College Hockey: This Week in DIII - New England
Dec. 2, 2005 — Castleton State 3 St. Anselm’s 3
Wesleyan 6 Trinity 3
Fitchburg State 5 UMass-Dartmouth 4
Castleton State 2 Plymouth State 1
Colby 5 Nichols 4
Plymouth State 5 St. Anselm’s 4
Salem State 1 Norwich 1
Curry 4 Fitchburg State 3
For many scoreboard watchers, the beginning of the season has provided some major WOWs to the action. The scores above are just a sampling of the excitement and unpredictability that has already started from the drop of the first puck this season.
Finally, all the teams in the three conferences are in full swing and the action has already raised a more than a few eyebrows. Not a lot of fun for coaches who already think there are no nights off and every game brings serious challenges, but definitely great for the fans and student bodies at the schools who are enjoying early success in the young season. Teams like Plymouth State, Castleton State, Nichols, UMass-Dartmouth, Norwich, Babson and Colby have all given fans reasons to wonder about the potential for the current season in both good ways and bad. There is still a long way to go but with some of the results we have seen already, this rollercoaster ride is likely to take us right into February.
Spartans Win! Spartans Win! Spartans Win!
After enduring a 0-25-0 initial season in the ECAC East, the Castleton State Spartans were undoubtedly looking for much better things to happen in 2005-2006. Enter Head Coach Alex Todd from the always competitive ECAC West and the program has taken a major directional shift from where it was a season ago. “There is something very exciting about putting your own stamp on any program as a head coach never mind a program that is just entering its second season in one of the most competitive conferences in the country. This is really a lot of fun – hard work to build something but a lot of fun, stated Coach Todd during an early season recruiting trip over the Thanksgiving weekend. The fun part is already obvious. In just their first three games this season, Castleton State is 1-1-1—that’s the first win the program’s history!
“It was a great feeling for the kids to get that first win under their belts, commented Todd. Having gone through the season they went through last year it was a bigger deal for the guys who were here last year. But we didn’t want to treat it like it was too special.” So what does a new program do to celebrate the first ever win? You practice early the next morning! “We were out on the ice early the next morning and it was more something the kids wanted to do, stated Coach Todd. We wanted them to just treat it like the work ethic we need to do to improve whether we win or lose and build on the things we need to accomplish as a team to be successful. It is great to get the first one, but this group wants more and is learning what dedication is required to keep improving on the ice.”
The 2-1 win over Plymouth State came on CSC’s home ice which made the win even more special and against a team which has already caused a stir with a couple of surprise wins of their own. What are the big differences for CSC this season besides attitude? First, they are playing an aggressive style that has reduced the opponents shots on goal to an average under 30 per game. Second, the Spartans have been getting solid goaltending from freshman netminder Jeff Swanson, who has a .903 save percentage and 2.59 goals against average. Third, the six goals scored so far are by six different players so far this season – including three by freshmen.
Coach Todd is pleased with the effort his team is showing on the ice in games and practices and, like most coaches, is taking it all one day at a time. He has been surprised by his team’s adaptation to a different style penalty kill that he employs and wants to see his power play become more efficient. There is a long way to go this season and this weekend includes a daunting trip to Maine to play Bowdoin and Colby. Don’t take the Spartans lightly – having tasted win #1, there is no doubt they will continue to work hard under their new coach for more!
Panthers on the Prowl
So it probably wasn’t great to become the trivia answer to the question about which team provided Castleton State with their first program win ever. That being said Plymouth State has been making their own waves by knocking off a couple of teams in surprising fashion on their way to an early 3-2-1 mark.
Super sophomore Karl Helgesson has picked up exactly where he left off last season in supplying the Panthers with spectacular goaltending. In two big wins over UMass-Dartmouth and host St. Anselm’s in the PAL Cup tournament, Helgesson stopped 85 of 91 shots in the two games where his team was outshot by better than a 2-1 margin. Helgesson kept his team in the games enough to enable his teammates to pull off the wins in dramatic fashion in overtime. Junior forward Jay Londer made his first goal of the season a special one in knocking off conference rival UMass-Dartmouth 3-2 while sophomore forward Goose Lacroix’s game-winner upset the hosts of the PAL Cup tournament over the Thanksgiving weekend by a score of 5-4.
Coach Brett Tryder’s team is now in their third season in his system and the Panthers have improved each year. With balanced scoring from 10 different players on the roster in only the first six games and continued Helgesson magic, the Panthers may contend for more than just a home-ice berth in the playoffs. They wrap-up a six game stretch away from home on Saturday against Salve Regina and next Tuesday against New England College before ending the first half of the season with league games against Suffolk and upstart Nichols.
Ephs Prepare for Foreign Exchange
While some will not put the Williams College hockey team on the big list of surprise teams, Head Coach Bill Kangas knows this season is not a sprint, it’s a marathon and the focus is to get better each and every game. So beyond the coach speak, what’s been the upside for Williams so far this season? “Well if you look at our opening weekend against Tufts and Conn College, there are lots of positives over last season, commented Coach Kangas. Last year we took one point from those two games at home and this year we won both on the road to start the season. We have a great group of seniors who have helped the young guys adapt to college life and college hockey. They understand how to compete and what it takes to get ready to play each time they go out on the ice.”
A tough loss to second ranked Manhattanville didn’t discourage Coach Kangas. “These are great games to play in helping our team to get better. We had a lead and some chances to extend it that we just couldn’t finish. Our kids learned some things about what they can do at this level and things they can’t get away with in the college game. We will be a better team for it moving through the season.”
Over the Thanksgiving weekend at the Babson invitational tournament, the Ephs stumbled to a 6-0 opening round loss to Hobart before rebounding to beat the hosts by a score of 6-2 in the consolation game. Led by senior forwards Kevin Child and Devon O’Rourke, Williams has a potent offense that likes to play an up-tempo style. They will get to test that style on some big ice surfaces in France this month against some very competitive European teams.
“It’s a great opportunity for our kids both culturally and hockey-wise, noted Coach Kangas. We start on November 1 so there hasn’t been a lot of time for these kids to really come together as a team yet so this trip will also contribute to the team building process that is so important.” Look for Brad Shirley to improve upon his early season numbers as he focuses on getting into the form that earned him so many accolades last season. He’ll need to be sharp on the upcoming trip and carry it over to the league schedule in the second half.
Bon Voyage Ephs et Bon Chance!
Nichols’ Fab Frosh
As noted in the preview column last week, Nichols just might be this year’s Cinderella team in the Northeast. They are off to a 3-2-2 start with a couple of impressive wins and are still unbeaten in conference play (0-0-2) through the first two league contests.
“I don’t know when this school had a team that was over .500 at any point in any season, commented head Coach Lou Izzi. There is definitely some excitement on campus for the first time in a long time and we hope we can keep the momentum building.”
That momentum almost went through the roof when Nichols had traditional power Colby down by a score of 4-2 just over three minutes into the final period of the Bowdoin Invitational Tournament last weekend. Credit Colby with a great effort in coming back to win 5-4 but also appreciate a quick maturation of a very young Nichols team that has some star performer potential among a core group of freshmen that play regularly. Goalie Keith Fink has been solid for the Bison in the early going and has played every game to date. He has posted an impressive .902 save percentage and a solid 3.22 goals against average in seven starts this season. Forwards Anthony Monte and Eric Schottke lead the team with 11 points each and 12 goals between the two of them. Up to 14 freshmen are playing every night for the Bison and their efforts to date have even impressed their coach with their early adjustment to the college game.
“The kids have really worked hard so far this season. We are very young but that also is a strength in the excitement these kids bring to the rink each and every game. We aren’t getting caught up in the record thing right now but we do want to play better hockey every game and build on positive experiences, stated Coach Izzi. The Bison finish the first half of the schedule with some challenging games including a re-match with Plymouth State at home whom they beat in a non-conference game to start the season, and a mid-week clash with league leader Curry next Wednesday. Finishing anywhere near the top half of the standings going into January will have Nichols in a prime position to play for something it has never seen in the school’s history – a playoff berth.
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