Early Momentum Doesn’t Carry Through

The 20th Annual Badger Hockey Showdown in Madison, Wis. turned out to be no vacation for the Harvard men’s hockey team, as the Crimson (4-8-2, 4-3-2 ECAC) dropped both the semifinal and consolation games Dec. 27-28 against two non-conference opponents.

Lake Superior State (3-6-5) advanced to the championship game—won by Wisconsin Dec. 28—after blowing past Harvard in a 6-2 victory on Saturday afternoon. The Crimson fell to Alabama-Huntsville 4-1 on Sunday after defensive breakdowns in the third period against the Chargers (3-10-1).

LAKE SUPERIOR STATE 6, HARVARD 2

Harvard’s offensive explosion in the first period was chilled by the Lakers thanks to a Troy Schwab goal at 9:51 that robbed the Crimson of the momentum it had built by out-shooting Lake Superior State 10-1 up to that point. Schwab also recorded three assists.

“We had as many chances as Lake State offensively, and at the end of the day we didn’t capitalize,” junior Alex Biega said. “It starts with X’s and O’s, and we just have to stick to the gameplan.”

By the end of the first period, the score stood at 2-1 after Biega—who also assisted on the Crimson’s second score—answered two Lakers’ goals with one of his own at 18:51 in the first.

The events of the second period action against the Lakers served as a reminder of how quickly a hockey game can change from a back-and-forth battle to a blowout.

With the team having already rallied twice to get within one goal of the Lakers, Simon Gysbers and Fred Cassiani beat freshman goalie Matt Hoyle in a 91-second span.

“In general, our offense starts from our zone, and if we can establish a defense mindset, the offense will come,” Biega said. “Because we’re lacking on defense, we didn’t execute the simple passes in our own zone.”

At this point, Harvard coach Ted Donato ’91 opted to give junior goalie John Riley his first substantial playing time of the season. In the remaining 25 minutes, Riley recorded 11 saves and allowed the game’s final goal, coming at 11:53 in the third.

Freshman Daniel Moriarty also beat Lakers’ goalie Pat Inglis at 10:55 in the second period to make the score 3-2, marking his second straight game with a goal.

“Daniel has done a great job,” co-captain Jimmy Fraser said. “He’s worked his butt off from day one. Fortunately for him, he’s being rewarded with more ice time. He’s on our power-play unit now and starting to see more offensive situations.”

The Crimson also went 0-for-5 on the power play, and despite the problems surrounding the defense, Harvard’s penalty kill went an impressive 5-for-6.

“Lake Superior State was a great team, and we did not have an answer to match their play,” Fraser said. “They outworked us, and they definitely deserved to be in the championship game.”

ALABAMA-HUNTSVILLE 4, HARVARD 1

When the Crimson entered the third period of the consolation game trailing 1-0, Harvard only needed 20 more minutes of hard skating, sound fundamentals, and a few breaks to erase the memories of the previous night’s loss.

Though Moriarty added his third goal in as many games at 6:31 off assists from junior Doug Rogers and sophomore Chris Huxley, his efforts came too late, as UAH had already struck for two goals during the first six minutes of the period.

Despite out-shooting the Chargers 37-29, Moriarty’s power-play goal—the Crimson went 1-for-4 on the power-play for the game—marked the only time the team scored.

Harvard’s stinginess on the power play could not stop UAH from using the man-advantage to pull away in the third. Kevin Morrison struck for the Chargers only power-play goal of the evening at 5:30 to make the score 3-0.

The game also marked junior John Riley’s first collegiate start in goal, as he finished the night with 25 saves.

Though challenged in the first period during two UAH power plays, Riley kept the game scoreless, stopping five shots—two coming from point-blank deflections.

“He works hard and had a great game for us. Unfortunately our defense couldn’t back him up,” Biega said. “Those three goals should never have gone in if we had had that sense of coverage.”

Riley’s lack of ice time might start to change early in 2009.

“I think having him start in goal was a great motivational lift for us,” Fraser said. “I think there’s going to be a real competition to see who starts in goal next weekend.”

—Staff writer Robert T. Hamlin can be reached at rhamlin@fas.harvard.edu.