With less than five minutes remaining in the third period, Stephens' goal allowed Dartmouth (10-7-2, 7-4-2 ECAC Hockey) to come back from a 5-4 deficit and force an overtime period against Harvard (4-11-4, 4-6-4 ECAC Hockey).
"I think they were on a line change, and I kind of picked the puck up in the neutral zone, tried to make a play in the net, got it back in the corner and passed it up," Stephens said. "Then, I was hanging around the net and my shot went in -- it was kind of lucky".
This goal was in response to Harvard's fifth goal, scored less than two minutes earlier by Crimson freshman Ryan Grimshaw to put Harvard up 5-4. It was Grimshaw's first goal of his collegiate career.
Harvard outshot Dartmouth 6-3 during the overtime period, though neither team could put the puck into the net. With 15 seconds remaining in the five-minute overtime, the Crimson called a time-out, and then Dartmouth utilized its own time-out in order to readjust to the Crimson's offensive setup.
With two seconds left in overtime, a faceoff in Harvard's defensive zone gave Dartmouth one last chance at scoring the game-winning goal. With the crowd on its feet and Dartmouth goalie Jody O'Neill '12 pulled out of the net, the Big Green could not get a shot off, despite the extra attacker.
"It's deflating for the team," Stephens said. "We found a way to battle back, but none of us are happy."
The Big Green was first to score during the game, when Joe Gaudet '10 netted the puck 17:51 into the first period. Assisted by Stephens, Gaudet registered his fourth goal of the season.
Harvard responded within two minutes as Doug Rogers scored his first of three goals of the night. The power-play goal came with 47 seconds remaining in the first period.
Peter Boldt '10 and Andrew Owsiak '11 both scored during the second period to put Dartmouth ahead 3-1. Owsiak's goal was notched during a penalty-kill situation. This 3-1 Dartmouth lead, however, was quickly erased as Harvard scored one goal during the second period and another three in the third.
After Harvard's fourth goal of the game, Scott Fleming '11 responded with a quick, breakaway goal to tie the game at 4-4 with 11 minutes left in the third period. Fleming has now scored seven goals this season and has six assists.
Harvard netminder John Riley made 37 saves while O'Neill had 32 saves during the game.
Aggression played a large role in the game's outcome as Harvard scored four of its goals during power-play situations. Harvard was handed seven penalties and Dartmouth received nine. The charged scuffles between the two Ivy League rivals tested both team's mental toughness and discipline, Stephens said.
Dartmouth defenseman Joe Stejskal '11 did not dress due to an upper-body injury, which O'Neill said he believed was a factor in the game's outcome.
"Their power play was clicking, and I think we have to do a better job trying to stay disciplined so we don't get penalties," he said. "Another factor was that Stejskal was injured, and he's normally a big part of our penalty-kill defense."
The Dartmouth squad failed to achieve the redemption they hoped for after losing to Harvard 4-1 at the beginning of the season. Dartmouth is now fourth in the ECAC Hockey standings, trailing Cornell (14-2-3, 9-1-2 ECAC Hockey), Yale (13-5-1, 8-3-1 ECAC Hockey) and Princeton (13-5-0, 8-4-0 ECAC Hockey). Harvard is sixth in the standings, despite a current 13-game winless streak.
"They are a hard-working team and we weren't playing our A-game -- they were sharp and we weren't moving the puck well," Stephens said. "I have to give them credit for getting on us like that. We know that we can be better and we have to be better."
This tie is Dartmouth's second in a row, as the Big Green tied Holy Cross 2-2 last weekend.
"Ties are no fun and no one likes to tie," Stephens said. "You get one point in the standings, so it is better than losing, but the feeling you get isn't better -- you feel like you haven't accomplished anything."
The Big Green returns to the ice this weekend looking for a win with two demanding ECAC Hockey match-ups against Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute at 7 p.m. on Friday and Union College at 7 p.m. on Saturday in Hanover.
