Harvard's Undefeated Icemen Take On Czech Team Tonight

Harvard's undefeated hockey squad will face its toughest competition of the season tonight, when it takes on Dukla Jihlava the Czechoslovakian army learn, in an exhibition game at 6 p.m. in the Moston arena.

The Crimson, previously ranked second in the nation behind Wisconsin, should be moved up to the number one spot in the next poll on the basis of its 7-0 record and the fact that Wisconsin will tied and beaten by Minnesota in the past two weeks. Tonight's game will not affect Harvard's record.

The Crimson will not be playing the same Czech squad that won a bronze medal in the Olympics at Sapporo, Japan, beat the Russians last spring for the world championship, and played Team Canada to a 4-4 tie in September. But it is the team which represented Czechoslavakia in World Cup competition last week, playing teams from the United States, Canada and Russia. The Czechs finished second in the tournament, beating the U.S. and Canada, while losing to the Russians.

Four of the Czech icemen playing tonight did play for the national team. The first line of Jan Hrbaty, Jaroslav Holak and Jan Klapac as well as goalie Miroslav Nolak are all Meritorious Masters of Sport in their country. The honor is the highest a Czechoslavakian athlete can receive.

Harvard knows little about the other members of the Czech team. "It's hard to prepare for a team you don't know much about," coach Bill Cleary said yesterday. "We'll just go out there and play our game. I'll make adjustments as they are needed, probably the only adjustments I'll have to make will be our forecheckine."

In his only change of the Crimson lineup, Cleary will play Dave Hands and Levy Byrd in place of injured defensemen Doug Elliott. Elliot was slashed and later hit in the same spot during the opening round of the Great Lakes international Tournament against Michigan.

Both Byrd and Hands played in the final round of the tournament against Michigan Tech. "They did a great job," Cleary said, "I have a good deal of confidence in them."

Rules

The game will be played under international rules, which shouldn't hurt Harvard's game. The significant changes from college rules are the automatic call of icing and a rule prohibiting two-line passes. In addition, a team may not Ice the puck when it is a man down.

The Czechs arrive in Boston today, after playing Notre Dame last night. Following tonight's contest, they move on to play the University of New Hampshire before returning home.