Harvard's hockey team struggled through nearly three months of frustration trying to win a big game, but last night the Crimson won the biggest one of all. Facing almost certain elimination in the ECAC playoffs, Harvard stunned 14,000 fans in Boston Garden and probably themselves as well with a 4-2 upset over the top ranked team in the country, Boston University.

Harvard's near perfect execution in literally every aspect of its game earned the Crimson the chance to play the victim of its second best game of the season, Clarkson, in the finals tonight at nine Clarkson topped Cornell, 4-1, in a semi-upset before the Harvard-B. U. game.

Offensively, Harvard was a three, not a two, line team last night. Third liners Tommy Paul, Jay Riley, and Harry Reynolds fore-checked extremely well and produced a goal. The second line played its usual close-checking game, digging in the corners and scoring as well. And the first line played both ways last night, back-checking with unusual tenacity to tie up the fast-breaking B.U. forwards that ruined the Crimson in the Beanpot.

Defensively, Harvard played its best game of the season. Goalie Bruce Durno kicked out 27 shots, and time and again the Crimson's defense-men cleared away loose pucks and B. U. forwards.

Penalties

Perhaps the most clear-cut, if not most significant factor in the game, was Harvard's ability to stay away from the penalty box. Harvard did not incur one penalty against the Terriers, preventing B.U. from mounting its power play, the best in the East.

B. U. also managed to avoid numerous penalties, but its only two infractions enabled Harvard's power play to give the Crimson a 1-0 edge in the first period. Dave Hynes registered that opening goal, knocking in Joe Cavanagh's perfect centering pass.

Harvard upped its lead to 2-0 before the period ended as Billy Corkery and Bob McManama duplicated the Hynes-from-Cavanagh play at 15:21. The Crimson did not let up in the second period, scoring on Jay. Riley's solo rush and deflected thirty-foot wrist shot.

B. U. finally came back with a goal at 14:31, but once again Harvard stretched its lead to three, scoring on somewhat of a fluke goal in the first minute of the final period. Dan DiMichele notched this unexpected gift, whipping a centering pass from behind the cage off the B.U. goalie's leg into the net.

Once more B. U. came back to score but by this time the game was out of reach. As B.U.'s Jack Kelly fumed on the bench, B.U. saw its national championship hopes disappear.