“I don’t differentiate between the freshmen-sophomores and the junior-seniors,” Mazzoleni says. “When I was a senior at Michigan State, we changed coaches. The new guy came in and it was his guys versus the old guys. And it left a sour taste in my mouth.”
He wants his players to stretch each other in practice and push one another for playing time in games. When there is someone waiting in the wings to take their job, Mazzoleni believes it brings out the best in players.
“You can be Vince Lombardi…but those kids have to understand that they have to be accountable to be good in practice and good in games,” he says. “And if they’re not, there has to be someone pushing them that we’ll give a shot.”
That’s part of the Mazzoleni mentality. The early returns seem to show it is working.
So well, in fact, that it is easy to forget that this team is still a work in progress. A number of schools, namely any of the eleven Harvard edged for the ECAC title, would die for a work in progress like Mazzoleni’s. Nevertheless, the team’s youth and inexperience have been evident at times during the season.
“Eighteen year-old freshmen and even many sophomores are not physically or mentally mature enough to really play at the NCAA level,” Mazzoleni says. “There are going to be some inconsistencies.”
The playoffs are short, however, which often lends itself to upsets by younger teams.
“It’s only been four games,” Mazzoleni says. “Part of it is just getting hot at the right time.”
No. 6 Maine, the Crimson’s first-round opponent in the NCAA tournament Saturday, has the experience, the talent and the history, but that doesn’t faze Mazzoleni.
“These [Harvard] kids are green enough they don’t have a clue,” Mazzoleni says. “They are just going to go out and play and attack them.”
Whether the Crimson wins this weekend and advances to the Frozen Four or not, these freshmen and sophomores will almost certainly be back to the NCAA tournament, and the growing pains Harvard has suffered these past two seasons may ultimately pay greater dividends.
“These young kids have played since day one,” Mazzoleni says. “They are getting more experience than most freshmen get and playing at critical points in the game and in the season. The freshmen and sophomores have gotten a lot of ice that next year’s kids simply won’t get because there are established players in those positions.”
Mazzoleni has always been building for the future. It just happens the future might have arrived a little ahead of schedule.
“In the first year, we wanted to play hard and disciplined,” Mazzoleni says. “In the second year, we wanted home-ice, Lake Placid and a winning record. This year, we wanted more of the same and to get to the championship game at Lake Placid.”
Harvard got to the championship game. It just decided to keep moving on.
“Don’t call me a prophet, because I’m not,” Mazzoleni says. “But if you get to the championship game, anything can happen. That’s how you get in the tournament.”
It is that quiet confidence that at times defines Mazzoleni. He knows the task before him and his players is difficult. He also knows they are the underdogs.
For any Crimson fan dreaming of a trip to Minnesota, the past may be the best hope for the future.
“When I went to [my first head coaching job at the University of Wisconsin-] Stevens Point, they’d never had a winning record,” Mazzoleni says. “In our third year, we were in the NCAA tournament, and in our fourth, fifth and sixth years, we won national championships.”
Mazzoleni’s history and Harvard history are convering quite nicely. If things continue to go the Crimson’s way, there will be a new chapter to write in Harvard hockey lore.