LAKE PLACID, N.Y. — A strong start turned into a bitter ending for the men’s hockey team on Friday, when Princeton scored four unanswered goals to power a 4-1 victory over the Big Red in the semifinals of the ECAC Hockey Championships at 1980 Herb Brooks Arena.
Senior forward Trevor Yates scored the lone goal for top-seeded Cornell (25-5-2), which had advanced to the league’s showcase weekend for the 10th time in the last 14 years. But seventh-seeded Princeton (18-12-4) got off its heels for the final 40 minutes to oust the heavy favorites.
Cornell remains aligned for an at-large bid in the upcoming NCAA tournament. The selection show will air at noon Sunday on ESPNU, with regionals taking place next weekend at four neutral sites in Allentown, Pa.; Bridgeport, Conn.; Sioux Falls, S.D. and Worcester, Mass.
Starting off, the Big Red kept possession for long spurts and firing off seven shots on goal before Princeton’s first came just after the 11-minute mark. Yates got the Big Red on the board about five minutes later after a shot from freshman forward Cam Donaldson near the top of the left circle hit traffic in front, and Yates cashed in the rebound from the other side. While it was Yates’ 12th goal of the season, it was his first since Jan. 6 — a span of 17 games.
Princeton proverbially leveled the ice to start the second period, starting to generate a few more chances. Freshman goaltender Matthew Galajda was called into action when a puck forced to the middle bounced out the far side into the path of Joe Grabowski, but Galajda slid to his right made a save with his left shoulder at the 7:55 mark.
It was a better chance than what transpired exactly one minute later, but Princeton still tied the game. Josh Teves entered the zone and shot the puck intentionally wide to Galajda’s right at an angle so it would bounce off the end wall and back toward the slot. Galajda opted not to reach for it and Princeton’s Liam Grande won the race past Cornell’s defenders down the slot. In the confusion, the puck bounced off his back skate and just inside the far post.
With 5:56 left in the period, Princeton took the lead on a bizarre breakaway goal. The Big Red had control in the Tigers zone for the majority of the shift, with freshman forward Brenden Locke teeing up junior defenseman Brendan Smith for a shot coming in toward the top of the left circle. Princeton’s Luke Keenan hit the ice to block the shot with his shinpads, and puck caromed directly into the path of Eric Robinson all alone, blowing the zone up the middle. His shot zipped past Galajda’s blocker.
It marked just the sixth time in 32 games this season that Cornell trailed after two periods, and it was a deficit that looked even less daunting when a Princeton penalty at the buzzer gave the Big Red a power play to start the third. In the waning moments of that man advantage, sophomore defenseman Yanni Kaldis took a shot from the left circle that labeled for the top corner, but Princeton goalie Ryan Ferland snagged it for arguably the best of his 27 saves on the night.
Princeton got a valuable insurance goal with 9:43 to play. Playing four-on-four, Princeton’s Ryan Kuffner set up Max Veronneau for a shot on a two-on-two rush that whistled by Galajda’s left ear. It was the first time Cornell conceded a four-on-four goal this year. Robinson then iced it with an empty-netter in the final minute.
