A stretch of seven consecutive games played on enemy ice would be a challenge for any team, but goalie Darion Hanson of the Connecticut men’s hockey team chooses to focus on the positive.
Long bus rides together and hanging out in the hotel with teammates have been valuable bonding experiences for him and his teammates, he said. Also, having a schedule front-loaded with road games means more games at home later in the season.
“Being able to face a little adversity in the road barns early on, I think that’s important,” Hanson said. “Later on this year, down the home stretch, we’re at home. That’s always great. (We’re) doing OK on the road trip so far (and) we have two big tests this weekend.”
The Huskies (4-3-0, 2-1-0 Hockey East) will wrap up their seven-game road gauntlet with a pair of games this weekend at winless Maine (0-5-1, 0-2-0). The puck will drop at 7 p.m. Friday and 7:30 p.m. Saturday — both games are at Alfond Arena.
Hanson, a graduate transfer student, sat out last season as his previous school, Union (ECAC), opted out of playing due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This year he has played every available minute in goal for UConn, sporting a .925 save percentage and a 2.27 goals-against average.
UConn coach Mike Cavanaugh had high praise for Hanson’s work ethic, noting that the goalie was on the practice rink at 7:30 on a recent morning.
“He doesn’t get flustered very easily,” Cavanaugh said. “He’s very calm. I think he’s very efficient, too, in his movements. (He) smothers pucks and doesn’t allow rebounds (and) manages the game extremely well.”
Though Maine is struggling, Cavanaugh said his team cannot afford to overlook the hungry-for-their-first-win Black Bears — or any team for that matter. Cavanaugh pointed to a stretch during the 2018-19 season — when most of his upperclassmen were freshmen — where the Huskies won just twice in a 16-game stretch.
“I don’t think our team looks past anybody,” Cavanaugh said. “We’re certainly not a program that thinks we’re better than anybody. Our kids are an experienced group of guys — they were humbled quite a bit when they were freshmen. (In) college hockey, anybody can beat anybody on any given night.”
Maine coach Ben Barr, who took over the Black Bears following the untimely death of eight-year coach Red Gendron at age 63 on April 9 of this year, said his team is searching for a consistently well-played weekend. For instance, Maine was blown out 5-0 last Friday night at Northeastern only to play a much closer game the following night, taking a 2-1 lead into the final period of a 3-2 loss.
“It’s been bizarre,” Barr told USCHO.com. “I don’t really know what that’s all about. It’s confusing to me. But we have to get better. Just playing (close) games isn’t what we’re trying to do obviously. When we get that first win, I think it’s going to be ugly, a grind. That’s usually the nature of these types of things.”
Barr was the associate head coach last season at Massachusetts (currently 6-4-2, 2-0-0). He said going from a club that hoisted the NCAA Division I championship trophy to one in a rebuilding mode has not been without its ups and downs.
“When you get into the grind and you have some struggles, the emotions of it are different from when you’re an assistant,” he said. “That’s been my challenge. We’re only six games in here, but it’s definitely a different feeling as a person. I’m learning to deal with that. We’re honest with our players. We talk about these things.”
Barr said his team does not want to be complacent with close games and moral victories.
“We’re trying to get our program to new places,” Barr said. “Sometimes there’s going to be some pain as you go through that. That’s what we’re kind of going through a little bit. (It’s) new for all of us. But that’s part of the beauty of the game, and that’s part of coaching and building a team.”
