BU Terriers 2018-19: Albie in Charge

[Bomber]

Re: BU Terriers 2018-19: Albie in Charge

Logan had a lot of trouble keeping pucks on his stick last night. And yes, as defkit pointed out, there were a lot of “weak pucks” that weren’t strong in or out. They also struggle at times with ice awareness. (Pucks to fantom pointmen and wings.).

Harper... nowhere near the same player he was. I feel bad for the kid.

I still say they’re a tough out in the HE Tournament. An out, but a tough out.

And to my pal Jofa: I’m so sorry that your not going to get your Beanpot, Hockey East Championship, and Frozen Four appearance that you feel your are entitled to every season.

[chickod]

Re: BU Terriers 2018-19: Albie in Charge

And to my pal Jofa: I’m so sorry that your not going to get your Beanpot, Hockey East Championship, and Frozen Four appearance that you feel your are entitled to every season.

And to my pal Jofa: I’m so sorry that your not going to get your Beanpot, Hockey East Championship, and Frozen Four appearance that you feel your are entitled to every season.

And along those lines, Billy Jaffe had a couple of good comments. He mentioned how NU had "built the pipeline" but then they will face the same challenges as teams like BU, BC and Michigan (there are tons of them but I suspect he threw Michigan in there because that's where he played), of players staying one or two years and then leaving early. That's a lot more difficult situation to manage, and it remains to be seen how they will handle it. And this is why this "expectation" that we will be "in the hunt" every year just because "we're BU" is unrealistic. Facilities or no, there are many choices for a kid now. I (seriously) applied to BU after watching the back-to-back NCAA appearances in 1971-72. There were many places I could have attended but that WAS a factor. But now you can go to Penn State, Ohio State, Arizona State, or a bunch of other schools. In short, there are more options now and the talent is more "spread out."

These teams are all BELOW #20 in the PWR (NCAA Championships in parenthesis):
- North Dakota (8)
- Michigan State (3)
- Michigan (9)
- BU (5)
- Minnesota (5)
- Wisconsin (6)
- BC (5)

Total Championships: 41


All BIG TIME programs. If the field were selected today, NONE of them make the NCAA Tournament.

These teams are in the Top 10:
- St. Cloud (0)
- UMass (0)
- Ohio State (0)
- Quinnipiac (0)
- Arizona State (0)
- Western Michigan (0)

Total Championships: 0

Enough said. The landscape has changed. Things don't stay the same forever...

Regarding last night, this team makes a lot of poor decisions at center ice and they don't get the puck deep. There are too many transition odd-man rushes for the opponent. And for whatever reason the D is very tentative in their own end. A recipe for disaster. Yeah, you can "blame" the coaching, but players at this level should know better. Sometimes you just can't get through. And sometimes the individual talent just doesn't blend to become a cohesive unit. And the injuries disrupt the progress.

I don't agree that they didn't play hard. They did. But there is a LOT of wasted energy and running around without a purpose. SOME of that is coaching, but some of that is just performing under the big lights. You don't always know what you have until the games start.

It is what it is...we'll just hope for better results next year, but I think everyone needs to be a little more realistic. This is not your father's college hockey.

[Bomber]

Re: BU Terriers 2018-19: Albie in Charge

Regarding last night, this team makes a lot of poor decisions at center ice and they don't get the puck deep. There are too many transition odd-man rushes for the opponent.

It is what it is...we'll just hope for better results next year, but I think everyone needs to be a little more realistic. This is not your father's college hockey.

This whole post is quality, but I'm focusing on the "getting pucks deep" comment cause didn't many of you KILL Parker for "Dump and Suck?" This team attempts to carry the puck into the zone to set-up their offense, but struggles to do it consistently. So I guess we want to go back to "Dump and Suck."

[brassbonanza]

Re: BU Terriers 2018-19: Albie in Charge

I don't agree that they didn't play hard. They did. But there is a LOT of wasted energy and running around without a purpose. SOME of that is coaching, but some of that is just performing under the big lights. You don't always know what you have until the games start.

Also don't underestimate that we essentially have 5 D who split the majority of minutes since Blixt and Switzer are severe liabilities on the ice. Would've liked to see what Vidoli could've turned into.

[chickod]

This whole post is quality, but I'm focusing on the "getting pucks deep" comment cause didn't many of you KILL Parker for "Dump and Suck?" This team attempts to carry the puck into the zone to set-up their offense, but struggles to do it consistently. So I guess we want to go back to "Dump and Suck."

I think those comments were more along the lines of “it’s not a very exciting style of play.” But if that’s the only option it’s better than the turnovers. I see your point, though.

[brassbonanza]

Re: BU Terriers 2018-19: Albie in Charge

This whole post is quality, but I'm focusing on the "getting pucks deep" comment cause didn't many of you KILL Parker for "Dump and Suck?" This team attempts to carry the puck into the zone to set-up their offense, but struggles to do it consistently. So I guess we want to go back to "Dump and Suck."

And if you rewatch the OT goal, Amonte tries to enter the zone against multiple NU defenders as BU is changing - instead of dumping it deep to allow the change to complete - the puck gets stolen immediately near the blue line and the D whips it up the ice to the open forward since BU hasn't completed the change. That's not dump and suck, it's basic fundamentals of line changes.

[mookie1995]

Re: BU Terriers 2018-19: Albie in Charge

Can we settle on “dump and don’t suck”?

[Harry Cleverly]

Re: BU Terriers 2018-19: Albie in Charge

Would've liked to see what Vidoli could've turned into.

The sample was small. But there wasn't anything that stood out.

[Harry Cleverly]

Re: BU Terriers 2018-19: Albie in Charge

The last we played NU, it was BU that 50 shots on goal. The play was sloppy and the Terriers are so slow to adjust our breakouts when the first option is taken away.
And how rare is it that BU scores first?

Without Bobo (game time decision apparently), and BU has at best two lines than have any reasonable chance of scoring. The third and fourth lines are like grinding fourth lines.
I would assume they planned for the early losses of Tkachuk, Greenway, Keller, Bellows, JFK. Crone didn't work out. Wise got hurt. And there goes your forward depth.

We don't have a problem recruiting high-end prospects on defense and forward. But we do have a big problem with depth players who can contribute. BU is an expensive school, and they likely have to pay some or all of the freight. Maybe BU needs to bring in some older guys with the blue chippers??
Whatever it is, the balance has not been right among the third/fourth line guys.

BTW, Oettinger was superb. Almost to the level of North Dakota away in the NCAAs. For a moment I thought Sean Fields was back in goal, looking to steal a win when BU was getting badly outshot.

[buoldtimer]

I would assume they planned for the early losses of Tkachuk, Greenway, Keller, Bellows, JFK. Crone didn't work out.

1. Do you think they regret shoving Crone out of the nest?
2. Why were they so dissatisfied with him?
3. Is Wise a potential Crone Clone?

[brassbonanza]

Re: BU Terriers 2018-19: Albie in Charge

1. Do you think they regret shoving Crone out of the nest?
2. Why were they so dissatisfied with him?
3. Is Wise a potential Crone Clone?

Are we sure he was shoved out and didn't just transfer willingly?

[defkit]

Re: BU Terriers 2018-19: Albie in Charge

While they may have planned on Tkachuk and JFK leaving early, I am pretty sure they lost both of them a year earlier than they expected.

Speaking of Tkachuk - is he hurt? Haven't seen his name on the scoring sheets in a while.

I think BU has tried to recruit some older guys, but they tend to not be for top 6 roles.

I think Wise has the skill to make it, more than Crone did. It certainly took him some time to adjust, and perhaps he didn't really before he got hurt.

[defkit]

Re: BU Terriers 2018-19: Albie in Charge

Congrats to the women's team for defeating NU in a shootout. NU had a 1-0 lead in the shootout after 2 shooters each, but BU got the save and then the goal needed to send it to extra shooters, where they won it. BU never led during regulation, they kept tying it up.

[Thiessen'sBetter]

Re: BU Terriers 2018-19: Albie in Charge

Why is any single elimination tournament ending in a shootout?

[Sean Pickett]

Re: BU Terriers 2018-19: Albie in Charge

Why is any single elimination tournament ending in a shootout?

1.) Beacuse it's an option for deciding which team advances in an in-season tournament; and 2.) in 2007 BC and Harvard went to triple overtime in the second game of the women's Beanpot semifinals (BC 4, Harvard 3) and ended at 12:21 AM in the morning. After that the semifinals were changed from unlimited 20 minute overtimes to a standard 5 minute overtime and the shootout. The championship game remains unlimited 20 minute overtimes (for now).

FYI, tonight's shootout was the fourth since the change was made and NU has participated in all of them (2-2).

Sean