Sheehy, a 6-ft., 2-in., native of Fort Francis, Ontario, played in 31 games for the Flames last year.

And even Kwong, the famous China Clipper, has a Crimson tie of his own--his son, Brad, captained the '84-'85 Harvard men's hockey squad.

Crimson Potential

"I think it's just a fact that the Calgary people like the program here at Harvard," MacDonald says. "They like how Coaches Cleary and Tomassoni develop players--there's a lot of potential for people to improve out of Harvard, and they like what they've gotten so far."

Blair agrees: "I really don't know how the connection got started, but it probably started with Neil Sheehy. They looked at him and saw they got a good player out of Harvard."

Nevertheless, it would be overly indulgent to dwell on what is probably little more than coincidence.

However, the coincidence actually reveals a definite trend--a trend which encompasses but also reaches beyond Harvard.

"It's less of a Harvard connection than a U.S. college connection," says Eric Duhatschek, hockey correspondent for the Calgary Herald.

"All I know is that the Calgary Flames have the most ex-college players in their organization," Biotti said. "They believe in the college player over the junior league player."

And the roots of this burgeoning interest can be loosely traced to the success of the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey squad.

Since that squad captured the gold medal in Lake Placid, N.Y., professional teams like the Flames have gradually realized that the Canadian junior leagues are no longer the only breeding ground for the NHL--Harvard and other undergraduate institutions are spawning top-caliber players as well.

Preparation

"They [American college students] are certainly more equipped than players coming out of juniors, and I don't think five years ago that was true," Duhatschek says. "I don't know if it's because they're older. In school, they have a good time, they party pretty good, and they're men by the time they get here.

"A player matures mentally and physically in school, and it makes him more ready to step into the NHL than your average 17-year-old," he adds.

The case of Sheehy is a clear example. After spending just a year in the minors, he has now found a permanent niche with Calgary.