Dartmouth 2 - Yale 1

New Haven, CT -- The Dartmouth men's hockey team weathered the snow and freezing rain to reach Yale's Ingalls Rink Friday night, and then Big Green goaltender Nick Boucher weathered a barrage of Bulldog shots to propel Dartmouth to an important 2-1 win.

The rookie netminder, starting his 12th consecutive game, stopped 36 of 37 shots, including 15 in a Bulldog-dominated first period. Even when Yale stormed him on the power play, he looked unbeatable, using his stick, gloves and pads to frustrate the Bulldogs and notch his eighth win of the season.

Midway through the second period, Dartmouth sophomore Chris Taliercio gathered a rebound off Yale goalie Trevor Hanger's pads and wristed it between the pipes for his third netter of the season and the eventual game-winner. Mike Maturo and Pete Summerfelt earned assists on the play.

With the win, Dartmouth's first in New Haven since Nov. 11, 1989, the Big Green (8-11-4, 7-6-3 ECAC) snapped a two-game losing slide. Yale (9-11-4, 6-8-3), meanwhile, has now won just one of its last eight contests.

"Two straight losses was not the kind of streak we wanted to get going," Boucher said following the win. "We definitely didn't want to have three straight, so all week in practice we were working hard. The power play is clicking, so the hard work all week paid off."

For the struggling Bulldogs, it was the same old story. The defensive effort was strong, the man between the pipes was solid, but the offensive splendor was a rare commodity.

Sound familiar? Dartmouth has shouldered its share of offensive problems this season, but in recent weeks, the power play has been a pleasant surprise as the defense has continued to improve. In this game, Dartmouth's first goal -- scored off a deflection midway through the opening period -- came with the man-advantage.

"I thought we got better defensively as the game went on," Boucher said. "We have trouble scoring sometimes, so it's important for us to keep the puck out of our own zone."

The first period was dominated by neither Dartmouth nor Yale, but by Boucher alone. The Bulldogs took 15 shots in the frame, including several on a power play, but the freshman netminder was up to the task. On the other end of the ice, the Big Green managed to solve Hanger once on the power play, as sophomore Frank Nardella deflected a shot from defenseman Ryan Poulton into the net for a 1-0 Dartmouth lead.

"In the first period, I like to face a lot of shots. It gets me in quick," Boucher said. "Sometimes our defense doesn't allow a whole lot of shots, and I can fall asleep at times."

Boucher was less challenged in the middle frame, which allowed Dartmouth to go to work on the offensive end. The Big Green took 14 shots in the period, and lit the lamp midway through with Taliercio's goal.

Joe Dart brought Yale to within one when he scored early in the third, but that would be the only success that Yale would have against Boucher. Setting aside the goal, the rookie was challenged to make just seven saves in the final period.

Dartmouth will travel south to face Princeton on Sunday at 2 p.m.

Big Green notes: Dartmouth's win avenged a 2-0 loss to the Bulldogs back in Game No. 4 of the season . . . . The Big Green has now scored a power play goal in four of its last five contests . . . . Chris Taliercio now has three goals in his last four appearances . . . . Frank Nardella's first-period broke a significant drought for Dartmouth's offensive players. The Big Green forwards had gone 172:17 without scoring a goal, dating back to the Union game on Feb 3 . . . . As expected, right winger Chris Baldwin missed the game as a precautionary measure after suffering a mild concussion in the 2-1 loss to Brown on Feb. 11. He will not play against Princeton . . . . Based on ticket sales, the official attendance was announced as a sold-out 3,230. In reality, there were empty seats in Ingalls Rink due to the winter storm.