Vermont coach Kevin Sneddon ’92 suspended himself for one game following a post-game tirade last Friday evening in which he lambasted the officiating crew supervising the Catamounts’ controversial 3-2 home loss to Clarkson.

Throughout the tongue lashing, Sneddon singled out referee John Murphy, who, after arriving at the rink with just minutes remaining in the second period, issued three straight penalties to UVM, then disallowed a Catamount tally that would have tied the score with 14 seconds to play, according to the Burlington Free Press.

So just how bad were Murphy’s calls?

“It’s inexcusable,” Sneddon said immediately following the conclusion of the contest. “He’s been awful all year and he continues to be awful. That’s why he won’t be reffing in the future, but you know what? He shouldn’t be reffing this weekend, either.”

At the time, Sneddon acknowledged that his comments would likely draw a fine from the ECAC.

He publicly apologized the following day before watching the Catamounts edge St. Lawrence 4-1 Saturday evening.

None of which stopped Harvard coach Ted Donato ’91 from having a laugh at the expense of his former teammate.

“I, in general, find it pretty humorous, as I’m sure he would if it was me,” Donato said. “We’re all capable of losing our cool, I think, to a certain point. But Kevin’s a great

guy...and I think it shows great character that he was able to step forward and take that kind of action.”

BYE, BYE, BYE

With just two weekends of conference play remaining, the ECAC playoff picture remains largely unsettled.

As of now, seven teams are mathematically in the running for the three unclaimed opening-round byes—only Cornell has secured a trip through to the second round—and just as many remain eligible for home ice in the first round.

More realistically, though, the battle for the byes will come down to Colgate, Harvard, Dartmouth, and Vermont.

For the moment, the Raiders lead the quartet with 26 points, one point ahead of the Crimson and four ahead of both Dartmouth and Vermont.

That does not, however, account for the extra game Harvard has left on its schedule as a result of the Beanpot.