Rude Awakening: Elis Shock Icemen, 6-2

NEW HAVEN--Memories of the national championship, the Hobey Baker Award and The Goal had a head-on collision with reality here last night as the Yale hockey team trounced Harvard, 6-2, at Ingalls Rink.

The first inkling that this is indeed a brand new season was perhaps the sight of the celebrated number 19 on a back other than one belonging to Hobey winner Lane MacDonald '88-'89. And number 11--to be forever associated with Ed Krayer and The Goal--belonged to another player as well.

But it was the action on the ice that was the rudest reminder that Harvard is now defending national champion.

After leading, 2-0, just 12 minutes into the game, the Crimson (0-1 overall, 0-1 ECAC) failed to score on a five-minute man-up situation and then coughed up six unanswered goals to the overanxious Elis (1-0, 1-0).

Captain C.J. Young made a telling statement three days ahead of time.

"There are bound to be some mistakes," Young predicted Tuesday afternoon. "It will be a real big asset if we can put together a solid team defense."

Mistakes abounded. Team defense? Well...

Young had nothing to say last night.

Yale sophomore Jeff Blaeser netted a pair of goals in the second period to knot the score and capped off his night with an empty-netter in the closing minutes to put the Eli's final advantage at an almost unfathomable four goals.

"We respected their players," said Blaeser, an All-ECAC selection last season. "But we weren't impressed."

It was a respectable beginning for the Crimson. Sophomore Jimmy Coady celebrated his first varsity appearance with a beautiful backhand pass up the zone to senior Tod Hartje that set up a Crimson goal just 3:06 into the action. Hartje stuffed the puck past Yale netminder Ray Letourneau.

Junior John Weisbrod added a second goal on an assist from classmate Mike Vukonich at the 11:24 mark. The player with the superstrong slapshot sent a surprisingly soft slider through the middle that slipped through a pair of Yalies to Weisbrod's waiting stick.

"We had a spot in the first period that we were doing really well," Weisbrod said, "but you can't win hockey games only playing for six or seven minutes."

The confidence shown in the early going deteriorated into a complacency by the end of the first period and became outright confusion for much of the game.

"The key to our game was when we didn't score on that five-minute power play," Crimson Coach Bill Cleary said. "Then we sat around in the second period and just watched, and they took advantage of it."

With just under five minutes left in the first, Yale defender Scott Matusovich went to the penalty box on a five-minute major. The new version of Harvard's five-forward power play--Weisbrod, Young, Vukonich and sophomores Pete Ciavaglia and Ted Donato--took the ice.

Nothing happened.

"If they had gotten a third goal, we would have been in big trouble," Yale Coach Tim Taylor said.

Instead, the Elis were in big business. The first Yale goal came directly after a defensive breakdown let forward Mike Miller slip his man for an open shot on Harvard goaltender Allain Roy. The shot went wide left, but defenseman Bill Matthews dug it out of the corner and gave it to Blaeser for the goal.

The next came after senior defenseman Kevan Melrose made a play that was, in his own words, "stupid."

Melrose was called for an elbowing penalty, then was slapped with a 10-minute misconduct for having a little unnecessary contact with the opponent after the whistle.

Blaeser capitalized on the power play as the Harvard defenders--already a little awkward in their new pairings--had to make more adjustments to compensate for the missing Melrose.

It was 2-2 at the end of the second, and the game just kept going down-hill from there.

"It was team defense, not really the defensemen alone [that broke down]," said Roy, who saw three more goals slide between the pipes and watched helplessly from the sidelines as Blaeser added one more. "I take the blame for a few of those goals."

Senior Julian Binavince split a pair of Harvard defenders for a breakaway on Roy to score the game-winner 1:26 into the third period as Yale continued to capitalize on more Harvard mistakes than Young would ever have predicted.

And the captain was not the only one with a mid-week prophecy.

"We only have a few more days to bask in the glory," said Cleary that same Tuesday afternoon.

And those days are over, It's a new season.

Elis, 6-2 at Ingalls Rink Harvard  2-0-0--2 Yale  0-2-4--6

First Period-- 1, H, Tod Hartje 1 (Jimmy Coady) 3:06; 2, H, John Weisbrod 1 (Peter Ciavaglia, Mike Vukonich) 11;24. Penalties--H, Brian McCormack (hooking) 3:53; H, Kevan Melrose (charging) 6:27; Y, Scott Matusovich (tripping) 7:33; Y, Bruce Wolanin (hitting from behind) 9:38; Y, Matusovich (cross-checking, 5:00) 15:23.

Second Period-- 3, Y, Jeff Blaeser 1 (Jeff Williams) 7:54; 4, Y, Blaeser 2 (Matusovich) 11:17. Penalties--Greg Harrison (hooking) 2:53; Y, Craig Ferguson (high-sticking) 7:57; H, Ciavaglia (high-sticking) 10:06; H, Ted Donato (interference) 14:56.

Third Period-- 5, Y, Julian Binavince 1 (Ferguson, Jack Duffy) 1:26; 6, Y, Harrison 1 (Binavince) 4:40; 7, Y, Blaeser 3 (harrison) 18:23. Penalties--Y, Duffy (high-sticking) 4:14; H, Ted Drury (high-sticking) 4:14; H, Melrose (interference) 12:48; Y, Bench (too many players on the ice) 13:56; Y, Duffy (roughing) 16:22; H, Weisbrod (roughing) 16:22; H, Steve Flomenhoff (charging) 19:37.

Saves-- H, Allain Roy 9-6-15--30; Y, Ray Letourneau 13-12-10--35.

Power Play Opps: H, 1-6; Y, 1-6.

A: 3198.