Jack Arena's squad started off the week with a daunting non-conference contest, facing 11th-ranked Hobart College last Tuesday evening at Orr Rink. Hobart came into the contest having defeated Manhattanville College, the top-ranked team in the nation, in its previous game.
During the game's first two periods, the Jeffs struggled to put the puck past Statesmen goaltender Dimitri Papaevagelou. In addition, Amherst was unable to find an answer for Hobart forward William Brame, who scored three goals in the first two periods to earn the hat trick. When forward Steve Nelson '06 scored 19 minutes into the second period for Amherst's first goal, Hobart had already built an all but insurmountable 4-0 lead. Defenseman Rob Stevenson '08 and senior co-captain Beau Kretzman assisted Nelson's tally.
Kretzman later helped to bring the Jeffs within two goals when he teamed up with forward Kyle Schoppel '08 to assist on senior defender Bill Jenkins' goal at the 14:42 mark of the third period. Unfortunately for the Jeffs, that would conclude the scoring on their side of the board, as Hobart tallied a meaningless open-net goal with less than 10 seconds left in the contest, to make the final score 5-2.
"Hobart came out strong, they're very physical," said Nelson. "We made a few mental mistakes, but it was a non-conference game, so it doesn't affect the standings. It was strategically placed on our schedule to give us experience against a great team going into the most important stretch of our schedule."
Added Kretzman, "Towards the end of the game, we seemed to wear down. I think that might have been the result of playing three games in five days."
Kretzman, who leads the NESCAC in scoring with 33 points, continued his excellent play with a huge game on Friday against New Hampshire's St. Anselm College. Playing on the ice at the Thomas F. Sullivan Arena was expected to be an intimidating proposition for the Jeffs, as the Hawks of St. Anselm entered the contest boasting a 12-3-1 overall record. Luckily, the Jeffs were able to pull away early and ride the advantage to an easy 8-2 victory despite being outshot 43-25.
Kretzman scored three goals in the first 29 minutes of action to earn his fourth career hat trick and give the Fairest College a commanding 3-0 lead. From that point forward the rout was on. The Jeffs would score the next five goals of the game, giving them an 8-0 lead. In the second period, Amherst only managed 10 shots, but an astonishing five of them managed to find the back of the net.
Getting on the board after Kretzman was Nelson when he scored, unassisted, 11 minutes into the second period. The team leader in penalty minutes, sophomore defenseman Trevor Calamel, added a tally off an assist from Schoppel, the NESCAC's freshman points leader. Defenseman Erik Lund '07 scored only a minute later to make it 6-0 heading into the final period.
In the third, senior forwards Roy Mabrey and Scott Aldrich would each add a goal to put the Jeffs up eight goals before the Hawks scored two goals in the game's last three minutes to make the final score 8-2. Sophomore netminder Josh Fillman had an incredible game, allowing only two scores after the game was already in hand. The Charlestown, Mass., native went the distance for the Jeffs, making 41 saves and earning the win.
On Saturday night, the Jeffs were presented with a first-place clinching opportunity. A win against ECAC opponent New England College (NEC) would give them the NESCAC crown. Regrettably for the Jeffs, the confines of Lee Clement Arena proved unfriendly, as the Pilgrims came from behind to win 5-3. Lund put the Jeffs ahead early, scoring in the game's third minute off assists from senior forwards Brad Craigen and Thierry Pauyo.
After NEC's Rashaun Ewing tied the game at 1-1, it was Lund and Calamel who assisted Craigen, giving the Jeffs a 2-1 lead. Forward Jack Greeley '06 added a third tally to cap the scoring for the Jeffs off Calamel's second assist of the game to make it 3-1 just five minutes into the second session. Despite outshooting the Pilgrims 53-44, the Jeffs were held scoreless over the game's final 35 minutes. Meanwhile, NEC managed to score four unanswered goals to mount an improbable comeback and win the game 5-3.
"With NEC we had a chance to be number one in the NESCAC if we won. We got out to an early lead but then got into a defensive shell and stopped attacking," said Calamel. "We just tried to hang on to our lead instead of increasing it, and it ended up costing us."
The loss dropped Amherst to 10-6-2 overall and 8-3-2 in conference play. More importantly, the Jeffs now find themselves in a two-way tie for fourth place, one point behind the league leaders. Only five points separate the NESCAC's top seven teams, meaning that playoff seeding will be determined by Amherst's performance in the regular season's final three weeks.
Amherst returns to Orr Rink this weekend to play the marquee hockey weekend of the year. On Friday evening, the Jeffs take on defending national champion and fifth-ranked Middlebury College. The game will be a rematch of the two teams' Dec. 11 contest at Middlebury's Chip Kenyon Arena, which Amherst lost 5-0. Adding further significance to the game is Middlebury's position in the NESCAC standings. Middlebury is currently tied with Trinity and Bowdoin Colleges for first, but a Jeff win could put Amherst back into the top slot.
On Saturday afternoon, the Jeffs will resume action against archrival Williams College. The hated Ephs come into the battle trailing the Jeffs by two points in the NESCAC standings. These next two games will set the tone for the season's final weeks and will play a significant role in determining NESCAC supremacy.
The importance of the weekend is not lost on the players. "This is the biggest weekend of the three years that I've been here," noted Nelson. "We're excited to have this chance, but we need to take advantage, not just for our record, but also for our confidence going into the postseason."