When Winners Just Can't Win

When it comes to the Beanpot, the Harvard hockey team is as consistent as the Columbia football team.

And like the Lions, the Crimson has found a variety of ways to lose.

Two years ago, Harvard failed to score in the first 40 minutes of play, then finally cashed in twice. But Harvard was still dirt poor, falling to Boston College, 4-2.

This year, Harvard jumped to a 3-1 lead over Boston University. But like the hare in its race with the turtle, the Crimson allowed the Terriers to catch up.

The Crimson checked into the penalty box hotel for a little rest--14 minutes of rest--and B.U. kept running, putting three pucks into the net during the second period.

When the Crimson checked out, it paid a stiff bill: Boston University 5, Harvard 4.

You would think that after seven years of futility--Harvard has not won a 'Pot or even an opening round game since 1981--the Crimson players would get used to losing. You would think that after loss number seven, some of the Crimson players might be able to smile, say what the heck.

But, no, the Crimson was mad Monday. And sad. Bowed heads. Muffled voices. Vague mumbles of suicide.

Seven years, and the losses are just as painful. Especially for those players--the seniors--who won't get a chance to lose again.

Instead of being a tournament of good cheer and brotherhood among Boston's best colleges (Boston College, B.U., Harvard and Northeastern), the Beanpot--for Harvard, and really for Harvard alone--has been, for seven years, a time of head bashing. Once a year, Harvard finds a convenient wall and slams its face against it.

But that wall may be made of rubber. Beanpot futility gives the Crimson a lot of bounce. As soon as the slash falls into the loss column, Harvard flys back, as if snapped out of the jaws of a rubber band.

"We just have to bounce back from it," Harvard Captain Steve Armstrong said after the Crimson fell to B.U. Monday. "We bounce back from it every year."

Two years ago, Harvard lost in the opening round of the 'Pot and then travelled as far as the NCAA finals. (B.C. and B.U.--'Pot champion that year--each crumbled in the opening round of the NCAAs.)

Last year, the Crimson lost in both the opening round and the consolation game and won the ECAC Championship.

For Harvard, the Beanpot is a tournament of torture. Each year, the Crimson invents new ways to lose.

But Harvard seldom tastes those 31 flavors of defeat after the Beanpot.

For Harvard, the Beanpot is a ritual cleansing. A chance to show that even winners can lose all the time.