{"id":83189,"date":"2018-01-11T07:30:43","date_gmt":"2018-01-11T13:30:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.uscho.com\/?p=83189"},"modified":"2018-01-11T11:16:32","modified_gmt":"2018-01-11T17:16:32","slug":"week-hockey-east-providence-finding-rhythm-understanding-style-need-play","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uscho.com\/2018\/01\/11\/week-hockey-east-providence-finding-rhythm-understanding-style-need-play\/","title":{"rendered":"This Week in Hockey East: Providence finding rhythm, ‘understanding more of the style we need to play’"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Brian<\/a>
Brian Pinho sits second in team scoring for Providence with nine goals and 21 points (photo: Melissa Wade).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It\u2019s no secret that non-league play hasn\u2019t been kind to Hockey East this season.<\/p>\n

There are a few non-league contests remaining (the Beanpot is the most notable, but with three of the four teams from Hockey East, those are what you would consider zero-sum contests), but for the most part, we can tally up which teams have been successful out of conference and which teams simply have not.<\/p>\n

Providence, right now, has the best non-conference mark with a 7-3-0 record in their 10 games. Combined with a 7-4-1 league record, it\u2019s no surprise that of the 11 Hockey East teams, the Friars carry with them the highest PairWise ranking.<\/p>\n

Using that context, it\u2019s also possible to deduct that when March rolls around it may be the Friars, just three years removed from winning its first national championship, could have the best chance to carry Hockey East\u2019s water into the NCAA tourney.<\/p>\n

To date, though, it hasn\u2019t been all smooth sailing for the Friars. While wins have come throughout the season, so, too, have some poor efforts on select nights, something any coach will tell you can be frustrating.<\/p>\n

Providence routed RIT at home on a Friday, 8-3, only to fall a night later to the same Tigers team, 4-0. They went on the road in early November to face Massachusetts and fell 5-2, only to return home two nights later and win 7-2. Those inconsistencies are areas that coach Nate Leaman understood that his team needed to address.<\/p>\n

And since returning from the break, it seems the Friars are finding a rhythm.<\/p>\n

They opened up with a tournament championship in Pittsburgh at the Three Rivers Classic, outscoring their two opponents 8-1 in the two games. A 5-0 shutout of crosstown rival Brown in the Mayor\u2019s Cup and last Saturday\u2019s 5-2 win against Merrimack in a game Providence trailed, 2-1, kept the train rolling.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like we\u2019re understanding more of the style we need to play in order to be successful,\u201d said Leaman, \u201cwhich, unfortunately, take a little while to get across.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had some practices after exams where we really focused on areas that were weaknesses. We\u2019ve come back and I think we\u2019re better in those areas, that\u2019s helping.\u201d<\/p>\n

Leaman also understands that while he has some strong upperclassmen in his lineup, this is a team where possibly the most talented players might be in the sophomore class. Players like Josh Wilkins, Kasper Bjorkqvist and Vimal Sukumaran up front and Jacob Bryson and Spenser Young on defense comprise a big portion of this team\u2019s high-end talent.<\/p>\n

The difference between Providence\u2019s underclassmen and their freshmen and sophomores is the knowledge of how to win. Certainly players like Brian Pinho, second on the team in scoring and a member of the Friar\u2019s national title team, understand what it took to win that title and can help bring along the younger players.<\/p>\n

But since the dramatic title game at the TD Garden in 2015, the Friars haven\u2019t advance to a Hockey East final or won an NCAA tournament game.<\/p>\n

That is where this year\u2019s team has the opportunity to take a major step forward. And having things begin to take form as the Friars enter 2018 is certainly a very good sign that this could be an extremely competitive team in Hockey East down the stretch.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis team, we\u2019re learning more of what it takes,\u201d said Leaman.<\/p>\n

Going back to Pinho, the true senior leader of this year\u2019s team, he is possibly playing the best hockey of his career at the right time. Last week, he scored against both Brown and Merrimack and helped set up three other goals. He has nine goals on the season, just three off of his career-best 12 from a season ago.<\/p>\n

\u201cBrian Pinho might be playing his best hockey his last three or four games,\u201d said Leaman. \u201cHis feet are really moving and he\u2019s just comfortable all over the ice.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe didn\u2019t score for a little while. Now, he\u2019s kind of caught up.\u201d<\/p>\n

Indeed there was a stretch early this season where Pinho\u2019s offensive output may have opened eyes. He registered points in just one out of the team\u2019s first nine games, but since then has registered 17 points in 13 games.<\/p>\n

Leaman says that even when he wasn\u2019t scoring, he knew he was doing the right thing and that the points would eventually come.<\/p>\n

\u201cBrian always does the right thing,\u201d said Leaman. \u201cThat\u2019s part of him coming in and playing the wing the first year and learning what it takes. Having a lot of older guys ahead of him. But he had a lot of older guys to look up to when he got to the program. Now, I think Brian is that older guy and I think he\u2019s doing a terrific job being that leader that our team needs. He\u2019s really comfortable with that right now.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Friars have certainly positioned themselves well for the home stretch. Besides the non-conference success that might help Providence qualify for its school-record fifth straight NCAA tournament, the 7-4-1 mark in Hockey East places the Friars five points behind first-place Boston College with a game in-hand.<\/p>\n

If there is any downside, it\u2019s the fact that the Friars play eight of their final 12 games \u2013 all Hockey East contests \u2013 on the road. To date, Providence is 3-4-1 in road games as opposed to 8-2-0 at home (they are 3-1-0 at neutral sites).<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve seen growth with our team in the second half with just sticking with it, our mental toughness,\u201d said Leaman. \u201cThat\u2019s probably the biggest aspect [of playing on the road].<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you fall behind and have a double bogey, just coming back and staying with it as a group of executing your game and playing your type of game, that\u2019s what you\u2019ve got to do on the road.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe road is tough. It\u2019s really tough in our league to win on the road. You\u2019ve got to really focus and you\u2019ve got to be mentally tough. You have to make sure that you\u2019re bringing it. I look forward to it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Transfer Schutz an immediate addition to UML lineup<\/h4>\n

It\u2019s not very often that we see a player transfer and become eligible midseason.<\/p>\n

And it is ever less often that said player can jump into a lineup.<\/p>\n

That, though, happened in recent weeks at UMass Lowell.<\/p>\n

A season ago, Chris Schutz, transferred to Lowell from Robert Morris at the semester break. He had never played a game for the Colonials, but still had to sit out the equivalent of one full year, meaning he wouldn\u2019t be eligible to play for the River Hawks until after the holiday break.<\/p>\n

Schutz was immediately given an opportunity by coach Norm Bazin, inserted into the lineup two weekends ago at the Catamount Cup. This past weekend, he spent much of the time playing alongside two of Lowell\u2019s top forwards \u2013 Ryan Lohin and Colin O\u2019Neill \u2013 as Kenny Hausinger nursed an injury.<\/p>\n

Schutz was also given time on the power play and made it pay on Saturday in Lowell\u2019s 8-3 win over Massachusetts, one-timing his first collegiate goal from the top of the left faceoff circle.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like his skating,\u201d said Bazin. \u201cHe\u2019s a 6-foot-plus right winger, he goes fairly hard. He gives us an extra right shot who has some size. We look forward to his game continuing to grow.\u201d<\/p>\n

Reaching a milestone<\/h4>\n

Speaking of UMass Lowell, a congratulations goes out to Bazin for earning his 200th career victory last Friday night with a 6-0 victory over Vermont.<\/p>\n

All but 38 of those wins have come at Lowell (the other 38 came in three seasons at Division III Hamilton). If you\u2019re doing the math at home, not including this season, Bazin and his staff have averaged better than 25 wins per season at Lowell, an impressive tally for any Division I coach.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t even know about it,\u201d said Bazin when asked about the milestone. \u201cIt\u2019s terrific. I think I have a great staff, so I\u2019m very fortunate.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s no secret that non-league play hasn\u2019t been kind to Hockey East this season. For the most part, we can tally up which teams have been successful out of conference and which teams simply have not. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":83193,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[812],"coauthors":[800],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThis Week in Hockey East: Providence finding rhythm, 'understanding more of the style we need to play' - College Hockey | USCHO.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"It\u2019s no secret that non-league play hasn\u2019t been kind to Hockey East this season. 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