A new season starts with a wealth of optimism, but more questions than answers. Although we are still awaiting the onset of conference play, action ramped up around the country, with a number of games matching squads of similar prospects.
Two of the series of note featured participants that spent most of last season in or near the top 10. In each of those, the higher-ranked team took the first game in convincing fashion on home ice, as No. 2 Boston University beat No. 7 North Dakota 4-1 on Friday, while No. 8 Mercyhurst shut down No. 9 Quinnipiac 4-0. On Saturday, the visitors countered, the Fighting Sioux with a 5-1 thumping of their own, while the Bobcats snuck out a 1-0 nailbiter. History has shown that it is tough to sweep a good team, and that theme will be repeated often in the weeks to come.
One team that did manage a sweep was New Hampshire. The Wildcats visited Niagara and came away with 6-4 and 3-2 decisions over the Purple Eagles. The UNH faithful hope that the nine goals scored on the weekend are a positive sign for an offense that found the net on average less than twice a game last season.
Another interesting series took place in Bemidji. No. 10 Providence faced the Beavers, putting two of the sport’s premier senior goaltenders at opposite ends of the ice. In the opener, Zuzana Tomcikova was perfect on all 23 shots that she saw for Bemidji State, and Genevieve Lacasse turned away 39 shots to gain the Friars a scoreless tie. The box score offered little beyond penalties, including a five-minute checking from behind infraction and a game misconduct assessed to each team. BSU discovered enough visible net on Saturday to emerge with a 3-1 triumph, and three of four points on the weekend.
The Patty picture
Many of the Kazmaier contenders have yet to even start their seasons, so it is too soon to turn to the statistics. However, some noteworthy performances have already been recorded. In addition to Tomcikova and Lacasse, goalies Hillary Pattenden of Mercyhurst and Quinnipiac’s Victoria Vigilanti fashioned shutouts over well-regarded opponents. In the UND at BU series, Jenn Wakefield turned in a three-point effort in the first game, and Monique Lamoureux-Kolls answered the next day with a hat trick while her sister Jocelyne had three assists.
Norm Bazin knows what it is like to face challenges. As a player at Massachusetts-Lowell in the mid-1990s, he transformed from a role player to one of the leading scorers on one of Lowell’s best teams ever.
As an assistant at Colorado College, Bazin successfully recruited some of the game’s top players — including Hobey Baker Award winners Peter Sejna and Marty Sertich. He also won a battle for his life after a head-on car collision with a drunk driver left Bazin in a coma with a torn aorta and less than a 10 percent chance of even making it to the hospital alive.
So as Bazin takes the reins at his alma mater, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that he’s meeting the challenge of turning around a program that finished in last place a year ago, winning just five games total, with confidence and zeal that has become his trademark.
“I like our level of enthusiasm,” said Bazin. “Our work ethic is strong and I think the kids are excited to play.”
Bazin said that the most experience on the team lies at forward. Players like David Vallorani, who led the team in scoring a year ago, and Riley Wetmore, who doubled his point total of 15 in his freshman year to 30 a year ago, will be looked upon to pace the offense. On the blue line, the team returns four of six starters from a year ago.
But then there is goaltending. The Achilles’ heel of the team last season, goaltending must improve for the River Hawks if they have any hope of getting out of the Hockey East basement. The trio of Doug Carr, Marc Boulanger and T.J. Massie — all sophomores — returns. And at this point, the race for the starting position is, simply put, wide open.
“[Goaltending] is a work in progress,” said Bazin. “It’s too early to tell. It wasn’t very successful last year, but we’re not looking at last year. We’re looking at this year. They’ll each get a chance to prove themselves.”
About the River Hawks
2010-11 overall record: 5-25-4
2010-11 HEA record: 4-21-2 (10th)
2011-12 predicted finish (coaches poll): Ninth
Key losses: Defensemen Maury Edwards and Ryan Blair; forwards Scott Campbell and Patrick Cey
Players to watch: Forwards David Vallorani, Riley Wetmore and Matt Ferreira; defensemen Chad Ruhwedel and Chris Ickert
Impact rookie: Defenseman Jake Suter
Why the River Hawks will finish higher than the coaches poll: Last year’s very young team will have an extra year of development and experience under its belt.
Why the River Hawks will finish lower than the coaches poll: The transition to a new coaching staff with possible new philosophies.
Maine had one of the top three offenses in Hockey East last year, but lost 121 points of production from just three forwards. Can the Black Bears fill those holes and retain their elite goalscoring status? Well, they certainly have a good start in seniors Spencer Abbott and Brian Flynn, who both finished in the 35-40 point range. Joey Diamond was also a double-digit goal scorer.
“They’re certainly are our top three coming back, and they’re real good,” Maine coach Tim Whitehead says. “Then we have some [younger] guys that I think are in the position to really emerge as a big part of the team. Those guys have taken a great step over the summer.”
Maine’s goaltending struggled last year, with no one posting a save percentage higher than .894. That’s no recipe for success. So perhaps the biggest question for this year’s team is whether the freshmen lumps that Dan Sullivan and Martin Ouellette took will translate into considerably stronger play.
“I’m very confident that these two guys are going to really surprise people this year,” Whitehead says. “We’re going to be very determined to play great team defense in front of them to give them the opportunity to take the next step. I love those two guys and am very confident down the road they are going to be elite.”
The defensive corps that will be relied on to make life easier on the goaltenders will have some holes to fill following the graduation of three seniors. Surprisingly, freshmen won’t automatically be part of that mix. The initial outlook is for returning players to move into larger roles.
“We took a big hit to graduation, but Will O’Neil has been an elite player for us over the last couple of years,” Whitehead says. “He’ll be our leader back there, but we’ll also have Mike Cornell, Ryan Hegarty, Mark Nemec, Brice O’Connor, Nick Pryor and Matt Mangene, who’s going to play some D and forward. That’s a pretty darn good core there.”
About the Black Bears
2010-11 overall record: 17-12-7
2010-11 HEA record: 14-8-5 (fifth)
2011-12 predicted finish (coaches poll): Fourth
Key losses: Forwards Gustav Nyquist, Robby Dee and Tanner House; defensemen Josh Van Dyk, Jeff Dimmen and Mike Banwell
Players to watch: Forwards Spencer Abbott, Brian Flynn and Joey Diamond; defenseman Will O’Neill
Impact rookie: John Parker
Why the Black Bears will finish higher than the coaches poll: One of Maine’s sophomore goaltenders emerges as a difference-maker.
Why the Black Bears will finish lower than the coaches poll: Too many holes to fill and another year of subpar goaltending.
When the books were closed on the 2010-11 season for Hockey East, few would say it was one of success.
Coming off three straight national titles — Boston College in 2008 and 2010, Boston University in 2009 — there were inflated expectations that this league was poised to become the dominant conference in college hockey.
Then, in three fateful days in March, Hockey East’s hope for four straight titles was quashed. The conference’s best bet, BC, was manhandled by Colorado College in its opening game of the regionals. The league’s Cinderella story, Merrimack, blew a late lead in its regional game and lost to Notre Dame. Then New Hampshire followed suit the next night, outplaying Notre Dame only to lose in the end.
Suddenly, Hockey East’s hopes for another national title were not only dead, but the league didn’t send a representative to the Frozen Four for just the second time in 19 years.
So on the eve of the 2011-12 season, it’s not a surprise that each of the teams is hungry to bring Hockey East back to the national stage in Tampa, Fla., this April.
Between now and April, though, Hockey East fans should be in for an entertaining ride. Rarely has the league been as wide open as it is this season.
Kieran Millan led Boston University to the national championship in 2009. Can he lead the Terriers back to the NCAA tournament in 2011-12? (photo: Melissa Wade).
A look at the league’s preseason coaches poll shows Boston College at the top. Maybe that’s not the biggest shocker, as BC has won three of the last four league tournament titles. But this is the same Boston College team that graduated its standout goaltender and two of its top five scorers, then lost three of its most talented returning players to the NHL.
The coaches poll, in fact, turned to its standbys — BC, Boston University, New Hampshire and Maine — as its top four teams. Of course, that could be for good reason. Merrimack lost significant scoring up front, including the departure of Stephane Da Costa after just two seasons. Vermont, after reaching the NCAA tournament in back-to-back seasons, had a significant drop-off last year and will need a major turnaround this season to get back to dominance. Massachusetts is coming off its worst season under coach Don “Toot” Cahoon and will need to break in a new goaltender with the graduation of Paul Dainton.
Then there are the three teams that will be wild cards: Northeastern, Providence and Massachusetts-Lowell. All have new faces behind the bench.
Providence and Lowell dismissed their coaches immediately upon season’s end and turned to two of the top free agent coaches available. The Friars grabbed Spencer Penrose Award winner Nate Leaman from Union. Lowell turned to an alum in Norm Bazin, who was an extremely successful recruiter at Colorado College before turning around Division III Hamilton, leading it to a regular season title.
Northeastern was put in a bind when Greg Cronin left for the Toronto Maple Leafs in June, forcing a late-summer coaching search that resulted in another alum, Jim Madigan, taking over.
Each of those three teams could be in position for an immediate turnaround as often happens when a new coach takes over. Wisdom, though, shows enough deficiencies in each program to understand that success may not come immediately.
So with the new season upon us, there are a number of questions to ask about Hockey East. Is there a team that, like Merrimack last year, can crack the big four of BC, BU, UNH and Maine? And if so, which of the big four will be the odd man out? What impact will three new head coaches have? And most importantly, how will Hockey East impact the national picture?
Speaking of national picture, oh, what a changing picture that was this summer. The creation of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference and what appears will be the dissolution of the CCHA has created more than a little rumble across all conferences. We enter the 2011-12 season still lacking a clear understanding of what the college hockey landscape will be come 2013.
There have been a lot of rumors that Hockey East will face changes as well. Notre Dame has made it clear that it is interested in joining either Hockey East or the NCHC. The NCHC announced Sunday that it will begin play in 2013 without Notre Dame, meaning it is likely Hockey East will become the home of the Irish.
For that to happen, there will likely have to be another team to take the league from 10 to 12 teams and avoid the undesirable 11-team schedule. That team could be Rensselaer, and the announcement could come as early as this week.
All of that, though, will define the future. Right now, we can focus on the present and what is sure to be an exciting — and very interesting — Hockey East season.
With that in mind, below are our preseason predictions. We advise you not to take these to Vegas unless you want to donate your money to a casino that certainly doesn’t need it. Click on a team name to read its season preview.
Last year’s Boston University squad — the youngest ever in coach Jack Parker’s 38 years — displayed an inconsistency that befitted its youth as much as it frustrated its fans. The Terriers started and finished strong (at least until the playoffs) but struggled in the middle.
“The best thing that could possibly happen to our team has already happened to us,” Parker says. “We’ve gotten a year older. We’ve gotten our sophomores to be juniors, the freshmen to be sophomores and the 18-year-olds to be 19. That, in itself, is going to make us a better team.”
In goal, Kieran Millan returns to finish off a stellar four-year career. That position is about as solid as you could get. The key will be whether the defensemen can progress from a season in which BU was outshot an uncharacteristically high number of times.
“We need [Max] Nicastro to step up and play up to his capabilities,” Parker says. “We need [Adam] Clendening and [Garrett] Noonan to make big jumps from their freshman to sophomore years. We need guys that had limited ice time last year to step up and get more ice time and play better.”
The step-it-up theme carries over as well to the forwards, who were collectively good-but-not-great last year. With an extra year under their belts, this group will be expected to produce at a higher level.
“From the senior class, we have to have [Chris] Connolly and [Corey] Trivino put up numbers in the 15-to-20-goal range and get in the 30-to-35-point range,” Parker says. “We have to have the same thing from guys like [Matt] Nieto, [Charlie] Coyle, and [Sahir] Gill, who all had really solid freshmen years. They all had 25 to 30 points; we have to get them up to the 35-to-40-point level.”
About the Terriers
2010-11 overall record: 19-12-8
2010-11 HEA record: 15-6-6 (third)
2011-12 predicted finish (coaches poll): Second
Key losses: Defensemen David Warsofsky and forward Joe Pereira
Players to watch: Goaltender Kieran Millan; forwards Alex Chiasson, Chris Connolly, Corey Trivino and Charlie Coyle; defensemen Max Nicastro, Adam Clendening and Garrett Noonan
Impact rookie: Forward Evan Rodrigues
Why the Terriers will finish higher than the coaches poll: They bring back almost all of last year’s team and have an extra year of maturity and experience.
Why the Terriers will finish lower than the coaches poll: Getting older doesn’t automatically translate into playing better or more consistently.
Many people see New Hampshire as a team of question marks. Having lost their top four scorers — the entire first line of Paul Thompson, Mike Sislo and Phil DeSimone, all of whom graduated, along with top-scoring defenseman Blake Kessel, who signed an NHL contract — there is reason for concern of where the offense will come from this season for the Wildcats.
For coach Dick Umile, though, it’s not about question marks as much as it is about opportunity.
Those with the biggest opportunities are among the top returning scorers, namely Stevie Moses, Mike Borisenok and Kevin Goumas. Down the stretch last season, that trio, which comprised Umile’s second line, rose to the occasion, taking over offensively when teams keyed on the Thompson-Sislo-DeSimone line. The experience that they gained is what Umile hopes will carry his team’s offense this year.
“We just move up that second line,” said Umile. “I think they’re going to put numbers up. We’ll be fine scoring.”
The Wildcats also return arguably the top goaltender in the conference in Matt DiGirolamo. Thus the only question mark left may be defense. Kessel’s early departure, along with the loss of defensive stalwart Matt Campanale leaves some reason for concern.
Umile, though, believes he has a solid puck-moving defenseman entering in Trevor van Riemsdyk (brother of one-time UNH standout James van Riemsdyk), and likely will lean on the rookie to create offense from the blue line.
About the Wildcats
2010-11 overall record: 22-11-6
2010-11 HEA record: 17-6-4 (second)
2011-12 predicted finish (coaches poll): Third
Key losses: Forwards Paul Thompson, Mike Sislo and Phil DeSimone; defensemen Blake Kessel, Matt Campanale and Mike Beck
Players to watch: Goaltender Matt DiGirolamo; forwards Stevie Moses, Mike Borisenok and John Henrion; defenseman Brett Kostolansky
Impact rookie: Defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk
Why the Wildcats will finish higher than the coaches poll: In DiGirolamo, they have one of the top goalies in the country and you know they’ll be able to score.
Why the Wildcats will finish lower than the coaches poll: In addition to the five seniors who graduated, Kessel’s early departure leaves a big hole on the blue line and the point on the power play.
Northeastern’s first-year head coach Jim Madigan uses the word whirlwind to describe the last eight weeks of his life. Named the replacement for Greg Cronin late in the summer, Madigan has done everything in his power just to try to get acclimated.
“I finally feel like we’re getting into a routine,” Madigan said. “The last few weeks, things have come together and getting on the ice is the most important thing.”
It’s no surprise that Madigan’s shift from academic administrator and fundraiser at Northeastern to the school’s head hockey coach is a bit of a dramatic jump. Add to it that Madigan was the last of the three head coaches appointed in Hockey East — his unveiling coming months after Norm Bazin and Nate Leaman took over at Massachusetts-Lowell and Providence, respectfully. It’s easy to feel like you’re behind the 8-ball.
But Madigan takes his new role in stride and does so with enthusiasm. He’s realistic that offense might be a problem, having lost the team’s top three scorers from a season ago to graduation. Still, Madigan seems confident his team will be competitive.
“Although it doesn’t look like there is a lot of offense [returning], there’s a lot of offensive capability,” said Madigan. “I’m looking for us to generate a little more offense that what people may think.”
If there will be one challenge for Madigan, it will be plugging any holes left by either graduation or early departure with his freshman class. The mid-summer shakeup created when Cronin left the program led a number of recruits to decommit and, as was well publicized, led Jamie Oleksiak, the school’s first-ever first-round NHL draft pick, to leave school.
“When Coach Cronin announced that he was leaving, there were four players who decommitted and didn’t come,” said Madigan. “Then we lost Jamie Oleksiak after the draft. But we’re not complaining about our numbers. We have a good group of players here.”
About the Huskies
2010-11 overall record: 14-16-8
2010-11 HEA record: 10-10-7 (sixth)
2011-12 predicted finish (coaches poll): Eighth
Key losses: Forwards Wade MacLeod, Tyler McNeely, Steve Silva and Brodie Reid; defensemen Jamie Oleksiak and Mike Hewkin
Players to watch: Goaltender Chris Rawlings; forwards Mike McLaughlin, Rob Dongara and Steve Quailer; defensemen Anthony Bitetto and Luke Eibler
Impact rookie: Defenseman Josh Manson
Why the Huskies will finish higher than the coaches poll: Goaltender Chris Rawlings could carry this team a lot further than people expect.
Why the Huskies will finish lower than the coaches poll: The transition from one head coach to another often results in taking a step backward before moving forward.
Stephane Da Costa, Stephane Da Costa, what’ll Merrimack do without Stephane Da Costa? The refrain has been repeated so many times, it sounds like schoolyard singsong performed while jumping rope.
Yet the fact is that Da Costa scored all of one goal after the first weekend in February last season. He drew attention, to be sure, and set up a good number of others’ goals, but this team was never Da Costa and a bunch of pylons.
“We had a junior line last year of Ryan Flanigan, Carter Madsen and Elliott Sheen that was probably our best line the end of the year,” Merrimack coach Mark Dennehy says. “We’re finally on a normal development model where our sophomores are taking a step and our juniors are taking a step. I think we’ve got a lot of underrated players. That’s fine. We’re a blue-collar team.”
Well, maybe, as long as you call All-Hockey East honorable mention honorees Joe Cannata and Karl Stollery “blue collar.”
“I don’t know if there is a defenseman that plays more minutes than Karl,” Dennehy says. “I think we’ve got the most underrated goalie in the country. People just take Joe for granted. All he does is win games.”
With teams perhaps game planning against Merrimack differently this year, Dennehy expects a possible stylistic switch.
“We’ll probably tighten things up a little bit more than we did last year,” Dennehy says. “Goals came a little bit easier than they’ve ever come for us. I think at times maybe even I got intoxicated with it and let us play [wide-]open hockey. We’re going to probably have to work a little bit harder for our goals, but [I’m confident because] we’re as deep as I think we’ve been.”
About the Warriors
2010-11 overall record: 25-10-4
2010-11 HEA record: 16-8-3 (fourth)
2011-12 predicted finish (coaches poll): Fifth
Key losses: Forwards Stephane Da Costa, Chris Barton and Joe Cucci; defensemen Adam Ross and Fraser Allan
Players to watch: Goaltender Joe Cannata; defensemen Karl Stollery, Jordan Heywood and Brendan Ellis; forwards Jesse Todd, Ryan Flanigan, Mike Collins, Carter Madsen and Elliott Sheen
Impact rookie: Josh Myers
Why the Warriors will finish higher than the coaches poll: They aren’t going away just because Stephane Da Costa turned pro. There’s still a lot of talent on the roster.
Why the Warriors will finish lower than the coaches poll: Call it a Magical Season hangover or that there’s a bigger bull’s-eye on their jerseys. Either way, repeating is tough.
Last year’s national coach of the year, Nate Leaman, built Union into an ECAC Hockey regular season champion and an NCAA tournament team. He’s got his work cut out for him, though, at Providence, which missed the Hockey East playoffs the last two seasons.
“Right now we’re focused on building our program one day at a time into a championship-caliber program,” Leaman says. “I purposely didn’t watch tape. I view it as us having 26 freshmen right now, working hard and starting to understand what it takes to come to the rink every day and compete at the level that we want to compete at.”
That competition extends to the net, where goaltender Alex Beaudry was considered one of the team’s top players despite a pedestrian .902 save percentage.
“Beaudry had a lot of experience last year, but it’s an area that if we’re going to be successful, we need to be more consistent,” Leaman says. “We need to raise our level of play and save percentage. It’s an open battle right now.”
Leaman feels his defensive corps is deep with eight guys that all bring something different to the table, but he can’t feel very good about the talent up front. In fact, he may wax nostalgic for Union’s offensive firepower, which ranked seventh nationally and first on the power play. By comparison, Providence was last in Hockey East in offense and the power play, then graduated most of its top scorers.
“Our program only scored 75 goals last year,” Leaman says. “Fifty of them graduated so we returned only 25. I’m going to go out on a limb and say that’s probably the lowest in NCAA hockey. We had a power play that was around 10 percent. So scoring is an area that we need to develop.”
About the Friars
2010-11 overall record: 8-18-8
2010-11 HEA record: 4-16-7 (ninth)
2011-12 predicted finish (coaches poll): Tenth
Key losses: Forwards Ian O’Connor, Kyle MacKinnon, Matt Germain and Ben Farrer; defenseman Eric Baier
Players to watch: Goaltender Alex Beaudry; forwards Tim Schaller and Matt Bergland; defensemen Daniel New and Mark Adams
Impact rookie: Barrett Kaib
Why the Friars will finish higher than the coaches poll: Nate Leaman worked wonders at Union. It’ll probably take a few years at Providence, but don’t bet against him.
Why the Friars will finish lower than the coaches poll: Since they were picked to finish last, the Friars can’t finish any lower.
Coming off back-to-back NCAA tournament appearances, including a Frozen Four berth in 2008, last season was, in an understatement, disappointing for Vermont.
The Catamounts struggled to an 8-20-8 regular season record and were swept out of the Hockey East quarterfinals by New Hampshire.
Thus, for coach Kevin Sneddon, the 2011-12 season is as much about getting his program back to the level of success it enjoyed in the two years prior as it is getting past this last season.
“This team is motivated, to say the least, not just to be better than last year but to get back to greatness,” said Sneddon. “That’s been a big theme of ours, talking about what it takes to be a champion in this league. We think we have the pieces there; we just have to put it all together.”
Those pieces begin with the team’s most experienced player in goaltender Rob Madore. The netminder led his team to a Frozen Four as a freshman and showed signs of brilliance in the past two seasons. If anything, said Sneddon, Madore was hampered last season by a team that struggled in front of him.
“I think so much of him in the way he prepares daily,” Sneddon said of Madore. “He’s so committed to excellence that he leads by example. He was overshadowed by the fact that he didn’t have a great team in front of him last year.”
Vermont returns a number of young scorers up front, including Chris McCarthy, Sebastian Stalberg and Anthony DeCenzo, who for much of the year made up the Catamounts’ top line. Defensively, Vermont is thin after graduation but hopes that top prospect, Michael Paliotta, can fill part of that void.
About the Catamounts
2010-11 overall record: 8-20-8
2010-11 HEA record: 6-14-7 (seventh)
2011-12 predicted finish (coaches poll): Sixth
Key losses: Forwards Jack Downing, Wah Stacey and Josh Burrows; defensemen Dan Lawson, Kyle Medvec and Kevan Miller
Players to watch: Goaltender Rob Madore; forwards Sebastian Stalberg and Chris McCarthy; defensemen Drew MacKenzie and Nick Bruneteau
Impact rookie: Defenseman Michael Paliotta
Why the Catamounts will finish higher than the coaches poll: Rob Madore goes out with a bang.
Why the Catamounts will finish lower than the coaches poll: Still not enough scoring.
Whether Massachusetts can crack the top half of Hockey East comes down largely to one position: goaltender. Prior to graduating, Paul Dainton played almost every game in the Minutemen nets and played well. Freshmen Kevin Boyle and Steve Mastalerz may be well regarded, but that’s no guarantee of success. Sophomore Jeff Teglia struggled in his limited time last year.
“Goaltending is one of our unknowns,” UMass coach Don “Toot” Cahoon says. “What we do know is that we have three credible prospects at the position. Jeff Teglia had some successes and some real struggles last year. That’s part of the learning curve.
“Steve Mastalerz was an all-prep goaltender and has a great body and a great training regimen. Kevin Boyle was the all-rookie team goalie in the BCJHL. So they come with unquestionable backgrounds. Now the question is, how do they handle the pressure and challenges of this level of play?”
On the blue line, senior Michael Marcou leads an otherwise young group that may sink or swim based on the progression of five sophomores and a few freshmen. If they make mistakes, they certainly won’t have experience in the net behind them to bail them out.
“Those five sophomores all got ample playing time last year,” Cahoon says. “That doesn’t mean automatically that they’re going to be better this year, but it suggests that if the coaches are doing a good job, they’re hopefully going to be a real strong point to our program. [If so], that will make the goaltenders’ transition that much smoother.”
Up front, Daniel Hobbs, T.J. Syner, and Michael Pereira all topped 24 points last year. The big question will be whether some of last year’s freshmen can elevate their game, particularly at the center position.
“Danny and T.J. are real good players and hopefully will have their best year in their final year,” Cahoon says. “Our challenge up front is to find a stable center-ice man who we can depend on. [We have a lot of candidates, but] they are all question marks.”
About the Minutemen
2010-11 overall record: 6-23-6
2010-11 HEA record: 5-16-6 (eighth)
2011-12 predicted finish (coaches poll): Seventh
Key losses: Goaltender Paul Dainton; forwards Chase Langeraap and Marc Concannon; defenseman Doug Kublin
Players to watch: Forwards Daniel Hobbs, T.J. Syner and Michael Pereira; defensemen Michael Marcou, Joel Hanley and Adam Philips
Impact rookie: Goaltender Kevin Boyle or Steve Mastalerz
Why the Minutemen will finish higher than the coaches poll: Other than in net, the losses to graduation were manageable. So if last year’s freshmen can continue to progress …
Why the Minutemen will finish lower than the coaches poll: Neither of the freshmen goalies comes through.
When Boston College was upset by Colorado College in last year’s NCAA tournament, there was not only a sense of shock for the Eagles but also, quite possibly, one of unfinished business.
The Eagles had very high expectations for last year’s club, particularly given that they had captured the Hockey East regular season and postseason titles. Looking for the trifecta, a first-round exit was hardly expected.
Six months later, with a new season on the horizon, it’s still difficult not to look back on what might have been. At the same time, though, coach Jerry York is very much ready to look forward.
“Looking back, we take pride in the 30 wins and the trophies we won during the year,” said York. “I’m sure [not winning the national title] will be in the back of our mind, but October is coming up.”
As the Eagles return to the ice, they’ll have a number of major holes to fill. None will be larger than that left by the graduation of John Muse. Muse is the only BC goaltender to lead his team to two national titles.
Muse’s shoes will be filled by junior Parker Milner, who has amassed 13 wins in limited time in his first two seasons as Muse’s understudy. Now ready to assume the primary role in net, Milner will be challenged by a pair of rookies — Brad Barone and Brian Billett.
“Parker Milner wants to be the No. 1 goaltender,” said York. “But I think we’ll get some healthy competition. But I expect Milner will be our guy based on the past.”
About the Eagles
2010-11 overall record: 30-8-1
2010-11 HEA record: 20-6-1 (first)
2011-12 predicted finish (coaches poll): First
Key losses: Goaltender John Muse; forwards Cam Atkinson, Brian Gibbons, Jimmy Hayes and Joe Whitney; defenseman Philip Samuelsson
Players to watch: Defensemen Brian Dumoulin and Tommy Cross; forwards Pat Mullane, Chris Kreider, Paul Carey, Barry Almeida and Bill Arnold
Impact rookie: Goaltender Brian Billett
Why the Eagles will finish higher than the coaches poll: It’ll be tough to finish higher than first.
Why the Eagles will finish lower than the coaches poll: Between graduating seniors and early departures to the pros, BC has a lot of holes to fill.
The NCHC announced on Sunday that it will begin play in 2013 as an eight-team conference and, in doing so, consequently may have announced Notre Dame’s hockey future.
Last week, Notre Dame head coach Jeff Jackson told the South Bend Tribune that the school’s decision for a future conference was down to the NCHC and Hockey East. If that’s true, it appears that Hockey East is the intended destination for the Irish.
While the NCHC has seemingly stolen Notre Dame’s thunder of announcing its new home, it also makes for interesting debate on what, if any, team will join Notre Dame in Hockey East.
Though the league is remaining tight-lipped on anything to do with expansion, commissioner Joe Bertagna was pretty clear when I spoke with him back in the summer that if the league is to expand, it’s much more desirable to move to from 10 to 12 teams, not 11. That, though, was when rumors of Miami and Notre Dame coming to Hockey East were floating around. Miami, of course, was one of the founding members when the NCHC announced its formation this summer. So it is conceivable that Hockey East could accept Notre Dame and no one else.
But assuming Hockey East wants a partner for Notre Dame, which teams seems most likely?
Rumors are floating and the one I continue to hear most often is Rensselaer. RPI has been a long-time member of the ECAC, but might be an excellent fit for Hockey East. Geographically, RPI is within a four-hour drive of every current Hockey East team except Maine. The program under Seth Appert has been on an upswing, making the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1995. That certainly has to be appealing if you’re Bertagna.
Other clubs that I have heard as potentials for Hockey East include Cornell and Quinnipiac, but neither of these teams seem as sensible for the league or the teams themselves. I can’t imagine Cornell ever breaking apart from their fellow Ivy League schools. And though Quinnipiac since its first day as a Division I program has always had the highest aspirations, it lack of a proven track record doesn’t align with the success and history of the other Hockey East teams.
There are still plenty of questions that need to be answered, but keep your ears open. Those answers seem like they will be coming very soon.
Nebraska-Omaha forward Alex Hudson, the Mavericks’ top returning scorer, has been suspended indefinitely from the team for an unspecified training violation, according to the Omaha World-Herald.
UNO coach Dean Blais did not elaborate on Hudson’s status, but Hudson did not play in Saturday night’s exhibition game against the University of British Columbia.
“I’m not really going to dwell on the negatives but look at the positives,” Blais said in the article. “There’s a lot of excitement with our guys about getting the season started. We’ve been practicing at a really high tempo and we’re really eager to see how our guys look.”
Sophomore Michigan defenseman Jon Merrill has been suspended for the first 12 games of the season due to a violation of team rules.
“Jon has an obligation to the team and he did not live up to those responsibilities,” said Michigan coach Red Berenson in a statement. “He needs to be accountable to his teammates and this program both on the ice, around campus and in the community.”
Merrill, who posted 25 points (seven goals, 18 assists) as a freshman in 2010-11, will be eligible to return to the team at Miami on Friday, Nov. 11. He was a second-round draft pick of the New Jersey Devils in 2010 and was also suspended during his time with the U.S. National Team Development Program.
Trinity College has announced the resignation of Andrew McPhee as head coach of the women’s team to become an assistant coach at Brown.
Assistant coach Carson Duggan has been named interim head coach.
McPhee was first an assistant coach for Trinity in 2001 and head coach for the last nine seasons.
“We are extremely proud of the work Andy McPhee has done to mentor our women’s ice hockey student-athletes and to build an extremely strong program,” Trinity AD Michael Renwick said in a statement. “We are disappointed to see him leave, but very supportive of his decision and wish him well in his new position. I am very confident in Carson’s ability to lead our program and know she will do a great job continuing to move our program in the right direction.”
How was your summer? Quiet?
So much to talk about in the world of college hockey in the coming weeks and months, including the impending — and sad — demise of the CCHA.
In the meantime, however, there is hockey to be played and within the next five days, two CCHA teams are playing hockey that counts.
Hockey that counts. I’m going to be thinking about that all season long and right on through until the end of the 2012-13 season. This is still CCHA hockey, and it’s still hockey that counts. It starts with nonconference and exhibition play Saturday night. Lake Superior at Alabama-Huntsville
The Lakers travel to Huntsville for two games this weekend, a Saturday-Sunday nonconference series to begin the 2011-12 season. LSSU finished the 2010-11 season eighth in the CCHA with an overall record of 13-17-9. Gone is Rick Schofield, the Lakers’ lead scorer from a season ago responsible for 17 of LSSU’s 93 goals. Returning, however, is sophomore goaltender Kevin Kapalka, whose .924 freshman save percentage earned him a spot on the CCHA 2010-11 All-Rookie Team.
The Chargers finished last season with a record of 4-26-2 and remain the lone independent team in D-I men’s ice hockey. I’m just happy that they remain at all. The prognosis for the program is not optimistic. Here’s the latest about the program from John Turner at the Huntsville Times. Turner has done a great job of keeping up with everything that affects UAH hockey — including the lukewarm commitment to the program by the university itself.
UAH adds 10 freshmen to its roster this season while losing its two top scorers from a year ago. Last year, senior defenseman Matt Baxter led the Chargers with nine goals and 13 assists. Second-leading scorer, Keenan Desemet (8-10–18), left to play for the Arizona Sundogs (CHL) after his sophomore year. The Chargers return three goaltenders; sophomore Clarke Saunders (3.80 GAA, .898 SV%) and junior John Griggs (3.95, .883) split time in the net last season. Picks: LSSU 4-3, 3-2 It’s a homer pick, I admit, but I’m banking on Kapalka’s abilities in net to prevail over the rookie enthusiasm of the Charger team. Niagara at Michigan
Atlantic Hockey’s Purple Eagles visit the Wolverines Tuesday, Oct. 4, for one nonconference game. Last year, Niagara finished fourth in the AHA with an overall record of 18-13-4. In 2010-11, they were led in scoring by seniors Paul Zanette and Bryan Haczyk, who contributed 57 of the Chargers’ 124 overall goals. Sophomores Ryan Rashid (13-13–26) and Scott Arnold (16-6–22) are the two returning 10-plus goal scorers from a year ago. Four goalies saw action for Niagara last season; three of them return.
Every CCHA fan knows what the Wolverines did last season. Their remarkable second half resulted in their regular-season conference title and an appearance in the NCAA championship game. Seniors from a season ago who comprised four of UM’s top five scorers — Louie Caporusso, Carl Hagelin, Matt Rust, Scooter Vaughan — are gone, but the Wolverines return David Wohlberg and Kevin Lynch, two double-digit goal scorers, and the excellent, entertaining goaltender Shawn Hunwick (2.21 GAA, .925 SV%) — as well as their most potent weapon, coach Red Berenson. Pick: Michigan 4-2 This is less league homerism as it is common sense. The Wolverines have proven me wrong in the past, but I’m not picking against this team until they give me a reason to. Exhibition Games Oct. 1-2
Ontario IT at Michigan, Bowling Green
Toronto at Western Michigan, Ferris State
Windsor at Ohio State, Miami Oct. 1
Northern Alberta IT at Alaska Oct. 2-3
Western Ontario at Notre Dame, Michigan State Oct. 3
US Under-18 Team at Michigan Picks: For the sake of simplicity, let’s just say that the NCAA prevails in every game. Preseason CCHA Poll
Here’s how I picked the league this season.
1. Notre Dame
2. Miami
3. Michigan
4. Western Michigan
5. Alaska
6. Northern Michigan
7. Ferris State
8. Michigan State
9. Ohio State
10. Lake Superior
11. Bowling Green USCHO.com Poll
Here’s my first ballot of the season.
1. Notre Dame
2. North Dakota
3. Boston College
4. Miami
5. Michigan
6. Denver
7. Minnesota-Duluth
8. Nebraska-Omaha
9. Boston University
10. Western Michigan
11. New Hampshire
12. Colorado College
13. Yale
14. Union
15. Merrimack
16. Minnesota
17. Maine
18. RPI
19. Alaska Next Week
USCHO rolls out the conference season previews next week, including mine on Wednesday. I may have something to say in the blog about the early action of this weekend, and I’ll definitely have picks on Friday.
Follow me on the Twitters (paulacweston), you kids.
After looking at the best of the best defensively, it’s time for those who believe the best defense is a good offense. Included in this list are 10 forwards looking to have impact years for their respective clubs.
Kyle Fletcher (10) had a strong second half in 2010-11 (photo: Omar Phillips).
The only player on this list not from a traditional hockey power, Fletcher began his sophomore campaign looking more like a freshman than a veteran. Having missed three quarters of his rookie season due to injury, Fletcher had just 13 points through his first 17 games. He blossomed after Jan. 1, however, scoring 25 points during the final 20 games of the season to finish as the Crusaders’ leading scorer.
Eight of the Kanata, Ontario, native’s 38 points came in one weekend against American International in early February, when he notched three points on Friday night before adding two goals and five points on Saturday. In the opening round of the Atlantic Hockey tournament, he posted four goals and six points in three games against Canisius. He will be leaned on heavily to do more of the same this season.
Chris Kreider played for the United States in last season's World Junior Championship (photo: Angelo Lisuzzo).
“He’s been hidden behind others,” an opposing coach said about Kreider. “But he should be counted on as a leader this season.”
Scoring only 26 goals and 47 points over his first two seasons, Kreider seems like an unlikely choice for a top forwards list on statistics alone. However, considering he has been buried on a veteran-laden Boston College team for each of his first two seasons, Kreider has had the opportunity to develop slowly while under the tutelage of top-notch forwards such as Cam Atkinson, who posted back-to-back 30-plus goal and 50-plus point seasons.
This year, Kreider comes into the season as the Eagles’ third-highest returning scorer on offense, and he will look to carry a larger part of the load in the Eagles’ drive for another Hockey East championship. Their cross-town rivals certainly have already seen their fill of the Boxford, Mass., native; he posted two goals and three assists against Boston University in four games last season.
Yale's Brian O'Neill had 12 multi-point games last season (photo: Shelley M. Szwast).
If there’s one word that describes O’Neill, consistent is it. O’Neill scored 26 points as a freshman and has notched 45- and 46-point campaigns each year since. Both totals led the Bulldogs in scoring. Last season, O’Neill had 12 multi-point games, starting with a three-point effort against Brown on Oct. 29 and ending with a pair of assists in a 6-0 drubbing of Cornell in the ECAC Hockey championship on March 19.
The Yardley, Pa., native scored points in each of the first six games of the season and each of the final six as well. He also enjoyed working the power play; he notched half of his team-high 20 goals on the man advantage. He will need to be as good, if not better, if the Bulldogs want to return to the top of the conference this season.
Reilly Smith (18) scores in the CCHA championship game last season (photo: Rena Laverty).
“He’s looking to answer with another great year,” an opposing coach said of Smith. “[He needs to] prove that he can do it no matter who is on his line.”
As a sophomore playing on a line with seniors Andy Miele and Carter Camper, Smith enjoyed a 34-point jump from his freshman campaign. His 28 goals led the RedHawks, but what really makes that number impressive was that he had only one hat trick, on Oct. 23 against Northern Michigan, and just five other multi-goal games, all of which came after Jan. 1.
This season, Smith will be leaned on heavily to deliver the same kind of consistent scoring threat despite having new linemates. Playing against Lake Superior State four times could help — last season, the Mimico, Ontario, native notched five goals and five assists in four games against the Lakers.
Jason Zucker's double-overtime goal gave Denver a NCAA tournament victory over Western Michigan (photo: Tim Brule).
“Some of the goals he scored last year were just amazing,” an opposing coach said of Zucker.
As a freshman, Zucker finished second only to senior forward Drew Shore in scoring for the Pioneers, trailing by just a point. After scoring just one point in his first four games, Zucker began to figure things out with a two-goal night against Wisconsin on Oct. 22, and rattled off a four-game goal-scoring streak from Oct. 29 through Nov. 11. Less than a month later, he tagged eventual national champion Minnesota-Duluth for four points on Dec. 3.
The Las Vegas native had seven multi-point games after Jan. 1, including a goal and two assists in the Pioneers’ double-overtime NCAA regional victory over Western Michigan. His sophomore campaign begins against Boston College, and he’ll also face Smith and Miami on Nov. 26.
T.J. Tynan posted 54 points in his rookie season at Notre Dame (photo: Melissa Wade).
“I really like him,” an opposing coach said about Tynan. “[Teammate Anders] Lee is good, but Tynan is impressive.”
A lot was made early last season of the Fighting Irish’s dynamic rookie duo and just how quickly they would adapt to college hockey. Not only did Tynan fit in quickly, he made short work of CCHA goaltenders, scoring 23 goals and 54 points in 44 games. He finished 10 points higher than his closest teammate, and classmate, Lee.
Tynan had eight multi-point games before Jan. 1, including a two-goal, two-assist night against Canisius on Dec. 29. The Orland Park, Ill., native will have an excellent test of the potential sophomore slump in a pair of nonconference tilts against the Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs. In November, he will also be searching for his first point against Alaska, the only team to stymie him last season.
Stevie Moses has an opportunity to jump into a top-scoring role at New Hampshire (photo: Michael Silverwood).
“He’s a very gifted player, both skillful and very fast,” one coach said of Moses. “He’s going to have a very big year.”
With New Hampshire losing its top three scorers — Paul Thompson, Mike Sislo and Phil DeSimone — to graduation and their fourth, Blake Kessel, to an early departure, someone is going to need to step up and take the reins. The Wildcats’ coaching staff expects that player will be Moses, who after scoring 11 goals combined during his first two seasons netted 14 last season. Coach Dick Umile and his staff thinks so much of his leadership skills, they’ve named him an assistant captain for the upcoming season.
A native of Leominster, Mass., Moses wouldn’t mind seeing either the Northeastern Huskies or the Vermont Catamounts every night. After the Huskies kept him off the score sheet in each of their first three contests last season, Moses exploded for two goals and three points on Feb. 26, just 12 days after notching three points at Vermont. The Catamounts also don’t want see any more from Moses than they got last season, as he burned them for three goals and three assists in five games.
“I really love that kid,” one coach said of Lee. “Tynan is a very good college player, but I think Lee will be a National Hockey League player.”
While not as flashy offensively as his classmate Tynan, Lee proved his skill with and without the puck night in and night out last season en route to a 24-goal, 44-point freshman campaign. He opened his collegiate career with a hat trick against Holy Cross on Oct. 8 and never looked back.
A measure of a player could be how he reacts to adversity. Lee suffered scoreless stretches of three games, two games, and four games at different points. Each time, he came roaring back with multi-point nights to get back on track. The first time this happened was against Smith and Miami on Dec. 3. After not scoring for three games, the Edina, Minn., native notched three assists against the RedHawks.
Will Minnesota-Duluth's Jack Connolly find the same success with new linemates? (photo: Melissa Wade)
“He should be near the top of everyone’s lists,” one opposing coach said when discussing Connolly. “But he could struggle without his linemates.”
When coach Scott Sandelin brought in a pair of guys with the last name of Connolly — no relation — excitement began to buzz around the Bulldogs. A local product, Jack Connolly scored 29 points as a freshman before finding himself paired with Mike Connolly and Justin Fontaine during the 2009-10 campaign. He has led the Bulldogs in scoring since, notching 108 points in 82 games, but he will be hard-pressed to do so again without Mike Connolly, who left school early, and Fontaine, who graduated, and with a new role as team captain.
Last season, Connolly netted four points on two different occasions, but his Bulldogs couldn’t overcome a feisty Bemidji State squad during the WCHA tournament. Despite the loss, the Bulldogs punched their ticket to the big dance, and Connolly notched two goals and two assists in four games during the NCAA tournament to help lead the Bulldogs to their first national championship.
Colorado College's Jaden Schwartz finished his freshman season strong, which has some looking for a big second campaign (photo: Casey B. Gibson). (Casey B. Gibson)
“He’s a great player,” an opposing coach said about Schwartz. “But then again, he was a great player in juniors. Hopefully this will be his last year in college hockey so we won’t have to see him again.”
Considering that the younger Schwartz brother played in just 30 of his team’s 45 games last season, his 30 assists and 47 points were good enough to lead the Tigers in both categories, and had he played a whole season, he might have challenged Miele for the national scoring lead. Playing on a line with his older brother Rylan, Jaden’s freshman campaign started off with a bang as he notched a goal and an assist on Oct. 8 against Rensselaer and never really looked back.
Schwartz notched three or more points six times last season, including five, a goal and four assists, at home against Denver on Nov. 6. He posted seven points, two goals and five assists, in a weekend at Michigan Tech in December. He also lit up Boston College to the tune of four points in the NCAA West Regional semifinal. Despite adding only an assist against Michigan in the West final, Schwartz ended his season with 14 points in his last six games. That’s plenty to build on heading into his sophomore campaign.
