Icemen Set For Red Invasion

Two first-run shows will open tonight and tomorrow at Bright Center.

The first--"Friday the 13th, or Can Colgate Stop the Slide?"--will star Rejean Boivin and Wayne Cowley.

Doug Dadswell was offered the starring role in the second performance--"My Bloody Valentine, or Is the Big Read Dead?"--but he opted to let his two understudies, Darren McInnis and Jim Edmonds, fight for it.

The Harvard men's hockey team appears in both shows--which start at 7:30 p.m.--and the Crimson will be the real star for the sellout crowds who will fill Bright.

Harvard (17-3 overall, 15-1 ECAC) is coming off a controversial 7-6 loss to Boston College in the consolation game of the Beanpot Tournament. Despite the loss--which came when B.C. forward Ken Hodge flipped in a shot from the midline with zero seconds left in overtime--the Crimson played one of its best games of the season, and showed some of the polish which lead it to a 15-0 record at the beginning of the season.

Before the B.C. contest, the Crimson bumped off Army and Princeton at Bright to up its home unbeaten streak to 25 games. This season, the Crimson (now ranked fourth in the country) has played only seven of its 20 games at home. None of its opponents have given it much trouble, although Army did forge a 4-4 tie in the third period.

Colgate and Cornell will not be as complacent as past Bright visitors.

Colgate--which is coming off weekend losses to Clarkson and St. Lawrence--has fallen to the Crimson nine straight times, dating back to the 1983-'84 season. In four meetings last year, Colgate lost by a combined 20-7 score. In December, Harvard dumped the Red Raiders, 5-2, in Hamilton, N.Y.

"I think one goes about beating Harvard by having all six cylinders working--from the goaltender to the power-play to the penalty killers," Raider Assistant Coach Brian Durocher said. "Against most teams, you tend to get six to 10 very good scoring chances. Harvard seems to keep you down to four or five, so we have to be ready to take advantage of those."

Colgate (18-6 overall, 11-5 ECAC) is lead by right wing Boivin, who has recorded 15 goals and 21 assists for 36 points on the year. Left wings Greg Drechsel (12-18--30) and Brad Martel (12-16--28) are Colgate's two other chief threats.

The Red Raiders also have Cowley, who owns a 3.29 goals-against average and .904 save percentage.

"Colgate has a really good squad," Harvard Captain Peter Chiarelli said. "They have three solid lines and a very good goaltender. We hope to get back in a groove against them."

Cornell, picked by many ECAC coaches to finish first in the league, is having its difficulties. The Big Red sports a 5-11 ECAC record (8-13 overall) and is in eighth place in the league. Only eight teams make the ECAC playoffs.

Cornell is led by its All-ECAC center, Joe Nieuwendyk, who has flipped in 15 goals this year. He leads the team in scoring with 32 points. Chris Norton (10-18--28) and Andy Craig (12-14--26) also pose scoring threats.

Cornell and Harvard met in Ithaca, N.Y., in early December. McInnis this year replaced All-America goalie Doug Dadswell--who elected to turn pro after his sophomore season--and held the Crimson to three goals in the first two periods. But in the third period, the Crimson leapt on McInnis for three tallies, and emerged victorious, 6-3.

Jim Edmonds has since taken over the goaltending chores for Cornell, and he sports a 4.19 goals-against average.

The last four Cornell-Harvard meetings at Bright have been decided by one goal. Last year, Randy Taylor's blast from the point gave the Crimson a 4-3 overtime victory.

"Cornell always plays us tough," Chiarelli said. "They don't do as well against other teams as they do against us. They play us like they're undefeated."

This weekend, Harvard will sport the same lineup it did against Boston College. Tim Barakett (second in the ECAC scoring race with 32 points) and Lane MacDonald (fourth with 28) will lead the Crimson barrage.