It was a tough weekend at the top of the conference as both Cornell and Clarkson both suffered losses on the weekend.
After being named the No. 1 team in the nation this week, Cornell suffered a 2-1 setback Saturday night to Rensselaer. The loss snapped a 11 game unbeaten streak where they were 10-0-1 in that stretch which ended with a 4-3 win against Union on Friday.
It was their only second loss of the season at Lynah Rink.
For Clarkson it was a weekend they want to forget as they were swept by Quinnipiac and Princeton on the road. On Friday they suffered a 4-1 loss to the Bobcats while on Saturday, the Tigers squeaked out 4-3 victory. The Golden Knights had 3-2 lead with ten minutes remaining in the game.
Cornell and Clarkson face each other on Friday night in Potsdam which looked like the game of the weekend in the nation. It still an important game both in the national picture and the conference, but the game doesn’t have the same sizzle as say two weeks ago.
The Big Red will have a three point advantage in the standings heading into the game as they currently have 27 to lead the league.
Princeton is on a roll
One of the sexy picks heading into the season as team that may challenge to be in the top half of the conference was Princeton after last year’s play. The season didn’t get off to start they wanted in conference, but they have swept the past two weekends after going winless the previous six games.
With a 5-4 win over St. Lawrence on Friday and pulling out a 4-3 win over Clarkson on Saturday as both games went into overtime. They sit in a tie in sixth place with Dartmouth right now. This upcoming weekend the Tigers travel to Brown and Yale, two teams that are chasing them in the standings.
Ryan Kuffner has been dominate in the past four games as he has seven goals and five helpers. Max Véronneau has also been key to Princeton’s success lately as the past four games he has played for them he has a goal and nine assists.
ECAC teams go 5-1-2 vs. Arizona State
Arizona State finished their schedule versus ECAC teams this weekend as they travel to New Haven to face the Yale Bulldogs. They provided a stiff test for the Bulldogs losing both games in overtime. On Friday Yale won 3-2 and on Saturday they came away with a 4-3 victory.
The Bulldogs out of the four ECAC teams that faced the Sun Devils this season were the only team to record a sweep.
Arizona State lone victory came against Princeton on Dec. 9 as the Tigers went out to Arizona for a two game series. They also had a pair games against Colgate and Quinnipiac
