Men’s Hockey schedule for 2003-2004

Though this isn’t official yet, here’s what next season’s schedule is setting up to be. From an objective standpoint, it’s one helluva schedule, and should be applauded, as Dartmouth takes on pretty much all of the traditional eastern hockey powers in UNH, Maine, BU and BC from Hockey East and of course Harvard and Cornell in ECAC conference play.

However, from a biased fan’s point of view – especially as a senior facing his last year of free hockey, this is quite possibly the worst home schedule ever put on paper. The 4 games against the Hockey East powers are all on the road (technically the UNH game is at a neutral venue, but the crowd will be 80-90% pro-UNH). As well, the home game against our travel partner Vermont is on January 2nd, when most students will still be on Winter Break, and for the second straight year Dartmouth will be on the road during Winter Carnival weekend, which would otherwise afford some of the more raucous crowds of the year given the party atmosphere. Plus the Harvard game, which is sure to be huge since we haven’t beaten them in 3 years, is one of only 3 home games during the entire fall term, all of which take place during a two week period at the begining of November. Along the same lines, Dartmouth goes two straight months between home games (November 8th vs. Harvard through January 2nd vs. Vermont), which means they could be out of it before they even get their feet under them unless they do much better on the road than they have the last three years.

Obviously, the highlights of the home schedule are the November 8th game against Harvard and the February 7th game against Cornell. And I encourage as many students as possible to goto the UNH game in Manchester on January 13th, as it will likely be the biggest single crowd for any Dartmouth sporting event all year at 11,000 people or so, even if most of them are rooting for the opposition.

Sat 11/01/2003 Holy Cross (nc) 7:00 ET

Fri 11/07/2003 Brown 7:00 ET

Sat 11/08/2003 Harvard 7:00 ET

Fri 11/14/2003 @ Union 7:00 ET

Sat 11/15/2003 @ Rensselaer 7:00 ET

Fri 11/21/2003 @ Yale 7:00 ET

Sat 11/22/2003 @ Princeton 7:00 ET

Tue 11/25/2003 @ Boston College (nc) 7:00 ET

Fri 11/28/2003 @ Boston University (nc) 7:00 ET

Sun 12/14/2003 @ Maine (nc) 2:00 ET

Sat 12/27/2003 vs UMass (nc) 4:00 ET (1)

Sun 12/28/2003 vs Minn State/Vermont (nc) 4:00/7:00 ET (1)

Fri 01/02/2004 Vermont 7:00 ET

Sat 01/10/2004 @ Vermont 7:00 ET

Tue 01/13/2004 vs UNH (nc) 7:00 ET (2)

Fri 01/16/2004 Clarkson 7:00 ET

Sat 01/17/2004 St. Lawrence 7:00 ET

Fri 01/23/2004 @ Colgate 7:00 ET

Sat 01/24/2004 @ Cornell 7:00 ET

Fri 01/30/2004 Rensselaer 7:00 ET

Sat 01/31/2004 Union 7:00 ET

Fri 02/06/2004 Colgate 7:00 ET

Sat 02/07/2004 Cornell 7:00 ET

Fri 02/13/2004 @ SLU 7:00 ET

Sat 02/14/2004 @ Clarkson 7:00 ET

Fri 02/20/2004 Princeton 7:00 ET

Sat 02/21/2004 Yale 7:00 ET

Fri 02/27/2004 @ Harvard 7:00 ET

Sat 02/28/2004 @ Brown 7:00 ET

(1) Auld Lang Syne Tournament in Burlington, VT

(2) Verizon Wireless Arena, Manchester, NH