A Saintly Horde

Boston Garden was transformed into a bigger Bright Center Saturday when the Harvard men's hockey team played St. Lawrence in the final of the ECAC Tournament. But the usual Harvard cheers, for the home rink, seemed strangely rude in the Garden.

Maybe the opponent had something to do with it. The SLU fans are known for their gentle spirits, so when the "You're not a goalie, you're a sieve...you're not a black hole, you just suck!" cheer burst from the Harvard contingent it seemed most ungracious.

The SLU band tried to compensate for these harsh antics only by playing loudly. When the game was nearly over-and Harvard was well on its way to its fourth ECAC Title in 26 years-the Crimson fans yelled, "Hey, St. Lawrence, start saying your prayers."

Whatever the behavior of the Harvard spectators, one thing was certain: the Crimson victory was heavenly. After the game, the Harvard band draped a banner over the glass that proclaimed the Crimson ECAC Champion. The cloth banner fell to the ice once and Harvard forward Steve Armstrong triumphantly lifted it back over with his stick.

Lane MacDonald and other Crimson skaters went over to the fans and received high-fives and hand shakes. Harvard Coach Bill Cleary, upon receiving the ECAC Trophy, insisted that his assistant coach, Ronn Tommasoni, come out for presentation as well.

Cleary also dragged Tommasoni to the post-game press conference and made him say a few words. Assistant coaches are rarely treated to such a forum.