O'Connor Scores Overtime Winner as Dartmouth Downs Princeton in Road Thriller

Friday, January 3

Princeton, N.J.

7 PM

Dartmouth College

7-4-2, 5-2-1

Princeton

2-11-3, 0-7-2

OT 1

Dartmouth

Princeton

Drew O'Connor

Photo by: Mark Washburn

O'Connor Scores Overtime Winner as Dartmouth Downs Princeton in Road Thriller

1/3/2020 9:28:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey

Box Score

Drew O'Connor nets the game winner just over a minute into OT.

By: Pat Salvas

PRINCETON, N.J. – New Jersey native Drew O'Connor scored just 61 seconds into overtime to give the Dartmouth men's hockey team a wild 4-3 win Friday night on the road against Princeton at Baker Rink.

In a game that featured three players from both teams scoring their first career goals and two more scoring their first of the season, it was O'Connor's team-leading eighth that proved to be the biggest, giving the Big Green (7-4-2, 5-2-1 ECAC) its first OT win since Oct. 27, 2018.

The sophomore and current ECAC Hockey Player of the Week, O'Connor knocked in a loose puck thrown into the crease by Kinnelon, New Jersey, native Brendan Less with Quin Foreman picking up the other helper.

The only reason Dartmouth was in overtime in Koenig Family Head Coach Bob Gaudet's 1,000th career game was because the Tigers' (2-11-3, 0-7-2 ECAC) Pito Walton scored his first-career goal with just 16.4 seconds left and the goalie pulled.

Cam Strong and Collin Rutherford each notched their first goals of the season on breakaways in the first and second periods, respectively. Princeton took a 2-1 lead midway through the second when Rutherford answered got on the board for the first time and tied the game.

Just 29 seconds into the third period and on the power play, freshman Mark Gallant knocked in the go-ahead goal, the first tally of his career to put the home team on top for the first time since Strong's score in the opening period.

The result marked the second straight game in which the Green and White trailed, only to battle back and come away with the win.

Princeton Jeremie Forget stopped 41 shots between the pipes for the home team, but was saddled with the loss. Dartmouth's senior netminder Adrian Clark got just the second OT win of his career, needing to make just the 21 saves to do so.

The team plays at Quinnipiac Saturday night in another ECAC Hockey battle. Puck drop in Hamden is set for 7 p.m. and can be seen on ESPN+ as well as heard via Rob Kennedy's radio call on DartmouthSports.com.