Although the departure of Cornell's Ned Harkness from the collegiate coaching brotherhood last week was a delightful occurrence for those who have always liked to remember Eastern hockey as it used to be, there is an excellent chance that his influence at Cornell will become more pervasive, if less direct, than it has been.

Cornell owes a lot to Harkness. In less than three years, he transformed the Big Red from the laughing stock of the Ivy League to an Eastern powerhouse, and the hockey reputation that he fostered at Ithaca will draw superb prospects there for seasons to come.

But Harkness owes something to Cornell, too, and this may partially explain his reported agreement to continue to reside in Ithaca and "help out" with the Big Red hockey program.

Harkness had the technical knowhow and the recruiting prowess to make any school into a hockey factory. But he needed a place that condoned that kind of program, a place whose academic reputation would be strong enough to attract people who didn't just want three letters in hockey to show for four years at college. Cornell gave Harkness carte blanche to construct his awesome machines, admitted the Canadian imports he wanted, covered him when he went out of bounds (as in the McGuinn case), and sat back to enjoy the results-five Ivy championships, four ECAC titles, and two NCAA crowns.

At Any Cost

So the Harkness reputation was golden, and justifiably so: his hockey philosophy will fit in beautifully in the NHL, where "win-at-any-cost" is the staff of life Unfortunately, that kind of attitude will stay at Cornell, too, if Harkness goes through with his alleged intention to remain affiliated with the program, if only as an advisor.

As long as Harkness stays around Ithaca, his reputation as dynasty-builder and Red Wing coach will draw the kind of player Cornell needs to stay on top. And since Harkness will have no "official" capacity at Cornell, he will be free to use whatever measures he needs to recruit that talent. In addition, the man who replaced him. Dick Bertrand, is a walking stereotype of the Harkness player-28 years old, a former Canadian mountie who skated for Cornell last winter, and who was ineligible for the NCAA tournament. Plus ca change, plus cest la meme chose.