Protecting Their Position: ECAC leading M. Hockey hosts Princeton, Yale in final test before exam break

With exam period looming, the Harvard men’s hockey team will try to pad its lead in the ECAC standings before taking a three-week break in action when it hosts Ivy rivals Yale and Princeton this weekend at the Bright Hockey Center.

The Crimson (11-5-1, 10-2-0 ECAC) is currently six points ahead of its nearest conference rivals, Cornell and Yale.

Harvard’s first chance to strenghten its lead comes Friday at 7 p.m. when the Elis (8-6-0, 7-3-0) come into Cambridge with the ECAC’s most potent offense, averaging 4.9 goals a game.

“[Yale] is a skating team,” Harvard coach Mark Mazzoleni said. “They like to skate.

“We have different philosophies. They like to get the puck and throw it at the net; we like to get over the puck and get it to the net. Those are two contrasting styles there, and that should make for a lot of up-and-back play.”

In terms of potency, the Crimson is close behind Yale’s aggressive offense, averaging 4.25 goals a game. In fact, the top eight scorers in the ECAC are divided evenly between Conn. and Cambridge, a fact that is not lost on the Crimson.

“Yale has a very good offense that we need to be aware of,” sophomore goaltender Dov Grumet-Morris said.

Yale’s talented forwards, senior Evan Wax, junior Ryan Steeves, sophomore Chris Higgins and freshman Christian Jensen, will pose challenges for Harvard’s defense. Still the Crimson defense has been solid all season, allowing 2.33 goals against, the third best total in the league. Harvard’s last line of defense, Grumet-Morris, is currently 10th in the nation in save percentage and has played a significant role in the Crimson’s blue line success.

But when Harvard has the puck, it will also have the advantage. The Crimson’s fast-moving forwards will be matched up against a mid-level defense allowing 3.2 goals a game.

Harvard exploited the Bulldog defense for six goals in a 6-3 victory at Ingalls Rink in early December, but no one on the Harvard side is expecting an easy victory this time around.

“Yale’s going to put their best foot forward,” captain Dominic Moore said.

“Both teams need these points,” Grumet-Morris added. “Yale is right behind us on the leader board.”

After what should be a tough match-up Friday night, the Crimson should have it easier on Saturday, when the Tigers (2-15-0, 1-9-0) visit at 4 p.m. Early in December, Harvard beat Princeton 6-3 at Hobey Baker Rink, but the score didn’t tell the whole tale.

Starting in goal for the first time in his career, freshman John Daigneau faced only 10 shots on the evening as Harvard controlled play the whole way. The Crimson peppered Princeton with 46 shots, and coach Len Quesnelle rotated his three goalies through the game, never finding one that could stop Harvard’s flurry of offense.

Still, the most recent game aside, Princeton has been a thorn in Harvard’s side, especially last season when the Tigers swept the season series. But this year’s team has avoided faltering against any of the weaker ECAC teams, always managing to control the underdogs looking to upset the ECAC champion.

The Crimson’s only two conference losses have come to ECAC heavyweight Cornell and Brown, a team featuring All-American Goalie Yann Denis.

This weekend may be of particular importance depending on how Harvard regoups after exams. After the Ivy rivals depart, Harvard does not play again until the last day of January. In the past, the layoff has had disastrous effects on Harvard hockey seasons. A year ago, the Crimson went 1-6-1 in the eight games following break, a tail spin that only really ended when the ECAC tournament began.

Mazzoleni plans to have a mini-training camp after exams to sharpen any skills that might have dulled over the break, but two wins this weekend could be prove a surer step towards setting a positive tone for the rest of the season.

—Staff writer Timothy M. McDonald can be reached at tmcdonal@fas.harvard.edu