PROVIDENCE, R.I. – So maybe he is mortal after all.

Yann Danis was a Hobey Baker candidate, one of the nation’s elite goaltenders and the cornerstone of Brown’s emerging program before this weekend’s ECAC quarterfinal opened. He still is all of those things.

But even great goaltenders have less-than-great games. Danis had one last night. Harvard skated and passed superbly, clamped down defensively and received stellar goaltending of its own in a 4-2 victory before a hushed 1,471 at Meehan Auditorium.

The Crimson, which has lost only one of its last eight, plays the Bears again at 7 p.m. tonight. A win clinches the best-of-three series and sends Harvard to the ECAC semifinals for the fourth straight season.

“Even the greatest goalies have holes,” said Crimson assistant captain Tyler Kolarik, who finished with a goal and an assist, his 19th and 20th career ECAC tournament points. “The kid’s human, just like Patrick Roy is human.

“Not taking anything away from him, because he’s certainly a terrific goaltender. But when you get your confidence going, and get going to the net, good things happen.”

Harvard had four “good things” Friday. Each came on a truly well-executed scoring play.

The Crimson scored more goals against Danis in each of yesterday’s final two periods (two) than over two regular season games (one).

Junior defenseman Noah Welch had the first, only 24 seconds into the second. He took a cross-ice transition pass from Tom Cavanagh, crept into the left circle and teed up a weapons-grade slapper that eluded Danis to the glove side.

That snapped a 74:20 shutout streak for Danis against Harvard, dating back to Brown’s Jan. 31 win.

“Good feeling to get the first one for our team,” Welch said. “He’s a great goaltender.”

The Crimson followed up on that momentum throughout the first half of the period. This was free-skating, Harvard hockey—not the clamp-it-down, trap-tastic style Brown employed with great success during the opening period.

Then came a breakdown. Crimson captain Kenny Smith’s clearing attempt was kept in at the blue line by Dylan Row, who sent it back into the corner. From there, Brent Robinson beat Kevin Du off the wall and stuffed the tying goal five-hole on junior Dov Grumet-Morris.

But Harvard moved ahead to stay at 15:24, when Kolarik squeezed a sharp-angle goal past Danis for a 2-1 lead. Both sides agreed that was the biggest goal of the game.

Said Kolarik: “I figured, ‘Why not?’…I just fired it. I didn’t think he was ready.”