As the men's hockey teams of the Eastern College Athletic Conference settle in to the second half of their respective schedules, only one thing has become clear: expect the unexpected.

Plagued by a penchant for inconsistency, the race for the ECAC title is wide open. Harvard maintains a tenuous hold on first place, with Yale and Princeton nipping at its heels. The conference's only nationally ranked team, No. 9 Rensselaer (RPI), is in a three-way tie for fifth place, while perennial league champion Clarkson is at the bottom of the pack and still looking for its first ECAC victory.

Having played one more conference game than anyone else, the Crimson (7-8-1, 6-4-1 ECAC) has a one-point edge over the Elis in the race for first place. Since each of the top three teams split last weekend, Harvard's extra game accounts for the difference in the standings.

The Crimson knocked off Yale (7-5-2, 5-3-2) last Friday, 3-2. But Princeton (6-7-3, 4-3-3) downed Harvard in a 4-2 brawl the following night, giving Harvard two points on the weekend.

Eleventh-place Brown (3-10-0, 2-8-0), should have been an easy win for Princeton last Friday, but the Tigers were too confident. The Bears toppled Princeton in a 2-1 upset to leave Clarkson by itself in the cellar. The Bears couldn't capitalize on their momentum the following night, as Yale emerged victorious in a 6-5 shootout.

Behind Harvard, Yale and Princeton is Colgate (11-6-0, 5-3-0), the only ECAC team besides RPI to receive votes in the U.S. College Hockey Online poll. But the Raiders lost at Ohio State last Friday, 3-1. Colgate resumes conference play Jan. 21 when it hosts Vermont.

Though it is unlikely that Dartmouth (4-7-4, 3-2-2) will figure prominently in the title race, the Big Green is making a play for home-ice advantage. A team that has not qualified for the postseason in the last four years, Dartmouth is finally taking advantage of its youthful, talent-laden roster.

Notching an unexpected pair of wins on the weekend, Dartmouth rocketed out of ninth place to move into fifth place, just four points behind Harvard. The Big Green turned in its most productive weekend yet, downing RPI and Union for its first series sweep of the season.