Clarkson netminder Dustin Traylen made the initial stop but had no answer for Bernakevitch’s quick stick-work in front that gave Harvard a lead it would never relinquish.

“We have five very skilled players on the power play,” Pettit said. “We move the puck around, opens up lanes…open up seams. [If we] keep doing that, we’ll keep getting power play goals.”

PENALTY KILL

Somewhat overshadowed in favor of the power play’s re-emergence was the strong play of Harvard’s penalty killers. Over the whole weekend, the Crimson allowed only one conversion in 10 chances, and managed to win the game against Clarkson with a strong defensive effort.

The most important penalty kill of the night, and perhaps of the season, came with 2:37 left in the contest when senior defenseman Dave McCulloch took an ill-advised slashing penalty. Faced with a one-goal deficit and playing a man-up, the Golden Knights pushed up and pressured Harvard.

With 1:22 left and a draw coming just inside the blue line of the Harvard zone, Clarkson pulled Traylen in favor of a sixth skater. That left the Crimson down 6-to-4.

Clarkson managed to win that important face off and held the puck in the zone, but it couldn’t find an opening in the Harvard defense before the 82 seconds had expired.

“It was a huge penalty kill on our part in the third period,” junior goaltender Dov Grumet-Morris said.

His coach agreed.

“Our penalty kill was exceptional, and power play good,” Mazzoleni said.

—Staff writer Timothy M. McDonald can be reached at tmcdonal@fas.harvard.edu.