2009 has been good to the Amherst men’s hockey team so far. After a 3-2-1 record to start the season, the Jeffs surged into the new year with a vengeance. In three weeks of play in January, the team defeated seven out of nine opponents, leaving the Jeffs with a 10-4-1 record and in second place in their division.

The team started the year at the St. Michael’s Holiday Classic. There, they defeated Fitchburg State College 4-1 to secure a spot in the final against Nichols College — the top ranked team in the ECAC northeast division. In this close, hard-fought game, two power play goals were not enough to put Amherst on top, as they fell to the Bisons 3-2.

After the tough loss to Nichols, the Jeffs rebounded with two weekends of outstanding play. First, Amherst took to the road, handily defeating the University of Massachusetts at Boston 7-1. Freshman Mark Colp and senior Brendan Powers led the scoring for the Jeffs with two goals apiece. Colp also added two assists, giving him an impressive four-point game. Next, the Jeffs headed to Babson College. There, they defeated the Beavers 6-3 with the help of two power play goals. All three goals against Amherst were scored when the Jeffs were shorthanded. Keith Nelson ’10 tallied two goals and five assists for seven points during the successful weekend, earning him the NESCAC player of the week title.

After a successful road weekend, the team returned home for a midweek NESCAC game against Hamilton. Amherst relied on its strong power play for the win, netting all three of its goals with the man advantage. In this 3-1 victory, Ted Vickers ’10 recorded two goals and one assist, while Jeff Landers ’09 assisted on all three goals.

Three days later at Southern Maine, the Jeffs again took advantage of their special team play for the win, scoring two power play goals and one empty net goal. They outshot their opponent 40-24 and extended their winning streak to four games.

That streak finally came to an end when the Jeffs fell to Salem State 1-0. The game was the Jeffs’ third 1-0 loss this year.

This weekend, the Jeffs rebounded from their loss to defeat both Castleton State College and Skidmore College. Amherst defeated Castleton 3-1 with goals by Mark Colp, Ted Vickers and Will Collins ’09. Jonathan La Rose ’11 made 39 saves in the win. Against Skidmore, Cole Anderson ’11 made 38 saves for the shutout win. Brendan Powers had a pair of goals while Jeff Landers had a goal and two assists.

Next weekend, the Jeffs travel to Tufts University and Connecticut College in two NESCAC league matchups, where they look to maintain their high division ranking.