Improved Cornell Team Will Meet Varsity Hockey Team Here Tonight

Harvard opens defense of its Ivy League hockey championship tonight against a rapidly improved Cornell team. Face-off at Watson Ring is at 8 p.m.; student tickets are available at 60 Boylston St., until 5 p.m. today.

As recently as two years ago, after a timid entry in League play, Cornell was the least-feared, most-stomped-on team in the Northeast. Thanks to a heroic goalie and a talented group rom last year's fine freshmen sextet, however, the Big Red is considerably stronger in 1961-62. For the first time in 50 years, a Cornell team was able to defeat Yale on the ice, with a 2-1 victory in New Haven in December.

Since then, Cornell has complied a 4-2 season record, and a 1-1 Ivy slate (a split with the Bulldogs). The Ithacans come to Cambridge led by a sophomore wing on the second line, Jerry Kostandoff of Ontario. Kostandoff leads his teammates with eight goals and three assists.

Laing Kennedy, Cornell's man in the goal, is expected to give the Crimson an evening as frustrating as two last year. The last time these two teams met in Ithaca, Kennedy turned away 57 shots by the high scoring Crimson and allowed only three goals. This season he has a more dependable team in front of him, and Cornell will be tough.

Coach Paul Patten's club owns victories over Colgate, Yale, and Ohio University (9-0) in its last three outings, in which Kennedy allowed only three goals. With six returning lettermen and a fine flock of sophomores, Patten has been able to assemble a quicker and better defensive unit than last year's 7-12 sextet.

The Crimson, usually not accustomed to much of a threat from Cornell, is expecting a tough game tonight, according to coach Cooney Weiland. But Weiland has a pretty talented goalie and a star Canadian of his own. For the net-minding chores, he can chose either senior Bob Bland or junior Godfrey Wood, both of whom turned in spectacular performances on the team's Western tour.

Weiland has been alternating the two and finds it hard to rate one above the other (Bland has a .890 percentage of shots saved, Wood .891).

Kinasewich Leads Crimson

Leading the team this year is Gene Kinasewich, Kostandoff's counterpart on the Crimson's. The flashy wing-center is the basis of the Crimson's offensive attack, although he has been surpassed as scoring leader. Topping the heap now after a prolific performance in the team' last five games is Kinasewich's linemate, Tim Taylor.

Taylor was the hero against Colorado College with two goals in each game that were instrumental to the wins, and last week against Northeastern he added a hat trick to make a season total of ten goals and three assists. Kinasewich, whom Weiland has switched now to center with Taylor and Gerry Jorgenson, has a point total of 13, with seven goals and five assists.

After limited action last season, the 6-1, 185-pound Taylor showed great improvement in pre-season, drills last fall as a strong skater and a hard shooter. His play with Kinasewich and Jorgenon has overshadowed the supposed first line of Jim Dwinell, Dave Morse, and Dave Grannis, all seniors.