Harvard Preview
Clarkson (4-8 overall, 1-4 ECAC Hockey) and Harvard (1-4-1) face off at 7 tonight at the Bright Hockey Center in Boston and each team has one thing in common: their only conference win has come at Dartmouth.
Last Night's Games
Clarkson 3, Dartmouth 2: Golden Knights' goalie Paul Karpowich had his best game of the season, stopping 35 of 37 shots to lead Clarkson to its first road win since late last season, snapping a nine-game losing streak in games away from Cheel Arena. Clarkson trailed 2-1 after two periods but rallied with third-period goals from Brandon DeFazio (4 minutes, 17 seconds) and Mark Borowiecki (7:15). The Golden Knights had been 0-7 this year when they trailed after two. Clarkson also won for the first time all season when it did not have a lead after the first period.
St. Lawrence 3, Harvard 2: The statistics show that Harvard dominated this game (though I did not see it). The Crimson outshot SLU 44-28, including an 18-7 edge in the second period. However, while Harvard was taking shots, SLU was making them. The Saints built a 3-1 lead early in the third period on goals from George Hughes, Travis Vermeulen and Peter Child. Harvard scored on a power-play shots from Michael Biega in the second and Alex Killorn in the third.
Stat of the Night
Clarkson's motto is 'Defy Convention', but in hockey it's Harvard that is doing so, at least statistically. The Crimson is 0-2 when it scores the first goal of a game and 1-2-1 when it does not. Clarkson, by comparison, is 3-3 when it scores first and 1-5 when the opposing team scores first. Harvard is also 0-2 if it leads after the opening period. Clarkson is 3-2 when it leads after one and 1-6 when it is tied or behind after the opening 20 minutes.
Who to Watch
Clarkson: The same name shows up a lot in this category and once again senior Matt Beca is the most dominant player for Clarkson against the Crimson, with four career goals and two assists. The four goals is the big number because in most of these previews Beca shows up more because of several assists. The only other Golden Knight with multiple points against Harvard is Tim Marks, who has one goal and one assist. Lauri Tuohimaa is the only other Clarkson player with a career goal against Harvard. Paul Karpowich is 0-1 with a 5.00 goals-against average and a .783 save percentage against Harvard. Richie LaVeau is 0-0-1 with a 2.77 goals-against average and .885 save percentage.
Harvard: Harvard's Doug Rogers has the best numbers against the Golden Knights with two goals and four assists. Alex Biega has three assists against the Golden Knights. Goalie Kyle Richter is 0-4 against Clarkson with a 3.32 goals-against average and .882 save percentage. Ryan Carroll is 0-0-1 with a 2.77 goals-against average and .900 save percentage.
Last Meeting: Harvard's Chris Huxley scored a power-play goal at 11:43 of the third period to give the Crimson a 3-3 tie at Cheel Arena on Feb. 21. Clarkson built a 2-0 lead with goals from Matt Beca and Shea Guthrie. Harvard tied the game by the end of the second period with scores from Doug Rogers and Alex Killorn. Beca scored another goal early in the third to give Clarkson a 3-2 lead.
Stats and Notes: Clarkson will be missing its leading scorer, sophomore Louke Oakley, until at least the second semester after he suffered a knee injury late in the first period of Friday's game. ... For a brief time Harvard had taken the career lead in the series with Clarkson. But the Golden Knights are 7-2-1 in the last 10 meetings and lead the series 48-45-10. Clarkson had a six-game win streak against the Crimson end with Harvard's 5-1 win at the Bright Hockey Center last season. ... This is only Harvard's second official home game of the season. The Crimson did have an exhibition game at home against McGill. Harvard is 53-21-2 at home under coach Ted Donato. ... Harvard freshman Louis Leblanc, a Montreal Canadiens draft choice, has been one of the top rookie forwards in the league this season with two goals and five assists. Clarkson freshman Adam Pawlick has four goals.
