Four years ago at this same time a stocky sophomore from (of all places) Hotchkiss stood in front of the Harvard hockey net as the starting goalie for the first time. And it took three seasons and a graduation before we all realized how good he was and how much we are going to miss him.

It's no secret that Brian Petrovek won't be starting in goal tonight for the Harvard hockey team. He is no longer eligible to make spectacular saves at the collegiate level.

A Tough Task

And tonight Coach Billy Cleary will attempt to fill Petrovek's skates with yet another sophomore fresh from prep school. John Hynes last Thursday was given the starting nod in the nets for tonight's season opener against Dartmouth by Cleary, and Hynes has had four days to think about the job that he has, for now, inherited.

"First of all, there are many similarities between us and Dartmouth." Hynes said yesterday. "We both are skating teams, we both use the same type of power play, and we both will have rookie goaltenders starting on Tuesday."

"I like to think that things are in my favor, in that I'm starting at home and will have the crowd behind me," he added.

It also doesn't hurt having Petrovek as your teacher; Hynes and the other young goalies have been treated daily to the secrets and techniques of the former All-American netminder who now helps out Cleary.

"I hope I can do half of what Petro has done for the last three years Tuesday night. Then I'll be more than satisfied," Hynes said.

Hynes won't be alone out there at Watson tonight, though, as the Crimson boasts a strong nucleus of defensemen returning from the squad that last year allowed the fewest goals in the East--and maybe the nation.

Only Jon Schuster, who graduated last spring, and Bobby Fowkes will not be present tonight. Sophomore Fowkes, a standout last year as a freshman, is lost until February because of academic difficulties.

That leaves for tonight's defense pairings Jack Hughes and Jack Dunderdale, Kevin O'Donoghue and Jimmy Trainor, and Bob Leckie and Jim Liston.

Stellar Siblings

The younger brother of offensive machine George Hughes, Jack captured ECAC rookie-of-the-year honors as a freshman last season, to go along with berths on the All-Ivy first team and the All-ECAC second squad. Hughes also finished fourth for Harvard in scoring with five goals and 16 assists. Junior Dunderdale saw no varsity action last season, but was last seen on the big club as a freshman during the ECAC consolation game against Cornell in March of 1976.

O'Donoghue and Trainor, a senior and a junior, respectively, both begin their third seasons with the varsity. During the past two campaigns, both have shown flashes of brilliance as both scorers and back-checkers.

A pair of seniors, "Sonny" Liston and Leckie, will team brain with brawn as the third defense tandem.