Thanks to mike for posting the complete box scores for both games.
 
Clarkson-Cornell:  It was two different Clarkson teams playing last night.
The good guys showed up for the first, third and overtime periods, while
the "others" played the second period.  Clarkson looked solid in the
first period.  There was a lot of play in the neutral zone as neither
team was giving up the blue line.  Cornell did look very good throughout
the night.  Duffus played exceptionally well and had all the luck he
needed.  As mike mentioned, a weak defensive effort cost Clarkson the
game in the second period.  The defense was allowing Cornell to roam
free in the zone and get to rebounds whcih were coverted to goals.
Clarkson did come out fired up in the third period and had several good
scoring chances before tieing the game.  One included a shot that
dribbled through  Duffus' pads and spun to a halt on the goal line.
Duffus and a defenseman were able to pull the puck to safety and cover
up.  Cornell had one great scoring chance late in the third period.  It
was a two on two.  The puck carrier came down the left side.  Both
Clarkson defenseman went after him, leaving the other Cornell forward
wide open in the slot.  Currie had to made a sliding save to stop the
one time shot.  I too believe that Currie was put in goal to shake the
team up a bit.  Markko Tuomainen's second goal was real incredible.
Rogles had cleared the puck.  It went down ice and behind the Cornell
net.  Duffus and a Cornell player went back to play it but neither
touched it.  Tuomainen went behind the goal on the right side, go the
puck, pulled it out front and put it in the empty net.  Duffus was
standing there looking up ice.  Duffus did get butt lucky to force the
overtime.  With about 35 sec left and Clarkson on the power play, a shot
was taken from the point.  Duffus kicked out the pads to block the shot,
but the puck bounced over to Thomas at the side of the net.  As the puck
was falling, Duffus layed back down with his out stretched glove hand.
When the puck hit the ice, Thomas lifted it up over the outstretched arm
and surely into the goal.  However, Duffus was bringing his goal stick
down, and that barely deflected the puck up and over the net.  Thomas
will still be seeing that one in his nightmares when he goes to Buffalo
this fall.  Cornell dominated the first 5 minutes of the OT.  Clarkson
did get some more chances after that and early in the second OT.  I told
the people who were watching the game that Currie shouldn't have frozen
the puck.  Unfortunately I was right.
 
SLU-RPI:  RPI beat themselves.  They took two stupid penalties at the
end of the third period to allow SLU to score two goals and force OT.  I
thought that te RPI player threw the puck away from the officials after
the whistle was blown.  RPI did dominate OT and had several good scoring
chances on which Spagnoletti stopped or RPI just couldn't put the puck
into the open net.
 
This evening's game should be the game of the living dead.  Cornell and
Clarkson looked a lot more tired than SLU and RPI did at the end.  This
might help Cornell by slowing down the SLU forwards.  Clarkson is going
to have to hope for a SLU victory in order to have a good chance at a
NC$$ bid.  I believe that Harvard is done and Cornell has no chance
unless they get the automatic bid.  The losses to Dartmouth, Union and
two to Clarkson should keep them out of an at-large bid.
 
Mike Zak
Clarkson '87, '90
Beaten by Cornell AGAIN at Boston Garden.