Rally Falls Short Against No. 14 RPI

Harvard men’s hockey seemed to have full control of Friday night’s game against No. 13 Rensselaer, as the Crimson (3-15-0, 2-11-0 ECAC) outpaced the Engineers (15-6-3, 7-5-0) by generating 38 shots to RPI’s 16.

Despite the advantage, Harvard could not convert its chances and fell, 3-2, to the Engineers at Houston Field House in Troy, N.Y.

“We went in the game hoping to shoot everything,” co-captain Chris Huxley said. “We did. I think it paid off a little, and we just got to stick to that.”

Other players did not return repeated requests for comment.

The contest began as a defensive battle with only 13 shots taken in the first period. At the 13:31 mark, Patrick Cullen put RPI on the board after beating senior goaltender Kyle Richter, who had 14 saves on the night.

Crimson co-captain Michael Del Mauro then evened up the game with less than a minute left in the period.

The unassisted goal came after Del Mauro took advantage of an Engineer error by stealing the puck from goalie Allen York in the RPI zone. The senior forward then wrapped around the net to finish the opportunity.

The mistake by York was one of few he made on the night. The goaltender stopped 36 shots and helped the Engineers kill seven out of eight Harvard power plays.

The second period belonged to Chase Polacek, RPI’s star forward. The senior, who was the 2010 ECAC Player of the Year, scored two goals in the period.

The first came at the 2:00 mark after Polacek received a pass from Nick Bailen and ripped a top shelf shot that zoomed past Richter’s outstretched glove.

Polacek then put the Engineers up 3-1 a minute and a half later. The goal-scoring play began when Alex Angers-Goulet created a turnover at center ice, allowing Polacek to skate free into the Crimson zone.

After receiving a pass from Brock Higgs, Polacek beat Richter for his fifth game-winning goal this season—the most in the NCAA.

“You can’t really change an entire game plan for one player,” Huxley said. “But you just got to know when he’s on the ice. You got to keep an eye on him.”

Down 3-1, Harvard needed a strong third period effort. The Crimson delivered, outshooting RPI, 18-3, in the final frame.

Harvard edged closer to the Engineers with a goal from senior Pier Olivier-Michaud at the 6:22 mark.

The score came during a 5-on-3 Crimson power play, which had resulted from RPI interference and cross checking penalties. Michaud put away a rebound that came off a shot taken by sophomore Danny Biega.

“We played a much better game [against RPI] than we had in the past—getting pucks in deep, forechecking, playing a full game,” Huxley said.

The Engineers committed five penalties in the third period, giving Harvard control of the game’s flow.

The Crimson showed impressive discipline during the contest, committing one penalty, but Harvard went just 1-of-8 on its power plays.

Last season, the Crimson found itself in a similar situation against RPI. Down 3-1 in the third period on Jan. 23, Harvard climbed back and tied the game with three seconds remaining.

Trying to recreate last year’s result, the Crimson pulled Richter to create a 6-on-4 power play in the final seconds of the game, but Harvard could not get the puck past York for a game-tying goal.

—Staff writer Jake I. Fisher can be reached at jifisher@fas.harvard.edu.