Skaters Invade Dartmouth; Ivy Hopes Require Victory

Although Harvard's remaining hockey schedule is the easiest of any of the major ECAC contenders, the Crimson has seemed determined to make it as difficult for itself as possible.

Last weekend at Princeton, it took Harvard until 18:20 of the final period to put the game totally out of the Tigers reach, a precaution that has been usually taken by Princeton's other opponents in the opening period.

Then, last Monday, a Northeastern squad that had won but three games all winter came within 18 seconds of tying the Crimson in overtime. The Huskies had lost to Harvard by three goals earlier in the season.

But this morning, when the Crimson faces rapidly improving Dartmouth at the Indians' Davis Rink, it may not have to rely upon its own lack of inspiration to make the game close. Traveling to Hanover in February is hardly a pleasurable task, and today for the first time since 1965, there will be a decent Dartmouth team waiting there.

Harvard crushed the Indians 6-1 when the squads met in Cambridge last December, but since then they have begun to put things together, and despite an 11-5 loss to Brown Wednesday night, still hold second place in the Ivy League.

Losses

And more important the Crimson squad of early February is hardly the Crimson squad of early December. Two losses and two unimpressive triumphs since exam break have done little to help team morale, and coach Cooney Weiland's recent line-shuffling is hardly the answer to a problem that lies elsewhere.

But despite Harvard's problems, and Dartmouth's recent success, it would be a surprise if the Crimson was to lose this morning. The Indians' surprising Ivy record is more understandable in view of the fact that the four victories were achieved at the expense of Penn, Princeton and Yale, the league's bottom three teams. Wednesday's loss to Brown might have provided a more realistic appraisal of how much real talent there is at Hanover, and two matches with Cornell still to come, might be an even better indication.

And despite Harvard's post-exam slump, there is still an impressive amount of quality on the Crimson squad: the New Hampshire victory the Cornell game, and the last two periods of the contest with B. U. are examples of what Harvard can do when it wants to play serious hockey.

But the inspiration to play up to its potential must come from within the team.