Harvard Drops Two to No. 1 Michigan, Scares Wolverines in Second Contest With OT

In its first playing on home ice against the No. 1 Michigan Wolverines (15-3-0, 6-2-0 B1G), the Harvard men’s ice hockey team (5-3-1, 3-1-0 ECAC) put on a commendable performance at the Bright-Landry Hockey Center over Thanksgiving break, losing 5-1 on Friday and forcing Michigan into overtime during its 4-3 loss yesterday evening.

The Crimson’s quick start was not enough to defend against the Wolverines’ offensive onslaught in the first contest. Harvard let up the game’s first four goals and was unable to generate much offense of its own until the final period. The next night, the Crimson let another three goals slip through late in the second period. A monumental response with only 13 minutes left in regulation play, however, pushed the game to overtime, where Michigan snagged a loose puck to score the golden goal on a power play.

The losses broke Harvard’s four-game winning streak, as it had most recently defeated the University of Vermont Catamounts 5-1 in its one-game outing the prior week.

Harvard’s season has been marked by several such out-of-league contests, having opened the season against an uncommon opponent, the then No. 9 University of Connecticut Huskies, before playing its first-ever game against Stonehill College just days later.

Though in its third year without the professional hockey stars from the 2022-23 season, including Henry Thrun, Alex Leferriere, Matthew Coronato, and Sean Farrell, Harvard has rebounded phenomenally and developed strong underclassmen players. These younger athletes have stepped up to the plate, headlined by Mick Thompson, the sophomore forward leading the team in points with 12, Heikki Ruhohnen, Lucas St. Louis, Aidan Lane, and Richard Gallant, among others.

Regarding ranked opponents, the Crimson still has the No. 8 Quinnipiac Bobcats and No. 13 Dartmouth Big Green to contend with this season. However, if its recent performance against the top team in the NCAA is any indication, Harvard is in a good position to take on top-ranked opponents in the future.

Harvard 1, Michigan 5

The two Ontario natives in net, freshman Jack Invakovic for Michigan and sophomore Ben Charette for Harvard, came into Friday with stellar save percentages of 92% and 93.4%, respectively.

Since each team was able to fire off an equal number of shots, the game result favored the faster offense, which, during the first contest, was Michigan. The Wolverines got the scoring started in the first, lighting the lamp for the first time with just eight minutes remaining in the first period.

A tricky feed from a Michigan forward from behind Charette’s net gave the goaltender too little time to react and extend his pads to cover the far post. With the goal, Michigan gained a 1-0 lead.

Merely two minutes later, Harvard, slow to find the puck off a faceoff, turned the puck over and let a Michigan player slide through center ice. Positioned perfectly in front of the net, Will Horcoff, a 24th-overall draft pick for the Pittsburgh Penguins 24th-overall draft pick, deftly shot the puck above Charette’s glove and into the goal.

Despite trading penalties in the first and second periods, neither team could score on the power play. However, an additional Michigan power play advantage finally saw the Wolverines come through in the latter half of the second period for their third goal of the game.

This time, a shot slotted underneath the pads of Charette from in front gave the goaltender little opportunity to make a proper save. To Harvard’s credit, defending against a team with a power play percentage above 30% is no easy task, and the Crimson at least held the Wolverines reasonably well through its four attempts.

To start the third period, Michigan tallied its fourth goal of the evening.

A minute later, Harvard nabbed a fortunate squeak-in goal, but it was not enough for the hosts to turn the momentum.

Shortly after, a delayed penalty against the Crimson gave Michigan another odd-man chance to put one in, which it did. With the scoreboard reaching 5-1 in favor of the Wolverines, the game was now out of reach once and for all for the home team.

Harvard 3, Michigan 4 (OT)

Despite leading 4-1 in power play opportunities through two-thirds of game play, Harvard appeared to be in a slight scoring drought after its one-goal performance the previous night. The team had just four shots on power plays and even gave up two shorthanded shots to Michigan during the man-up-advantage.

That being said, the Crimson’s penalty kill stifled Michigan’s own scoring attempts, proving to be a major improvement from its previous contest. The defense held the Wolverines to no shots on its first power play and only one shot on its power play in the third period.

Michigan, however, was able to ramp up a three-goal lead, as Harvard seemed desperate to make a save when pressed close to its own net.

One Harvard player put their knee to the ice and outstretched his stick to block the puck, but failed to cover the receiving Michigan player on the other side of the crease, who capitalized on a mostly empty net.

With emotions elevated by the contest last night, the stakes were high as the game remained at a close 1-0, nearing the halfway point. Tensions finally blew over after a cross-check call against Michigan was responded to with a nasty scuffle behind the Wolverines’ net.

Luckily for Harvard, this resulted in offsetting penalties and nothing more.

Seconds after the conclusion of the 4-on-4 play, a Michigan player skated past the Crimson’s captain, Mason Langenbrunner, during a speedy zone entry off a turnover in the neutral zone. The Wolverine snapped a nifty shot over Charette’s left shoulder from an outside angle.

With time ticking in the second period, a 3-on-2 carry into the offensive zone by Michigan resulted in another shot against Langenbrunner over the same side of Charette, extending the lead to 3-0.

While the Wolverines posed a tough challenge for Harvard, the defensive meltdowns have been an unfortunate recurrence for the Crimson, even during games it’s won this season.

Eventually, Harvard got its defensive troubles together, intensifying aggression in the zone, and went on a scoring surge in a last-ditch effort to get itself back in the game.

With junior forward Salvatore Guzzo and senior forward Marek Hejduk screening the net, Langenbrunner finally got revenge on Michigan, taking a shot from the top of the right circle. Guzzo tipped the puck into the net, making it a 3-1 game.

The play rattled the Wolverines, who then gave up two back-to-back power-play goals to Harvard in the final 8:36 of the contest, both penalties being called on Horcoff. Despite the challenges with penalties, Horcoff recorded four goals across the two games against the Crimson.

Harvard’s second goal was scored by senior forward Philip Tresca, who shot the puck over Ivankovic’s stick-side shoulder, aided by a Michigan defender who partially blocked the goalkeeper’s view of the puck.

Senior defenseman Ryan Healey put in the game-tying shot with help from senior forward Casey Severo and rookie forward Heikki Ruhohnen, who moved from their positions in front of the net to open up a clear shot path. In a jubilant celebration, Healey skated over and bumped into Michigan’s penalty box to commemorate the comeback.

Regardless of the outcome at this point, unranked Harvard had exceeded expectations, rallying from a three-goal deficit to even the score against the best collegiate team in the nation. The home team also overcame the mental challenge of playing a team that had beaten them pretty solidly the night before.

Unfortunately for the few Crimson fans that ventured to the Bright over Thanksgiving break, the home team was unable to secure the comeback win in overtime. After Harvard was cited with a tripping penalty, Michigan’s power play unit overcame the Crimson’s defenders. Horcoff got his revenge, firing home his fourth goal of the weekend to nab the sweep for his team.

The Harvard team’s homestand continues next weekend with a game against its rival Yale on Friday and another against Brown on Saturday. The puck will drop for both contests at 7:00 p.m. EST and will be available to stream on ESPN+. Though the Ivy League foes will likely be easier opponents than the Wolverines, the games are no less important. Yale falls just behind Harvard in the current ECAC standings, with Brown threatening not far behind, making both contests crucial for a Crimson team looking to make a successful run this season.

—Staff writer Nate M. Bolan can be reached at nathan.bolan@thecrimson.com