Jake Kraft scored twice, including the winning goal with 8:54 left, as No. 16 Cornell rallied to beat Princeton 3-2 Saturday night before 3,724 fans at Lynah Rink in Ithaca.
The senior forward’s first two goals of the season helped the Big Red earn their first ECAC Hockey win and improve to 2-2-0 overall and 1-1-0 in the league. Princeton fell to 2-2-0 and 0-2-0 in ECAC play.
## Kraft scores twice as Cornell rallies past Princeton
Cornell turned a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 lead with goals 80 seconds apart in the second period, then got the cushion it needed when Kraft tipped George Fegaras’ shot in the third.
The Big Red had controlled the opening period, taking the game’s first 16 shot attempts before Princeton’s Drew Garzone missed wide more than 10 minutes in. Cornell held a 9-3 advantage in shots on goal through a scoreless first period. Mathis Rousseau stopped Kai Greaves on Princeton’s first shot on goal, which came nearly 15 minutes into the game during a power play.
The Tigers struck first early in the second. Greaves knocked the puck loose along the boards at center ice to start a 2-on-1, and Shaan Kingwell set up Jake Manfre for a wrist shot over Rousseau’s glove.
Cornell’s response began after a Princeton power play lasted just 12 seconds before Kingwell took a tripping penalty. With four seconds remaining in the ensuing 4-on-4, Luke Ashton’s shot slipped behind goalie Arthur Smith, and Michael Fisher pushed it over the line for his first goal of the season. Aiden Long also assisted.
“It was a good shot by Ash, and then it’s just kind of a squeaker,” Fisher said. “We needed kind of a jump.”
Kraft put Cornell ahead after captain Ryan Walsh sent a backhand around the boards. A Princeton defender failed to control the puck, allowing Kraft to take it away and lift a backhand past Smith.
“We’re back in league play, and every night’s really physical,” Kraft said. “We knew it was going to be a close game. They play tight, and we just had to find our chances, and we did.”
Kraft’s forecheck helped keep the puck in the offensive zone before his second goal. Xavier Veilleux passed across to Fegaras, whose shot from the right point Kraft redirected for a 3-1 lead. It was Kraft’s third career game with multiple goals and his first since March 14 against Harvard in the ECAC quarterfinals.
“He’s a high-energy player,” Cornell coach Casey Jones said. “He’s so effective at opening up time and space. He’s hard on pucks and wins a lot of battles. The second goal was a really big goal for us.”
## Rousseau and Veilleux help protect the late lead
Princeton cut the deficit to one with 4:22 remaining when Garzone converted Manfre’s backhand pass across the crease. The power-play goal, scored with 19 seconds remaining on the advantage, ended Cornell’s run of 13 consecutive successful penalty kills.
The Tigers outshot Cornell 12-3 in the third period and twice pulled Smith for an extra attacker. They produced one shot on goal during the first stretch with the net empty. After the second pull, Veilleux blocked Manfre’s shot with 1:14 left, and Rousseau denied Kingwell two seconds later. Princeton did not get another shot attempt.
Rousseau made 11 of his 17 saves in the third period. Smith finished with 19 saves as Cornell held a 22-19 edge in shots overall.
The victory ended Cornell’s two-game losing streak against Princeton, which had beaten the Big Red 3-2 in last March’s ECAC semifinal in Lake Placid. Cornell has won five straight home meetings with the Tigers, outscoring them 19-7, and 12 of the past 13 at Lynah Rink.
## Cornell visits Brown and Yale next weekend
The Big Red continue league play at Brown on Friday, Nov. 13, and Yale on Saturday, Nov. 14. Both games begin at 7 p.m. and will stream on ESPN+. Brown is 0-3-0 overall and in ECAC play; Yale is 2-1-0 overall and in the league.
“It’s never easy to win games this time of the year,” Jones said. “We’ve got to find ways to win right now while we’re getting all the pieces of the puzzle in place.”
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