2011-2012 UNH Wildcats

[MagicCat]

Re: 2011-2012 UNH Wildcats

With Desmith's play of late, as long as it continues. I would put him in front of Wyer, in the 1,1a type of ranking but they will probably have some sort of rotation next year

[C-H-C]

Re: 2011-2012 UNH Wildcats

Guys what happened with Wyer this year and where do you think he stands in the goalie plans after this year? Thanks

Jeff Wyer had knee surgery. He played well in his few appearances early in the season. He and Casey DeSmith will probably be competing for #1 next season.

[Jofa]

Re: 2011-2012 UNH Wildcats

Guys what happened with Wyer this year and where do you think he stands in the goalie plans after this year? Thanks

[Nifty16]

Re: 2011-2012 UNH Wildcats

Looks like 2 surgeries for him already.

http://www.merrimackathletics.com/sp...201201220am2zk

Thanks for the update, it was one ugly injury. Was right in front on my seats in 110 and can't remember when I saw an ankle that bad. Best of luck to him in his recovery.

[Ned Braden]

Re: 2011-2012 UNH Wildcats

I didn't see it up close but know some people who did. My understanding was a bad break where the foot was pointing in the wrong direction but it did not appear to be a compound fracture, tough to tell with the pads.

Unfortunate, isn't Madsen a senior, tough way to end a year / collegiate career. I am guessing he is done, 6+ weeks in a casting won’t leave much time to rebuild the muscles in that leg. If my guess is true I feel bad for him (I wouldn't want to go out like that), here’s to a speedy recovery.

Looks like 2 surgeries for him already.

http://www.merrimackathletics.com/sp...201201220am2zk

[JB]

Re: 2011-2012 UNH Wildcats

I don't know the official word but it looked like a broken lower leg, definitely was bent in an entirely wrong direction.

I didn't see it up close but know some people who did. My understanding was a bad break where the foot was pointing in the wrong direction but it did not appear to be a compound fracture, tough to tell with the pads.

Unfortunate, isn't Madsen a senior, tough way to end a year / collegiate career. I am guessing he is done, 6+ weeks in a casting won’t leave much time to rebuild the muscles in that leg. If my guess is true I feel bad for him (I wouldn't want to go out like that), here’s to a speedy recovery.

[Umileated]

Re: 2011-2012 UNH Wildcats

They don't do 4 on 4 in college.

yeah.....I figured that out yesterday. I'll agree to have a corner taken off of my hockey card.

[Gibber]

So what exactly happened and why is it worse than a usual leg injury?

I don't know the official word but it looked like a broken lower leg, definitely was bent in an entirely wrong direction.

[irishfan85]

Re: 2011-2012 UNH Wildcats

Really good game last night. Tough to see that injury to Madsen. It happened right in front of me, and it was as gruesome an injury as I've seen on the ice. Speedy recovery to him.

So what exactly happened and why is it worse than a usual leg injury?

[Gibber]

Re: 2011-2012 UNH Wildcats

5) I don't see OT working out well for the team until DeSmith gets another 10-15 games at least in him. 4 on 4 becomes much more of an offense vs. goalie rather than offense vs. defense.

They don't do 4 on 4 in college.

[Gibber]

Re: 2011-2012 UNH Wildcats

Really good game last night. Tough to see that injury to Madsen. It happened right in front of me, and it was as gruesome an injury as I've seen on the ice. Speedy recovery to him.

The waved off goal was garbage. The initial shot by Moses from the corner was backed in by Cannata just over the line before he covered it up and then Goumas dove for it and poked it in again. if Federico was calling Goumas for a hit from behind at the same time that puck reached the net, it was an interference on #8 who checked Goumas into the other play who then fell. If it was the real hit from behind at the net (a possibility) the puck was already in the net. And after the puck was put in, Bigos cross checked Goumas from behind so it should have at the worst been even up...They screwed it up, but it happens. UNH responded well in the third period to get it to OT. Bummer of a way to lose the game, and 3 points would have been a really good weekend. As it was, it was encouraging that UNH was as good, if not better, than the #6 team in the nation this weekend.

[Greg Ambrose]

Re: 2011-2012 UNH Wildcats

A few notes from my seat on the far bleacher last night.

1) It's great to see the team finally clicking. There have been losses this season where I've been angry with the team afterward; this was not one of them. This weekend's matchup between a strong defensively minded team (Merrimack) and what is rapidly becoming a defensively minded team (UNH) made for a really exciting and well played 6 period game on both sides. I still regret not heading down the highway Friday night.

2) Does anyone have any clue as to why that goal was waived off? There's speculation of a whistle or a UNH stick in the net, but most of us within 10 seats of the goal judge observed neither (goal judge included). There was a skirmish at the net, and the puck was nudged past the red line by the back of Cannata's leg. After that happened, the ref had finally caught up with the play and stood over the good goal waiving it off.

3) There was a skirmish at DeSmith's net with about 30 seconds left. What the refs and the goal judge missed was a shot that did get past the pipes... and out underneath the back bar. It's the first time I've seen that, and hopefully the last.

4) DeSmith has been fun to watch, and I think the swap has done a lot for team confidence. That being said, I think his talent is resonating with the defensive presence of the rest of the team, and it should be. He has a tendency to line up his glove saves as though he spent more of his summer catching baseball than golfing; I think I like this. He kick saves at times when it seems like he could do something else to better control the puck, but then I'm reminded of the caliber of the team's board play as of late and say keep the play active and direct it to the boards.

5) I don't see OT working out well for the team until DeSmith gets another 10-15 games at least in him. 4 on 4 becomes much more of an offense vs. goalie rather than offense vs. defense. In a DeSmith-Cannata matchup, last night's outcome was the most predictable. I'm not in the least upset about this, as the UNH defense made sure that 'mack every bit of earned that win.

In short, it was a great series. I'm glad that we were able to split the points. If they find a way to creep up into 4/5 for the HE tournament, that's ideal for me. If we continue to see games played as well as they have been over the last 4, I will be more than happy.

It was a good series, great is going too far I think. To be honest, I wasn't overly impressed with Merrimack. Cannata is an outstanding goalie, he has a big presence in the net and most of the stuff that comes his way he is either going to hold on to or steer very clear. The times he got beat this weekend (except for the Downing goal) there was quick puck movement right in front of him. That being said, I really didn't see much from Merrimack that would lead me to believe that they are seventh in the country. They have some speed, they have some size, but they don't have anywhere near the offensive talent of either BU or BC. Last night I saw two teams giving maximum effort, skating up and down the ice but not getting a lot done in the offensive zone. There really wasn't really anything that separated the two teams, even goaltending wise. The game winner was just a good shot that DeSmith I guess wasn't ready for.

As far as the waived off goal, my guess is it was not a good goal because Goumas was called for a penalty first. Once UNH touched the puck, any further action was going to be waived off. The refs weren't even going to look at the replay but I think they did at Umile's request just to make sure that the penalty came before the goal. Really can't argue with the call.

As far as UNH's fortunes the rest of the way, I really can't see them getting higher than sixth. BU, BC and Merrimack are the top three, Maine is fourth, just ahead of Lowell but Maine has played 18 games already while Lowell has played only 14. I can see Lowell fourth, Maine fifth and, of course, Vermont dead last. So the battle will come down between UNH, Providence, UMass and Northeastern for 6,7,8. Handicapping this a little - Providence is fading, after losing 1-0 to UNH, this weekend they got hammered by BU. UMass is great at home, not so great on the road so the two games UNH plays out in Amherst next month might be very big. Then you've got Northeastern which has been a real enigma. They have OOC wins vs. Notre Dame (2 in fact), Michigan and Minnesota but here they are in 9th place, 3 points behind UNH. UNH has improved since the first of the year with both losses coming in overtime (if this was the NHL they would have 8 of a possible 10 points). They are playing with more confidence in front of DeSmith, especially defensively, but the problem still is scoring, or lack of it. They still aren't terribly great on breakouts and have problems creating consistent pressure in the zone. Now I guess that the other three teams I think they are competing with have many of the same problems so I can see this coming down to the wire. I just hope that our fortunes don't rest on how we do in the last game of the season up in Orono.

[Umileated]

Re: 2011-2012 UNH Wildcats

A few notes from my seat on the far bleacher last night.

1) It's great to see the team finally clicking. There have been losses this season where I've been angry with the team afterward; this was not one of them. This weekend's matchup between a strong defensively minded team (Merrimack) and what is rapidly becoming a defensively minded team (UNH) made for a really exciting and well played 6 period game on both sides. I still regret not heading down the highway Friday night.

2) Does anyone have any clue as to why that goal was waived off? There's speculation of a whistle or a UNH stick in the net, but most of us within 10 seats of the goal judge observed neither (goal judge included). There was a skirmish at the net, and the puck was nudged past the red line by the back of Cannata's leg. After that happened, the ref had finally caught up with the play and stood over the good goal waiving it off.

3) There was a skirmish at DeSmith's net with about 30 seconds left. What the refs and the goal judge missed was a shot that did get past the pipes... and out underneath the back bar. It's the first time I've seen that, and hopefully the last.

4) DeSmith has been fun to watch, and I think the swap has done a lot for team confidence. That being said, I think his talent is resonating with the defensive presence of the rest of the team, and it should be. He has a tendency to line up his glove saves as though he spent more of his summer catching baseball than golfing; I think I like this. He kick saves at times when it seems like he could do something else to better control the puck, but then I'm reminded of the caliber of the team's board play as of late and say keep the play active and direct it to the boards.

5) I don't see OT working out well for the team until DeSmith gets another 10-15 games at least in him. 4 on 4 becomes much more of an offense vs. goalie rather than offense vs. defense. In a DeSmith-Cannata matchup, last night's outcome was the most predictable. I'm not in the least upset about this, as the UNH defense made sure that 'mack every bit of earned that win.

In short, it was a great series. I'm glad that we were able to split the points. If they find a way to creep up into 4/5 for the HE tournament, that's ideal for me. If we continue to see games played as well as they have been over the last 4, I will be more than happy.

[C-H-C]

Re: 2011-2012 UNH Wildcats

"UNH Splits With 6th-Ranked Merrimack"

[New Hampshire 'Cats Fan]

Re: 2011-2012 UNH Wildcats

Also, I just saw that the UNH Women's Hockey team is being broadcast live on ESPN3 (online) right now (2:00pm start time):

http://espn.go.com/watchespn/index/_...#sport/hockey/

This is the first I have seen a regular season college hockey game on ESPN3. I would love for ESPN to show more college hockey on ESPN3!