It was a cold but energetic night at Hobey Bank Rink Friday night. The Princeton Tigers (3-5-1 ECAC as of 01/10), coming off of 2 hard fought losses to the University of New Hampshire, were on a mission to show up against the Quinnipiac Bobcats (7-3-0 ECAC as of 01/10).
The Bobcats proved their strong presence on the ice during the first period. Burying two goals, Freshman Elliott Groenewold and 5th year player Jack Ricketts were able to prove their roles.
Elliot Groenewold (Quinnipiac Bobcats)
The Freshman from Springfield, Vermont, has already put himself on the defense leaderboard for the Bobcats. In 19 games played, Groenewold has 3 goals, 2 assists, 30 shots on goal and 36 blocks.
Jack Ricketts (Quinnipiac Bobcats)
The returning graduate student from Oakville, Ontario is on track for a tremendous season after the 2023-2024 season. That career high season for Ricketts resulted in 39 games played, 19 goals, 16 assists and 35 points. So far, Ricketts has 19 games played and 8 goals and 2 assists on the season.
The second period also ended in favor of the Bobcats, starting off strong with a power play goal from Freshman Aaron Shwartz just 4:40 into the period. The Tigers were able to close out the second period with their first goal from Junior Jaxson Ezman fed by Joshua Karnish and Nick Marciano.
Aaron Schwartz (Quinnipiac Bobcats)
The Freshman from Parkland, Florida, has 19 games played with 7 goals and 9 assists on the season. 3 of those assists were acquired during the Bobcats’ last matchup against Stonehill College which is a career high for Shwartz.
Jaxson Ezman (Princeton Tigers)
The Junior from Middleton, Wisconsin, may not be as recognizable as other bigger names, but he was certainly able to catch the spotlight during this tough matchup against the Bobcats. Ezman now has 14 games played and 2 goals and 3 assists on the season. Notably, the Junior has 12 penalty minutes, making his presence known out on the ice.
The Tigers entered the third period with some boosted morale, following their first goal at the end of the second period. Princeton set the tone early on in the period with a goal from Junior Tyler Rubin just 3:28 the period. Assists were given to Kai Daniells and Jake Manfre. With a close 3-2 score, the Tigers were looking to tie the game within the final few minutes of the period. The Tigers made a move to pull goalie Arthur Smith which unfortunately resulted in an empty net goal for the Bobcats from Aaron Bohlinger, leaving the score 4-2.
Tyler Rubin (Princeton Tigers)
The returning Junior from Natick, Massachusetts has only played 5 games so far this season, but has already tallied 2 goals and his first assist last night against the Bobcats.
Both assists, Kai Daniells (Princeton Tigers) and Jake Manfre (Princeton Tigers) are notable mentions. Daniells had a spectacular rookie season, tallying 5 power play goals and 8 goals total his Freshman year. Manfre currently leads the team with his 3 power play goals. Both are significant pieces out on the ice for the Tigers.
As expected, goaltender Arthur Smith put up quite the performance in net. Smith made 30 saves and only allowed 3 goals, very similar to his last start against the University of New Hampshire on Jan. 3, where he faced 18 shots on goal, only allowing 2 of them.
The Tigers had names such as Joshua Karnish and Nick Marciano on the scoresheet this game for a change, proving that many are on the rise and committed to carrying out the rest of the season on a strong note.
The team looks to get one back tonight as they close out their weekend with another matchup against the Bobcats, in Hamden, Connecticut.
