When the Harvard and Union men’s hockey teams squared off in early November, the 2,057 fans on hand at Messa Rink saw a battle between a team searching for its identity and a top-10 team learning to play without its top defenseman.

And when the two sides faced off for the second time Friday night, the plot line remained the same. Only this time, the roles of the teams had been reversed.

In the first meeting, the unranked Crimson earned a draw against the defending national champion and then-No. 8/8 Dutchmen, a team that had opened conference play with three straight losses in its first season since the departure of star defenseman and current Philadelphia Flyer Shayne Gostisbehere. 

Two months later, with No. 4/4 Harvard facing a similar hole on the defensive end, unranked Union (13-10-2, 5-7-1 ECAC) scored early and often en route to a 5-4 victory over the Crimson (12-5-2, 8-4-2) at the Bright-Landry Hockey Center Friday night.

“We just allowed them [to score] goals too easily,” Harvard coach Ted Donato ’91 said. “They didn’t really have to have a lot of sustained pressure to get their goals. They got mindless turnovers by us, especially in that second period. Just not good enough…from top to bottom."

One day after learning that junior defenseman Patrick McNally would be out for at least the remainder of the regular season with a right leg injury, the Crimson had no answer for one of the most explosive top lines in all of college hockey.

Paced by two goals and two assists from the top goal scorer in the country, Daniel Ciampini, the Dutchmen’ first line was responsible for nine points on the night. Junior forward Matt Wilkins had a goal and two assists, and Saugus, Mass., native Mike Vecchione picked up two points as well. 

Harvard’s first line also had a night to remember. Junior co-captain Kyle Criscuolo and sophomore center Tyler Moy each had two points, and with a goal and two assists, junior forward Jimmy Vesey extended his point streak to match the number on his back, bringing it to 19 games.

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Vesey found the back of the net just minutes after Wilkins gave Union a 3-2 lead. Criscuolo delivered a pass to his linemate alone at the blue line. One stride ahead of the nearest Dutchman, Vesey made his approach up the left side of the ice before moving to his backhand, and lifting one with ease over Union netminder Alex Sakellaropoulos.

“Whenever you can, get [number] 19 the puck,” co-captain Max Everson said. “It’s really incredible, super fun to watch, [and] it’s hard to put into words because [Vesey’s] absolutely lighting up everyone we play. He’s just got that knack for scoring goals.”

But in accordance with the trend of the night, the Dutchmen were quick to respond. Less than three minutes after Vesey’s equalizer, Ciampini proved he was not to be outdone, redirecting a shot from the blue line past Crimson goaltender Steve Michalek for his 22nd of the year.

Prior to the goal, no lead had lasted more than two and a half minutes. But the Dutchmen would maintain their latest one to the end, capping their victory with a goal from Vecchione. Chasing a bouncing puck down the right wing, the sophomore got behind the puck and ripped a slapshot into the top left corner of the net to seal the deal with 7:50 to go.

Harvard got one back with 51 seconds remaining courtesy of a one-timer from sophomore defenseman Victor Newell. But unlike Union, who came up with a last-minute equalizer in the teams’ first meeting, the Crimson could not push a fifth past the Dutchman in goal.

“[Union] played well,” Donato said. “They made plays and scored goals at key times, and our guys battled to the end, but I think it was not a very intelligent effort by us.”

The Dutchmen set the tone right out of the gate, as Ciampini poked a shot past Michalek just 21 seconds after the opening draw. But after a Vesey shot on the doorstep missed wide two minutes later, Criscuolo corralled the puck and jammed it home to level the score.

Harvard’s only lead of the game, the product of an early second period goal from rookie wing Jake Horton, lasted just 1:13, as Union went on to score four of the game’s next five goals.

In addition to McNally and junior defenseman Brayden Jaw, the Crimson again was without the services of sophomore forwards Alex Kerfoot, Sean Malone, and Luke Esposito, among others. Following the game, Donato said their status moving forward remains unclear.

“We’re missing some guys that we’d really like to have in the lineup, some big-time playmakers, but there’s no excuses going around,” Everson said. “There’s no one trying to deflect the blame of the loss. We just got to come out and play a better game for 60 minutes.”

—Staff writer Jake Meagher can be reached at jake.meagher@thecrimson.com.