Halfway through the third, he stacked the pads to stop sophomore winger J.F. Labarre's wristshot from in close and squeezed them even tighter to force James Duval's rebound attempt from just above the goal crease to scurry wide.

Prestifilippo covered up all the mistakes Harvard made as it tried to get adjusted to four new line combinations up front that incorporated two freshmen and two seniors who have seen little ice time since their freshman year.

Beyond normal first game rustiness, the Crimson had some difficulty adjusting to Mazzoleni's demand that his players make quick decisions with the puck. Many feeds failed to find the stick of its target.

But Prestifilippo allowed Harvard to walk away from the game thinking that all it practiced over the past two weeks will pay off. Harvard certainly hinted at an exciting future.

"At some point along the season, when we really are committed to our overall discipline and the way we want to play in our overall system [goaltending], we'll be a tough team to play against," Mazzoleni said

Off the opening faceoff, freshman center Dominic Moore and sophomore wingers Chris Bala and Jeff Stonehouse established a three-man forecheck that immediately forced the Bears into a neutral zone turnover.

The Crimson used its speed whenever it could to force mistakes from the inexperienced Brown squad. During the preseason, Mazzoleni preached of a three-second opportunity, namely that it takes a team about three seconds to get set defensively after a turnover. The smart teams know how to exploit that moment of confusion.