Re: 2009-2010 UNH Wildcats Season
Before the game tonight, I looked at the trophy case in the lobby of the Whit. It actually has quite a lot of hardware in there - and now it has even more!
UNH - Hockey East Regular Season Champs 3 out of the last 4 years! Has a nice ring to it.
I finally figured out how to follow this team without pulling my hair out. The key - relax and endure the first couple of periods. When the game is on the line, they shift into another gear and baffle all comers, from the "elite" teams to the cellar dwellers. I witnessed the birth of these never-say-die Wildcats exactly a year ago at the UVM Gutt. It was the final regular game of last season. They fell behind to a talented Vermont team (who eventually made it to the Frozen Four) but stormed back to win 6-5. It earned them third place in the final standings. Then, of course, there was the North Dakota comeback, the near-miss comeback against eventual NC Champ BU, the comeback tie against #1 Miami, a bevy of comebacks in February, and tonight's sweetest comeback tie. I believe UNH has finally shed the reputation for playing soft when the chips are down.
I feel obliged to comment on Coach York's performance tonight. From interviews I've seen, he seems like a very nice man who must be fun to play for. He ain't no dope either. However, tonight I think he made two tactical errors. First, he allowed his 19-year-old goalie to get thrown to the wolves in the third period. York could not figure out how to adjust his defensive strategy to protect the poor kid from UNH's onslaught. I wonder how long it will take the young Milner to recover. Second, in the third period, York practically handed the keys to UNH by not aggressively forechecking. During the week, there was much discussion on whether BC traps - a discussion which included a nice tutorial from JB. In the third period, the single forechecker was playing real soft and the middle two players in the 1-2-2 were back around the red line. This allowed the UNH D-men to carry the puck out of their own zone with ease and initiate multiple rushes through the neutral zone. Big mistake.
Hardowa was solid. It was wonderful to see Henrion and McCarey produce huge goals. All four lines got plenty of icetime. Foster was strong when he needed to be. LeBlanc and Butler played their butts off. Sislo looks very dangerous again. All-in-all, very satisfying.
Tomorrow (I mean today), Kessel and Kostolansky can rest their ailing knees and we'll get to see DiGi play a little goal.
Oh, and by the way, that new trophy is very handsome.
