Team Notes: Berth in Finals on the Line as Harvard Hosts Dartmouth
The Particulars
The Crimson advances to its 12th-straight ECAC Hockey semifinal,
where it will take on rival Dartmouth Thursday at Bright Hockey
Center. Harvard advanced thanks to a quarterfinal series sweep of
St. Lawrence, while the Big Green topped Clarkson in three games to
earn a berth in the league's final four.
Series History
Dartmouth represents Harvard's oldest rival in team history, as
the teams have faced off 76 times since 1978. The Crimson barely
trails in the all-time series, holding a 35-39-2 record against the
Big Green. The two teams played a home-and-home earlier this season
with Harvard taking both games from the then-No. 9 Big
Green. Marissa
Gedman, Liza
Ryabkina, Elizabeth
Parker and Kate
Buesser had goals to help Harvard to a 4-1 lead in the
first meeting, and Katharine
Chute added an empty-netter to seal the 5-3 win Nov. 19 at
Bright. The following night, Harvard bounced back from a 2-1
deficit with third-period goals from Alisa
Baumgartner andJillian
Dempsey for a 3-2 win in Hanover, N.H.
The Crimson and Big Green have faced each other six times in the
ECAC tournament with Dartmouth holding a 4-2 edge in those games.
The last time the two teams faced off in the league playoffs was in
the 2005 final, where Harvard fended off Dartmouth, 4-1, en route
to a berth in the NCAA championship game. Harvard has faced
Dartmouth in the ECAC semifinals only once before, dropping a 4-2
decision in 2002.
The Quarterfinals
Harvard recorded two of its highest goal totals of the season in
the quarterfinal series win over St. Lawrence, posting 6-1 and 8-3
wins at Bright last weekend.
The Crimson got out to a fast start in Game 1 against St.
Lawrence, as Jillian Dempsey gave Harvard a 1-0 lead just 1:28 into
the game. Josephine
Pucci, Elizabeth Parker and Whitney
Kennedy also had first-period markers to help the hosts to
a 4-1 lead after one. Dempsey added a second score in the third
period and Katharine Chute put home an empty-net effort to cap the
6-1 win.
It was more of the same in Game 2, as Harvard netted a quartet of
scores in the first period to take a commanding 4-0 lead. Kate
Buesser put home a pair of goals, while Ashley
Wheeler and Gina
McDonald also found the back of the net in the first
stanza. A second-period lapse saw the Saints climb back into the
game, as the guests scored three goals to end the frame down just
one at 4-3. Buesser answered quickly to start the third, completing
her hat trick with a goal 15 seconds into the frame. Jillian
Dempsey added one 45 seconds later and then scored a power-play
tally at the 10:28 mark. Marissa Gedman scored an empty-net goal
from distance to close the scoring and push Harvard to the
semifinals with an 8-3 win.
Harvard ECAC History
The Crimson holds an all-time record of 33-15 in ECAC tournament
action, dating back to 1987. Harvard didn't win its first ECAC
playoff game until 1999, a 3-2 win over Cornell at Bright Hockey
Center. The Crimson went on to capture the first of its five
tournament titles that year. Bright has hosted an ECAC quarterfinal
series every year since 2002 and the Crimson has emerged victorious
in every one of those series.
All-ECAC Honors
After locking up second place in the 2010-11 league standings, the
Harvard women's hockey team had five players named to the ECAC
Hockey All-League teams, the organization announced Tuesday.
Sophomores Jillian Dempsey and Josephine Pucci received second-team
accolades, seniors Liza Ryabkina andLeanna
Coskren received third-team nods and freshman Marissa
Gedman was named to the All-Rookie team.
Harvard Coach Katey Stone
Katey Stone, the Landry Family Head Coach for Harvard Women's
Hockey, is in her 17th season as Harvard's head coach, and she
holds a 356-154-31 career record, the most all-time victories
in Division I women's hockey. Stone has led Harvard to all eight of
its NCAA tournament appearances and was named head coach of the
U.S. Women's National Team in the summer of 2010.
First Things First
This season, Harvard is 13-1-0 when scoring first and 4-9-4 when
conceding the first goal. The Crimson was 17-2-2 when scoring
first and 3-6-3 when the opponent scored first last season.
Quarterfinal Flurry
With 14 goals scored in the quarterfinal series against St.
Lawrence, the Crimson recorded its second-highest quarterfinal goal
total in team history. In 2003, Harvard swept Cornell by scores of
13-1 and 7-0 in the quarterfinal round for a program-best total of
20 goals in the ECAC opening round.
Historic Four-Game Stretch
The Crimson has turned up the offense as of late, scoring a total
of 24 goals in its last four games. Harvard topped Colgate, 7-0,
fell to Cornell, 4-3, and bested St. Lawrence by scores of 6-1 and
8-3. The last time Harvard had a four-game total of at least 24
goals was during the 2006-07 season, when it scored 25 goals in a
four-game stretch. The four-game span started with an 8-1 win at
Union and continued with a 5-1 win at Rensselaer, a 4-3 loss to
Boston College in the Beanpot semifinals and a 9-1 win at
Cornell.
Hats Off!
Kate Buesser notched Harvard's first hat trick of the 2010-11
season with her trio of tallies in the 8-3 quarterfinal win over
St. Lawrence. Harvard's last hat trick came Feb. 20, 2010 when
Randi Griffin '10 netted a natural hat trick in a 3-3 tie at No. 6
Clarkson.
As The Two Seed
With the 7-0 win over Colgate Feb. 18, the Crimson locked up the
No. 2 seed for the ECAC tournament. It is just the third time in
team history that Harvard has finished second in the ECAC
regular-season standings, and the first time since 2001. Harvard
advanced to the title game in 2001 as the second seed, falling to
Dartmouth, 3-1, in the final. The Crimson advanced to the
semifinals as the No. 2 seed the year before that, dropping a 3-2
overtime thriller to the Big Green at Meehan Auditorium in
Providence, R.I.
Special Special Teams
The last week of the regular season saw some inspired performances
by the Harvard penalty kill and power-play units. Against Boston
College in the Beanpot final, Harvard needed just two kills to
silence the Eagles' power play. In the 7-0 pounding of Colgate,
Harvard notched a season-high three power-play goals on seven
attempts, erased six penalties and tallied its third shorthanded
goal of the season. Harvard allowed just one power-play goal in
seven attempts to the nation's top power-play unit in Cornell, and
tallied it's fourth player-up score of the weekend.
Against St. Lawrence in Game 2 of the quarterfinals, Harvard
matched its season-high with three power-play tallies on eight
attempts.
May I Help You?
With four assists in a 7-0 blowout of Colgate, Jillian Dempsey set
a career-high for points in a game and set the mark for most points
by a Harvard skater in a game this season. The last time a Harvard
player recorded four helpers in a game was Feb. 3, 2009 when Sarah
Vaillancourt '08-09 posted four assists against Boston
University.
Offensive Outburst
The eight goals scored in the 8-3 win over St. Lawrence Saturday
marked the most goals scored in a game during the 2010-11 season.
The last time the Crimson posted at least eight goals in a game was
against Boston University, Feb. 3, 2009 in an 8-0 win.
Hold Your Fire
In 93 periods of regulation hockey this season, Harvard only
allowed double-digit shots in a given period 23 times (25 percent).
On 10 occasions, Harvard held its opponent to three or fewer shots
in a period, including twice holding an opponent to a single shot
on goal in a given frame. Harvard is 6-0-1 when holding opponents
to 16 or fewer shots this season:
Fewest Shots Allowed - Game
10 - at Union, Jan. 7, 2011 (W, 5-0)
vs. Union, Jan. 22, 2011 (W, 4-0)
13 - vs. Yale, Oct. 29, 2010 (T, 3-3)
14 - at New Hampshire, Dec. 9, 2010 (W, 3-1)
15 - vs. Brown, Oct. 30, 2010 (W, 4-2)
16 - vs. Clarkson, Jan. 15, 2011 (W, 3-2)
16 - vs. Colgate, Feb. 18, 2011 (W, 7-0)
Harvard has allowed just one opponent to amass more than 30 shots in a game this season, as Quinnipiac racked up 32 shots Feb. 5 when the Crimson totaled 44. Harvard averaged 32.6 shots per game to its opponents' 21.7 and outshot its opponents 941-618 during the regular season. Harvard recorded its highest shot total of the season against Brown Jan. 28, firing 54 shots on goal. Harvard has eclipsed the 40-shot mark five times this season.
About Dartmouth
The Big Green needed three games to polish off Clarkson in a home
quarterfinal series, earning a come-from-behind, overtime 4-3 win
in the deciding Game 3 Sunday. Clarkson started the series with a
4-1 win Friday, but the hosts answered back with a 4-2 win
Saturday. While Harvard had the better league record between the
two teams, Dartmouth has been ranked higher in the national polls
since taking down No. 2 Cornell, 4-2, Feb. 18, the Big Red's only
conference loss of the season.
Two Down But Not Out
No team has scored a goal against the Crimson with a two-skater
advantge this season. Harvard stopped RPI on a two-skater advantage
in a 2-1 loss Jan. 8 and then killed another two-skater advantage
in its next game, a 2-1 win over St. Lawrence. The Crimson kept
Rensselaer scoreless on two separate 5-on-3 scenarios in a 2-1 win
at Bright Jan. 21. Harvard also killed a pair of 5-on-3 situations
against Quinnipiac Feb. 5, enabling a 3-2 comeback win. Harvard
also killed a 5-on-3 chance in the 6-1 win over St. Lawrence in the
ECAC quarterfinals.
Give Me an "O"
The Crimson has had its best results this season when it scores
more than two goals. Harvard has scored four or more goals nine
times this season and has captured wins in all nine games. The
Crimson is 6-2-3 in games it scores three goals, its only losses
coming to No. 4/5 Boston University in a 5-3 final and No. 2
Cornell in a 4-3 game.
Block You Like a Hurricane
A big reason that Harvard has been so successful in limiting
opponents' shots on goal has been the team's penchant for blocking
shots. Heading into the weekend, Harvard has out-blocked its
opponents, 436-311. In 31 games played this season, the Crimson has
registered more blocked shots than its opponent in a game 22 times.
Harvard has also topped the 20-block barrier five times this season
with the most blocked shots in a game coming in the season opener
against Yale where 33 shots never made it to the goalie.
Four Pack
The Crimson scored four or more goals in a three-game stretch from
Jan. 22-29. Harvard blanked Union and Brown by identical 4-0 scores
and downed Yale, 5-3. The last time Harvard put together a streak
of three, four-goal games was Feb. 2-6, 2010, which was kicked off
with a 5-0 win over Boston College in the opening round of the
Beanpot.
Getting It Done on the Road
With the weekend sweep of Brown and Yale Jan. 28-29, the Crimson
recorded it's first road weekend sweep since Nov. 20-21, 2009, when
it also topped Yale and Brown in their home rinks. Harvard also
upped its season road record to .500 for the first time in two
months, with a 7-7-2 mark on visiting ice this season.
Timing is Everything
January was a month to remember for the Crimson. After posting
sub-.500 records inNovember and December, Harvard recorded its best
January record since the 2007-08 season, posting a 7-1-0 mark.
Saturdays have also been favorable for the Crimson this season, as
Harvard has a 9-2-1 record in Saturday games and a 11-4-3 record in
afternoon contests.
Rookie Campaigns
This years roster featured seven freshmen: goaltender Lauren
Joarnt, Kalley
Armstrong, Lyndsey
Fry, Marissa Gedman, Gina McDonald, Elizabeth Parker andJackie
Young.
Here is a look at their stats in their first full regular season
with the Crimson:
Marissa Gedman: 4g, 9a, 13 pts
Lyndsey Fry: 6g, 4a, 10 pts
Kalley Armstrong: 5g, 3a, 8 pts
Gina McDonald: 1g, 4a, 5 pts
Elizabeth Parker: 2g, 3a, 5 pts
Jackie Young: 0g, 3a, 3 pts
Lauren Joarnt: 1-1-1, 3.04 GAA, .852 save %
It's All Over
Harvard is 123-2-6 (.960) since the start of the 2004-05 season
when leading after two periods. The Crimson is 12-0-0 this season
in such games.
Bright Spot
Harvard recorded an 8-3-1 record at Bright through the 2010-11
regular season. The Crimson owned a 14-4-3 record at Bright
Hockey Center in 2009-10, and posted a 6-4-2 mark on the
road. Since Harvard hosted the Beanpot in 2009-10, the
Crimson played no neutral-site games.
