Actually, let’s “live in 2002,” and rewind to what happened to Harvard’s icemen after hosting Princeton and Yale last season.

First, they went to places like Science Center C and took exams. Then, they played horribly in February, winning just twice in their last 11 regular season games. Finally, they played superb hockey in March, won the ECAC tournament in dramatic fashion, and made it to the first round of the NCAA tournament.

And that’s where it stopped, in overtime, against a team that came within seconds of winning the national championship.

And last year, that was OK.

OK because the team was young, OK because of how far the team had come, OK because everyone knows it’s awfully hard to win a zillion consecutive overtime games when the teams get better every weekend.

So it ended March 23, 2002, when a little-known fourth-liner from Maine named John Ronan scored to beat the Crimson in overtime.

But what about this year? Where will Harvard be March 23, 2003? More importantly, where will it be March 29, 2003, during this year’s NCAA Regional?

Still playing hockey? Or yakking from the Norwalk virus after going on a spring- break cruise because the season ended earlier than it was supposed to?

Harvard had better hope for the former. First, because yakking is bad no matter how you look at it. But secondly, and most importantly, because the Crimson is good enough to play hockey in late March.

The key to March, though, is February. Sure, Harvard didn’t seem to need it last year, and it ended up winning the ECAC tournament, but it also didn’t win anything after that, which should be the Crimson’s goal this year.

And for this year’s Harvard team to get the chance to play hockey in late March—or even April—it has to start Jan. 31 against Brown.

Because here’s the plain truth: the chances are not good that the Crimson can have an off month, flip the switch on for the playoffs, and then win three straight overtime games and the conference tournament for the second consecutive year. There was a better chance of Princeton beating Harvard in Cambridge by the same score two years in a row.

But here’s what can happen after exams: Harvard beats Brown at home, wins a game (maybe two) in the Beanpot, builds up some momentum with a good finish to the regular season, and secures an at-large NCAA bid so it doesn’t have to spend the ECAC playoffs on the verge of having its season end at any moment.

That’s how this team needs to go into the playoffs—and very easily could.

After all, the Crimson roster has 13 NHL draft picks. 13! That’s tied for the most in the nation.