Icemen Face 'Eagle Jinx' In ECAC Playoffs

Last Saturday afternoon, white Harvard's hockey team was overrunning Yale with consummate ease, a group of Melrose "subway alumni" wished that the circumstances were somewhat different.

"Christ," one said, "I wish those Yale guys were wearing maroon-and-gold uniforms."

Tonight, Harvard's opponents will be wearing maroon-and-gold, and if the Crimson can pull off a long-desired victory at Boston College, it will have earned its way into the ECAC semifinals next weekend at Boston Garden.

Problems

Harvard has had its problems with Eagle teams in recent years, and its one encounter with B. C. this winter did little to change the trend. After running up a 4-2 lead after 40 minutes at McHugh Forum in mid-December. Harvard suffered an ignominious third-period collapse by yielding four goals within a period of eight minutes and losing, 6-5. It was quite a familiar ending.

Since 1964, Boston College has won eight of its ten games with the Crimson. Seven have been by one goal. Four victories have come in overtime. And three times B. C. successfully rallied from two-goal deficits.

But the "Eagle jinx" may be more psychological than physical. For the past two years, the Crimson has had better material, and its record proves that it has done more with it. Nor is Boston College more of a clutch team. It lost twice to St. Lawrence this year, three times to Boston University, and once to Clarkson-all in situations where it had more to gain than just a victory.

Crimson Clutch

But the Eagles are clutch against Harvard, and tonight, for the first time since 1968, when the squads met in the opening round of the Beanpot tournament, the game will have a bearing on a championship.

Harvard has usually done well in this sort of a situation, at least against Boston College. In 1968, Harvard dumped the Eagles, 6-4, to advance to the Beanpot finals. And in 1963, the only time the teams have met in the ECAC tournament, Harvard won it all in overtime, 4-3.

Past results have little bearing upon tonight's game, however, and from recent results, tonight's nod should go to Harvard, despite the fact that the game is being played at raucous McHugh Forum.

History

When Harvard lost there in December, it had only one line that was producing, the Cavanagh unit. Now it has two, since the emergence of the senior line as a striking force. The Crimson defense has improved slightly. And, most importantly. B. C. has fallen apart at the seams. In early February, the Eagles ranked second in the East. By March, after they dropped five-of-seven games, they were a shaky fourth.