M. Hockey Still Standing Atop ECAC

As the men's hockey teams of the Eastern College Athletic Conference settle in to the second half of their respective schedules, only one thing has become clear: expect the unexpected.

Plagued by a penchant for inconsistency, the race for the ECAC title is wide open. Harvard maintains a tenuous hold on first place, with Yale and Princeton nipping at its heels. The conference's only nationally ranked team, No. 9 Rensselaer (RPI), is in a three-way tie for fifth place, while perennial league champion Clarkson is at the bottom of the pack and still looking for its first ECAC victory.

Having played one more conference game than anyone else, the Crimson (7-8-1, 6-4-1 ECAC) has a one-point edge over the Elis in the race for first place. Since each of the top three teams split last weekend, Harvard's extra game accounts for the difference in the standings.

The Crimson knocked off Yale (7-5-2, 5-3-2) last Friday, 3-2. But Princeton (6-7-3, 4-3-3) downed Harvard in a 4-2 brawl the following night, giving Harvard two points on the weekend.

Eleventh-place Brown (3-10-0, 2-8-0), should have been an easy win for Princeton last Friday, but the Tigers were too confident. The Bears toppled Princeton in a 2-1 upset to leave Clarkson by itself in the cellar. The Bears couldn't capitalize on their momentum the following night, as Yale emerged victorious in a 6-5 shootout.

Behind Harvard, Yale and Princeton is Colgate (11-6-0, 5-3-0), the only ECAC team besides RPI to receive votes in the U.S. College Hockey Online poll. But the Raiders lost at Ohio State last Friday, 3-1. Colgate resumes conference play Jan. 21 when it hosts Vermont.

Though it is unlikely that Dartmouth (4-7-4, 3-2-2) will figure prominently in the title race, the Big Green is making a play for home-ice advantage. A team that has not qualified for the postseason in the last four years, Dartmouth is finally taking advantage of its youthful, talent-laden roster.

Notching an unexpected pair of wins on the weekend, Dartmouth rocketed out of ninth place to move into fifth place, just four points behind Harvard. The Big Green turned in its most productive weekend yet, downing RPI and Union for its first series sweep of the season.

Riding the hot streak of rookie goaltender Nick Boucher, this week's ECAC/CCM Player of the Week, Dartmouth beat RPI, 2-0--the first time the Engineers have been blanked this season. Union (5-13-0, 3-5-0) turned in a lackluster performance the following night, allowing the Big Green to dominate the Skating Dutchmen, 5-1.

RPI staved off a second drumming by Vermont (5-9-3, 3-2-2), but couldn't fully rebound from its loss to Dartmouth. The Engineers' star forward Brad Tapper, who was held scoreless by Boucher the previous night, posted one of RPI's four goals against the Catamounts, and forward Mark Cavoisie notched a pair of goals and an assist on the night. But Vermont lit the lamp four times as well and an uneventful overtime forced a 4-4 draw.

RPI is a perfect example of the unpredictability of the ECAC. The Engineers have beaten No. 1 New Hampshire and No. 7 Boston University this season, which makes it awfully difficult to explain why RPI (12-5-1, 4-3-1) is currently tied for fifth.

The third fifth-place team is St. Lawrence (9-6-2, 4-2-1). The Saints played at No. 4 Wisconsin last weekend, losing 4-1 on Friday before tying the Badgers on Saturday, 6-6.

Cornell (5-7-1, 4-4-0) has not had any conference match-ups since December, but it did play one of the most formidable opponents in the country last week. The Big Red broke its five-game losing streak by skating to a 2-2 tie against No. 3 Maine, last year's NCAA champion.

Sophomore netminder Matt Underhill, the ECAC/Heaton Goaltender of the Week, stoned 38 shots, and allowed the Big Red to rally from a 2-0 deficit in the third period. A 5-2 victory over Ohio State capped off the weekend.

With a 3-2 loss to Vermont on Friday and a 5-1 drumming by Dartmouth the following night, Union's surprisingly strong start seems to be tapering off.

However, the three victories the Skating Dutchmen notched earlier this season are keeping Union in tenth place, so if the season ended today it would be in the conference tournament.

With the notable exception of Union's early start, the biggest shock of the ECAC this season is the lifeless record that Clarkson (5-9-3, 0-4-3), last year's champion, currently boasts. The Golden Knights have a habit of starting slowly, but with half the season gone, they alarmingly have yet to post a conference victory.

Another team to begin the new year with a pair of non-conference games, Clarkson faced off against Minnesota-State Mankato twice last weekend. A 5-2 triumph over MSU-Mankato snapped the Golden Knight's 11-game losing streak against WCHA teams. But MSU-Mankato rebounded the following night by trouncing Clarkson, 5-1.

This weekend features seven conference games, giving many first-place hopefuls a chance to capture the top spot from Harvard. The Crimson is geared up for a sweep of Clarkson and St. Lawrence, a feat that has not been seen for quite some time.

Princeton will take a short respite, while Yale will take on Boston College in a non-conference stint, giving Harvard a little breathing room at the top.