While for many coaches, finding recruits is usually like panning for gold in the Charles, Harvard men's hockey Coach Ronn Tomassoni has picked up nine freshman gems for the Crimson's Friday night season opener.

Last year, only three freshmen skated for the 13-14-1 squad. This year's bunch brings back youth to the team, with one more rookie hitting the ice than in the 1988-89 championship season.

After the graduation of four key Crimson defenders, the freshmen will provide valuable help at the blue line: Derek Maguire, Sean McCann, Sean Wenham and Lou Body are the depth chart at right defense, although not necessarily in that order.

"We needed some freshman on defense," said Tomassoni, who did most of the recruiting himself last year as associate coach. "We found them."

A ninth-round Montreal Canadiens draft pick this spring, Maguire joins junior Brian McCormack at the blue line. The New Jersey native, who Tomassoni describes as a "punishing type player," with a "heavy, accurate shot," also joins the power pay.

Maguire came to Harvard--instead of Princeton, RPI or Dartmouth--because he liked the coach and the program. Along with his classmates, however, the Wigglesworth resident did not think twice when Tomassoni replaced former Coach Bill Cleary at the helm.

"I had enough faith in the program," said Wenham, who was informed by Cleary that Tomassoni would be his probable succesor. "[Tomassoni's] the greatest guy in hockey I've ever met."

Wenham, who hails from nearby Duxbury, teams with junior Rich DeFreitas to form another freshman-veteran Crimson defensive pair. Wenham's older brother Scott starts at defense for the University of Lowell squad.

"Sunday's game [a 6-1 exhibition victory over Western Ontario] was a good way to break in," the Boston Globe All-Scholastic player said. "I played for a Division II public high school. From that to Sunday was a jump.

"I'm used to playing almost the whole game, feeling at ease and in control," Wenham added. "Sunday, I was just fighting to make the basic play."

McCann, who spent last year playing Junior B for the Thornhill Thunderbirds in Canada, plays the point with junior Kevin Sneddon.

The adjustments to college hockey for the Ontario native will be more stylistic.

"Sean's a very aggressive player," Tomassoni said. "His strength is in his own end."

"This is more of a speed and finesse game," the 6-ft., 180 lb. McCann said. "I hope that will change a bit... personally, I like the physical game more."

Big Body