The men's hockey team lost to University of Vermont and Dartmouth this weekend, closing out regular season play in sixth place in ECAC Hockey League conference standings and fifth in the Ivy League. The weekend road losses left the team's record at 14-12-3 (9-11-2 ECACHL).
"We wanted to go in and play some good hockey against two of the top teams in the league," said winger Chris Swon '05. "We saw this weekend as a stepping stone to the playoffs, so yes, it was disappointing."
The 2-1 loss to fourth-place Vermont came courtesy of a last-second Catamounts goal. The following day, the Bears were blitzed 6-2 by fifth-place Dartmouth.
"Friday against Vermont, we played well for two periods, then they scored a goal in the last second," Swon said. "Against Dartmouth we made some mistakes in our end, and our (team) defense broke down.
Swon added: "(Goalie) Adam D'Alba ('08) played great. We kind of let him hang out to dry on Saturday." A freshman who has stepped up to notch eight wins this year, D'Alba has seen more pucks get through recently than during his mid-season hot streak.
"A lot of the components are there - we've demonstrated that - but it's tough to put it together well for 60 minutes. If you let up for a few minutes against this competition, that's all it takes."
Two positive notes came when Les Haggett '05 assisted on Mike Meech's power play goal to open the Dartmouth game. The assist was Haggett's 100th career point, making him the first Brown player to pass the mark since Ryan Mulhern '96. The extra-man goal also ended a major drought for Brown's power play unit.
"We've been in a bit of a downward slide, but we're relieved that the playoffs start and we can put it behind us now," Swon said.
Regular season results go out the window in March. Last year, Brown finished third in the league and earned a first-round bye, only to fall at home to Harvard in two straight.
"We think it's important for a lot of our young guys to start out the playoffs at home," Swon said.
ECACHL playoffs begin Friday, March 4 at Meehan Auditorium. Brown will host 11th-seeded Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in a best-of-three-series. RPI finished 14-20-2 (6-15-1 ECACHL), but went 1-0-1 against Brown in the regular season. The series' winner will face third-ranked Colgate in the conference quarterfinals.
Swon was confident that a win in the home series could lead to a turnaround for the Bears.
"If we play our simple game - putting shots on net, playing strong in our zone - we'll do well. We can see a pathway to the final four," he said.
The league's open playoff format matches the parity of its competition. But the intensity on the ice heats the competition up to a new level.
"All the little plays are magnified," Swon said. "There's no time for mistakes, no time for learning, for looking over video the next day. At the same time you want to be playing loose. I want our guys to go out there and have fun."
