Harvard Takes First Playoff Game

March 2, 2007

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - Dylan Reese had two goals and an assist as Harvard overcame a 2-0 deficit with five straight goals to take the first game of the best-of-three ECAC Hockey League playoff series at Bright Hockey Center.

Yale's inability to stay of the penalty box combined with Harvard's lethal special teams was the difference. The Crimson tallied four times with the man-advantage (nine chances) and limited the Blue on most of its chances. Yale was one-for-seven with the extra man.

Sophomore Eli goalie Alec Richards stopped all seven shots in the first and finished with 23 saves but did not get enough help killing off the penalties.

Justin Tobe, Harvard's senior between the pipes, made 16 stops and did not allow a goal after two strange scores by the visitors in the opening frame. It helped that his teammates outshot Yale 28-18.

Both squads had early power-play chances but only Harvard truely put sustained offensive pressure on a goalie. That is until Yale had it second opportunity in the first period. Chris Cahill (8th goal) took the puck low around the boards and fired an off-angle shot that bounced off the back of Tobe's leg and into the back of the net at 7:26 for a 1-0 Yale lead. The visitors first shot on goal wasn't really on target but they were more than happy to take it.

Yale, without the services of its top two scorers, Sean Backman and Mark Arcobello, made it 2-0 with an even-strength tally 1:44 before the first intermission. Junior defenseman Robert Page (3rd) picked a clearing attempt along the boards out of the air like a seasoned goalie and fired it back at the Harvard net. A Crimson defender apparently got a stick on it before it reached Tobe because the puck took a funny hop into the upper right corner.

The Blue tallied once on five powerplay chances in the opening frame, while the Crimson went 0-for-2. Both teams had seven shots on goal.

Harvard cashed in on its third opportunity with the man-advantage when its captain, Reese (6th), playing the point, skated with the puck away from the boards and then fired a low shot from the top of the circle inside the far post to make it 2-1 at 6:41 of the second.

The home team made it two in a row up a man and it was Reese in on the goal again. This time the Harvard blueliner took a short crossing pass and took a few steps before wristing one from the high slot that found its way through traffic on the ice and bounced off Jimmy Fraser's (6th)stick at 14:05 to even the score at 2-2 and end the scoring in a period that had Harvard with the edge (9-7) in shots.

The Bulldogs had hope to take the lead back late in the second with another powerplay, but two bad things happened as the buzzer sounded. Yale forward Brad Mills interfered with a Harvard defender in the crease and then Page slashed a Cantab before heading his bench. That gave the home boys a 4-on-3 to start the third the impetus to take the lead.

Reese (7th) fired a low shot from the high slot that went past Richards' stick 75 seconds in to make it 3-2 with Harvard's third power-play score of the night.

The Bulldogs had trouble staying out of the box and it killed them against the ECACHL's best powerplay. Harvard notched its fourth PPG at 5:34 to take a two-goal lead when Doug Rogers (7th) one-timed a blast from the dot inside the near post.

A wrap-around goal with 6:57 left by Alex Meintel (14th) was icing on the cake for the Cantabs, who have won their last three and earned their first win of the season against Yale.

Bulldog Bites

Backman and Arcobello, who have combined for 28 goals, 55 points and 185 shots, were both nonhealthy scratches from Friday's lineup and are day-to-day for the weekend. It was the first time this season either rookie had missed a game... The Elis had seven Massachusetts natives dressed for the game compared to just three for Harvard... Cahill now has four goals in his last five games.

report filed by Steve Conn, Yale Sports Publicity Director