SLU Saints Seek to Crucify Princeton Tigers

Second-seeded St. Lawrence will confront seventh-seeded Princeton in Canton, N.Y., this weekend in an ECAC quarterfinal series match-up.

The last time Princeton met St. Lawrence on the ice was February 20, when the Saints won a narrow 4-3 victory.

Playing for higher stakes in this weekend's match-up, the sharpshooters from St. Lawrence and Princeton are preparing for what should be a high-scoring contest to decide which team will qualify for the ECAC's Final Four.

St. Lawrence is favored to win with its exceptional offense. A recent powerhouse on the league stage, St. Lawrence has an impressive overall record of 23-7-1, overshadowing the Tigers' modest record of 12-13-1.

Skating Away

Ranked second in the ECAC behind top-seeded Harvard, St. Lawrence boasts the highest-powered offense in the league, having scored a total of 124 league goals. The team's scoring machine and the ECAC's second-leading scorer, Pete Lappin (12 goals, 24 assists, 36 points in the ECAC) is a goalie's worst nightmare.

In last week's 6-5 loss to Harvard, St. Lawrence scored three goals in a span of less than two minutes.

The Larries--as critics have called them--do not rely solely on the talents of Co-Captain Lappin (13-29--42 overall). In addition to Lappin, the team's shooting skills are shared by five outstanding scorers, including Brian McColgan (13-28--41), Jamie Baker (23-17--40), Tim Lappin (16-19--35), Joe Day (17-15--32) and Pete Buckeridge (13-18--31).

If the Tigers are to combat St. Lawrence's high-powered attack, they will need a solid effort from freshman Mark Salisbury in the net. Salisbury has a 2.91 goals-against average and a .893 save percentage.

St. Lawrence's Paul Cohen will also have his hands full trying to close out John Messuri (14-25--39 ECAC), the ECAC's regular season scoring champion. Cohen may need to improve on his 3.19 g.a.a. and .891 save percentage in order to stop Messuri (16-31--47 overall).

Co-Captain Messuri is Princeton's top gun. He joins forces with Greg Polaski, Kelly Szautner and Dave Umlund to produce a legitimate attack. Princeton's offense has the talent to score on St. Lawrence's Cohen, but it is questionable whether it will outscore St. Lawrence's strike force.