Defense Bails Out Crimson in Second Straight Shutout

To most, a shutout indicates complete dominance in a game. But Harvard men’s hockey co-captain Mike Taylor thought otherwise of the Crimson’s 4-0 victory on Saturday night over Union.

“It was ugly,” Taylor said. “Very ugly.”

Though Union’s aggressive play kept the puck at Harvard’s end of the ice for most of the game, Taylor credits the defense, especially sophomore goaltender Kyle Richter, with keeping the opposing offense at bay.

“We worked hard,” Taylor said. “There were definitely times when we were outplayed. Luckily, we found a way to win thanks to our refusal to give up and our goaltending in Kyle Richter, who’s been our best player this year.”

Richter led the Crimson (3-1-0, 3-1-0 ECAC) to its blanking of Union (2-4-2, 0-2-2), making 27 saves on the night.

His efforts against the Dutchmen helped earn the Crimson back-to-back shutouts. The last time the team accomplished this feat was in February 1982, when Harvard trounced on Cornell and Princeton in Ivy League play, amassing nearly 20 goals in only two games. Richter wasn’t even alive in 1982.

“[The Dutchmen] had some good chances, but our guys kept them to the perimeter for most of the game,” Richter said. “They battled hard and blocked a lot of shots again tonight. They’re doing a great job with that so far this year. I can’t stress how much that helps me.”

Richter’s goaltending has been impervious of late. He leads the country in goals-against average (0.75) and save percentage (.975), and opponents have not scored on the sophomore in his last 137 minutes and 14 seconds in net.

Richter and the Crimson defense held off the threat of a Union goal, allowing Taylor to create opportunities at the offensive end of the ice.

Taylor wasted little time in putting Harvard on the scoreboard, maneuvering the puck past a Dutchmen defender and whipping it into the Union goal at 6:57 into the first period.

Following a roughing penalty later in the first period, Union’s Jason Walters sat in the penalty box and looked on as freshman defenseman Chris Huxley took advantage of the power play and scored his first collegiate goal.

But in the second period, the defense had to pick up the slack, as the Crimson lost its momentum due to a series of penalties that disrupted the offensive rhythm. Playing a man down twice in the second, the team focused on defending the net.

“That’s something we’re going to address,” Taylor said. “Anytime you put yourself down a man, it gives the other team a chance to tie the game up. Fortunately, we were able to kill off the penalties. That’s been a big part of our success so far.”

Richter and the squad killed a total of seven penalties over three periods, preventing the Dutchmen from capitalizing on the 14 minutes Harvard spent shorthanded throughout the game.

“The [penalty kill] has been really good all year so far,” Richter said. “We’ve been blocking shots, keeping them out to the outside, and eliminating their passes.”

Following the defensive push in the second period, the Crimson rebounded offensively in the third but also committed more penalties in the third than in either of the first two periods.

“It’s not often you can have one good period and win a hockey game,” coach Ted Donato ’91 said. “We looked better in the third, blocking shots with four seconds to go. To me, that’s impressive.”

Shortly after Harvard killed a penalty in the third, senior forward Paul Dufault’s goal fired up the Crimson’s teammates and fans alike with 10 minutes left on the clock. Dufault secured a loose puck, eluded a defenseman at the boards, and took aim at Union goaltender Corey Milan, knocking in Harvard’s third goal of the game.

With the momentum again in the Crimon’s favor, Harvard’s fourth goal was tallied despite freshman Matt McCollem sitting in the penalty box. Taking a pass from sophomore blueliner Alex Biega, senior forward Tyler Magura surprised the Union defense and fired the puck at the net. The shot bounced off of Milan’s pads and trickled into the goal to account for the final score.

Despite the large margin of victory, Donato looks to improve his team after the “ugly” victory.

“As a team and as a coach, it’s always nice to learn your lessons in wins instead of losses,” Donato said. “But if we want to get better, there’s a lot of room for improvement.”