PRINCETON, N.J. — Princeton and top-ranked St. Cloud State faced off again Saturday night at Hobey Baker Rink, one night after a game that featured stellar saves, frequent penalty kills, and timely scoring as SCSU rebounded from a two-goal deficit to force a tie.
Saturday night was more of the same. Exactly 20 years to the day that host Princeton upset then-No. 1 Boston University, the Tigers tied the visiting No. 1 Huskies by a 2-2 count. It marked the third tie in its last four games this year for St. Cloud.
Princeton freshman goaltender Ryan Ferland, who made 37 saves in all on Friday, including 14 stops in the five-minute overtime alone, provided more of the same Saturday. He finished with 43 saves, including 18 stops in the second period, as SCSU outshot Princeton, 45-42.
“He competes in practice, and he doesn’t want to get scored on,” said Princeton coach Ron Fogarty. “He’s a great competitor, and we’re lucky to have him for the next three-and-a-half years.”
Not to be outdone, SCSU junior netminder Jeff Smith turned aside 40 shots in all, including 14 stops in the second stanza and 16 saves in the third.
“He played well,” said SCSU assistant coach Mike Gibbons of Smith. “He made some key saves, including on some (partial) breakaways, and I thought he was outstanding.”
SCSU co-captain Judd Peterson rebounded from an early second-period penalty for boarding to open the scoring at 6:46 of the second stanza, connecting in front off of feeds from linemates Jack and Nick Poehling.
“They bring such intensity,” said Ferland of SCSU. “Their cycle game is really good, and I tried as best I could to stay calm.”
Princeton (6-7-3 overall) then stepped up its own attack, forcing Smith to make at least three point-blank saves before the Tigers broke through after battling behind the SCSU net. Jake Paganelli ultimately corralled a pass down low to the right of Smith, then whirled on his backhand and put the puck between Smith’s legs at 17:51 to tie the game.
“I thought through the first nine minutes, St. Cloud had a great push against us,” said Fogarty. “The message (to our players) was to be abrasive and finish checks, and I thought we dominated the last portion of the second period.”
SCSU (12-2-3) had 50 seconds left on an interference penalty to co-captain Jimmy Schuldt to kill off when the second stanza ended. Just 30 seconds into the third session, however, Ryan Kuffner put home a puck on the doorstep to put Princeton up for the first time.
“This was a really good test,” said Gibbons of the Tigers. “Princeton looked like they wanted to beat us, and they never let up. … We came back at different times, and that was a good sign.”
The Huskies responded less than 12 minutes after Kuffner’s goal when Jacob Benson threw a puck toward the net from behind the goal line, and it snuck its way in to complete the scoring. Princeton then had three power plays down the stretch, but couldn’t get the go-ahead goal.
“It shows what we can be,” said Fogarty of the weekend as a whole. “It doesn’t get any easier, but we’re determined and focused. We pushed our ceiling, and I like where we’re going.”
Ferland concurred, especially with ECAC rivals Cornell, Colgate, Harvard and Dartmouth lying in wait the next two weekends before the Tigers break for exams.
“It’s huge,” he said. “It’s eight points that are really important. We want to make it up the standings and get home ice, and I think we can with an effort like this weekend.”
