RPI Sweeps Brown & Yale to Finish 9th
RPI is 5-2-1 in their last 8 and surging at the right time
Eric Lang was adamant all offseason that his group would be the best at things that require zero talent, and they would be playing their best hockey come March. Both seem like an unequivocal yes so far. The Engineers did exactly what they needed to this weekend, with two very strong efforts against Brown and Yale. Neither were flashy, but they seemed to be in complete control of the game both nights. Nate Krawchuk was great again, the veterans continue to lead the way, and it’s all resulting in a winning formula that has carried RPI to 5-2-1 in the last 8.
Friday: 3-1 Win at Brown
Some of you may know that I am not local anymore, so I don’t get to catch many games in person, but I was able to get to Brown on Friday to see this one. It was a lot of fun to sit right behind the bench and see the game up close. Not to mention, I think there were more RPI fans than Brown fans there. RPI was the better team in the first 10 but Brown scored on a flukey goal that Krawchuk probably wants back. 2 breakaway goals for the Engineers by Dovar Tinling and Jagger Tapper put them up 1 into the break. RPI had 7 powerplay minutes and nearly 20 shots in the first period, but the game definitely tightened up after that.
Brown had a goal waived off late in the 2nd for goaltender interference that would have tied it up. RPI’s 2nd period was sloppy, but I thought they were pretty intentional in the 3rd and snuffed out most of Brown’s scoring chances. Tyler Wallace found the empty net and RPI took it 3-1.
Saturday: 4-2 Win at Yale
With Clarkson’s win on Friday, RPI could no longer play for home ice on Saturday, but this game against Yale would determine who finished 9th. After a somewhat muted first frame, it was the Luc Wilson and Thomas Klassek show for the Engineers. Wilson scored from the high slot off a sweet feed from Dovar Tinling early in the 2nd. Klassek sent a rocket slapshot from the point that found its way by Jack Stark to double the lead. Tyler Wallace would get a piece of a Klassek shot to send the Engineers into the 2nd break up 3. Yale struck for one before Luc Wilson deflected a Klassek shot to make it 4-1. It was a 4-point night for Klassek, bringing his point total up to 18 to lead all Engineer defenseman. Yale found one more goal late, but it was a fairly stress-free win for RPI in this one.
ECAC Seeding
Byes: Quinnipiac, Cornell, Dartmouth, Princeton
5v12: Brown at Union
6v11: SLU at Harvard
7v10: Yale at Colgate
8v9: RPI at Clarkson
This season was a bit of a resurgence for an ECAC that has struggled post-COVID. Reid Cashman’s revival of Dartmouth, Ben Syer’s progress at Princeton, and Josh Hauge’s job at Union have all pulled the league upwards. Harvard looks to be headed the right direction again, Clarkson was young this year, and RPI seems poised for a resurgence under Lang.
I think Clarkson could be a tough draw given the long road trip and the talent on their roster. It is tough to beat a team 3 times, but RPI had a lot of success against them this year. Finishing 9th is a very positive result given the hand Lang was dealt and their struggles early in the season. Remember that the first round of the ECAC playoffs is just 1 game now, and I believe this one will be Friday night. It’s crazy to say that it’s playoff time again — so stay tuned for our preview of the Clarkson game later this week! Let’s go red!