By Benet Pols
Union College, one of the founding members of NESCAC, has won the 2014 NCAA DI men's ice hockey championship. As we wrote a couple of weeks ago, Union left the conference back in 1977 after its ambitions for a DI program rocked the campus and eventually cost its coach and president their jobs.
In the wake if Union's success and our brief view what recruitment was like back in the 1970's it is a good time to look into how current recruiting practices at NESCAC colleges have evolved both from an academic standpoint and an athletic standpoint.
Fortunately for the staff here at HockeyInTheCac, the hard work has been done for us by the Bowdoin Orient in a recent three part series on athletics at Bowdoin. The first part, Banded Together, gives an excellent overview of recruitment practices and policies across the conference and across all sports.
Posters on the USCHO online forums frequently denigrate the conference's stringent recruiting standards and point out that success like that had by Middlebury on the 1990's and 2000's is unlikely to be repeated.
In reading the Bowdoin Orient's Sam Weyrauch's excellent three part series on athletics at Bowdoin, we have to wonder if the forum gripers may not be right? Weyrauch's first piece, Banded Together, certainly points out a homogenization across the conference that suggests it is unlikely that one school will ever be able to collect enough "B Band" students to dominate the way Middlebury once did.
Below are links to the three stories.
"Banded Together: recruited athletes with sub-average academics can receive preference in admissions."
"A Path to Campus: looking at the weight of recruitment visits and 'early reads.'"
After the Acceptance: walk-ons and GPAs.
Showing posts with label NCAA Tournament. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NCAA Tournament. Show all posts
Saturday, April 19, 2014
Thursday, March 13, 2014
Three third period goals lift Oswego past Bowdoin in NCAA First Round
by Ray Biggs
Oswego State Lyrics (21-6-2) 4
Bowdoin Polar Bears (17-9-2) 3
On Wednesday, an already long road to the postseason got even longer for both Oswego and Bowdoin. The night’s scheduled NCAA tournament contest between the two was temporarily wiped off the schedule as a sizeable blizzard pelted Central New York that afternoon, prompting Oswego to cancel classes and the game along with it. No matter what team you happened to be rooting for, the rescheduled matchup was worth the wait as Oswego advanced in an intense seesaw battle by a 4-3 final.
With the way the final score was decided, it was only fitting that the two teams played to a 0-0 tie at the end of the opening frame. Oswego had several chances to break open the scoring early, aided by their first powerplay opportunity just 3:22 into the matchup, but two hit posts and the outstanding goaltending of Bowdoin’s Max Fenkell (G, '15) helped keep the game scoreless. Fenkell’s first period performance was highlighted by a spectacular kick save with four minutes to go in the first period. Meanwhile, Oswego’s Matt Zawadzki (G, '17) was terrific as well, coming up with 13 saves.
But, with two offensively gifted teams, something had to give, and it was the young Lakers who would draw first blood by virtue of one of the components of their program's identity throughout the years: the transition game. At the 6:04 mark of the second period, freshman Alex Botten (F, '17) took advantage of crisp north-south passing from Nick Rivait (D, '15) to Matt Galati (F, '17). Botten took the entry pass over the offensive stripe, cut to his right, and backhanded a shot over the shoulder of Fenkell to give the Lakers a 1-0 lead.
But as fate would have it, the Polar Bears and Lakers would end the period tied. Coming up on the final minute of the period, Bowdoin’s Jay Livermore (D, '14) cranked up a blast to the top shelf to even things up at one.
Both goaltenders were lucky that two goals were all that was scored in the second period. Zawadzki and Fenkell both found themselves saved by a stoppage in play in a dangerous situation over the course of the period. First, a scrum erupted in front of Fenkell, who made the initial save through traffic but could not hang onto the rebound. Before either team could move in to clean up, the referees blew the play dead. Then, in the closing seconds of the period, Bowdoin’s Connor Quinn (F, '15) jumped on a pass and brought John Mcginnis in tow for a shorthanded rush, but it was not to be as the period expired when Quinn got to the offensive stripe.
Bowdoin carried the momentum forward into the third period as they killed off the remainder of the carryover penalty from Zach Kokosa (F, '17), then went on to lead by as many as two goals. Matt Rubinoff (F, '16) knocked home one of the two Bowdoin tallies in the period with the assist coming to Harry Matheson (F, '14), before Matheson assumed the role of goal scorer to give Bowdoin a 3-1 lead. The two points (1-1-2) on the afternoon gave Matheson exactly 100 (53-47-100) for his Bowdoin career.
With Bowdoin in command of the game, Oswego head coach Ed Gosek burned his timeout after the Matheson goal in attempt to turn the tide in the Lakers favor. The strategy paid off as Oswego rattled off three consecutive goals from Botten, David Titanic (F, '14), and Mike Montagna (F, '15). After the game, Gosek looked back on his game-changing decision to call timeout.
“With the timeout, the reality was, we had to change or the outcome was going to stay the same. We started moving our feet, started getting pucks in deep and with that came the momentum shift,” Gosek said.
Botten’s game-winner highlighted the Laker run, as Titanic drove in from the right wing side and dished out a picture perfect pass across the crease to Botten to pick up the go-ahead goal with 3:20 to go.
Bowdoin continued to fight all the way to the end, punctuated by reigning NESCAC Playero of the Week John McGinnis' (F, '14) shot block to deny Montagna the empty-net goal with under five seconds remaining, but Oswego would prevail, 4-3. Zawadzki racked up 27 saves to pick up the win for Oswego, while Fenkell nailed down 32 saves for Bowdoin.
Despite taking the loss, Bowdoin head coach Terry Meagher had reason to be proud of his team and the effort they put together on the road not only in this game, but throughout the postseason.
“I thought it was a great game today, I couldnt be more proud of a group of young men on not only how they performed today and how they’ve represented the conference, but the run they’ve been on in the past month. We haven’t been home in a month, they’ve dealt with it, and they met those challenges, and I couldn’t be more proud of them.”
The Polar Bears fall to a final record of 17-9-2 on the season, as their season once again came to an end in an NCAA Tournament game in Central New York for the fourth time in five years. Meanwhile, the Lakers improve to 21-6-2, and advance to the quarterfinal round, where they will square off with the Babson Beavers on Sunday, March 16th at 3 PM.
 |
| Harry Matheson (#12) had a goal and an assist to end his Bowdoin career with 100 points. |
Bowdoin Polar Bears (17-9-2) 3
On Wednesday, an already long road to the postseason got even longer for both Oswego and Bowdoin. The night’s scheduled NCAA tournament contest between the two was temporarily wiped off the schedule as a sizeable blizzard pelted Central New York that afternoon, prompting Oswego to cancel classes and the game along with it. No matter what team you happened to be rooting for, the rescheduled matchup was worth the wait as Oswego advanced in an intense seesaw battle by a 4-3 final.
With the way the final score was decided, it was only fitting that the two teams played to a 0-0 tie at the end of the opening frame. Oswego had several chances to break open the scoring early, aided by their first powerplay opportunity just 3:22 into the matchup, but two hit posts and the outstanding goaltending of Bowdoin’s Max Fenkell (G, '15) helped keep the game scoreless. Fenkell’s first period performance was highlighted by a spectacular kick save with four minutes to go in the first period. Meanwhile, Oswego’s Matt Zawadzki (G, '17) was terrific as well, coming up with 13 saves.
But, with two offensively gifted teams, something had to give, and it was the young Lakers who would draw first blood by virtue of one of the components of their program's identity throughout the years: the transition game. At the 6:04 mark of the second period, freshman Alex Botten (F, '17) took advantage of crisp north-south passing from Nick Rivait (D, '15) to Matt Galati (F, '17). Botten took the entry pass over the offensive stripe, cut to his right, and backhanded a shot over the shoulder of Fenkell to give the Lakers a 1-0 lead.
But as fate would have it, the Polar Bears and Lakers would end the period tied. Coming up on the final minute of the period, Bowdoin’s Jay Livermore (D, '14) cranked up a blast to the top shelf to even things up at one.
Both goaltenders were lucky that two goals were all that was scored in the second period. Zawadzki and Fenkell both found themselves saved by a stoppage in play in a dangerous situation over the course of the period. First, a scrum erupted in front of Fenkell, who made the initial save through traffic but could not hang onto the rebound. Before either team could move in to clean up, the referees blew the play dead. Then, in the closing seconds of the period, Bowdoin’s Connor Quinn (F, '15) jumped on a pass and brought John Mcginnis in tow for a shorthanded rush, but it was not to be as the period expired when Quinn got to the offensive stripe.
Bowdoin carried the momentum forward into the third period as they killed off the remainder of the carryover penalty from Zach Kokosa (F, '17), then went on to lead by as many as two goals. Matt Rubinoff (F, '16) knocked home one of the two Bowdoin tallies in the period with the assist coming to Harry Matheson (F, '14), before Matheson assumed the role of goal scorer to give Bowdoin a 3-1 lead. The two points (1-1-2) on the afternoon gave Matheson exactly 100 (53-47-100) for his Bowdoin career.
With Bowdoin in command of the game, Oswego head coach Ed Gosek burned his timeout after the Matheson goal in attempt to turn the tide in the Lakers favor. The strategy paid off as Oswego rattled off three consecutive goals from Botten, David Titanic (F, '14), and Mike Montagna (F, '15). After the game, Gosek looked back on his game-changing decision to call timeout.
“With the timeout, the reality was, we had to change or the outcome was going to stay the same. We started moving our feet, started getting pucks in deep and with that came the momentum shift,” Gosek said.
Botten’s game-winner highlighted the Laker run, as Titanic drove in from the right wing side and dished out a picture perfect pass across the crease to Botten to pick up the go-ahead goal with 3:20 to go.
Bowdoin continued to fight all the way to the end, punctuated by reigning NESCAC Playero of the Week John McGinnis' (F, '14) shot block to deny Montagna the empty-net goal with under five seconds remaining, but Oswego would prevail, 4-3. Zawadzki racked up 27 saves to pick up the win for Oswego, while Fenkell nailed down 32 saves for Bowdoin.
Despite taking the loss, Bowdoin head coach Terry Meagher had reason to be proud of his team and the effort they put together on the road not only in this game, but throughout the postseason.
“I thought it was a great game today, I couldnt be more proud of a group of young men on not only how they performed today and how they’ve represented the conference, but the run they’ve been on in the past month. We haven’t been home in a month, they’ve dealt with it, and they met those challenges, and I couldn’t be more proud of them.”
The Polar Bears fall to a final record of 17-9-2 on the season, as their season once again came to an end in an NCAA Tournament game in Central New York for the fourth time in five years. Meanwhile, the Lakers improve to 21-6-2, and advance to the quarterfinal round, where they will square off with the Babson Beavers on Sunday, March 16th at 3 PM.
Friday, January 31, 2014
Out-of-conference season wrap. Nescac teams go 29-20-8 before hitting the homestretch of NESCAC play.
By Benet Pols
With Bowdoin’s 4-1 win over USM on January 28th NESCAC’s regular season out-of-conference play has come to an end for the 2013-14 season. The next time a NESCAC team will see an OOC opponent will be in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Bowdoin and Colby, entering a bye-week, have just six conference games remaining to make their argument to host the NESCAC tournament; the rest of the conference play eight more games each.
With Bowdoin’s 4-1 win over USM on January 28th NESCAC’s regular season out-of-conference play has come to an end for the 2013-14 season. The next time a NESCAC team will see an OOC opponent will be in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Bowdoin and Colby, entering a bye-week, have just six conference games remaining to make their argument to host the NESCAC tournament; the rest of the conference play eight more games each.
With NESCAC’s over-all-record in OOC play a healthy 29-20-8
it’s time to re-examine our mid-season prognosis, look at how the individual
teams fared, give some more thought to what the OOC results might mean for
post-season play, and to eat a little crow.
In looking at OOC schedules I rated the individual schedules for difficulty. Not surprisingly the five most difficult OOC schedules, Hamilton, Williams, Midd, Amherst & CC, netted the NESCAC a record of 9-14-4, while the five easiest schedules, Bowdoin, Colby, Wesleyan, Trinity & Tufts, yielded a robust 20-6-4. Bowdoin, Trinity, & Wesleyan went a collective 15-1-2.
In looking at OOC schedules I rated the individual schedules for difficulty. Not surprisingly the five most difficult OOC schedules, Hamilton, Williams, Midd, Amherst & CC, netted the NESCAC a record of 9-14-4, while the five easiest schedules, Bowdoin, Colby, Wesleyan, Trinity & Tufts, yielded a robust 20-6-4. Bowdoin, Trinity, & Wesleyan went a collective 15-1-2.
Williams. 1st
in NESCAC (tie), 13-3-2 overall, 9-1-2 NESCAC,
3-2 OOC (4-2 non-conference including win over Hamilton at
Buck Classic)
The Ephs, first in the NESCAC at 9-1-2, played one of the harder OOC schedules this year. Due to the vagaries of holiday tournament scheduling the Ephs ended up playing a non-conference game against fellow NESCAC member Hamilton in the Buck Classic.
Here’s my early assessment of Williams OOC schedule.
The Ephs, first in the NESCAC at 9-1-2, played one of the harder OOC schedules this year. Due to the vagaries of holiday tournament scheduling the Ephs ended up playing a non-conference game against fellow NESCAC member Hamilton in the Buck Classic.
Here’s my early assessment of Williams OOC schedule.
"The Ephs have nearly as strong a schedule (as Middlebury & Hamilton) playing four tough games in six OOC contests. Only Johnson & Wales of the ECAC-NE should be considered weak. Manhattanville cracked the NCAA regional rankings late last season."
Here’s how the Ephs’ OOC schedule played out:
12/1/13 Babson, 3-2
1/3/14 Hobart, 2-3 OT (Buck Holiday Classic)
1/4/14 Hamilton, 4-3 OT (Buck)
1/11/14 Johnson and Wales, 2-3 OT
1/17/14 Manhattanville, 4-1
1/18/14 Plattsburgh, 5-1
I underestimated Johnson and Wales; it’s possible Williams did too. The Wildcats, from Providence Rhode Island, are 14-4 overall; at 4-3 in the ECAC-NE they sit 3rd in the conference. But, in addition to beating Williams, the Wildcats took a pair of 2-1 wins against Buffalo State, currently 3rd place in the mighty SUNYAC. Although they’ve yet to crack the top fifteen of either poll the Wildcats have drawn a few votes in the most recent polls over at USCHO and D3Hockey.
On the other hand, the surprising Johnson and Wales just made Williams
already difficult schedule even harder. With the exception of Hamilton, every team the Ephs played has a winning record; their opponents combined winning percentage is .651. Four games were decided by just a goal
with three of them going to overtime.
 |
| With Williams at 9-1-2 and Bowdoin at 6-5-1 in NESCAC, it's unlikely the Polar Bear faithful at The Sid will see purple again this season. Bowdoin would need a lot of help to host the NESCAC tournament. Bowdoin's Coach Terry Meagher told The Orient: "They're not in first place by accident. Arguably they have the best goaltender in the east." |
Trinity. 2nd in NESCAC (tie), 14-4 overall, 9-3 NESCAC,
OOC 5-1
How about Trinity? The Bantams, tied for second in NESCAC 9-3 record, ended their out-of-conference play at 5-1.
11/30/13 Salve Regina, 6-3
12/1/13 Wentworth, 4-3
12/5/13 Stonehill, 0-2
12/7/12 Manhattanville, 6-3
1/3/14 Becker, 5-4
1/4/14 WNEC, 10-1
But here’s what I said about Trinity’s OOC schedule earlier this year: “Wesleyan and Trinity bring in the least competitive OOC schedules. Each team plays just one OOC game against a historically strong team. . . .Trinity’s toughest opponent has been Manhattanville whom they beat 6-3, but the Bantams suffered a weird loss to Stonehill. With wins against Salve Regina and Wentworth, they’ll close out with Becker and Western New England College.”
Not a ringing endorsement.
If the NESCAC season ended now with either Williams or Trinty winning the conference tournament and its automatic trip to the NCAA tournament, how would the other team fare as runner-up looking for an at-large, or “Pool-C” tournament bid? Would the Bantams’ dominance of a weak OOC schedule help their NCAA chances? What about Williams decent, but not dominant performance against much tougher competition?
The answer depends on which of the so-called primary criteria for NCAA selection you’re talking about. The gurus tell us that it's impossible to tell which, if any, of the criteria listed are most important.
If the NESCAC season ended now with either Williams or Trinty winning the conference tournament and its automatic trip to the NCAA tournament, how would the other team fare as runner-up looking for an at-large, or “Pool-C” tournament bid? Would the Bantams’ dominance of a weak OOC schedule help their NCAA chances? What about Williams decent, but not dominant performance against much tougher competition?
The answer depends on which of the so-called primary criteria for NCAA selection you’re talking about. The gurus tell us that it's impossible to tell which, if any, of the criteria listed are most important.
But here are the six primary criteria:
1) Won-lost percentage against DIII opponents. In past years this criterion has been win-loss percentage against regional opponents.
2) DIII head-to-head competition. The DIII label is surplusage.
3) Results versus common DIII opponents.
4) Results versus ranked DIII teams as established by the
rankings at the time of selection. Conference postseason contests are included.
5) Division III strength of schedule. In the past this has been calculated by using 2/3 Opponents' Average Winning Percentage (OWP) and 1/3 Opponents' Opponents' Winning Percentage (OOWP)
6) Should a committee find that evaluation of a team’s won-lost
percentage during the last 25 percent of the season is applicable (i.e.,
end-of-season performance), it may adopt such criteria with approval from the
Championships Committee.
Stonehill is a DII school so the Bantam’s loss won’t even be considered
in analyzing the primary criteria (play against DII schools does come back into play if the committee
looks to secondary criteria but lets try and keep it simple here). For
Trinity, their only DIII OOC opponent with a record above .500 is
Manhattanville and the Valiants just barely make it. As a group Trinity’s opponents' combined winning percentage is .417. On the strength of schedule measure
Trinity’s OOC schedule is a loser
But for a straight up 5-O against DIII OOC opponents? Hard
to argue that’s not a boost in the “win-loss percentage against DIII opponents” category.
How does this stack up against Williams 4-2 record against decidedly tougher competition? In contrast with Trinity only one of the Ephs’s non-conference opponents is below .500 and that is fellow NESCAC member Hamilton at 4-10-3. The Ephs' opponents' combined winning percentage is .651. Clearly Williams gets the boost from the strength of schedule criterion, and 4-2 represents a decent win-loss percentage.
Because the Ephs will probably get the nod in the final category, “results against ranked teams,” I’m giving the nod to Williams on the chance for an at-large bid if they’re conference runner-up.
Play against ranked teams is a concept that won’t become clear until that last few weeks of the season. It includes consideration of play against teams within your conference and those from outside the conference. Because none of Trinity’s OOC opponents are likely to be ranked this year, Williams gets the nod as right now; the Ephs hold two wins against teams that are likely to be ranked late in the season: Babson and Plattsburgh.
As the NESCAC season winds down and the conference playoff picture becomes more clear we'll take a detailed look at the prospects for two NESCAC teams to make the NCAA tournament. For a taste of how that question will unfold this year you can review last year's prediction that no matter how good the runner-up was only the NESCAC conference champion would qualify for NCAA play. But if you read it note that the primary criteria have changed a bit since last season.
Amherst. 2nd in NESCAC (tied with Trinity but holding the tie breaker; the Jeffs swept the season series against Trinity, 11-6-1 overall, 9-3 NESCAC,
OOC 2-3-1
At second place in NESCAC the Lord Jeffs are 9-3 in
the conference and 11-6-1 overall. Their 2-3-1 OOC schedule, which I concluded
was a clear fourth in the NESCAC, went like this:
11/26/13 St. Mikes, 4-0
11/30/13 Babson, 0-2
1/3/14 Plymouth St., 4-3
1/4/14 Norwich, 1-5
1/24/14 Concordia (Wis), 4-4
1/25/14 Lake Forest, 1-3
Nothing in this schedule will help the Jeffs with an NCAA
bid. First they have a losing record. Second, while their two western opponents, Lake
Forest (10-8-1) and Concordia (8-7-4) are above .500 neither is lighting up the
NCHA. Plymouth State is not having a good season and St. Mike’s, with just 3
wins, is last in the ECAC-E.
On the bright side for the Jeffs Babson at 16-3 and Norwich
(14-3-2) are doing great, and both will likely be considered ranked
during the crucial final weeks of the season. But……both beat Amherst.
Bowdoin. 4th
NESCAC (tie), 11-5-2 overall, 6-5-1 NESCAC,
OOC, 5-0-1.
Colby. 4th
NESCAC (tie), 9-6-2 overall, 6-5-1 NESCAC
OOC, 3-1-2
Bowdoin and Colby, ranked 4th and 5th in NESCAC with identical 6-5-1 records had very similar OOC schedules. The Polar bears, the last NESCAC team to wrap-up OOC play finished 5-0-1 with a winning percentage of .916:
Bowdoin and Colby, ranked 4th and 5th in NESCAC with identical 6-5-1 records had very similar OOC schedules. The Polar bears, the last NESCAC team to wrap-up OOC play finished 5-0-1 with a winning percentage of .916:
11/26/13 UNE, 9-3
11/30/13 Suffolk, 5-0
12/1/13 UMD, 5-1
12/10/13 USM, 3-3
1/7/14 UNE, 4-3
1/28/14 USM, 4-1
Meanwhile, the Mules at 3-1-2, completed this schedule:
11/19/13 USM, 5-2
11/30/13 UMD, 4-4
12/1/13 Suffolk, 6-3
1/2/14 Wentworth 5-3
1/3/14 Babson 2-3
1/7/14 USM 3-3
Both teams from Maine will benefit with respect to win-loss
percentage against DIII opponents but it’s hard to argue any benefits on
the strength of schedule front. Bowdoin’s opponents have a meager .323 winning
percentage, while Colby’s, boosted substantially by Babson’s 16 wins, still
tops out at just .425.
I had Colby and Bowdoin’s OOC schedules ranked 6th
and 7th respectively in NESCAC and noted that the only thing that
really distinguished them from those of with even weaker OOC schedules was the
fact that at least some of their weaker opponents played in a stronger
conference, the ECAC-E.
 |
| Senior Ben Chwick snipes against UMass Dartmouth in early season out of conference play. Colby came away with a 4-4 tie. Chwick leads the team in scoring with 12 goals and 10 assists in 18 games. |
I don’t have to eat crow on this as USM, sitting 9th
of ten in ECAC-E managed ties with Bowdoin and Colby at home in Gorham while
succumbing in Brunswick and Waterville. Meanwhile UNE is having their best
season in five years of varsity hockey and took out powerful Babson earlier
this year.
But neither of these facts means anything in terms of
numbers. UNE’s winning percentage of .425 against the ECAC-E counts just about the
same as Curry’s .444 in ECAC-NE. By the same token, Colby’s 3-2 loss to Babson
showed their season turn around is for real; unfortunately for the Mules it is
still a loss and won’t help with an NCAA selection.
Middlebury. 4th
NESCAC, 8-8-2 overall, 6-5-1 NESCAC,
OOC 2-3-1
Currently 4th in NESCAC with a 6-5-1 record
(8-8-2) overall, the Panthers played what was arguably the toughest OOC
schedule. Earlier I wrote this:
“It’s tough not to credit Middlebury with the toughest OOC schedule when you realize they’ll play Norwich and Plattsburgh twice each this year. The Panthers surprised the then 2nd ranked Cadets by advancing to the final of the Primelink Tournament with their shoot-out victory. The shoot-out gave the Panthers a crack at Plattsburgh the following night. The Cards, now ranked 1st by USCHO were then sitting in 3rd place, put away Middlebury with a big first period.
In mid-January the Panthers will see both teams again as part of their Lake Champlain hell weekend. The Panthers host number 1 Plattsburgh on the 17th and travel to number 5 Norwich the following night.”
It was a hell weekend indeed as the Panthers lost to Plattsburgh 4-2 and were handily beaten by a Norwich team that skated to a 5-0 lead after only allowing the Panthers one shot on goal during the first period. Middlebury got two late goals for respectability, but it was all Cadets. This is how Midd's OOC schedule went:
11/29/13 Norwich, 1-1
11/30/13 Plattsburgh, 1-3
1/3/14 St. Mikes 6-2
1/4/14 Neumann 3-1
1/17/14 Plattsburgh 2-4
1/18/14 Norwich 2-5
For the Panthers their 2-3-1 OOC record won’t help them secure an NCAA spot. Again, their opponents have strong winning percentages: Plattsburgh’s is .842, Norwich .789, and Neumann .556, but the Panthers are just 1-3-1 against these teams. The moral victory shootout win against Norwich at the Primelink goes in the books as a tie.
A bigger problem for Midd is its NESCAC record and the rest of their schedule. The Panthers still face a home and home series with first place Williams, and a road game with Trinity. Last the Panthers face a final weekend game with Amherst.
You have to wonder about the decision to exile goaltender
Mike Peters after pulling him during the first period against Plattsburgh at
the Primelink (three goals on eight shots). Peters had been 3-0-2 until that
point in the season after coming on late last season to lend some stability to
a four-goaltender carousel.
 |
| The goaltending carousel at Middlebury enters its second year. Nick BonDurant was relieved after 1:42 at Bowdoin on Jan 24th. Drew Michals, pictured, finished the 5-4 OT loss. Michael Peters, with a season record of 4-1-2 played at Colby the following day. |
This season while Peters sat three other goalies went 3-6 for the Panthers.
Peters returned to the crease on January 25th against a Colby team
that had just knocked off Williams and allowed just two goals in getting the
win. His season record is now at 4-1-2. Injury is not a likely explanation as
Peters dressed for seven of the nine games Midd played during his walk through
goalie purgatory.
Connecticut College. 7th NESCAC, 5-12-1 overall, 4-8 NESCAC
Hamilton. 8th NESCAC, 4-10-3 overall, 3-7-2 NESCAC
Connecticut College. 7th NESCAC, 5-12-1 overall, 4-8 NESCAC
OOC, 1-4-1
The Camels also took on the Utica Pioneers, falling 5-1. Like Hamilton, the Camels also took down hapless Canton but ended their OOC season 1-4-1. Overall CC's opponents’ winning percentage is strong with Manhattanville and Salem State over .500, Utica at .667 and Oswego at .722, but for now this is really about building a solid OOC schedule for the future. It’s a schedule I called the 5th hardest in NESCAC. Like Hamilton, the Camels need to worry about the final couple playoff spots in the NESCAC.
11/30/13 Utica, 1-512/1/13 Salem St, 0-112/3/13 Manhattanville, 0-61/4/14 Canton 5-21/7/14 Oswego 0-51/11/14 Curry 4-4
 |
This Keith Veronesi shot for the game winning goal in overtime at Bowdoin
on December 6th had to be one of the few early highlights for CC this season.
Recently the Camels have taken important games from Hamilton, Wesleyan,
and Middlebury to put themselves back in playoff contention. 3-3 over the
last three weeks their losses include an OT loss to Trinity and 1-0 loss
to first place Williams.
|
Hamilton. 8th NESCAC, 4-10-3 overall, 3-7-2 NESCAC
OOC 1-3-1 (1-4-1 including non-conference loss to Williams at the Buck Classic)
I gave Hamilton credit for the toughest OOC schedule noting:
“Good arguments can be made for Middlebury and Williams but because the Conts finished low last year the nod for courageous scheduling goes to Clinton.”
Unfortunately for the Conts they need to worry more about maintaining a playoff position within NESCAC than what their tough OOC schedule means. Hamilton finished their five game OOC slate 1-3-1 with the lone win against independent punching bag Canton and a tie with a frustrated Utica team. Aside from Canton, the “weakest” team in Hamilton’s OOC schedule is Utica with a .667 wining percentage.
12/1/13 Suny Canton, 3-0
1/3/14 Plattsburgh 2-5
1/4/14 Williams 3-4 OT
1/24/14 Suny Geneseo 1-5
1/25/14 Utica 4-4
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| Plagued by injuries and early graduations a promising start to Hamilton's season has been stymied. They do lead the league in one thing though: penalty minutes. The Conts average 16.2 minutes per game in the box; against their NESCAC brethren they ratchet it up to 16.8. With just the 7th best penalty kill in the conference avoiding the extra minutes would be prudent. Here Jon Carkeek takes a 5 minute major, and picks up the added bonus of a misconduct. |
Wesleyan. 9th
NESCAC, 8-8-2 overall, 3-8-1 NESCAC
OOC 5-0-1
The Cardinals OOC schedule is where I made my biggest
mistake. I undervalued New England College now at 14-6-1 overall, including a recent thiller over Norwich, and
sitting 3rd in the ECAC-E. Moreover, I didn’t look hard enough at Hobart’s
2-4-4 start which included six overtime games and some tough competition. Even
Salve Regina, at 5-2 and leading the oft maligned ECAC-NE, has tangled with Trinity,
Hobart, Utica, Neumann, Oswego, Castleton & Skidmore, all middle of the
pack to top rated teams in the three most competitive eastern conferences. I
should have ranked Wesleyan’s OOC schedule 6th
just behind Connecticut College. The Card's OOC record:
11/26/13 Stonehill, 5-3
11/30/13 Wentworth, 2-2
12/1/13 Salve Regina, 6-2
12/7/13 Hobart, 6-2
1/3/14 NEC 4-2
1/5/14 Canton 4-3
Tufts. 10th
NESCAC, 3-15 overall, 1-11 NESCAC
OOC, 2-4
The Jumbo moves slowly. Bringing up the rear is Tufts at 1-11 in NESCAC and 3-15 overall; even their fairly weak OOC schedule has not done
much for their overall record. At 2-4 it’s possible that they should have added
Canton too.
11/26/13 Becker, 4-6
11/30/13 Castleton St, 4-3
12/1/13 Manhattanville, 0-3
1/4/14 SNHU 4-5
1/5/14 Suffolk 4-1
1/8/14 Suffolk 3-4
Sunday, April 14, 2013
The History of NESCAC National Titles
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| Most recent NESCAC National Champs: 2013 Amherst men's basketball |
Yale's victory comes just six days after the most recent NESCAC national title, Amherst's Division-III NCAA championship victory in men's basketball. The Lord Jeffs beat Mary Hardin-Baylor, 87-70, in front of a D-III championship record crowd of 6,284 at Phillips Arena, home of the NBA's Atlanta Hawks. The NCAA moved the D-III title game, held in Salem,VA for the past 18 years, to Atlanta in order to include D-III in the 75th anniversary of the NCAA men's basketball tournament.
The other NCAA title for a NESCAC squad in the 2012-13 academic calendar came in the fall of 2012, when the Tufts field hockey team won their first ever championship. The two trophies this season bring the all-time NCAA title count to 77 for the 'CAC; all but two came after the NESCAC lifted its ban on post-season tournament play in 1993.
From its inception in 1971, the NESCAC - New England Small School Athletic Conference- has stressed academics over athletics, or as the league puts it, "keeping a proper perspective on the role of sport in higher education." As part of that "proper perspective," the league banned post-season NCAA play for member schools from 1971 to 1993. Despite this ban, the Williams' women managed to win the NCAA D-III swimming and diving titles in 1982 and 1983 by qualifying enough individuals to outscore any other team.
After breaking free in 93, the NESCAC has gone on to win a whopping 75 NCAA D-III national championships in the ensuing two decades. NESCAC football teams, like their brethren in the ivies, still have the postseason ban in effect. All other sports are free to chase after NCAA titles to their heart's content.
In men 's hockey, Middlebury is the only NESCAC school to win an NCAA championship, but they have done it a record eight times, including five straight titles from 1995-99 and a three-peat from 2004-06.
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| 1995 Middlebury team: 1st NESCAC MIH NCAA title |
Below, we have listed all 77 NCAA titles won by the 11 current NESCAC member schools. Union was an original NESCAC charter member, but they left in 1977 so they don't get included (Conn College took their spot in 1982). Even though Bates doesn't have a hockey program, we have included them on the list since the Bobcats are a NESCAC member in other sports. The point becomes moot though, as Bates has never won an NCAA title in any sport.
A cursory look at the list finds that Middlebury (31 titles) and Williams (27 titles) share the bulk of NESCAC's national success. The sum of all nine other schools' championships (19) is still less than either the Panthers or Ephs individual achievements. Besides Bates, Conn College and Wesleyan are the only other NESCAC schools that haven't won a national championship.
As far as the gender breakdown, the 'CAC women have 51 titles to the men's 26. The sport with the most unique NESCAC champions is lacrosse, with five schools winning at least one championship in either men's or women's lax.
Our list does not include Trinity's impressive fourteen men's squash titles, as squash is governed by the College Squash Association (CSA) and is not an NCAA sport. Same goes for Tufts sailing and the Middlebury women's skiing team, which won back-to-back titles in 1979 and 1980; women's skiing was not an NCAA sport until 1983.
The NESCAC website has a full list of NESCAC national championships, which includes the non-NCAA titles. It, however, does not include Hamilton's 2008 NCAA women's lacrosse championship, as the Continentals played in the Liberty League for lacrosse at that time. Hamilton aligned all sports with the NESCAC after the 2010-11 season.
NESCAC NCAA Division III National Championships
Amherst Lord Jeffs (10)
Total men's titles: (3) Basketball (2: 2013; 2007); Tennis (2011);
Total women's titles: (7) Basketball (2011); Ice Hockey (2: 2009, 2010);
Cross Country (2008); Lacrosse (2003); Tennis (1999); Golf (1990);
Bates Bobcats (0)
Bowdoin Polar Bears (3)
Women's Titles: (3) Field Hockey (3: 2008, 2009, 2011)
Colby Mules (1)
Women's Titles: (1) Rowing (2002-03)
Connecticut College Camels (0)
Hamilton Continentals (1)
Women's Titles: (1) Lacrosse (2007-08)
Middlebury Panthers (31)
Men's Titles: (14) Hockey ( 8: 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2006); Lacrosse (3: 200, 2001, 2002); Tennis ( 2: 2004, 2010); Soccer (2007)
Women's Titles: (17) Cross Country ( 6: 2000, 2001, 2003, 2006, 2008, 2010); Ice Hockey (5: 2000, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2006)
Trinity Bantams (2)
Men's Titles (1): Baseball (2008)
Women's Titles (1): Lacrosse (2012)
Tufts Jumbos (2)
Men's Titles (1): Lacrosse (2010)
Women's Titles (1): Field Hockey (2012)
Wesleyan Cardinals (0)
Williams Ephs (27)
Men's Titles (7): Basketball (2003); Cross Country (2: 1994,1995); Soccer (1995); Tennis (1999, 2001, 2002)
Women's Titles (20): Rowing (8: 2002, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012); Cross Country (2: 2002, 2004); Indoor Track & Field (2007); Swimming & Diving (2: 1982, 1983); Tennis (7: 2001, 2002, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012)
Thursday, March 28, 2013
News and Notes 3/28/13: Bracket Challenge, NESCAC Pro Hockey update and new Trinity recruit
NCAA Hockey Tournament Bracket Challenge
As we did with the basketball tournament, we are doing a bracket challenge for the 2013 NCAA D-I men's hockey tournament. Sign up at the site below and join the group "NESCACHockey". The password: inthecac.
Fill out our bracket and enjoy the tournament. The winner gets a shirt (pictured) and 'Cac bragging rights.
You can enter any time up until puck drop of the first game at 2 PM tomorrow. Unlike the basketball tournament there are only 16 teams, so picking teams isn't time consuming.
Bracket Challenge: Sign up/Login
NESCAC Pro-Hockey Update
The Spring Break pro-hockey journeys of both Wesleyan's Nick Craven (F, Sr.) and Bowdoin's Al
Milley (D, Sr.) have both come to an end.
Craven signed an Amateur Tryout Contract (ATO) with the AHL's Binghamton Senators on March 6th and appeared in four games, registering no points and getting off four shots on goal. On Monday, March 25th Craven was released from his contract.
A week after Bowdoin was eliminted from the NCAA tournament in Utica, Milley signed a Standard Player Contract with the ECHL's Wheeling Nailers on Saturday, March 16th. Milley appeared in one game was released five days later on March 21st.
New Recruit for Trinity
In D-III hockey nothing is final until the "commit" makes it to campus and has his name listed on the roster in November. But generally you have a good idea before then who will or won't be on the team. Via the twitter feed of Westminster center Sean Orlando, he will be joining Matt Greason's Trinity squad next year.
Orlando played on a 2011-12 Westminster team with Evan Neugold of Middlebury, who had a successful 18 point (8-10-18) rookie campaign as a Panther. Orlando's current teammate, defender Xaviar Morion, has commited to Hamilton.
You can enter any time up until puck drop of the first game at 2 PM tomorrow. Unlike the basketball tournament there are only 16 teams, so picking teams isn't time consuming.
Bracket Challenge: Sign up/Login
NESCAC Pro-Hockey Update
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| Nick Craven (Photo courtesy of Just Sports Photography ) |
Milley (D, Sr.) have both come to an end.
Craven signed an Amateur Tryout Contract (ATO) with the AHL's Binghamton Senators on March 6th and appeared in four games, registering no points and getting off four shots on goal. On Monday, March 25th Craven was released from his contract.
A week after Bowdoin was eliminted from the NCAA tournament in Utica, Milley signed a Standard Player Contract with the ECHL's Wheeling Nailers on Saturday, March 16th. Milley appeared in one game was released five days later on March 21st.
New Recruit for Trinity
In D-III hockey nothing is final until the "commit" makes it to campus and has his name listed on the roster in November. But generally you have a good idea before then who will or won't be on the team. Via the twitter feed of Westminster center Sean Orlando, he will be joining Matt Greason's Trinity squad next year.
Can't wait to spend four more years with @eholdaway83 Trinity College class of 2017 #Martlets #BantamsThe player referenced in the tweet refers to Orlando's Westy teammate Ethan Holdaway, who had already committed to Trinity. Orlando spent the past two years on Westminster after making the big jump to prep school from Tier II hockey with the Hatfield Ice Dogs in Pennsylvania. As a Senior in 2012-13, Orlando had 24 points (10-14-24) in 16 games for the New England Prep School runner-ups (Westy lost to Salisbury in the championship).
— Sean Orlando (@shorelandobloom) March 27, 2013
Orlando played on a 2011-12 Westminster team with Evan Neugold of Middlebury, who had a successful 18 point (8-10-18) rookie campaign as a Panther. Orlando's current teammate, defender Xaviar Morion, has commited to Hamilton.
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
NCAA D-1 NCAA Tournament: Six Degrees of 'Cac Separation
The NCAA announced its field of 16 Sunday night for the D-I men's ice hockey tournament. Though NESCAC hockey ended with Bowdoin's 4-2 loss to Utica on March 9th in the Quarterfinal Round of the D-III tournament, 'CAC connections run deep throughout the rosters and coaching staffs of the 16 D-I championship hopefuls.
 |
Bazin was followed to Lowell by his star at Hamilton, 2011 NESCAC Player of the year Joe Houk (D, Jr.). The switch was unsolicited by Bazin and Houk had to sit out the 2011-12 season per NCAA transfer rules. Though he didn't score in his first year in Division-I hockey, the 6'0" 204 lb defender received regular playing time and reached double digit in points (0-10-10). For more on Bazin and Houk, check out the Word Press blog post about the duo.
Bazin took over Lowell from Blaise MacDonald, who was relieved of his duties as River Hawks head coach in March 2011 after amassing a 150-178-2 record in 10 seasons. After spending a year as a UMass-Amherst assistant, MacDonald ended up in the NESCAC as the head coach of the Colby Mules.
Other 'Cac coaching connnections in the NCAA tournament include Rand Pecknold, head coach of the 1st overall seed Qunnipiac Bobcats and Connecticut College alum ('90). Former longtime Colby coach (1995-2011) and brother of New York Rangers coach John Tortorella, Jim Tortorella serves as an assistant coach for the New Hampshire Wildcats, who will take on Denver in the NorthEast regional (same bracket as Lowell). Former Williams assistant (2007-08) Dan Muse is an assistant on the Yale staff. The fourth seeded Bulldogs will play Minnesota, the top seed in the West Region.
This is to say nothing of the players. Many of the D-1 puckers who will compete for the ultimate prize at the Frozen Four in Pittsburgh grew up playing with or against many of the current NESCAC players. To take one example, Lowell's Terrence Wallin (F, So.) and Boston College's Danny Linell (F, So.) played on a 2009 Long Island Gulls Midget National team with Brian McNamara (D, So.) and Sean Dougherty (G, So.) of Williams and Joseph Rausch (F, So.) of Hamilton.
The Gulls made it all the way to the National semifinals, where they lost, 9-6, to national runner-up Team
The leading scorer for Team Comcast, Kyle Criscuolo (F, Fr.), now plays for Harvard. Before ending up in Cambridge, MA, he joined former LI Gull and current BC Eagle Linell at Choate Rosemary Hall with a slew of NESCAC players. The Gulls McNamara/Rausch laced up the skates for the Wild Boars, as well as Middlebury's Nick BonDurant (G, Jr.) and Conn College's Mike Doyle (D, So.) and Adam Patel (F, So.).
And all those tangential NESCAC/D1 connections come from one example. You could take almost any successful AAA youth hockey team or junior team or prep school team and most likely find similar connections. The bottom line is that NESCAC players grew up playing the highest level of competitive youth hockey alongside D-I players.
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| Map of the 59 D-1 men's hockey teams (source; click to englarge) |
If we add in the 79 D-II/III men's hockey programs, that is still only 138 opportunities to play NCAA hockey, or 209 less NCAA hockey programs than D-I basketball programs. While hockey rosters have more players and more kids growing up play basketball than hockey, it still remains that collegiate hockey opportunities are scarcer than those in hoops.
In the press conference earlier this month announcing his retirement, legendary Boston University hockey coach Jack Parker lamented the increased age of collegiate players from when he took over the Terriers 40 years ago. NESCAC players don't get scholarships or play on national - or even regional- television, but they delay their entrance into college for PG years and junior hockey just as their D-I counterparts do.
That's not to say NESCAC or D-III players/teams are on the same plane as the boys vying to make it to Pittsburgh. Division I is Division I. Players are better and they often hone their skills in juniors longer. But the gap between D-I and D-III may be smaller than many think. As Bowdoin assistant coach and recruiting director Jamie Dumont said in a recent Maine Hockey Journal article:
“We make our living here in the NESCAC and at some of the other top Division III schools, we make our living on those ‘in-betweeners,’ who probably could play Division I in a year’s time, or don’t want to go walk on, they want to go to a school where they will be a four-year contributor.”So as you watch the field of 16 fight over the next few weeks for the ultimate prize in college hockey, just remember that many of those involved in the conflict once played or coached on the same level as the NESCAC coaches and players. And if you are bored, you can always try to play the game, Six Degrees of 'Cac Separation.
It's easy. Just choose a player in the NCAA Tournament and try to connect him in six players or less to a NESCAC player. Take for example Erik Haula (F, Jr.), the point leader (16-33-49) for second ranked Minnesota. The Finnish born Golden Gopher played on the 2009-10 Omaha Lancers with Stefan Demopoulos (F, So.) of the Providence Friars. Demopoulous played on the 2008-09 Avon Old Farms team with six 2012-13 NESCACers: Connor Doyle (F, Fr.) and Eric Naclerio (D, So.) of Conn College, Spike Smigelski (F, Sr.) and Mike Debello (F, Fr.) of Colby, Michael Flynn (D, So.) of Trinity and Dylan Shamburger (F, Fr.) of Bowdoin.
See it's fun. Now you try.
Note: If you want a chance to win a NESCACHockey.com shirt (pictured below), you can enter our D-I men's hockey tournament bracket challenge here. Sign up and join the group "NESCACHockey". The password: inthecac. Fill out our bracket and enjoy the tournament. The winner gets a shirt and 'Cac bragging rights.
Bracket Challenge: http://www.pickemhockey.com/bracket/index.php
Monday, March 18, 2013
News and Notes 3/18/13: Bowdoin defenseman goes pro, March Madness and more
Bowdoin's Milley signs SPC with Wheeling Nailers of ECHL
.jpg) |
| Milley sports flowing locks |
The ECHL is the second highest level of minor league hockey in North America, behind only the American Hockey League (AHL). 25 of 30 NHL franchises have an affiliation with one of the ECHL's 23 teams. The Wheeling Nailers, based in Wheeling, West Virginia, are affiliated with the Pittsburgh Penguins and Montreal Canadiens. The Nailers currently sit eight points behind the Walleye for the eighth and final playoff spot with seven games remaining in the regular season.
The 5'9" 165 lb. defenseman from Winchester, Mass. played in 49 games in four years at Bowdoin, garnering 32 penalty minutes and 6 points (3-3-6). He scored his third and final collegiate goal in Bowdoin's 5-2 NCAA Tournament opening round victory over UMass-Dartmouth on March 6th, exactly three years to the day (3/6/10) after his second college goal. Milley wore number 26 for the Polar Bears but wears number four for the Nailers.
Alexander Milley's official Wheeling Nailers roster page
March Madness
You can enter and follow the standings here. No fee for entry, limit one entry per person. You can signup with a yahoo ID, facebook or google account. Standard bracket scoring: 1 point for correct picks from the round of 64, 2 points for the round of 32, 4 points for the sweet 16, etc. You have until tip-off of the first game on Thursday, March 21st to enter.
NESCACHOCKEY. COM TOURNAMENT CHALLENGE
Recruitment
With the season officially over for all of D-III and most of awards season having come and gone, the majority of the attention in the NESCAC puck world turns towards recruiting. We'll have our own list and coverage, but for now you can check out the WordPress blog's recruitment list and the USCHO forum recruitment list thread.
If you know of other credible resources for D-III hockey recruitment or have tips on recruits not listed on any of these sites, please email us.
Saturday, March 16, 2013
FINAL: Women and Men's NCAA D-III Hockey Championships
WOMEN (from Superior, Wisconsin)
Elmira 1
Middlebury 0
FINAL Box Score Preview
1st Period: Middlebury has three power plays but can't capitalize. First period ends as it began, 0-0. Shots are even too, 6-6.
2nd Period: Elmira goes on their first power play of the game 3:18. The Soaring Eagles get a few good shots but can't put it in. Elmira gets another Power play chance when Middlebury's Maggie Woodward gets called for hooking 9:41 into the period. Not long after the second penalty of the period is killed, Vermont native Taylor Steadman puts the Soaring Eagles up 1-0 on an assist by yesterday's OT hero Sam Curk. With three and a half remaining Curk gets called for checking (can't hit like the boys in women's hockey) but Middlebury falls to 0-4 on the PP for the game. Much higher paced period, with shots in favor of Elmira 14-11 for the period and 20-17 for the game.
3rd Period: With 7:30 remaining Middlebury's leader in points Hannah Bielawski has a breakaway but is stoned by Elmira's Lauren Sullivan. The Panthers call timeout with 2:34 remaining. Middlebury finally pulls Annabelle Jones with 1:20 remaining, but has to put her back in just 14 seconds later for a faceoff. The Panthers finally pull her for good with thirty seconds to go but they can't muster a goal. Final shots in favor of Middlebury 30-26. It is a nation leading 11th shutout of the season for Sullivan.
Elmira avenges the 2005 finals loss to Middlebury and wins their first NCAA D-III Women's Ice Hockey Championship in 10 years.
MEN (from Lake Placid, NY)
Oswego 3
Wisconsin Eau-Claire 5
FINAL Box Score
1st Period: After Oswego gets its first shot 8 minutes in, the Lakers go on the first PP of the game 8:44 in on an Isaiah Bennis elbowing call. The Blugolds All-American goalie Brandon Stephenson robs Zach Josepher and Tyler Leimbrock on the power play. As the power play expires at 10:44, Bobby Gertsakis bangs home a rebound off a Look Moodie shot to put the Lakers up 1-0. 31 seconds later Chris Muise beats Stephenson and Oswego takes a 2-0 lead. Despite the score, W-EC controls most of the first 12 minutes.
Chris Muise erases the goodwill from his goal a few minutes later with a boarding call to put the Blugolds on their first power play. Just seven seconds into the man advantage W-EC's Jordan Singer gets his team on the board, 2-1. Leimbrock gets tripped by Alex Olson to put the Lakers back on the power play with 3:11 remaining, but the Blugolds kill it. W-EC ties it on an Andrew Wilcox goal with just 53 seconds remaining. 1st period ends with the score knotted at two, shots in favor of the Blugolds 13-11.
2nd Period: 6:29 into the period Daniel Olszewksi gives W-EC their first lead of the game on a goal off a rebound. Lakers have three power plays in the period, including a 5-3 for 41 seconds, but they can't capitalize. Shots in favor of Oswego 7-4 in the period, 18-17 for the game. Oswego begins the third on the PP.
3rd Period: Blugolds kill off the penalty. 7:20 into the period W-EC gets an insurance goal from Devin Mantha, son of former NHL player Moe Mantha. Gerstakis gets his second of the night when his shot from the right point carroms off a defender's skate and into the net exactly halfway through the period. 4-3. Kurt Weston puts in an empty netter with 58 seconds remaining to seal it. Shots in favor of Oswego 30-25 for the game.
1st NCAA men's hockey title for W-EC in only their second NCAA Tournament appearance (1st was last year). Though they aren't near Buffalo, it is appropriate that Oswego is from upstate New York, as they lose back to back national championships a la the 90s Buffalo Bills.
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
News and Notes 3/12/13: Jack Parker, NESCAC hockey releases and basketball
Jack Parker Retirement
As we talked about yesterday, Jack Parker officially announced his retirement, come the end of the season, after 40 years as the men's hockey coach at Boston University. The BU athletic website released a list of tweets on the retirement from colleagues, media and the hockey community. The list included this tweet, from former Parker assistant and current Colby head coach Blaise MacDonald.
At 10:45 into the video, Parker talks about players today being older than they were when he first started coaching. He then mentions Bowdoin coach Terry Meagher, who Parker said discussed retiring from Bowdoin with his former college coach (but Parker didn't mention his retirement to Meagher). One of things that has "aggravated" Meagher, according to Parker, is how people used to return to Canada to play "senior" hockey after finishing juniors or college, but now college hockey is senior hockey.
As we talked about yesterday, Jack Parker officially announced his retirement, come the end of the season, after 40 years as the men's hockey coach at Boston University. The BU athletic website released a list of tweets on the retirement from colleagues, media and the hockey community. The list included this tweet, from former Parker assistant and current Colby head coach Blaise MacDonald.
Jack Parker is a gifted person who twice the person as he is a coach. Anytime I was at a crossroad he was a guiding light. Thanks Jack!!As for the retirement presser itself, there were a couple of mentions of NESCAC coaches. At 9:45 into the video below, Brion O'Connor of ESPNBoston asks Coach Parker about what has changed in college hockey during his 40 year tenure as BU's bench boss. After railing against the cages on helmets ("The face mask ruined the game") and praising coaching ("attention to detail by all the coaches is much better"), Parker turned his attention to the players.
— Blaise MacDonald (@MacDBlaise) March 12, 2013
At 10:45 into the video, Parker talks about players today being older than they were when he first started coaching. He then mentions Bowdoin coach Terry Meagher, who Parker said discussed retiring from Bowdoin with his former college coach (but Parker didn't mention his retirement to Meagher). One of things that has "aggravated" Meagher, according to Parker, is how people used to return to Canada to play "senior" hockey after finishing juniors or college, but now college hockey is senior hockey.
Monday, March 11, 2013
Video of Utica's game winning goal
On Saturday night, Utica defeated Bowdoin, 4-2, on four unanswered goals to send the Pioneers to Lake Placid for the D-III Frozen Four. The game winning goal, a deflection by Ridge Garbutt (F, Jr.) off an Evan Chlanda (F, Sr.) shot caused controversy for some who thought it came off a high stick (it was high, but it was not a "high stick"). Thanks to the marvels of modern technology, a Bowdoin fan (Gully Foyle, we originally said Utica fan; apologies) in attendance posted a HD video of the goal on YouTube with slow motion replay. Watch for yourself.
Sunday, March 10, 2013
Bowdoin at Utica: An NCAA Quarterfinal in tweets and pics
Pre-Game
Hyped up for tomorrow! #UCHockey #SeeYouAtTheAud twitter.com/melissajmorrow…
— Melissa Morrow (@melissajmorrow) March 8, 2013
Watch hs hockey online today on Sun Journal and Bowdoin D3 game vs Utica is here @8:30.empire8.tv/play/index.cfm…
— Rob Munzing (@MunzingMedia) March 9, 2013
Cannot wait for Saturday. Playing for a chance to head back to Lake Placid and play in the old home barn #UChockey #Nwood #cantbestopped
— Jordan Hobaica (@Hoby15) March 7, 2013
Tell em game was moved to Clinton arena. RT @pb_reporter Large group of Bowdoin fans at Delmonico's
— Caz (@cazzball) March 9, 2013
Locker room is ready to go. It's the NCAA tournament for the first time in program history! twitter.com/UCMensHockey/s…
— UC Men's Hockey (@UCMensHockey) March 9, 2013
NCAA Tournament Quarterfinal Roundup: Utica 4/Bowdoin 2
Bowdoin Polar Bears (23-4-2) 2
Utica Pioneers (21-5-2) 4
It was over when...: Utica's Eric Peterson (F, SR.) netted an empty net goal with 53.4 seconds remaining to cap off four unanswered tallies and send the Pioneers to their first ever NCAA D-III men's ice hockey Final Four in what Utica Coach Gary Heenan called a "win by committee." Bowdoin's most successful season in program history came to an end after the Polar Bears carried a 2-0 lead into the first intermission for the third time in the last four games.
Neither team seemed to find their rhythm in the first ten minutes of play, as the Utica radio announcers said it was "blue line to blue line." For Utica, it was their first game in twenty days, so there may have been a bit of getting the rust off. For Bowdoin, as Coach Meagher said, "the first ten minutes were about feeling out the sheet of ice itself."
Utica Pioneers (21-5-2) 4It was over when...: Utica's Eric Peterson (F, SR.) netted an empty net goal with 53.4 seconds remaining to cap off four unanswered tallies and send the Pioneers to their first ever NCAA D-III men's ice hockey Final Four in what Utica Coach Gary Heenan called a "win by committee." Bowdoin's most successful season in program history came to an end after the Polar Bears carried a 2-0 lead into the first intermission for the third time in the last four games.
Neither team seemed to find their rhythm in the first ten minutes of play, as the Utica radio announcers said it was "blue line to blue line." For Utica, it was their first game in twenty days, so there may have been a bit of getting the rust off. For Bowdoin, as Coach Meagher said, "the first ten minutes were about feeling out the sheet of ice itself."
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