{shortcode-33fba88f9cb970d01605a09c3bad2fa0c1a6cdbf}

Harvard men’s ice hockey (3-1-1, 2-1-0 ECAC) stunned the Clarkson Golden Knights (4-7-0, 1-2-0 ECAC) 2-1 in Potsdam, N.Y. on Friday, in a repeat matchup of last year’s ECAC Quarterfinals.

A final-minute goal in a game dominated by both teams’ goaltending gave Harvard its second straight win and first against Clarkson since falling in overtime in the playoffs in March.

The opening period started slowly, with neither team settling in and finding their flow in the first ten minutes.

Eventually, Harvard and Clarkson exchanged chances on the rush, but the best opportunity of the frame came for the Golden Knights, when freshman forward Remi Gelinas beat Harvard sophomore goaltender Ben Charette in tight and hit the post.

Still, the first period left both squads scoreless, with Clarkson up 13-8 in shots on goal.

Speaking after last week’s win against the Colgate Raiders, Harvard Head Coach Ted Donato ’91 spoke to the competitiveness this year of a familiar opponent in Clarkson.

“A Clarkson team that has beat Penn State, and they have a couple of really big wins already this year. So it's a great challenge for us,” he said.

Though the Crimson kept the Golden Knights relatively in check through the first, Clarkson’s brewing offense came out flying in the second.

The deadlock broke just 40 seconds into the middle frame when Crimson sophomore defenseman Lucas St. Louis was pickpocketed by Golden Knights senior forward Ryan Bottrill, who snapped the puck over Charette high glove-side to put Clarkson up 1-0.

The Crimson received three power play opportunities — including a brief 5-on-3 — to try and even the score, but the Golden Knights’ penalty kill and junior goaltender Shane Soderwall stifled Harvard at every turn.

Harvard’s 10 percent power play percentage now ties the team for just seventh in the ECAC alongside Colgate and RPI.

The Crimson ramped up its physicality in an effort to generate offense; nevertheless, Clarkson exited the second period up a tally.

Early in the third, the Golden Knights got a man advantage of their own, which was promptly killed off by the Crimson, holding Clarkson to no shots.

Desperate for a goal, Harvard built up momentum in the final ten minutes, hemming Clarkson in over a couple strong shifts.

The Crimson’s hard work finally paid off, with freshman forward Heikki Ruohonen dazzling through four Golden Knights players before taking the puck across the crease and sliding it past a lying Soderwall to knot the game at 1-1.

Clarkson freshman forward Conyr Hellyer nearly responded right after, but the post came in clutch for Charette and Harvard yet again.

With time ticking down in the final minute, Crimson junior forward Casey Severo quickly pivoted and threw a seeing-eye shot towards Soderwall, who wasn’t fully in position due to a screen set by senior forward Philip Tresca.

The puck then squeaked through Soderwall’s five-hole for the Crimson’s first lead of the contest.

Severo’s tally proved to be the game-winner, as Harvard held on in the last seconds to eke out a 2-1 victory over Clarkson.

Senior forward and captain Joe Miller put it best in describing what was needed from the team heading on the roadtrip.

“Those are two tough places to play,” he said. “We got to play a full 60 minutes.”

The Crimson certainly played a full 60 minutes on Friday.

Harvard makes the quick drive to Canton, N.Y. tomorrow night for its Saturday contest with the St. Lawrence Saints, hoping to extend its win streak against a team it’s won its last three games against. After this, the team faces a short week with just the Nov. 22 matchup at the University of Vermont on the schedule. Both games take place Saturday at 7:00 p.m. and are available to stream on ESPN+.

– Staff Writer Nate M. Bolan can be reached at nathan.bolan@thecrimson.com