It was the best of times. It was the worst of times.

Although a saying that accurately defines usual college careers, the 1994-95 Harvard men's hockey team experienced equal amounts of both.

The Crimson (14-14-2, 12-9-1 ECAC regular season, third place) came into the season with high expectations. Sporting News' preseason college hockey poll ranked Harvard fourth in the country, while the Troy Record's college hockey poll ranked the Crimson sixth.

With returning ECAC Player of the Year and first-team All-America senior Steve Martins at center, as well as a host of defensemen that held opponents to under 20 shots a game several times last year, the team looked ready to repeat the previous year's trip to the NCAA semifinals.

But this season marked a falling out of the scoring punch that led the Crimson into the spotlight, as the team struggled to live up to the increasingly high expectations. Of the five players who averaged a point a game last year, only one remained in that elite category when the 1994-95 season finished--Martins.

In fact, Martins' presence served as the beacon for the team, leading it on through the night in victory. But Harvard quickly learned that those who live by the sword, die by it as well. This was no better exhibited than by the last game's linescore: "Martins (unassisted)" was the squad's only tally, as the supreme effort of the squad could not amount to anything further.

Apart from the team's reliance on Martins, the other extraordinary talent on the team often did not show up for a full three periods. Several times Harvard would fall behind early and by huge margins, only to mount a fierce comeback only to be ended just short at the final buzzer.

Lady Luck also seemed to be working against the Crimson this year, as nearly every goalie who stood in net for the opposition seemed to have his best game of the year. Mike Tamburro of RPI shut down the Crimson forwards in the ECAC quarterfinals. Princeton, Vermont, Union and Yale also had their netminders come up big, while Harvard seemed to have as many goals waived off and last-minute disasters strike.

Harvard began by shocking the nation--struggling to a 4-5-1 record, including a paltry 3-3-1 at the friendly confines of the Bright Hockey Center. The Crimson would then lose eight of the 15 games it would play at home this season, after losing just eight games at home in the previous six years combined. Also, by this point Harvard had fallen out of the national rankings and would not return.

However, bright spots would emerge at different times during the season: returning junior goalie Tripp Tracy had the game of a lifetime against Brown on December 3rd--a game televised on ESPN2. But then, the squad was trounced once again by a Hockey East opponent on December 7th, losing 5-2 to New Hampshire in Cambridge.

On December 10, Harvard began a road stretch that would eventually span seven games and bring the Crimson to such exotic places such as Fairbanks, Alaska, 10 miles from Canada in upstate New York and Burlington, Vermont. The road seemed to be the only rest and relaxation for the Crimson, who went 6-1 on that road stretch.

Harvard was 10-6-1 entering February, but stumbled through February and March, going 4-8-1 in a series of roller-coaster rides.

February also means Beanpot time for the Crimson, and this year's opening round matchup against Boston College was not Harvard's shining moment. Harvard allowed four goals in the first period, then in a gallant effort rallied in the third stanza, only to fall 7-6.

The season could be characterized by a typical weekend such as February 24th and 25th. A Harvard squad of old turned things around in a 5-3 win at RPI, as Martins seemed to be all over the ice and the Engineers in the Friday night shootout. But the Mr. Hyde of the weekend again bore his ugly head--Union scored early and often on Saturday, before Harvard made it close late in a 5-3 loss.

The last regular season weekend of the year witnessed yet another split, as Harvard poured it on against St. Lawrence, before dropping a heartbreaker against Clarkson to close out the season.