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This Week in the WCHA: Oct. 10, 2002

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Now On Tour

The WCHA’s supervisor of officials, with help from a few of his referees, is canvassing the league from Alaska to Michigan, discussing and dissecting the rule most likely to change how college hockey runs this season.

Call it the Greg Shepherd faceoff education tour. At least he has more than 15 seconds to explain it to teams at each stop.

That’s all the players will have between whistles this season under an NCAA rule that draws off the popularity of the quick faceoffs at last winter’s Olympics in Salt Lake City.

An adjustment? Yes. Impossible? No. Matching lines, however, may be the casualty of the speed, taking away some of the home-ice advantage. The age-old coaches’ trick of slowing things down between whistles when protecting a lead might be gone, too.

Like it or not — and, at least on the outside, most coaches appear to like it — it’s here.

Unnecessary? Maybe.

One of the stats the NHL is thrilled to throw out is the fact that under a similar system this preseason, average game times were down from 2:33 last season to between 2:15 and 2:18.

The average length of a WCHA game last season was 2:20. Last Saturday, Michigan Tech and Northern Michigan played a game in 2:09.

Complaints about the excessive length of college hockey games are rare. But, the way Shepherd is presenting it, this is as much about keeping the game moving as cutting down its overall time.

“If you watch some teams, the centers would kind of [mess] around, the teams would hold their players at the bench and the referees would have to go get them and tell them to get out there,” Shepherd said. “This eliminates all the [BS]. They’re going to be there, otherwise the puck is going down, otherwise they’ll get a warning and the next time’s a penalty.”

Said Denver coach George Gwozdecky: “I think everybody, whether it’s fans or whoever you like, likes to have continual action. Not that we haven’t had it before at the college level, but I think everybody agrees if we can keep the games going, as opposed to slowing them down, I think that’s a positive.”

Here’s how it’ll work. When the whistle blows to stop play, the referee gets into position for the next play. When he’s ready, he’ll start counting to five seconds, giving the visiting team the opportunity to make its line changes.

After five seconds, the referee’s hand goes up to signal it’s the home team’s turn to change. After counting to five again, he’ll signal to the assistant referee at the faceoff dot, who blows his whistle to get the centers ready for the draw.

If they’re ready before the assistant referee gets to five, the puck drops early — that’s been the case nine times out of 10 so far, Shepherd said. If someone’s not ready and the AR finishes the count, the puck drops anyway.

Meanwhile, the assistant referees are just as busy as the players. They have to collect the puck and get in position within a few seconds. That can be tricky, especially when the play moves to the other end of the ice after an icing call.

The down time will be a little longer after goals and penalties, but for the most part, there shouldn’t be more than 15 seconds between plays.

There have been some quirks in trial runs during exhibition and intrasquad games this season. Denver coach George Gwozdecky said the explanation of penalties, normally given to coaches after multiple players go to the penalty box, was overlooked to get to the faceoff.

“I think the officials were so intent on getting the puck down that they probably forgot to take a little extra time to inform the coaches of what the situation was,” Gwozdecky said.

Shepherd insists he has covered all the bases as far as instructing the officials on the new procedure, and his trip around the league is designed to give the teams more knowledge on the subject.

The new rule will require coaches to make quicker decisions on lines and players to make sure they don’t get burned by not being ready for the draw.

“Once you make the decision and holler out who’s going, the guys have got to be ready to get to the faceoff circle,” Alaska-Anchorage coach John Hill said. “You don’t have time to stand around and talk about setting something up if you’re trying to work a play in the offensive zone.”

Now, we wait for the first team to get stung by being slow between the whistles and await the reaction.

Opposite Ends

The coaching dynamic at the Ice Breaker Invitational is fascinating. Wisconsin’s Mike Eaves and Northern Michigan’s Walt Kyle are will be coaching games Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, in their Division I collegiate careers Friday night at the Kohl Center.

They’ll be going up against Dan Fridgen, in his ninth season and in game 289, and Jack Parker, in season No. 30 and game 1,045.

They’re at opposite ends of the spectrum, and Eaves looks forward to meeting up with Parker in particular, one of college hockey’s best storytellers.

“He’s one of those guys in hockey, he’s seen a lot in 30 years,” Eaves said. “He’s got more stories than Carter’s got pills. He’s such a good man. You listen to him tell stories, not only has he seen a lot but he can weave a pretty good tale as well, so it makes it twice as enjoyable.”

As Eaves prepares to debut behind the Kohl Center bench, he said he’s not nervous. But putting a raw team out on the ice, one in the middle of a transformation, could be cause for some butterflies.

“There’s going to be excitement because we’re going to have maybe close to 10,000 people here,” Eaves said. “But we’ve got a lot of work to do. There’s no grand illusions here — we’re at a crawling phase right now. We’re learning things step by step, inch by inch right now.

“The kids are going to be excited, but for a lot of these kids, doing what we’re doing is going to take them back a step. We’re going to take one step back to take three or four steps forward. Whenever you learn something new, that’s what happens because you’re trying to think and you’re trying to work hard at the same time and as a result your performance usually dips.”

Oh, and don’t mind the Badgers if they drop and do push-ups every time a whistle blows. After a few days in Camp Eaves, that might be the conditioned response.

Eaves has closed the first days of practice to the media and the public, and in the closed sessions the UW players have paid for mistakes with push-ups.

“We’re just trying to change habits, trying to bring what we’re doing to the front of their brain so they’re very aware of it,” Eaves said. “Because only when you have awareness can you have change. So, sometimes by doing something that’s out of the ordinary like stopping practice, dropping down and giving push-ups, it’s like, ‘Gee, this guy’s serious. They’re holding us accountable. I don’t want to do any push-ups here, I’m going to do it right.'”

That kind of discipline factor would seem welcome to a team that led the league in penalty minutes last season, by more than two minutes per game over the closest competitor.

Start Strong Or Don’t Start At All

Not many teams have the chance to take direct action on two of their goals in the first two weekends of the regular season. Goals, however, are a bit different at Alaska-Anchorage than they are at, say, Minnesota and Denver.

The Seawolves have a late-season goal, too — becoming the first UAA team to get to the Final Five. But they’re faced with a series with in-state rival Alaska-Fairbanks and their Nye Frontier Classic tournament before the season really even gets rolling.

It just so happens that those two events are central to the Seawolves’ objectives for the season. They set claiming the Alaska Airlines Governor’s Cup, as the winner of the season series with Fairbanks, and winning their tournament as two of the three things they’ll shoot for. The first of two series with the Nanooks is this weekend in Anchorage and the Seawolves get Iona and Maine next weekend in the Classic.

“I guess in a perfect world you’d play these games later in the season, but it’s also a very exciting way to start off the season,” Hill said. “Our nonconference games are important — all six. Sometimes, I guess, sure, you would prefer to maybe not have so much at stake when you play them. But at the same time, I think it’s great that there’s a lot at stake.”

Hill will have a good read on his team in two weeks’ time, but, if things don’t go his way, part of that read could be that one of the goals is past and another is nearly out of reach.

If the Nanooks win both games this weekend, the Seawolves would have to win both games in Fairbanks on the weekend of March 7 and 8 just to force a shootout on road ice.

Possibly worse yet, they’ll have to contend with defending national runner-up Maine in the Classic next Saturday. Last season, they took three points in their tournament but watched Denver skate away with the trophy after Denver won twice.

So the Seawolves have to be somewhat cautious of putting all their proverbial eggs in the basket of the first two weekends. Playing well and living with the results is the plan.

“I don’t think you want to make the results the end-all, be-all,” Hill said. “But at the same time, you can’t be afraid to state what your goals are. And ours are to win the Governor’s Cup, win our tournament and make it to the Final Five in the WCHA.

“And if you don’t achieve it, it doesn’t mean you’ve failed or the season hasn’t been a success. But those are the rewards that are out there for us, and we’re striving to reach those.”

Missing You

If you’re a fan of goaltenders in the WCHA — and who isn’t, really? — the 1999-2000 season was about as good as it could get.

Think about it: You had Karl Goehring and Andy Kollar in charge at North Dakota, you had Graham Melanson in one of his best seasons at Wisconsin, you had Scott Meyer and Dean Weasler battling for time at St. Cloud State.

You had a tandem of Jeff Sanger and Colin Zulianello at CC; an Eric Pateman in the best shape of his career at Minnesota State-Mankato; a kid named Adam Hauser with the Gophers; a wall in Duluth’s Brant Nicklin; a solid Stephen Wagner at Denver; and a freshman named Wade Dubielewicz also with the Pioneers.

Not too shabby. Hope you enjoyed it then.

There are some top-notch goaltenders in the WCHA today — unquestionably led by Dubielewicz — but this group isn’t full of household names.

“I remember three or four years ago, where eight or nine teams had very high-end goaltenders,” Minnesota-Duluth coach Scott Sandelin said. “Now, I think there’s some good goalies, but who’s going to emerge?”

That’s the dilemma for a number of league teams this season. Denver has it made with Dubielewicz and Adam Berkhoel. Wisconsin has a dependable tandem of Scott Kabotoff and Bernd Bruckler.

But the eight other teams have at least some questions about their goaltending. Will Chris King or Kevin Reiter step forward to take the top spot at UAA? Can Curtis McElhinney stabilize CC’s defense the way Sanger did? Is Cam Ellsworth the answer for an entire season at Michigan Tech?

Will uncertainty between Travis Weber and Justin Johnson be one of Minnesota’s downfalls? Will UMD’s Rob Anderson be able to be an every-game goalie? Can Mankato’s goalies stay healthy?

Will North Dakota find quality or mediocrity between the pipes? And will Jake Moreland be able to lift himself to the level of Meyer and Weasler?

You’d be safe in assuming there will be some surprises in the goaltending ranks this season — some good, some bad.

In particular, keep an eye on the North Dakota situation. Josh Siembida and Jake Brandt had sub-par seasons a year ago — at least when held against the example of Goehring, one of the WCHA’s top 50 players of its 50-year history as chosen last season.

It looks like the Sioux forwards are ready to take off and the defense could be improved. But they need the goaltenders to follow suit for the team to climb the standings.

On The Move

For the fourth straight season, the WCHA has at least one new coach in its ranks. Wisconsin’s Eaves is the first coach to be hired by a league team from outside the 10-team circle since Scott Owens left the United States Hockey League to take over for Don Lucia at Colorado College in 1999.

Eaves’ may be the most prominent move of the summer, but that was just one of many changes.

The league has two new athletics directors: Joel Maturi at Minnesota and Kevin Buisman at Minnesota State. Maturi, the former AD at Miami and an assistant AD at Wisconsin, long has been a supporter of college hockey.

Three schools have new assistant coaches. With Mark Strobel leaving Minnesota-Duluth for Nebraska-Omaha, Lee Davidson moved to the Bulldogs from a volunteer position at North Dakota. Former UMD goaltender Taras Lendzyk joined his alma mater as a volunteer goalie coach.

Doc DelCastillo left St. Cloud State, also to go to UNO, and was replaced by Fred Harbinson, a former assistant for Sioux City of the USHL.

Eaves’ staff at Wisconsin includes Troy Ward and John Hynes. Hynes followed Eaves from the USA Hockey National Team Development Program; Ward was in management with the East Coast Hockey League.

As for the former Badgers assistants, Mark Johnson is the women’s coach at UW and Pat Ford took an assistant job at Findlay.

On The Shelf

  • At Wisconsin, defenseman Dan Boeser likely will play Friday night’s game against Rensselaer, Eaves said. Boeser was cleared to play by doctors after undergoing the last of 20 radiation treatments for lymphoma.

    He missed much of training camp and isn’t to the conditioning level of his teammates, Eaves said, so his fitness to play on Saturday will be evaluated after Friday’s game. Boeser has played in 80 straight games for UW and his goal after revealing his illness to the public was not to miss a game.

  • At Alaska-Anchorage, Dallas Steward is out with a sprained left knee and Jim Dahl is sidelined with a broken right hand.

    The original prognosis on Steward, a top-line forward, was that he’d be out three to six weeks. Steward was scheduled to be re-evaluated on Thursday.

    It’ll take six weeks for the broken bone in Dahl’s hand to heal, but Hill said the sophomore forward would be fitted with a playing splint as soon as the pain subsides.

    The injuries will test the Seawolves’ newfound depth. Martin Stuchlik joined Vladimir Novak and Peter Chytka, making an all-Czech Republic top line. The so-called Energy Line will feature Jace Digel, Spencer Carbery and Justin Johnson on Friday, but Hill might call on that depth if a change is needed for Saturday’s game.

  • At North Dakota, forward Brian Canady may start his sophomore season where he finished his freshman campaign: on the sideline. A shoulder injury could keep him out of the Xerox College Hockey Showcase in Buffalo, N.Y., this weekend. His first season ended with a knee injury in the playoffs.

    New In Stripes

    The WCHA has four new referees this season, but one is already familiar to the league.

    Marco Hunt, a WCHA assistant referee for games in Minnesota, got his orange armbands from Shepherd in the offseason. Also new are Todd Anderson, Brad Albers and Craig Hanson.

    League refs John Boche and Mike Riley retired in the summer. The new hires bring the referee roster to 13 members, including Shepherd, who now takes the ice mainly in emergency situations.

    Shepherd said he brought in four referees to replace two so the newcomers could get their feet wet slowly and not be immediately called into action every weekend. The second half of the season, he said, is when the officials who have done the best job will get the most calls.

    Anderson will make his league debut next week at Wisconsin’s nonconference series with Alabama-Huntsville in Madison.

    The Kinks, And Not The “Lola” Kind

    No. 2 Denver vs. No. 7 Michigan State: Not bad for the first full weekend of the college hockey season.

    But don’t fool yourself into thinking Friday’s national spotlight game will be an instant classic. Not in the first game of the season, anyway.

    This will most likely end up looking like … well, a first game of the season. It’ll probably be sloppy, there will be a few defensive breakdowns and not everyone will be on the same page.

    Gwozdecky and the Pioneers are anticipating an “adjustment period” before they’ll be at top form, and they’re not sure how long that will be. It might be a period on Friday against the Spartans; it might be the whole weekend at the Maverick Stampede in Omaha, Neb.; it might continue through Monday’s exhibition game against Windsor.

    It’s the same thing with every WCHA team. Everyone has some bugs to work out at the start of the season. The early advantage, however, goes to the team that works them out the fastest.

    The Pioneers make Boston College their second top-10 opponent of the season next Friday, so they’ll need to look sharp early.

    “We haven’t had the opportunity to play against anybody but ourselves, whereas Michigan State has played a couple of games,” Gwozdecky said, referencing the Spartans’ exhibition victories over the U.S. Under-18 team and Western Ontario.

    “That definitely helps your timing and it definitely helps your rhythm. I know it really helps the freshmen, who need some time to adjust. There’s going to be an adjustment period in that game on Friday and perhaps that game on Saturday as well.”

    The key date to remember for the Pioneers is Nov. 1, when they open the WCHA season at Wisconsin. If they’re not in good form by then, you’ll hear concerns.

    • 2002-03 Bemidji State Season Preview

    By Craig Roberts
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    Bemidji State has already kicked off its season, dropping 1-0 and 2-1 decisions Friday and Saturday at Mercyhurst. Despite the two losses, new head coach Bruce Olson wasn’t displeased with what he saw.

    “We played well, especially for our opening games,” he said. “Defensively, we played well. Our forwards came back and picked people up in our own zone, our defense played well and our goalies played very well. We made it difficult for Mercyhurst to get to the net with quality shots and we didn’t make many mistakes.”

    That neatly sums up what Olson is looking for from his team this season. Defense, goaltending, hard work and execution will be the trademarks for this year’s Beaver squad.

    “We tried to pick up the pace in practice,” Olson said. “The girls have been receptive to what we want and they’re working hard. When I first met with them, they said they want to improve on what they did last year and they weren’t afraid to work hard so we’ve been putting more pressure on them in practice.”

    The most pressure may be among the goalies, where senior Bre Dedrickson and junior Anik Cote are in competition. Cote got the nod in the season opener, stopping 35 of 36 shots in the 1-0 loss. Dedrickson followed up with a 29-save effort in the 2-1 defeat.

    Olson admits to a preference for a clear-cut number-one goalie and his two netminders know the score.

    “It’s real interesting right now,” Olson said. “Anik seems to be a little more controlled, moves better and has her body in proper position to stop the puck. Bre flops more but seems to get a glove or a pad on the puck when she needs to.

    “They’re pushing each other right now and they know they’re battling for the number-one job. It might take a while, though, to determine that with these two because they both look capable of playing well and doing the job.”

    BSU returns 20 letterwinners but return only one experienced blueliner in fourth-year captain Lisa Peters. At 5-9, she is the poster girl of the Beaver defense, which boasts size as its hallmark.

    Bemidji State added three freshman defensemen to the lineup who have had an immediate impact. Toronto natives, 5-9 Mandy Bambrough and 5-6 Emily Curcuruto, plus 5-6 in-state recruit Sarah Zuelke, all logged extensive ice time in the team’s season-opening series at Mercyhurst.

    Olson pointed out that former head coach Jason Lesteberg, now at St. Cloud State, and assistant coach Jim Ingman, who stayed on at BSU, filled some holes through recruiting.

    “They identified that there were some holes to fill on the blue line and they did that with these three,” Olson said. “All three played on the power play, penalty kill and played a regular shift and were a big part of what we did.”

    Among the forwards, the Beavers return five 25-point scorers from a year ago, led by second-team All-WCHA selection Amber Fryklund, who ranked 10th in the conference with 36 points. Fellow seniors Lill Raynard, Kerri McEwen, Alicia Kinsman and Betsy Hegland have all played more than 100 games, providing plenty of experience up front. Freshman Carly Napier is expected to contribute by centering team’s third line on a regular basis.

    However, with 26 players, spots in the lineup and the travel roster are not guaranteed.

    “It’s part of the pressure we’ve put on them,” Olson said. “Some of them will have to work to keep their spot. They know they can’t take a game or a practice off.”

    After showing the largest improvement in the league standings last season, the Beavers look to continue their rise in the WCHA standings. They get that chance this weekend when they travel to St. Cloud State, Oct. 12-13, for their first league games of the season.

    This Week in the CHA: Oct. 10, 2002

    By Geof F. Morris
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    Stumbling out of the Gate

    College Hockey America members Air Force and Niagara traveled to Dayton, Ohio, for the Lefty McFadden Invitational. Both teams are nicknamed for birds of prey, but they were the hunted rather than the hunters last weekend. The two Ohio teams in the tournament, Miami and Bowling Green, showed that the home turf would be well-defended.

    Niagara opened up that first game with a tough 4-1 defeat. With so much turnover in the offseason, one would probably presume that the last thing to gel for such a young team would be the special teams.

    The Purple Eagles’ power play went 0-for-4 against the Falcons, who netted goals on two of four chances with the man advantage. Hannu Karru scored the lone Niagara goal, and in Bernie Sigrist and Joe Tallari, he might have consistent linemates on the Purple Eagles’ second line.

    Regarding Air Force’s game against the RedHawks, my mother always told me: “If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all.” It’s always a bad sign when you relieve the starting goalie after the first two periods; it’s an even worse sign when you replace the backup with the starter after just seven minutes in the third.

    As was the case with the Falcons last year, they’re playing a lot of young talent. The tournament saw three sophomores and a freshman take the ice on the Falcons’ blue line; only one of the sophomores [Steve Mead] saw action in more than two-thirds of Air Force’s games last season, and junior Buck Kozlowski only played in 14 games last year. With 19 goals allowed, it’ll certainly be a long year for senior defenseman Brian Reaney and goalies Mike Polidor, Tyler John and David Goodley.

    Niagara defeated Air Force in the consolation game at the E.J. Nutter Center, 7-3. Joe Tallari nabbed a hat trick for Niagara, and his line scored four goals overall.

    Sigrist-Karru-Tallari should be a solid line, and Chris Sebastian, Barret Ehgoetz, and Nick Kormanyos are also certain to garner respect around the CHA. The third and fourth lines are young, however, and likely to see a jumble until Dave Burkholder can find groupings that click.

    In what may be a harbinger of things to come, freshman goalie Jeff VanNynatten started for Niagara, stopping 24-of-27 shots on the night. Youth was served on defense, as freshmen Brian Hartman, Andrew Lackner and Brian Mills all got starts to go with sophomore Casey Handrahan and juniors Dave Hominuk and Andrew Nahriniak.

    If this trend continues for the Eagles, look for them to struggle in their tough nonconference schedule until the young guys get used to Division I play, and expect the load on Rob Bonk to be eased.

    Bemidji Defense Shines Without Simmons

    When the news came out that Clay Simmons was leaving the Bemidji State program for personal reasons, there was reason for concern on the Beavers’ blue line. This summer saw the Beavers losing their appeal on the NCAA’s eligibility ruling for Jamie Mattie, and with Mark Phenow lost to graduation, the Beavers looked a bit thin.

    Of course, that’s before Anders Olsson equaled his goal output from last season with two goals in an exhibition win over Manitoba. Olsson and fellow Swede Peter Jonsson each scored two points in the 4-2 victory. The pair of European defensemen should be strong in filling the Beavers’ blueline needs this season. What many thought might be a weakness could become a strength as the season progresses.

    Home Sweet Home

    CHA schools seem to have a problem when they open the season on the road. Including the twin losses in the McFadden, CHA teams are 7-12-1 when they start their season on the road, but are 11-6-1 when they begin the year on home ice.

    That doesn’t bode well for Alabama-Huntsville, which starts the season next weekend at Wisconsin, but with Wilfrid Laurier coming to Findlay and then Wayne State this weekend, perhaps the CHA can recover from a rocky start.

    Wayne State Gets Respect

    In each of the last two USCHO.com Division I men’s polls, Wayne State has been the sole CHA member gathering votes. The CHA was not well-represented last season, but this is a trend that could change.

    The Warriors have gained a lot of respect in college hockey in the last two years, and Alabama-Huntsville also has an opportunity to make noise with opening series against Wisconsin, Denver and Minnesota. By the end of the season, perhaps the CHA will be able to drop Rodney Dangerfield from retainer.

    Weekend Slate

    This weekend, three CHA schools play exhibitions. As previously noted, Wilfrid Laurier will visit Findlay and Wayne State in consecutive tilts on Friday and Saturday nights, providing CHA fans along I-75 an opportunity to get their fill of hockey this weekend. Air Force opens their home slate with a Sunday afternoon visit from Windsor.

    The big games for the CHA this weekend really involve Niagara. Canisius and Niagara are hosting the Xerox College Hockey Showcase in Buffalo, N.Y., and No. 3 Michigan and No. 13 North Dakota are coming to town.

    With two games under their belt, Niagara’s young players have started to get a feel for how they play as a team. Are the Purple Eagles up to the challenge? Wins would be an upset, but as Wayne State showed the CHA last year, testing your mettle in a tough nonconference fire can harden your team for a title run.

    2002-03 Minnesota Season Preview

    By Craig Roberts
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    Last season was supposed to be a rebuilding year for Minnesota. The Gophers had struggled the year before after winning a national championship, and Laura Halldorson’s inaugural recruiting class graduated at the end of the season.

    The Gophers returned just three seniors for the 2001-02 season and were woefully thin on defense as well as going into the year without a proven goalie.

    The result: WCHA regular season and playoff championships and a third-place finish at the NCAA championship.

    Although they lost three seniors, including co-captains Tracy Engstrom and Laura Slominski, the Gophers return WCHA Player of the Year and Patty Kazmaier Award finalist Ronda Curtin as well as 2000 WCHA Defensive Player of the Year Winny Brodt, who missed the last two seasons due to her commitment to the U.S. National Team.

    Add to that the addition of U.S. Olympic Team members Krissy Wendell and Natalie Darwitz, who combined for nine points in the Gophers’ 10-0 exhibition win over the Toronto Jr. Aeros, the talent level on the team is exceptional.

    Minnesota men’s coach Don Lucia, whose own team is coming off a national championship, opened his press conference on media day by saying “Our penalty kill is going to be really good this year because we’re going to practice against the women’s power play.”

    He may have been kidding, but he underscored the point that talent abounds on this year’s edition of Gopher women’s hockey.

    Does that make them a lock to win it all? According to Halldorson, it doesn’t.

    “Women’s hockey is going to get a big boost this year from Olympians who are coming back to their college programs,” she said. “People who realize how talented our team is going to be also need to know there are going to be a lot of great teams out there this year and I think the level of play, as a whole, is going to be a couple of notches above what it has been.”

    Without question, however, Halldorson’s Gophers have had high expectations placed upon them.

    “I think we have to accept the fact that we have higher expectations this year,” she said. “Our goal is to take all of the positives that we created last year, in terms of work ethic, character, heart and chemistry, add talent to that, and, hopefully, our players remember what made us successful last year and we can build on that this season.”

    Not only do they bring the aforementioned firepower to the rink, they return their top forward line of junior La Toya Clarke and sophomores Kelly Stephens and Kristy Oonincx.

    “We talk all the time about every player on the team having a role,” Halldorson said. “They’re all important and they do evolve and change over time. Having depth may affect some people’s roles.

    “The great thing is that, besides the talent we’re bringing in our freshman class, we have great returners and they’re going to benefit from having more talent around them.

    “Clarke, Stephens and Oonincx were tremendous last season and, although they stood out more last year than they will this year, they will still be very involved in our offense and I believe contribute a great deal.”

    The trio ranked second, third and fourth on the team in scoring, combining for 54 goals and 123 points. They also accounted for 17 of the team’s 28 game-winning goals.

    As a whole, the team returns five 20-point scorers with junior Jerilyn Glenn, who had 12 goals and 20 points, joining Curtin, Clarke, Oonincx and Stephens in that group.

    Halldorson also said both Curtin and Brodt could see time at forward. Kelsey Bills, who will serve as an assistant captain, Cecilia Retelle and Melissa Coulombe performed well on defense and will be joined by Ashley Ahlbrecht, the 2002 Ms. Hockey Award winner in Minnesota, Chelsey Brodt (Winny’s younger sister) Krista Johnson and Allie Sanchez.

    The elder Brodt, who will anchor the defense with Curtin, is glad to back in the Maroon and Gold.

    “It’s great to be back,” she said. “It’s fun to be practicing again. The break that I had last year was good for me personally and now I’m ready to play.”

    Brodt sat out last year as a red-shirt after being cut from the U.S. National Team, one year after spending a full-season with the program, culminating in a silver medal at the 2001 World championships.

    Curtin feels she is still developing as a defenseman, despite her impressive campaign last season.

    “I don’t know what position I’ll be playing this year,” she said. “If I play defense I still need to learn more because I’ve only played it for a year. My goal is just to improve.”

    With what appears to be a solid, and improved, defense, things should be really good for the Gophers in their end of the ice as they return sophomore standouts Jody Horak and Brenda Reinen in goal.

    Each started 16 games last season and posted nearly identical numbers. Horak was 14-2-2 with a 1.43 goals against average, .947 save percentage and four shutouts. Reinen was 12-0-5 with a 1.39 GAA, .948 save percentage and one shutout.

    “We want them to build on what they accomplished last season,” Halldorson said. “I really think they were two of the best goalies in the country as freshmen.

    “We split them almost exactly evenly last year. We kept thinking that someone would emerge as a top goalie and they kept having awesome games. They’re both extremely competitive. They have different strengths, but they’re both mentally strong and their objective is to keep the puck out of the net, and they find ways to do that.

    “What I’ve told them is that we’re starting a new season and we’re going to always reevaluate but, if they both deserve to play, they will.

    With all that they’ve got going, the Gophers also open the new Ridder Arena this season. The brand-new facility is the first in the country built primarily to house a women’s hockey team. The arena will feature a standard (200 by 85 feet) sheet of ice which, according to Winny Brodt, will help their game.

    “I think it’s going to be an advantage to our game,” she said. “The game is going to be a lot quicker and things are going to happen that much faster.”

    That, says Halldorson, will help build excitement.

    “Ridder Arena is a perfect facility for us,” she said. “We hope to generate great enthusiasm and an exciting atmosphere for our fans and our players with an intimate setting.”

    Ridder Arena, which is adjacent to Mariucci Arena, will seat approximately 3,000 in a bowl configuration, with a club room and suites totaling another 400 seats.

    The first game in the new arena will be the Gophers’ WCHA home opener, Oct. 19, when they take on St. Cloud State. Minnesota opens its season Oct. 12-13 at Findlay.

    ECAC Women’s Conference Adds Two Teams

    USCHO Staff Report
    -

    Union and Clarkson have been extended membership into the ECAC Division I Women’s Hockey League. Union will join the league in the 2003-04 season, while Clarkson was voted in effective with the 2004-05 campaign.

    “Both schools boast rich hockey traditions and a history of academic success that will make them strong members of the league,” said ECAC Commissioner Phil Buttafuoco. “In addition, the inclusion of the two programs will open new opportunities for the existing members as the women’s league becomes more compatible with the men’s league.”

    Current league members include Brown, Colgate, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Princeton, St. Lawrence, Vermont, and Yale.

    Union is in its fourth season of varsity competition where it has competed as a member of the ECAC Division III East Women’s League. In 2001-02, the Dutchwomen finished in sixth place with a record of 8-9-1 in conference play and 8-16-2 overall. Coach Fred Quistgard has guided the program since its inception.

    Clarkson announced its women’s hockey program in September, and will begin competition as an independent in 2003-04 against a mixture of Division I and III teams. Rick Seeley, previously the women’s coach at Manhattanville, was appointed Clarkson’s first women’s coach.

    The New Season: A Primer

    By Adam Wodon
    -

    A year ago at this time, we were writing articles about how things had changed. Attitudes, fears, perspective, politics, religion … we, as Americans, it seemed, were changed in many ways. College hockey, too, had lost three ex-players in the September 11 terrorist attacks, and coaches were grappling with uncertainty as their players (kids) came back to school. In the aftermath, the NCAA made a change, implementing a policy that forced a reduction in travel for the NCAA tournament.

    Unrelated, but equally unsettling in many ways, was the news that Maine coach Shawn Walsh had succombed to cancer, and Merrimack coach Chris Serino was also afflicted with a cancer scare of his own.

    In some ways, that all seems like yesterday, and in others, like it happened so long ago.

    One year later, while many of the same issues hover like a surreal fog — with still plenty of darkness in the geo-political realm — there is a noticeably more optimistic atmosphere as the 2002-03 college hockey season begins. For one, this summer, coach Serino received a clean bill of health. That was a nice start.

    Life always changes, and sports does too.

    This year, we again are writing about changes. Thankfully, this year’s changes are all about college
    hockey, and they’re for the better.

    Regionalization

    Ding, dong, regionalization’s dead.

    The NCAA’s Management Council, thanks to near-universal agreement on the issue, decided to eliminate the controversial one-year practice that came to be known as “Regionalization.”

    This policy required that any team within 300 miles of a regional site, must be placed there, and could not fly. Especially in a sport like hockey, that had, at the time, just two regionals and 12 teams, it made things very inflexible. And because there was such an imbalance of power between East and West last year, the regional brackets were lopsided.

    Thankfully, we weren’t the only ones criticizing this policy. When the NCAA asked for opinions from its members, the response was overwhelmingly against the practice.

    In fact, only one of the nation’s overall top scorers from a year ago returns, New Hampshire senior Colin Hemingway. Scoring could be at more of a premium than ever.

    The fear was that a practice begun because of a noble, though misguided, intent to deal with the travel issues in the aftermath of 9/11, would be maintained solely because of the residual monetary benefits.

    For college hockey, the move to four regionals only made the elimination of this policy that much more imperative.

    The Tournament

    From the day the 12-team tournament was approved in the late ’80s, college hockey people pined for the day the first-round byes could be eliminated and the tournament expanded to 16 teams.

    Over the last few offseasons, the momentum built for this, finally reaching the highest levels of the NCAA. This summer, the expansion of the Division I men’s tournament was officially approved.

    So here we are. Four regionals, 16 teams.

    The positives are obvious. Hopefully we don’t have to hear any more whining from a school’s fans who don’t make the tournament because a MAAC or CHA team did.

    The only question was whether there would be four four-team regionals, or two eight-team regionals.

    It ultimately came down in favor of the former, because of the beauty of having four distinct regional champions, giving it a March Madness appeal.

    But there is a concern that the relatively limited college hockey audience will be spread too thin over four regional locations. Long term, considering the growth of the sport over the years, that will cease to be a concern.

    Join the Club

    logos/conf-ch.gif

    College Hockey America is a full-fledged member of the college hockey family now, thanks to its automatic berth to the NCAA tournament. It’s hard to foresee what the long-term makeup of college hockey’s “secondary”-level conferences will be, whether there will be more or less, or whatever, but for right now, it’s all looking up for the CHA.

    In fact, the conference already has an NCAA win, thanks to Niagara’s victory over New Hampshire in 2000.

    Right now, however, the favorite for the first-ever automatic berth is Wayne State, under the leadership of the only coach in the conference who’s been to a Division I tournament, Bill Wilkinson, who last took Western Michigan there in 1996.

    Join the Club, Part Deux

    The ECAC now allows its teams to play a full complement of 34 regular-season games allowed by the NCAA, which is a big step in the right direction.

    Ivy League schools, on the other hand, are still restricted to 29 games. It was a magnanimous move on the Ivies’ part to allow the switch for the good of the league, even if their own schools would be at a further disadvantage.

    Of course, no one is crying for a pair of Ivies — Cornell and Harvard — who are expected to be the class of the league this season.

    The ECAC has also followed in the CCHA’s footsteps by allowing all 12 of its teams into the ECAC tournament. But after some hue and cry, the league decided against the Final 6 format, and instead is adding another weekend of best-of-three playoffs that will allow just four teams to make the final weekend.

    Meanwhile, that final weekend moves to Albany this year, from Lake Placid — which is like moving the Yankees out of The Bronx (although it’s not like that’s never been talked about).

    Changing the Rules

    There won't be much time for talking between whistles this year. (photo: Cornell Sports Information)

    There won’t be much time for talking between whistles this year. (photo: Cornell Sports Information)

    There was a usual assortment of rules changes, the most noticable of which will be the 15-second faceoff rule, adopted throughout hockey after its success in the recent Winter Olympics.

    Other rule changes were discussed in a June article. They mostly deal with points of emphasis concerning safety, obstruction and sportsmanship. There’s a new penalty called “clipping” which is intended to prevent hits to the knee.

    A couple of nice changes concern the awarding of goals. In instances where the net comes off its moorings, but a puck clearly was headed in anyway, a goal may be awarded at the discretion of the referee. Also, video replay now has the ability to disallow goals based on hand passes or high sticks.

    And the two-referee system was officially stricken from the record book. It’s not allowed. Good riddance.

    Another change, that isn’t a rule, per se, is the allowance of pre-enrollment players to opt-in to the NHL Draft without jeopardizing collegiate eligibility. This change came as a result of the sweeping NCAA amateurism de-regulation package, finally passed in heavily watered down form last August.

    Unfortunately, this does not address the plight of 18-year old true freshmen already in college, who still must decide between making themselves eligible for the draft or staying in school.

    Nice to Know You

    A tremendous amount of talent left college hockey this offseason, which says something for the tremendous amount of talent that’s in college hockey.

    The start of this is actually in the coaching ranks, where the NCAA’s all-time winningest coach, Ron Mason, and a two-time national champion, Jeff Sauer, both retired.

    Mason went on to become Michigan State’s athletic director, and his first move was to find his replacement. For that, he tagged long-time friend, and a national champion coach, Rick Comley, who had been the only coach Northern Michigan ever knew.

    As the coaching wheels spun, Northern Michigan went into its past and named Walt Kyle its new coach. Kyle had been an assistant with the NHL’s New York Rangers, is a NMU alum, and was an assistant for Comley on the Wildcats’ 1991 championship team.

    Meanwhile, at Wisconsin, Sauer’s departure left no lack of big-name candidates. The job ultimately went to Mike Eaves, who had been running the U.S. Junior National Development Program in Ann Arbor, Mich. Unfortunately for Eaves, his two sons are already committed to Boston College.

    As for the players, it wasn’t so much the quantity, but the quality that departed the CCHA. The NCAA leader in all-time shutouts, and the 2001 Hobey Baker Award winner, Ryan Miller, left Michigan State one year early. The same for Michigan and huge, stud defenseman Mike Komisarek, and potent forward Mike Cammalleri. All of which gave hope to the rest of the conference’s schools, none of which have won a league title since Lake Superior in 1995-96. In fact, if you take once-dominant Lake Superior out of the equation, the only school in the last 15 years to win a regular season title other than Michigan and Michigan State was Miami in 1992-93.

    On the other hand, the WCHA lost both quantity and quality. In addition to some major seniors that graduated — led by Minnesota Hobey winner Jordan Leopold — underclassmen bolted as well, led by Minnesota’s Jeff Taffe, Hobey finalist Mark Hartigan from St. Cloud, and North Dakota’s Ryan Bayda and Tim Skarperud. Only two of the league’s top 10 scorers are back — Colorado College’s Peter Sejna and Denver’s Connor James.

    In fact, only one of the nation’s overall top scorers from a year ago returns, New Hampshire senior Colin Hemingway. Scoring could be at more of a premium than ever.

    Change … as in, Chunk of Change

    In case you haven’t noticed, the days of the free Internet are over. Well, at least for many of the services that used to be free.

    Most notably, this means college hockey fans may be without the live Webcasts of games they’ve been accustomed to listening to over the years.

    Some colleges have their own on-campus facilities that enable them to continue to serve live feeds of games. Some teams are on stations that serve a feed 24/7.

    But, first of all, the number of those stations are dwindling, thanks to royalty rates controversies and other factors too numerous and annoying to get into at the moment.

    Most importantly, however, is the demise of Yahoo! Broadcast. After charging increasingly larger fees, and becoming more and more dependent on corporate clients, Yahoo shut down the live radio programming part of its service. None of which should be a surprise given the fast flameout of BroadcastAmerica.com, a former USCHO sponsor that suddenly disappeared one weekend under an avalanche of debt.

    This means that, in order for sports teams to get their games on, they must pay a fee to specifically get their games on. It won’t be picked up through the radio stations. Plus, that fee keeps getting higher.

    Only New Hampshire is using this now.

    It’s the end of a wild, yet ultimately fruitless chapter, in the history of the Internet and sports broadcasting.

    Let’s head into the wayback machine, all the way to that ancient time of 1996 (if anything is longer than a dog year, it’s an Internet year).

    Mark Cuban — long before he was sentenced to a life of funding NBA commissioner David Stern’s Christmas parties — was living in Texas and wanted to hear live broadcasts of his beloved Indiana basketball. Instead of calling “Teamline” he founded AudioNet, a company devoted to the redistrubtion of radio feeds via the Internet. The goal was to become the Internet broadcast network.

    The idea took off like wildfire. In the first year, four college hockey teams broadcast regularly through AudioNet. By the next year, it was 10. AudioNet was gobbling up college affiliations, and not worrying about anyone paying for the service. They were building a name, they were building providers, and building a clientele. Then they changed their name to Broadcast.com, went public, and their shares were going for over $200 a pop when they finally sold to Yahoo for $6 billion.

    Mark Cuban was rich, and smart. He bought the Dallas Mavericks, and Yahoo hung on by a thread as the market collapsed, and the idea of a ubiquitous Internet radio network fell apart as fast as it rose.

    The dynamics of all of this is, again, enough for an entire other article. And it’s a shame it had to happen. But the bottom line is, right now, more and more colleges are switching to services that charge a fee to listen.

    Hey, at least you’ve got USCHO.

    USCHO

    One thing that hasn’t changed is USCHO’s devotion to providing the best coverage of college hockey possible. But we have changed our look.

    Hopefully, you enjoy the aesthetics and some of the other bells and whistles. Behind the scenes, even more is going on, things that allow easy access to USCHO information through devices like PDAs and cell phones. So, now, you can pull up stats, or whip up a roster or preview while at the games.

    Maybe with the money you save on game programs, you can buy that Webcast subscription.

    Providence Tops First Hockey East Women’s Coaches Poll

    By
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    Providence finished first in the inaugural preseason coaches’ poll for the new Women’s Hockey East, garnering four first place votes.

    The Friars return ten of their top 12 scorers, including five players with ten or more goals, to a squad that won the 2002 ECAC Eastern League Tournament. Six teams from last year’s ECAC Eastern now make up the WHEA.

    Northeastern, which finished second in the ECAC East regular season last year, was picked to finish second by the coaches this season. Third-year coach Joy Woog will look to replace outgoing senior and 2002 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award winner Brooke Whitney, but still has plenty of offensive weapons left.

    “We may need two or three players to score the points of [Whitney], but I think the incoming players are capable of that,” said Woog.

    New Hampshire ranked third and received one first place vote. The Wildcats are looking to adjust to new head coach Brian McCloskey and make an impact in the WHEA.

    “I’m really excited to play some games this year and see where we stand,” said McCloskey, who inherits a team that finished 19-13-5 last year.

    Heather Linstad’s Connecticut Huskies were fourth in pre-season balloting. “This year, you’ll really start to see the result of our recruiting over the last two years,” said Linstad.

    UConn has a remarkable 19 players that are first or second year players on this season’s roster.

    Maine had 11 points and ranked fifth in voting, just behind UConn. Head coach Rick Filighera looks to make a move upward in the league standings with the return of a pair of 25 goal scorers in Meagan Aarts and Karen Droog, combined with the homecoming of absent Olympian Raffi Wolf, who played for Team Germany in the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics.

    Boston College came in last in the pre-season poll, but the Eagles may very well be the best last place team of any women’s league in the country.

    “Winning is all about attitude,” said fourth year coach Tom Babson. “This year we’re not going to be content to be within a goal or two of the top teams. We want to win those games.”

    Preseason Pressure Doesn’t Faze North Dakota’s Parise

    By Patrick C Miller
    -

    The sound of the puck hitting the boards echoes through the Ralph Engelstad Arena. North Dakota coach Dean Blais instinctively turns toward the ice.

    “Can you see who it is?” he asks his visitors. “Is it Zach?”

    Parise

    Parise

    It is. Sioux freshman center Zach Parise is alone on the ice in his street clothes, cap and sneakers with his gloves and stick, shooting pucks at an empty goal.

    One week after hockey practice started, Blais already knew that his star recruit wouldn’t pass up an opportunity to get some ice time.

    “It’s my normal routine,” Parise says. “It’s what I like to do. I come here between class periods to shoot some pucks. It’s the way I grew up.”

    One might think that Parise, son of former NHL star J.P. Parise and one of the most heavily recruited players in the country, might be nervous about the situation in which he finds himself.

    After all, the 5-foot-11, 180-pound, 18-year-old center from Faribault, Minn., is expected to help one of the most successful programs in the country rebound from a disappointing losing season.

    “There’s only one reason I’m here and it’s to help out this team,” Parise says matter of factly.

    Picked by nine of 10 coaches as the WCHA’s preseason rookie of the year, a player of Parise’s caliber creates high expectations among coaches, teammates, fans and the media. But that doesn’t faze him.

    “I have higher expectations for myself than probably anyone,” he says.

    There’s also the pressure of playing on a new team at a higher level of competition in front of 12,000 fans at the $100 million Engelstad Arena.

    “I don’t feel any pressure,” he says. “Coming in here, it’s a new level and it’s obviously going to take some adjustment and it’s going to take a while for me to get used to things. But I think it’s gone pretty well so far.”

    Blais isn’t shy about comparing Parise to the likes of Neal Broten and Tony Hrkac, two of college hockey’s all-time greats. Parise takes it in stride.

    “It’s an honor to be compared to people that have had that much success,” he says.

    In making the comparison, Blais says Parise is faster, stronger, quicker and has a better shot.

    “He’ll come in and check you, too,” Blais adds.

    Blais also says of Parise, “The guys who play with him will get rich.”

    So far, those guys have been sophomore forwards Quinn Fylling and Brandon Bochenski, last season’s WCHA rookie of the year. Blais predicts that Bochenski will score 20 to 30 goals with Parise centering the line.

    Parise truly seems unaffected by all the hype. He handles the media, the high expectations and the pressure like a seasoned pro. That all could change after Oct. 11 when the Fighting Sioux begin their season against Canisius at the Xerox College Hockey Showcase in Buffalo, N.Y.

    But for now, Parise is focused on getting ready to play hockey, and his coaches and teammates have no doubts about his ability to do that.

    ECAC West Sticking With Current Format

    By
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    A major proposal to have teams play each other three times per season starting in 2003-2004 was struck down by ECAC West athletic directors. Currently teams play each other twice per season in a home-and-home format. The proposed third game each year would have alternated home sites between the teams.

    Athletic directors from the ECAC West schools were meeting last week in their annual conference. Only four of the six schools had representatives attend.

    Some of the teams that were counting on the proposal being adopted, must now scramble to fill in those five games with non-league contests.

    “I think it is time that the ECAC stepped in and took a little bit more interest in our league,” said RIT coach Wayne Wilson. “Just because our league dropped to four teams a few years back doesn’t mean we were dead. They abandoned us, in my opinion, so we’re trying to put the onus back on them.”

    2002-03 Boston College Season Preview

    By
    -

    After four straight Frozen Four appearances and a 2001 national championship, the Eagles took an expected nosedive last year. With almost three-quarters of the roster made up of freshmen and sophomores, BC dropped to a .500 record. With that rebuilding year under their belts, however, the Eagles should once again be a power in the league and on the national scene.

    The strength begins up front where Tony Voce (26-22–48) and Ben Eaves (13-25–38 in 23 games) form one of Hockey East’s best one-two punches. Add to that a strong sophomore class led by Dave Spina and Ryan Shannon and impact freshmen Patrick Eaves (Ben’s brother) and Chris Collins.

    “I feel that we’re the deepest at this position,” says coach Jerry York. “In Tony Voce and Ben Eaves we’ve got two of the most dynamic players that we’ve had here for a while. The other group of players are really going to add depth and make us a dangerous offensive unit because you can’t just ride two people.

    “The two seniors, Anthony D’Arpino and A.J. Walker, both have been role players for us and are ready to assume a larger role for us in their fourth years… Our sophomore class — particularly Spina, [Ned] Havern, [Ryan] Murphy and Shannon — are really going to be strong players for us this year. They had a great baptism by fire last year.”

    eaves

    eaves

    Although Patrick Eaves is already penciled in on his brother’s left side, BC fans may need to rein in expectations for a second familiar name. Freshman Steve Gionta won’t be expected to reprise brother Brian’s heroics; he’ll be filling more of a hard-nosed, checking role.

    The entire defensive corps is back, led by J.D. Forrest, who feels he’s close to 100 percent after surgery to repair the five wrist tendons cut in the regular season finale. As with the forwards, the sophomore class — made up of Andrew Alberts and John Adams — holds the key to the blueliners’ collective success.

    “It’s an area where we certainly feel that we’re going to be better,” says York. “We expect our senior, Billy Cass, to have his best year of his four. Brett Peterson, a junior, has played a lot for us in his two years and we think that will show in his play this year.

    “The two sophomores, John Adams and Andrew Alberts, got so much better as the year progressed last year. We think their size and competitiveness are really going to help give us a solid core of defensemen. [They] are going to be very, very strong for us.

    “Then we have what we think is one of the premier defensemen of all college hockey in J.D. Forrest. We’re very excited that the offseason surgery on his wrist has come along very well. He’ll log a lot of minutes.”

    Eagle goaltenders Tim Kelleher and Matti Kaltiainen both had their moments last year, but could use the same step forward that Scott Clemmensen took two years ago when he became dramatically more consistent.

    “We’re certainly stronger because of the experience they both had last year,” says York. “It’ll be interesting to play it out and see how it all evolves, but my initial observation is that I feel more confident about our goaltending position. They’re both going to compete. I think we’ve made some steady improvement in that position.”

    The pieces seem to be in place for a BC return to playoff home ice, at the very least, and a likely return to the national stage.

    “I think we’re right back in the mix of teams that will compete for a Hockey East title,” says York. “And it’s been proven if you’re in that mix, you’re in the national mix. So I feel very good about the season in front of us, based on the maturation of our players from last year, the addition of some key freshmen for us and [the hope that we’ll] stay healthy through the lineup.

    “I like our talent level, our speed, our comrade-ship. I like a lot about this club.”

    2002-03 Hockey East Season Preview

    By
    -

    Logjams, Lurkers and Longshots

    “Any one of the top four teams in Hockey East could win the national championship.”

    — UMass-Lowell coach Blaise MacDonald

    Who’ll win Hockey East this year?

    New Hampshire. It’s got to be the Wildcats. Goaltending, scoring, defense. They’ve got it all. It’s gotta be them.

    Martin Kariya and Maine are back after reaching the NCAA title game last season (photo: Pedro Cancel).

    Martin Kariya and Maine are back after reaching the NCAA title game last season (photo: Pedro Cancel).

    No. Make that Maine. Hey, the Black Bears came within a minute of the national championship. Look at all that talent coming back!

    How about Boston College? The Eagles only lost two players. Two! How can you go against Eaves, Voce and Forrest?

    Yeah, but what about Boston University? If the Terriers went three straight years without a title, matter and anti-matter could collide and — poof! — there goes the universe.

    Then again, you can’t dismiss Providence. Yeah, yeah, last year, blah, blah, blah. Fuggedaboudit! Jupiter must have been misaligned with Joe Bertagna. It was a fluke! DiSalvatore. Rask. Fregoe. Schaefer. Friar Fever, baby!

    Hey, don’t forget about…

    Aw, geez, just put the names in a hat and pick ’em out like last year. You’ll look like a dolt either way…

    Look, at the end of the season, Hockey East’s eventual winner will almost certainly look perfectly predictable in 20-20 hindsight. Right now, though, all that’s visible is a logjam of candidates. Just ask Boston University coach Jack Parker, whose Terriers were picked to finish first in the coaches’ preseason poll.

    “It means nothing,” he says. “You can ask Providence. They were picked number one last year and they had injuries and some problems and wound up seventh in our league. What baffles me is that Providence was the number one pick last year, they’ve got everybody back from last year’s team and they’re picked fifth this year. I think that just indicates that it doesn’t really matter.

    "We have five and maybe six teams that absolutely could win the regular season championship and nobody would be surprised."

    — Boston University coach Jack Parker

    “What it really does is point out the balance in the league, especially for the top spot. I think this is the best year we’ve ever had as far as who would possibly win this league. It’s the closest we’ve ever had. We have five and maybe six teams that absolutely could win the regular season championship and nobody would be surprised.

    “If Maine won this championship, people would say, ‘They were picked fourth? They were the NCAA finalist and they’ve got almost everybody back. How could you not pick them to be the number one team in the league?’

    “If BU won it, if BC won it, if Providence won it, if UNH won it, nobody would be surprised. I think that’s what makes the league so great, its competitiveness from top to bottom. This year, more than any other year, the competitiveness for the number one spot is going to be great. It could be that one team shows up and is so much better than everybody else by December that they pull away, but the probabilities are that we’re all going to be fighting for that one spot for a long time.”

    Enough equivocation? How about some picks?

    With all the above protestations and disclaimers duly noted, let’s take our best shot and say that the league breaks down three ways: logjams, lurkers and longshots. (One final caveat: Providence defies categorization, straddling logjam and lurker status.)

    At the top, there’s a logjam of the usual suspects: New Hampshire, Maine, Boston College and Boston University. All four can harbor serious hopes of challenging for a national championship as well as a league title. They have the fewest question marks and the most exclamation points.

    Providence, Northeastern and UMass-Lowell lurk just a bit behind the four perennial favorites. Only PC seems to have much of a shot at joining the logjam and winning the Hockey East title, at least on paper, but any of the three could take home ice without an eyebrow being raised in surprise. For every hole in their depth chart, there’s a game-breaking player to give hope of a FleetCenter surprise or a berth in the 16-team NCAA tournament.

    Northeastern's Keni Gibson looks for a stronger finish in 2002-03 (photo: Scott Weighart).

    Northeastern’s Keni Gibson looks for a stronger finish in 2002-03 (photo: Scott Weighart).

    Merrimack and Massachusetts, both with rosters loaded with youth as they build for the future, appear almost certain to duke it out for the final playoff spot. They’ll compete night in and night out and extract hard-earned points on many weekends, but remain longshots to climb in the standings.

    At least that’s the way it looks on paper. No doubt, there’ll be surprises, both good and bad, in the standings at season’s end. That’s the way this game works. It’s part of its charm and mystery.

    It also gives enraged fans the opportunity to email yours truly and use opening salutations like, “Hey, moron!”

    Here’s a brief look at the nine schools, in order of predicted finish, with links provided for more detailed analysis of each team.

    1. New Hampshire

    Last year’s top offensive and defensive team in league play has all the makings of a juggernaut again. Yes, it hurts to lose top defenseman Garrett Stafford (academically ineligible) for the first semester and some guy named Darren Haydar must be replaced, but the Wildcats return the top goaltender and entire blue line from a squad that ran away with top defensive honors in Hockey East games. And of the league’s seven returning 40-plus point producers, three wear UNH uniforms.

    2. Maine

    There are holes to fill, most notably between the pipes and to a lesser extent on the blue line. There isn’t a single game of collegiate experience under the goaltenders’ belts and it’s unclear who will assume Peter Metcalf’s quarterbacking role, but make no mistake. This is a very talented Black Bear squad, especially up front. Barring problems in the nets, Maine should be a top 10 team all year that once again makes a run at the national title.

    3. Boston College

    york

    york

    After sustaining far and away the league’s biggest offseason losses one year earlier, the Eagles swung to the other end of the spectrum, this time suffering the least damage from attrition. If Ben Eaves (only 23 games last year) and J.D. Forrest (surgery to repair five torn wrist tendons) are healthy, BC should be in the mix for a Hockey East title once again. Continued maturation of a still young squad and more consistent goaltending are the keys.

    4. Boston University

    Depth and defense will be the Terrier calling cards. BU should again have one of the best blue lines and will third- and fourth-line you to death. Barring a major emergence, there isn’t an All-Hockey East forward looming on the roster, but nine return with double-digits in points. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see a BU Hockey East title for the seventh time in nine years.

    5. Providence

    The Friars were picked to win Hockey East in last year’s coaches’ poll (albeit without a single first-place vote), but finished a disappointing seventh. Their fans may be humming The Who’s “Won’t Get Fooled Again,” but this is still a very talented team. There aren’t many lines better than Devin Rask, Peter Fregoe and Jon DiSalvatore. If the defense improves and goaltender Nolan Schaefer regains the form that earned him All-America honors as a sophomore, then Providence could make a serious run at first place.

    6. Northeastern

    There’s a hole about the size of the Grand Canyon on the Husky blue line left behind by Jim Fahey. That said, a considerable amount of skill returns. Mike Ryan ranks as one of the top snipers in the league and linemate Jason Guerriero is one of the best playmakers. Although he faltered down the stretch, goaltender Keni Gibson excelled for much of the season, earning a unanimous berth on the All-Rookie team as well as runner-up status to UNH’s Sean Collins for Rookie of the Year. Home ice is not at all out of the question.

    7. UMass-Lowell

    No longer one of the oldest teams in the league, the River Hawks will have to make up with increased speed and skill what they’ve lost in strength and maturity. The biggest question, however, lies in goal, where last year’s incumbents have left behind a void. If there’s a solution between the pipes, Ed McGrane and a mobile corps of defensemen will lead a run at home ice.

    8. Merrimack

    Finishing eighth in Hockey East last year? Disappointing.

    Losing four significant players with eligibility remaining? Frustrating.

    Seeing Coach Chris Serino battle back from throat cancer to a clean bill of health? Priceless.

    Forget last year’s won-loss record. It was a winning season for the Warriors because Chris Serino is healthy again. This will be a rebuilding year with a very young team, but Warrior fans should count their blessings every time they see their good-guy coach behind the bench.

    As for what does transpire on the ice, there are three established scorers and three returning defensemen. Depth at all positions is a major concern. Other than Joe Exter in goal, the lineup will likely be in a state of flux into the holidays.

    9. UMass-Amherst

    It looks like a season of taking baby steps toward the destination of becoming a winning team. Once again, the Minutemen will be very young: 14 freshmen, 12 sophomores, three juniors and two seniors. With nine freshman forwards, the offense is likely to struggle again despite the talents of Greg Mauldin and Tim Turner. Goaltending is another major question. It’ll likely be another year or two before UMass fans begin to see the building efforts pay off.

    2002-03 Mass.-Lowell Season Preview

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    Last year’s woulda-coulda-shoulda season (if only the three French players hadn’t left for the Olympics… if only the NCAA selection criteria had eliminated the “last 16 games” category one year earlier… if only there had been a 16-team tournament) gives way to a new season. In this one, however, the 11 River Hawks who’d been in their final year of eligibility have been replaced by a league-high 14 freshmen. (Only sister school UMass-Amherst matches that number of recruits.)

    Without question, the most important new faces are between the pipes. Chris Davidson returns from a year in juniors for his sophomore season and is joined by freshmen Paul Mammola and Dominic Smart. However talented the trio may (or may not) be, they still have the sum total of zero minutes in college hockey game experience.

    “If you talk to any coach with three virtually new goaltenders, that’s a significant unknown and a concern,” says coach Blaise MacDonald. “But what I like is that with all three of them you don’t have to worry about their work ethic, their preparation, their focus and determination. So we’ll just have to see how it runs its course in terms of ability to stop the puck when it counts. But Chris Davidson is clearly the number one goalie right now.”

    On the blue line, the River Hawks must replace Chris Gustafson and Josh Allison, but still return a lot of depth and have added four freshmen.

    “We have five guys back from last year so that’s pretty good in terms of experience,” says MacDonald. “Baptiste Amar is in very good condition along with Jerramie Domish. I expect both of them to really be able to make an impact. Darryl Green has put on weight and dropped body fat, which is a good thing. He’s gotten stronger. He looks great. Josh Reed is very steady and he’s probably going to have his best season this year. Peter Tormey was in and out a little bit, but he’s going to be in there battling as well.

    mcgrane

    mcgrane

    “Of the freshmen, Matt Collar may be slightly ahead of the rest, but it’s very, very close. They all look good. We have nine defensemen that can all play.”

    Up front, the clear leader is Ed McGrane (22-15–37), who finally earned the recognition he deserves last year, earning a berth on the All-Hockey East second team. He tied BC’s Tony Voce with a league-leading five shorthanded goals.

    MacDonald has to hope that he can replace the losses of Yorick Treille and Laurent Meunier more smoothly than when the two left last year with Amar for the Olympics. The River Hawks struggled in their absence; the maturation of returning players and eight newcomers will need to fill the void the two left behind.

    “I think we’ll see everybody make a five-to-ten percent increase in their production,” says MacDonald. “Guys like Steve Slonina will really put up some good numbers. I think Anders Strome will build on what he did last year (14-9–23). I look for Niklas Storm to put up some good numbers.

    “The obvious is Eddie McGrane. He’s clearly the go-to guy.

    “[As for the freshmen], Andrew Martin and Ben Walter clearly can play. They’ll be very good players this year and in the future.”

    The River Hawks will be hard-pressed to reprise last year’s performance, but will be an interesting squad to watch. MacDonald’s teams at Niagara emphasized speed and skill and, in his first full recruiting class, he appears to have emphasized those factors over size, which has been a Lowell trait in recent years.

    “Obviously, we’re not as strong because we have 14 freshmen,” he says. “But in terms of our conditioning, we’re really in peak shape. We’re a much quicker team than we were last year and I think our skill level is better. There’s much more competition. Right now we have five lines and eight or nine defensemen who can absolutely play.

    “We want to utilize our assets and decoy our liabilities, so we’re going to employ and implement systems that allow us to pressure pucks and use our speed and quickness and really try to get after it. We’ll take some calculated risks along the way, knowing that it will make us a better team come January, February and March.”

    2002-03 Providence Season Preview

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    If not for the early departure of defenseman Regan Kelly, the Friars would rival Boston College for the least attrition in the league. With a talented, senior-dominated lineup, there’s the potential for a big move upward in the standings.

    “You win with your upperclassmen and they certainly are going to lead the way for us,” says coach Paul Pooley.

    That begins up front with Jon DiSalvatore (16-25–41), Peter Fregoe (15-23–38) and Devin Rask (16-19–35), who match up well with almost any other trio in the league. The challenge will be for the rest of the forwards to increase their production so that collectively PC finishes higher than seventh in the league in total offense, as it did last year.

    “[Everyone] obviously looks at Rask, Fregoe and DiSalvatore to have big years, but the guys who scored three and four goals last year need to pick it up and score seven, eight, nine or ten,” says Pooley. “But I like our mix up front. We have a lot more depth than we ever had before. We’ve got five lines right now and a lot of people are interchangeable.

    “I’m going to keep Rask, Fregoe and DiSalvatore together and then move people around to see where everybody fits. But I think we’ve got nice balance and we’ll be more physical up front. Our kids have really worked hard in the offseason and are tremendously filled out and a lot stronger. We’ll surprise some people with what we have up front.”

    With the big three up front, it’s inconceivable that the Friars will repeat with Hockey East’s worst power play (12.9 percent). It defies explanation as to why the group had such difficulty scoring last year on the man advantage; they should at least return to the middle-of-the-pack production of the previous season.

    disalvatore

    disalvatore

    “Our specialty teams are going to be better,” says Pooley. “Our power play has to be better in order for us to be successful.”

    The team defense will need to rebound from last year’s performance, when PC goaltenders had to make more saves per game than every team’s but Merrimack. (Merrimack, 33.4; Providence, 31.2; UMass, 27.5; all others, below 26). If that happens again this year, kiss thoughts of Friar playoff home ice goodbye.

    “We have one senior, two juniors, two sophomores and three freshmen so we’re pretty balanced instead of the two seniors and four sophomores type of imbalance that we’ve always had at the position,” says Pooley. “Now we’re really balanced. For us to be successful, we certainly have to have our returning guys pick up the pace, be steady and improve.

    “I look at Shawn Weiman, Steven Wood and Jason Platt — our three real upperclassmen — and Eric Lundberg and Jeff Mason, our two people who gained a lot of experience last year. They really need to accelerate their game and be very, very steady for us. Our three freshmen are solid and they bring different attributes to the table. One [Matt Mannina] is offensive-minded and the other two [James Pemberton and Luke Irwin] are a combination of good defense and can play on the offensive side with the puck, too.

    “There’s no question that we will be more physical on the blue line. That’s one of the things we’ve wanted to recruit.”

    Assuming improved team defense, the onus will be on goaltender Nolan Schaefer to return to the form that earned him All-America honors as a sophomore. Going from a 2.47 goals against average and a .915 save percentage in 2000-01 to last year’s numbers of 3.29 and .904, respectively, wasn’t just a product of the team defense. Schaefer wasn’t as sharp as he needed to be.

    If sophomore David Cacciola doesn’t provide enough of a push, then highly regarded freshman Bobby Goepfert (USHL Player of the Year and Top Goaltender) likely will.

    “Nolan is a lot more confident in what he is doing,” says Pooley. “He had a great summer and he looks very, very good in practice. He looks very, very sharp. He’s really focussed. I just think he’s ready for a great year. He’s very hungry, very committed, very dedicated.

    “Then we have the two other kids who are certainly going to challenge to play… I think our goaltending is going to be very strong. We’re building our team around our goaltending. That’s our number one priority. You win with your team defense and that starts with your goaltenders.”

    Are there missing pieces to the puzzle? Perhaps. But it’s also easy to envision this team not only elbowing aside some contender for playoff home ice but also earning a spot in the NCAA tournament.

    “We’re very hungry as a program,” says Pooley. “I look on the ice and I sense a common bond in terms of what we want to accomplish as a team and what our priorities are as a team. I sense that we will play as a team this year and we will be a team and will work as a team and hopefully have a lot of success as a team. That will be our main focus.”

    2002-03 Ferris State Preview

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    The Ferris State Bulldogs had a surprising 2001-02 season. The last-minute departure of stalwart goaltender Phil Osaer appeared to leave FSU in a tight spot, but two rookie goaltenders, Mike Brown and John DeCaro, picked up the slack nicely.

    Then there were Rob Collins and Chris Kunitz. Collins led the league in scoring, and Kunitz led the league in goals.

    Of course, the surprise there is that the Ferris State offense was only the sixth most productive in the league. Ditto for their power play.

    “I think we, over the last four or five years, have made a move to be more of an offensive type of team, more of a skating type of team, and we’re getting close to where we hope to be,” said Bob Daniels.

    When you have both the top point scorer and goal scorer in the league, you’re doing something right. But maybe the lesson that needs to be learned in Big Rapids is that hockey is a team sport.

    Sharing Is Caring

    The Bulldogs were sixth in the CCHA in offense, defense, power play, and penalty kill last season. Now, sixth may not be bad — just average, really — and the top six teams host a first-round playoff series at the end of the year.

    Ferris forward Chris Kunitz is an All-America candidate. (photo courtesy FSU Sports Information)

    Ferris forward Chris Kunitz is an All-America candidate. (photo courtesy FSU Sports Information)

    The problem for FSU with being sixth in every important category last season, however, was that six really meant nine, as in a ninth-place league finish.

    What to do? More of the same, apparently.

    “We’re going to have a team led by our forwards, led by our offense,” said Daniels, “and the highlight in that group is Chris Kunitz, who arguably is the best player in the CCHA in terms of forwards, maybe in the country. Other players up front include Phil Lewandowski and Jeff Legue.”

    That’s all fine and good, but for the Bulldogs to be a more competitive hockey team, they’ll need to get offensive production from more than three players.

    The Fundamentals Still Apply

    One strength of this Ferris State team is its steady goaltending. Neither Brown nor DeCaro was spectacular last season, but when you have good, dependable goaltending — even with an inconsistent defense — and you’re scoring goals, you’re going to win more than a few games.

    “A year ago we lost Phil Osaer right before the start of the season and we had two freshmen unknowns [in goal], Mike Brown and John DeCaro both stepped in and did a great job,” said Daniels. “Mike Brown by the second half of the year had won the starting role. He got injured late in the season but returned for the playoffs and played very well. He’s still a little bit of a question mark, but we have an awful lot of confidence in both Mike Brown and John DeCaro.”

    The blue line in front of that tandem improved last season from the year before, and the Bulldogs finished on the plus side of things (+11) as a team in conference play. To move up the standings, though, FSU is going to need better team defense as well as better play in its own end — and that could be an issue this season.

    “On defense, we return three very good defensemen, Troy Milam, Matt York, and Simon Mangos,” said Daniels. “We’re also going to have to rely on probably three freshmen to step in and play. If there’s an Achilles heel for our team or an unknown, it could be on our defense where we need some freshmen to step in and log some minutes and do a good job for us.”

    Play Nice, And If You Can’t Play Nice, Play Smart

    The Bulldogs had the second-highest penalty minute total in the CCHA last season, which surprises absolutely no one — not the players, not their fans, and certainly not the opposition.

    Chippy is judgment call. Let’s just say that FSU plays hard.

    To improve, however, the Bulldogs need to learn how to play hard and smart. Stupid penalties will cripple any team, but a squad with a so-so penalty kill should be more careful about elbows, hips, and sticks.

    Daily Affirmation

    There are many affirmations and meditations that could benefit the Bulldogs. They already know that speed kills, and if they play faster and smarter, they’ll be competitive every night.

    The Bulldogs already know that the best offense is sometimes a good defense. They’re working on that.

    What the Ferris State players really need to learn — and learn but good — is that stupid penalties will kill any chance the Bulldogs have of earning home ice in the first round of the CCHA playoffs.

    So, to that end, Bulldogs, ask yourself this question, daily: “A good elbow is a careful elbow.”

    2002-03 Michigan Preview

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    In all seriousness, Michigan’s loss is the CCHA’s loss. When a player the caliber of Mike Cammalleri leaves a program early, the entire league feels the absence.

    Yes, some folks may be happy about the departures of Cammalleri, Mike Komisarek and Michigan State’s Ryan Miller, thinking that this somehow levels the playing field for the rest of the league, but when those players were on the ice — especially Cammalleri — every other player on the ice had to play up to a certain level just to compete.

    Put simply, when Mike Cammalleri was on the ice for Michigan, everyone — including opponents — played better hockey. That is something fans will miss this season.

    That having been said, if you think that the Wolverines will be hobbled by early departures, you’re just plain nuts. This is one talented squad.

    We Are Good Enough, We Are Smart Enough …

    The biggest question for Michigan, of course, is goaltending. Josh Blackburn was the netminder of record for most of his four years as a Wolverine, and naturally fans will wonder how a rookie goalie will perform.

    Even though Al Montoya is only 17 years old, Red Berenson calls him “someone to watch.”

    Montoya comes to Michigan by way of the U.S. NTDP Under-17 Team, where he posted a .912 save percentage in 2000-01, and led the team to a gold medal at the World Under-17 Challenge.

    He’s also a bright young man. Having sped through high school, he’s enrolled in the University of Michigan’s Division of Kinesiology.

    Do you even know what that is? Do you?

    … So — Doggone It! — Why Don’t People Like Us?

    Dwight Helminen is one of the standout group of sophomores expected to lead Michigan this season. (photo by Bill Callihan)

    Dwight Helminen is one of the standout group of sophomores expected to lead Michigan this season. (photo by Bill Callihan)

    CCHA fans love to hate the Wolverines. In the past, perhaps this was justified, when certain players whined, dived, and played chippy hockey.

    But have you seen this Michigan team? These Wolverines are an intoxicating combination of blue-collar work ethic and serious finesse. And there’s none of that prima donna mentality of teams past.

    Okay, so you’re not going to embrace the Wolverines if you’re not already a fan, but can you at least admit that you could admire them … if they didn’t wear the big “M” and play in Ann Arbor?

    Just look at this sophomore class. Milan Gajic, Dwight Helminen, David Moss, Eric Nystrom, Jason Ryznar — if these guys aren’t household names already, they will be soon.

    And they play with an enthusiasm for the game that is downright contagious.

    The beauty of this Michigan team is that it is more than the sum of its sophomore class. “Up front, we need our captains to be our leaders again,” said Berenson. “Jed Ortmeyer and Johnny Shouneyia will be key players for us, and they look for a player like Jeff Tambellini to be an impact freshman.”

    Komisarek’s gone, so who’s left on the blue line?

    “We think junior Andy Burnes will pick up the slack,” said Berenson, “and we have a young kid named Danny Richmond coming in. He should be an exciting offensive-type defenseman.”

    If At First You Don’t Succeed, Try, Try Again

    Perhaps one of the best things to happen to Michigan last season was losing to Minnesota in the Frozen Four.

    Remember what happened in Boston in 1998? Two freshmen combined for an overtime goal that gave the Wolverines the national championship, and that same freshmen class went on to underachieve for the next three years.

    (And they were a whiney lot, too, with the notable exception of Bobby Matzka.)

    So a trip to the Frozen Four is nice right off the bat, but leaving that tournament hungry is probably better in the long run.

    Daily Affirmation

    It would be nice if the fans at Yost (and at Lawson, in all fairness) would remember that there are children in attendance at every game, but I’m giving up on that.

    The Michigan players, though, should repeat this daily and think about it often:

    “Humility is a virtue.”

    If the Wolverines keep it down to earth and play with a love of the game, they’ll be nearly impossible to stop.

    2002-03 Nebraska-Omaha Preview

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    No one is looking forward to the start of the 2002-03 season more than Mike Kemp. When the season begins, after all, the offseason is officially over.

    “It’s been an interesting summer for us in Omaha,” said Kemp. “We started out the summer with seven surgeries — four knees, three shoulders — added two new assistant coaches, rebuilt our staff. Had two late-summer medical diagnoses that took a couple of depth players out of our roster, at least for the foreseeable future, and two days before school, had one of our returning defensemen come in and say that he’s going to go to NHL camp and forego his final three years of eligibility.”

    Sounds like somebody needs a hug.

    That Which Doesn’t Kill Us …

    The Mavs begin the season recovering from surgery and two men down. Gus Groslie is still feeling the aftereffects of a concussion suffered last season, and Jeremiah Johnson fainted during the summer — literally while walking — and the docs still don’t know what caused it.

    Add to that a rookie-heavy roster, and what do you get?

    Dan Ellis, of course. Talk about an easy equation.

    Ellis is arguably the best returning goaltender in the CCHA, and one of the best in the country. His talent and confidence have been a major factor in the Mavs’ success during the past two seasons, and there’s no reason to think anything different for this year.

    Goalie Dan Ellis will be relied upon heavily this season by the Mavericks.

    Goalie Dan Ellis will be relied upon heavily this season by the Mavericks.

    “Our team will go as our strength, our goaltending,” said Kemp. “Dan Ellis, coming back for his junior year, a second-round draft pick for Dallas, has been the cornerstone of our team. As Dan Ellis goes, so go the Mavericks. We look to him to have another outstanding season.”

    In fact, perhaps the Mavericks will be praying for him to have another outstanding season.

    Make New Friends, But Keep The Old

    “It will be the youngest team we fielded at UNO since our inaugural season of 1997-98,” said Kemp. “We’ll have 10 freshmen and newcomers around the roster at the start of the season.

    “It will be a test for us early to see who fits in where, who’s going to pick up the slack.

    Joel Andresen, a defenseman out of St. Albert, was voted the top defenseman in the Alberta Junior League last year. He should make an impact along with Mike Lefley, the MVP of Alberta Junior League, out of Grand Prairie, we picked up very, very late this summer.

    “Another player, Micah Sanford, who came to us from Chilliwack of the British Columbia Junior League, was the leading goal-scorer in the BCJL last year and really has only been playing hockey on ice for five years. Prior to that time, he’d been a roller hockey player in Las Vegas, and we think he’s got some tremendous skill, and he’s shown an ability to score on every level and he can come in and make an impact for us right away.”

    Roller hockey. Honest.

    It’s Not Polite To Point … Except On The Power Play

    So, the Mavericks are recovering from surgery, down a couple of guys, loaded with newcomers, but still possessing some veteran talent. Let’s not forget Greg Zanon, David Brisson, and Andrew Wong.

    There are two areas in which UNO seriously needs to improve in order to achieve some measure of success this season. For the past couple of years, the Maverick power play has been more than merely anemic — pathetic would be a good term for a man-advantage on a club with guys like Zanon, Brisson, and Wong.

    “I think for our team to really have the kind of season we hope to have, we need to improve our offensive production,” said Kemp. “Last year we struggled at times to score goals, and certainly that’s an area we’re really going to emphasize, along with our power play, which was woefully inadequate over the last couple of seasons.”

    And as fine a netminder as is Ellis, these Mavs have been making him work really, really hard.

    Said Kemp, “We need to tighten up our team defense a bit. It’s interesting [that] Dan Ellis gets a great deal of attention [because] … he led the nation in saves last year, and I have to say that while we’re proud of Dan, that’s not a statistic we’re proud of as a team. Obviously, we’d like to be a little stingier with opportunities around our own end, and that’s going to be something we’re going to really have to look at.”

    Daily Affirmation

    Every UNO fan should meditate daily on the general health of this team. I am not kidding.

    And for you Mav players, try this one: “See the puck. Feel the puck. Be the puck.”

    2002-03 Merrimack Season Preview

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    With more or less typical losses to graduation, this was going to be the season for Merrimack to take a step forward in the standings. No more battling it out to the end for the final playoff spot.

    That is, until early departures ripped extra holes in the depth chart. Count ’em: Anthony Aquino, a former All-Hockey East selection. Matt Foy, last year’s marquee recruit. Top defensemen Greg Lauze and Jeff State, not to mention Darren Clarke, another blueliner who left midway through last season to return home.

    “Obviously, we’d be a lot stronger if we kept Foy and Aquino on the right side,” says coach Chris Serino. “Those are a couple big-time scorers. Losing Foy for three years and State and Lauze for two more are big hits we took, but, hey, there’s no sense dwelling on what we don’t have. I’m more concerned with making better what we do have.

    “We’ve got practically a new team here. Our freshmen usually sing the national anthem for the intrasquad game so they were all over there singing. [That left] only three guys on one blue line and three guys on the other blue line. We’re in a little bit of trouble. But the good thing is that if we forget the games and have a karaoke contest, I think we’ll be in the top two.”

    That Serino is back to quipping with the best of them — even if it involves some whistling past the too-many-freshmen graveyard — is great news following the scare of throat cancer last year.

    "Our freshmen usually sing the national anthem for the intrasquad game … [That left] only three guys on one blue line and three guys on the other blue line. We’re in a little bit of trouble. But the good thing is that if we forget the games and have a karaoke contest, I think we’ll be in the top two."

    — Chris Serino, on Merrimack’s youth becoming apparent early.

    “I’m doing excellent,” he says. “I feel fabulous and I’m ready to go.”

    He’s even assumed interim athletic director responsibilities, potentially until next July, confident in his health and ability to maintain focus on the hockey team.

    “My number one priority is to coach the hockey team,” says Serino. “My number two priority is to help with the athletic program. I don’t think it’s going to be an issue.

    “The President and the entire school have been very, very good to me. They treated me and my family great when I was out sick last year. This is something that I feel I’m paying back to the school.”

    Serino will have his hands full with all the new faces, but the known quantities begin in goal, where Joe Exter returns for his senior year. Last season, he often played well until worn down by too many shots. Warrior goaltenders led the league in saves per game by a good margin (33.4 compared to 31.2 for Providence, 27.5 for UMass and all others below 26). With all the new faces on the blue line, that statistic is likely to be repeated, so Exter will have to weather the storm for 60 minutes and steal a few games for his teammates.

    “Our goaltending should be a strength,” says Serino. “We should have pretty good goaltending with Joe Exter. We’re looking for him to have a big year. We also think Casey Guenther is ready to assume the backup role, but only time will tell on that.”

    How well the defense plays will go a long, long way in dictating the team’s position in the standings.

    “We’ve got three coming back: Nick Cammarata, Tony Johnson and Eric Pedersen,” says Serino. “Cam DeYoung, who played for us early last year, but had to leave school for financial reasons, is back. So that gives us a little more experience.

    “And we have three freshmen vying for the other two spots: Bryan Schmidt, Rob Lalonde, and Brian Boulay. I really like Schmidt. He reminds me of Jayme Filipowicz [an all-star Serino coached at UNH]. I think he’s going to be a real good one.”

    Last year’s big surprise, Ryan Cordeiro (20-16–36), leads the returning scorers along with Alex Sikatchev (14-12–26) and Marco Rosa (5-21–26). All three can play and Rosa ranks as one of the most underrated all-around players in the league. He was this writer’s selection as New England’s top collegiate defensive forward.

    After those three, however, the scoring plummets to single-digit point producers. Clearly, several forwards will have to elevate their games for Merrimack to be successful.

    “We could have as many as five freshmen in our top 12 forwards,” says Serino. “We have some freshmen who have really stepped up to the plate in Brent Gough and Matt Johnson. We’re hoping guys like Tim Reidy and Steve Crusco, who showed flashes of being pretty good players, can put some numbers up for us.”

    In the short term, Warrior fans may need to show some patience with the youth on this squad.

    sikatchev

    sikatchev

    “It’s going to be a funny kind of team,” says Serino. “We could have seven or eight freshmen in the lineup every night. But it’s a good group. They’re working their tails off.

    “I think that we’re going to play better as a team. I like the chemistry and leadership of our team. It’s going to be a team that is much better in the second half than it is in the first half. Depending on how quickly they jell, it’s a very unselfish team that will play good team defense.

    “We’ve all agreed that the goal is to get better each game. The winning and losing will take care of itself. If we continue to get better and continue to work at getting better, I don’t think a slow or fast start will matter to us. If we can just show steady progress, things will work okay.”

    As for the long term, Serino dismisses the idea that the Warriors took a step backward in recruiting last year because of the absence of a marquee name of the Aquino-Rosa-Foy stature.

    “I think we got some real good players,” says Serino. “I’m excited about our recruiting class. I’m really impressed not only by their hockey ability, but their character. Sometimes you only get the marquee guy, but the people you surround him with aren’t as good. But it takes more than a marquee guy to make things happen. I think of the 10 guys we brought in, we’ve got four or five who are going to be immediate help to us.”

    2002-03 Boston University Season Preview

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    If you’re a glass-empty BU fan, you bemoan the graduation of Mike Pandolfo and Jack Baker, the only two players who scored more than 26 points last year, and also point to the losses of offensively-gifted defensemen Chris Dyment and Pat Aufiero. Where is the offense going to come from? The matchups with Hemingway-Collins-Gare (UNH), Rask-Fregoe-DiSalvatore (PC), Shields-Kariya-Liscak (Maine), Eaves-Voce (BC) and Ryan-Guerriero (NU) do not look favorable.

    But if you’re glass-full fan, you’ll instead look at the depth up front and figure that the seven freshmen and sophomores who scored double-digit points — led by Brian McConnell (11-15–26) and Frantisek Skladany (13-13–26), respectively — will continue to progress. Then factor in freshmen Brad Zancanaro and John Laliberte, who are both expected to contribute right away, and you can see the depth that should counteract the lack of all-stars.

    “It’s going to be difficult figuring out who the first line is going to be on our team,” says coach Jack Parker. “We’re going to have a lot of guys [do] what we had expected for last year: for the most part, offense by committee. We do believe that there are any number of guys who could step up and get 15 or 20 goals for us, but our only two goalscorers in that range last year have graduated in Baker and Pandolfo.

    “There’s no question in my mind that we have more than enough talent to put the puck in the net. It may just be with the top four lines instead of two.”

    Contributing to the offense and also playing some of the best defense in the league is a talented group of blueliners, led by senior captain Freddie Meyer and sophomores Ryan Whitney and Bryan Miller. Seniors Mike Bussoli and John Cronin aren’t flashy, but are solid. With newcomers Jekabs Redlihs and Dan Spang added to the mix, this group should again be one of Hockey East’s best.

    whitney

    whitney

    “Losing Aufiero and Dyment [cost us] the quality, size and character that are important to any team, but we had to get by without Aufiero the last third of the year anyway because he missed [it with injury],” says Parker. “So we’ve got a lot of experience coming back in three senior defensemen and two sophomore defensemen.

    “We’ve also added some pretty talented freshman defensemen as well so we think that we’re going to be in pretty good shape there. Even though we lost two real good guys, our other guys have gotten more experience and we think we’ll be as good, if not better, as we were at the end of last year.”

    Goaltender Sean Fields made important strides forward last year and will be joined by freshman Stephen Siwiec. If Fields can move from the league’s middle-of-the-pack netminders into the elite group, the Terriers could make a run at their first Frozen Four since 1997.

    “We have an experienced, talented guy in Fields and inexperience after that,” says Parker. “Stephen Siwiec is the incoming freshman who we think has a lot of talent, but obviously hasn’t played a college game yet and Andrew Warren is a senior goaltender who has only played one game in his career.

    “So we don’t have a lot of experience behind Sean, but he played most of the games last year and we think that he’ll probably get the nod most of them this year.”

    Adding up the potential strengths and weaknesses leaves a dramatic range of possible outcomes. The Terriers could be making travel arrangements for Buffalo next spring or could also be travelling to an opponent’s arena for the Hockey East playoffs.

    “I think we’re going to be a better team on paper than we were last year, but it remains to be seen if we can win as many games because the league is going to be tougher,” says Parker. “Chemistry and attitude have an awful lot to do with how you’re doing and not just talent. But I do believe that we’re going to be a strong team in all three areas of the game and in all three zones.

    “We’d better be because this league is going to be so tough. There are five or maybe even six teams who could win this league outright. There’s no clear cut team to beat with everyone else playing for second place. Everybody is playing for the top four spots.”

    2002-03 New Hampshire Season Preview

    By
    -

    If you’re a college hockey coach and your only significant question mark is your backup goaltender, then life is good. For UNH coach Dick Umile, life is indeed very good. In this writer’s eyes, New Hampshire enters the season as the number one team in the country.

    Depth and skill abound on the roster. It’ll be a shocker if the Wildcats aren’t one of the league’s top offensive and defensive teams.

    The only position without established depth is between the pipes. Michael Ayers earned second-team All-Hockey East honors last year, setting a Hockey East record with a .938 save percentage in league games. Other than a poor outing to begin and another to end the season — the latter, regrettably for UNH, in the Frozen Four — Ayers was astonishingly consistent, going 12-1-1 and posting shutouts or allowing only one goal in nine of the contests.

    The only question is how much freshman Jeff Pietrasiak will contribute as Ayers’ backup following Matt Carney’s graduation.

    “We’re thrilled to have Michael Ayers back,” says Umile. “He proved he’s a top goaltender in Division I college hockey. I expect Michael to play the majority of the games. We expect Jeff Pietrasiak to get a start here and there. We’ll try to do that early on and see how he does. That will determine how many games he’ll play.”

    ayers

    ayers

    If not for the loss of Garrett Stafford for the first semester due to academic ineligibility, UNH would return its entire blue line, not to mention add a couple freshmen for a little more depth and competition. Stafford will certainly be missed, but the defense will survive in his absence, barring a rash of injuries.

    “We feel that we’re going to be as solid back there on defense as anyone even with the semester loss of Stafford,” says Umile. “That was disappointing and he brings a lot to our defense, especially offensively, but we do have six defensemen who we can put out there who got a lot of experience last season.”

    Stafford’s quarterbacking role on the power play could be assumed by either another blueliner or a forward. Umile’s man-advantage units have often employed forwards at the point.

    As for the scoring, Darren Haydar, David Busch and Ed Caron must be replaced up front, but the Wildcats still would have finished third in league scoring last year even without that trio. Colin Hemingway (33-33–66) leads a strong group of senior forwards along with last year’s Hockey East Rookie of the Year, Sean Collins (20-25–45).

    “We’re excited about the returning forwards,” says Umile. “We have to replace Darren Haydar, obviously, and I don’t think people realize everything he did. He not only put up points, but he made great plays at great times. He was a terrific player.

    “What we have is a couple sophomores who were freshmen last year who I feel can pick up those numbers. It may take two of them, but who knows? Maybe one of them can come close to putting up the numbers that Darren put up when he was a sophomore. I think Justin Aikins and Preston Callander are two players who weren’t in the lineup regularly who can do that.

    “I think we can put up the numbers but it may take a couple of guys. But I’m very confident that we’ve got a couple of guys that can do that.”

    Putting it all together, you have a team that, at least on paper, looks like one of the best in the country.

    “I believe us to be a top three team in Hockey East, wherever we fall [there],” says Umile. “If you can be a top tier team in our league, you’re going to be a solid team in the country.”

    2002-03 Massachusetts Season Preview

    By
    -

    Patience will be the watchword for Massachusetts fans this year. With 26 of the 31 rostered players being freshmen or sophomores, instant gratification will be in short supply. The key will be long-term improvement and maintaining a positive outlook.

    “We’re still a work in progress,” says coach Don Cahoon. “We’ve got two years under our belt here and we think we’ve made some great gains in terms of personnel and we’ve established a culture that we’re starting to become a little more comfortable with. It’s more accepted than it’s ever been before. All of that, hopefully, will take hold in the not too distant future and will reflect in the way that we play.”

    No team succeeds without strong goaltending and that holds especially true for young, building programs. All of which makes the UMass crease a position to watch. In limited action last year, Tim Warner (5.16 GAA, .856 Sv%) showed raw talent, but had his struggles, too, especially in terms of rebound control. He was a highly regarded recruit and will need to take a big step forward this season.

    “There’s going to be real good competition amongst three very young goaltenders,” says Cahoon. “We’ve got Gabe Winer, who is considered a top prep school prospect, as Timmy Warner was the previous year. And we have Mike Waidlich, who is a capable kid himself. The three of them are really battling.

    “Each day you see them, you notice something different. You notice one of them making some gains or one of them going into some type of a struggle. So that’s going to be what will represent the first month or couple of months in that competition. It really is an unknown. These guys need game experience and they need maybe a little success and in some instances some luck to get off to a good start so they’ll have a foundation to build off of.

    “I think what will affect their play more than anything else is how well we play in front of them defensively. We’re young in every area so it’s going to be a task to get these guys to play consistently well and be reliable and dependable. Any team that has had success in this league has always had creditable defensive play. And that comes from the goaltender and the team defense unified.”

    The veterans on the blue line are Nick Kuiper and Kelly Sickavish, who’ll be leading a group otherwise comprised of freshmen and sophomores.

    “Kuiper has a year and a half under his belt, but really made substantial gains last year,” says Cahoon. “He physically got much stronger and became more confident and logged many more minutes than in the 13 games he played as a freshman. Kelly is a big, strong kid. If he keeps it simple and plays within himself, he’ll play a significant role for us.

    “We had three freshmen last year — [Jeff Lang, Dusty Demianiuk and Sean Regan] — who got enough ice time so they have a good understanding of what it takes to be successful at this level. It remains to be seen how much they’ve improved over the summer going into their sophomore year. They’ve got a year under their belt, so we expect them to be a little steadier and more poised as a result of that. But they still have a way to go to become significant players in this league and they know that.

    “Then we have two freshman defensemen that we recruited. Marvin Degon, who has a great skill level. He should be able to contribute from the get-go, but he’s still a freshman. And there’s Matty Fetzer, who is an offensive type who has a great head for the game. Both are going to be good power-play guys into the future. They both have good puck skills and athleticism. We’re looking to develop them in that regard as well.”

    turner

    turner

    Up front, senior Tim Turner (11-9–20) has been a mainstay since his arrival and sophomore Greg Mauldin (12-12–24) impressed in a big way during his inaugural season. But the scoring from the other forward positions needs to improve significantly.

    “We broke our own record for poor offensive production,” says Cahoon, whose Minutemen averaged only 1.88 goals per league game. “The year before we broke the league record and last year we re-broke it. So it’s clear to say that we’ve got to generate more offense.

    “Although we’re very young, I think our skill level is going to be improved. We’re going to be a quicker team, a faster team, with some of the kids we’ve brought in. So we’re hoping we can generate some offense just off our ability to get through the middle of the ice and be able to put other teams on their heels more than we have in the past. That remains to be seen, but that’s the expectation.

    “Along with Mauldin and Turner, we need Tommy Pock [to produce]. At times, he has been a very good player for us, but he suffered through a very difficult year last year, having an injury that took him out during the [middle of the season] and then he left for the Olympic games, where he played for the Austrians. Tommy has a real good skill level. He needs to bring his game to another level in order for us to have that kind of leadership from our forwards.

    “I think Timmy will consistently be competitive as he always has been and get his points. We’re looking for Mauldin to keep growing as a player. We think that his potential is terrific. Those will be the three older, mature players. Then we have a host of sophomores and a host of freshmen to choose from to complement that group.”

    Of the host of freshmen, at least two appear ready to contribute immediately: Stephen Werner, who played on the U.S. national team last year, and Chris Capraro, who Cahoon likens to former BU star and fellow Medford native David Sacco.

    As part of his overhaul of the program, Cahoon brings some definite expectations to the table that transcend wins and losses.

    “Our primary concern is to keep a positive frame of mind in place all the time so that it’s a good learning environment so that we, for the first time since I’ve been here, show that we’re getting better as the season goes along,” he says. “In the previous two years, we’ve gotten off to decent starts, but just fizzled once the New Year came.

    “A lot of that was belief systems not being in place, doubting yourself, maybe having some guys who’d had a lot of bad experiences so when we started to struggle and [encountered] adversity, it spiraled downward rather than guys being able to deal with adversity and work their way through it to make it a productive situation.

    “Turn a negative into a positive. We weren’t able to do that. We didn’t have the makeup to do that. Although we’re young, we have a new opportunity with all these players to instill that behavior and we’re working real hard to do just that.”

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