Icemen Prepare For Cornell War Tonight

Three of the most important dancers will be missing from tonight's St. Valentine's Day at Bright Center.

Although the Cornell and Harvard men's hockey teams have been invited for a 7:30 p.m. rumba, scratch Cornell's Duanne Moeser, and Harvard's Chris Biotti and Allen Bourbeau from the guest list.

Moeser, a tri-captain at Cornell and one of the Red's most talented scorers, injured his knee during a practice on January 30. The diagnosis, torn ligaments, has sidelined the high-flying center ever since and he will miss tonight's action, but should return to action sometime later this season.

The prognosis for Biotti, the 6-ft., 3-in., 190-1b. Crimson defenseman, is less optimistic. The first round NHL draft choice injured his knee during Christmas break while playing for the U.S. Junior Team and has been in and out of action ever since.

Biotti underwent arthroscopic surgery Wednesday which revealed that his season was probably over. Furthermore, the Newton native may not return to skates for nine months.

Bourbeau

Flashy second-line center Bourbeau is the Crimson's second-leading scorer and the spark to the hosts' flashy "Killer B" unit. Bourbeau tore a stomach muscle over a week ago in the first Beanpot game, and although he played last weekend at Princeton, he missed the Beanpot consolation. Bourbeau did not practice yesterday, and his injury will probably keep him out this weekend, as well.

Without Moeser, Biotti and Bourbeau the Harvard-Cornell clash will lack some of its finest talent on the ice, but expect the action in the stands to remain fast and furious.

The sell-out crowd (the remaing standing-room tickets go on sale at Bright before the game) will be armed with 500 oversized number-one fingers courtesy of the Undergraduate Council.

The Big Red-Crimson showdown is always rip-roaring, and although the Crimson took a lopsided 11-3 decision in Ithaca in December, the fur should fly again tonight.

The Big Red has gone away victorious in its last two trips to Bright, including a stunning 5-4 overtime triumph a year ago.

Not only is Cornell (12-4-3, 9-4-2 ECAC) struggling to maintain the fourth and final home-ice playoff spot, the Red is also riding a nine-game road winning streak.

For the Crimson (14-5-1), there is the chance of its first Cornell sweep since 1981-'82 and an opportunity to move further ahead in the ECAC standings--its current 13-2 league mark is two and a half games ahead of second-place RPI.

The icemen are also looking to prevent a repeat of the shenanigans that marred the first Cornell-Harvard game. After the Red had fallen hopelessly behind, one of its captains, defenseman Mike Schafer, fired a puck at Crimson Coach Bill Cleary as he stood behind the Harvard bench.

And as Cleary waved the Crimson off the ice without the usual handshakes, Schafer took a run at the Harvard mentor, trying to push him into the glass.

The Cornell contigent tonight will undoubtedly be encouraging Ithaca's Rambo with their loud "Kill Schafer, Kill" cheers.

One aspect of this often classic showdown will also be missing. The teams will not be playing for the Ivy title tonight, although they have shared the Ancient Eight Crown, once along with Yale, three times in the last three years.

This season, with a 8-1 mark, Harvard has already locked up its fifth straight Ivy title.

When the Crimson bombarded the Big Red in its own Lynah Rink, Cornell goalie Doug Dadswell took an early shower. Tonight, Dadswell's back in the nets sporting the third-best numbers in the ECAC (3.06 goals against average and a .903 save percentage).

At the other end of the rink, however, will be the conference's top backstop, Harvard senior Grant Blair, whose 2.58 g.a.a and .901 save percentage have held Harvard opponents to less than four goals in seven of his last eight starts. Blair has also allowed more than four goals only twice in his 18 outings.

Offensively, without Bourbeau, the Crimson will turn to Captain Scott Fusco, whose 42 points paces the team and who stands just two goals away from the century mark for his career. If Fusco comes close to the two-goal, four-assist afternoon, he had in Ithaca, that record will fall.

THE NOTEBOOK: Look for Greg Chalmers to center the second line in place of Bourbeau.