Throwback Thursday: The Bowdoin Orient 1982-83

Sid Watson retired after 24 years behind Bowdoin bench

I recently stumbled upon archives of most of the volumes of The Bowdoin Orient, Bowdoin's student run newspaper, dating back to 1871. Sifting through old newspaper can be a tremendously valuable experience, especially to see how people discussed historical events when they were still current events.Take for example the December 6, 1963  edition of The Orient, in which we find a speech from Bowdoin professor Lawrence S. Hall memorializing President John F Kennedy Jr., who was assassinated exactly half a century ago next month.
 
No NESCAC hockey story will ever be particularly historical since few outside of the small but dedicated cohort consuming Division III hockey will be interested in such stories. But if anyone or anything is historical in the 'Cac, it's the last two coaches at Bowdoin: legend Sidney Watson and current coach and living legend Terry Meagher. Up to and including this year, no person has held the head hockey coaching position at the Brunswick institution outside of this dynamic duo since before JFK was campaigning for the 1960 Presidential election. Watson manned the helm from 1959-1983 and Meagher has taken on the responsibility since.

Thanks to the archives of The Orient in 1982-83, we can track the last season of Watson's career and the announcement of Meagher taking over. Ctrl +F-ing our way through the 235 pages of Orient that year, we see how important Watson was to Bowdoin, from coaching hockey and golf to running the athletic department as AD and taking part in administrative committees for the college.

We see an article complaining about the conditioning of the team and the press box at Watson Arena in the Polar Bears 5-2 opening win over their "bitter rivals" from Waterville (Colby) and an article by Stephen Minklus bemoaning the Polar Bears awful road record that year. At 11-13-1, it wasn't a particularly memorable final season on the bench for Watson.. Thanks to the wonders of the internet, we also know that Mr. Minklus traded in his student journalism hat for a JD and now is a successful real estate lawyer in the Boston area. The Editor-in-chief that year, Marijane Brown, went on to Harvard Law and is also a lawyer in the Boston area. In 2012, she won The Bowdoin Alumni Service Award for her lifetime of service to the college. Thanks, internet.

And then there's the February 18,1983 front page article "Coach Watson Hangs up Hat" (a reference to his iconic fedora) (page 146) announcing that Sid Watson would be stepping down from his coaching post to focus on his role as Athletic Director. Later in the year, on April 22, 1983, (page 214) we find out that a young assistant coach from Clarkson University, Terry Meagher, was chosen as Watson's replacement after a search of 40 candidates. Watson described Meagher as "one of the finest young coaches in the business. He is highly respected by everyone and will do an excellent job in continuing the tradition of hockey success we have at Bowdoin." Good call, Sid. 

You might notice a familiar name in the first article of the first page of the first issue from the 235 pages of The Orient from 1982-83, "Greason convokes new Bowdoin year." The President of Bowdoin in 82-83 was A. Leroy Greason, grandfather of reigning men's hockey NESCAC Coach of the Year, Trinity's Matt Greason. It's a small NESCAC world, after all.

Read More: The Bowdoin Orient Archives on the Internet Archive 

Throwback Thursday: The Gaffneys

Only 64 more days until the opening of the 2013-14 NESCAC men's hockey season

1995 Bowdoin Polar Bears (courtesy of Bowdoin) 

(#IsItNovember15thYet?). Charlie Gaffney's 64 points in the 1992-93 season puts him third on the all-time Bowdoin single-season scoring list behind Charlie Gaffney's 65 in 93-94 and Charlie Gaffney's 67 in 94-95.

As you may have guessed, Charlie Gaffney ('95) is the Polar Bears all time leading scorer with 228 points (84-144). He's not the Bowdoin All-Time goal scorer though, as that distinction goes to linemate Marcello Gentille ('95) and his 101 career goals. Also on that formidable Polar Bear line from the early 90s? Charlie's twin brother, Joe Gaffney, who co-captained the team with Charlie their senior season and who sits second on the All-Time scoring list behind his brother with 183 points (70-113). 

Charlie Gaffney raked up a slew of honors during his time in Brunswick, including becoming just the third Polar Bear to garner three All-American honors and the first and only Bowdoin player to ever win AHCA's D-III Player of the Year Award when he did it 1995.  In 2006, Bowdoin elected Charlie to its Athletic Hall of Honor. 

Both of the Gaffney Twinstars went on to have brief minor league careers. Charlie had 40 points (18-22) in 64 career ECHL games with the Nashville Knights and Birmingham Bulls. Joe played with Charlie on the Knights in 1995-96 and then skated for the Nashville Nighthawks of the CHL in 1996-97. Overall, he had 29 points (14-15) in 78 professional games.

If the twins weren't enough Gaffney for Bowdoin, their sister Susan Gaffney Rowley ('97) is an alumna as well. Jon Gaffney, who earned an assist on Utica's game winning goal over Bowdoin in the 2013 NCAA tournament quarterfinals, is not related. 

Throwback Thursday: The Founding of the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC)

from Princeton University Press

Today marks 71 days until the start of the 2013-14 NESCAC men's ice hockey season on November 15th. In 1971, Bowdoin won its first ECAC hockey championship and future Conn College program founder and head coach Doug Roberts represented the California Golden Seals in the NHL All-Star game.

71 was also the year the New England Small College Athletic Conference, or NESCAC, was founded. As the 'Cac's official site says:

Founded in 1971, the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) is a group of eleven highly selective liberal arts colleges and universities that share a similar philosophy for intercollegiate athletics. The Conference was created out of a concern for the direction of intercollegiate athletic programs, and remains committed to keeping a proper perspective on the role of sport in higher education.

The league had eleven members in 1971, only Union College was a charter member while Connecticut College was not. Williams' President John Sawyer, the first chair of the NESCAC Presidents' Conference Committee, articulated the philosophy of the league: "The largest feasible participation in a wide variety of sports well coached by high-quality people who remain genuinely interested in the students' personal growth and genuinely mindful of the educational goals of the enterprise."

Throwback Thursday: Middlebury's Legendary Two-Headed Scoring Monster of Mike Karin ('59) and Phil Latreille ('61)

 courtesy of Tad Merrick (Middlebury Magazine)

Last season we referred to Wesleyan's tandem of Keith Buehler ('14) and Nick Craven ('13) as the
"two-head scoring monster," and rightly so. The duo combined for 73 points, between Buehler's 40 (20-20, 1st in NESCAC) and Craven's 33 (16-17-33, 3rd in NESCAC).

But the Cardinal combo can't hold a candle historically to Middlebury's Mike Karin ('59) and Phil Latreille ('61). Karin, who current Middlebury head coach Bill Beaney called a "Gretzky of his time," still holds the NCAA record for assists per game in a season at 3.1. Latreille, who would go on to briefly play for the New York Rangers, set an NCAA record for goals in a season with 80.

Notice those are NCAA records, not NCAA Division III records. Prior to 1964 there were no Divisions I,II or III, as all schools, regardless of size, played in one division. Karin and Latreille even pre-date the NESCAC, as the league was not officially founded unti l971.

Karin came to the Green Mountains in 1955 from Lake Placid, where he played prep hockey at Northwood School, the same establishment that produced the Fenwicks, three brothers currently playing in the NESCAC: Andrew (Amherst '15), Chris (Bowdoin '16) and Scott (Colby '17), who recently arrived in Waterville. Before going to Northwood, Karin grew up in the sleepy upstate town of Clinton, NY, home of Hamilton College. Mike was the stick boy for the minor league Clinton Comets at Clinton Arena, a rink that still stands and hosts the Hamilton Continentals once a year. 

#ThrowbackThursday: Fred Ahern (Bowdoin '74) and the NHL of the 1970s

Fred Ahern (Bowdoin '74) in the NHL (courtesy of  Clover Hockey)

Bowdoin's Jon Landry ('06) recently signed a one-year, two way contract with the Minnesota Wild. He'll most likely start the season with the Iowa Wild (AHL), but if he makes it north to Minnie, he'll become the second Polar Bear to make the NHL.

The first was Fred Ahern ('74), who played 146 NHL games from 1974-78 with the California Golden Seals/Cleveland Barons and Colorado Rockies (present day New Jersey Devils). Ahern came to Brunswick, ME from Beantown, where he grew up playing youth hockey and HS puck at Boston Technical High School. Despite the Hockey Hall of Fame site listing Ahern as playing four years at Bowdoin,  freshman were not allowed to play varsity sports at Bowdoin until 1975-76, so that 1970-71 season must have been freshman hockey. In his three years of varsity hockey under the immortal Sid Watson, Ahern garnered 93 points (38-55-93); a solid career, no doubt, but south of the century club and nowhere near the top of the All-Time Polar Bear scorers' list.

Undrafted out of Bowdoin, Ahern played most of 1974-76 in Utah with the Salt Lake Golden Eagles, the Central Hockey League affiliate of the NHL's California Golden Seals. The 6'0" 180 lb wing only played in a handful of NHL games in 1975 but did well in his 1976 call-up, scoring 25 points (17-8-25) in 44 games.

In 1976, Ahern played for the USA in the Canada Cup, though the patriots were eliminated after an opening round (1-3-1) record in round robin play. 20 years later, fellow NESCAC alum Guy Hebert (Hamilton '89) would represent the red,white and blue in the 1996 World Cup, the amped up successor to the Canada Cup; only this time, the good guys took home the gold.

When the Seals packed up and moved 2,455 miles from sunny Oakland, CA to rusty Cleveland, OH to become the Cleveland Barons (named after the longtime AHL franchise) in 1976, Ahern made the trek. The NESCAC alum holds the distinction of scoring the first goal in Barons history on October 6, 1976 in a 2-2 tie with Los Angeles.  Just 25 games into the Barons inaugaral season, Ahern suffered a broken arm that would sideline him for the remainder of the season. He was traded along with Raph Klassen mid-way through the 1977-78 season to the Colorado Rockies in exchange for Chuck Arnason and Rick Jodzio.

Klassen and Jodzio win the most interesting tidbits award in that trade. Jodzio was part of one of the most infamous hockey fights in professional puck lore; as a member of the Calgary Cowboys of the Western Hockey Association in 1976, Jodzio blind-sided the Quebec Nordiques' (then a member of the WHA) Marc Tardif with a high-stick in a playoff game and continued to beat a helpless and unconscious Tardif on the ice. What ensued was a benches clearing brawl. Thanks to the wonders of YouTube, you can see the brawl (but not the initial hit), complete with metal music backing because of course it's metal for a hockey fight.

Klassen, on the other hand, is famous for something far less sinister that never even occurred on the ice. Thanks to the Hartford Whalers NHL expansion draft and some trades, Klassen was a member of four NHL teams in one day (Colorado, Hartford, N.Y. Islanders, St. Louis), a record that still stands.

Back to Ahern, he was traded back to the Barons after the 1977-78 season for cash, but would never play another NHL game. The Barons wouldn't play another game in the NHL either, as the NHL merged cash strapped Cleveland with another struggling franchise, the Minnesota North Stars, in June of 1978.  The North Stars survived, but NHL hockey in Cleveland vanished. The Barons are the last team in any of the four major North American sports leagues (MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL) to cease operations. Their legacy includes two cellar dweller seasons in the rust belt and a co-captain, Bob Stewart, who holds the record for worst career +/- in NHL history (-260). 

Ahern would go on to play five more seasons of hockey in North American minor leagues and one season internationally in Sweden before finally hanging up his skates in 1982. In the end, the Boston native ended up with 61 career NHL points (30-31-61), certainly nothing to sneeze at for a guy that couldn't crack the century club at Bowdoin.  In 2005, Ahern was elected into the Massachusetts Hockey Hall of Fame along with Ahern's coach at Bowdoin, the legendary Sidney Watson.

The pic up above comes to us thanks to a website dedicated to Clover Hockey, a summer travel team in Massachussets that Ahern played for in the 70s. The Clovers have quite the alumni list including NHL Hall of Famer Tony Amonte and Craig MacTavish, famous for being the last NHL player to not wear a helmet. Check out the site. 

Read More: Official Hockey Hall of Fame Site - - Fred Vincent Ahern

Read More: Hockey-Reference - - Fred Ahern bio and NHL stats 

Read More: Bowdoin Atheltics - - Massachusetts Hockey Hall of Fame Honors Watson, Ahern 

Throwback Thursday: 1996 World Cup 4th of July Edition

 Guy Hebert (Hamilton '89) USA jersey from 1996 World Cup

Happy 4th of July, 'Cac hockey fans. In honor of the holiday falling on a Throwback Thursday, we present you with the United States men's national hockey team that won the gold medal at the 1996 World Cup of hockey. Guy Hebert, everyone's favorite NESCAC pucker turned NHL goalie, was a member of that team.

1996 saw the World Cup of Hockey replace the Canada Cup (1976-1991) as one of the premiere international hockey championships. Unlike the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) sanctioned Winter Olympics and annual World Ice Hockey Championships, the World Cup of Hockey was organized by the NHL; as such, they played by NHL and not IIHF rules.

Since the tournament took place in August and September during the NHL offseason the best players in the world were able to participate, in stark contrast to the World Ice Hockey Championships, which take place during the Stanley Cup playoffs.  Some stars declined to participate, like Dominik Hasek (Czech Republic) of the Buffalo Sabres, while others missed the tournament due to injury, like the Vancouver Canucks' Pavel Bure (Russia).

The tournament was divided into two four team pools: North America and Europe. The North American pool featured Canada and the United States along with non-North American foes Russia and Slovakia. The European pool consisted of Sweden, Finland, Germany and Czech Republic.

 Ron Wilson - - then head coach of the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim -- served as bench boss for the American squad. Wilson brought his franchise goaltender, Hamilton alumnus Guy Hebert '89, to backup the New York Rangers' Mike Richter. The USA roster boasted star skaters such as the soon to be ageless wonder Chris Chelios (Chicago Blackhawks), the future before picture in a diet commercial, Keith Tkachuk (Winnipeg Jets/Phoenix Coyotes), and 2009 Hockey Hall of Fame inductees Brett Hull (St. Louis Blues) and Brian Leetch (New York Rangers).

The USA won all three of its pool play games, including a 5-3 win in Philadelphia on August 31st over the rival Canadian team captained by Wayne Gretzky. Gretzky preferred the tournament when it was the Canada Cup. The Great One led all four Canadian Cups he was part of in scoring. In his only World Cup appearance, he finished tied for third in scoring with seven points (3-4-7).

Tournament MVP Richter played almost the entire seven game tournament for the USA, but Hebert did play one full game in net; a 9-3 victory over Slovakia at Madison Square Garden in the pool play finale on September 3rd.

As NA pool winners, the Americans received a bye into the semifinals, where they defeated Russia 5-2 in Ottawa on September 8th to setup a re-match with Canada in the finals. Unlike the single elimination Quarters and semis, the finals were a best-of-3 series. The Canadians took game one in Philly 4-3 (OT)  on the strength of a Steve Yzerman (Detroit Red Wings) goal in overtime. The USA had tied the game with just seven seconds left to send it to the extra frame.

The final two games were played in Montreal, with the United States winning both 5-2 to take the first ever World Cup of Hockey crown. 15 minutes worth of game 3 highlights called by the immortal Doc Emrick and John Davidson can be found below.

The second installment of the World Cup took place in 2004, just prior to the 2004-05 NHL lockout that claimed an entire NHL season. This time, Canada took home the Gold, defeating Finland 3-2 in the one game final. The United States lost to Finland 2-1 in the semis thanks to a Saku Koivu (Montreal Canadiens) goal in the third period. There have been no World Cup of Hockeys since the second installment in 2004.

Hebert's best team finish in international play came in the 1996 World Cup, but his own personal international glory took place two years earlier in the 1994 World Championship.  The U.S.A. finished just out of the medal hunt with a fourth place finish, but Hebert was the goalie of record in a 3-1 win over Russia in the Quarterfinals, the first time the United States defeated the former Soviets in international play since the "Miracle on Ice" in 1980.

Hebert also made the 1998 U.S. Olympic squad at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan. It was the first time NHL players were able to participate in the Olympic Games with Hebert backing up Richter again along with John Vanbiesbrouck (Florida Panthers), the only man taken ahead of him in the 1993 NHL expansion draft. Hebert was the third string netminder and considered not going as his wife was expecting their first child during the Olympics. The United States lost to the Czech Republic 4-1 in the Quarterfinals in what was considered a failed tournament for the red,white and blue. The Czechs would ride the superb goaltending of Hasek all the way to a surprise gold medal victory over Russia. 

Read More: Hockey Hall of Fame - - Unites States 1996 World Cup 

Read More: CNN/SI -- Athlete Profile 1998 Olympics Athlete Profile : Guy Hebert 

Read More: The Strangest One of All, Scotty Wazz - - Absurd Goalie Monday: Guy Hebert 

Read More: Classic Auctions - - Guy Hebert Team USA 1996 World Cup of Hockey Game-Worn Jersey 

Guy Hebert Team USA 1996 World Cup of Hockey Game-Worn Jersey

Throwback Thursday: Middlebury/Norwich Rivalry

 

Green Mountain state foes Norwich and Middlebury have one of the oldest rivalries in Division III hockey, facing off on 145 occassions all-time. The Panthers hold a 80-58-7 advantage in the series, but the Cadets have had the last - or at least most recent - laugh, going 5-0-1 in the past six meetings. 

In 1998, the rivalry expanded to include the Primelink Great Northern ShootOut, an annual Thanksgiving weekend tournament featuring a core of Norwich, Middlebury, SUNY Plattsburgh and a fourth invitational team. The Cadets and Panthers have faced off in the tournament finals five times, with Middlebury taking the crown in 1998 and 2008 and Norwich winning in 2001,2004(shootout) and most recently in 2012. Overall, the Cadets have eight Primelink trophies and the Panthers have four.

This four minute video - set to the 1984 hit song "Live is Life" by Austrian pop-rock group Opus -  has highlights of the 2008 Primelink finals between Norwich and Middlebury at Kenyon Arena in Middlebury, VT. In the semifinals, the Cadets defeated Plattsburgh 3-3 in a shootout and the Panthers beat Minnesota's St. Thomas 5-3. 

After Norwich tied the game at two on a power play goal midway through the third, Middlebury's Mason Graddock scored the 3-2 game winning power play goal with just under three minutes to play. The primary assist went to then freshman defender Tucker Donahoe, brother of current Panther and 2012-13 Second Team All-NESCAC blueliner Robbie Donahoe. The brothers spent two years together in Vermont, before Tucker played one game of professional hockey in the ECHL for the Reading Royals on an ATO after his senior season in 2012. Robbie will be a senior on Bill Beaney's squad in the 2013-14 season. 

Read More: Primelink Great Northern Shootout 

Watch: YouTube - - Middlebury Norwich Hockey 11-29-08 Final

Throwback Thursday: Mike Cavanaugh (Bowdoin '90) and Trinity 2008 opener

Terry Meagher and Mike Cavanaugh in 1989-90 season

Social media outlets, ever the forum for historical perspective and alliteration, have a tradition of #ThrowbackThursdays, when users post pictures or videos of yesteryear on Thursdays (though hipsters might post with the hashtag on Wednesday).

This week we have a picture, courtesy of Bowdoin College via Benet Pols, of new UConn coach Mike Cavanaugh with Bowdoin coach Terry Meagher from Cavanaugh's senior season as a Polar Bear in 1989-90. On the video front, we have Trinity College's version of ESPN, "TSPN," and their coverage of the then defending NESCAC champion Bantams' 2008-09 season opener against Amherst.

Mike Cavanaugh 
A few weeks ago, the University of Connecticut hired Bowdoin alum Mike Cavanaugh ('90) as their men's hockey coach. Cavanaugh, a longtime assistant to living legend Jerry York at Boston College, joins Quinnipiac's Rand Pecknold (Conn College '90), as NESCAC men's hockey alumni currently coaching at the Division 1 level. 

Cavanaugh was a three-year ice hockey letterman for the Polar Bears, serving as captain in his senior season (1989-90). In this pic from 89-90, Cavanaugh stands next to his coach, 30 year (and current) Bowdoin bench boss Terry Meagher. The Bowdoin jersey has what one must assume is a snarling Polar Bear on it, but from the pic the animal looks more like a Jaguar. 

In the second pic, we have placed 2013 Meagher next to Cavanaugh from his UConn presser. Terry still likes to sport the athletic jacket outfit while Mike has traded in his snarling Polar Bear threads for a look that is more professional but has less hair. 

In addition to hockey, Cavanaugh captained and played wide receiver for Bowdoin football. After graduating, Cavanaugh spent one year in England as a player/coach for the British Hockey League's Richmond Flyers. Cavanaugh had 99 points (62-37-99) in 28 games with the Flyers.

Meagher/Cavanaugh now

When he returned stateside, Cavanaugh spent a year as an assistant at Belmont Hill School in 1991-92, before earning a master's degree in sports management from Bowling Green as part of Jerry York's BGU staff in 92-93. After two years as an assistant coach at Dartmouth, he followed York to BC, where Cavanaugh remained as an assistant coach for 18 seasons - the last nine coming under the title of associate head coach - until the UConn hiring.

In 2013 the American Hockey Coaches Association (AHCA) gave him the Terry Flannagan Award for career achievement as an assistant coach in college hockey. 

During his time at BC, Cavanaugh saw a Hobey Baker Award winner, four NCAA titles, ten Frozen Four appearances, 22 All-Americans and  27 Golden Eagles enter the NHL. This past season he coached Mike Matheson, a 2012 NHL first round draft pick and brother of Hamilton's Kenny Matheson. 

Read More: UConn Huskies - - Mike Cavanaugh Named Men's Ice Hockey Coach 

Trinity 2008-09 Opener 
In 2008, sixth seeded Trinity became the lowest seed to ever win a NESCAC men's ice hockey championship. In order to do so, the Bantams defeated third seed Bowdoin in the quarterfinals, top seed Colby in the semifinals and second seed Middlebury in the finals. As an automatic qualifier for the NCAA tournament, Trinity defeated UMass-Dartmouth (who Bowdoin beat in this year's NCAA tourney) in the first round but lost to Elmira in the quarterfinals.

The following fall, the defending NESCAC champions opened their season against the Amherst Lord Jeffs at home on Friday November 21, 2008. Trinity Sports Network, or TSPN - a play on the name of nearby Bristol, CT organization ESPN - did a highlight and fan reaction video for the game. Highlights of the first two periods are set to AC/DC's "Thunderstruck" and feature Trinity sporting some nifty gold jerseys with a large Bantam figure. They also show the Bantams three goals and no love loss between Trinity and the Lord Jeffs.

After the second period, host Joey Roberts talks to Trinity football and baseball players about the 3-3 game headed into the "third quarter." (whoops) Most of the commentary centers around the Mighty Ducks, including Bantam shortstop Kevin Collins imploring Trinity to use the flying V and cornerback Mike O'Connor asking, "What exactly is the Junior Goodwill Games?" 

Trinity first baseman Kent Graham feels confident his beloved Bantams will pull it out in the third period. Amherst, the eventual 2009 NESCAC champions, would win 5-3 on two third period goals. Jonathan La Rose, of 2012 D-III National Player of the Year fame, got the win in net for the Lord Jeffs. 

Throwback Thursday: 5/2/13

Social media outlets, ever the forum for historical perspective and alliteration, have a tradition of #ThrowbackThursdays, when users post pictures or videos of yesteryear on Thursdays (though hipsters might post with the hashtag on Wednesday).

In this spirit, we are going to post a throwback video, picture and/or game on Thursdays to give you a fix for your NESCAC hockey off-season jonesing. Today we have an Anaheim Mighty Ducks promo circa 1996 that stars Hamilton's Guy Hebert and a photo from one of the oldest rivalries in NCAA hockey.

Throwback Video: Guy Hebert 
As any NESCAC hockey historian - or anyone that has walked into the Hebert Shrine that is Sage Rink - knows, Guy Hebert is the most famous alum to grace New England Small School Athletic Conference ice. Hebert was drafted by the St. Louis Blues in 1987, between his sophomore and junior years at Hamilton. After winning 46 games as a Continenntal, Hebert went on to spend 10 years in the NHL as a member of the St. Louis Blues, Mighty Ducks of Anaheim and New York Rangers. The 1997 NHL All-Star was the first pick by the Mighty Ducks in the 1993 Expansion Draft and represented the United States in the 1994 World Championships and 1996 World Cup. Check out his full bio and stats(including for his time at Hamilton) here.

Today we present a Mighty Ducks commercial from 1996 starring Hebert.Commercials shouldn't bother you, unless of course you go to the Brunswick Re-Education Camp. (what up, NAS?). In this Prime Sports promo for a regular season Ducks game against "Super Mario (Mario Lemieux) and the Penguins,"  Hebert appears alone, in a dark rink, under spotlights at "6:42 PM," accompanied by Gregorian chanting.

The former Continental goalie then drops some fortune cookie knowledge, "I play behind a mask, I don't hide behind it/ I play because the glove is quicker than the eye/I play because I'm no sitting duck." The payoff comes when Hebert removes his mask and says, "I play for Prime Sports." Riveting stuff.

If you'd like to see the entire 1997 NHL All-Star game Hebert played in, you can find it on YouTube (thanks, internet!). Hebert's intro is about 11:40 in and he plays goalie in the third period for the Western Conference squad that lost 11-7 to the Eastern Conference. Hebert let up only one of the eleven goals.



Throwback Picture: Bowdoin-Colby Rivalry 

Bowdoin College Athletic DepartmentThe Polar Bears and White Mules playing at Bowdoin’s “Delta” outdoor rink in 1948.

Back in November 2012, with the NHL lockout in full effect, The New York Times hockey blog  "Slap Shot" had to look for alternatives to pro-hockey. So, they ended up turning to one of the oldest rivalries in collegiate hockey dating back to 1922 between the Bowdoin Polar Bears and the Colby Mules.

As we have discussed before, the Times clearly has a connection to the NESCAC as Hamilton games regularly appear among the handful of D-III scores published in the weekend sports section. In advance of the home and home (199th and 200th meetings) between Bowdoin and Colby, the Times posted an article about the rivalry on November 30, 2012, which included pictures (like the one above), a  background of the series and Bowdoin Coach Terry Meagher calling the rivalry a "little Beanpot." Meagher played in the actual Beanpot as a member of the Boston University hockey team in the 1970s.

Read More: New York Times Jeff Z Klein. - - Want a Real Rivalry? Try Bowdoin-Colby 

Throwback Thursday: 4/25/13

Social media outlets, ever the forum for historical perspective and alliteration, have a tradition of #ThrowbackThursdays, when users post pictures or videos of yesteryear on Thursdays (though hipsters might post with the hashtag on Wednesday).

In this spirit, we are going to post a throwback video, picture and/or game on Thursdays to give you a fix for your NESCAC hockey off-season jonesing. Today we have video from Trinity/Wesleyan's outdoor game in 2011 and pictures of the oldest active rink in not only the NESCAC, but all of D-III hockey.

Throwback Video: Wesleyan/Trinity 2011 Outdoor Game
When the New York Rangers AHL affiliate Connecticut Whale had their HockeyFest in 2011, NESCAC rivals Trinity and Wesleyan got to play an outdoor game at UConn's Renstschler Field in East Hartford, CT on February 15, 2011. The Bantams won, 3-1, and 2012-13 NESCAC puckers Larry Bero (Trinity), Keith Buehler (Wesleyan) and Donald Kleckner (Wesleyan) all had assists. 

With many prep schools participating in the two week festival, current 'Cac players that were still in high school at the time also participated in pond hockey: football stadium edition. One such game between Avon Old Farms and Kingswood-Oxford, featured five Avon NESCAC players:  Michael Flynn and Morgan Mullen of Trinity, Connor Doyle and Eric Naclerio (brother of Brown's Mark Naclerio) of Conn. College and Dylan Shamburger of Bowdoin. Mullen scored the fourth goal and Shamburger scored the eighth goal for an Avon team that routed K-O, 8-1. The lone goal for K-O came from Brett Buccigross, son of ESPN sportscaster John Buccigross. 

As for the Trinity-Wesleyan game, TrinTV provided highlights of the contest, which include cinematic references to Black Swan and Mighty Ducks, as well as some trash talking between Bantam and Cardinals fan(s). Find the embed below. 



Throwback Picture: Sage Rink

Middlebury's Kenyon Arena and Bowdoin's Sidney J. Watson Arena are the nicest in the NESCAC, but Hamilton's Sage Rink has the most history of any building in the conference. Built in 1921, Sage is the second oldest indoor college hockey rink in use, behind only D-I Northeastern's Matthews Arena. The rink was renovated in 1993, when it received structural enhancements as well as upgrades to the lighting system and ice-making equipment.

The Utica Observer-Dispatch has a cool photo gallery of Sage back in the 1920s and now, including pictures of the building's construction. Roaming the Rinks, a website dedicated to visiting the hockey rinks of North America, made a stop at Sage in 2010 and posted a write-up as well as a photo gallery for the visit.

Below, find Sage Rink in 1921 and in 2010. If you take the virtual tour of Hamilton's campus, you can see that structures such as the Scott Field house, which houses the team's indoor track and basketball/volleyball courts, have been built since Sage's completion to connect to the rink.