As the rocket crescendo of Harvard's 1936 hockey fortunes burns out and fades in the night, fans turn their attentions towards the 1937 season and speculate whether it, too, will see a bold niches burned into the tablet of hockey records, or whether the team will fizzle through the season a complete dud. Although a prediction as to the season's outcome is as worthless as a weather prediction for Boston based on a recent snow flurry in Japan, a statement of paper potentialities is not wholly beside the point. And Harvard's potentialities are good.

Heavy Toll From Graduation

Of the seventeen men who can be be selected as first string this year, Harvard loses nine as against five graduated from last year's squad. The four Senior forwards, Captain Freddy Moseley of the first line, and Dewey, Hovenanian and Hallowell, alone possess as much attacking power as most any of the teams faced this year. The three defense men, Jim Roberts, Dick Claflin, and Thorny Brown, could have substituted for any in the league. And the two goalies, Ash Emerson and Bob Waldinger, are worthy of any varsity. Leo Ecker, whose severe leg fracture is apparently healing well, will join George Ford and Louis Carr, the other Juniors on the playing squad.

Strong Skeleton Remains

Remaining behind to carry on are six good forwards and two good defense men. The Sophomore line of George Roberts, Johnny Mechem, and Ned Cutter, shows the possibility of a great career. With plenty of speed and teamwork they furnished the spark of the Harvard attack this year. The three Juniors who played this year will supplement the Sophomore line with offensive power. They are George Ford, a great center, Louis Carr, and Leo Ecker, whose severe leg fracture is apparently healing well. Stubbs will have one good veteran defense pair in Sophomore Traff Hicks and Russ Allen. Two others who stayed with the Varsity squad all season and will be back next year, are John Callaway, a Junior forward, and Gene Emerson, a Sophomore defense man. The only goalies Stubbs can count on from the upper classes are Nort Kidder and George Mahoney, Juniors who played ably for the Jayvees.

Freshmen Offer Material

But the oncoming Freshmen, with an undefeated record under their belts and a 9-1 victory over Yale, will offer Joe Stubbs some good material to work on. Captain Austie Harding will have a forward berth for sure. Of the other '39 forwards Stone, Scaife, Jamison and Hunnewell show promise, while Fearon is potent on defense. For the goalie position the class of '39 has three men to offer, none of them great. Of the three Wilder is the strongest, closely followed by Irving and Johnson.

Greatest Weakness at Net

It requires no master mind to discern that Harvard's paper potentialities for next year are not as bright as they were at the beginning of the 1935-'36 season. As Stubbs himself said, "Harvard had everything this year. Our fourth line, and third defense pair would have placed well on most any other team we played." But in spite of its losses, the Crimson squad will begin the coming season with as good material as any of the other league members. Stubbs' toughest problem is to find a good net-tender, and the outcome of the season may depend on his success here. The solution of this and other problems we now leave to those to whom it belongs, the 1937 squad, Joe Stubbs, and the hands of Fate.