Junior defenseman Alex Biega came through in the clutch for the Crimson on Friday against Quinnipiac, hammering a slapshot past Bobcats goalie Bud Fisher to break a 1-1 tie at the end of the second period. Harvard held on to the lead and eventually took t

Etched in sophomore goaltender Ryan Carroll’s helmet is a Latin expression that means strength in faith and war.

With crucial implications for the upcoming playoff series on the line, Friday night’s contest against Quinnipiac (15-15-13, 8-10-3 ECAC) was nothing short of war, as both teams traded a combined 18 penalties and battled to the last second of the game.

But the Harvard men’s hockey team (8-14-6, 8-7-6 ECAC) killed five power plays and broke a second-period tie to secure a 2-1 win over the Bobcats—earning home ice for the ECAC playoffs.

The Biega brothers—junior Alex and sophomore Michael—landed both goals for the Crimson, and Carroll made 27 saves to seal the victory.

“We’re happy to get the win,” said Harvard coach Ted Donato ’91. “I just warned the guys after the game that maybe we caught a bit of a break in this one with the mistakes that we made and the penalties too. The win was very important and we’ll take it, but we’ve also got to realize that we’re going to need to be a lot better to win hockey games at this time of the year and going forward.”

Both teams battled through a physical first period, but neither side managed to get on the board.

The Crimson’s best chance to score came on a shift late in the frame. Junior Doug Rogers ripped a cross to blueliner Alex Biega, who was posted at the right circle, but Quinnipiac goalie Bud Fisher glided to his left just in time to stop Biega’s wrist-shot, keeping the game scoreless at the first intermission.

Harvard and Quinnipiac traded a pair of power plays and posted seven shots each in the opening period.

“It was a bit of a frustrating game in the fact that we didn’t get the start that we wanted to,” Donato said. “We played very well in stretches, but we have to put a complete game together.”

The Crimson came out hard at the beginning of the second frame and started to string together some solid offense, but the Bobcats were the first to make their mark, pulling ahead 1-0 at 8:49.

Quinnipiac’s Andrew Meyer picked up a pass at the right and launched a shot through traffic into the net.

Following a power-play opportunity, the Crimson tied things up with a clean passing play. Freshman Alex Killorn carried the puck to the right and passed it to classmate Ryan Grimshaw, who crossed it from the boards to sophomore Michael Biega on the right circle. Biega launched the puck high, and the shot sailed over Fisher to knot the score at one.

As the second period came to a close, it looked like Harvard would enter the intermission with a tie on its hands. But with thirty seconds left in the frame, the Crimson’s defensemen put together a fast sequence that pushed Harvard ahead, 2-1.

During a four-on-four play, senior Brian McCafferty sent a pass to Alex Biega on the left point, and the junior ripped a slapshot down the chute past Fisher for the tie-breaker.

“It was definitely a relief [to get the second goal],” Carroll said. “Anytime you play with a lead, it’s a lot easier on you.”

The Bobcats had their chance at revenge when sophomore Michael Del Mauro was sent to the box for five minutes for hitting from behind. Harvard’s special teams limited Quinnipiac to three shots, including one close attempt that hit the post, as freshman Colin Moore and sophomore Pier Olivier-Michaud made a few timely clears before the Crimson finally killed the penalty.

“Our penalty killers did a great job,” Donato said. “Our forwards and defensemen really worked [to block shots], and Ryan Carroll was strong on the penalty kill as well. If you give them those type of opportunities, more often than not you’re going to regret it. We dodged a bullet, but hopefully we learned our lesson.”

As the seconds ticked away, the Crimson had victory in sight. But after a clearing attempt resulted in a turnover in front of the goal, Quinnipiac lit the lamp after the puck went in off a Bobcat player’s foot with 1.3 seconds remaining in the game. The officials immediately ruled no goal because the player had kicked it in, but the play was hotly contested by the Bobcat bench

“I don’t have an opinion other than I didn’t have a great view of it,” Donato said. “But regardless of what the call was, the referee was in a great position to make the call and that’s first and foremost; secondly, we don’t have replay available at our building just yet.”

—Staff writer Courtney D. Skinner can be reached at cskinner@fas.harvard.edu.