Union College Dutchmen Hockey 2010-11: There's one way and that's to Atlantic City!

[OsecnUC]

Re: Union College Dutchmen Hockey 2010-11: There's one way and that's to Atlantic Cit

Congrats to Keith Kinkaid on being one of three finalists for the Ken Dryden award as ECAC goaltender of the year.
1st place finish, 24 regular season wins, a 1.90 GAA, and the top defensive team in the nation. The stats speak volumes.
Good reason why he is the favorite to win this award and a strong candidate for Hobey Baker.

[ADK11]

Re: Union College Dutchmen Hockey 2010-11: There's one way and that's to Atlantic Cit

Thought that was a little closer game than it should have been, but can't fault the effort or the results . The first 25 or so minutes U was excellent and Gate barely touched the puck.. certainly no bye hangover. Still only had a 2 goal lead and kept thinking that one good bounce could change the game.. and boom Colgate slaps one in. Was funny how Gate kinda shot themselves in the foot with two too-many-men penalties. The last one was a huge gaff by somebody, as the goalie didn't come off the ice in the last minute with the puck deep in Union's zone and a 6th skater jumped on the ice anyways.. have to believe Mihalik missed some communication there.

Also.. the ice was getting bad in the middle of the second period and was absolutely horrible for almost the entire 3rd period. I think it kinda helped Gate in the 2nd period, as Union's passes started to take funny hops and led to some Raider counterattacks, but in the 3rd period it started to help U more as they simplified their play and Colgate had trouble putting more than one or two passes together. Bottom line is you don't want to be behind going into the last period. Hopefully will see another strong start tomorrow night.

Goooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo U!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[unionbob]

Re: Union College Dutchmen Hockey 2010-11: There's one way and that's to Atlantic Cit

great game tonight...what I love about this team all year is that they don't give up...don't panic and just play their game...


it totally boggles my mind that we can win and drop in the PWR and a team like RPI doesnt play and moves up 3 spots....

[lugnut92]

Re: Union College Dutchmen Hockey 2010-11: There's one way and that's to Atlantic Cit

it totally boggles my mind that we can win and drop in the PWR and a team like RPI doesnt play and moves up 3 spots....

We're not complaining over here in Troy.

[unionbob]

Re: Union College Dutchmen Hockey 2010-11: There's one way and that's to Atlantic Cit

oh I imagine you are not....and happy for you...would be great seeing two CD teams in ncaa...and at least we once again targeted for east coast not green bay

[aweise]

Re: Union College Dutchmen Hockey 2010-11: There's one way and that's to Atlantic Cit

great game tonight...what I love about this team all year is that they don't give up...don't panic and just play their game...


it totally boggles my mind that we can win and drop in the PWR and a team like RPI doesnt play and moves up 3 spots....

There are still a lot of games across the country to be played before we have any idea of how the PWR plays out. Union doesn't necessarily benefit by beating Colgate, while RPI benefits by who drops out of or enters the TUC list.

As for the game, there was clearly no rust on this group. The guys were flying, beating Colgate to the puck, winning every battle on the boards, and literally skating circles around the Raiders. The atmosphere was electric from the moment the players stepped onto the ice, so I think that only helped Union's fast start. I think it could have easily been 4-0 after the first.

I wonder if there was a little fatigue after the first period, but I think Colgate just stepped up their game and made Union work more. I didn't think Kinkaid looked 100% at the beginning (plus I thought he should have stopped Wagner's shot), but he made the saves when he needed to and looked more sharp as the game went on.

I'm also a little worried about Greg Coburn. He and Shawn Stuart had a few bad shifts last night that led to scoring chances, but Coburn hasn't seemed to be right over the past few weeks. Wasn't he injured earlier this year? Could that still be bothering him? I'm hoping he's ok, physically, but it seems like he's been making a few mistakes a game that leads to opponents' chances.

[CornwallAce]

Re: Union College Dutchmen Hockey 2010-11: There's one way and that's to Atlantic Cit

I don't know if anyone noticed how much water was still on the ice at the state of the 3rd period, and how many wet spots there STILL were after the game. It was hot in the rink!

Also, I am don't know if the guys were getting fatigued, but Colgate lost the handle on a number of pucks, and did not handle a good number of passes cleanly later in the game. and Union had the same thing happen to them too. They had some clean even man rushes which became nothings because they couldn't control the puck. Sloppy game late. The speed was still in the skates, but it turned into a sloppy game in the second half of the game.

[Wholin1]

Re: Union College Dutchmen Hockey 2010-11: There's one way and that's to Atlantic Cit

Highlights:

http://www.ecachockey.com/men/video/...rs-desktop.flv

TU's McGuire: Union Could Add Up To Something Big:

http://blog.timesunion.com/mcguire/u...ing-big/11166/

I love how about 5 seconds after Matt referred to Union's "checking line", Buote scores the first goal. I love these guys, Buote, Boileau, Pallos. In many ways they epitomize what makes Union such a formidable foe, they do a lot of the little things right, which can add up to big things, as McGuire wrote also.

The Hatch goal sequence was all hustle on his part. I didn't see the puck go in last night, and really couldn't see it on the video either.

I didn't think Jeremy Welsh had his best game last night, a few giveaways in particular come to mind, but I'll cut him some slack, he certainly deserves it and he is always a physical presence.

Kinkaid was solid and on occasion spectacular, one toe kick save in the third period in particular was a beauty. To nitpick, I think he does have a tendency to get caught a bit deep on breakaways. He was I thought a bit slow to come out on Wagner's goal and maybe was a bit in between.

All in all a solid effort, aided by some good puck luck. As Nate said, Colgate isn't going to go away. Seth Appert may have said it best last week, that elimination games are the toughest so it will take a top effort tonight.

The crowd was amazing last night, particularly at the start of the game, and a similar one tonight would be great.

[sshablak]

Re: Union College Dutchmen Hockey 2010-11: There's one way and that's to Atlantic Cit

You guys are "very deep". Watching on tv tonight !

Katie O'Byrnes was fun, the owner saw my Colgate jacket and came right over to us. I was very pleasantly surprised that he knew alot about college hockey. It was a "stag party" in there, lol.

BTW...They are having a St Patty's party there today, he said a huge "heated" tent with four bands this PM. Said there will be 2000 people there...will be nuts !!!!!

[aweise]

Re: Union College Dutchmen Hockey 2010-11: There's one way and that's to Atlantic Cit

I don't know if anyone noticed how much water was still on the ice at the state of the 3rd period, and how many wet spots there STILL were after the game. It was hot in the rink!

Also, I am don't know if the guys were getting fatigued, but Colgate lost the handle on a number of pucks, and did not handle a good number of passes cleanly later in the game. and Union had the same thing happen to them too. They had some clean even man rushes which became nothings because they couldn't control the puck. Sloppy game late. The speed was still in the skates, but it turned into a sloppy game in the second half of the game.

Just watching my recording of last night's game...3 minutes into the third period, it looked like the zamboni had just finished resurfacing the ice. Guys were tripping over themselves a lot starting late in the second period and into the third. As you said, the effort and speed was still there, but the sloppy ice probably slowed everything down.

The temp got into the mid-50s during the day, so I expected it to be warm in there. It should be a little cooler today, so I hope the conditions are better.

[Wholin1]

Re: Union College Dutchmen Hockey 2010-11: There's one way and that's to Atlantic Cit

I noticed that the ice up the center from end to end looked odd, but didn't realize it was from water. Having only one Zamboni has to give the ice less time to set up between periods. Sorry to say but just another area where Union is doing it on the cheap. And back to my pet peeve, the place though noisy and atmospheric was again downright uncomfortable. I'm about 6'3" and there is zero area for me to put my legs without digging them into the person in front of me and God forbid if someone actually needs to get by in an aisle, it's a 10 minute expedition. I didn't dare go near the restrooms which were even more inaccessible to get to than usual with people sitting in the walkways. I really fear for the souls in that place if there were ever to be a need for an evacuation. New rink, please (or at least a major redo).

[rdf8585]

Re: Union College Dutchmen Hockey 2010-11: There's one way and that's to Atlantic Cit

Where I was sitting last night was a zoo in the first period. People were crammed in like sardines and the stairs were't even visible as people were sitting on them. It was also very warm in the building last night, we'll see if its any cooler tonight. Could have sworn I felt a blast of cold air during the 2nd intermission.

There's not a bad seat in the house and the sightlines are great, but seating confuses a lot of people and it isn't that comfortable. There's always several people who don't know that you need to go around the bleachers to get to the higher sections. I made that mistake my first time there. Often I'll see people with tickets for one of the number sections sitting in a letter section. Last night, this one couple was disappointed that their consecutively-numbered seats weren't together but rather separated by stairs. I made a comparable mistake once, getting seat 1 in a row but it wasn't an aisle seat. And I don't get assigned seats for bleachers -- bleachers should be first come, first serve. Those chair back seats are one thing.

Probably going to have another big crowd tonight. Anyone without seated tickets probably will hope to get a standing room only ticket when they go on sale at 6 PM. Time Warner has the game again tonight.

[UnionPuckLove]

Re: Union College Dutchmen Hockey 2010-11: There's one way and that's to Atlantic Cit

The seating in the student section was horrible last night. I'm always happy to see a huge crowd turn out for big games, especially students who normally don't attend games. But, too many bandwagoners makes it really difficult for more dedicated fans to start chants and sit in the seats they occupy from October until now. We really do need a new rink, some of the bleacher portions in the student section are a bit questionable..

As for Keith, last night from where we were standing, his third period was solid. There were several plays where Colgate had an opportunity to score on a rebound, but Keith got to the puck before they did. His agility on the ice, both when he's standing or down on the ice is incredible. I love watching him play and it'll be a sad day for Union hockey when he's not around anymore.

[Wholin1]

Re: Union College Dutchmen Hockey 2010-11: There's one way and that's to Atlantic Cit

I love watching him play and it'll be a sad day for Union hockey when he's not around anymore.

I don't want to be maudlin when the program is on such a high, but I think we'd best get used to the idea of tonight or if necessary tomorrow, being KK's last game(s) at ItsaMessa. From what I've been hearing, it's all but certain that he will go pro at the end of this incredible season. I hope that what I am hearing is wrong or that perhaps he changes his mind, but I'm not optimistic.

[rdf8585]

Re: Union College Dutchmen Hockey 2010-11: There's one way and that's to Atlantic Cit

Glenn Merkosky was seen at the game last night. He used to play for the Adirondack Red Wings of the AHL, but is currently a scout with Detroit. I'm not sure how often NHL scouts are in attendance, so maybe it's not all that rare of an occurrence to see one there.

Could also be the last game at Messa for Leaman if some big school woos him away.