Something had to give in Tuesday night's match-up between the Big Green and the Providence College Friars.
Dartmouth entered Schneider Arena with a perfect 4-0 record against Hockey East opponents, while the Friars were trying to stop their ECAC nightmares after going 0-5 against the conference.
Sweet dreams came to Providence Tuesday night as they managed a 5-2 victory over the Big Green, even though each squad seemed to wish they didn't have to play at all.
The loss dropped Dartmouth to the .500 mark, at 9-9, as they kicked off a tough four game road trip that brings them to Burlington, Vermont on Saturday to face UVM.
For a team that got hot at the end of last season and won the Hockey East tournament, Providence entered Tuesday's game playing surprisingly mediocre hockey.
Their strength lied in their experienced forward, and All-American candidate in goal -- Dan Dennis.
However, the Friar's decided to rest their senior star, and go instead with untested sophomore Mark Kane. The second-year man came up big, shutting down twenty-eight Dartmouth shots on goal.
Coach Demment decided to stick with Scott Baker '97, after his solid performance against St. Lawrence, but Baker's 29 saves weren't enough as the Big Green's five-man defensive unit didn't pull their share of the defensive load.
The overall sloppy play for both sides saw the Friar's jump out to a 3-0 lead early in the second period, and the Big Green couldn't muster the offense necessary to make any serious come-back bids.
Dartmouth's first dent on the scoreboard came with 5:34 remaining in the second period, when Jeremiah Buckley '98 knocked home a rebound off of Ryan Chaytor's blue-line blast.
That goal typified Dartmouth's offense for the night. They couldn't develop any rhythm and were forced to settle for long slappers and go after the rebounds.
After the Friar's added two more goals in the first 7:15 of the third stanza, it was evident the final whistle was all but a mere formality.
Providence had excellent scoring distribution on the night, as five different Friar's lit the lamp.
Dartmouth's David Whitworth '98 kept pace with Chaytor's for the title of team's leading scorer, after netting the Big Green's second goal at 13:34 in the third.
Things won't get any easier for the Big Green, as they take their act on the road and won't return to Thompson Arena until Carnival Weekend.
Having lost six out their last eight games, the Big Green must step up their level of play to its early season form to avoid potential embarrassment in Burlington--a city where college hockey seems larger than life to the locals.
However, Dartmouth brilliantly handled the explosive UVM attack at Thompson on Nov. 22, and will try to duplicate that exceptional effort on Saturday.
