"What makes us go on offense is our freedom to be creative," Botterill said. "We have fast forwards who are good skaters, and that allows us to do different things to create scoring opportunities."

But the offense will sorely miss Ruggiero (21 g, 33 a), the nation's highest-scoring defenseman for the past two seasons. Ruggiero had a bullet for a slapshot from the blueline and she could take the puck on defense and skate through traffic to score unassisted.

Suurkask (6 g, 11a) and Dunn (7 g, 9 a), who have worked well together on the second line for three years but have not yet emerged as go-to scorers, will be expected to increase their offensive production in Ruggiero's absence. Sophomore Tracy Catlin (5 g, 3 a) and newcomers Mina Pell and Lauren McAuliffe will also see plenty of shifts with a small roster.

Stone said she probably won't keep consistent lines throughout the course of the season or even individual games. Instead, she expects Botterill, Ingram and the seniors to play several positions and do a lot of double-shifting to maximize their scoring opportunities.

"We're going to do what we have to to have our best players on the ice," Stone said. "We have plenty of attackers and so much firepower on offense, especially on the power-play. Everyone has to realize that they will just have to go out there and do the best they can for as long as they can if we are going to be successful."

Excessive double-shifting means Harvard players will be more tired than teams that can play three lines for three periods. But the Crimson is ready for the challenge.

"We are getting into great shape in practice," Botterill said. "Having a small team helps team chemistry because we're all focused and we know everyone is going to have to contribute."

Of course, the undermanned Crimson will need plenty of help from its goaltenders as its last line of defense. Junior Alison Kuusisto, who started between the pipes when Harvard beat New Hampshire in the 1998-99 national championship game, is the only experienced netminder on the squad. As the backup to Crystal Springer last season, Kuusisto played in nine games, posting a 2.58 goals-against average and a .888 save percentage.