Men's Hockey looks for another playoff berth

Ingalls Rink will be silent no more. With the fall sports season winding to a close in the next few weeks, those searching for ways to support the Blue are now heading indoors. The men's ice hockey team opens its East Coast Athletic Conference (ECAC) season this weekend with a home game against Clarkson on Fri., Nov. 7.

Rink rats got a preview of Bulldog action with an intense exhibition game against McGill and a non-league contest versus Air Force on Fri., Oct. 31, and Sat., Nov. 1, respectively. Two solid victories gave the Elis a boost of confidence before their league season opener, and a glimpse of the team's capabilities.

Although the games have no effect on the team's standings for the remainder of the season , they were critical for the squad's preparation for its '97-'98 campaign. For some players, it was their first experience playing at the faster pace of Division I hockey.

Julia Tiernan/YH

"I am pleased with the results of the game because we scored some good goals and played good defense," Coach Tim Taylor said. "The teams we were playing, however, were not of the same ability of the teams we are playing this weekend."

The 1996-97 campaign saw Yale place 10th out of 12 squads in the ECAC, barely earning the Bulldogs' first playoff spot in four years. The Elis concluded the year with an overall mark of 10-19-3, and were 6-14-2 in the conference. A thrilling 1-0 shutout of seventh-seeded Colgate in the first round of the postseason surprised many, but the Elis were stymied in the second round by top-seeded Clarkson, who took two straight games in the quarterfinals.

This year the team is returning 14 of its 15 leading scorers, as well as veteran goalie Alex Westlund, SM '99. The defensive unit has five letter-winners returning. Taylor plans to build forward from the experienced blue-liners and net-minder.

Following the match against Clarkson, the Bulldogs will face St. Lawrence on Sat., Nov. 8. Clarkson finished the 1996-97 regular season in first place with a 27-9-0 overall record (17-5-0 ECAC) and placed second in the ECAC tournament before advancing to the NCAAs. The Golden Knights, coming off a disappointing loss to Ohio State, bring a 0-1-1 record into the game.

"They lost some of their better players, but their depth at defense will make them a solid team this year," said captain Ray Giroux, BK '98.

The 22-game ECAC schedule is a long and staggered campaign. It begins with seven games prior to Christmas break. These early season matchups are crucial when it comes to end-of-the-year playoff positioning. The early games provide a chance to pick up points before the rigors of the campaign start to wear out the players. Yale went 3-5-1 in its opening nine November and December games one year ago, and went 3-9-1 in the grueling January-February stretch.

Success this year for the Elis will depend on solid teamwork and contributions from the entire roster. The young and inexperienced squad of a year ago now has a playoff season under its belt, and as a result, expectations are high. And after last weekend's wins, so is team confidence.

"It was a nice way to start the season, but it wasn't even close to the level at which ECAC games are played," Westlund said, commenting on the recent level of play. The Bulldogs will have to step up their play this weekend if they hope to come away with two triumphs.

The squad, however, is not favored in either game this weekend. Clarkson is ranked second in the preseason coaches' poll, while St. Lawrence, who finished just one point ahead of Yale last season at 5-12-5 in the conference, is ranked eighth.

The Elis gave Clarkson some trouble last year, handing the squad from upstate New York one of its five league losses last November, and very narrowly dropping a late-season home game.

St. Lawrence ripped the Elis in November 1996, and then forced the Bulldogs into a 4-4 tie in New Haven in a game Yale should have won. Discipline will be the name of the game on Friday and Saturday as both visiting teams have experienced frustration in the past. Under these circumstances tempers often flare on both benches.

"I'd like to see [the players] maintain their poise and keep their cool this weekend," said Taylor.

Fielding a team so laden with returning players has raised expectations across the board. Every game counts, and the team will feel the effects of these early games late into the season. "We're hoping to establish a winning streak early in the season, and carry that through," Giroux said.

Yale last won an Ivy League title in the 1991-1992 season, and finished third among the six schools fielding ice hockey teams last year. But unlike most Yale athletic teams, the Ivies are not of primary concern for the hockey squad. The ECAC preseason coaches' poll ranked the Bulldogs 10th, where they finished the season last year.

Behind the leadership of Taylor, a 19-year veteran coach for Yale, and the strength of the returning starters, the team is looking to make some more noise at Ingalls this year.

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