Lowly Huskies Fell M. Hockey in Double OT

BOSTON—For the No. 10 Harvard men’s hockey team, it’ll be an even longer wait ‘til next year.

As if the Crimson’s seventh consecutive loss in the opening round of the Beanpot were not disappointing enough in itself, Northeastern tallied the 2-1 thriller’s game-winner in particularly devastating fashion last night at the FleetCenter—2:01 into the second 20-minute overtime frame.

Just under two minutes into the period, Huskies forward Ray Ortiz’s effort had forced a difficult save from Harvard goaltender Dov Grumet-Morris, who had rebuffed the initial shot but was unable to secure the puck. The danger, however, appeared to have abetted when Crimson forward Andrew Lederman swooped between the faceoff circles to collect the rebound before attempting to clear.

But Northeastern defenseman Tim Judy intercepted the puck’s path at the blue line, then backpedaled along the edge of the Harvard zone before snapping a shot through the traffic about the crease. Screened, Grumet-Morris scarcely raised his glove as the shot whizzed by to find the top right corner of the net and send the Huskies (11-13-4, 6-8-3 Hockey East) through to the championship round.

“I didn’t see it go in,” Judy said. “Just saw the red light.”

Though Northeastern had dictated play throughout much of regulation, overtime had, until then, appeared to belong to the Crimson (14-6-2, 11-4-1 ECAC), which controlled the game’s pace thanks in large part to three power plays in the first overtime. Only Huskies goaltender Keni Gibson’s toe stood between sophomore blueliner Dylan Reese’s one-timer and a Harvard victory 14:55 into the frame, and similar efforts from captain Noah Welch skipped just wide.

“We shouldn’t have let it get to that point,” Welch said. “We had plenty of opportunities before [Judy’s game-winner].”

Most frustratingly, the best of those chances came to naught just seconds prior to Northeastern’s final breakthrough.

After crossing into the Huskies’ zone, forward Brendan Bernakevitch swooped behind the net, then teed up blueliner Tom Walsh at the left point, where he unleashed a one-timer that kicked off at least one skate and through the crease behind Gibson. But winger Dan Murphy, freshly added to the top line, was unable to reach the loose puck at the far post, allowing Northeastern to escape unscathed.

“If you look at the opportunities each team had in overtime, they were very similar in every respect,” Grumet-Morris said. “Guys trying to chop it on net, looking for screens, looking for rebounds.”

Eighty-one minutes earlier, such desperation on either side appeared unlikely. Moments after the opening faceoff, Ryan Maki fended off a check along the lefthand boards, threading a cross-ice pass to Kevin Du, who had slipped behind the Northeastern defense. Streaking past the blue line, the sophomore pivot brought the puck across Gibson’s crease and backhanded his shot between the exposed pipes, staking the Crimson to a 1-0 lead just 59 seconds into the first period.

But before Harvard could indulge fantasies of a blowout victory, the “ugly” contest predicted by several one day earlier quickly took hold. The Crimson managed just five shots in the opening frame thanks mostly to the Huskies efficient forecheck, and those few chances that reached Gibson’s doorstep were adroitly turned aside.

“We knew,” Welch said, “that it was going to be a dog fight.”

After several close calls, Northeastern finally capitalized 17:23 into the opening frame, striking amidst the confusion following a faceoff in the Harvard zone. Huskies captain Jason Guerriero controlled the draw, sending the puck back to winger Mike Morris, who skated in two strides, then wristed his shot into traffic. There it kicked off Crimson assistant captain Tom Cavanagh’s stick and popped over blinded Grumet-Morris’ shoulder to knot the score at one.

That it remained that way for 62:38 was, well, nothing short of a miracle. Three minutes into the second period, center Charlie Johnson whipped his shot off the post—the best of the Crimson’s unrealized opportunities during the first three periods.

At the other end, Harvard’s skaters were, at times, uncharacteristically careless in their own zone, twice turning the puck over to allow an odd-man rush prior to brilliant saves from Grumet-Morris, who turned aside 34 shots in all on the night.

The Crimson faces Rensselaer this Friday before returning to the FleetCenter Monday to face No. 1 Boston College—defeated 2-1 by Boston University in the other semifinal—in the Beanpot’s consolation round.

—Staff writer Timothy J. McGinn can be reached at mcginn@fas.harvard.edu.