This season is now underway. Discuss. The Gophs got off to a solid start on Sat. with a 7-2 win over Ohio State in the Hall of Fame game at the X in St. Paul. Goals by Vanek, Riddle, Welch, Koalska, Ballard, Hirsch, and Iron Range superstar Gino Guyer. Another Ranger, Travis Weber got the start in goal and had 21 saves.
ohio state goalie mike betz had 44 saves in the game. ohio state goals were scored by 2001 nhl first round draft pick r.j. umberger while being shorthanded, and from lee spector.
Michigan won their first round game at the Xerox Punch Imlach College Hockey Showcase 3-0 over Niagara. This took them to the final against North Dakota. The Fighting Sioux took a tough 5-4 win in OT. Wolverines to watch: Al Montoya is Michigan's fifth straight goaltender to come in as a freshman and start. The other four were four-year starters-- Warren Sharples, Steve Shields, Marty Turco, and Josh Blackburn.
UNH got their recovery from the semi-final debacle last spring underway by traveling to Burlington and crushing UVm 10-0.
UVM's really starting to feel the reprocussions from the hazing incident in I want to say 1999-2000, when they forefited half their season. Not only did some players leave who would still have a bit of elighbility left, incidents like that severely damage recruitng for a while.
Hey, at least they're not Syracuse Football, or UNH Football for that matter! Personally, I'm kind of hoping for 80s/early 90s Nebraska Football. Remember how they always lost their bowl games for a while before putting it together in the mid-90s? Well, the Wildcats have the 1st part down. Also, unless you follow Maine or a midwest school (I don't remember from the Spring), UNH did better than your team.
I don't know if I'd say they're just starting. They've been bottom-feeders almost straight through since then.
My school was BC (class of 1993). We sucked last year, but given that they won it all in '01 for the first title in any sport in 50 years, I think Jerry York has earned rights to at least five years of general suckitude before I or anyone else can complain. UNH should aspire to be BC -- four straight years of the Frozen Four. Heartbreaking losses for the first three to Michigan, Maine and North Dakota, then followed by beating all three of those teams in order to win the title. Movie script-style stuff.
But it's going to get worse before it gets better. I don't ever remember them getting crushed 10-0 at the Gut, even against a power like UNH.
I never got around to it until now, but Colorado College and UMass Lowell played an interesting series over the weekend. I had the opportunity to check out Friday night's opener, a 6-4 CC win. 4 PPG goals doomed UML, ironic since penalty killing is traditionally their strength. Coach Blaise McDonald pulled the team off the ice right at the end of the game, he was very pissed off at the officiating. A bright note: freshman Andrew Martin scored his first two college goals. This guy looks like he can score any way, one timer, mucking in front, you name it. UML won Saturday 4-1, a game I didn't see.
According to this week's polls, North Dakota is 7th by USA Today and 9th by US College Hockey Online (which is a good site, BTW). The top 5 in both are Minnesota, Denver, UNH, BU and Maine.
Our first real test will be this weekend's series against UNH. Any predictions? BTW, Grant Potulny is out for something like 6 weeks with a broken fibula, IRRC. He'll be missed. I predict a split, with the Gophs taking Friday's game, but losing in a close one on Sat. Both teams will probably still be juggling their top lines and won't be at peak form.
@UNH Travis Weber, from my hometown , got the start against Ohio State and will probably play again on Friday. It sounds like he'll be rotating with Justin Johnson for the first half of the season, and whoever plays better will get the nod for the 2nd half of the year and playoffs. They're both sophomores.
Sounds like a fair way to do it. UNH has the big ice surface in the supposed to be beautiful Whittemore Center, but a lot of people tell me that the home ice advantage isn't quite what it was when old Snively Arena was packed. The crowd isn't quite on top of you I guess. It'll be a good series just the same.
Re: Re: College Hockey 02-03 Then you must have good memories of the HEM line -- David Emma, Steve Heinz and Marty McInnis.
The Saturday game will also be Rod Langway night, in honor of the UNH alum's induction this year into the Hockey Hall of Fame. It will also be on the NH PBS station, which is on Boston cable, so I'll be able to watch it. Cool! I'm not usually one for predictions, and I haven't seen either team this year (or Minnesota at all, for that matter), but I would be least surprised by a split, with the Wildcats winning on Saturday.
Re: Re: Re: College Hockey 02-03 In retrospect, a rather odd set of outcomes for the players on the 1989-91 teams. Emma won the Hobey but is the only one of those star forwards who failed to make any impact in the NHL. The one who has become the most valuable, Bill Guerin, wasn't even on the first line. Maybe it shouldn't have been too surprising, because Emma was a total finesse player (almost European in style) while Heinze and Guerin were built for the NHL. Guerin was a maniac while at BC, the hardest hitter I've ever seen in college hockey. If they allowed fighting in the NCAA, he would have led the team in penalty minutes.
I figure a split between Minnie and UNH this weekend. UNH demolished UVM last weekend, but that doesn't mean much, because everybody is going to beat up on them this year. The Gophs had a tougher matchup but also won, over Ohio State. Yeah, I say a split.
I miss old Snively. Went there when I was a kid growing up in Rochester, NH and when I was an undergraduate at UNH. I haven't had a chance to go to the Whittemore Center, but I have heard the same things about it you said. GO CATS!!! I say we will get a sweep over the Gophers and claim the number one spot in the country!
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: College Hockey 02-03 No, apparently, BC has retired seven jerseys. If Gionta has any sort of NHL career he'd likely be #8.