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Harvard Crimson Women 09-10

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 09-10

alslammerz said:
Sorry if I was putting words in your mouth then. I just thought considering your previous thoughts on shortening the bench, that's what you were talking about.

No harm, no foul I hope.
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Oh no, don't worry about it. I just thought it was curious to see the banter going back and forth.

My one wish for Coach Stone is that someday she realizes that shortening the bench really hurts her team. She did it with great success during the championship season of '98-'99 but women's hockey has come a long way since then and it really doesn't work today.
 
Re: Harvard Crimson Women 09-10

Good game for the women tonight. They put on a passing clinic and really dominated the game from start to finish. No let up even with seconds to go in the game. You really had to hand it to them. There was every reason to be complacent but the Crimson came out hard from the opening whistle and just wore down an overmatched Union team. It was a real mismatch as it has been since Union came into the ECAC.

All the goals tonight were a thing of beauty. The two in the third period, especially the shortie by Dempsey, illustrated the great passing and timing of the team. All three lines played well and dominated. The few times that Union managed a foray into the Harvard zone (hey they did hit the post on a shorthanded bid), the Crimson managed to short circuit any sustained pressure. Union just can't generate any offense, can't skate very well and overall just do not have the talent to compete at the D-1 level. They seriously should consider dropping down to D-2. Even at 1-0, I wasn't concerned; it was that bad.

Now for the bad news. Christina Kessler is injured and may be out for the season. We don't know the extent of the damage but even if she is able to return, she won't be anywhere near 100%. She was hurt yesterday, had tests and they are awaiting final results. Safe to say we won't see her for the next couple of weeks anyway unless she is able to fight through it. I don't want to say what the injury is because nothing is certain at this point. Let's just keep our fingers crossed, say a few prayers and hope she can return. If not, it's Bellamy all the way and I don't know if Harvard will have to apply for some sort of exemption to carry only one goalie. We don't have another in the program unless Kylie Smith considers returning or if she is even in school this year. Stay tuned...

This is a terrible blow to the team given that they have exceeded expectations this season. I don't expect them to secure home ice given this news but perhaps Bellamy will surprise and lead the way.
 
Re: Harvard Crimson Women 09-10

Skate79 said:
Christina Kessler is injured and may be out for the season. ... say a few prayers and hope she can return.
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You have mine; one doesn't want to see anyone suffer a season ending injury, much less a senior.
 
Re: Harvard Crimson Women 09-10

I just got back from the game and I concur with Skate 79 as to the game. Harvard did have a number of power play opportunities without a goal where Union was able to crank up the defense close in to the goal. Harvard had lots of shots on goal but few rebound opportunities.

I was not overwhelmed with the officiating. Late in the 2nd period Harvard was in Unions zone putting a lot of pressure on Union and a ref whistled a Union penalty on a player near the faceoff circle. . As this was going on a Union player knocked down a Harvard player and her own goalie Alana Marcinko and Marcinko was partly on top of the Harvard player. After the whistle Marcinko elbowed the prone Harvard player quite hard on the back of the head. Clearly there should have been a penalty called on Marcinko but the refs only called the original penalty on another Union player. Bad form by Marcinko and lax work by the ref.


Editied to add: Another bright spot of the game was seeing Sam Asano, Claudia's dad. He was a real fixture at Bright when Claudia was playing and when she was coaching here. Odd to see him in a Union hat but good to see him anyway. Union has improved since Claudia became head coach and good luck to her (except when they are playing Harvard)
 
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Re: Harvard Crimson Women 09-10

Veritas said:
I just got back from the game and I concur with Skate 79 as to the game. Harvard did have a number of power play opportunities without a goal where Union was able to crank up the defense close in to the goal. Harvard had lots of shots on goal but few rebound opportunities.

I was not overwhelmed with the officiating. Late in the 2nd period Harvard was in Unions zone putting a lot of pressure on Union and a ref whistled a Union penalty on a player near the faceoff circle. . As this was going on a Union player knocked down a Harvard player and her own goalie Alana Marcinko and Marcinko was partly on top of the Harvard player. After the whistle Marcinko elbowed the prone Harvard player quite hard on the back of the head. Clearly there should have been a penalty called on Marcinko but the refs only called the original penalty on another Union player. Bad form by Marcinko and lax work by the ref.


Editied to add: Another bright spot of the game was seeing Sam Asano, Claudia's dad. He was a real fixture at Bright when Claudia was playing and when she was coaching here. Odd to see him in a Union hat but good to see him anyway. Union has improved since Claudia became head coach and good luck to her (except when they are playing Harvard)
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I remember Sam. He was always so enthusiastic and positive. Miss his energy although I'm sure he is having the same effect on the Union program. Claudia is getting the team to play hard which is a good start.

I think it is hard to quibble with the officiating although I remember the play you referenced. I think Harvard had to kill only two penalties all night while Union had something like 5 or 6 in a row. Yes, the elbow to the head was uncalled for and should have been whistled. Kate Buesser was hit a couple of times where a penalty could have been called. Let's face it, the women's game has become a physical game and the bodychecking penalty has all but disappeared. Still, there is no room for the cheap stuff and I hope that the refs are more vigilant.
 
Re: Harvard Crimson Women 09-10

As great as Harvard's passing was last night, today it was abysmal especially in the defensive zone. What a disappointing effort from the coaching staff down through the players. The Crimson basically failed to show up for the first ten minutes of the game and RPI took advantage with two goals. It gave them momentum which they carried throughout the rest of the game. The breakout was the same over and over again and RPI was waiting for it time and again. You'd think the coaching staff would try and change things up. Nope. Perplexing to say the least.

Don't let the shot totals fool you. Most of Harvard's shots were not difficult. They did get better chances as the game unfolded but RPI spent way too much time in our zone and beat us to the puck all afternoon. They controlled the boards and with our non existent forecheck, it made it easy for them to break out of their zone. I just don't understand how Harvard could be so aggressive one night, so passive the next. Just doesn't add up.

What does add up is this; if the Crimson are going to secure a home ice berth for the first round of the ECAC's, they will need a more consistent effort then they showed over these last four games. From the goalie on out, this team needs to fire on all cylinders because they do not have the offensive firepower to finish teams and certainly can't afford to fall behind. They must also play with more grit and determination along the boards. Right now, Kate Buesser, Randi Griffen and Deb Conway seem to be the only ones willing to do so consistently.

Bellamy was okay but she needs to come up with big saves if Harvard is to win games like this in the future. Okay isn't enough. With more games under her belt, she'll get better but it may cost Harvard this season until that happens.

On to the Upper Valley on Friday. We really need those two points.
 
Life without Kessler

Life without Kessler

Kessler's injury -- and we hope it is not season-ending -- poses an opportunity to step back and see this year's team in a similar perspective to that of the preseason.

An overall lack of bodies due to having only one sophomore on the squad, and a number of talented freshmen who needed to adapt to college-level competition -- those were then the question marks.

With a superlative goalie, the team soon overcame some initial problems against opponents that had already played a dozen matches, and reached an unexpected level of achievement against top echelon teams UNH and Minnesota. But those achievements were based on breathtaking defensive prowess (with the offense contributing largely through a reliable breakout and puck possession in the offensive zone, keeping the puck 180 feet out of danger, but not actually scoring goals).

Take away Kessler, and the defense of course seems of more everyday quality, and the lack of goalscoring becomes a concern.

But remember this is a young squad still, and we should expect offensive cohesion and timing to improve as the weeks wear on.

If Kessler returns, I suspect this team should be competitive in the ECACHL tournament regardless of home ice advantage.
 
Re: Life without Kessler

Re: Life without Kessler

Watson Rink said:
Kessler's injury -- and we hope it is not season-ending -- poses an opportunity to step back and see this year's team in a similar perspective to that of the preseason.

An overall lack of bodies due to having only one sophomore on the squad, and a number of talented freshmen who needed to adapt to college-level competition -- those were then the question marks.

With a superlative goalie, the team soon overcame some initial problems against opponents that had already played a dozen matches, and reached an unexpected level of achievement against top echelon teams UNH and Minnesota. But those achievements were based on breathtaking defensive prowess (with the offense contributing largely through a reliable breakout and puck possession in the offensive zone, keeping the puck 180 feet out of danger, but not actually scoring goals).

Take away Kessler, and the defense of course seems of more everyday quality, and the lack of goalscoring becomes a concern.

But remember this is a young squad still, and we should expect offensive cohesion and timing to improve as the weeks wear on.

If Kessler returns, I suspect this team should be competitive in the ECACHL tournament regardless of home ice advantage.
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I don't think that the goalscoring will magically jump if and when Kessler returns. True, the squad is very young and in my mind, they have overachieved to a certain extent. They have had their ups and downs; relying on a freshman goalie with such a young squad however may be too much to ask. Their schedule is forgiving somewhat with only a trip to RPI, SLU and Clarkson looming. If they can return the favor from yesterday and beat RPI in their barn, we have a good chance of finishing with home ice and perhaps with Kessler returning, they do have a good chance of making some noise in the tournament.
 
Re: Harvard Crimson Women 09-10

Crimson Hockey Fan said:
The Crimson article on the RPI loss says that Kessler's season is over:

http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2010/1/25/whockey-rpi-recap-012510/

How awesome that she broke the win record before this happened; it's just sad that her Harvard hockey career needs to end this way. Thanks for the opportunity to watch such a phenomenal goalie for four years, Ms. Kessler!
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This is very disappointing news for the Crimson and for Christina. She has been a terrific goalie for the Crimson and has saved their bacon on more than one occasion. She'll graduate with a Harvard diploma which I'm sure at this moment is small consolation but will provide her with a lifetime of opportunities.
 
Re: Harvard Crimson Women 09-10

Skate79 said:
This is very disappointing news for the Crimson and for Christina. She has been a terrific goalie for the Crimson and has saved their bacon on more than one occasion. She'll graduate with a Harvard diploma which I'm sure at this moment is small consolation but will provide her with a lifetime of opportunities.
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Ironic that she is going out the way she came in.
 
Rebuilding Half Year

Rebuilding Half Year

So we'll see how the younger players develop over the rest of the season, which is very very different from going to the NCAAs but still should be interesting in its own right.

Next year, each of the seniors except Kessler will be replaced by a member of the national U-18 team. Judging solely on Dempsey's performance this year, that should be pretty exciting. The big question will be in goal -- no matter how Bellamy develops, you have to have at least two plausible goalies, ideally three as we're just learning. Way back in the rear view mirror, I dimly recall the "problem" of getting enough ice time for a healthy Martin and a healthy Kessler but injuries ended up making that a relatively small number of games with both at 100%. Sort of like the trivia question how many games did Bobby Orr and Brad Park play together for the Bruins -- something like a grand total of eight, I think. Didn't the admissions office use to admit pairs of goalies -- Hughes/Roy, Israel/Tracy?
 
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Re: Harvard Crimson Women 09-10

Looking over the list of recruits, we don't have an incoming goalie as yet. That would leave Bellamy as the sole netminder next year. I'm sure that the coaching staff is trying hard to find someone. I'm just not sure how they will reconcile this with the NCAA if they can't find a second 'keeper.

Let's hope that Bellamy remains healthy the rest of the way.
 
Re: Harvard Crimson Women 09-10

By the way, I always thought you had to have two goalies dressed at the start of the game or it was a bench minor. Did Harvard get some sort of rule waiver or something?
 
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