CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - Men's ice hockey is set to begin the 2024-25 season with Dartmouth on Friday night at Bright-Landry Hockey Center. Opening night for both the Crimson and Big Green, puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. and will be aired on ESPN+.

PUCK DROP

• Harvard opens the regular season at Bright-Landry for the first time since 2022-23, hosting Dartmouth on Friday at 7:00 p.m.
• For the seventh year in a row, the Crimson opens the season with the Big Green.
• Dating back to 2017-2018, Harvard has recorded 13 wins in 17 games against its Ivy League rival.

LAST TIME OUT

• The Crimson and Big Green skated to two ties last season. In the season opener, Jack Bar scored the shootout winner in the 18th round.
• At Bright-Landry, in another shootout, Alex Gaffney netted the game-winner in the eighth round.
• The Crimson and Big Green played 26 rounds of shootouts in their two meetings last season. 

SERIES HISTORY

• Harvard has not lost to Dartmouth in its last 12 meetings.
• Harvard leads the all-time series 145-67-15. 

A BUSY PRESEASON

• The Crimson began the preseason with games against the U.S. NTDP and No. 3 Boston University.
• Hosting the U.S. NTDP on Oct. 18, the Crimson fell behind 3-1 heading into the third period.
• Mick Thompson, Cameron Johnson, Kyle Aucoin, and Justin Solovey all scored in the third to give Harvard a 5-4 comeback win.
• First-years Mick Thompson, Lucas St. Louis, and Justin Solovey combined for five points in the third period; Thompson pulled Harvard within one, Solovey netted the game-winner, and St. Louis added three assists.
• The Crimson then skated to a 2-2 tie with the nationally ranked Terriers on Saturday.
• Harvard scored the first two goals after Justin Solovey netted a breakaway goal and Lucas St. Louis added a power-play marker.
• Aku Koskenvuo was solid in goal, making 31 saves against the Terriers. 

LEADERSHIP GROUP

• Last season's captains Ian Moore and Zakary Karpa return, while Jack Bar has joined the leadership group.
• Seniors Karpa (86), Moore (90), and Bar (92) are all approaching 100 career games in a Crimson uniform.
•  Newport Beach, Calif. native Karpa added four goals and four assists in 31 games last season.
• Moore, a third-round selection by the Anaheim Ducks, netted a career-high three goals last season and added three goals and five assists in 21 games. Moore scored the overtime winner against Yale at Bright-Landry and the game-winning goal against Princeton in the first round of the ECAC playoffs.
• A native of Newmarket, Ont., Bar added one goal and five assists in 27 games while leading the team in blocked shots.

PRESEASON POLL

• Harvard finished sixth in the ECAC Preseason Coaches Poll.
•  Cornell (120 points) finished in first with 10 first-place votes, while Quinnipiac (111 points) picked up two first-place votes to finish second.
•  Harvard (73 points) follows Cornell, Quinnipiac, Dartmouth (93 points), Clarkson (82 points), and Colgate (75 points) while ranking above St. Lawrence (66 points). 

RETURNING TO THE CRIMSON

• The Crimson returns 99% of its goal scorers and 98% of its points from last season.
• The national leader in both categories, Harvard only lost one offensive senior.
• Harvard has the second-largest senior class (9) in the country, only behind Cornell (10).

UP FRONT

• Key offensive producers Joe Miller, Ben MacDonald, Cam Johnson, and Michael Callow all return for the Crimson.
• Miller finished last season with 13 goals and 14 assists, earning spots on the All-ECAC Third Team and All-Ivy First Team. He was named ECAC Forward of the Month in January.
• Sophomores Ryan Fine, Cam Johnson, Michael Callow, and Ben MacDonald combined for four of the top-10 point scorers on the team. 
• Last year's freshman class was responsible for 24% of the total goals, with underclassmen accounting for 75% of total goals in the 2023-24 season.

ON THE BLUE LINE

• The Crimson returns a veteran D-corps in 2024-25.
• Highlighted by Ian Moore, Jack Bar, Ryan Healey, and Mason Langenbrunner, Harvard's top four have played in many key moments.
• Ryan Healey was one of the most productive defensemen in the country, finishing with nine goals and 13 assists in 29 games. He earned ECAC Defenseman of the Month in January and ranked fourth nationally among defensemen with six power-play goals. 

BETWEEN THE PIPES

• Junior Aku Koskenvuo returns as Harvard's starting goalie this season.
• A native of Espoo, Finland, Koskenvuo posted a 2.95 GAA and a .910 save percentage last season, with key performances against Yale and Princeton.
•  Koskenvuo made 21 saves in a 1-0 win over Yale in January and 29 saves in an overtime win at Bright-Landry, earning the Tim Taylor Award as the MVP of the Harvard-Yale game.
• Koskenvuo followed that up with a 38-save shutout against Princeton in the ECAC playoffs. 

THE NEW GUYS

• Harvard welcomes eight first-year players this season, including four forwards, two defensemen, and two goalies.
• Highlighted by Justin Solovey, Mick Thompson, and Lucas St. Louis, the first-years combined for eight points in two preseason games.
• Harvard is the fifth youngest team in the country, with an average age of 21.3 as of Oct. 1. 

CAREER CRIMSON

• Seniors Alex Gaffney (97), Ian Moore (90), Jack Bar (92), and Zakary Karpa (86) are on pace to play over 100 career games this season.
• With four seniors set to reach this milestone, it is the most since 2017-2018.

THE 300 CLUB

• Ted Donato notched his 300th win against Yale on Jan. 13, 2024, making him one of only three coaches in Harvard hockey history to reach this milestone.
• Donato sits just 19 wins away from becoming Harvard men's hockey's all-time winningest coach.
• Donato is seventh in all-time wins among ECAC coaches and one of 15 active Division I coaches in the top 50 with over 300 wins. 

MATT GILROY JOINS THE STAFF

• A North Bellmore, N.Y. native, Gilroy played college hockey at Boston University, where he was a three-time All-American on defense.
• In 2009, Gilroy became the fifth player in history to win both the Hobey Baker Award and an NCAA championship in the same season.
• An undrafted free agent, Gilroy went on to play 225 NHL games, signing his first contract with the New York Rangers in 2009. He also played for the Lightning, Senators, and Panthers before spending five seasons in Europe.
• Gilroy served as an assistant coach with the U.S. NTDP for two seasons prior to joining Harvard.

HEADED OVERSEAS

• Last November the program announced it would be playing in the 2024 Friendship Four. 
• Harvard will join BU, Merrimack, and Notre Dame among the four participants. 
• The Crimson will open the tournament with Notre Dame in the first game.  

FAMILY TIES

• Five Harvard Players have ties to family members that have played in the NHL.
  • Marek Hejduk - Father, Milan Hejduk
  • David Hejduk - Father, Milan Hejduk
  • Kyle Aucoin - Father, Adrian Aucoin
  • Zakary Karpa - Father, Dave Karpa
  • Mason Langenbrunner - Father, Jamie Langenbrunner
  • Lucas St. Louis – Father, Martin St. Louis 

NHL DRAFT PICKS

• For the third year in a row, Harvard is among the national leaders in NHL draft picks
• Tied with Boston College and Denver, Harvard is currently second in the nation with 12 NHL draft picks on the roster. 
  • Ryan Healey (MIN)
  • Ian Moore (ANA)
  • Matthew Morden (AZ)
  • Kyle Aucoin (DET)
  • Jack Bar (DAL) 
  • Mason Langenbrunner (BOS) 
  • Aku Koskenvuo (VAN)
  • Ben MacDonald (SEA)
  • Joe Miller (TOR)
  • Zakary Karpa (NYR) 
  • Michael Callow (ANA)
  • Sean Keohane (BUF)

NEXT UP
Harvard will play its first back-to-back of the regular season next weekend as it heads to Princeton and Quinnipiac.