Men's Hockey Fights For Top Spot In ECAC

Following its 4-0 shutout of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in the Shillelagh Tournament final last Saturday, the No. 8/8 Harvard men’s hockey team left Compton Family Ice Arena with a trophy.

No such hardware will be up for grabs, however, when the Crimson and Engineers square off again this Saturday at Houston Field House.

Instead, the two sides will play for a prize perhaps more valuable—two points in the ECAC.

RPI (8-5-2, 4-0-2 ECAC) heads into the weekend tied with unbeaten No. 3/2 Quinnipiac atop the conference, leading Harvard (6-1-1, 4-1-1) by a single point. But with the Bobcats heading down the street to take on No. 10/10 Yale this Friday and the Engineers staring at a rematch with the Crimson the following day, the top spot in the ECAC is very much up for grabs.

Prior to its loss to Harvard in South Bend, Ind., RPI had rattled off a nine-game unbeaten streak—a run which included victories over the Bulldogs and now-No. 13/13 St. Lawrence.

But against the reigning conference champions, the Engineers looked outmatched as the Crimson first and second lines wreaked havoc on coach Seth Appert’s squad.

“We had a lot of respect for them,” Harvard coach Ted Donato ’91 said. “They were as hot as almost anyone in the country coming in...so I think it got our guys’ attention. And I thought we responded well. Now we go into next weekend with four very important points on the road before the break.”

Crimson co-captain Jimmy Vesey opened the scoring in the first period with his team-leading seventh goal of the year. Vesey, who was named the ECAC’s Player of the Month on Wednesday, now has seven goals in seven career games against RPI.

Each member of the Harvard first line picked up a point alongside Vesey’s strike, as co-captain Kyle Criscuolo and junior center Alex Kerfoot recorded assists on the play. In order to give the Crimson a run for its money on Saturday, the Engineer first line will have to keep pace with Harvard’s power trio.

RPI’s star forward, junior Riley Bourbonnais currently ranks second in the ECAC with eight goals on the year. The offensive power will look to bounce back after being held to just two shots against the Crimson last week.

Bourbonnais’ linemates, senior Milos Bubela and sophomore Viktor Liljegren, also had quiet nights. Liljegren even let his frustration boil over midway through the third period, as he was forced to exit with a game misconduct for a charge against Harvard junior defenseman Victor Newell.

With a chance at redemption in front of a home crowd on Saturday, however, the Engineer top line should come out firing.

Sophomore goaltender Merrick Madsen, the early favorite to get the start, over freshman goaltender Michael Lackey, in the rematch after making 31 saves against RPI this past Saturday, knows that if he receives the nod this weekend, he is bound to have his hands full.

“We’re definitely going to need to show up to play,” Madsen said. “RPI’s a great team. They had a streak going there, and they’re definitely a team to be reckoned with.”

Prior to its rematch with the Engineers, however, the Crimson will first receive a test from Union at Messa Rink on Friday.

Two seasons removed from its first national championship in school history, the Dutchmen (4-6-3, 1-5-0) have been plagued by inconsistency so far this season.

So far this year, Union has knocked off two ranked out-of-conference teams and tied another, yet the Dutchmen sit tied for last in the ECAC with just two points through six conference games.

Highlighted by an impressive win over then-No. 3/2 Boston University and a 5-5 draw with No. 12/11 Michigan, Union opened the year without a loss in its first five games.

But then the wheels fell off. The Dutchmen went on to drop six of their next seven contests, a stretch that included sizable losses to RPI and St. Lawrence by scores of 5-1 and 6-3, respectively.

Nonetheless, Union has looked much better as of late, even blowing out No. 13/13 Merrimack on the road, 4-0, its last time out. The victory came on the heels of consecutive home games against Brown and Yale where the Dutchmen held leads in the third period before eventually falling in overtime.

Although Union has significant ground to make up in the standings, a win over Harvard would certainly grab the league’s attention moving forward.

Likewise, a win for RPI in Saturday’s rematch with the Crimson would do the same.

Thus, Harvard will not be overlooking either opponent.

“We can’t walk in anywhere this year and grab a win,” Madsen said. “We’re going to have to work hard, and that’s kind of the identity we’re looking for.”

—Staff writer Jake Meagher can be reached at jake.meagher@thecrimson.com.