Icemen Wreck Catamounts, 9-3

BURLINGTON, Vt.--The ECAC's next-to-worst team came out skating and fast here last night at Gutterson Field House, knotting the Harvard men's hockey team, 2-2, after the first period.

Vermont ran out of steam just as quickly, though, and dropped a 9-3 decision to the Crimson (17-4-2 overall, 14-3-1 ECAC).

The icemen remain in second place in the league standings, one-half game ahead of idle Cornell.

Harvard trails first-place RPI (17-1 ECAC), its opponent tonight in Troy, N.Y., by three and a half games.

The usual wrecking crew led the Crimson to victory. Tim Smith earned a hat trick, freshman Lane MacDonald had five assists and Scott Fusco had two goals and two beautiful passes to Smith for scores.

"Lane and I, we're just sideshows to the Scott Fusco show," Smith said after scoring his 24th, 25th and 26th goals." We re just his sidekicks."

After the Catamounts (7-19 overall 3-15 ECAC) played an excellent, aggressive first period, it appeared the visitors were in for more of a contest than they expected in what was supposed to be just a tune-up for tonight's showdown.

But Fusco taught the hosts some second-period lessons that would have intimidated a team much less talented than Vermont.

First, at the 5:19 mark Fusco came in after MacDonald fed him from the corner and beat Catamount goalic Tom Draper with a pinpoint shot high to the near post.

Eight minutes later, the Olympian connected on the power play from another short angle, upping the Crimson lead to 4-2.

"That was the difference from last year." Harvard Coach Bill Cleary said. "He [Fusco] gets the next one for us."

After Mike O'Connor connected for Vermont a minute and a half later, the Crimson's fourth line got a score when Peter Follows took the puck at the blue line and weaved through most of Burlington, including Draper, and deposited a backhander into an unguarded net.

With just seven seconds remaining in the second period, Fusco made his most miraculous play.

The junior got the puck on the left boards and moved toward the net faked, and moved a pass across the crease to Smith, who tapped the puck in.

"I was coming off the side," Fusco said. "I wanted to shoot, but the guy dropped in front of me and everyone was coming my way, so I just slid it back across."

The score gave the Crimson a 6-3 advantage and, more important, took care of all of the Cats' remaining lives in a single blow.

Fusco's evening pushed him further up in the Harvard record book. The junior now has at least a point in 22 consecutive games, just two shy of the Crimson record held by Cleary's brother, Bob.

With 62 points this year, Fusco is tied (with Joe Cavanagh '71) for the fifth best season ever by a player in a Harvard sweater.

For his career, Fusco now has 153 points in his two-plus seasons and trails only Cavanagh, George Hughes '79 and Bob Cleary '58.

The third period also belonged to Harvard, but not its star player, as Greg Chalmers and Brian Busconi added tallies for the second line, and Smith completed his hat trick.

The second line tallies marked the return of Chalmers from a four-game absence because of a separated shoulder.

The junior's poise at center showed all evening.

With Chalmers back in the line-up, the Crimson should have a better shot at RPI tonight.

The Engineers have now won 22 straight games and are ranked second in the nation.

"I wish they were number one," Fusco said. "They're supposed to heat us at homer. We're got nothing to lose.

Nonetheless, playing the league's worst and best on consecutive nights is a trying experience.

It's bad for preparation." Follows said. "You don't get prepared enough for Vermont: but you're overprepared for RPS

"It's a completely different game."

THE NOTEBOOK: Steve Armstrong and Smith had the the Crimson's first period scores...The RPI game is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. at Houston Field House in Troy....MacDonald did not improve on his freshman-record 17 goals...The Crimson can clinch home ice in the quarter-finals of the playoffs for certain with a victory or a Yale loss...Captain Brad Kwong enjoyed his first two-point night of the season with a pair of assists...Chalmers had three points, all goals. Crimson, 9-3 at Burlington, Vt. Harvard  2  4  3 --9 Vermont  2  1  0 --3