The Harvard men's hockey team can perform an ECAC magic trick tonight and turn a 10-9-2 2 record into a home ice advantage in the quarterfinal of this weekend's conference tournament.

It the icemen beat or the Brown tonight at Bright Center (game time 7:30 p.m.), then they advance to the playoffs.

Fortunately for Harvard and unfortunately for your sense of abstract justice the winner of each of the three ECAC divisions gains the home ice advantage in the journey's opening round of eight. The divine forces that shaped the ECAC never imagined that the best team in one of the division would ever limp through the 21 game campaign with just as many losses as wins and thus reduce the playoff to an NHL style you get invited if you don't manage to lose 80 percent of your games along the way.

But the Crimson icemen are opportunists and willing to take advantage of the last year of this generous ECAC arrangement that has several Ivy division teams scrambling to finish a game act 500 and then hast a powerhouse in the friendly confines of its own arena.

And in the friendly confines of its own arena. Harvard looks to be a good bet tonight. The Brains are playing out a frustrating season (most 5-14-1 commerence capaigns are frustrating aren't they.

Brown has only two seniors, so the fact that tonight will be the last hockey game for the 1983-84 Bruin seems of little consequence although one of the soon to be former players is Bruin netminder Paul McCarthy.

"Both the seniors are from the Boston area," says Bruin Coach Herb Hammond. "Paul's from Bingham and Brain (Driscoll) is from Dorchester. You don't have to say Harvard twice to them.

You certainly don't have to say Brown twice to the Crimson.

"I want the win," says Harvard Coach Bill Clearly. "I've never played for a tie in my life well it if comes to that. I'll take a tie.

So while the Crimson is playing for a chance to extend up and down and up and down season for a little longer the Bruins are playing the role of the spoiler.

"It's the Hertz Avis deal," Hammond says. "We're Avis."

Hammond may try harder and so may his troops. Regardless there is little doubt that the Bruins will be ready to play their biggest rival.

Just ask the biggest Harvard forward senior Gary Martin, "It'll tickle them to death to be the spoiler.

Just don't try the tickling Martin Hockey players his size have a mild tendency to return such affectionate gestures by plastering would be gift givers all over the nearest corner glass.

Martin has a feeling that if his team does beat the Bruins then the Crimson might just win the quarterfinal games at Bright and advance to the semis at the Garden.