Preview: UConn vs. Harvard

How to watch

Date: Saturday, January 4

Time: 7 p.m. ET

Location: Bright-Landry Hockey Center, Boston, MA

Stream: ESPN+

Harvard Crimson

Record: 3-6-2 (2-4-2 ECAC)

Location: Cambridge, MA

Head coach: Ted Donato (22nd season)

Pairwise: 42nd

Scouting the Crimson

Harvard hasn’t been having the best season, going 1-5-2 since November 15, including a loss on New Year’s Day to No. 18 Quinnipiac at home. The one victory came against Merrimack in the Friendship Four, which takes place each year in Belfast. The Crimson were picked sixth in the ECAC Preseason Coaches Poll but are currently sitting at eighth in the league standings and are 10th in points percentage.

This stems partially from a lack of offensive output. Harvard is tied for 42nd of 64 teams in goals per game at 2.4 and has exceeded three goals just twice, though it’s 2-0-0 in such contests. The Crimson struggle to light the lamp but it’s not because of a lack of shots or possession.

Harvard is No. 9 in the country in shots per game (32.4) and are No. 23 in even-strength Corsi (52.5 percent), which measures a team’s share of shot attempts. The Crimson put up 56.3 shot attempts per game, which is sixth in Division I. However, the team’s shooting percentage is a paltry 7.3 percent, which is ninth-worst. If UConn can get some good goaltending then Harvard will have a tough time scoring.

Games involving the Crimson are often high-event as opposing teams generate 30.4 shots per game, which is the nation’s 20th-highest mark, along with 50.9 shot attempts per night. That’s good for No. 19. Despite that, Harvard has gotten good goaltending from the tandem of Aku Koskenvuo and Ben Charette, pushing goals per game down to a tie for 30th-lowest at 2.7.

Koskenvuo has played in eight games to Charette’s five but the former hasn’t played since the Friendship Four at the end of November. He also had the worse statistics with a .895 save percentage and 2.98 goals against average. Meanwhile, Charette has played every game since since, earning a 1.90 goals against average and .940 save percentage, including a 31-save shutout of St. Lawrence on December 7.

Harvard’s lack of offensive prowess extends to the power play as the Crimson are at just 12.5 percent (4-for-32) on the man advantage, which is the country’s sixth-lowest percentage — though at 15.4 percent (8-for-52), UConn isn’t much better. Harvard is a solid penalty-killing team at No. 17. It kills at an 84.4 percent (27-for-32) rate.

Series history

The series between Harvard and UConn is short. The Huskies have played the varsity and JV squads twice each. The contests against the JV team each came in the early 1960s and UConn lost each by a combined 20-5. The varsity team joined the schedule for the first time in January 2022 for a 6-3 Crimson win but the Huskies got them back at Toscano Family Ice Forum on December 31, 2023. Ethan Haider made 18 saves on 20 shots in the victory.

Injury report

Callum Tung is healthy after a stomach bug kept him out of the Holiday Face-Off championship vs. Wisconsin. Tyler Muszelik dealt with the same illness but wasn’t cleared from the lower body injury he suffered late in the first half anyways. He got the green light on Wednesday and returned to practice for the first time on Thursday.

By the numbers

0 — Harvard is winless at home this season, going 0-4-2, but one of those draws did end in a shootout victory.

47.8 — The Crimson win just 47.8 percent of their face-offs, which is No. 47 in Division I.

21.4 — The average rostered player for Harvard is 21 years, four months. That’s the fourth youngest behind Boston College, Boston University and Denver.

6.2 — Harvard is among the most disciplined teams in the country. They average 6.2 penalty minutes per night, which is second-lowest.

5 — UConn and Clarkson are tied for the nation’s lead with five shorthanded goals.

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