NOTEBOOK: Crimson Stuns No. 1 BU

With less than two minutes remaining in overtime of Tuesday night’s contest at Agganis Arena, Kyle Criscuolo muscled for a pass on the left side of the crease.

His first swipe at the puck sent it into the air. His next swipe sent it into the net.

With the junior co-captain’s second goal of the game, the No. 18 Harvard men’s ice hockey team (6-1-2, 3-1-2 ECAC) stunned No. 1 Boston University (9-2-1, 6-1-1 HEA) on the road in overtime, 3-2.

The game was the Terriers’ first since displacing Michigan Tech as the top-ranked team in the country. For most of Tuesday night, the hosts looked the part. Terriers coach David Quinn praised his squad following the team’s first overtime loss of the season.

“From start to finish, I thought that was as thorough a game as we’ve played in awhile,” Quinn said. “I thought we played better tonight than we did [in wins last weekend] against Maine and UConn. It’s a funny game.”

BU controlled the first and third periods and outshot the Crimson, 42-24. Another standout performance from junior goaltender Steve Michalek kept Harvard alive, and the team’s top scorers provided offensive sparks at key moments.

Terrier freshman center and top draft prospect Jack Eichel buzzed around Michalek all night but was held pointless for the first time in his college career. The Crimson, meanwhile, collected its fifth consecutive win over BU.

BEST OF THE BEST

After the Crimson upset of then-No. 8 Boston College on Veterans’ Day, Crimson coach Ted Donato ’91 provided a simple observation: “Our best players were our best players.”

Two weeks later, the same held true as Harvard claimed another victory in the house of a Beanpot rival. Harvard’s top four scorers—first line forwards Alex Kerfoot, Jimmy Vesey, Kyle Criscuolo, and junior defenseman Patrick McNally—were on the ice for all three of the team’s goals on Tuesday.

Each skater had an important hand in the overtime winner.

Kerfoot skated circles around defenders in the BU zone before cycling the puck to a teammate.

McNally kept the puck under the blueline and pushed it along the boards behind the net to Vesey.

Vesey flipped it back to Criscuolo.

Criscuolo took a couple of whacks in front of the crease.

That was the game.

The most compelling match-up of the night was between the two teams’ first lines.

BU’s top combination of junior Danny O’Regan, Eichel, and junior Ahti Oksanen—the “OREO” line—had accounted for 42 percent of their team’s scoring before Tuesday. Against Harvard, Oksanen’s eighth goal of the season allowed BU to draw even in the third period.

Harvard’s first line currently lacks a nickname yet out-produced its counterpart, sandwiching the OREO line with a couple of Criscuolo classics. Criscuolo, who now has five goals and 12 points on the season, has thrived on the ice with his new linemates. All three rank in the top 15 in points per game.

“When you’re playing with two guys as creative and potent as Jimmy Vesey and Alex Kerfoot, a lot of things are going to happen,” Criscuolo said. “I think it’s kind of just a mix of work and heart and realizing that our success comes a lot from getting pucks in deep and then using our skill down low.”

McNally, meanwhile, has emerged as one of the greatest scoring threats in the country among defensemen. With his two assists on Tuesday, McNally vaulted into a tie for most points scored by Division I defenders and leads the nation outright in points per game.

IN AND OUT

Victor Newell appeared in the Crimson’s line up for the first time this season. The sophomore defender from British Columbia skated alongside junior co-captain Max Everson on the second defensive pairing.

Last season, Newell missed most of the first three months of the season but impressed in the 16 games in which he appeared. The rookie led all Harvard blueliners in scoring with 10 points.

On Tuesday night, Newell returned in fine form. Thirty seconds into overtime, he set up Vesey on a breakaway that nearly clinched the game minutes before Criscuolo’s decisive strike. On the defensive end, the sophomore helped keep Eichel off the scoresheet for the first time this season.

“It’s not easy to play your first game and see No. 9 coming at you at 300 miles per hour,” Donato said. “I thought [Newell] played very well.”

While Newell’s return is a plus for the Crimson, the team is still waiting to return to full strength.

After making his own return against Bentley last Friday, Colin Blackwell was a scratch on Tuesday.  The drafted junior forward missed all of last year because of post-concussion trauma.

“We’re hoping that he gets healthy,” Donato said of Blackwell.

Harvard is also waiting to suit up sophomore center Sean Malone, the reigning co-Ivy League Rookie of the Year, in addition to junior forward Greg Gozzo and sophomore defenseman Kevin Guiltinan.

—Staff writer Michael D. Ledecky can be reached at michael.ledecky@thecrimson.com. Follow him on Twitter @mdledecky.