Notebook: Men's Hockey Dominates Shot Count, Capitalizes on Special Teams in Beanpot Title Win Over BU

On Monday night, something happened for the first time in 24 years. The Harvard men’s hockey team captured its first Beanpot title since 1993 after doubling up Boston University, 6-3, at TD Garden. When the Crimson last accomplished this feat, only one member of the current team, Phil Zielonka, was even alive. And he was less than two weeks old.

The Beanpot finale, as is usually the case, was further enhanced by the decorated history between these two local foes. The 154 games played between the Crimson and the Terriers date back to 1922, and less than two miles rink-to-rink separate BU (19-9-2, 11-5-2 Hockey East) and Harvard (18-5-2, 12-4-2 ECAC), making the two schools the closest Division I hockey programs geographically.

SHOTS, SHOTS, SHOTS

When the horn sounded after 20 minutes, Harvard owned a startling 18-2 lead in shots on goal. Three BU penalties, two of which led to a 5-on-3 that resulted in the Crimson’s first goal, noticeably skewed the shot numbers in the game’s beginning third. Four Harvard skaters each notched at least as many shots as the entire Terriers team in the first period.

Harvard significantly outshot the Terriers in every period Monday night. That edge ultimately led to the Crimson netting six goals, including this one from sophomore Ryan Donato that put Harvard up 5-2 with 7:13 to go. By Thomas W. Franck

Although BU has conceded fewer shots, 281, in the first frame than in either of the later two periods this season, the Crimson’s 18 shots before the first intermission matched the second-most opening period attempts it’s had during its current campaign. An early January matchup against Princeton featured 20 shots on goal from Harvard in period one.

“[Harvard] had the puck a lot,” BU coach David Quinn said. “We were slow, the puck movement was slow—and the skating. Really disappointing.”

The Crimson’s domination on both sides of the ice helped tie its largest first-period shot differential of the season. Defensively, Harvard’s blue line kept the Terriers’ attack efforts away from the high-scoring areas, as neither of BU’s shots in the period came inside the faceoff circles.

On the offensive end, the Crimson’s flurry of shots in the opening frame set the tone for a game-long peppering of BU freshman netminder Jake Oettinger. Harvard’s 46 shots on the evening stand as its second-highest total this season.

In such a crucial game, the Terriers allowed over 40 shots on goal for the first time all year, falling to 5-10-2 under Quinn when conceding this sum. Furthermore, Monday’s duel marks just the second time the opposition has limited BU to fewer than 20 shots during the 2016-2017 campaign.

“We definitely emphasized getting shots to the net, but I think that just goes to show our style of play and how we were playing tonight,” co-captain Alex Kerfoot said. “We had a lot of offensive zone pressure and generated a lot of opportunities up and down the lineup.”

The Terriers went on to double their shot attempts in the first 90 seconds of the middle frame and shortly thereafter converted on the man-advantage to tie the game; another goal followed mere minutes later.

“[Harvard] is deep, they’re good, they’re well coached,” Quinn remarked. “Right from the get-go, we were chasing the pace of the play. And then the second period started and we had pace, and we had some chances and some offensive zone time.”

WELL DONE, YOUNG BLOOD

All three Terrier goals came from the sticks of freshmen on Monday night, with Clayton Keller and Kieffer Bellows bulging the twine behind Crimson goalie Merrick Madsen. These performances helped BU tilt the ice back toward neutral for parts of the game, particularly in the second period.

Terrier teammates mob freshman Clayton Keller by the glass after he scores one of his two goals in the Beanpot championship game. By Thomas W. Franck

“We knew BU was going to keep coming,” Harvard coach Ted Donato ’91 said. “[The Terriers] have so many talented guys and so many playmakers.”

BU has the youngest roster in the country this season—the average age being 20 years and five months—and freshmen account for 104 of the team’s 245 points to date. Combined with the sophomores, the Terrier puppies are responsible for 82 percent of BU’s scoring this year.

Specifically, Keller, who saw his 15-game scoring streak come to an end on Friday against UMass Lowell, leads his team in goals and points. The seventh overall pick in last year’s NHL Draft also sets the pace among all college freshmen with 1.45 points per game.

The Terriers’ high-flying youth contrasts harshly with how the Crimson’s scoring breaks down: Harvard seniors have combined for the most points of any graduating class in the NCAA this season, currently with 133.

BU’s underclassmen, however, do more than simply score: rookie netminder Jake Oettinger, who, on Monday night, made a season-high 40 saves but allowed a season-worst five goals, is the second-youngest player in Division I hockey. In October, the winner of this year’s Eberly Trophy—given to the goaltender with the best save percentage in the Beanpot—made his first career start for the Terriers at the ripe age of 17.

POWER UP

While Harvard potted four goals at even strength including an empty-netter, the Crimson also victimized the Terriers on the power play, converting twice in crucial moments on the man-advantage. BU sophomore defenseman Charlie McAvoy was responsible both times for sending his team two-men down.

Freshman Nathan Krusko, who finished with two goals and an assist in the championship game Monday night, receives the Beanpot's Most Valuable Player trophy. By Thomas W. Franck

Harvard boasts the fifth-best power play percentage in the country at 26.2 percent, a significant contributor to its +43 goal margin, good for second in Division I. Giving the Crimson five man-up attempts—in particular, two lengthy two-man advantages—was perhaps the Terriers’ greatest lapse on Monday night. Harvard cashed in on both of these opportunities thanks to Kerfoot and Beanpot MVP Nathan Krusko.

Both Crimson forwards have six power play goals apiece to date, and because of his prominent role on his team’s second power play unit, Krusko enjoys a high-quality shot selection that has led to a team-best .195 goals per shot on goal rate.

BU’s untimely penalties snuffed any rally it was trying to stage in the second frame. Having conceded a late-period goal—Krusko’s second of the night—the Terriers squandered any chance of a pushback, as they returned to the kill after two stick infractions.

“Not only did we go down [3-2 at the end of the second]…we’re killing a five-on-three,” said Quinn. “So you can imagine what was going on in [the Harvard players’] heads in between the second and third periods.”

The Terriers entered the tournament finale with the NCAA’s fourth-best penalty kill at 87.1 percent and even survived 22 straight opponent power plays earlier in the season. This sturdy shorthanded unit was bound to cave, however, under the constant zone time and pressure from the Crimson attack.

—Staff writer Spencer R. Morris can be reached at spencer.morris@thecrimson.com.