Harvard Drops Second Game Against No. 9 Cornell, Sets Up Sunday Grudge Match

After a massive 3-1 upset win in the first game of the best-of-three series, Harvard men’s ice hockey fell 4-0 to No. 9 Cornell in tonight’s game two. The loss sets up a winner-take-all third game on Sunday where fish will fly, and the stakes and emotions will be high.

The Crimson (16-15-2, 11-11-1 ECAC) looked to be a step behind from the initial puck drop, and the Big Red (21-9-1, 15-7-1), looking for revenge for its loss last night, took advantage immediately. Outshot 5-0 in the first five minutes, Harvard was hemmed in its defensive zone, leading to Cornell senior forward Nick DeSantis to throw the puck on net from the goal line. The senior’s shot snuck through sophomore netminder Ben Charette’s pads to make it 1-0.

The struggles only continued for the Crimson. Sprawled out, Charette couldn’t cover up a cross-crease pass from Cornell junior forward Ryan Walsh, so fellow junior forward Jake Kraft buried a second goal for the Big Red.

As it looked to build momentum, Harvard went on a power play shortly after Kraft’s tally, but Cornell stifled zone entries and prevented the Crimson from getting anything going.

A fresh sheet of ice didn’t help Harvard in the second period. A few minutes into the frame, an impressive breakout from the Big Red caught the Crimson off-guard, giving Walsh and Kraft a two-on-one opportunity. Walsh saucered a pass to Kraft, who rifled it over an outstretched Charette for his second goal.

Harvard responded well afterwards, finally pressuring Cornell and freshman goaltender Alexis Cournoyer. However, the Big Red’s defense consistently blocked shooting lanes, and despite the Crimson attempting 20 shots in the period alone, only four got through to Cournoyer.

“We passed up too many shots looking for something better,” said Head Coach Ted Donato ’91. “We took too long to get some shots off.”

Presented another chance on the skater-up advantage, Harvard failed to convert, and Kraft nearly completed a hat trick while shorthanded.

Cornell, with under a minute left in the period, challenged for a major penalty on junior defenseman Matthew Morden for a collision behind the play. Ultimately, the incident was deemed unworthy of an infraction, and the Big Red lost its timeout.

Still searching for his third goal, Kraft tested Charette twice early in the third period, but the Crimson netminder stood tall. Likewise, Cournoyer stoned freshman forward Richard Gallant all alone on a breakaway to keep Harvard scoreless.

Special teams again proved to be the nail in the Crimson’s coffin. Harvard couldn’t generate anything significant on its third power play, while Cornell made the most of a player-up advantage with under six minutes left.

“The power play got outworked by their penalty kill,” said Donato. “We lost too many loose pucks, and we weren’t able to establish possession.”

Sophomore forward Charlie Major dished a cross-ice feed to junior defenseman Hoyt Stanley, who beat Charette top-shelf to end any hope of a comeback.

Donato elected not to pull Charette after the Big Red’s fourth goal, and the game ended as a shutout for Cournoyer, who only had to make 16 saves to Charette’s 28.

“When you chase the game down 2-0 early, it’s a recipe for disaster on the road,” said Donato. “We knew they were gonna come out hard, and the first two goals set them in motion for how they want to play, and it put us behind the eight ball.”

After the disappointing performance, Harvard must shore up all areas of play ahead of tomorrow’s do-or-die matchup. The Crimson will look to rebound tomorrow at 4:00 p.m. EDT in the final game of the ECAC Quarterfinals.

— Staff writer Kai I. Russell can be reached at [email protected].