ECAC: Men's Hockey Conference Update

Today, I'm going to provide an update of men's hockey in the ECAC. In the next few days,  I'll provide an update with the women's ECAC situation.

With just over one month remaining before the start of the first round of the ECAC men's hockey playoffs, all teams can rest assured that they will have at least a chance to advance in the postseason. However, right now there is a very clear division between the bottom third and the rest of the conference. Granted, the bottom third has valid reasons for experiencing rough seasons.

1. Union 16-5-2, 10-2 ECAC (20 pts)
   
   Union was the No. 3 in the nation according to the USCHO until a letdown to Rensselaer on Saturday. Now Union is No. 4 but is able to maintain first in the ECAC with a better conference record than Quinnipiac.
   
   Last year's ECAC Champion remains in control of the its destiny despite its disappointing 3-2 loss to RPI. Scheduling works to Union's advantage as six of its remaining 10 games are against the ECAC's bottom half teams. Additionally, Union gets to avoid a late season bout with Quinnipiac. Barring a late season collapse, Union should secure the first seed in the ECAC playoffs and a first round bye.


2. Quinnipiac 18-4-5, 8-2-3 ECAC (19 pts)
   
   Quinnipiac remained idle over the weekend. Combined with Union's loss to RPI, Quinnipiac is now the No. 3, taking Union's former spot but remains behind Union in the ECAC despite a superior win-loss record due to an inferior conference record.
   
   Quinnipiac's not-so-secret weapon is freshman Sam Anas who currently leads the team in goals (16) and points (32). Anas is also the nation's leader in points amongst first-year players, holding a three-point lead over St. Lawrence's Matt Carey (29).
   
   Quinnipiac has an equally easy schedule during the final weeks compared to Union, which means neither team can afford to slip up and risk the other sealing up the first seed. Union does hold the advantage as Quinnipiac must take on Colgate, Clarkson and Cornell in three of the final four games.


3. Colgate 13-9-3, 9-3-1 ECAC (19 pts)
   
   Colgate sits at No. 18 after wins against St. Lawrence and Clarkson but doesn't receive much consideration about becoming ECAC Champions compared to Union and Quinnipiac despite being just one point behind Union and tied with Quinnipiac. Colgate is also one of the hottest teams and hasn't lost a game since December 15th.
   
   The reason behind the poor ranking is Colgate's slow start to the year which featured blowout losses to Bowling Green, RPI, Quinnipiac and Princeton. Only since the new year turned has Colgate strung together a string of solid performances, the caveat being half the wins were against weaker teams. Upcoming games against Union, Quinnipiac and Cornell will put to rest any debates about Colgate's strength.


4. Clarkson 15-9-2, 8-4 ECAC (16 pts)
   
   No. 15 Clarkson tumbled two spots after losses to Colgate and Cornell, and is in similar shape compared to both of last weekend's opponents. 19 of Clarkson's games this season have been within one goal, and five of its last six games have finished with a 3-2 score. But with four games against Union and Quinnipiac, Clarkson should slip up and allow Cornell to sneak in and claim the fourth seed since the Big Red has just three challenging games on its schedule. 


5. Cornell 10-4-5, 6-3-4 ECAC (16 pts)
   
   Cornell jumped up one spot to No. 11 after tying St. Lawrence and defeating Clarkson. The weekend should be seen as a disappointment for the Big Red however due to St. Lawrence's poor conference record. Cornell should have defeated St. Lawrence but still appears to be rusty after a nearly three week stretch where it didn't play a meaningful game.
   
   Excluding a 6-0 exhibition win against the Russian Red Stars, Cornell has gone 2-3-0 since a 4-2 win over UNH on December 29th. Cornell has outscored its opponents 12-10 in those five games. Ties against Dartmouth and St. Lawrence, and a surprisingly close win over Harvard, underscore Cornell's recent slump.
   
   Cornell's 3-2 win over Clarkson could indicate that the Big Red have shaken off the rust, preparing itself for a deep run in March.


6. Yale 10-5-4, 5-4-3 ECAC (13 pts)
   
   No. 13 Yale fell three spots after splitting the weekend against Brown. Until Yale's 6-0 rout on Saturday, Brown had Yale's number, taking the first two matches. Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, two games against Union and one each against Quinnipiac, Colgate and Cornell will be the difference between playing in the first round and jumping past Clarkson and Cornell for the fourth seed and final bye.
   
   In Yale's favor are wins against Clarkson and Colgate, and a draw with Quinnipiac, that prove Yale can compete with the ECAC's best teams. Unfortunately, the remaining slate of games is one of the toughest in the conference and will show whether Yale can make a Union-esque run in the playoffs.


7. Brown 8-8-3, 5-6-1 ECAC (11 pts)

Brown has been this year's ECAC version of the Dallas Cowboys. If Dallas has epitomized mediocrity over the last 20 years by going an astonishing 128-128 in 256 games, Brown would epitomize mediocrity up to this point in the season.

Brown has won big over average teams (4-1 Yale, 5-3 Dartmouth), tied equally mediocre teams (3-3 St. Lawrence, 3-3 Boston College) and lost big to average teams (6-0 Yale). The only times the Bears break the trend are games against good teams (5-1 loss to Cornell, 3-0 loss to Quinnipiac).

Brown should continue the .500 trend since it has five games against average opponents (RPI twice, Dartmouth, Princeton, Harvard) and five games against good opponents (Union twice, Colgate, Cornell, Quinnipiac).


8. RPI 10-10-4, 4-5-3 ECAC (11 pts)

RPI is in the same boat as Brown, but unlike the Bears, the Engineers have been alternating between hot and cold. RPI stunned Union 2-1 on Saturday night after losing the first two match-ups 4-3 and 4-1. RPI has also walloped Colgate 6-2 and tied Cornell 3-3 only to get routed by Minnesota, Ferris State and Quinnipiac 6-2 in each game.

As a result, RPI ties Dartmouth for the most inconsistent team in the ECAC (you'll read why when I talk about Dartmouth). The only guaranteed fact is that RPI should seal at least one of the four home seeds for the first round. Whether RPI advances or not, who knows until game time?


9. St. Lawrence 8-13-3, 2-7-3 ECAC (7 pts)
   
   St. Lawrence had a rough weekend against the upper half of the ECAC, tying Cornell and losing to Colgate. Although some will view the tie against Cornell beacon of hope, fans shouldn't hold out for a surprising turnaround since Cornell has been slumping all month.
   
   As for St. Lawrence, a winning record, and a winning conference record, are impossible considering that the Saints finished the easy part of their schedule. Of the remaining 10 games, two are against Union, two are against Quinnipiac and one is against Cornell. St. Lawrence shouldn't hope to tie Cornell in the rematchup.


10. Harvard 5-11-3, 2-9-3 ECAC (7 pts)

The Crimson has been done in by two four-game losing streaks, including one it is still in the midst of after a 4-3 loss to Union. However, Harvard's record is misleading as it hasn't been blown out too often. Harvard has remained competitive in all but two of its games (which the Crimson was outscored 10-2).

Even in Harvard doesn't advance this year, it could compete for the Ivy title next year. Right now, Harvard remains a solid team that can't quite get over the hump to win close games. Harvard's remaining schedule remains favorable with winnable games until the final weekend of the season when the Crimson must battle Colgate and Cornell away from home.


11. Princeton 4-15-0, 3-9-0 ECAC (6 pts)

Princeton quickly won 3-2 over Dartmouth to start the regular season, but any good feelings from the win quickly vanished. The Tigers have had a few hope inspiring moments, such as a 3-2 win over Quinnipiac, but for the most part, they've been blown out in most of their games, including being outscored 12-3 in two games against Michigan State.

In short, Princeton has little to no hope in advancing past the first round, and is probably lucky that the ECAC allows all 12 teams into the playoffs. Princeton will be lucky to split its remaining 10 games as it has four upcoming games against Colgate, Clarkson and Cornell.


12. Dartmouth 3-14-3, 2-10-1 ECAC (5 pts)
    
    The Big Green has had a rough time all season. Dartmouth lost its top players and captains Tyler Sikura and Eric Robinson early in the season. It wasn't until the end of a brutal November that head coach Bob Gaudet's injury-decimated squad could get its footing. Gaudet hasn't reserved credit for the work he's done, taking some of the nation's best teams to the wire despite relying on a mix of underclassmen and using defensemen as forwards.
    
    With some creativity, Gaudet has crafted a high powered, albeit inconsistent, offensive attack that can score goals quickly and match up against any team in the ECAC. Unfortunately, a poor power play offense has doomed recent games that Dartmouth had a chance of winning.
    
    Dartmouth has a chance to break its way out of the cellar this weekend as it takes on Princeton on Saturday. Just one minor issue stands in Dartmouth's way however... Quinnipiac on Friday evening. But in the playoffs, Dartmouth could be the dark horse pick to advance to the Quarterfinals.