Boyz II Jimenez: Rookie Wins First Start

After being frustrated by a young prospect and tenacious special teams, Brown must be happy it does not face the Harvard men's hockey team again this season.

The No. 13 Crimson (6-3-1, 5-2-1 ECAC) relied on its power play, its penalty killing and its first year goalie to easily dominate the hapless Bears for the second time this season, posting a 5-3 victory yesterday at the Bright Hockey Center. The Crimson had already defeated Brown in its season opener by means of a 3-0 shutout.

In that game the star was senior goalie Oliver Jonas, who recorded the first shutout of his career in the win. This time around, the victory went to the goalie of the future.

Freshman goalie Will Crothers started his first game for the Crimson, putting forth a solid effort as Harvard's last line of defense.

Throughout the night, Crothers made some key saves during the Bears' sudden spurts of offense, stifling potentially dangerous situations with awareness and poise.

"He did a good job," Harvard Coach Mark Mazzoleni said. "I didn't like the second goal he allowed, but he was experiencing some first game jitters"

Crothers faced only three shots in the first period, but he was up to the challenge when the Bears unleashed the offense. Brown shot nine times in the second period, but only managed to score on a point blank shot on the power play.

The third period proved that Crothers wasn't invincible, with the Bears denting the scoreboard twice off him. The Bears second goal came on a slapshot that caught Crothers out of position and unable to handle the rocket.

With Harvard leading 5-2 late in the third, Crothers waited behind multiple Bear screens and never saw a puck shot from the blue line. The shot went right between his legs and into the net for Brown's third and final goal.

"The team was playing great in front of me," Crothers said. "We really limited their chances, but I think I could have played better."

Crothers almost joined the offensive fun Harvard enjoyed all night. After Brown had pulled the goalie in favor of the extra attacker, Crothers stopped a shot and quickly fired the puck towards the empty net. The puck missed the net by a few inches and the Crimson players banged their sticks on the ice in approval of Crothers' attempt.

"I wasn't intending for the goal," Crothers said. "I just wanted to clear the puck."

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The Crimson had the luxury of a little comic relief due to the stellar play of its special teams.

The Crimson power play, entering the game with an acceptable percentage of .176, went an outstanding 3-for-5 against the Bears. Sophomore center Brett Nowak, assistant captain Chris Bala and sophomore winger Dominic Moore all tallied with the man advantage for Harvard.

The power play unit seemed unstoppable on the ice, having its way with the Bear defense and peppering the net with a downpour of shots on each opportunity it received.

"We moved the puck well and generated a lot of offense," Bala said. "We created a lot of opportunities with our speed."

The goals were not of the weak variety either. For Harvard's first power play goal, Nowak blasted it past a helpless Brian Eklund with 30 seconds left on the power play. The next two power play goals came so quickly that the Bears were probably still waiting for the referee to drop the face-off.

Bala wasted no time netting the second power play goal at 18:13. The penalty was called, the puck was dropped, Bala set up in front of the net and that was it. Elapsed time: 13 seconds.

The final Crimson goal with the extra-attacker, sadly enough for the Bears, was no different. A tripping penalty was called on the Bears, the puck was dropped, it found its way to Moore, and game over. Elapsed time: 9 seconds. To add insult to injury, it was the game-winner. Could anything possibly have been worse? Yes.

The other half of the special teams, the penalty kill, completely shutdown Brown. That 45 minute bus ride to Providence never looked better.

Seeing that the Crimson scored in the blink of an eyelash, the Bears had to suffer through six frustrated penalties, only scoring once in seven chances. The Harvard penalty kill broke up the Brown power play all night long, having more shots on net on some of them than the Bears did.

"There was no laying back," Mazzoleni said. "We were a lot more aggressive on our fore-check and spent more time in their offensive zone."

The Bears only managed to stay in the game because it was slowed by penalties in the final period, but any observer could tell it was complete Crimson domination. The finishing touch, maybe in a glimmer of hope for Brown in the long ride home, slid a few inches wide at the end. Well, nobody is perfect.