Men's Hockey Preview: No. 4 Harvard vs. No. 6 Union

The No. 4/5 Harvard men’s hockey team currently ranks third in the ECAC with only five conference games remaining on its schedule. Luckily for the Crimson, both frontrunners have to pay a visit to Cambridge by month’s end.

Of the league’s two top dogs, No. 6 Union (19-7-2, 12-3-1 ECAC) will be the first to drop by the Bright-Landry Hockey Center. Tonight, just three days ahead of the highly anticipated Beanpot championship game, the Crimson (16-5-2, 11-4-2) will play host to the Dutchmen with the top spot in the conference up for grabs.

“They’re having a heck of a season,” senior Luke Esposito said. “That’s a good test for us.”

THE STAKES

Ranked sixth in the polls and seventh in the PairWise (two spots behind Harvard), Union enters Friday tied for first in the ECAC with No. 18 St. Lawrence and a point ahead of the Crimson—with a game in hand over both sides. Therefore, a win for the Dutchmen could all but eliminate Harvard from the race for the Cleary Cup, given to the team that finishes the regular season in first place within the ECAC.

Friday’s heavyweight bout marks the only game the Crimson will play this weekend—a consequence of the Beanpot final lying right around the corner. St. Lawrence will also play just one game—a Friday night tilt at Princeton—while Union will play two.

Given the circumstances, it’s unlikely Harvard will find itself atop the ECAC at the end of the weekend. But a victory over the Dutchmen would set up an arms race between the three sides over the season’s final two conference weekends.

Alternatively, if the Crimson falls on Friday, Harvard’s new goal would become securing one of the four first-round byes available for the ECAC tournament. The Crimson currently holds a two-point lead over fourth-place Cornell and a three-point lead over Quinnipiac, the first team on the outside of the 'bye zone' looking in.

CAST YOUR NET WIDE

Between the pipes, a battle of the back-ups could potentially be in store Friday night.

Harvard goaltender Merrick Madsen has played 96.7 percent of the Crimson’s minutes this season, but the junior suffered an injury in the final seconds of Harvard’s Beanpot semifinal victory over Northeastern on Monday. Madsen fell to the ice just before the final whistle sounded, and the Philadelphia Flyers prospect appeared as though he may have been favoring his right knee.

After the game, Harvard coach Ted Donato ’91 would only say that Madsen had tweaked his lower body. He also said that the injury didn’t appear to be anything major and that he didn’t expect his goalie to miss any extended period of time.

However, Madsen was noticeably absent from practice on Wednesday. When asked what he thought about the goaltender’s status at the start of practice, Donato said it was “hard to say.”

“I know we’re hopeful he’s going to be able to make steps to be healthy,” Donato said. “We certainly haven’t given up any hope that he’s going to be able to play this weekend.”

If the junior is unable to go on Friday, freshman Cameron Gornet would be in line to make his first collegiate start. Gornet has made 15 saves in two relief appearances so far this season.

A goaltender with more experience, junior Michael Lackey also took the ice for practice Wednesday, but he has yet to be cleared for game action. Lackey had some work done in the offseason to treat an injury, reportedly to his hip but officially undisclosed by the team. The Washington D.C. native was sidelined for the entire first half of the season, but he’s been practicing with the team for about a month now.

As for the visitors, Union starter Alex Sakellaropoulos has missed his team’s last two games after injuring himself late in a 4-3 loss at St. Lawrence on Jan. 28. According to The Daily Gazette, the senior was spotted wearing a brace on his left knee on Wednesday and continues to be out indefinitely.

Therefore, rather than the veteran who made 31 saves against Harvard in January, the Dutchmen could trot out sophomore Jake Kupsky, who holds a mediocre .885 save percentage and a 3.48 goals against average in six starts this season.

UNION LEADERS

Harvard will have its hands full with the nation’s fifth-best scoring offense (3.79 goals per game). Union’s top line includes two of the country’s top five scorers, captain Mike Vecchione and junior Spencer Foo, who have logged 48 and 46 points on the year, respectively.

That same duo combined for three points against the Crimson in Union's 2-1 victory at Messa Rink on Jan. 14. Foo assisted on a Sebastian Vidmar power-play goal that gave Union a 1-0 lead in the second, then lit the lamp in transition early in the third following a controversial non-call that helped set up the rush.

Last weekend in a weekend split with Cornell and Colgate, Vecchione scored three times and recorded an assist while Foo produced a goal and two helpers.

—Check TheCrimson.com for live game updates tonight beginning at 7 p.m.

—Staff writer Jake Meagher can be reached at jake.meagher@thecrimson.com. Follow him on Twitter @MeagherTHC.