Skating on Thin Ice

For that split second, while the puck was safely lying still between Brian Petrovek's skates, the Crimson icemen stood sixth in the ECACs and all was kosher at Watson Rink.

But when Petro's left skate went in reverse, allowing the little black monster entrance to the Crimson goal, Dartmouth suddenly had a 3-2 triumph, and Harvard faced the possibility of missing the playoffs for the first time in 11 years, or not since you were in the fifth grade and used to threaten the kid across the street with statements like "Give me some of that candy or I'll beat your head in." You just don't mix milk with meat.

For in defeat, the Crimson plummeted three places in the standings and if this morning were Saturday night, Harvard would be out.

Fortunately, this morning is only Thursday, and there's still hope. And it goes like this. Regardless of what you might have read, heard or written about in the Fine Arts 13 paper due tomorrow--no later than four, please--the eight postseason berths will be divvied up on a strict percentage basis.

For Harvard, this means one thing. The skaters have to beat Yale in New Haven on Saturday night and hope that either Providence loses to Boston University on Channel 7 that afternoon, Brown succumbs to Dartmouth that night, or RPI falls in one of its two remaining contests--tonight against Vermont or Saturday versus Colgate.

Each of these hopes is a realistic one, and two are more than quite ironic. On the one hand, think of how blasphemous it will be to root for the Terriers, as in the "Dum, dum, dum...Screw B.U." Terriers, against the Friars on television Saturday.

And then even if that fails, there's still the Big Green. Now admittedly, Tuesday night's loss was especially painful in that it occurred against the Hanoverians. But should a Dartmouth triumph on Saturday allow the Crimson to sneak into the playoffs, well, there's a little good in everybody, right?

Not that it matters, but the Green did defeat Brown last weekend at Hanover. (Anyone for seconds?)

As for RPI, they've already scored nine goals against Vermont--in a single period--once this season, and counting on Colgate to win a big game is like counting on The Crimson to print a typo-less paper. But who knows? In a school of engineers, a short circuit is always possible.

These, however, are only the sensible possibilities, and in this insane season, why try to make sense? In other words, Harvard could win, everyone else could lose (including Boston College against Princeton on Saturday), and the Crimson could conceivably finish as high as fifth. Yeah, right, and the sky might fall tomorrow, too.

Or Harvard could fall to Yale, but RPI could lose twice, thereby creating a tie and forcing the intervention of ECAC officials, who could then decide that they'd rather see liberal arts types and not engineers in the playoffs. Yeah, right, and last night's Winthrop House junior dinner was exciting.

As for the desired set of circumstances--desired, that is, by anyone who plans (and who has planned since last March) to attend the first round of the playoffs, two out of Brown, RPI and Providence will suffer a setback, the Crimson will win and finish seventh, and next Tuesday night will be spent in Durham, N.H., which, by any stretch of the imagination, is a lot closer than either Potsdam or Ithaca, N.Y., and a lot more rural than B.U.'s Walter Brown Arena. (Hockey games in rural settings are the greatest.)

While discussing next Tuesday might be a bit premature--especially since next Tuesday might be spent in Cambridge watching Laverne and Shirley while reading Hobbes compare man to a machine (on second thought, don't count on it)--as well as optimistic, partisan, and somewhat like worrying about lunch at breakfast, it isn't really.

For one thing, there should be little doubt that Harvard will not conclude its season on Saturday. It just doesn't work like that. Somebody is bound to lose, and to prove it, I'll put up a one-way ticket to Troy, N.Y. against whatever you're doing on Tuesday night. That's right, if Harvard misses the playoffs, you go to Troy and I'll, well...see you around History 1422, bloke. ECAC DIVISION I HOCKEY STANDINGS   W  L  T 1) Clarkson  18  4  0 2) New Hampshire  21  5  0 3) Boston University  16  6  1 4) Cornell  15  6  1 5) Boston College  12  9  1 6) Brown  11  9  1 7) RPI  12  10  0 8) Providence  13  11  0 9) HARVARD  11  10  0 10) Dartmouth  11  11  1 11) Vermont  10  12  0 12) Northeastern  9  13  0 13) Colgate  9  13  0 14) Penn  7  16  0 15) Yale  5  16  1 16) St. Lawrence  3  16  0 17) Princeton  3  19  1