NICK OF TIME: Princeton University men’s hockey player Nick Seitz chases down the puck in recent action. Last week, sophomore forward Seitz scored the game-winning goal as Princeton edged Yale 2-1. The Tigers, who fell 7-3 to Dartmouth last Monday to move to 8-14-2 overall and 7-9-1 ECAC Hockey, play at Harvard on February 18 and at Dartmouth on February 19. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

Even though the Princeton University men’s hockey team had its 2020-21 season canceled due to COVID-19 concerns, Nick Seitz was still able to hone his skills.

Taking a gap year, Seitz played for the NJ Titans of the NAHL, tallying 47 points in 43 games on 19 goals and 28 assists. 

But returning to the ice for the Tigers required a transition for  Princeton sophomore forward Seitz.

“It is always an adjustment to play college hockey again, the speed and physicality,” said Seitz, a 6’1, 190-pound native of New York City.

“It is such a short season, it takes couple game of adjustments. You have to get your feet under you right away because the season is over before you know it.”

Last week, Seitz produced a highlight of the season for Princeton, scoring the winning goal in a 2-1 victory over Yale on February 8.

“It was a nice play, a D-to-D pass,” said Seitz, reflecting on the second period tally. “I just tried to get to the net and put it low. The rebound popped out and I was lucky enough to put it in.”

The Tigers held off a late charge from the Bulldogs in securing the win.

“We have gotten a lot better at that, hanging on in close games and just finding a way to gut it out, to chip pucks out and be smart in the d-zone,” said Seitz. “I think we did a good job of that, shutting it down.”

Princeton has been doing a very good job against its Ivy League foes, going 5-1 in those contests so far this season, battling Harvard (5-1-1) for the best mark in Ivy action.

“It is something that has just happened now and it is something that we are starting to take a lot of pride in,” said Seitz.

“It is the original conference and now we are striving to have an Ivy League championship. That has become one of our goals here.”

Playing on a line with classmate Adam Robbins and senior Finn Evans has helped Seitz pile up goals.

“Our line has a lot of chemistry on and off the ice,’ said Seitz, who now has three goals and five assists this season. “I have played with Adam Robbins since I was a kid so obviously we know each other pretty well. Finn adds a lot to that line, he has size, speed, and good hands. We mesh well. We like playing with each other, we have fun out there.”

Princeton head coach Ron Fogarty liked the way his team played in the win over Yale.

“It was a good hockey game, I thought we had good pace throughout the entire game,” said Fogarty.

Fogarty credited Seitz with giving the Tigers a spark.

“I thought Nick was good from the get-go,” said Fogarty. “He was skating hard and well and very poised in our defensive zone on breakouts. He didn’t make a lot of mistakes so that was a very thorough game from Nick.”

While Princeton is focused on climbing as high as possible in the ECAC Hockey standings to clinch home ice for the playoffs, Fogarty is proud of how his squad has competed in Ivy play.

“We have to step up for every game; that (the Ivy League) is a side thing, it would be a great thing to win,” said Fogarty. “We are trying to get points, we want to get home ice in the playoffs. The top eight that is what our goal is, you have got to just play out the schedule.”

Dealing with a busy schedule this month as it makes up for   several postponements in January, Princeton will be scrambling to keep sharp.

“We just have to keep playing,” said Fogarty, whose team fell 7-1 at Clarkson last Friday, edged St. Lawrence 3-2 on Saturday, and then lost 7-3 to Dartmouth on Monday to move to 8-14-2 overall and 7-9-1 ECACH. “We don’t have too many practices this month because of how it is heavy with the games. We have to be practicing good things while we are playing the games.”

With Princeton having gone 4-3 in its last seven games, Fogarty believes his team is heading in the right direction as it heads into the homestretch of the season.

“We almost have a full team back; we have two guys out with injuries so we are going with 14 forwards and six defensemen,” said Fogarty, whose team plays at Harvard on February 18 and at Dartmouth on February 19.

“Once they get back, we can maneuver some of the lines around. There are a lot of good signs here.”

Seitz, for his part, sees good things ahead for the Tigers.

“We have been getting things going in the right direction,” said Seitz. “We are starting to get our feet under us. We always had the skill and now we are starting to put it together as a team. It is fun to be a part of.”