Hockey East Preview: Feb. 14-18, 1997 by Dave Hendrickson

After a scintillating Beanpot championship game, the return to league play this week will be hard-pressed to maintain either the excitement level or the quality of play shown at the FleetCenter.

The jockeying for third to sixth place continues, with Providence potentially starting yet another late-season run under Paul Pooley. They play a home-and-home with sizzling New Hampshire, though, so their recent push could be stalled. Merrimack had been the hottest second-tier team in the league until the Friars pounded them 9-4 on Saturday. Their home-and-home with Boston College will prove pivotal to both teams’ playoff positions.

After overachieving all season long to hold onto third place, UMass-Lowell has now dropped five straight and faces the daunting BU Terriers in another home-and-home. Maine, waiting to hear the results of their NCAA appeal, plays two at UMass-Amherst before entertaining UNH on Tuesday in what promises to be the best game of the week.

Last week’s record in picks: 6-2 Season record in picks: 107-60

Providence (12-16-1, 9-9-1 HE) vs. No. 3 New Hampshire (23-6-0, 16-3-0 HE)

Friday, 7 p.m., Whittemore Center, Durham, NH Saturday, 7 p.m., Schneider Arena, Providence, RI

In their only action of the week, New Hampshire beat UMass-Lowell 4-0.

"We played a little better last weekend," said coach Dick Umile. "We didn’t give up as many good scoring chances." The previous weekend, of course, was a pretty tough act to follow. UNH outscored Northeastern and UMass-Amherst a combined 17-1.

When Jason Krog opened the scoring a mere 54 seconds into the UMass-Lowell game, it marked the 23rd time in 29 games the Wildcats have gotten on the board first, many in the first few minutes. Although Umile is happy with those numbers, he also said, "We have a lot of confidence, whether we get the first goal or not."

Sean Matile, who has played and won UNH’s last six games, recorded his second shutout in a row and third of the season. Surprisingly, his three shutouts set a new Hockey East season record, an especially impressive feat since he’s played in only 12 games this year because of earlier ineligibility and medication problems.

Matile likes to roam far from the net to help his defense, especially on the Olympic ice surface at home where the demands placed on defensemen to get back for the puck are maximized.

"It’s an important part of the game," said Umile. "The top goaltenders, both in the NHL and in college, can all handle the puck. It gives a team an extra edge."

Although UMass-Lowell outshot the Wildcats 38-31, Matile faced the problem of all netminders on dominant teams. While their team is controlling play in the offensive zone for long stretches, a goaltender must stay physically loose and mentally sharp. UNH dominated the first 17 minutes of the game, allowing the River Hawks no serious chances. Lowell then swarmed around him in the period’s closing minutes. Matile proved up to the challenge during that flurry and for the rest of the game.

"With this team, I know I’m not going to get a lot of shots on most nights, so I just have to concentrate," said Matile after the game. "I really don’t care if I get eight shots or eighty."

Voters for postseason All-Rookie teams will have a tough choice between Matile and Northeastern’s Marc Robitaille. For most of the season Robitaille has looked like a consensus pick, an ironman playing well on a weak team. Matile’s recent play, however, makes the choice difficult. He now boasts staggering statistics in league play (1.99 goals against average and a .941 save percentage) and still-impressive numbers including all games (3.03 GAA and .911 save percentage).

Working against him will be his limited role (12 games) on a great team, compared to Robitaille’s 27 games while performing for the league’s worst. Robitaille has also shut out three teams this year, but two were in non-league contests. To this eye, they’re neck-and-neck at the turn.

Providence took both games last weekend against teams that had been coming on strong. The Friars beat Boston College 4-2 and Merrimack 9-4. In fits and starts, they are showing signs of once again becoming the playoff behemoth they’ve been ever since coach Paul Pooley took over.

"Our first thought [against BC] was playing good defense," said Pooley. "I think we did that. Our penalty-kill did a good job against their power play. And [Mark] Kane played well in net. When he had to make the big save, he was there.

"[Saturday night against Merrimack] was a funny game. We jumped on them early, but they were coming back in the second period. It was 4-2, but the tide was turning for them and they were on the power play. Then Russ Guzior scored a shorthanded goal. That was the major goal of the game. It deflated them a bit. We played with more confidence and played well for the rest of the game."

Guzior’s play sums up the Providence season in a microcosm. Their leading scorer last season with 20 goals, he’s spent much of this year unable to throw the puck in the ocean. In the closing minutes against BC, however, he tallied an empty-net goal to seal the win. The score, empty net or not, might have acted as a bung-puller for Guzior, allowing the two-goal bubbly to flow the next night against Merrimack.

"He had two or three breakaways against BC and didn’t score on any," said Pooley. "The empty-netter may have relaxed him a bit in the sense that he had so many good chances that game before he scored into the empty net. The next night against Merrimack his first one maybe wasn’t a great goal; he just went over the blue line, took a slap shot and scored. The other one he worked hard in the corner, came out and just jammed it in. Getting him going will help us a lot."

Of perhaps even greater significance is the surprising play of sophomore goaltender Mark Kane. Kane rode the pine for much of this season while Pooley tried to get Dan Dennis on track. Dennis, an All-Hockey East selection last year and a preseason pick this year, struggled.

"Obviously Dan can’t be happy that he’s not playing," said Pooley, "but Mark’s won four in a row and he’s earned the right to be in there. What we want from Danny is for him to say, ‘Hey, I’m a competitor. I know that Mark deserves to play, but I’m gonna work my butt off and get my game back. And if the opportunity arises for me to get called upon, I’m going to be ready to play and show what I can do.’ That’s the type of attitude we need from him right now.

"There’s no question that Mark deserves to play. He’s played well. He gives our team jump. He talks, he moves the puck well, and he’s playing with confidence. That gives our team confidence because we can relax a bit more because we aren’t letting in the goals that we were earlier. That’s given us a little more opportunity to score, feel better about ourselves, and maybe take chances at times. Instead of being back on our heels, we’re going forward."

As well as his team is playing, however, Pooley knows he’s running into a buzzsaw against UNH.

"Obviously we have to try to limit their scoring opportunities because they are very, very talented," he said. "They can beat you just ad-libbing out there one-on-one, playing shinny hockey, because of their skill. We can’t get into that game. We’ve got to try to control the ice and dictate tempo as much as possible, especially on that big sheet of ice up there on Friday night. We also need to stay out of the penalty box and keep it five-on-five."

PICK: New Hampshire sweeps, 5-3 and 5-2.

No. 4 Boston University (17-6-5, 13-2-3 HE) vs. UMass-Lowell (13-16-0, 9-10-0 HE) Friday, 7 p.m., Tully Forum, Lowell, MA WNDS-TV50 Saturday, 7 p.m., Walter Brown Arena, Boston, MA NESN

BU rallied back against UMass-Amherst, using five power-play goals to beat the Minutemen 6-3. They had to also come back in the Beanpot championship game, via a Dan LaCouture goal only 22 seconds after falling behind 2-0, and a tying score about a minute later. Captain Bill Pierce got the game-winner on a breakaway and a Chris Drury open-netter iced the thrilling 4-2 win.

"The building sounded pretty good," said BU coach Jack Parker after the game. The FleetCenter, a mausoleum for sleepy Bruins and Celtics games since its opening, came alive for one of the top rivalries in college hockey. "I thought this was going to be a real test for the FleetCenter to see how enthusiastic the crowd was and how enthusiastic the players were. "I thought the emotion could be felt on the bench and on the ice. Now all we have to do is make sure we put 17,000 in the building," Parker said. "We know now we can get the roar of the crowd out there. It certainly was pumping us up and BC up. "This was quite a show with BC and BU in the Beanpot final. Playing as well as we had against each other in the first three games of the year [in two 5-5 ties and a 6-4 BU win that included an open-netter], no matter who won the game it was going to be good for our history and our rivalry and something good for college hockey in Boston again. And that’s certainly how I felt tonight. It was a great college hockey game to watch.

"It was nice to have Tom Noble show once again why he does a lot of things well and win. There’s a lot of goalies who do a lot of things well, but Tommy’s got the will to win. He’s won a lot of third periods because he’s just said, ‘That’s enough!’ and he certainly said that tonight."

UMass-Lowell didn’t have quite the same thrill in their Alumni Cup competition with UMass-Amherst. Their budding rivalry has little of the history of BU-BC, but over time could turn into one of the better ones. Lowell lost the Alumni Cup 6-4 on Saturday after losing to third-ranked New Hampshire 4-0 the night before. The losses now give the River Hawks a five-game losing streak dating back to their 3-1 win over BU.

"Actually we played real well on the weekend," said UML coach Tim Whitehead. "Unfortunately it didn’t bounce for us, but we’re not going to panic or anything. You can’t always use wins and losses as a barometer for how well you’re doing. Sometimes you can, sometimes you can’t.

"This past weekend we were really pleased with the effort that the guys showed. Unfortunately, we outshot both UNH and Amherst on the weekend and still lost, but we’ve been on the other end of that earlier in the year so we can’t complain. There are no excuses, they just came out on top. It all evens out in the end. The effort is there, we’re just a little snakebit as far as putting it in the net.

"We’re really excited about getting the enthusiasm behind the Alumni Cup. That was a nice win for Amherst. We’re excited about keeping that tradition going each year and it’s something we want to build. That’s becoming a big rivalry."

Whitehead faces a tough challenge getting his young team out of its losing streak and ready for Boston University.

"There are no easy games," said Whitehead. "We’ve played BU [and won] so we know that we can beat them. On the other hand, we certainly know that they can beat us. They’re a tremendous team. It’s definitely going to be a challenge for us this weekend."

PICK: BU sweeps 4-2 and 6-3.

Maine (18-10-1, 10-7-1 HE) at UMass-Amherst (12-17-0, 7-13-0 HE) Friday and Saturday, 7 p.m., Mullins Center, Amherst, MA

Maine resumes play after a week off; prior to their break, they bested BC in an 8-6 shootout before losing 5-4 in overtime to Merrimack. The Warriors tied that game in the last minute with an extra skater and posted their second win over the Black Bears, Maine’s only two blemishes in an 8-2 record in 1997.

"We actually played [Merrimack] fairly well," said Maine coach Shawn Walsh. "We out-attempted them 71-48. They got very good goaltending and opportunistic goal scoring. It makes you look at yourself a little closer and there’s some areas we want to try to improve on but we don’t want to overreact either."

Recently, blueliner David Cullen was named Hockey East Player of the Week. "He’s really coming into his own," said Walsh. "His confidence and his strength are catching up with his puck skills. He’s always been good with the puck. It’s a Cullen trademark, the good soft hands and sense. "We’ve moved him to our top power-play unit and he’s really helped them. We were seven for nine on the power play over the weekend. He’s a very, very good offensive player who is improving dramatically defensively."

Goaltender Javier Gorriti, who Walsh has rotated in the nets to take the pressure off Alfie Michaud, has been sick and still wasn’t practicing as of Tuesday. He also played poorly in the BC game before getting the hook. As a result, this weekend Michaud could see his first full back-to-back games since November. The top recruit has settled down after a rocky start and, in contrast to the walk-on Gorriti, is likely viewed as the Black Bear future between the pipes. As such, he could command more than a split of playing time down the stretch.

Maine travels to UMass-Amherst for two games on their large ice surface. How well the Black Bears use their speed there could prove decisive.

"The biggest thing you have to do is stay close as units and not get too far ahead of the puck. We did a good job of that at Northeastern which isn’t as big as UMass’s rink but it’s bigger than regulation.

"I also want us to get a little better focus. We drifted a little bit in that last Merrimack game. We’d kept up great intensity and I just didn’t sense that same enthusiasm, if you will, that we’d had in our previous 10 or 11 games. Maybe that was a wakeup call."

UMass-Amherst hung with Boston University for two periods on Friday but lost 6-3.

"For the second time we’ve played [BU], we played even with them five-on-five," said UMass-Amherst coach Joe Mallen. "We actually outscored them five-on-five 3-1. I thought there were some questionable calls by the officials in the second period that allowed them to get back into the game. You have to deal with those things but obviously when you go five-on-three with BU a couple of times, you’re opening the door for them to take advantage of it.

"I thought we played a good game and had a chance to win it. It’s the second time this year that at home we entered the third period tied with BU. That’s a good sign."

They then took the Alumni Cup, awarded annually to the winner of the Amherst-Lowell series, with a 6-4 win. The Minutemen also took home the Cup last year, in its first year of existence.

"When I first came on here three and a half years ago, UMass-Lowell and Bruce Crowder wanted to start this Alumni Cup between the two schools," Mallen said. "My first thought was that I didn’t even have a team yet. [We waited two years and started it last year.] If you’d told me we were going to win it the first year, I’d have told you you were crazy." If you’d told me we were going to win it the first two years I’d have told you that you were even crazier. For us to win the Alumni Cup two years in a row may not be the Stanley Cup, but for us it’s a huge step in the right direction. They’re an established program and have played very well the last 10 years."

The win over Lowell also proved notable since that gave the Minutemen another series win to go along with ones they’d already taken against Providence and Northeastern.

Defenseman Tom O’Connor returned to action on Saturday after missing time due to a knee injury. "He felt that he could give it a go [against Lowell] so we put him in the lineup," said Mallen. "That was a big boost for us. I don’t know how coincidental it is, but for five games we were in a slump and he was out of the lineup every game. All of a sudden, he returns and we win."

Every point in the standings is critical now for UMass-Amherst. They have a remote chance of taking playoff home ice, but also could be one of the bottom two seeds, drawing UNH or BU in the first round.

"No matter what, we can’t fear anybody," said Mallen. "If it’s BU or UNH, that’s fine. But the fact is that we’ve played very well against Providence, BC, Lowell and Merrimack. They’ve all been tight games. To put ourselves in the position to go to one of those places or perhaps have them have to come to us, that would be huge."

The Minutemen now face two games with a Maine squad that has played excellent hockey since Shawn Walsh’s return. Of the four remaining UMass games on the docket, three are against the Black Bears.

"It seems like right now they’re surging forward," said Mallen. "That loss against Merrimack must have hurt a little bit, but it seems that all the pieces are back into place and they’re playing a real good brand of hockey. Any time you face one of Shawn’s teams, you’re going to see a real well-organized and well-executed game plan.

"The one thing they have right now is a lot of speed, and in a big rink that should be an interesting matchup. But they have proven they are a beatable team this year. They aren’t undefeated. We’ve just got to play our best game."

PICK: Maine 5-3 and 5-4.

Merrimack (11-16-1, 7-10-1 HE) vs. Boston College (11-15-3, 7-9-3 HE) Friday, 7 p.m., Conte Forum, Chestnut Hill, MA Saturday, 7 p.m., Volpe Center, North Andover, MA

BC lost 4-2 to Providence before their Beanpot championship game against arch-rival BU. The Friars, a tough team to beat under coach Paul Pooley in the last months of the season, may have also caught the Eagles glancing ahead to their Monday night game.

That title contest against BU turned into an epic battle. The Eagles seized a 2-0 third-period lead only to have the Terriers rebound within seconds and soon knot the game at 2-2. A breakaway goal, BC’s Achilles’ heel all season long, decided the contest.

"Greg [Taylor] gave us every chance in the world to win the hockey game," said coach Jerry York after the game. "But our other players did too. Our forwards and defense did everything necessary to give us a chance to win the Beanpot, but we just had a miscommunication that sent Pierce in for the [breakaway]. We had a chance to win it against an excellent hockey team, certainly one that deserves to be ranked in the top five or six teams in the country.

"I’m disappointed, of course, because we lost the game, but certainly not disappointed in anything else but the play that lost us the game…. Our goal is to win the Beanpot and we didn’t do that so we’re disappointed in that respect, but not in the effort we had.

"Our team is becoming a better team, but we still have a ways to go in a number of areas. There’s improvement in this team but we’re still a little bit away from being a championship-level team. Tonight’s game was a championship-level game, but we haven’t been as consistent on the year as I would have liked. But this particular game was a well-played game."

Merrimack has been on a much-ignored roll since the start of 1997. In that time they’ve gone 7-4, including the only losses Maine has sustained during that same stretch. They continued that with a 7-2 win over Northeastern on Friday night, but then hit a 9-4 brick wall against Providence.

"To be honest, I thought we played better on Saturday night," said coach Ron Anderson. "Friday night I thought we played pretty casual in the first period, but fortunately for us we got some breaks and capitalized on their mistakes.

"Against Providence, we outshot them 42-28. We played well offensively, but our whole team just didn’t play well defensively and they executed when we made mistakes. The forwards didn’t pick people up on the backcheck very well. We didn’t do a very good job in the neutral zone. Our D had trouble controlling players down low. And our goaltenders didn’t give us a real outstanding effort. That’s not meant to be negative. Providence just played well, took it to us, and we’ve just got to be ready to go at it again this Friday."

On a positive note, senior Rob Beck scored his 100th point in the Providence game. "Robbie’s been a stellar performer for us for four years," said Anderson. "If anything, he’s been the model of consistency both from an offensive and a defensive point of view. It’s a tremendous credit to him and the kind of kid he is. The fact that he’s a dean’s list student and a two-year captain just speaks volumes about the value that he brings to our program."

Providing silver lining in the lopsided loss’s cloud was freshman Cris Classen playing in the nets in the third, his first full period of action. With Martin Legault and Eric Thibeault both graduating next year, Classen could go a long way in determining the Warriors fate next year. Although he allowed two goals on six shots, Anderson was happy with Classen’s work.

"I think he’s fine," said Anderson. "[He’s been] in a tough situation because there hasn’t been a lot of ice time because the other guys played so well. Through his work in practice, though, he looks fine. He’ll be able to step right in and help us next year . When we’ve gotten him into games, he hasn’t looked nervous or jittery at all. He’s stepped right in and played well."

Like any Beanpot viewer, Anderson sees some very strong components to the BC squad.

"They’ve got some awfully skilled players, up front in particular," he said. "They have the ability to beat you with their goal scorers and the ability to beat you with their goaltending. We’re going to have to play well in both ends of the rink. Their forwards are very opportunistic and if we make mistakes, they’ll be all over them. "We have to try to get back to a solid defensive game and eliminate our mistakes. And we’re going to have to work very hard in the other end because they’ve got an outstanding goaltender in [Greg] Taylor and we’re probably not going to get any easy goals."

PICK: BC makes it four sweeps around the league this weekend, 6-2, 4-3.

Northeastern (7-20-2, 2-17-1 HE) at Army (15-11-2, 1-10-2 vs. aligned D-I) Saturday, 7 p.m., Tate Rink, West Point, NY

Northeastern had posted a string of one-goal defeats early in January which had at least been encouraging. Recently, however, they’ve showed signs of unraveling with lopsided losses of 7-1 to UNH and 7-2 to Maine and Merrimack. Aside from a win over UMass-Amherst and a well-played loss to BC in the Beanpot opener, the Husky ship appeared to be taking on water. A 2-0 win over Harvard in the Beanpot consolation game, however, was a positive boost.

"It was a nice win coming off the Merrimack game on Friday [which we lost 7-2]," said Crowder. "We played well defensively and stuck with our system, a lot like we did last Monday night, only this week we didn’t break. The kids played hard and we got some good goaltending.

"We’ve had a lot of things go against us this year. It’s nice to be on the other end of a close game.

"We played really good team defense as a unit of six. It’s something we’ve been preaching all year. It was nice for the coaching staff to see that level of defensive commitment."

Freshman Marc Robitaille recorded his third shutout of the season, setting a school record. Considering the team’s meager seven-win total, the mark becomes an impressive achievement. At season’s end Robitaille will battle UNH’s Sean Matile for a spot on Hockey East’s All-Rookie team. Although his statistics can’t hold a candle to Matile’s, they reflect to a great extent their status on last- and first-place teams.

Crowder has been forced to experiment with new faces on the blue line. Forward Jonathan Calla spent several games there before moving back up front. Brad Mahoney, the senior transfer from Maine, not only moved back to D four weeks ago but is now part of their top-four rotation despite never having played the position before.

In the win over Harvard, Justin Kearns rebounded from a Crowder-imposed seat in the stands against Merrimack to score and assist on the two goals. Although Kearns escaped Mahoney’s game disqualification punishment during the penalty spree that buried the Huskies at the end of their Beanpot opener, Crowder took a stand against the lack of discipline and also benched Kearns, his leading scorer for the Friday night game.

Army has split their last four games. They dropped both games against D-I conference teams, 4-3 against Yale and 8-1 to Union. They also beat Canisius 7-4 and Royal Military College, their Canadian counterpart, 7-3.

The two wins achieved Cadet milestones. The win over Royal Military marked Army coach Rob Riley’s 200th in his career. The win over Canisius was his 150th at Army. The Army-Royal Military contest, touted as the oldest continuous international rivalry in sports, was the 66th meeting of the two teams.

Going into the Canisius game, Frank Fede (36 points) led Cadet scoring. Andy Lundbohm (30), Greg Buckmeier (29), Bill Morrison (26), Joe Sharrock (25), and Anthony DiCarlo (23) follow. Although goaltender Daryl Chamberlain’s statistics (3.65 goals against average and .877 save percentage) suffer in comparison to his in previous years, they reflect Army’s tougher schedule this season.

PICK: The Huskies get a much-needed win 3-2.

No. 3 New Hampshire (23-6-0, 16-3-0 HE) at Maine (18-10-1, 10-7-1 HE) Tuesday, 7 p.m., Alfond Arena, Orono, ME

(These two teams are profiled above.)

PICK: UNH wins the shootout, 7-6.

Dave Hendrickson is the Hockey East Correspondent for U.S. College Hockey Online.

Copyright 1997 Dave Hendrickson . All Rights Reserved.

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Hockey East Preview: Feb. 7-10, 1997 by Dave Hendrickson

It’s another dream matchup for the Beanpot — Boston University and Boston College in the title game. Even the moribund Fleet Center might hear some noise for that one.

Lost in the Beanpot publicity bonanza has been the resurgent play of not only a dominating UNH squad but more notably, a Merrimack team which is now earning respect around the league. The Warriors are 7-4 since Christmas and could still achieve home ice.

But the key for all the teams clustered in the middle of the standings is not home ice, but the playoff pairings: the lowest two qualifiers face New Hampshire and Boston University. Get out the golf clubs in that case. But all other potential matchups could conceivably go either way. Maine, if eligible, and Boston College would be favorites, but far from prohibitive ones. Home ice amounts to gravy on the potatoes of avoiding the two powers until the Fleet.

Last week’s record in picks: 6-3 Season record in picks: 101-58

The Beanpot: Championship Game No. 4 Boston University (15-6-5, 12-2-3 HE) vs. Boston College (11-13-3, 7-8-3 HE) Monday, 8 p.m., Fleet Center, Boston, MA WABU-68

"We’re going to have a tough game against BU," said Boston College netminder Greg Taylor before BU’s semifinal game had even started. Such is the nature of the BU-BC rivalry. Upon hearing a few knowing chuckles, the cool senior added without batting an eyelash, "If they’re the ones that end up being victorious."

The comment symbolizes the bone-deep rivalry between the two schools.

"I don’t know what it is," said BC captain David Wainwright, "but that team … they bother me. I’m really looking forward to playing BU."

BU’s Matt Wright made it clear that the feelings were very mutual.

"It’s always like BC is on your back," said Wright. "Once you settle that, you can move on to the rest of the season. It’s like there’s the Beanpot, the Hockey East playoffs, the Finals, and then there’s BC. It’s like its own tournament. No matter how many times we beat them, if they beat us once it’s all forgotten."

The Terriers will go with Tom Noble in net, following Michel Larocque’s performance in the 7-1 semifinal win over Harvard. Larocque will play against UMass-Amherst on Friday.

"It’s very simple," said Parker, when asked about the secret to BU’s "Beanpot Magic." The Terriers will be appearing in their 13th championship game in the last 14 years, and 30th in 34.

"Ricky Meagher, Mike Eruzione, Peter Brown, Tony Amonte, Shawn McEachern, Chris Drury, Shawn Bates…. We have very, very good players every year. Fortunately for us, when I foul the team up, it’s usually in December and we get straightened out by the time the Beanpot comes around."

"I always say that if the Beanpot were held in late November or December, we wouldn’t be nearly so successful. But sooner or later we figure out what we have to do, and we are blessed with real good players and they get the job done.

"Not only is it the talent, but it’s also the type of kids we get. They want success, but they also know how to handle it. The best part about my job is that our best players, our most-skilled players, our most important players, 99 percent of the time have also been our best players character-wise. That’s a great thing to have. Chris Drury is an example of that."

Parker recently moved longtime defenseman Shane Johnson to forward. This has given the Terriers four full lines for one of the few times all season. The team has responded with well-distributed scoring, with six and seven different goal scorers in their last two games, including Johnson against Harvard.

"[Shane] has played defense for us all four years," said Parker. "Two weeks ago we moved him to forward because we thought we needed more determination up there. But he’s given us a lot more talent than we thought. Not only is he playing hard, but he’s a real clever player."

On the other side of the ledger stands Boston College, which beat Northeastern 4-1 to advance to its third title game in the last four years.

"Our senior class has a chance to win two Beanpots in their four-year tenure," said BC coach Jerry York. The Eagles beat Harvard 2-1 in overtime in 1994.

"That would really be an accomplishment. I’m really excited about being in the finals. Our team, despite our won-loss record, is potentially a very dangerous team.

"Our skating is the key to our game. If we skate well, I think we can play a high level of hockey. But defensively and offensively we still have to shore up a lot of different areas. Our faceoffs need some work, and we’ll work on that. Our ability to make plays three-on-two and two-on-one is something that we’re getting better at, but I don’t feel that this is a finished product by any means."

One focal point of BC strength is the newly-constructed top line of Marty Reasoner, Jeff Farkas and Blake Bellefeuille, all of whom played in the recent World Junior Tournament.

"The ability of Chris Masters to be a center [on our third line] and also the play that [second-line center] Jamie O’Leary has had, has enabled us to put Blake, Marty and Jeff (all centers) all on the same line," said York. "They have a tremendous amount of skill and when they use each other they become a very, very effective line."

Farkas, who is making a late-season Rookie of the Year surge following his return from the junior tournament, earned Hockey East co-Rookie of the Week honors with Providence’s Fernando Pisani. The league bestowed the award on Farkas based on his two goals and two assists against Maine. He then added a goal and an assist against Northeastern.

"Jeff Farkas has been on fire," said Wainright. "He’s gotten at least a point in every game [since returning from the junior tournament]. He’s having a lot of fun out there."

Reasoner, Farkas, and Bellefeuille also comprise an integral part of the Eagle power-play unit which adds freshmen Mike Mottau and Kevin Caulfield.

"For most of the year, we’ve had a fine power-play unit," said York. "But where we’ve had problems is on the penalty kill. For a variety of reasons we just haven’t been able to defend very well when we’re down a man…. I feel very good about our power play. And I feel better about our penalty kill. We’ve had to rely on Greg [Taylor] to be our PK guy for too long."

Boston College’s occasionally-suspect defense played well against Northeastern, but faces a sterner test in BU. Their propensity for giving up the breakaway could be exposed by Drury, Bates and company. Taylor bails them out time after time, but this game could turn on how many times he’s asked to.

Wainright, who picked up a game disqualification against the Huskies, will sit out the Friday night game against Providence, but will return against BU.

PICK: Although this marks Boston College’s best chance for a Beanpot in years — much better than when they won it in 1994 — BU’s defensive superiority wins out 3-2. Greg Taylor will be heroic even in defeat.

The Beanpot: Consolation Game Harvard (7-12-2, 6-7-2 ECAC) vs. Northeastern (6-19-2, 2-16-1 HE) Monday, 5 p.m., Fleet Center, Boston, MA

This contest could come down to a battle of freshmen netminders, Harvard’s J.R. Prestifilippo and Northeastern’s Marc Robitaille. Both have played well all season long and made big saves in the Beanpot semifinal before succumbing to superior opponents in the third period.

"He’s been simply outstanding," said Harvard coach Ron Tomassoni about Prestifilippo. "He’s played way beyond our expectations. We thought he was going to be very good, but he’s given us the opportunity to win almost every game we’ve been in. That’s all you can ask from a goaltender."

"We’ve been a team that has struggled over the season to score goals. We’ve been only scoring about 2.5 goals a game, but [until the loss to BU] been only giving up 2.7. So we’ve played pretty good defense and he’s a pretty big reason why. He’s a talented boy. He’s very competitive and he’s very tough mentally. He’s mature beyond his years."

"He’s a goalie that is always focused," added Harvard captain Ashlin Halfnight. "I’ve never seen anybody work as hard as he does in practice. It’s always a battle, and he always wants to stop every single shot."

Also pivotal for the Crimson will be their much-maligned power play and offense in general. Going into the Beanpot, Tomassoni had waxed optimistic, based on recently scoring six goals against RPI and five against UNH, two very good teams. But BU shut down the Crimson offense and sent Tomassoni back to the drawing board.

Harvard ranks as the youngest squad in Division I hockey. With 17 of their 26 roster spots claimed by freshmen and sophomores, they boast an average age of 19.6 years old.

Northeastern coach Bruce Crowder complimented his own freshman duffel bag, despite Robitaille’s giving up a soft goal that turned into the game-winner for BC. "The kid played tremendous," said Crowder. "It was just a shame to see a goal like that beat him."

What Crowder found even more shameful was the onslaught of penalties that iced his own team.

"I was proud of the way the guys played for the first forty-seven minutes," said Crowder. "They gave it their all. They played hard. It was a 1-1 game and anything could have happened at that point. The thing I’m extremely disappointed in is the way my team handled themselves late in the third period.

"We took the game out of our hands. We maybe had a chance to come back and wound up getting into a penalty situation. It was a lack of discipline. We killed penalties for the last five minutes instead of trying to [get back in it]. Hey, we were only down by two goals. That’s something that’s going to be handled."

Crowder recognizes the limitations of his last-place squad.

"The kids we have here are the kids that we have here," he said. "The only thing we can do is keep a positive spin as much as possible on everything that happens. I can’t call Jack [Parker] or Jerry [York] and make a trade for the playoff run. What I have is what I have. I’ve got a lot of really good hockey players that are playing hard for me, and those are the guys that I want to continue to work with and get this program to where I want it to go."

With a 6-19-2 team and no Beanpot championship to light a spark, could the Huskies roll over and die?

"Not my teams," said Crowder. "There’s a lot of question marks going into ’97 and ’98. Guys have seven or eight games left to make the most of that opportunity, to show this coaching staff what they can do for us and how they can help bring this program along."

Without an abundance of talent, Crowder feels he has fashioned a system to give his squad their best chance of success.

"We’re just trying to keep it simple and eliminate a lot of opportunities for the other team," he said. "We want to just play strong defense, and hopefully get some breaks on neutral-zone turnovers."

PICK: Northeastern 3-2.

UMass-Lowell (13-14-0, 9-8-0 HE) at No. 3 New Hampshire (22-6-0, 15-3-0 HE) Friday, 7 p.m., Whittemore Center, Durham, NH

New Hampshire is back to grinding up opponents and spitting them out. Last week they demolished Northeastern 7-1 and UMass-Amherst 10-0 after a midweek 7-5 win over Harvard.

"I thought we had a great weekend," said Umile. "We’re moving the puck real well and our specialty situations have gone well. I’m really pleased."

After the 10-0 debacle, UMass-Amherst coach Joe Mallen said, "That tandem of goaltenders with that group of forwards — you get the defensemen and third line just playing their role — and you’ve got a chance at a national championship."

It’s a thought that slid to the back burner during UNH’s recent mini-slump, but is coming full-circle back to the fore. Although coach Dick Umile is still maintaining a game-to-game attitude, he’s measured his team against the competition and likes what he sees.

"We feel we have the personnel that if we get to the Final Four — we still have to get there — but if we can get there we’ll have a very, very good opportunity to win it," said Umile.

"We have a very solid team and we’re improving each week. But those are all the bonuses. You’ve got to go through the league, through the league playoffs, and through the regional. You’ve got to be lucky. You’ve got to be good. I think we have all the pieces. Whether we get there or not, I don’t know. But if we get there, we can compete with anyone."

Eric Boguniecki, part of their great strength at forward, earned Hockey East Player of the Week honors with five goals and four assists in the three games. He now totals 17 goals and 27 assists, good for third in overall league scoring. The Wildcats as a team are now averaging 5.68 goals a game, second best in the country.

"I’ve never seen it this good," said UNH coach Dick Umile. "They move the puck incredibly well. Hockey is a transitional game and once it goes the other way, they know how to pass and execute. They just read off each other extremely well. These guys are very, very talented hockey players. And they’re unselfish. They just know that good things happen if they just stay with it."

Sean Matile has now backstopped the last five Wildcat games. Completely recovered from his problems with medication side-effects, he’ll be The Man down the stretch after beating out Brian Larochelle. His statistics bear out the decision. He leads Hockey East in league games with a 2.32 goals-against average and a .932 save percentage.

Lowell could be headed in the other direction. Losers of their last three, the River Hawks dropped below .500 for only the second time this season following losses to Merrimack (4-2), Colgate (5-1) and an 8-2 stinker to Providence.

"As a team we just didn’t have a strong game," said UML coach Tim Whitehead after the loss to the Friars. "All of us had an off night. We stick together as a team [and don’t point fingers]. We’ll get better and we’ll be back.

"We can’t put too much importance on one game. Just like we shouldn’t put too much importance on beating BU, we shouldn’t put too much importance on losing to Colgate or Providence. Obviously we want to get to where we’re playing our best hockey when the playoffs hit. We’ve got seven games before that happens."

Perhaps the young River Hawk team became full of itself after knocking off nationally ranked UNH and BU on consecutive weekends. Although they lost the opener of their home-and-home with UNH 9-4, they came back to beat the Wildcats 7-5 at the Whittemore Center. They then trapped BU for a 3-1 win.

"Nothing’s changed just because we got a couple big wins," said Whitehead. "We’re still the same team we were before. I don’t think so, but perhaps our guys do have false illusions about what team we are. I know that we don’t as coaches. We need all 20 guys playing a great game for us to be successful. That hasn’t changed whether we win or lose. They should understand that by now.

"We have to make sure everyone’s on the same page when we head up to New Hampshire. We’re going to focus on us and improving ourselves. Then we’ll deal with UNH when Friday comes around. Our guys have played them before, we been up there, so it won’t be any shocker."

PICK: New Hampshire 7-3.

No. 4 Boston University (15-6-5, 12-2-3 HE) at UMass-Amherst (11-16-0, 6-12-0 HE) Friday, 7 p.m., Mullins Center, Amherst, MA

UMass-Amherst took it on the chin last week, losing 5-3 to Merrimack before UNH punished them 10-0. They have now lost four in a row and face a gauntlet of tough teams down the stretch.

"We’re a little beat up at this point," said UMass coach Joe Mallen, whose team faced New Hampshire without leading scorer Rob Bonneau and has missed top defenseman Tom O’Connor during their entire losing streak. Both are day-to-day for the upcoming weekend. "This is a bump in the road. It hurts. On the other hand, we just have to get back to work and get healthy.

"We’ve been basically going with five defensemen now for four games. The problem is on the second night when our five defensemen are a little more fatigued. We’re just not that deep on defense right now. I think we’ve got six good ones, but after that the depth just drops off. We don’t really have anyone that can drop back and do a capable job."

Mallen still didn’t totally excuse his team’s poor play in the embarrassment against UNH. His offense failed to score, his defense proved porous, and his two goaltenders allowed 10 goals on 24 shots.

"Our guys did a really poor job on the one-on-ones in tight to the net," said Mallen. "We didn’t get guys’ sticks up and get into the really close coverage that we’ve been working on all year."

Unfortunately, the Minutemen must try to rebound against, of all teams, BU.

"It’s up to me to provide the leadership," said Mallen. "I’m not going to skate them into the ground. I’m going to do the opposite. I’m going to give them a couple days off and then try to regroup. I’ve been at this for 20 years and you can just see when guys are burned out. They need more rest than they need work.

"We’ve been a streaky team all year. We’re in a downward cycle right now but we’re just looking to have one of those upward cycles towards the end of February and the middle of March. And if you do that you can wind up in the Fleet Center and then who knows."

A look at the schedule proves sobering, however. The Minutemen close with three games against Maine, and single ones against BU, BC, and an away game against UMass-Lowell. They could conceivably lose all six, and then face UNH or BU in the playoffs. Not a pretty picture.

Up first is Boston University.

"The one thing is that BU’s in the middle of the Beanpot," said Mallen. "Our closest games with BU have been at this time. We’ve had 4-1 games, which doesn’t sound close, but for us that’s kind of a mental victory."

(BU is profiled above.)

PICK: Boston University struggles not to look ahead to another Beanpot championship, but avoids disaster, 5-3.

Boston College (11-13-3, 7-8-3 HE) at Providence (10-16-1, 7-9-1 HE) Friday, 7 p.m., Schneider Arena, Providence, RI

Providence lost 6-2 to BU and then stunned Lowell, 8-2. The Friars are now 4-4 since a seven-game losing streak sidetracked their run at a return to the Fleet Center.

"I thought Friday night against BU we played hard," said coach Paul Pooley after the Lowell win. "We had a lot of chances but we just didn’t cash in. You keep running through that wall and sometimes you don’t get results. Well, tonight we got results."

More results will be needed this weekend since Providence finishes with three games against New Hampshire and two against UMass-Lowell. They, like most other teams in the league, could finish anywhere from third to eighth.

"They’re all playoff games now," said Pooley. "Our league is so tight near the midrange that you have to be ready to play. A game like [the win over Lowell] can move you forward but if you lose it could really set you back."

Their eight goals against Lowell matches an earlier-season high set against Northeastern. For a team that has struggled to score all season, the outburst came at an opportune time.

"It’s a big confidence boost," said Pooley. "Some guys feel that they can’t score no matter what they do."

Freshman Fernando Pisani led the scoring with his first collegiate hat trick against Lowell. Pisani and sophomores Mike Omicioli and Jon Cameron have recently formed the Friars top line and have played well together. Pisani’s outburst gives him 20 points on the season. Hockey East honored the rookie for his accomplishments, naming him co-Rookie of the Week with BC’s Jeff Farkas.

"Coach Pooley has a different system than many coaches around the league," said Pisani about his adjustment to D-I play. "In juniors you don’t see that system around. So it’s mostly getting adjusted to it. Right now I’m a little more comfortable."

After Dan Dennis gave up three goals on eight shots against BU, Pooley yanked his All-Hockey East goalie for sophomore Mark Kane. Unfortunately, Dennis has not always performed at all-league levels this year. Kane played well against Lowell.

"Hey, one of the things for us to get better is that our goaltending has to improve," said Pooley. "Danny’s played some good games for us and Mark has played some good games. Whoever gets hot [will play.] But Mark will definitely play on Friday against BC. He deserves that opportunity."

Kane could have his hands full against the Eagles.

"BC’s just a very, very talented club," said Pooley. "Offensively they’re very scary. The first two times we played them [goaltender Greg] Taylor was really good. The one game up there that we should have won, we had two goals disallowed. I thought that was one of the games that hurt our confidence. We tied it even though we blew the two goal-lead in the last three minutes. But I thought that game should have been out of reach."

(BC is profiled above.)

PICK: The Eagles just can’t get those Terriers and the Beanpot out of their heads, and fall to Providence 4-2.

Merrimack (10-15-1, 6-9-1 HE) at Northeastern (6-19-2, 2-16-1 HE) Friday, 7 p.m., Matthews Arena, Boston, MA

For the first time this season Merrimack took two games on the weekend, going on the road to beat UMass-Amherst 5-3 and Maine 5-4, the latter in overtime. The win over Maine came only after coach Ron Anderson pulled the goaltender to tie it in the last minute of regulation. Casey Kesselring’s game-winner came with just 29 seconds left in overtime.

The win at Alfond Arena was the team’s first in 18 years and gave the Warriors their first series over the Black Bears since moving up to Division I play. Merrimack’s 7-4 streak follows their worst start (3-11-1) in school history.

"We’ve taken our lumps for a while," said Anderson in his understated style. "We’re very happy. I think we’re playing pretty well right now.

"One of the keys against Maine was staying out of the penalty box. We gave them three power plays and they scored three goals. They’re such an explosive offensive team that you can’t give them many opportunities."

The Warriors are making the best of their own opportunities now.

"Our upperclassmen were working hard but the puck wasn’t going in for them," said Anderson. "They’re getting some bounces now. We’re a team that’s been averaging two point something per game over the season, but in our last three games we’ve been averaging over five. Obviously that gives you a better chance to win some hockey games."

The key line in the offensive resurgence is comprised of Tom Johnson, Casey Kesselring and Martin Laroche. Dubbed the "J-K-L" line by USCHO contributor and Merrimack radio color commentator Mike Machnik, they have posted fourteen goals — including the game-winner in Orono — and twenty assists in the last nine games.

"They like playing with each other," said Anderson. "That’s a big part of it. Sometimes people don’t know it themselves until they play together. You move people around and you keep changing things. When something works and the pieces fit, you leave them together. Fortunately for us we hit on that unit about a month ago and they’ve played pretty well.

"They have respect for each other, they’re working for each other and the scoring is coming from each of them, not just one or two. The fact that they know they all could be on the scoring end of the equation on any given night is important. They’re not an overpowering line but they work well together and they communicate well."

Where do the Warriors go from here? Starved for confidence earlier in the season, do they now harness their success or become intoxicated with it, especially with last-place Northeastern up first on the docket?

"That’s a fine line that you have to walk," said Anderson. "We’re not the kind of team that can get overconfident against anybody. We’ve been down that road many times and we’ll be well aware of it.

"Our objective is to play the best hockey we can play every time we go out there against every team that we play. Some nights that will be good enough and some nights it won’t, but we’ve got to make sure we put our best foot forward every night."

PICK: Merrimack stays on a roll 5-3.

UMass-Amherst (11-16-0, 6-12-0 HE) at UMass-Lowell (13-14-0, 9-8-0 HE) Saturday, 7 p.m., Tully Forum, Lowell, MA

UMass-Amherst, profiled above against BU, travels to Tully Forum for the rubber game of the Alumni Cup, awarded to the winner of the season’s competition between the two state schools. The ice surfaces of the two teams provide the biggest contrast in Hockey East. UMass-Amherst’s Mullins Center, where they have posted all but three of their wins this year, features an Olympic sheet while the Tully Forum is notable for its minimal neutral ice space. Since the Minutemen play better on a wide-open surface, the tight confines of Tully Forum could act as a seventh player for the River Hawks.

(UMass-Lowell is profiled above.)

PICK: Even though both teams are struggling, home ice takes it for Lowell, 5-4.

Merrimack (10-15-1, 6-9-1 HE) at Providence (10-16-1, 7-9-1 HE) Saturday, 7 p.m., Schneider Arena, Providence, RI NESN

Providence, profiled above, hosts the hot Merrimack Warriors.

"Merrimack’s playing well," said PC coach Paul Pooley. "They’re feeling good. I talked to Ron last Sunday and he said that when they work hard and compete, they can play with anybody. I know from having watched them. I saw them beat Maine a few weeks ago. They’ve got some guys who are playing hard just like they always do. When you play hard you get results. And they’re getting good goaltending."

PICK: Merrimack keeps it going 3-2.

Dave Hendrickson is the Hockey East Correspondent for U.S. College Hockey Online.

Copyright 1997 Dave Hendrickson . All Rights Reserved.

Return to Feature Articles Return to News and Game Recaps Return to US College Hockey Online

Hockey East Preview: Jan. 31-Feb. 3, 1997 by Dave Hendrickson

The Beanpot dwarfs all remaining Hockey East action this week. Northeastern, Boston College and Boston University will all need to avoid looking past their Friday contests and ahead to the biggest college hockey event in the East.

Aside from the Beanpot, however, there remain many key games in the congested third through seventh place in the standings.

Last week’s record in picks: 6-5 Season record in picks: 95-55

The Beanpot Northeastern (6-17-2, 2-14-1 HE) vs. Boston College (10-12-3, 6-7-3 HE) Monday, 6 p.m., Fleet Center, Boston, MA WABU-68

Last week Boston College edged UMass-Amherst, 3-2, before dropping a 5-2 home game against New Hampshire. The Eagles struggled offensively, generating chances but not finishing.

"Goals were tough to get for us this weekend," says BC coach Jerry York. "Part of it was the fine play of both goaltenders, [UMass’s] Brian Regan and [UNH’s] Sean Matile. But after viewing the tapes, I think we’ve just got to cash in and bury some chances."

Although three goals were enough to beat the Minutemen, the following night the Eagles outshot UNH 35-31, but their lack of a goal-scoring touch resulted in a loss. Trailing 3-2 with 18 seconds left in the second period, they gave up a pivotal fourth goal. The 4-2 score held until a Wildcat open-netter.

"New Hampshire is an outstanding hockey team," says York. "And I thought we were dead-even with them."

Not all the Eagles are struggling to fill the net. Tony Hutchins, a recruited walk-on, tallied his eighth goal of the season against UMass-Amherst, and has now scored in six of BC’s last eight games. Hutchins has progressed from fourth-line player to not only getting a regular shift but also acting as the second power-play unit’s bruiser in front.

"It took him a while to get started here at BC," says York. "But right now he’s got a very, very bright future. He’s certainly been red hot as a goal-scorer the last month."

"Red hot" also describes the Maine Black Bears. BC travels to Orono on Friday before returning to open this year’s Beanpot.

"Without a doubt all our attention is on the Maine game," says York. "These are important games now as we head down the stretch. We won’t look at the Beanpot until Saturday and Sunday."

BC’s foe, Northeastern, stuck with Maine for two periods before the Black Bears broke open the 2-2 game with five unanswered goals. The Huskies then extracted revenge from UMass-Amherst, a team that had swept them the previous weekend, shutting out the Minutemen 4-0.

Against Maine, NU coach Bruce Crowder opted to play seldom-used freshman Judd Brackett instead of his workhorse, Marc Robitaille, also a freshman. "We’ve got to make some decisions that pertain to the future and recruiting," says Crowder. "I just thought it was a good opportunity. Sometimes kids come in in those situations and they’re unbelievable. I thought he played pretty good, considering he was going against one of the better teams in the country. It was 2-2 going into the third period and they exploded in the third, but a lot of it wasn’t Judd Brackett’s fault. It was us blowing defensive coverages. He was just the recipient of all the red lights going on."

Robitaille returned against UMass-Amherst the following night and posted the shutout. "We played a lot better defensively," says Crowder. "We had some opportunities to score and we took advantage of some power-play opportunities at the same time. We didn’t get rattled with the penalties against us, either."

This marks Crowder’s first Beanpot. Referring to himself as a "freshman" in that regard, he says, "Most of the kids, no matter where they’ve come from or what they’ve done, have played games of some kind of caliber like that. Maybe not in front of 17,000 fans, but maybe a crowd of 5,000 or 3,000 when the arena was jammed. We’ve just got to keep things on an even keel.

"BC is playing some pretty good hockey. They tied BU twice, and even though they wound up on the back side of UNH, they’ve got some great young talent there. They’re very explosive. The first time against them we didn’t get a lot of opportunities, so maybe we’re going to have to open things up a little bit and maybe create a little bit more offense. It’s the Beanpot, so anything goes, anything crazy can happen. I’d be more than happy to see that."

PICK: Boston College 4-3.

The Beanpot Harvard (7-10-2, 6-6-2 ECAC) vs. No. 5 Boston University (13-6-5, 11-2-3 HE) Monday, 9 p.m., Fleet Center, Boston, MA WABU-68

"It seems like we’re egomaniacs with an inferiority complex," says BU coach Jack Parker. "’Hey, we’re real good, we’re BU hockey, but aw, geez, we’re not that good.’ We’re not quite sure of ourselves."

The baffling Terriers dropped 3-1 games against UMass-Lowell and Maine last weekend. How can the league’s second-leading offense, one that averages 5.25 goals a game, become suddenly so impotent? This makes their second scoring drought of the season, but the last one occurred immediately after Dan LaCouture left the team and before Tommi Degerman’s arrival. Their offense became Chris-Drury-or-bust. But now with Shawn Bates playing well, LaCouture back in the lineup, and the addition of Degerman, the Terriers shouldn’t be struggling so mightily to score goals.

"We’re in a grand funk as far as our scoring ability and our ability to get to the net," says BU coach Jack Parker. "We gave up 14 and [21 shots over the weekend] so we’re playing hard defensively, but we’re not getting anything accomplished offensively. We looked tired and almost disinterested at times. We didn’t have anywhere near the emotion and zip I thought we’d need…. We had a lot of guys who looked legless. We’ve played a lot of games with only three lines and an extra forward and that’s really worn us down."

Drury in particular seemed to be worn down after being blanketed by Lowell and kept in check by Maine. For the first time all season, he appeared ineffective; Drury has been held scoreless only five times all season, and BU has lost all five, two of them this weekend. BU has lost only one game all year, 6-4 to North Dakota, in which Drury scored.

Parker decided, after the loss to Maine, to rest his players for a couple of days, hoping they will have an extra jump in their stride when they return.

"Sometimes the Beanpot has jacked us up and gotten us going," says Parker. "Hopefully that will happen again this year."

The Crimson have hung around .500 all season, but have now lost five of their last seven. After a 6-1 trouncing of RPI, they went on 17-day break, not returning until this past Tuesday when they lost a 7-5 slugfest against New Hampshire. They played the fourth-ranked Wildcats even for parts of the game but surrendered on an Eric Nickulas third-period goal and an empty-netter.

Rob Millar leads their scoring with seven goals and eight assists in 12 league games, including a goal against UNH. Freshman J.R. Prestifilippo continues to shoulder the load and play well between the Crimson pipes.

Harvard did score once on the power play against UNH, but it still continues to flounder, showing only a 10.3 percent success rate. The penalty-kill, however, ranks a more reasonable fifth in the ECAC at 83.3 percent.

PICK: Boston University 5-2.

No. 5 Boston University (13-6-5, 11-2-3 HE) at Providence (9-15-1, 6-8-1 HE) Friday, 7 p.m., Schneider Arena, Providence, RI

Providence split games with the ECAC last week, downing Dartmouth 5-2 before losing 3-2 to cross-town rival Brown. In both games PC jumped out to 2-0 leads, but according to PC coach Paul Pooley lost to the Bears because of an ineffective power play, taking retaliatory penalties and mental errors. Pooley was, however, happy with the penalty killing and goaltending. Mark Kane tended the nets against Dartmouth, Dan Dennis against Brown.

Friar freshman have led the goal scoring recently, contributing 14 of the team’s last 21 markers. "Nick Lent has really responded," says Pooley. Lent has tallied five of the recent freshman strikes. "Fernando Pisani is playing his best hockey the last couple games. They’ve stepped up to the table. I’ve been really impressed. [Jerry] Keefe is playing better. [On the blue line] Leigh Dean and Josh MacNevin are playing real good hockey for us and I think Rich Miller can play for us too.

"It’s great for us to have them step up, but what we need are our older kids to step up too, because those are the kids you win with. This is the time that our seniors need to get going. Instead of hurting us, they need to be plus players, getting the key goals, making the plays. That’s what we need for us to be successful.

"I’m really happy about the freshmen. And I think some of our sophomores are playing hard. But last year we had [our seniors] all step up to the table, and everybody else was supportive of them and said, ‘Hey, lets grab on to them and go forward.’ That’s what we need to have happen this year."

Of the senior forwards, Pooley reserved his praise for Tom Sheehan. "He’s playing his best hockey. He’s doing a great job on the penalty kill. He’s winning key faceoffs. He’s been out on five-on-threes in the last couple games and has done a great job."

Pooley continued to juggle his lineup in search of the right combinations. The top line now consists of sophomores Mike Omicioli and Jon Cameron and freshman Pisani. Keefe, Stefan Brannare and Russ Guzior make up the second. David Green, Travis Dillabough and Lent comprise the "checking" third line.

The decisions are not so clear-cut on the power play. "Our power play has really killed us this year," says Pooley. "With the power play we lose the momentum in games."

Pooley laughed about the timing of BU’s two losses last week. "I guess we’re getting them when they’re a little mad," he says. Realizing that the Beanpot will follow just three days after, he adds, "Let’s hope they look past the Friars.

"Obviously we need to play a tight-checking game, be disciplined and stay out of the penalty box. Our special teams and goaltending have to be strong. It’s always going to be a tough physical game against them."

(BU is profiled above.)

PICK: Boston University 4-2.

Northeastern (6-17-2, 2-14-1 HE) at No. 4 New Hampshire (20-6-0, 13-3-0 HE) Friday, 7 p.m., Whittemore Center, Durham, NH

UNH’s two road wins, 5-2 over both Merrimack and Boston College, combined with BU’s two losses to vault the Wildcats back into first place in Hockey East.

"Obviously we’re pleased to be back in first place," says UNH coach Dick Umile. "Those were two important games. I thought we played very well."

Goaltender Sean Matile played both games, his first back-to-back action of the year, and stopped 69 of 73 shots. The performances earned him Hockey East Rookie of the Week honors, his first such designation. He also played in this Tuesday’s 7-5 win over Harvard.

"I told both goalies going into the weekend to be ready to play," says Umile. "I just felt that Sean was playing well and we went with him. At this point both goalies need to be ready to play and we’ll just take it game by game."

Matile had gotten off to a great start after missing the first nine games because of ineligibility. But his play took a sharp downturn when he struggled to adjust to medication prescribed after a mid-December seizure. Feeling sluggish, his performances suffered until he bottomed out in a 9-4 loss against BU. Matile lost his regular turn in the goalie rotation with Brian Larochelle. Finally acclimated to the medication, he now appears to be back with a vengeance.

"That was important for him to [play well back-to-back] to prepare for the games down the stretch," says Umile. "I don’t know what the crystal ball says, but this is an important time heading into the last four weeks of the regular season. Whichever goalie is playing well is going to play."

Matile’s snaring of the Rookie-of-the-Week award marks the second straight time a UNH player is so honored. Last week forward Mike Souza was named for his three goals and two assists. Souza had previously earned Rookie of the Week and Rookie of the Month distinctions in December.

"I know that we’ve got some pretty good freshman players in the league this year," says Umile, "but Mike is going to be a definite Rookie of the Year candidate. He’s playing extremely well. We’re starting to use him on the power play too." One look at UNH’s roster of forwards should show that Souza earning power-play time could be the highest compliment of them all.

The Wildcats open the weekend against Northeastern.

"That’s always a good matchup," says Umile. "They’re coming off a solid win over UMass-Amherst. We know they’ve lost a lot of games by one goal. There’s a lot of parity in Hockey East and you’ve got to come out and play every single night. I don’t expect anything other than a solid game."

Northeastern, profiled above for its Beanpot game, enters the contest on the high of a 4-0 win over UMass-Amherst. In the first series, however, UNH took Northeastern to school, to the tune of 7-3 and 9-4.

"They blow games out against everybody," says Crowder. "We’re going to have to play smart. We’re going to have to make sure we don’t beat ourselves, taking penalties the way we did [two weeks ago] against Amherst."

PICK: New Hampshire 5-2.

Boston College (10-12-3, 6-7-3 HE) at Maine (17-9-1, 9-6-1 HE) Friday, 7 p.m., Alfond Arena, Orono, ME

Maine took on the first-place and last-place teams last weekend. By the time th Black Bears were done, first-place BU wasn’t in first anymore and the rejuvenated Bears, almost given up for dead earlier in the season, had rebounded to third place. Winners of eight of their last nine, they even began attracting Top Ten votes.

In the third period of their weekend opener against Northeastern, they stood deadlocked at 2-2 before a five-goal explosion blew away the Huskies. The performance was in many ways characteristic of the team’s recent play. The same team that couldn’t seem to throw the puck in the ocean earlier this year now can score in bunches.

Surprisingly, the Black Bears are doing this with diminished scoring from their two preseason stars, Dan Shermerhorn (10 goals and five assists) and, to a lesser extent, Shawn Wansborough (11 goals and 16 assists).

"They’re both playing great," says Maine coach Shawn Walsh. "They were excellent on the weekend. Their roles have changed a little bit. I’m asking them to play a more all-around defensive game as opposed to putting them out for all of the power plays. We use three power-play units now whereas we might have been focusing on one before. Any time you win eight out of nine, you need your upperclassmen to lead you and those guys have led us very well.

"The strength of our team is our depth. It’s not any one individual. We’ve really evened out the ice time, playing a lot of freshmen on our specialty teams. So we’re much more balanced now.

"There’s tremendous parity in college hockey right now. The major junior effect of the great, great players going there has leveled out the playing field of college hockey. So if you get good goaltending, you can win if you’ve got some good players. And we’ve got some good players."

They’re also getting the good goaltending. After a tough start between the pipes, the Black Bear netminders are getting the job done. Javier Gorriti’s 2.77 goals-against average trails only BU’s Michel Larocque. And Alfie Michaud is now showing why Maine recruiters expected him to be the answer. Michaud has won all his last three starts while posting a 1.33 GAA and a .955 save percentage.

Steve Kariya leads the team with 14 goals and 25 assists. A member of last year’s All-Rookie team, he scored a key breakaway goal last weekend to down BU.

"He’s turning into one of the elite players in the league," says Walsh. "He was such a factor [against BU]. He scored once, he turned their D twice, and walked right in on Larocque. I thought when we recruited him he could be an All-American by the third year and I think I’m on target. I think he’s got a real chance because he’s got Paul’s work ethic and he’s got Paul’s intensity at getting better."

Maine’s top four defensemen — Jeff Libby, Jason Mansoff, Brian White and David Cullen — are unsung contributors to the team’s success, according to Walsh. Unsung may no longer be an appropriate term, however. Cullen was named the league’s Player of the Week for his strong defensive play, along with a goal and three assists.

According to Walsh, having a lead is pivotal to this team’s success. "I don’t know if we’re a good come-from-behind team. I know we’re becoming a very good team protecting a lead. Like that team that we had in 94-95 that went to the national championship game. We weren’t an explosive team but we played very, very smart. It’s not the individual parts that win hockey games, it’s the sum of the parts. And the sum of the parts for Maine right now is a good sum."

Looking ahead to the BC contest, Walsh says, "I think it’ll be a great game between two of the improving teams in the nation. They certainly have great individuals. Their key players seem to have come back from the World Junior [Tournament] with great confidence. Their freshmen are playing as well as our freshmen. And Greg Taylor is an excellent goalie. So I look for it to be a terrific game."

(BC is profiled above.)

PICK: Maine 5-4.

Merrimack (8-15-1, 4-9-1 HE) at UMass-Amherst (11-14-0, 6-10-0 HE) Friday, 7 p.m., Mullins Center, Amherst, MA

UMass-Amherst dropped two league games last week, 3-2 to Boston College and 4-0 to Northeastern. The Minutemen had swept Northeastern the previous weekend.

"I thought the BC game was a well-played game," says UMass coach Joe Mallen. "Although the number of shots were a little tilted [in their favor], the quality of our chances were huge. We had great, great scoring chances but we just couldn’t score against Greg Taylor. We really put a lot of energy into that game and left a lot on the ice.

"I thought coming back the next night against Northeastern we just didn’t play at the intensity level that we needed. To beat one team three times in Hockey East is an uphill task no matter who they are. Not that it can’t be done, but it’s very difficult, especially when two of the three are in their building. Robitaille played real well for Northeastern and we just couldn’t get our power play going."

With a game against league-leader UNH following this Friday’s Merrimack contest, there could be some temptation to look ahead to their giant-killer opportunity. Not so, says Mallen.

"We’re well-focused on the Merrimack game. We have to take all the games one at a time now. The disappointing thing for me is that with a win against Northeastern we could have moved into sixth place and been just a point out of fifth. We just couldn’t come up with those two points. There are a lot of points left on the line these last five weeks. We still feel that we have a good chance to move above where we are right now.

"The thing about Merrimack is that you have to solve their goaltending. We just really need to play our style in our rink."

Merrimack comes off a split weekend, losing 5-2 to UNH before besting Lowell 4-2.

"On Saturday night we played the kind of game that we have to play," says Merrimack coach Ron Anderson. "Low-scoring games give us a chance to win. When we give up five we’re going to have a tough time. Friday night we worked hard, but it just got away from us."

The Warrior power play, ranked last in the league and dormant for much of the season, is showing signs of life. With a large statistical gap to overcome and few remaining games, they’ll almost certainly finish last in power-play efficiency, but have operated in the twenties in the last five games.

"It’s getting there," says Anderson. "I’m not worried about the overall percentage because there’s nothing we can do about that at this point. I’m looking at where it’s at right now. Part of the power play being effective is that some of the guys we need to score goals are starting to score goals now. We’re working on it. I’d just as soon people look at our overall power-play efficiency because then they might overlook it. But for the last five games it’s been pretty good."

Anderson looked ahead to the matchup against UMass-Amherst.

"They’re real tough in their rink," he says. "They’ve got that big ice surface and they make a lot of things happen. They spread things out pretty well. We’ll have to make sure we don’t run around and get out of position. We’ve got to concentrate on a solid defensive effort. We’ll get our share of goals but we need to make sure we don’t put ourselves in a position where we need more goals than we’re capable of."

PICK: UMass-Amherst 5-3.

UMass-Amherst (11-14-0, 6-10-0 HE) at No. 4 New Hampshire (20-6-0, 13-3-0 HE) Saturday, 7 p.m., Whittemore Center, Durham, NH NESN

New Hampshire follows a Friday game against Northeastern with a NESN game against UMass-Amherst. The Minutemen scared UNH back in November before the Wildcats escaped with 1-0 and 5-4 (in overtime) wins.

"Every game at this point is scary," says UNH coach Dick Umile. "We always respect our opponents. Whoever plays best will win regardless of what the records are. We just have to be focused ourselves on what we’re doing and do those things well."

UMass-Amherst plays Merrimack before taking on the Wildcats. Minuteman coach Joe Mallen recalls the two prior one-goal losses to UNH.

"Those two games at least set the table for us to go in there with a lot of optimism," he says. "I think that UNH has become a much better team since we played them and hopefully we have too."

PICK: UNH wins the battle of the big ice surface teams, 6-3.

Merrimack (8-15-1, 4-9-1 HE) at Maine (17-9-1, 9-6-1 HE) Sunday, 2 p.m., Alfond Arena, Orono, ME

The last time these two teams met, they split a series at Merrimack. The Warriors took the opener 3-1, but Maine rebounded 6-2.

"I was impressed when we played them," says Walsh. "I thought it was as good a Merrimack team as I’ve seen. They’ve got senior goalies who are both very good so they’re going to be a team that gives anybody fits, as evidenced by their win over Lowell on Saturday night."

"We always seem to play well in that rink," responds Anderson. "We haven’t had much success but I always come out of there thinking that we didn’t play that bad, it’s just that they’re always that good. The atmosphere and the respect we have for that program just gets us pretty focused when we go up there. We’ll just try to make sure we’re as prepared as we possibly can be. The good thing is that it’s a Friday – Sunday weekend for us so it gives us Saturday to set things up for the Sunday game."

PICK: Maine 6-2.

Providence (9-15-1, 6-8-1 HE) at UMass-Lowell (13-13-0, 9-7-0 HE) Sunday, 2 p.m., Tully Forum, Lowell, MA WNDS-TV50

UMass-Lowell stunned BU 3-1 to open the weekend. The win over the Terriers provided more than just a welcome two points in the standings.

"It builds confidence," says UML coach Tim Whitehead. "It certainly doesn’t put us in the next level yet. Our guys aren’t under any false illusions this year. They understand that for us to win we need all 20 guys on the same page and working hard. That’s what they did… and I’m proud of them.

"Definitely, for our team it comes from our upperclassmen, the juniors and seniors. And we’ve even got some sophomores who are playing like seniors. From there the freshmen just follow suit."

One key freshman who is following suit is Chris Bell. Bell scored the game-winner against BU on the power play. One of up to ten freshmen that sometimes dress for the River Hawks, Bell notched his eighth of the season with the tally.

"He came into camp not quite in the shape that the rest of his teammates came in," said Whitehead delicately. "But from the day he got here, he’s worked as hard as anybody. He really has gotten better as the year has progressed…. He’s a talented kid who is just going to keep getting better."

Goaltender Marty Fillion’s performance was pivotal to the win over BU. He prompted opposing coach Jack Parker to say, "I can recall five unbelievable saves that I thought he just stole."

Unfortunately for Lowell fans, the River Hawks followed the upset with a 4-2 loss to Merrimack and a midweek 5-1 road loss to Colgate.

"Merrimack played an excellent defensive game, and they capitalized on the five-minute power play in the third period," says Whitehead. "That was the difference in the game. They were hungrier over the course of the sixty minutes. We played very good second and third periods, but they built up some momentum in the first period and stuck with it. I thought they did an excellent job of executing their game plan and playing good team defense."

Lowell and Providence open their series on Sunday afternoon.

"We haven’t played them yet so we’re excited about starting that series with them," says Whitehead. "They’ve got an excellent team every year so this will be a good challenge for us.

"Our games with Providence will be [tight-checking, close ones] just like our others. We’re not going to be in many three- or four-goal games either for or against us."

"The game against them is huge," adds Pooley. "Last Saturday everybody lost that we needed to. So we’re still right there."

PICK: Another really tight contest between two hard-hat, lunch-pail teams. Lowell 4-3.

Dave Hendrickson is the Hockey East Correspondent for U.S. College Hockey Online.

Copyright 1997 Dave Hendrickson . All Rights Reserved.

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Hockey East Preview: Jan. 24-28, 1997 by Dave Hendrickson

Nationally-ranked Boston University and UNH, both considered head and shoulders above the rest of Hockey East, could muster only two out of four points against their unranked league brethren last week. The Cinderella River Hawks from UMass-Lowell proved that their slipper might fit after all, stunning New Hampshire one day after being embarrassed in their own barn. Boston College and BU staged two riveting ties that showed that the Eagles could be rounding into form at just the right time. And Maine and UMass-Amherst both swept their series to make major strides in the standings.

This weekend everyone but Providence faces off against two different league foes, so most team previews that follow are divided between Friday and Saturday games. The Friars take on Brown, their cross-town rival from the ECAC. Only four points separate the third- and seventh-place teams; home ice for the playoffs could remain undecided until the final week of the season.

Last week’s record in picks: 6-6 Season record in picks: 89-50

No. 2 Boston University (13-4-5, 11-0-3 HE) at UMass-Lowell (12-11-0, 8-6-0 HE) Friday, 7 p.m., Tully Forum, Lowell, MA WNDS-TV50

Last week BU tied arch-rival BC, 5-5 and 4-4. In the opener the Terriers fell behind 3-0, rallied back for a 5-3 lead, and then had to settle for a tie when Marty Reasoner scored two late third-period goals, the first with the goalie pulled with over five minutes left. Both teams had numerous chances in the Saturday contest, but netminders Greg Taylor and Michel Larocque held the game to a 4-4 tie.

"My reaction to any of it is overshadowed by how upset I am with the stupid penalties we’re taking, and how it’s costing us game in and game out," said BU coach Jack Parker. "We just don’t seem to be able to get the point across. We played very well at times, but in Hockey East we’re averaging over 30 minutes a game in penalties. We had a 4-4 tie going into the third period against BC and we got a five-minute major, a two-minute minor and five-on-threes. It’s just killing us. "We’ve had six or seven game disqualifications this year on a team that doesn’t have many players. That, plus individual guys getting three or four penalties in one game, is absolutely disconcerting."

The Terriers lost Tommi Degerman for five of the six periods on the weekend because of a Friday night disqualification. Captain Bill Pierce’s third-period spearing DQ hamstrung his team on Saturday and puts him out of the Lowell contest. Averaging 33.64 penalty minutes in league games, BU far outstrips runner-up BC, at 25.21 a game. While BU’s league-leading penalty-kill (81.9 percent overall) tempers some of the impact of the excessive penalties, the problem remains.

Often the emotions of a big series against a top rival leaves a team vulnerable the next week. "The good part, as far as the emotion is concerned," countered Parker, "is that we didn’t win. We’re not all full of ourselves."

BU opens the weekend at Lowell before hosting Maine.

"What has happened this year with Lowell is what has happened for the last ten," said Parker. "And that is that everybody hopes they’re not going to be any good. The fact of the matter is that [Lowell coach] Tim Whitehead should maybe get half of those Coach of the Year Awards from Bruce Crowder because he obviously had a lot to do with their success in the past. And he’s having a lot to do with their success right now. He deserves an awful lot of credit.

"I also think that the Lowell players and program deserve a lot more respect than anyone wants to give them. It’s amazing to me that we’ve played them in the Hockey East finals or semifinals the last couple of years and no one thinks they’re an important team in our league. Once again they’ve duped all the pollsters and proved they’re a pretty good club."

UMass-Lowell recovered from a 9-4 loss at home to UNH to get even with a 7-5 win at UNH.

"Obviously we’re pleased with the way the guys refocused after getting pretty soundly beat the first night," said Whitehead, the runaway leader at this point for Hockey East Coach of the Year. "Our guys have done really well refocusing this year after a loss."

Senior Ryan Sandholm earned league Player of the Week honors for his four goals and five assists on the weekend. Sandholm is yet another Lowell player who did little in his first couple years, but developed into a significant contributor as an upperclassman.

"He’s worked very hard over four years to make himself into a player," said Whitehead. "He’s always had great hockey sense. He has great touch. And he’s worked very hard to get a physical aspect to his game. He had a good season last year, the first year he stayed in the lineup consistently. This year he’s taken it to another level and become an impact player for us. I’m very happy for him. He’s one of the best kids we have in the program. He’s a great student and just a great person."

Lowell ranks among the league’s top teams on the power play (24.4 percent, second overall). Their penalty-kill had ranked number one until last weekend when four Wildcat power-play goals on Friday night and another on Saturday helped drop the River Hawks to a tie for third (80.8 percent).

"For us to be successful, we’ve got to do well with our special teams," Whitehead said. "We don’t have the depth that other teams do, so our special teams have to be sharp. It’s a very tightly called game in college, so as a result you get a ton of power plays and penalty-kills. We have to take advantage of those opportunities."

The River Hawks go from the proverbial frying pan into the fire, taking on second-ranked BU after the split with fifth-ranked UNH.

"Our guys aren’t under any false illusions," says Whitehead. "They know they have to have all 20 guys playing together and going full tilt to beat anybody, no matter what team it is. So obviously against BU we have to be at our sharpest."

PICK: BU 5-3.

No. 5 New Hampshire (17-6-0, 11-3-0 HE) at Merrimack (7-14-1, 3-8-1 HE) Friday, 7 p.m., Volpe Center, North Andover, MA

UNH romped at Lowell, 9-4, before the River Hawks turned the tables 7-5 back in Durham. Since their 14-game win streak, New Hampshire is only 2-4.

"Down at Lowell we played pretty well," said UNH coach Dick Umile. "Then Saturday night we just got ourselves in a hole early, tried to dig ourselves out, but just never got out of it. We came close twice, getting within one goal, but both times they scored on the power play to go up by two.

"We just didn’t get it done. We were in the zone, we were getting the opportunities, but we couldn’t finish it. I’ve got to give credit to Lowell. They came into our rink and found a way to win the game."

Goaltender Sean Matile, who had not played in recent weeks because of his problems adjusting to seizure medication, returned to action early in the loss when Brian Larochelle struggled. "He was much better this past week than he was the week before," said Umile. Even so, Matile has not yet moved back solidly into the even rotation Umile had used prior to his difficulties. "I’ll decide on Thursday who’s going to play on Friday and we’ll just take it from there."

At the same time that the Wildcats welcomed back Matile, they lost blueliner Erik Johnson for two-to-four weeks with a severe sprain of his shoulder. Originally, the team had feared a fractured collarbone. Moving in to replace Johnson will be either freshman Brendon McEniry, who played on Saturday, or sophomore Christian Bragnalo. It also likely means a bigger role for freshman Dan Enders, who was already in the rotation.

"Danny’s done a real good job for us," said Umile. "He’s a tough kid who can skate and handle the puck well. He’s got his feet wet now and he knows what goes on out there. We’re happy with the way he’s played."

The last time that New Hampshire faced the Warriors, the Wildcats spanked Merrimack 9-0. The Warriors stayed close at 2-1 in the rematch until UNH added two late nails to the eventual 4-1 coffin.

"They approached us a little differently when they played us up at our place and tried not to open it up," recalled Umile. "I expect a tight-checking game down there at Merrimack, a close game like the second time we played."

Merrimack split a non-conference series with the CCHA’s Ohio State, winning 3-1 before losing 5-3. The Warriors are now 4-3 since Christmas.

"I thought we played pretty steady both nights," said Merrimack coach Ron Anderson. "We just missed our opportunities the second night. The first night was a pretty even game throughout. We just capitalized. The second night we had chances when the game was on the line but just didn’t take advantage of them. When they got their chances they did.

One player who did capitalize on his chances was Casey Kesselring. Kesselring, who two weeks ago had only one goal to go with his 11 assists, scored three times over the weekend. "We’ve been waiting for some of our upperclassmen to hit their stride offensively," said Anderson. "Casey’s been working hard all year. He’s been around the net and making things happen for other people, he just wasn’t finding the range himself. So it’s good to see him get three on the weekend."

Standout defenseman John Jakopin will miss the UNH game because of a game disqualification against Ohio State. "We’ve been playing nine or 10 defensemen all year long, so we’ll just plug someone else in there. We’ve had seven dressed just about every night, and some nights even had eight, so we’ll slide someone else in. Whoever fills in won’t be at his level — he’s a good player — but as far as bodies goes, it’s not a problem."

With New Hampshire misfiring the last couple weeks, could they be ripe for the picking?

"We’re playing a lot better now than we were earlier in the year," said Anderson. "I think we’re playing our best hockey of the year right now. On the other hand, UNH is still a very powerful team. We have to make sure that we don’t get caught in the wide-open game that we did with them the first time around. We played it much closer to the vest in the second game and it was a game until the third period, so that’s how we have to play."

PICK: New Hampshire gets a scare but holds on 4-3.

Maine (15-9-1, 7-6-1 HE) at Northeastern (5-16-2, 1-13-1 HE) Friday, 7 p.m., Matthews Arena, Boston, MA

In front of capacity crowds, Maine swept Providence 6-3 and 4-1, giving themselves their first plus-.500 league record this year. In the opener, coach Shawn Walsh received an extended standing ovation on his first home game since a year-long suspension.

"You get numbed to those kind of things, both pro and con," said Walsh. "It was very nice, it was heart-warming, but I was anxious for the games to begin."

Backed by the boisterous crowd, the Black Bears scored five first-period goals in under seven and a half minutes. Walsh downplayed the role emotions played in the outburst. "The guys were excited to see a full house," he said. "It was the quickest we’ve jumped out, but we’ve played pretty well since Christmas and we’ve been scoring a lot of goals. We’ve become somewhat explosive and we exploded in that game against a very, very good goalie (in Dan Dennis)."

Walsh would like to see improvement in the special teams. Although Maine leads Hockey East in overall power-play percentage (25 percent), some of that can be attributed to the many man-advantage goals scored against Division II foe Alabama-Huntsville. Within just the league, Maine’s power play drops to fifth. Their penalty-kill ranks third.

He would also like to see continued balanced scoring. "We’ve got four real productive lines. In fact, if you want to call them our third and fourth lines, they were our best lines of the weekend."

One such member of the lower lines is Ben Guite, a freshman who tallied three goals against Providence. "I think Guite’s a terrific prospect," said Walsh. "I think he’s got great potential. He’s strong and he’s got great hands. [Cory] Larose has gotten a lot of ink because of the points he’s put on the board, but to me Guite is a real legitimate professional prospect and is going to be a great college player.

"I think we’ve got great freshmen. It’s a real credit to [assistant coach Grant Standbrook’s] recruiting in light of the turmoil he encountered over the last year and a half. When you figure into the mix Robert Ek, Jason Price, Shawn Mansoff and Alfie Michaud, I think we’ve got a real sweet freshman class that’s just getting better."

Michaud has dramatically turned around a season that had earlier been heading into a downward spiral. Although he faced only 19 shots on Saturday, he turned away 18, many of which which were testers.

"We spend a lot of time now in practices, going 30 minutes a day on just a goalie school. It’s almost like a hockey school, where every drill is just for the goalies. It seems to have helped both our goalies. And even though he wants to play all the time, I think that splitting the time [with Javier Gorriti] has taken a lot of the pressure off him. Javier’s play has also helped put some competition into the position."

The Black Bears open against cellar-dwelling Northeastern before taking on first-place BU. The temptation to overlook the pesky Huskies could prove overwhelming.

"We already discussed that after Saturday night’s game," said Walsh. "The only game we’re concerned with is Northeastern. We won’t even talk about BU until 10 o’clock Friday night. Certainly the coaching staff will do its preparation, but we’ve got a game to play against Northeastern. We’re starting to play well but we don’t have any false delusions of grandeur. We’re a team that has to show up every night for us to have success."

Northeastern lost two more one-goal games last weekend, 4-3 and then 5-4 in overtime against UMass-Amherst. The Huskies have lost their last four games, all by a single marker.

"It’s got to break sooner or later," said NU coach Bruce Crowder. "We’re playing too well not to have that happen. I think we’re playing some pretty good hockey. It’s just a matter of eliminating just the one more mistake a game that could make the difference. When we broke down the video of Saturday’s game, from our viewpoint Amherst scored on their last three chances. It wasn’t like they scored three times off their last six chances, it was three of three. It’s just got to break sometime.

"We’re just staying positive with the kids and trying to correct the mistakes as best we can. I thought we got a pretty good effort out of them on Saturday, a lot better than we got on Friday. But same story, different week."

On Friday they entertain Maine, whom they beat and tied in Orono earlier this year. Those games represent Northeastern’s only league points.

"In any game that we play, we’ve got to more or less worry about ourselves and worry about the mistakes we have to eliminate," said Crowder. "They’ve got a good team up there and we had a good weekend a few months back. Our players just have to come to play as hard as they did on Saturday night and just believe that good things are going to happen."

PICK: Maine 5-4.

UMass-Amherst (11-12-0, 6-8-0 HE) at Boston College (9-11-3, 5-6-3 HE) Friday, 7 p.m., Conte Forum, Chestnut Hill, MA

Boston College tied two with BU last weekend, 5-5 and 4-4. In Friday night’s tie, York pulled goaltender Greg Taylor with 5:43 left and his team down 5-3. Marty Reasoner responded with a goal in the four-on-four situation and then added the equalizer a minute and a half later. The following evening the two teams played a see-saw contest in which both clubs had great opportunities at the close of regulation and in overtime.

"I thought our team really rose to the occasion and played perhaps our best hockey of the season," said BC coach Jerry York. "A lot of individuals stepped forward but more importantly we played better as a team. BU has an outstanding hockey team and I don’t think we gave them an inch over the weekend.

"We’re getting some important contributions from our third and fourth year players. They may not show up on the scoresheet, but the upperclassmen are doing a lot of the little things really well.

"We felt good about our performance last week but you’re only as good as your next game." The Eagles host UMass-Amherst and then fifth-ranked UNH. "We’ll focus all week on UMass and then Saturday morning talk about New Hampshire.

"We certainly feel that we’re in a race with a number of teams for the home ice spot. I think [the UMass contest] is a critical game in that respect. New Hampshire and BU have secured home ice but after that you can look at Lowell, Providence and go right down the standings. We’re one of probably half a dozen teams trying to get home ice, so it’s a very important game for us."

BC’s defense gave up numerous breakaways to the Terriers. Although that could be more a reflection of BU’s exceptional team speed than BC’s occasionally-sleepy play on the blue line, the Eagles will need to tighten up that aspect of their game, and not look to goalie Greg Taylor to bail them out so frequently. York expects Taylor to play both games this weekend.

"He’s played very well," said York. "As long as he’s healthy, he’ll play a lot of games between now and April."

UMass-Amherst swept Northeastern, with 4-3 and 5-4 wins. The wins give the Minutemen a major boost in their quest for home ice.

"Northeastern is a better team than their record shows," said UMass coach Joe Mallen. "They’re a very capable team in our league. They were two very well played games. I thought that Bonneau and Norris rose to the occasion and really came through for us late in the third period in both games.

"It was a big weekend for us in terms of wins for three reasons. Number one, we had never won more than four games in Hockey East and now we’ve won six. Number two, we hadn’t won more than ten games in Division I in the second and third years of our program. The first year [when UMass played a lot of Division I Independents] doesn’t count. So we broke that. Number three, we’d never beaten Northeastern. We’d tied them twice last year and had one-goal games the year before, but we’d never defeated them. So we accomplished all three things in one weekend.

Although the Minutemen seem to be coming on strong, they are also facing a peaking BC squad. "They seem to be hitting full stride right now," noted Mallen. "A lot of things seem to be coming together for them. I’m sure they would have liked to have beaten BU twice, but they came away with two points in a weekend when maybe a lot of people didn’t think they’d get any points. So it should be an excellent game.

"We still feel that in the league right now it’s BU and UNH and then with everyone else it’s a dogfight. Plus Lowell beat UNH this weekend in the second game so that also shows that UNH can be beaten. And BC tying BU twice shows that BU can be attacked. So it’s a typical Hockey East year."

PICK: BC 5-3.

Providence (9-14-1, 6-8-1 HE) at Brown (4-13-2, 2-10-1 ECAC) Saturday, 7 p.m., Meehan Auditorium, Providence, RI

Providence dropped two games at Maine last weekend, 6-3 and 4-1. The two losses gave the Friars nine in their last 10 games before rebounding with a mid-week 5-2 win over Dartmouth. In the opener against Maine, a vocal, sellout crowd welcomed Shawn Walsh back for his first home game since returning from his suspension.

"They came out on fire and we didn’t handle the pressure very well," said PC coach Paul Pooley. "But we fought back 5-3 after the first period. Even though we hadn’t played well we were still in the game. The sixth goal was the heartbreaker. We had some chances, but they scored four-on-four. Saturday night they scored goals in bunches again and killed us with their fourth line."

Pooley continued to try lineup changes. On Friday freshman Rich Miller replaced the injured Ben Stadey on the blueline. Stadey’s ankle was ready to go on Saturday and Miller had pulled a groin, so the two switched places. Stadey mildly reinjured himself in the game. Both are questionable to play against Brown. Freshman Jason Ialongo, who has sat out four straight games, will likely rejoin the lineup if both Miller and Stadey cannot go. Mike Omicioli, who had gone to the bleachers with Ialongo, returned to action on Saturday, played well, according to Pooley, and should remain in the lineup.

"I’m still optimistic. But I think we still need to make some lineup changes, whether that’s moving a defenseman up front or putting different kids in. We’re not scoring very many goals. The kids that are on the ice all the time aren’t producing. It’s time for someone else to get an opportunity and if that means all freshmen, then that means all freshmen. You’re only measured by your results. We’ve got seniors with only six goals who’ve been on the ice all the time. We have to come up with a lineup that can produce some goals.

"We need a win," insisted Pooley, looking ahead to the Saturday contest against cross-town rival Brown. "We’re at a fragile time right now. Maine beat us out there pretty good and we have to come back and respond. When we get back in the league we’ve got six games with UNH and Lowell. Those are huge. There’s our season. So we have to improve this week and get feeling good about ourselves. We have to get some results. We’re working really hard and getting chances, but we’re not finishing and we’re giving up goals we shouldn’t give up."

Brown has struggled all year long, losing 10 out of 11 games during one stretch. In the three games since then, however, they’ve won twice and tied. They broke the streak with a 4-2 win over a good Union squad that went into the game with a six-game win streak. Since then, they’ve beaten Air Force 5-3, and tied them 7-7.

That tie represents the Bears’ season in a microcosm. They’ve had no trouble scoring goals. In ECAC contests, they tie for the league lead in goals scored with 46. But they are dead last, the same place they hold in league standings, in goals against with 60 in 13 games.

PICK: Providence 5-2.

Maine (15-9-1, 7-6-1 HE) at No. 2 Boston University (13-4-5, 11-0-3 HE) Saturday, 7 p.m., Walter Brown Arena, Boston, MA

Jack Parker goes against Shawn Walsh for the first time in over a year. It’s a rematch that catches every fan’s eye.

"I don’t play against Shawn Walsh," said Parker, laughing. "That’s one of the problems that some people have. In college basketball it’s the coach versus the coach. But I’d say it’s a rematch of Shermerhorn against Bates, not the coaches.

"They’re obviously playing extremely well. They’re always a good team. They’re always a well-coached team. And they’re always a disciplined team. We’ll have our hands full. It’s weird because you know you’re not going to see them any time except the regular season but the games do count and the games will obviously count emotionally."

Walsh, who told his team not to look past their Friday matchup against Northeastern to this game, noted, "Down there you really want to stay in the game. They’re explosive enough that they can just run you right out of the rink as New Hampshire found out [two weeks ago]. If they’re able to beat the number three team in the country 9-4, you just hope that you can stay with them. That’s why the team that impressed me the most this weekend was BC, not only for tying them one night but tying them both nights. BU’s got a heck of a team, and they’re always going to be well-coached. It’s going to be a tremendous challenge for us."

This contest could come down to specialty teams. BU, as noted earlier, leads the league in penalty minutes while Maine has stayed out of the sin bin better than any other team.

PICK: Penalties could tip this one into the Black Bears’ hands, but BU remains tough at home, winning 4-3.

Boston College (9-11-3, 5-6-3 HE) at No. 5 New Hampshire (17-6-0, 11-3-0 HE) Saturday, 7 p.m., Whittemore Center, Durham, NH

UNH coach Dick Umile sees a tough game ahead for his Wildcats, despite their sweep of the Eagles earlier in the season.

"They just came off an emotional high with BU, and got a point from them each game," said Umile. "They’re getting better. They get good goaltending with Taylor. I expect it to be another tight game like the last time we played them down there."

BC coach Jerry York sees lots of reasons why UNH is ranked number five in the nation.

"Their strength is in a number of different areas," York said. "They’ve proven that to us. Both goalies have played well against us. Their defense is keyed by [Tim] Murray. They have a good solid core of defense. And they have a group of forwards that are among the finest in the nation. They have strengths in a lot of different areas and pose a lot of problems, not just for Boston College but any team they play."

PICK: Boston College sends their fans home happy, 5-4, but only after repeated heroics by Greg Taylor.

UMass-Lowell (12-11-0, 8-6-0 HE) at Merrimack (7-14-1, 3-8-1 HE) Saturday, 7 p.m., Volpe Center, North Andover, MA NESN

Lowell coach Tim Whitehead approaches the Merrimack contest the same as his Friday night game against BU.

"No matter who we’re playing we have to approach the game the same way," said Whitehead. "Merrimack is a very strong team. You can see some of the teams they’ve beaten and they’ve certainly played well against us. We split with them but I felt that they outplayed us. They certainly deserved the second game and the first game could have gone either way so I felt fortunate to have gotten out of there with a win. They tied BU and they beat Maine, so they can beat anybody. We’re certainly the last team that’s going to take anyone lightly."

Merrimack coach Ron Anderson sees why UMass-Lowell has been successful this year.

"Timmy’s done an excellent job over there pulling that team together," said Anderson. "They’ve played very well, very consistently from day one. They’re very relaxed, playing very calm, very disciplined hockey. They don’t hurt themselves."

Specialty teams could decide. As noted in earlier, Lowell boasts some of the best power-play and penalty-kill units in the league. Merrimack’s penalty kill ranks seventh with a 77.3 percent overall success rate. Their power play, however, converts only 13.5 percent of their chances, by far the worst in the league. By comparison, Providence’s next-to-last man-advantage unit scores 21 percent of the time. No team can be consistently successful battling that large a special teams disparity.

PICK: UMass-Lowell 5-3.

UMass-Amherst (11-12-0, 6-8-0 HE) at Northeastern (5-16-2, 1-13-1 HE) Saturday, 7 p.m., Matthews Arena, Boston, MA

UMass-Amherst, fresh off a weekend sweep of Northeastern, must try to complete the season sweep only a week later.

"Just the way that Hockey East is right now, it’s very difficult to sweep a team on a given weekend and it’s very, very difficult to take all three," suggested Minuteman coach Joe Mallen. "We found that with Providence. We beat them twice and went down a third time and didn’t play very well at all. I’m sure that Northeastern will be ready for this game."

NU coach Bruce Crowder wondered if the tough-to-take-three principle will hold. "I’m not sure. Obviously as a coach that’s what you hope. Our biggest thing is to worry about Friday night because this is one of those weeks when you don’t have the same opponent back-to-back. So I think we have to worry about Saturday night and make adjustments on Saturday night and not until then."

PICK: Three times is a charm for Crowder’s Huskies. This time they win the one-goal game, 5-4.

No. 5 New Hampshire (17-6-0, 11-3-0 HE) at Harvard (7-9-2, 6-6-2 ECAC) Tuesday, 7 p.m., Bright Hockey Center, Cambridge, MA

"Harvard has a lot of skilled players," said UNH coach Dick Umile. "This is now the fourth year we’ve played them home and away so we’re familiar with what they have."

The Crimson have hung around .500 all season, but have won two of their last three and against good competition. Sandwiching a 4-2 loss to Union was a 3-2 win over Dartmouth and a 6-1 trouncing of RPI. They enter this game coming off a 17-day break.

Rob Millar leads their scoring with seven goals and eight assists in 12 league games. J.R. Prestifilippo continues to impress in the Crimson crease. He is one of several goalie candidates around the league for the ECAC’s All-Rookie team.

Harvard’s power play continues to flounder. After setting a near-standard for futility earlier in the season, they still show only a 10.3 percent success rate. Their penalty-kill, however, ranks a more reasonable fifth in the ECAC at 83.3 percent.

PICK: New Hampshire 4-2.

UMass-Lowell (12-11-0, 8-6-0 HE) at Colgate (11-9-1, 6-5-1 ECAC) Tuesday, 7 p.m., Starr Rink, Hamilton, NY

Lowell, previewed above against BU and Merrimack, will play in their fourth game in eight days in this contest.

Colgate’s season has consisted of one streak after another. The Red Raiders followed five straight wins early with five losses in six games. More recently, they have dropped two straight after a four-game win streak.

Mike Harder again leads Colgate in scoring, with 13 goals and 20 assists in 21 games.

Specialty teams are an enigma. The power play, ranked ninth in the ECAC with only a 14.8 percent success rate in league games, climbs to 23 percent in overall play, bested only by Clarkson. The penalty-kill ranks in the middle of the pack in league contests, but falls to 10th in overall games (78.7 percent).

PICK: Fatigue does in the River Hawks. Colgate wins 4-2.

Dave Hendrickson is the Hockey East Correspondent for U.S. College Hockey Online.

Copyright 1997 Dave Hendrickson . All Rights Reserved.

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