It was Littman who kept B.C. alive in Harvard's OT win earlier this year--the closest Harvard came to a loss until last Tuesday's 3-1 fall at Yale. There, Eli goalie Mike O'Neill made the difference.

"Down at Yale we ran into a hot goalie, and whether it's at B.C. or at Yale, whenever you do that it makes things tough," senior Josh Caplan said.

Littman has a 12-4-3 record and .900 save percentage, and turned away 44 shots last time he faced Harvard.

"In a game against [Harvard], the goaltending has to be the most important factor," Boston College Coach Len Ceglarski said. "[Littman's] going to be one of the keys."

Harvard will have its own weapon in the net--Hughes, who earned the win in the earlier meeting of the two teams. For Hughes, the B.C. game was the highlight of the early season, and the Beanpot is more than just another tournament.

"When I was a little bit younger, all I dreamed about was playing in the Beanpot," Hughes said. "I can remember watching so many games in the stands and thinking about being there."

Northeastern-B.U.

The 9 p.m. semifinal pairs Northeastern with Boston University, two teams that have had a few problems this season.

For Northeastern (14-11-2 overall, 10-10-2 Hockey East), the problems have been off, rather than on the ice. Six players have sat the bench for "disciplinary reasons," but the Huskies have still managed to stay near the top of the Hockey East standings.

B.U. (12-15-1 overall, 9-11-1 Hockey East) has been struggling to reach the .500 mark all season.

"If anybody's the underdog, we're the guy," B.U. Coach Jack Parker said. "But this has been an underdog's tournament. That's a real key to the success of the Beanpot. Anybody can win it on a given night."