December 18, 2008
2008-09 ECAC Hockey Midseason Review

By Joe Gladziszewski

SURPRISE TEAM

Dartmouth has 18 freshmen and sophomores on its roster and finished tied for last place one year ago. They were picked in preseason polls by many to remain at or near the bottom of the league standings, but went out and had a great start to the season. The Big Green stands alone in third place in ECAC Hockey with a 5-2-0 league record and is 6-4-0 overall. Both of those non-league losses came in overtime against nationally-ranked teams Vermont and Boston College. Losses on the road at Harvard and Cornell are nothing to be ashamed of either, meaning the Big Green has won the games it should win. They open up the rest of their conference slate in early January at Princeton and Quinnipiac and can make a statement as to whether or not they'll remain a factor for one of the top four positions in the standings at the end of the season.

Stephane Boileau is on pace to eclipse his rookie year scoring feats.

SURPRISE INDIVIDUALS

There's been no sophomore slump for Union's top two leading scorers. Adam Presizniuk and Stephane Boileau were the Dutchmen's top-two point producers last year as freshmen – with totals of 7-18–25 for Presizniuk and 6-15–21 for Boileau. The duo is right back at it this year atop the Union scoring charts, but at an even better pace. Presizniuk leads the Dutchmen with eight goals and 16 points in 16 games while Boileau has posted 5-9 – 14. Freshman Kelly Zajac (11), defenseman Brendan Milnamow (10) and Mario Valery-Trabucco (10) have also posted double-digit point totals.

WHAT HAPPENED TO ...

A drop off for Clarkson didn't seem far fetched after losing the likes of David Leggio, Grant Clitsome, Steve Zalewski and Nick Dodge to graduation, but there was enough talent returning to the Golden Knights to expect them to be above .500. Instead, Clarkson has been a major disappointment. The Golden Knights are just 2-8-4 through the season's first 14 games and 1-6-1 in ECAC Hockey contests. Several key players have missed time due to injury, but that's not enough to explain Clarkson's current last-place standing. The lowest that Clarkson has ever finished in the league has been ninth – in 2003-04 and 2004-05 and also in the 1973-74 season when the league included 16 teams.

BEST NEW FACE

Dartmouth goalie Jody O'Neill stepped into the starting role vacated by longtime incumbent Mike Devine and was very steady in backstopping Dartmouth's strong start. He's 6-3-0 on the year with a .943 save percentage and 1.99 goals-against average. Special mention also goes to Quinnipiac freshman goalie Nick Pisellini (6-2-1, .948 sv. pct., 1.38 GAA) who recently left the team for an undisclosed amount of time due to family obligations.

BIGGEST UPSET

When Princeton beat Northeastern in the first round of the Rensselaer Holiday Tournament, it was a matchup of top-10 teams in first place in ECAC Hockey and Hockey East. That wasn't the surprise, which came on the following day when Mercyhurst jumped out to a 4-0 first-period lead over the Tigers and held on for a 6-4 win. At the time, Mercyhurst was 4-8-1 but those wins at the RPI tourney were part of a seven-game unbeaten stretch for the Lakers.

TOUGHEST ROAD OUT

St. Lawrence's first-half schedule was a challenge – both in terms of the opponents they faced and where they played those teams. Only six of the Saints' first 16 games were at Appleton Arena, where they were 3-2-1 with wins over New Hampshire, Vermont and Yale included in that stretch. They played twice at Michigan early in the season, at Cornell, at Boston University and at Dartmouth and Harvard among their 10 road games.

TOUGHEST ROAD IN

Sean Backman is averaging a point per game for Yale.

Yale starts its second half with three non-league games at home against nationally ranked teams Nebraska-Omaha, Minnesota State and Air Force. From there it's 16 consecutive ECAC Hockey contests including two each against Princeton, Cornell, Dartmouth, and Harvard – four of the five teams currently ahead of them in the league standings.

MUST-SEE GAMES

Princeton at Cornell, Feb. 7: The league's two best teams meet in a game that will have a major impact on deciding the regular-season championship.

Harvard and Dartmouth at St. Lawrence, Feb. 20-21: Teams will be fighting for playoff positions throughout the second half and this pair of games at St. Lawrence merits watching as these teams vie for a top-four spot in the standings.

BIGGEST QUESTION ANSWERED

Princeton's rapid ascension to the upper levels of ECAC Hockey was no fluke. The Tigers have backed up their league championship with a 10-2-0 start to the 2008-09 campaign and are probably a more dangerous team than they were last year. Consider that reigning league MVP Lee Jubinville ranks tied for 10th on the team in scoring with just five points through 12 games and longtime linemate Cam MacIntyre has played in just three games so far due to injury. The team is deep, balanced and skilled and has its sights set on more than just making the NCAA Tournament this year.

BIGGEST QUESTION REMAINING

Which two teams will finish third and fourth in ECAC Hockey? Cornell and Princeton have clearly established themselves as the two best teams in the league, but there's two other coveted spots in the top four of the standings that will earn a first-round playoff bye and the opportunity to play a quarterfinal playoff series at home. Dartmouth, Harvard, Union, Yale, St. Lawrence and Quinnipiac are among the likely contenders for those spots.