Re: UNH Wildcats 2013-14 Season Thread (Part 2)
Looking forward to another big weekend of hockey with two more at home for the Wildcats, as those 'Cats from just west of here come into town for an important series. UVM was idle this past weekend, so there may be some competitive rust evident in the early going, so it's up to UNH to come out quickly tonight and take control of things, and set the tone for the rest of the weekend. Build on the momentum from last weekend's Notre Dame sweep, and keep pushing to try to solidify a top 4 regular season finish. UNH is only a single point behind the two teams tied for second place; Northeastern has only one game this weekend (home tonight vs. UMass), and could be looking ahead to Monday's Beanpot Finals vs. BC, while UMass Lowell is on the road for a pair (BU & UMass).
So it's possible that with another strong performance this weekend, UNH could move up as high as 2nd place in the HE standings. As far as the teams just behind ... Providence has the weekend off, and UMaine is traveling to South Bend for a pair with the Irish. I'm going to predict the Black Bears will pull off a split against what I continue to feel is a very overrated Notre Dame team, and in doing so notch their first road win of the season. But if that doesn't happen ... there could be some separation between the top 4-5 teams and the rest of the league when things are done for the weekend on Saturday night.
From UVM's perspective ... this is probably their last shot at crawling back into contention for HE home ice, but they would need to sweep UNH to get back to .500, and they've still got a pretty daunting run-in (2 vs. BC, 2 @ Merrimack, 2 vs. UML) so they're running out of time and opportunities. In addition to being inactive last weekend, they're finishing up a stretch of 8 road games, and so far they've split their last three weekends away. A split this weekend does UVM even less good than it would for UNH. Split weekends are no way for any team to make up ground at this time of the season, so UVM should be coming here with tons of intensity.
Prediction? UNH wins on Friday night, but can't seal the deal on Saturday night (loss or tie). A three point weekend from UNH would guarantee them no worse than a tie for 3rd place by the end of the weekend, and a sweep could get them into 2nd place if UML falters in either of their road games. A two point weekend is a lost opportunity, and puts home ice in jeopardy again. Anything less than two points this weekend for UNH would be a huge setback, and puts the entire postseason outlook in serious jeopardy.
It would be a great time for another "statement weekend" like last weekend. It's all there for the taking. Make it happen.
Looking forward to another big weekend of hockey with two more at home for the Wildcats, as those 'Cats from just west of here come into town for an important series. UVM was idle this past weekend, so there may be some competitive rust evident in the early going, so it's up to UNH to come out quickly tonight and take control of things, and set the tone for the rest of the weekend. Build on the momentum from last weekend's Notre Dame sweep, and keep pushing to try to solidify a top 4 regular season finish. UNH is only a single point behind the two teams tied for second place; Northeastern has only one game this weekend (home tonight vs. UMass), and could be looking ahead to Monday's Beanpot Finals vs. BC, while UMass Lowell is on the road for a pair (BU & UMass).
So it's possible that with another strong performance this weekend, UNH could move up as high as 2nd place in the HE standings. As far as the teams just behind ... Providence has the weekend off, and UMaine is traveling to South Bend for a pair with the Irish. I'm going to predict the Black Bears will pull off a split against what I continue to feel is a very overrated Notre Dame team, and in doing so notch their first road win of the season. But if that doesn't happen ... there could be some separation between the top 4-5 teams and the rest of the league when things are done for the weekend on Saturday night.
From UVM's perspective ... this is probably their last shot at crawling back into contention for HE home ice, but they would need to sweep UNH to get back to .500, and they've still got a pretty daunting run-in (2 vs. BC, 2 @ Merrimack, 2 vs. UML) so they're running out of time and opportunities. In addition to being inactive last weekend, they're finishing up a stretch of 8 road games, and so far they've split their last three weekends away. A split this weekend does UVM even less good than it would for UNH. Split weekends are no way for any team to make up ground at this time of the season, so UVM should be coming here with tons of intensity.
Prediction? UNH wins on Friday night, but can't seal the deal on Saturday night (loss or tie). A three point weekend from UNH would guarantee them no worse than a tie for 3rd place by the end of the weekend, and a sweep could get them into 2nd place if UML falters in either of their road games. A two point weekend is a lost opportunity, and puts home ice in jeopardy again. Anything less than two points this weekend for UNH would be a huge setback, and puts the entire postseason outlook in serious jeopardy.
It would be a great time for another "statement weekend" like last weekend. It's all there for the taking. Make it happen.
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