers, two steps away from Lake Placid, finished their season with a 12-26-3, but had little to be ashamed about for their final effort of the season.

Semifinal matchups
#1 Quinnipiac vs. #6 Harvard
#2 St. Lawrence vs. #4 Colgate

RPI at St. Lawrence
ECAC Quarterfinals, Game 1 - Appleton Arena (Canton, NY)
3/13/15 - 7:00pm

RESULT: St. Lawrence 1, RPI 0

BOX SCORES
College Hockey Stats
USCHO

RECAPS
RPI
Troy Record
Watertown Daily Times

RECORD: 12-25-3 (8-12-2, 18pts)

RPI at St. Lawrence
ECAC Quarterfinals, Game 2 - Appleton Arena (Canton, NY)
3/14/15 - 7:00pm

RESULT: St. Lawrence 5, RPI 1

BOX SCORES
College Hockey Stats
USCHO

RECAPS
RPI
Troy Record
Watertown Daily Times

RECORD: 12-26-3 (8-12-2, 18pts)

The Final Stand

It's heartache when you fight so hard and prove pretty much all the naysayers wrong, only to find yourself on the short end of the score due to a bizarro bounce - but that's pretty much the entire story of last night's epic game for the Engineers.

There's no shame, no shame at all in what happened last night. It was a goaltender's duel that any true student of the game would adore. St. Lawrence had the lion's share of the possession in the third period, so they earned the right to be in a position to benefit from a bounce off two players and into the net.

It was a performance to be proud of, but even if RPI had been blown out of the building last night, the situation would stand the same - down 1-0, staring into the end of the season for the second time in three games. There's only one thing to do now. Throw the sweater back on and prepare for war in the trenches once again. We saw last year that the road team can win games 2 and 3. Let's make it happen for us, this time.

Since it's the weekend of St. Patrick's parades and the theme (and the weather, in Troy at least) is about right... here's a solemn battle aire for tonight - a slower tune that can still send chills and adrenaline in a way only the Irish can.

House Money?

Week two. Another trip to the North Country. Another very low margin for error. Another chance to extend the season.

There's no pressure on RPI at all other than the pressure the team has on itself to achieve as much as they possibly can. Few observers think we have a prayer. Maybe they're right. But some of those same observers were delivering obituaries for this team in January and February. Oops.

There's no team out there that's still got a season in front of them that can't string together eight wins and lift the ultimate prize. It's true for everyone from North Dakota (25-7-3) to Niagara (7-26-4, although technically it's only seven for the Purps). How likely is that? It's not likely in the slightest.

But how about something closer to home? How about just going to Lake Placid? We don't need to take eight steps this weekend. Just take two - to a place we haven't been since a few scant months after 9/11.

There's always hope, especially if this team is peaking at the right time. They could give it their all and still come out on the short end. But what if we have yet to see this team at their best this season, and we get it now? That would be something.

No fear.

Quarterfinal Breakdown

ECAC fans are in for a real treat this coming weekend. While the quarterfinal round typically produces some interesting matchups, this year has produced four very intriguing combinations, none of which should be completely open and shut cases (although there are some distinct favorites, as always).

Gary put together the matrix for the semifinals in Lake Placid. The highest seed and the lowest seed play each other in the early game on Friday, March 20 (the first day of spring), the middle two seeds play the nightcap - the concept being that the highest seed would have a little more rest before the title game on Saturday. In case you missed it last year, there's no more consolation game. Losers on Friday go home.

The quarterfinal round goes to chalk more frequently than the first round does - it has happened five times out of the 12 seasons under the current playoff structure, including twice in the last three seasons. Only one first-round bye team has failed to advance to the semifinals in that span (yup, yup). The reasoning is simple - they're the cream of the crop, and they have the added benefit of getting a week off to heal injuries.

Road teams in the quarterfinals have won just 10 of 48 series to date (20.8%). 20 home teams have swept (41.7%). Only 4 road teams have swept (8.3%).

#10 Union (18-16-2; 8-13-1 ECAC) at #1 Quinnipiac (21-9-4; 16-3-3 ECAC)
KRACH: Quinnipiac 12th (226.3); Union 32nd (110.4).
Since February 1: Quinnipiac 5-1-2; Union 5-5-0.
Season series: 4-0 Quinnipiac.
November 14 (Schenectady) - Quinnipiac 4, Union 3
January 10 (Hamden) - Quinnipiac 4, Union 3
Union on the road: 10-7-1; 5-6-0 ECAC
Quinnipiac at home: 11-4-3; 8-1-2 ECAC

This may well be one of the most interesting 1 vs. 10 matchups you will ever see, and it's rooted almost entirely in the fact that Union won the national championship last year and just took Cornell behind the woodshed. The Jekyll and Hyde act that the Dutchmen have been putting on pretty much all season turned again over the last two weekends as they spiked a five-game losing streak by turning it into a four-game winning streak, and doing it against some of the same teams against which they'd just lost. They're starting to look more like the team that went on a long run to national glory last year - just after looking a lot like a team that was finishing 10th in the ECAC.

Quinnipiac, on the other hand, has been remarkably consistent all year long. They saw a nine-game unbeaten streak snapped on the last day of the regular season (in a game that really only had national tournament implications), they won 14 of 18 games in a row from the beginning of November through mid-January. Their only major hiccup since the New Year was in being swept in a home-and-home weekend against Merrimack - their only overly questionable loss in league play was to Clarkson, and that was in Potsdam.

A top defense and a top-end offense has made the Bobcats tough to beat all season long. When they're playing well, Union can produce similar results. That's the kind of play Union needs to get if they're going to get a crack at defending their ECAC title in Lake Placid. If they are uneven at all, Quinnipiac is a team that can take advantage of that in a hurry. Spot mistakes kill against the Bobcats, so it's incumbent upon the Dutchmen not only to play error free, but to have that same kind of killer instinct on offense that saw them outscore Cornell 11-2 last weekend - not the kind that they displayed ahead of the final weekend of the regular season, when they were being outscored 14-2 in the five games prior.

Adding it all up, Union should be considered the underdogs this weekend, but not by nearly as much as you'd expect in a 1/10 matchup. Quinnipiac is in a position where they can lock up a berth in the NCAA Tournament by advancing to Lake Placid, so they've got the added motivation in that corner. But as far back as Union finished in the standings, it's never wise to count out the defending champions, especially since they've won this tournament three times in a row. Nobody on this team even knows how to lose in the ECAC Tournament - the Dutchmen seniors are 14-0 in tournament play across their collegiate careers, an impressive tally that any team, even one as strong as Quinnipiac this season, would be hard-pressed to overcome. That's what makes this series very, very intriguing from top to bottom.

#9 RPI (12-24-3; 8-12-2 ECAC) at #2 St. Lawrence (18-13-3; 14-7-1 ECAC)
KRACH: St. Lawrence 26th (139.9); RPI 42nd (56.6).
Since February 1: RPI 3-6-2; St. Lawrence 4-3-1.
Season series: Tied, 2-2.
February 6 (Canton) -  St. Lawrence 3, RPI 1
February 28 (Troy) - RPI 4, St. Lawrence 3
RPI on the road: 6-13-2; 2-8-1 ECAC
St. Lawrence at home: 9-5-1; 8-3-0 ECAC

By most national metrics (national polls, KRACH, PairWise), this is by far the weakest matchup of the four quarterfinal series. It matches the lowest ranked Top 4 team in KRACH and the PairWise against the lowest ranked quarterfinal road team in both of those ratings. For RPI, they have to be somewhat thankful that they ended up with St. Lawrence rather than any of the other options. For St. Lawrence, the feeling is definitely mutual.

This should be a matchup in which St. Lawrence has the advantage - as long as the Saints who were unbeaten in 11 of 13 ECAC contests after the New Year heading into the final weekend of the regular season shows up and not the Saints who appeared to sleepwalk through that final weekend in the Capital District, finishing their season by dropping two games to the travel pairing with the fewest combined points on the year.

Kyle Hayton was the key behind one of the stingiest defenses in the entire country, to say nothing of the ECAC, but he looked beatable down the stretch, giving up three goals in each of his last three contests, and allowing four against the Engineers, who looked confident shooting on him. For their part, the Engineers are again getting good goaltending from Jason Kasdorf, who basically did what Hayton did during his own freshman season in backstopping an unheralded team to a solidly outstanding year.

Kasdorf playing as well or better than he did against Clarkson is the only thing that's going to give RPI a shot in this series, considering St. Lawrence's well balanced attack. The Saints are probably going to score some goals - they were shut out only once all season - but limiting that total will be crucial for the Engineers. If they don't get goaltending, they're not going to have a ghost of a chance in this series. RPI looks to have been doing a better job of finishing on scoring opportunities over the last three weeks, but it's not going to matter unless they stay "in" games. They can't win a track meet.

One advantage that RPI may have coming into this one: its juniors and seniors know how it feels to be where St. Lawrence is. Two years ago, it was RPI shocking the conference, winning games left and right down the stretch, finishing second, and having an upstart bottom end team coming into town. They know that upstart team can win. They saw it happen to them. They've played SLU tough twice this year, and with everything on the line once more, they'll need to do it again this weekend to reach Lake Placid.

#6 Harvard (17-11-3; 11-8-3 ECAC) at #3 Yale (17-7-5; 12-6-4 ECAC)
KRACH: Yale 16th (195.6); Harvard 20th (166.6).
Since February 1: Harvard 5-6-1; Yale 5-1-2.
Season series: 6-0 Yale.
November 15 (Boston) - Yale 2, Harvard 1
January 10 (New York) - Yale 4, Harvard 1
February 6 (New Haven) - Yale 3, Harvard 0
Harvard on the road: 9-4-1; 6-4-0 ECAC
Yale at home: 7-3-3; 5-3-3 ECAC

This is a series which has a lot of potential to be the most exciting of the entire weekend. It's also got the potential to be much ado about nothing if current trends in this historic rivalry continue.

Yale-Harvard has been an intense athletic rivalry dating back to the mid-19th Century, but only recently has it begun to heat up on the ice. While Harvard continues to struggle to fill their home games, the nature of the historic aspect of the rivalry helped bring nearly 12,000 people to watch the two schools compete at Madison Square Garden this year. It's likely that we'll see some more non-conference games like that one in the future as the programs look to play off that historic element.

These past three seasons, however, Yale has certainly had Harvard's number. That isn't overly surprising in the past two seasons, both of which were relatively dreadful for the Crimson, but this year the Bulldogs have taken down Harvard three times, adding up to a 9-0-1 record for Yale against the Crimson across the past three seasons. That's even more dominating than the lopsided Union/RPI series before last season.

Ignoring that, however, the matchup pairs two teams that, in all honesty, have been two of the very best teams in the entire ECAC when they're playing well. Both are nationally ranked. Both are firmly in the bubble for the NCAA Tournament - which makes the stakes incredibly high for both teams in this series. Toss in the rivalry aspect and you've got a quarterfinal series that is certainly going to be worth the price of admission.

As their February record suggests, Yale has been firing on all four down the stretch, and while Harvard stumbled late, they bounced back well last weekend in fairly quickly disabusing the idea that Brown had a shot against them. Harvard's offense looked good and has for the duration of the season been the best in the league, but it'll have to be right on top of its game against Yale, who boasts the best defense in the nation.

Yale's mastery of their nemesis bodes well for them this coming weekend, but comparing these two teams this season when they were playing at their best, one would have to give Harvard at least a chance in this one - then again, Yale beat Harvard when the Crimson were at their best, and they did it twice: after the Bulldogs' victory in Manhattan, they accounted for the only two losses Harvard had suffered to that point. Factoring all of that in, it's hard not to give the edge to Yale, but it's likely to be fun to watch no matter what.

#5 Dartmouth (17-10-4; 12-8-2 ECAC) at #4 Colgate (19-11-4; 11-7-4 ECAC)
KRACH: Colgate 19th (168.8); Dartmouth 24th (157.1).
Since February 1: Dartmouth 8-2-0; Colgate 5-2-1.
Season series: 3-1 Colgate.
January 23 (Hamilton) - Dartmouth 2, Colgate 2
February 14 (Hanover) - Colgate 3, Dartmouth 0
Dartmouth on the road: 6-3-3; 6-3-2 ECAC
Colgate at home: 8-5-2; 5-4-2 ECAC

Nothing separated the Raiders and the Big Green from one another with the exception of Colgate's road victory over Dartmouth on Valentine's Day, the sole reason why this matchup takes place in Central New York rather than on the banks of the Connecticut River in New Hampshire. These two teams bounced back well in the month of February, resurrecting what had been middling ECAC campaigns and, in league with Harvard's dismal showing for most of the month, raced each other up the league standings in hot pursuit of that last bye.

More than any other pairing, this one perhaps is the best combination of two teams who have both been playing good hockey down the stretch consistently - it reminds me a great deal of the Dartmouth/RPI 4/5 pairing from 2004, which turned into a dogfight of a series, a chess match between two talented teams that both deserved to win (Dartmouth took an absolute war of a Game 3, 1-0). We would be fortunate to see something similar in Hamilton this weekend, and it's no stretch of the imagination to think that we could.

Colgate is definitely on the NCAA bubble and needs wins in order to have a shot at an at-large bid. Dartmouth is realistically outside the bubble and probably needs to win the ECAC title to advance to their first national tournament appearance in 35 years. Like the Yale-Harvard pairing, that adds to the win-or-else mentality that always exists in a playoff series.

The Raiders gave up just six goals in their last five outings, which included their shutout of Dartmouth in Hanover, only the second time the Big Green were shut out all year. That sentence betrays the strengths of these teams this year - Colgate's defense and Dartmouth's offense. With the lone exception being that home loss to the Raiders, the Big Green pumped in at least three goals in 11 of 12 games before scoring only two in their Game 2 win over a stingy Princeton that wasn't willing to go quietly on Saturday.

It's difficult to pick a true favorite in this one - Colgate's home ice advantage doesn't seem like enough to force things to lean in their direction. The key battle is going to be the Colgate offense, which underperformed to some extent this season due to injuries, and the Dartmouth defense, which didn't light the world on fire but was strong enough to get the job done most nights. More than the reverse, whichever of these units can gain the edge on the other is going to go a long way towards determining which of two very promising teams gets the chance to extend their season and which sees things grind to a sudden - and unexpected - halt.

Men's Hockey - ECAC First Round (6-8 Mar)

One bad weekend in the ECAC tournament can turn what had been an outstanding season into a bitter one. The opposite, with some frequency, is also true. RPI may not yet be at the level where they can declare their season fully resurrected, but over the span of 180 minutes of game play in Potsdam, things at least feel a little bit better on the whole. The Engineers got out of the gate with a Game 1 victory over Clarkson, endured a throttling in Game 2, but bounced back well with three first period goals to provide victory in Game 3, allowing them to advance to the ECAC Quarterfinals for the first time since 2013.

Game 1
Liljegren-Schroeder-Bubela
Melanson-Miller-Nanne
Neal-McGowan-Laliberte

Wood-Bourbonnais-DeVito

Leonard-Bradley
Curadi-Bell
Prapavessis-Wilson

Kasdorf

Fresh off the team's first victory in over a month, the lines and defensive pairings stayed the same not just for Game 1, but ultimately for the entire weekend. The major question was in net, where Jason Kasdorf had struggled for large sections of the late season and where Scott Diebold had backstopped that senior night victory over St. Lawrence. Ultimately, Seth Appert chose to roll with Kasdorf, who when "on" provides a significant spark for the Engineers.

Kasdorf would have to be strong early on for RPI in Game 1, and he delivered with a strong performance that would run through the night. The RPI junior stopped all 12 Clarkson shots he faced in the first period to keep the game scoreless into the second.

Clarkson netted the game's first tally of the night 4:30 into the second period off the stick of Pat Megannety, but the Engineers wouldn't stay down for long. Zach Schroeder connected with Milos Bubela on a nifty 2-on-1 pass to score RPI's first goal of the night a little under five minutes later. The second period again required sharp skill from Kasdorf, and he responded with another 12 saves that kept the Engineers in the game.

With the score still knotted at one at the start of the third period a heads up play by Bradley Bell to poke the puck before it exited the Clarkson zone allowed Mark Miller, playing not far from his hometown of Massena, to carry the Engineers to the lead as he grabbed the puck and burst back toward the net against the flow of the Clarkson forwards exiting the zone. He found a seam and put it home to give the Engineers their first lead of the night.

Once more, it fell to Jason Kasdorf to help shoulder the lead. With Clarkson pushing to find the tying goal, he proved equal to the task once more with a third consecutive 12-save period. He got a little more breathing room with 3:10 left in regulation, as Bubela scored his second goal of the night unassisted to put RPI up 3-1. It would prove to be a very important tally.

The Golden Knights pulled netminder Greg Lewis from the cage as soon as they won the ensuing faceoff, and got a power play off a faceoff in the RPI end as Miller was called for delay of game with 2:30 left on the clock. Kasdorf valiantly fought off the 6-on-4 attack together with his penalty killers, and the Engineers managed to kill off the penalty without allowing a power play goal. Clarkson would manage to pull back within one on a goal by Brett Gervais, but it came with only 11 seconds left in the third period. RPI won the center ice faceoff, securing Game 1 victory.

Kasdorf ended with 36 saves on 38 shots in a valiant performance that certainly backstopped RPI's second consecutive Game 1 victory, and got outstanding offense from the top two lines to power the win.

Game 2
Liljegren-Schroeder-Bubela
Melanson-Miller-Nanne
Neal-McGowan-Laliberte

Wood-Bourbonnais-DeVito

Leonard-Bradley
Curadi-Bell
Prapavessis-Wilson

Kasdorf

It's never easy to win two games in a row against the same opponent, a problem that faced Clarkson as it pertained to the series as a whole but also impacted RPI significantly on Saturday night as they sought to complete their first series sweep since 2009.

The Golden Knights got out of the gate quickly with a goal that would become a running theme throughout the evening - a goal in the first two minutes of play. The first one came just 1:35 in as Jeff DiNallo gave Clarkson the 1-0 lead for the second time in as many nights, taking advantage of a horrible RPI line change to create an odd-man rush opportunity. That would prove to be the lone blemish on either team's ledger for the first 20 minutes, as Jason Kasdorf continued his busy weekend in net for RPI, stopping 13 of 14 shots in the first period to keep the Engineers alive.

Joe Zarbo scored 1:17 into the second period to put Clarkson ahead 2-0, and the Golden Knights took a commanding 3-0 edge three minutes later on a goal by Troy Josephs. While RPI hadn't played generally poorly to that point, it was shortly after going down by three that the wheels began to come off. Jake Wood was assessed a major and a game misconduct for kneeing, a penalty that, like in the Clarkson/RPI game a week prior, was mitigated by a retaliation penalty from the Golden Knights. That lessened the amount of major power play time to three minutes, and that was killed off by the Engineers.

Sam Vigneault scored for Clarkson 26 seconds into the third to make the score 4-0. Although he hadn't really been to blame for any of the goals given up on the night, Jason Kasdorf came out in favor of Scott Diebold, more to keep him physically and mentally fresh for Sunday night than to try and stem the tide. Diebold would have a quiet night, facing only four shots for the remainder of the period, one a shot by Zarbo that found the back of the net to give Clarkson a 5-0 lead with 6 minutes left.

The third period, more or less, was a matter of survival for both teams as play got more and more chippy. Both were able to make it out without any serious injuries, ejections, or suspensions following the point where the game was out of reach. Wood, despite some dicey behavior after his penalty, was not further sanctioned by the league. Clarkson did have one serious injury from earlier in the game, however, as defenseman Kelly Summers was injured in an awkward collision with Jared Wilson. He came out and did not return, and was unavailable for Game 3.

Game 3
Liljegren-Schroeder-Bubela
Melanson-Miller-Nanne
Neal-McGowan-Laliberte

Wood-Bourbonnais-DeVito

Leonard-Bradley
Curadi-Bell
Prapavessis-Wilson

Kasdorf

With both teams now in a do or die situation, the first goal loomed crucial on Sunday night. It was the Engineers who picked it up for the first time in the series.

Mark Miller's second goal of the weekend came 7:45 into the contest to put RPI ahead 1-0 for the first time in four games, but the real backbreaker may have come just 20 seconds later, as Zach Schroeder and Milos Bubela switched things up a little bit from their Game 1 link-up, with Bubela feeding Schroeder this time to give the Engineers a very sudden 2-0 edge.

After surviving back to back penalties to Miller and Bell, RPI took a 3-0 lead with about three minutes left in the first as Jimmy DeVito finally notched his first goal of the season - the second of his collegiate career - on a terrific pass from behind the Clarkson net by Riley Bourbonnais. For the second time in four games over two weekends, the Engineers had three goals in the first period and chased netminder Steve Perry from the cage.

As is the norm, it fell to Jason Kasdorf to make that lead hold, and he would manage to do that for the remainder of the game. He stopped all 18 shots that he saw in the first two periods, then knuckled down as Clarkson pulled the netminder for the extra attacker with seven minutes to play, down by three. The Golden Knights managed to maintain control of the puck for most of that final seven minutes, RPI rarely getting a chance on the open net on the other end. Kasdorf, meanwhile, continued to play some of his best hockey of the season, ultimately making 15 saves in the final 20 minutes.

The Golden Knights would not be shut out in Game 3, as Joe Zarbo hit his third goal of the weekend with three minutes left to bring Clarkson back within two, but that was as close as Clarkson would come, in part because Zarbo himself was called for tripping with just under two minutes left in the game (and subsequently issued a misconduct for dissent as well), bringing things back to five on five play as Clarkson removed the goaltender again once the puck was out of their zone. That advantage was not enough to get another one past Kasdorf, and for the second time in four years, the Engineers won a playoff series in Potsdam.

RPI/Clarkson was the only series that went the distance, as Dartmouth and Harvard picked up home sweeps over Princeton and Brown respectively, while Union shocked Cornell in Ithaca with a two-game demolition of the Big Red.

It's another trip to the North Country for the Engineers, their third of the season, as they now move to face St. Lawrence, the team they defeated in their final home game of the year. SLU presents a more daunting challenge, the final roadblock to RPI potentially ending the longest semifinal drought in the league.

Quarterfinal matchups
#10 Union at #1 Quinnipiac
#9 RPI at #2 St. Lawrence
#6 Harvard at #3 Yale
#5 Dartmouth at #4 Colgate

RPI at Clarkson
ECAC First Round, Game 1 - Cheel Arena (Potsdam, NY)
3/6/15 - 7:00pm

RESULT: RPI 3, Clarkson 2

BOX SCORES
College Hockey Stats
USCHO

RECAPS
RPI
Troy Record
Watertown Daily Times

RECORD: 11-23-3 (8-12-2, 18pts)

RPI at Clarkson
ECAC First Round, Game 2 - Cheel Arena (Potsdam, NY)
3/7/15 - 7:30pm

RESULT: Clarkson 5, RPI 0

BOX SCORES
College Hockey Stats
USCHO

RECAPS
RPI
Troy Record
Watertown Daily Times

RECORD: 11-24-3 (8-12-2, 18pts)

RPI at Clarkson
ECAC First Round, Game 3 - Cheel Arena (Potsdam, NY)
3/8/15 - 7:00pm

RESULT: RPI 3, Clarkson 1

BOX SCORES
College Hockey Stats
USCHO

RECAPS
RPI
Troy Record
Watertown Daily Times

RECORD: 12-24-3 (8-12-2, 18pts)

Upcoming games
13 Mar - at St. Lawrence
14 Mar - at St. Lawrence
15 Mar - at St. Lawrence (if necessary)
20 Mar - ECAC Semifinals (Lake Placid, NY - if qualified)
21 Mar - ECAC Championship (Lake Placid, NY - if qualified)

There Can Only Be One

This is it.

One game. Winner goes to St. Lawrence (hint: they want it to be us). Loser has to stay in either Troy or Potsdam for all eternity.

Fight to the Finish

Nothing ever comes easy - if you've been following RPI hockey for a long time, tonight's game didn't take you by surprise in the slightest. It's unfortunate, but it's become pretty much expected. Game 3 tomorrow night for all the marbles.

Anyway, we don't need a matrix to outline the the possible quarterfinal matchups, since the other three series all ended in sweeps. Because the one remaining series is 8 vs 9, we know how it all shakes out.

#10 Union at #1 Quinnipiac
Clarkson/RPI winner at #2 St. Lawrence
# 6 Harvard at #3 Yale
# 5 Dartmouth at #4 Colgate

Pretty simple from here on out. Let's Go Red.

Finish Him!

What's more dangerous: an healthy animal or a wounded one?

You know the answer. Tonight's game is going to be significantly more difficult.

It was junior achievement night in Potsdam last night as Jason Kasdorf's 36 saves and Milos Bubela's two goals powered the Engineers to a 3-2 victory. It's the seventh season in a row that the Engineers have recorded at least one win in the ECAC tournament. Let's make it two tonight, shall we?

Game 3s are always action packed, edge-of-your-seat thrill rides. After this season, this team doesn't need an action packed, edge-of-your-seat thrill ride right now. Probably not ever.

So let's finish this off tonight. Get this taken care of and let's get home. After all, if the teams who won last night win their series, it's a trip to St. Lawrence (basically the same trip as this one, just a little farther) next weekend. If they top that one off? Lake Placid (basically the same trip as this one, just a little shorter). So if it's going to be repeated trips north, why not make this one as short as possible?

Clarkson is wounded. Don't let them back into it.

A New Season

Four years ago, we reprinted and paraphrased a letter written by St. Cloud State alum Mike Doyle, who was watching an SCSU team picked to be among the best in the WCHA falter and finish near the bottom. His words were inspiring, and while they're unfortunately no longer online, here's another reprint and another paraphrase to fit this current situation that the Engineers find themselves in.

There is still time to salvage the season. It won’t be easy, but nothing worthwhile ever is. This would be a wonderful turnaround, but you have play up to your potential and battle every minute of every game.

During the Colgate and Cornell home weekend in January, you proved, when motivated, that you could be an elite team. I know the bounces haven’t been on your side recently. But, this is all the more reason to man-up and prove to the rest of college hockey that you aren't an oversight.

Each season is unique and you will never get another chance to play with this team. The locker room relationships are unlike any that you will ever make again. Don’t take them for granted.

For the seniors, this is your last hurrah. You may be looking forward to getting out and playing pro hockey. However, playing college hockey is like staying at a five-star hotel, while skating in the minors is like rooming at the Motel 6.

In college you are treated like a king: all the sticks you need, skate-sharpening wherever you lose an edge, first-class travel arrangements and spacious locker rooms in beautiful, sold-out arenas. Houston Field House may be old, but your locker room is better than 90 percent of the arenas you will ever see in the minors.

For the underclassmen, realize that four years fly by. Don't let this one end before you're ready for it to be over.

Confidence is a fickle jester taunting the psyche of a hockey team. A bounce or two can change the entire outlook of a season. When the self-confidence snowball gets rolling in the wrong direction, it feels like it’s impossible to stop. Confidence is something people outside the locker room don’t see nor understand.

Some of the RPI faithful are bemoaning your effort. Message boards are lighting you up like the Griswold house on “Christmas Vacation.”

You cannot let this lack of faith bury your confidence. You can only play for the guys in the locker room wearing the Cherry and White.

This is the playoffs. That means there's 12 teams, right now, who are two losses away from their season being over. Whether you're on the road or at home, playing in the first round or with a bye to the quarterfinals, this is the reality. You bring it or you're done. You want it more, and you can succeed.

This is the playoffs. All the woulda, coulda, shoulda stops now. At this very moment, the Bobcats, Saints, Bulldogs, Raiders, Big Green, Crimson, Big Red, Golden Knights, Engineers, Dutchmen, Bears, and Tigers have the same record. 0-0. Some teams have earned the right to have certain benefits along the road to Lake Placid. These benefits are no guarantors of success, and teams without those benefits are not condemned.

You have to walk before you can run. You have to crawl before you can walk.

This is the playoffs.

First Round Breakdown

Here's the matrix that Gary puts together every year determining how the ECAC Quarterfinals are going to shake out depending on who wins each first round matchup. It'll be updated on Saturday night assuming that at least one first round series is a sweep and at least one goes to game three.

For what it's worth, in 12 previous seasons under this playoff format, the first round has gone to chalk only twice - 2007 and 2008. Every other year had at least one road team advance to the quarterfinals, which means all four home teams winning happens as often as a 12 team upsetting the 5 seed.

For RPI, if they're able to get past Clarkson, you can expect a trip to Canton (oh, joy) as the most likely scenario. Quinnipiac would happen only if there are no other road teams winning their matchups. Yale would happen only if two other road teams won in the first round (has happened once, in 2011). Colgate would happen only if no home teams win their matchup (which has never happened).

In the meantime, here are some quick capsules on what we're looking at this weekend.  Doing this in reverse order. If you want our RPI analysis, just skip to the bottom.

#12 Princeton (4-21-3; 2-18-2 ECAC) at #5 Dartmouth (15-10-4; 12-8-2 ECAC)
KRACH: Dartmouth 23rd (151.7); Princeton 54th (24.3).
February: Dartmouth 6-2-0; Princeton 1-6-1.
Season series: 4-0 Dartmouth.
December 6 (Princeton) - Dartmouth 4, Princeton 2
February 27 (Hanover) - Dartmouth 3, Princeton 1
Princeton on the road: 0-11-1; 0-10-1 ECAC
Dartmouth at home: 9-7-1; 6-5-0 ECAC

On paper, this is easily the most open and shut series of the first round. Dartmouth absolutely finished strong and the Big Green were unbeaten in 10 of their last 12 games. Princeton, on the other hand, hasn't won a road game since they beat Clarkson in Game 1 of the first round last season, a year ago on Saturday.

Princeton's offense was the worst in the league and it was not even close - every other team in the league with the exception of Clarkson, Cornell, and Brown scored more than twice as many goals in league play as did the Tigers (the Golden Knights missed doubling up the Tigers by a single goal). The defense, power play, and penalty kill were all 11th in the league.

It's not all about Princeton being terrible. The Big Green probably would have had a first-round bye if not for their middling home ice record, but they've been able to ride strong offensive output and a more than acceptable defensive showing to become a real contender in the ECAC. They're on a roll and a team that has only won twice since the beginning of December isn't likely to pick up two wins in a row against this team.

Twice in 12 years under the current playoff format has a 12 seed knocked off a 5 seed - Brown in 2009 and Colgate in 2011 (remember that?). It's been done. Interestingly, the last six 5/12 matchups in a row have gone to three games, with Brown in 2008 the last 12 seed to be swept.

But that's a trend that's likely to be broken at some point, and this year's Princeton team is probably a good bet to do just that. With only 6 points on the campaign, the 2015 Tigers had the worst ECAC season since the 2003 Tigers also finished with 6 points. Anything short of a Dartmouth sweep would be a real eye-opener, but Princeton advancing would probably be the biggest shock of any of the 5/12 upsets we've seen so far. '09 Brown was 14 points behind Harvard in the final standings, '11 Colgate was 13 points behind RPI. Dartmouth finished 20 points in front of Princeton.

#11 Brown (8-18-3; 5-14-3 ECAC) at #6 Harvard (15-11-3; 11-8-3 ECAC)
KRACH: Harvard 22nd (157.6); Brown 45th (47.8).
February: Harvard 3-6-1; Brown 4-2-2.
Season series: Tied, 2-2.
November 14 (Boston) -  Harvard 6, Brown 2
February 7 (Providence) - Brown 2, Harvard 1
Brown on the road: 5-8-1; 3-7-1 ECAC
Harvard at home: 6-4-2; 5-4-2 ECAC

A month ago, this would have been just as open and shut as Dartmouth-Princeton seems to be, perhaps even more so. Then again, a month ago Harvard looked like a pretty sure bet for a first-round bye, so this wasn't even really in consideration. The Crimson should still have a pretty distinct advantage, playing at home and still full of talent - but they don't look nearly as unbeatable as they once did, and Brown no longer seems to be the pushovers they looked like for much of the season.

On New Year's Day, the Crimson looked to possibly be the best team in the entire nation. But 2015 in general has not been kind to Harvard, as they're just 5-10-1 since the ball dropped. Brown has the same number of wins across the same time period, but they've racked up the majority of those wins at the right time of the year - the end, when any team prefers to be reaching their peak. Before finishing the season with a 4-2 loss at home against a surging Colgate, the Bears had been on a six-game unbeaten streak (including a win over Harvard) and were unbeaten in seven of eight.

What's behind Brown's turnaround? Defense has vastly improved from where it was at the outset, led by Tim Ernst in net and that helped the Bears not only separate from Princeton down the stretch, but also threatened the Capital District schools in 9th and 10th on the last weekend of the regular season. A naysayer could look at the Bears' late schedule and see a whole lot of teams that finished in the bottom half of the league standings, but Ernst also helped Brown very nearly pull off an upset of Quinnipiac - and then, of course, there's the win over Harvard.

The Crimson, for their part, were not just taking part in what has become a fairly typical February swoon (when there's a place to swoon from, of course - the Crimson finished dead last in 2013). They've had to deal with a rash of injuries - especially to Patrick McNally and Sean Malone - that has kept their high-flying offense grounded with some frequency down the stretch. Malone is now back, but McNally has not played since January, when it was speculated that he could potentially return for the ECAC playoffs.

At the end of the day, when you consider the entire season, Harvard's #1 offense is taking on Brown's #12 defense in this series, but neither are performing the way they were in November, December, and January. The Bears are also still dead last in both power play and penalty kill - they had just 6 power play goals in league play this season, which had them at +2 for the year after giving up four shorties. That bodes well for Harvard's physical play.

Much hinges on whether McNally can return. He'd be a serious injection for the Crimson and his presence would make for serious concerns for the Bears. For Brown, as has been the case for several years, if they can get outstanding goaltending, they can win a playoff series. That makes Tim Ernst the great equalizer. Harvard's the favorite here and rightfully so, but if Brown can pick up a win or two, it shouldn't come as a major shock, perhaps only if Patrick McNally is dressed to play.

#10 Union (16-16-2; 8-13-1 ECAC) at #7 Cornell (11-12-6; 9-9-4 ECAC)
KRACH: Cornell 29th (113.0); Union 33rd (98.0).
February: Cornell 2-3-3; Union 3-5-0.
Season series: 4-0 Cornell.
January 16 (Schenectady) - Cornell 5, Union 1
February 21 (Ithaca) - Cornell 2, Union 1
Union on the road: 8-7-1; 5-6-0 ECAC
Cornell at home: 7-5-3; 6-3-2 ECAC

The Dutchmen have been all over the map this year. At times, they've been unstoppable on offense. At other points, they've been unable to find the back of the net with a map. Cornell, well, they've been more or less stable. They've been pretty solid on defense. Offense, though... they get some, but not a whole lot.

We made a lot of RPI being unable to win games when they give up three goals, but for Cornell that goes back even farther - they haven't done it since the first two games they played last season. Since 5-3 and 4-3 wins at Nebraska-Omaha in October 2013, the Big Red are 0-17-4 when allowing three goals. The big difference here, of course, is that they don't do it very frequently. They don't score three often either - only nine times this season, just three more times than they were shut out.

Union's February was almost as awful as it gets. During a dreadfully horrifying five-game losing streak, the Dutchmen scored a grand total of two goals while allowing 14 (although 7 of those were in one game). They did, however, right the ship at the end of the season with wins over St. Lawrence and Clarkson.

Cornell has kinda sputtered down the stretch as well, though. One win in their last six games (against Union). Ties against a faltering Harvard, and two bottom four teams in RPI and Brown also happened during that run. It's not a finish that inspires a great deal of confidence, but it's not like the offense or defense was any better or worse than it really was all season.

Lynah Rink, of course, is a huge advantage for the Big Red. They haven't lost a playoff series there since 2007 (against Quinnipiac), which was only the third time they've ever lost a home playoff series (1988 and 2004, both against Clarkson). That's in stark contrast to Union, which has never won a road playoff series. Ever. Yes, Union has won a national championship, but never a road playoff series in the ECAC.

All of that said, if Union's offense wakes back up and becomes a serious challenge for Cornell's defense to have to tangle with, the Dutchmen could certainly put up a fight in their unlikely quest for a record-tying fourth straight ECAC title. This isn't a lopsided matchup by any stretch of the imagination: Cornell isn't unstoppable and Union isn't helpless. The history and the comparison of the two teams' recent struggles certainly points to the Big Red as a very distinct favorite, however, especially given the relative ease with which Cornell swept the season series.

#9 RPI (10-23-3; 8-12-2 ECAC) at #8 Clarkson (11-18-5; 8-11-3 ECAC)
KRACH: Clarkson 40th (62.5); RPI 42nd (53.5).
February: Clarkson 1-6-1; RPI 1-5-2.
Season series: 3-1 Clarkson.
February 7 (Potsdam) - Clarkson 5, RPI 2
February 27 (Troy) - RPI 3, Clarkson 3
RPI on the road: 4-12-2; 2-8-1 ECAC
Clarkson at home: 6-9-1; 5-6-0 ECAC

The 8/9 matchup frequently creates some interesting situations, if only because it's always the pairing with the least between the teams. Fittingly, the 8 seed has won six of the 12 matchups since the ECAC's current playoff structure went into place in 2003 (do the math, that's six for the 9 seed, too).

In this case, it's hard to pick a favorite other than to just say that Clarkson has home ice. The problem there is that while RPI has had notable problems winning home playoff series recently, Clarkson hasn't been lighting the world on fire at Cheel, either. Since their last ECAC title in 2007, the Golden Knights are 1-4 in home playoff series, with the lone win coming last year as the 5 seed against 12 seeded Princeton, and as mentioned above, the Tigers won Game 1. That stretch includes the 2012 series against RPI, which went to a Game 3.

It's not that this is a matchup of two solid teams, but rather, it's a matchup of two teams that have proven to be solidly mediocre, especially in the home stretch. The Engineers wrapped a nine-game winless streak by ekeing out a home victory over St. Lawrence on the last night of the season, Clarkson lost their last seven games in a row to end the season against teams that were not RPI.

That has to at least fill Clarkson with a little bit of confidence. There's probably no one else that the Golden Knights really wanted to face other than RPI, and thanks to their tie with the Engineers last weekend, they get to do it at home.

When you compare these two teams, there's a lot that's similar about them. Both struggled to score goals for much of the year. Both have defenses capable of stealing games (or this entire series), but have legitimate concerns with which goaltender to utilize. Jason Kasdorf for RPI and Steve Perry for Clarkson have been the go-to-guys, but both had injury problems at times this year and struggled to come back from them. Behind them are Scott Diebold and Greg Lewis respectively, who haven't individually been amazing but who both keyed their team to their biggest success of the final weekend.

There's a slight edge for Clarkson overall but it's based almost entirely on the facts of being at home and having had recent success against RPI. Everything else about this pairing screams complete tossup, and when you've got that element combined with the defensive capacities of these teams, it's all going to probably boil down to which team gets better defense. The team that locks down their net is going to advance, the one that can't is going to have seven months to think about why that element, key for success all season long, failed them at the last moment.