MAC ATTACK: Princeton University women’s hockey player Jaimie McDonell battles a foe on the boards in recent action. Last Friday, senior forward and assistant captain McDonell contributed three assists to help the Tigers beat Penn State 4-1. A day later, she scored a goal as the Tigers topped Penn State 3-2 to sweep the two-game set and give Princeton its sixth straight win. McDonell was later named the ECAC Hockey Player of the Week for her heroics. The Tigers, now 11-4-1 overall, have finished the 2015 portion of their schedule and are back in action when they host Brown on January 1 and Yale a day later. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

While the Princeton University women’s hockey team generated a number of chances in the first period as it hosted Penn State last Friday, it had nothing to show for its industry as the foes were locked in a scoreless stalemate.

But with the Tigers building a 13-5 edge in shots, Jaimie McDonell and her Princeton teammates were confident they would eventually break through.

“I think we prepared for the style that this team plays, it can be a little frustrating, said senior forward and assistant captain McDonell.

“I think our team has really been good about not getting flustered when we can’t score. We stuck to our game plan and didn’t try to do anything crazy because it wasn’t happening. Getting shots and getting chances isn’t the problem, you have to be more concerned when you are not getting them. We can’t complain.”

Midway the through the second period, McDonell helped Princeton get the first score of the game as she assisted on a goal by Molly Contini.

“I got the shot on net, there was a big rebound,” recalled McDonell. “I fired on the net and it hit Molly in the knee and went in.”

Early in the third period, McDonell set up another tally as she fed the puck to junior Cassidy Tucker, who banged it home to put Princeton up 2-0 with 18:21 left in regulation.

“Tucker is great and if she is getting the puck in the slot, there is a pretty good chance it is going to go in,” said McDonell, a 5’8 native of East York, Ontario.

The Tigers never looked back from there, cruising to a 4-0 win as Kelsey Koelzer and Fiona McKenna added goals.

“We have a little trouble getting started, I think once we start scoring, we take off,” said McDonell, who picked up her third assist of the game on Koelzer’s tally.

“Scoring is half confidence and I think getting those two goals really got the energy going on the bench and everyone was ‘hey we can do this.’”

A day later, McDonell scored a goal to help the Tigers edge Penn State 3-2 and sweep the two-game set, extending its winning streak to six in the process and improving to 11-4-1 overall.

“I think just playing shift by shift, we had a bit of a losing streak earlier and even then you can’t focus on negatives,” said McDonell, reflecting on the team’s recent surge.

“When things are going well, you have got to remember the reason you are doing well, I think our hard work, sticking to our plays and our systems and having faith in teammates is what is getting it going for us. Having an unreal goaltender like Kim (Newell) helps. Part of the reason we get these surges is that Kim makes those big saves. A lot of times after a goal, the other team gets a great opportunity and Kim keeps us in there.”

As a team captain, McDonell has focused on getting the Tigers to stick together as a unit.

“When we get our rules in the beginning of the year we have some set by the coaches but the other ones we decide as a team,” said McDonell.

“Our team motto for this year is our team, our time. I think when you have more people having a say in things, you get better buy in. That is something we have really talked about.”

In McDonell’s view, Princeton has bought into the all-for-one, one-for-all approach.

“I think that is something we are really trying to stress, it takes all 20 of us out there to get this win,” said McDonell, who was later named the ECAC Hockey Player of the Week for her heroics and now has nine points this season on two goals and seven assists.

“It is not just one line scoring. I think that is something that is really helping with our success. When I am having a rough day or a rough couple of weekends, I can go back to basics, worry about my defense, and just play my game. I know there isn’t huge stress on just one line to score and I think that is really working out for us.”

Princeton head coach Jeff Kampersal never worries about McDonell’s production.

“She is consistently good; we didn’t have that great a week of practice but Jaimie had a solid week,” said Kampersal.

“Every day, no matter what, you know what you are going to get from her. She is as solid and consistent as we have ever had here.”

Kampersal credited McDonell’s hard work with getting Princeton on the board against Penn State and seizing control of the contest.

“That goal that Molly made was a really good little three-step back check by Jaimie,” said Kampersal. “It was a lot of hustle, she didn’t give up on the play. She flung it at the net and Molly was able to tip it in. We were buzzing after that, it changed the momentum.”

Princeton rode that momentum with its third period outburst. “The Tucker goal changed the momentum early in the third and then it opened up in terms of they were floating wingers and we were hitting stretch passes and getting a lot of breaks,” said Kampersal.

“I thought our kids did a nice job in terms of sticking with the game plan and doing what we worked on this week in practice.”

Kampersal was also pleased with his team’s work in the defensive zone.

“We did a good job, if they sat in their forecheck, we would go to separate out, kind of like a power play, with a breakout,” said Kampersal.

“When they do that, they use the net well on the breakout with good passes. They did a really good job. Kelsey (Koelzer) is unreal, she is just a force back there.”

With Princeton having finished the 2015 portion of its schedule, Kampersal hopes his squad can keep rolling when it returns to action by hosting Brown on January 1 and Yale a day later.

“We want good momentum going into the break, it comes at a tough time but we could use it to help academically and to get a little rest and come back strong,” said Kampersal, whose team swept the ECACH weekly honors with Newell getting named as the Goalie of the Week and freshman forward Karlie Lund earning the Rookie of the Week award.

McDonell, for her part, is confident that the Tigers can maintain that momentum come 2016.

“It is really great to go out with a bang,” said McDonell. “If we really want to be a contender and be at home for the playoffs, we have to be sure that we are coming from the first shift to the last shift, regardless of who we are playing. I think that is something that we are really doing well. The coaches are preparing us well and it is nice to see the executing coming together now and hopefully we can carry that into Yale/Brown; that will be a big weekend.”