"It's definitely a lot of fun to get together and see my brother for a game," Doug said. "Not many people have the opportunity to play with their brother at this level. Besides, it makes the Yale game much more interesting--I don't want to lose to my brother."

"I look forward to playing Yale," Scott said. "My brother and I follow each other's teams so it's a chance to stack up against each other. But during a game I think of him as just another player on the other team--I don't treat him any differently."

The Harvard-Yale games are therefore always an event for the Sproule and Turco families, giving them a chance to see everyone in action at once.

"The games are always an especially good opportunity for my family to watch my brother and I at the same time," Scott said. "Our grandparents, parents, aunts and uncles--everyone comes to the games. So it's always a big game for us."

Deciding how to cheer, and whom to cheer for, however, can get a bit tricky.

"My parents usually just root for one team or the other depending upon which one of us is currently skating," Doug said. "They cheer for us as players, not for one team or the other."

Whether currently teammates or rivals, it was commonly agreed that growing up playing the same sport had a definite positive impact on the brothers' abilities and provided for a healthy competitive spirit.

"It's great having brothers in the same sport that can compete with you and encourage you," Doug said. "There were always two people I could count on being willing and able to play against for fun, and for summer pick-up games, I knew that there would always be at least two other people that could skate out there."

"When we were younger, Liam used to get pretty sick of me always beating him," Jeremiah said. "But he's catching up to me quickly, and I think it's great that we are competing on the same level now--it's a lot of fun."

Regardless of current team arrangements, it is certain that the enthusiasm, athletic ability and competitive spirit gained through growing up as a member of a hockey family will doubtless benefit these Crimson icemen.

The Harvard men's hockey team therefore, is fortunate to count so many hockey brothers among its team members.