The renovated Bright-Landry Hockey Center will host the Crimson vs. Big Green Saturday (Gil Talbot).

The Storyline
The 115th season of the Harvard men's hockey program gets underway Saturday, Nov. 1 with a clash against the visiting Dartmouth Big Green. Saturday's ECAC and Ivy League matchup will serve as the season-opener for both squads. 

Inside the Glass
• The Crimson boasts an 82-29-3 all-time record in official season-opening games, including a team-record 18 straight wins from 1922-39. Since the unveiling of Bright-Landry Hockey Center in 1979, the Crimson has compiled a 22-12-1 record in home openers and a 6-4-0 mark under head coach Ted Donato.

• Harvard has challenged Dartmouth in 10 season-openers, dating back to 1941. The Crimson owns a 6-4-0 advantage in those contests against the Big Green, including winning the 2008 and 2009 season-openers.

• For the fourth-straight season, the Crimson open the year in the friendly confines of the Bright-Landry Hockey Center. Harvard won its last two season-openers against Bentley.

• Former Crimson captain, NCAA Frozen Four Most Outstanding Player and NHL veteran Ted Donato '91, the Robert D. Ziff '88 Head Coach for Harvard Men's Ice Hockey, begins his 11th season behind the Crimson bench. 

• For just the seventh time in program history, the Crimson will be led by co-captains. Senior Max Everson and junior Kyle Criscuolo will serve as the 122nd and 123rd captains of Harvard men's hockey.

• Harvard ended the 2013-14 season with a 10-17-4 overall record and a 6-12-4 mark in ECAC action.

Bright-Landry Hockey Center Opening
Prior to Saturday's game, Harvard Athletics will hold a special on-ice ceremony recognizing the dedication of the Bright-Landry Hockey Center. Previously the Bright Hockey Center, the home venue of both Crimson hockey teams was re-named honoring the great generosity of Kevin Landry '66 and his family.

A new 20,000-square-foot addition is located between the current hockey facility and the Albert H. Gordon Track. Upgraded spectator amenities include new concession, souvenir, and hospitality areas plus additional family friendly restrooms. Enhancements to the Hockey Center will include new team locker rooms for the men's and women's ice hockey programs, sports medicine and workout facilities, coach's offices, and a facility operations center.

In addition to significant funding from the Landry family, the renovation and enhancement of the Bright-Landry Hockey Center is being supported by Johanna and John Boynton, both Harvard College Class of '88. Johanna was a four-year letter winner for the women's ice hockey team, a two-time captain, and a member of the Ivy League championship team her junior year. She currently serves as co-chair of the Friends of Harvard Ice Hockey.

Fresh Faces
Eight newcomers join the Crimson for the 2014-15 campaign. Harvard's roster will be bolstered by four defensemen, three forwards and one goalie, with two of the rookies having been drafted in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft.

Defenseman Wiley Sherman was selected in the fifth round (150th overall) by the Boston Bruins and goalie Merrick Madsen was taken in the sixth round (162nd overall) by the Philadelphia Flyers. Thomas Aiken, Ryan Begoon and Jake Horton will also look to provide a positive impact for the Crimson defense, while Joseph Caffrey, Eddie Ellis and Seb Lloyd come aboard to support the offense.

Behind the Bench
For the second straight season, the Crimson has added a new coach to the staff, as Paul Pearl was named the associate head coach in the spring of 2014. Pearl comes to Cambridge via Holy Cross where he served as the head coach of the Crusaders for 19 seasons. He is the winningest coach in Holy Cross history with a record of 297-293-69. He led his teams to five 20-win seasons, nine of the 11 most successful seasons in program history and NCAA Tournament appearances in 2004 and 2006. During his tenure in Worcester, Pearl was named the ECAC East Coach of the Year and New England Hockey Writer's Association Coach of the Year in 1998, the MAAC Coach of the Year in 2002 and the Atlantic Hockey Coach of the Year in 2004 and 2011. Pearl also played at Holy Cross, skating in 125 games before graduating in 1989.

Last Year vs. Dartmouth
The Crimson and Big Green split a pair of meetings last season, with Dartmouth winning the first meeting in November, before Harvard posted a shutout in February. The Crimson's 3-0 victory on featured a power play goal from Sean Malone, even strength goals by Tyler Moy and Devin Tringale, as well as 21 saves by Steve Michalek.

Series History: Dartmouth
In one of the oldest college hockey rivalries that dates back to 1907, the Crimson holds a 128-64-12 advantage in the all-time series against the Big Green. Dartmouth has had the upperhand of late though, sporting a 6-3-3 advantage dating back to the 2011 campaign.

Familiar Faces
Harvard will have the fortune of returning its top-12 point scorers from last season, as well as 94.5 percent of its total offensive production. Three underclassmen in Jimmy Vesey, Kyle Criscuolo and Sean Malone reached the 20-point plateau, while a combination of five other freshmen and sophomores tallied at least 10 points. 

Scouting the Big Green
Dartmouth will be looking for a bounce back season of its own in 2014-15 after finishing 11th in the ECAC with a  7-13-2 conference record and a 10-20-4 overall mark.

Similar to the Crimson, the Big Green return sthe bulk of its offensive proficiency after only graduating a trio of student-athletes last year. Dartmouth returns 98.6 percent of its scoring from last season, buoyed by this year's alternate captain, senior Eric Neiley. Neiley put up a career-best 16 goals and 29 points last year for Dartmouth. Fellow senior Brandon McNally also returns for the Big Green after putting up a team-best 14 assists to go with seven goals.
 
Junior Charles Grant returns to man the net after posting a .909 save percentage and 3.01 GAA, on his way to a 9-13-3 record in 25 starts.

About Dartmouth
Dartmouth and Harvard will be the last two college hockey teams to start their seasons Saturday night, as the rest of the Ancient Eight begins play Friday. The Big Green has played a pair of preseason games at home, falling to Alberta, 6-1, in an exhibition and dropping a 3-1 decision to Brown in a scrimmage.

The Big Green will play its first three games on the road, visiting Union and Rensselaer next weekend before hosting Yale and Brown on Nov. 14 and 15, respectively. Harvard and Dartmouth will meet for a rematch on Nov. 18 in Hanover. 

Home Cooking
Harvard is 72-45-9 at Bright Hockey Center under head coach Ted Donato and 294-138-34 (.667) all-time at Bright, which opened in 1979-80. Last season, the Crimson posted a 5-7-2 home record.