RPI Takes Game 2 over Dartmouth to Force Game 3

Saturday, March 5

Troy, NY

7 PM

Dartmouth College

7-21-3

Rensselaer (Game Two)

16-21-3

Dartmouth

Rensselaer

Hubbarde and Palocsik Men's hockey action versus Vermont

Photo by: Doug Austin

RPI Takes Game 2 over Dartmouth to Force Game 3

3/5/2022 9:26:00 PM | Men's Ice Hockey

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Tanner Palocsik had his fifth straight game with an assist.

By: Nick Romei

TROY, N.Y. — The Dartmouth men's hockey team fell to RPI, 3-2, in Game 2 of the ECAC Hockey first-round series on Saturday evening at the Houston Field House.

Dartmouth moves to 7-21-3 while RPI improves to 16-21-3.

Ryan Sorkin and Harrison Markell each scored while Tanner Palocsik, Jack Cameron, Ian Pierce, and Matt Hubbarde chipped in the assists. It is Palocsik's fifth straight game, and six out of the last seven, with an assist.

Clay Stevenson finished with 28 saves. The Big Green blocked 11 shots.

RPI jumped out to an early 1-0 lead, scored by Ottoville Leppanen. Leppanen's initial shot from just a few feet out was saved by Stevenson but Leppanen was able to poke in the rebound to give the Engineers their first lead in the series.

The Engineers added to their lead midway through the second when they scored on the power play. After Jack Cameron was called for tripping, RPI took advantage of the man-up advantage. Ture Linden played the puck to Leppanen, who made a one touch pass across the front of goal to Jakub Lacka for the tap-in.

Dartmouth pulled to within one just over six minutes into the third period. Tanner Palocsik made his way through the RPI defense and passed one back to Ryan Sorkin, who fired it bar down from one knee for his second goal of the season.

RPI added to their lead late in the third when Klee received a pass as he was headed towards a goal and put it past Stevenson to the extend the lead to 3-1.

The Big Green answered almost immediately when Harrison Markell got in on the scoring, taking a shot from the blue line, and thanks to an error from Watson, found its way in the back of the net for Markell's second of the season.

Dartmouth pulled Stevenson and had several chances to get the equalizer, but the attacks were fended off by the Engineers. RPI held on for the win to force Game 3.

History is on Dartmouth's side for Game 3. In the last seven instances dating back to the 2010-11 season in which the Big Green have played in a Game 3 in an ECAC Hockey playoff series, Dartmouth has only lost one time, coming in 2017-18 in the quarterfinals to Harvard. The Big Green and RPI last played a Game 3 against each other in the first round in the 2013-14 season. Dartmouth took the win, 5-4.

Puck drop will be at 4 p.m. tomorrow afternoon. The game will be available to stream on ESPN+ and Stretch Internet.