Harvard Men’s Hockey Loses Fourth Straight Game to No. 20 Boston University

Harvard men’s ice hockey (7-7-1, 5-4-0 ECAC) fell to the No. 20 Boston University Terriers (11-9-1, 7-6-0 HE) in its first home game of the new year. In its fifth meeting since 2022, the Crimson set the pace early, but two Terrier goals in the middle period became the difference in BU's 4-1 win.

On the back of losses to three top teams in the ECAC, Harvard hoped it could finally turn the page in its return to home ice, especially with freshman forward Heikki Ruohonen back in the lineup after earning a fourth-place finish with Team Finland in the 2026 World Junior Cup.

The Finn marked a welcome return to his all-freshman line composed of forwards Richard Gallant and Aidan Lane.

“That line has been good for us when they play together,” the Crimson’s Head Coach Ted Donato ‘91 said, as the three rookies have combined to score ten of Harvard's 47 total goals this season.

Reflecting on his team's tough stretch through the early weeks of 2026, Donato said, “The thread coming in tonight was we just gave up goals a little too easily.”

“I think early on here, we beat ourselves, and that’s something that we’ll have to get beyond if we want to have sustained success,” the coach added.

Strong play by Ruohonen, alongside the team’s last two lines and top two defensive pairs, helped push the pace and set up clean scoring chances early for the Crimson.

Playing host to a BU team entering the game with a record just trailing Harvard’s also provided the home team with the perfect opportunity to reclaim a place in the national rankings.

The Crimson at least managed to set a rampant pace through the first fifteen minutes with its overwhelming physical play.

Hard hits along the boards preserved puck possession on offensive dump-ins, while timely poke checks and defensive pressure at the blue line quickly cleared Harvard’s defensive zone.

Player positioning was the key to the team’s success in the first period, it seemed, as the Terriers struggled to maintain defensive positioning, block shots, or create offensive opportunities.

That shutdown play was soon rewarded with the first goal.

Harvard’s captain Joe Miller scored from the right point, firing the puck past sophomore Terrier netminder Mikhail Yegorov of St. Petersburg, Russia.

This was just the second goal Yegorov allowed across his last three games following BU’s split weekend series against UMass Amherst.

For Miller, the goal marks his fifth point in the last six games. With the goal, the Minneapolis, Minn., native matched his scoring output from last season in 13 fewer games.

Despite Harvard’s success at the onset of the game, the nationally-ranked Terriers didn’t allow the Crimson to sustain its momentum for the remainder of the competition.

“For us, I think we did a lot of good things, but we need to be able to execute some plays under pressure,” Donato said, reflecting on how Harvard must improve to contend against the best programs in the country.

“From a forward perspective, it felt like we got away from our forecheck a little bit, which, in the first period, I feel like was working really well,” Miller added.

Tonight was just one more example this season of the team failing to maintain its composure after going ahead by a goal.

Even in the Crimson’s blowout victories, like its 6-2 win against Stonehill College, the Skyhawks were able to score two quick goals in the second period, despite Harvard’s offensive momentum.

Similarly, in its 6-5 win over Colgate University, the Crimson nearly let the Raiders score three-straight goals on two separate occasions, either of which could have sent the game to overtime.

Even in well-played games, Harvard has struggled to secure wins.

This habit came to bite the team again in the second period when it seemed like momentum had rapidly and inexplicably flipped in the Terriers’ favor.

Suddenly, BU was setting up odd-man scoring plays in front of the Crimson’s sophomore goaltender Ben Charette. Adding insult to injury, the Terriers were converting at a higher rate.

In the span of a minute, freshmen forwards Conrad Fondrk and Jonathan Morello both scored off cross-crease passes, with a player heavily screening Charette’s line of sight.

Harvard’s captain, Mason Langenbrunner, refused to make any excuses after tonight’s loss.

“I know we’re playing tough teams, but in order to be a good team you gotta beat good teams,” the defender from Eden Prairie, Minn., said.

Although Harvard adjusted to the higher level of play in the third period, the team failed to record the one goal it needed to tie the game. Meanwhile, the Terriers scored two goals on the empty net to salt the game away.

The Crimson still faces an uphill battle at home with three games remaining this week. Harvard hosts St. Lawrence and Clarkson on Jan. 16 and 17, respectively, followed by a matchup with Union on Jan. 19. Puck drop for the first two games is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. EST, while the Union game will begin at 4:00 p.m. EST. All three games can be streamed on ESPN+.

Looking ahead, Donato said that his crew is “still very focused on the fact that we think we can be an excellent team.”

—Staff writer Nate M. Bolan can be reached at [email protected].