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UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Season?

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  • #61
    Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

    Originally posted by Greg Ambrose View Post
    Chuck, once again you are fixated on UMass' lack of playoff experience when you say "two teams with equally modest postseason experience." completely ignoring the fact that one team was vastly superior in all phases of the game than the other. If UNH had a three goal lead with a minute to go in the second at Providence, should I expect them to win? Well yeah, because from February 1st on, Providence average just over 2 goals per game at home. But against UMass, well no.
    With all due respect, Greg … that's nuts. You're up 3-0 against UMass very late in the second period, and you don't expect UNH to win? Just curious - what score … what size lead would you want UNH to amass at that point in a game to have the right to expect your team to, y'know, win the frickin' game? Was UMass a better team? No one has said they weren't, but mediocre teams frequently beat really good, talented teams. In all aspects? Based on lots of opinions on here, UNH might be better off in goal than UMass, and it wasn't the UNH kid who got pulled in Game One.

    I mean, listen, I've been following this program nearly as long as you have, and I'm all too familiar with the historical potholes, if not personally involved as far back as C-H-C and the RPI game (ironically, one of UNH's most celebrated games to this day was a loss in the end). It gets to you, no doubt, and it can color your whole experience. But I'm sorry, Greg … you have a 3-0 lead that late in any game, at any arena, especially in modern day hockey, and you have to expect that team to win the game. You never hear anyone saying "Oh, watch out - the three goal lead is the most dangerous in hockey!"

    Remember when the B's came back from 3 goals down in the playoffs (I think it was a Game 7 even) against Toronto? THAT was a BIG deal. And why was it a big deal? 'Cuz they overcame a 3 goal lead!!! For every memorable game where a team climbs out of a 3 goal hole late in a game to win it, there are probably over a dozen non-memorable games where the leading team routinely runs out the rest of the game and holds on to win. It's not a huge ask. UNH should have been able to do that.

    Originally posted by Greg Ambrose View Post
    As Dan noted in a prior post a couple of weeks ago, Robinson's goals against average against UMass and Northeastern was double what it was against every other team he faced. The only reason UNH was ahead 3-0 last Friday night was because Robinson had made 25 saves in a shade under 40 minutes. I wasn't at the game and did not watch on Hockey East's bogus playoff channel, but my cousin, who is a UMass season ticket holder, kept texting me that Robinson was keeping UNH in the game. When UMass finally broke through with that first goal, I knew it was only a matter of time before they won. And why? Because, despite the fact that their playoff experience was equal to UNH's, they were a lot, lot better than UNH and, you forgot this, they were playing at home.
    25 shots/saves over two periods? I mean, sure, that's great, and the last thing I want to do is to detract from what I'm conceding was a strong performance by Robinson. But 25 shots over most of two periods isn't exactly an avalanche - it's just slightly above average.

    The idea that you "knew it was only a matter of time" after UMass scored late in the 2nd period probably says more about you being conditioned to expect bad things to happen to UNH in the postseason, than it does about the reality that a #8 seed still had a two goal lead with 20 minutes left to play. If someone tells you before a game starts that your team is going to be two goals up at the start of the 3rd period, 99.9% of the time, a regular fan of Team X is gonna think "hey, that's pretty good, and we'll take our chances with it". Regardless of whether the game is in Durham, in Amherst or on the moon.

    Originally posted by Greg Ambrose View Post
    As I said earlier, it is too bad UNH didn't convert a couple of those ties into wins because, if they had, they would have indeed played Providence and might have won. And, if they were in the Garden this coming Friday Chuck, what would be your take of how they did this year?
    See …. here's the thing, and I hate to sound like a broken record, but here goes. I wanted to see a UNH team that didn't fall into the same postseason issues that dotted Coach Umile's UNH career all too often. The guy had a great run, sure, but by the end, we were all done and tired of it all, and we wanted something different. What did we get last weekend? Two periods of a glimmer of hope that things were changing, and for the better. But then, Lucy pulls the football out at the last second on Charlie Brown, and here we go again. Same old, same old … and a double dose at that. It's almost as if Coach Umile never retired. And it's the last thing any of us should have wanted to emerge from Coach Souza's postseason debut last weekend. JMHO.
    Last edited by Chuck Murray; 03-21-2019, 10:11 PM.
    Sworn Enemy of the Perpetually Offended
    Montreal Expos Forever ...

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    • #62
      Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

      Originally posted by Chuck Murray View Post
      Good guess, but wrong - at least according to BS35+∞ himself ...
      It's Penn State isn't it??? And, without replying to your big post...Chuck, I hate to say it...but I have seen UNH lose big leads all season long, usually when we were playing teams like NU and NOT when we were playing teams like MC.... so to see that game go the way it did was disappointing, but, sadly...unsurprising. (no disrespect meant to UNH). And I know that weighs heavy on MS's mind. We also came back in a few games so there's that. We are going to have to mature to win those games, and, not to offer 'excuses' per se, I still maintain UNH was a young team this season. 2/3 Frosh per shift? They need to take that next step next season. I will give you that the comparisons to seasons past do ring true, and that will have to be overcome. I think you can't do a thing....until you know a thing. This team will have to know what it takes, and what it feels like, to play shut down hockey to the end. Anyway...HR is all done with that stuff. Looking forward to seeing who wins the HE...I'm betting on UMass.

      ps...how long did it take Jim Madigan at NU to get going...how long did it take Greg Carvel to be where he is now at UMass? Souza's supposed to erase the past 5 years in a season? Asking for a friend.
      Last edited by HockeyRef; 03-22-2019, 05:44 AM.
      Here we go 'Cats!!

      Comment


      • #63
        Originally posted by HockeyRef View Post
        It's Penn State isn't it??? And, without replying to your big post...Chuck, I hate to say it...but I have seen UNH lose big leads all season long, usually when we were playing teams like NU and NOT when we were playing teams like MC.... so to see that game go the way it did was disappointing, but, sadly...unsurprising. (no disrespect meant to UNH). And I know that weighs heavy on MS's mind. We also came back in a few games so there's that. We are going to have to mature to win those games, and, not to offer 'excuses' per se, I still maintain UNH was a young team this season. 2/3 Frosh per shift? They need to take that next step next season. I will give you that the comparisons to seasons past do ring true, and that will have to be overcome. I think you can't do a thing....until you know a thing. This team will have to know what it takes, and what it feels like, to play shut down hockey to the end. Anyway...HR is all done with that stuff. Looking forward to seeing who wins the HE...I'm betting on UMass.

        ps...how long did it take Jim Madigan at NU to get going...how long did it take Greg Carvel to be where he is now at UMass? Souza's supposed to erase the past 5 years in a season? Asking for a friend.
        Arguably MS7 has had more time than Carvel, Mad-again, or Blazin' to turn things around, as he has been buying the groceries for four years now.

        Comment


        • #64
          Originally posted by HockeyRef View Post
          It's Penn State isn't it??? And, without replying to your big post...Chuck, I hate to say it...but I have seen UNH lose big leads all season long, usually when we were playing teams like NU and NOT when we were playing teams like MC.... so to see that game go the way it did was disappointing, but, sadly...unsurprising. (no disrespect meant to UNH). And I know that weighs heavy on MS's mind. We also came back in a few games so there's that. We are going to have to mature to win those games, and, not to offer 'excuses' per se, I still maintain UNH was a young team this season. 2/3 Frosh per shift? They need to take that next step next season. I will give you that the comparisons to seasons past do ring true, and that will have to be overcome. I think you can't do a thing....until you know a thing. This team will have to know what it takes, and what it feels like, to play shut down hockey to the end. Anyway...HR is all done with that stuff. Looking forward to seeing who wins the HE...I'm betting on UMass.

          ps...how long did it take Jim Madigan at NU to get going...how long did it take Greg Carvel to be where he is now at UMass? Souza's supposed to erase the past 5 years in a season? Asking for a friend.
          BS 35+8 came to UNH from Colorado College but matriculated from Penn State.

          Answering for a friend!
          UNH Hockey: You can check out any time you like but you can never leave!

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          • #65
            Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

            Originally posted by Snively65 View Post
            Arguably MS7 has had more time than Carvel, Mad-again, or Blazin' to turn things around, as he has been buying the groceries for four years now.
            I'm still in this camp. Not many first year head coaches get to walk into their job with a roster literally filled top to bottom with players they've had a direct hand in recruiting. And I'm not saying MS7 won't eventually succeed - I hope he does, I really do. He seemed to make some progress in the regular season, and 8th place is better than 11th/last place, no doubt about it. But I can't think of a worse way for the season to have ended. And those are the really important games, the ones everyone (including your future recruits) will remember and judge your program on.

            There's really no comparison to be made with Bazin or Carvel, if we're being frank. Madigan might be the best benchmark, since he was/is an NU lifer, and probably hasn't drawn a real-world paycheck outside of his alma mater/current program since the day he graduated. I think he was an NU associate dean of something-or-another when he was hired for the HC job, so he probably had some insight on the admins he'd be working with coming in, likely knew some of the players he'd be coaching, and definitely knew the school, the history, and the physical plant. It's literally been his entire adult life.

            It's probably instructive that after inheriting a program that finished 9th and 8th the previous two years, he finished 8th and 10th in his first two years, mostly with Coach Cronin's players. From Year Three forward though, it's been increasingly better, and now his program has reached the point where (as we used to hear in the old BC days) "we don't have to rebuild - we just reload". If that's a guide to anything impacting MS7, then what does that tell us we should be expecting from UNH in the coming years - or even what we should be seeing right now?

            P.S. to HR - you are correct as to the genesis of BS35+∞'s athletics admin career. Good ol' HVCC!!
            Sworn Enemy of the Perpetually Offended
            Montreal Expos Forever ...

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            • #66
              Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

              Originally posted by Chuck Murray View Post
              I'm still in this camp. Not many first year head coaches get to walk into their job with a roster literally filled top to bottom with players they've had a direct hand in recruiting. And I'm not saying MS7 won't eventually succeed - I hope he does, I really do. He seemed to make some progress in the regular season, and 8th place is better than 11th/last place, no doubt about it. But I can't think of a worse way for the season to have ended. And those are the really important games, the ones everyone (including your future recruits) will remember and judge your program on.
              9th - 11th place.
              I will not be out cheered in my own building.

              Comment


              • #67
                Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

                UNH needs scorers. Against UMA, with their attacking defense men, the three goal lead was dicey, especially without Grasso and Naz.
                I will not be out cheered in my own building.

                Comment


                • #68
                  Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

                  Originally posted by Chuck Murray View Post
                  Good ol' HVCC!!
                  Happy Valley Community College?

                  Comment


                  • #69
                    Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

                    Originally posted by chickod View Post
                    Happy Valley Community College?
                    Yesiree
                    Sworn Enemy of the Perpetually Offended
                    Montreal Expos Forever ...

                    Comment


                    • #70
                      Originally posted by Darius View Post
                      UNH needs scorers. Against UMA, with their attacking defense men, the three goal lead was dicey, especially without Grasso and Naz.
                      Exactly. Heard we are out looking for that prolific goal scorer as we speak!
                      Here we go 'Cats!!

                      Comment


                      • #71
                        Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

                        Originally posted by HockeyRef View Post
                        Exactly. Heard we are out looking for that prolific goal scorer as we speak!
                        Potential recruits who could bring this skill-set next season...

                        Brendan Budy -https://www.eliteprospects.com/player/337739/brendan-budy
                        * Played with Crookshank in BCHL
                        * Played 1/2 season @ Denver and wouldn't be eligible until January 2020
                        * PPG in Tri-Cities after returning to Jr.

                        Mattias Macceli - https://www.eliteprospects.com/playe...atias-maccelli
                        * Turku, Finland
                        * 3rd-Leading scorer in USHL @ 18
                        * 27-goals in 53 games

                        Makael Hakkarainen - https://www.eliteprospects.com/playe...el-hakkarainen
                        * Helsinki, Finland
                        * 19 goals in 39 USHL Games
                        * Ditched PC after one game in 2018-19 Season (College may not be desired path - eligible January)

                        Marcus Kallionkieli - https://www.eliteprospects.com/playe...s-kallionkieli
                        * Helsinki, Finland (Holds Finnish AND Brazilian citizenship)
                        * Crazy potential - 23 goals in 49 games as a 17 year old much of the season in USHL
                        * Projected top-3 round NHL pick this summer
                        * Exactly the type UNH should jump on earlier than others - give him an opp a year ahead of schedule (as their only real shot at this point)

                        Ethian Scardina - https://www.eliteprospects.com/playe...ethan-scardina
                        * 15th leading goal scorer in BCHL (26) at 18

                        Levi Glassman - https://www.eliteprospects.com/playe...5/levi-glasman
                        * Back-to-Back 20-goal seasons in the BCHL
                        * 24 in 53 games this season to rank 19th in league

                        Cameron Searles - https://www.eliteprospects.com/playe...ameron-searles
                        * Canadian/Jamaican
                        * Consistent 20-ish goal-scorer over four seasons in OJHL
                        * 6-5, PF

                        Max Giangualano - https://www.eliteprospects.com/playe...ax-giangualano
                        * 26 goals in 54 games
                        * Only turned 18 during the season

                        Joey Moffat - https://www.eliteprospects.com/playe...0/joey-moffatt
                        * Will turn 18 in October (not sure if he's old enough or academically advanced for college)
                        * Would be a big jump from MJHL (but he has scored everywhere he's been)
                        * Maybe a future option

                        Another option is an unknown European recruit...
                        Last edited by Dan; 03-22-2019, 12:35 PM.
                        Live Free or Die!!
                        Miami University '03

                        Comment


                        • #72
                          Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

                          Originally posted by Dan View Post
                          Potential recruits who could bring this skill-set next season...

                          Brendan Budy -https://www.eliteprospects.com/player/337739/brendan-budy
                          * Played with Crookshank in BCHL
                          * Played 1/2 season @ Denver and wouldn't be eligible until January 2020
                          * PPG in Tri-Cities after returning to Jr.

                          Mattias Macceli - https://www.eliteprospects.com/playe...atias-maccelli
                          * Turku, Finland
                          * 3rd-Leading scorer in USHL @ 18
                          * 27-goals in 53 games

                          Makael Hakkarainen - https://www.eliteprospects.com/playe...el-hakkarainen
                          * Helsinki, Finland
                          * 19 goals in 39 USHL Games
                          * Ditched PC after one game in 2018-19 Season (College may not be desired path - eligible January)

                          Marcus Kallionkieli - https://www.eliteprospects.com/playe...s-kallionkieli
                          * Helsinki, Finland (Holds Finnish AND Brazilian citizenship)
                          * Crazy potential - 23 goals in 49 games as a 17 year old much of the season in USHL
                          * Projected top-3 round NHL pick this summer
                          * Exactly the type UNH should jump on earlier than others - give him an opp a year ahead of schedule (as their only real shot at this point)

                          Ethian Scardina - https://www.eliteprospects.com/playe...ethan-scardina
                          * 15th leading goal scorer in BCHL (26) at 18

                          Levi Glassman - https://www.eliteprospects.com/playe...5/levi-glasman
                          * Back-to-Back 20-goal seasons in the BCHL
                          * 24 in 53 games this season to rank 19th in league

                          Cameron Searles - https://www.eliteprospects.com/playe...ameron-searles
                          * Canadian/Jamaican
                          * Consistent 20-ish goal-scorer over four seasons in OJHL
                          * 6-5, PF

                          Max Giangualano - https://www.eliteprospects.com/playe...ax-giangualano
                          * 26 goals in 54 games
                          * Only turned 18 during the season

                          Joey Moffat - https://www.eliteprospects.com/playe...0/joey-moffatt
                          * Will turn 18 in October (not sure if he's old enough or academically advanced for college)
                          * Would be a big jump from MJHL (but he has scored everywhere he's been)
                          * Maybe a future option

                          Another option is an unknown European recruit...
                          All of them. We'll take all of them! (But I'm guessing Snively65 wants the Finns....)
                          Last edited by HockeyRef; 03-22-2019, 01:10 PM.
                          Here we go 'Cats!!

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                          • #73
                            Originally posted by HockeyRef View Post
                            All of them. We'll take all of them! (But I'm guessing Snively65 wants the Finns....)
                            Yup, we should load up with Finns immediately, especially without a distracting World Cup or Olympics this coming season. :-)

                            Comment


                            • #74
                              Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

                              Originally posted by Snively65 View Post
                              Yup, we should load up with Finns immediately, especially without a distracting World Cup or Olympics this coming season. :-)
                              Besides, the colors are similar (blue and white, although the blue is not exactly the same)

                              Comment


                              • #75
                                Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

                                Prophetic or Pathetic. The day before the UMass series, The New Hampshire had the front page banner of "Hockey notches final win on senior night". Didnt turn out to be fake news.

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