SIDEBAR: Crimson Turns Trend Around

It was another must-win game for the Harvard men’s hockey team.

After splitting the first two matches of the best-of-three ECAC quarterfinal series, the pressure was on for the Crimson in last night’s deciding home game against Quinnipiac.

But with its future on the line, the Crimson stepped up to seize a 3-1 win over the Bobcats and secure a spot in the ECAC semifinal series this weekend in Albany, N.Y, which marks Harvard’s seventh semifinal appearance in the last eight years.

Following Saturday night’s penalty-filled match, in which the Bobcats scored on its first four power-play opportunities, the Crimson turned its focus last night to one key theme: penalties.

“We did a much better job tonight staying out of the box,” co-captain Mike Taylor said.

The Crimson tallied only six penalties to the Bobcats’ five, and Harvard’s special teams shut out Quinnipiac on every one of its power-play opportunities.

“We did a much better job limiting their ability to get easy offense,” said head coach Ted Donato ’91.

The Crimson’s special teams also proved crucial to Harvard’s success offensively.

37 seconds after Quinnipiac’s only goal of the game, sophomore Doug Rogers capitalized on a Bobcat penalty to put the momentum back in the Crimson’s favor. At 11:35 Rogers lit the lamp with a shot from the left side to put Harvard back in the lead, 2-1.

And Taylor knocked in his third shorthanded goal of the season to put Harvard on the board, 1-0. Picking up the puck from a Quinnipiac defender, Taylor brought it up the left side, while junior Jimmy Fraser skated up to create a 2-on-1. Taylor quickly maneuvered around the Bobcat blueliners and slammed the puck past Quinnipiac goalie Bud Fisher into the corner of the net.

“That was a huge boost to our team, I think,” Taylor said. “We got shredded on Saturday on their power play and were pressuring their defenders today. I was lucky to get an interception there, and it’s just a huge boost every time.”

180-DEGREE TURNAROUND

After Harvard posted a winless streak of 10 games this winter, the Crimson seemed to be out of the running for the playoff games. But Harvard turned around its season in the clutch. The Crimson has not posted a loss—other than Saturday’s setback—since succumbing to Boston College in the Beanpot finals, and it has remained has won seven of its last eight league matchups.

Harvard will challenge No. 5 seed Cornell this weekend in Albany for a spot in the ECAC finals. But after recording both an overwhelming victory and a humiliating loss this weekend, the Crimson believes it has landed on the right attitude for the upcoming playoff match.

“I feel pretty confident in the way we’re playing right now,” Taylor said. “Obviously now we know what it’s like to play with our season on the line, and it’s win or go home from here on out. And you know I think our team attitude is, I think it was kind of good to get kicked in the butt on Saturday so we know what it’s like versus going with that arrogance to Albany.”

TWO-MINUTE MINORS

The Crimson has not lost a playoff series at home since 1995. In the 13-year time span, Harvard has been the winner of six quarterfinal, two first-round, and one preliminary-round game…Donato has worn the same red-patterned tie to every game since the Crimson started its upward streak. Although he wears a different shirt every game, Donato said, “it was the same-looking shirt, though”...Rogers, who left Saturday’s game with an injury, was added to last night’s lineup at the last minute and went on to put in a goal and an assist...Sophomore netminder Kyle Richter, who is currently ranked 13th in the nation for save percentage (.923), made 26 saves last night.

—Staff writer Courtney D. Skinner can be reached at cskinner@fas.harvard.edu.