It's the old Harvard goaltending problem again. What do you do with too much talent?

Coach Ronn Tomassoni gave all three of his goalies a try on Saturday night. And the results just made his ultimate decision a lot harder.

Sophomore Steve Hermsdorf and freshmen Tripp Tracy and Aaron Israel each gave good performances against the Dalhousie Tigers.

"All three kids played very, very well," Tomassoni said. "I haven't made any decisions. I'm going to see what happens in practice this week and then make a decision."

Hermsdorf struggled last season while riding the bench during the final year of the Chuckie Hughes and Allain Roy tandem. But in the exhibition match, the Kirkland House resident was remarkably confident and shutout the Tigers, turning away nine shots during his 20-minute stint.

Masked men Tracy and Israel each allowed a goal but were also impressive.

Playing the second period, Israel showed a lot of pluck facing tons of rubber while the Crimson defense fell apart during a few spurts of play. Israel totalled 10 saves.

In the last stanza, Dalhousie got lucky with an open-net goal when Tracy was knocked down by freshman defender Geb Marett on a confusing cross-ice streak by scorer Dalhousie's Joe Suk.

Otherwise, Tracy was perfect in stopping eight shots.

"I'll tell you one thing that I've told all the guys," Tomassoni said. "I won't go to a three-man rotation. We don't play enough games to justify that."

Tomassoni said the season-long plan will probably be a two-man rotation. He added that the prospect of one freshman goalie starting the whole season was unlikely.

"It's a tough choice to make," Tomassoni said. "But a good one to have."

Goon Alert; Sophomore Perry Cohagan put in a good effort and took an early lead in the contest for Harvard's' hardest hitter title. While junior defender Sean McCann and senior forward Steve Flomenhoft both scored knockdowns, Cohagan earned the most applause from the Crimson fans.

His first crowd-pleaser came at the end of the first period, when he nearly sent Dalhousie defender Brian MacDonald over the boards into the Harvard bench. Later in the match, Cohagan knocked defender James Bugden silly with an open-ice bodyslam.

Missing the Goal: Both Captain Ted Drury and linemate Konik took a little ribbing after the Harvard win.

Near the end of the second period, Drury and Konik were on a 2-on-0 break. After drawing the goalie over, Drury feathered a perfect past to Konik who shot a groaner high and wide past the open net. But Konik wasn't the only one blushing after the contest. Seconds into the third, Drury was the recipient of a perfect 2-on-0 pass himself. Facing a similarly empty goal, Drury missed wide left with a low wrist shot.

Big Upset: Junior Varsity Coach Kevin Hampe continues to build upon his success.

On Wednesday, the prolific J.V. crew, with Hermsdorf in net, battled to a 6-4 win over Assumption State, currently ranked second nationally in Division III. Assumption was also picked by Sports Illustrated to win the D-3 national championship.