Back to Reality for M. Hockey

Contrary to popular belief, the Harvard men's ice hockey team did not lose Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals Monday in its 2-1 overtime defeat against Boston University.

In other words, despite the heartbreak of the Beanpot final, there still is a regular season to return to.

This season finds Harvard traveling to Princeton and Yale this weekend for two critical conference games. The team currently stands in fourth place deadlocked with RPI and Cornell. Harvard's performance over its remaining eight games will determine playoff positioning.

"These are big games," said senior forward Doug Sproule. "We are in the league homestretch with eight really winnable games. We feel that if not first then at least second place is ours for the taking."

Harvard first has to put the Beanpot loss behind them.

"Undoubtedly it was very disappointing to lose," said sophomore forward Trevor Allman. "However, we are thinking that B.U. was the No. 2 team in the country and with a bounce our way we would have beat them."

Moreover, even putting the Beanpot aside, the Crimson has other team problems to address.

Over its past three games, Harvard has had a difficult time putting the puck into the net. It managed only three goals against a weak Union team (one was with an empty net), and had only one tally apiece against RPI and B.U.

While the Crimson certainly has had its chances, good goaltending has combined with erratic shooting to keep Harvard off the scoreboard.

"If we want to be successful in the coming games, we need to convert our chances," Sproule said.

One of the players expected to provide some of that offense will be freshman Chris Bala. For his two-goal performance against B.C., he received the ECAC Rookie of the Week award.

"It's certainly a nice honor," Bala said. "But I really don't have more to say on that."

Harvard, though, has received a boost with the return of sophomore goaltender J.R. Prestifilippo. If he plays as well as his did Monday against B.U., he can provide the Crimson with a little margin for error and compensate for any defensive lapses.

"Getting J.R. back certainly brings us some added confidence," Allman said. "But we are confident with both our goalies."

The Crimson will have to be on top of its game as it embarks on this weekend road trip.

It first heads to Princeton where it meets a Tiger team trailing the Crimson by only two points in the standings and eager to cement its own playoff positioning.

The Tigers possess probably the most lethal top line in the ECAC, with their combination of co-captain Casson Masters and juniors Jeff Halpern and Scott Bertoli. This trio has scored 23 of the team's last 44 goals and has 44 points over Princeton's last 13 games.

Halpern is the most fearsome of this group. He is tied for second in overall ECAC scoring and takes a 13-game point-scoring streak into tonight's game.

Offensive threats though, are nothing new for the Crimson.

"We have never gone into a game thinking we have to stop a particular player," said freshman forward Chris Bala. "We just have to play our system."

After Princeton, it does not become any easier as Harvard trudges to the dark recesses of New Haven, Conn.

Yale currently stands at the top of the ECAC table, needing one more win to clinch a playoff birth. This week's ESPN/USA Today poll ranked Yale No. 5 in the nation, its highest ranking ever.

The Bulldogs will magnify any Crimson scoring deficiencies, as they boast one of the hottest goalies in the league in junior Alex Westlund. Entering the weekend, Westlund has not let in a goal in his last 162:28, recording two shutouts this weekend, over Colgate and Cornell.

"If we keep getting chances like we have," Allman said, "the puck will go in the net."

Yale's offense is just as hot as its goaltender. The Bulldogs scored 13 goals this past weekend, including a whopping 11 against the Red Raiders.

Sophomore Jeff Hamilton--who is tied with Halpern for second in ECAC scoring--leads the way, riding a nine-game point-scoring streak into this weekend.

Most troubling for the Crimson is Hamilton's eight power-play goals, third-best in the nation. Harvard's penalty-killing has also been a minor cause for concern, and will have to be extra sharp this Saturday.

"These games will be so close that special teams may mean the difference," All-man said. "We've worked on not taking penalties in the first place as well as some other approaches."

Harvard certainly has a tough pair of games this weekend, but both are eminently winnable.

"We are just going to play a real hard, physical game," Allman said, "and strive to capitalize on our chances while not surrendering too many opportunities. We need these games to pick up ground."

The Crimson must start sweeping weekends in order to move up in the standings. Every single game is critical.

Faltering now in the ECAC will ultimately be far more disappointing than any Beanpot.