USCHO Fan Forum
This is a sample guest message. Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!
-
The USCHO Fan Forum has migrated to a new plaform, xenForo. Most of the function of the forum should work in familiar ways. Please note that you can switch between light and dark modes by clicking on the gear icon in the upper right of the main menu bar. We are hoping that this new platform will prove to be faster and more reliable. Please feel free to explore its features.
The Barr Has Been Raised at UMaine
- Thread starter acs64
- Start date
- Status
BlackBearFan19
Active member
Well said, Red would be very proud of these guys.
Merrimack really took it to Maine physically last time they played so it’ll be interesting to see if Maine can match them. If they do, I think they have a good chance at winning. If they play physical but take penalties, they’re going to lose. Part of the reason Maine was able to jump out to that lead last night was because they played physical and clean.
On a side note, how good is Breen getting? For a guy that has the puck on his stick all the time, he rarely makes a negative play. Hopefully that line is able to stay together next year because they have great chemistry, they could win some games single handedly next year.
I 'm pretty sure I saw him in the game.
BlackBearFan19
Active member
He only played a shift or two at the beginning of the game. I’m guessing it was another injury. I noticed him sitting at the end of the bench for the whole third period. I’d be surprised to see him in the lineup on Wednesday.
tylerzx2002
Well-known member
Was nice to see Barr and the other coaches take a lap around the ice and wave to the fans after the game. I'm sure they quite appreciate the support despite the record of the team. But cultivating that relationship feels important to them because they know what an advantage a full Alfond can be.
The games where Maine uses that aggressive attack with a layered forecheck they really are a burden to play against. The wins against BC, UNH and BU last night come to mind as examples where they executed that early and often to really keep those better teams from getting any traction and offensive pressure. If that is the style of play Barr is going to bring on a nightly basis next year and beyond we're in for a real treat, especially as the talent level grows on this squad.
Not sure it you're being sarcastic or not, but give them credit. It was Senior night, they were pumped up and they played well. The fact that (and I'm NOT being sarcastic) it was the worst I have EVER seen a BU team play (and I have been watching/going to games for 50 years, since my Freshman year in 1972) isn't Maine's fault. No need to belittle them by asking if they will win Hockey East. And, frankly, with a single-game elimination format, that certainly brings many more possibilities into the equation. The hot team at the end of the year definitely has an advantage, but then again, that's the case in any tournament.
Were you at the game? A fan was wearing a BU sweater with Quinn and the number 7 on the back. He was holding court in the concourse during one of the intermissions when I saw him.
Ma#1ne Hky
New member
The Dawe family sat next to me on Friday and two rows down on Saturday, they told me that Adam woke up Saturday with a stomach flu and that he had slept all afternoon and that they didn't know what to expect for the game Saturday night...also they said he had some loose teeth from the cheap shot in front of the net on Friday...so with a little bit of rest I would expect to see him in the lineup come Wednesday versus Merrimack. I must add they were very nice people to speak to and were hoping for more success for the program in the years to come.
Went thru and did a quick update to my recruiting spreadsheet. Added in Freel and Calafiore, and if I saw the team make a post about them arriving next year either on Twitter or Instagram, I listed them as "Confirmed". Honestly some pretty good numbers on this sheet, obviously numbers arent everything but they allow for some optimism. Trudeau and Nadeau look like stars, as we expected, and Freel and Pabich in particular look like they could be good depth forwards. On the back end, Kincaid, Arnott, Holt, and Hopkins all look like good pieces. Still very weak in net on the recruiting trail, but Ostman is a good starting goalie and has a few years left. The future looks bright, in my eyes.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1LVPOTKnji-x_rqcbThYOfJZnJ8jnjgEWkAaS3LapaZ4/edit#gid=0
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1LVPOTKnji-x_rqcbThYOfJZnJ8jnjgEWkAaS3LapaZ4/edit#gid=0
FYI: Sinclair, & Langford are no longer committed to Maine.
Last edited:
NorthMike
Well-known member
Thanks.
Barr said the other night on coaches show that ideally he would like 26 to 27 on a roster, but during a rebuild like this he thinks they may likely have 28 to 29 for the next couple years.
Thielson looked solid last night too, he may be solid too next year as he evolves.
Thank you, good to know. Also clears up a lot. Leaves Maine even weaker in goal though...
Were you at the game? A fan was wearing a BU sweater with Quinn and the number 7 on the back. He was holding court in the concourse during one of the intermissions when I saw him.
No. I actually don't live in New England anymore...we moved last year.
Took to opportunity to tweak a few things as I removed Langford and Sinclair. I re-organized the list to be ordered first by estimated arrival year, and then in alphabetical order by last name, whereas before it was in a random order within each class. I also color coded each likely class, similar to how I remember BHall44 doing it on his spreadsheet back in the day. Just a few quality of life fixes.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1LVPOTKnji-x_rqcbThYOfJZnJ8jnjgEWkAaS3LapaZ4/edit#gid=0
tylerzx2002
Well-known member
Nice work on compiling this!
Might be a nice addition to get the player's age added to it to give some context to the stats themselves.
NorthMike
Well-known member
An Old Wound revisited by Solari:
Good Luck today Team.
"Fifteen years ago this month, Blake James and his compadres at the University of Maine massively disrespected Stephen and Tabitha King by yanking Black Bear broadcasting rights from locally owned WZON.
And UMaine men’s hockey may still be paying the price for it to this day.
I’ve said it dozens of times: it’s not necessarily what they did it. It’s how they did it. I mean you’d have to be some of the dumbest or most brazen people alive to blatantly insult your most famous graduates and generous donors by not even giving the them the courtesy of a heads up that this move was coming.
But Blake and the boys had Learfield dollar signs in their eyes and in March 2007 essentially told Bananas the Bear to put the middle fingers on each of his paws right up in the air at their most well known alumni.
I worked at WZON at the time as the afternoon show host and play by play voice of UMaine women’s basketball. I also did a few men’s hoops games and baseball and softball too.
I will tell you Dale Duff, General Manager Bobby Russell and everyone involved at Zone Corp never thought this would happen.
But one March morning in 2007 we got the news. After a decade of broadcasting hundreds of Maine games, the plug was being pulled. Even back then, while I was sore that I had broadcast my last game, anyone could look at the contract and see that it was good deal for UMaine. It was guaranteed cash they has never had before, and that’s major for a cash strapped athletic department.
So after not even consulting the Kings, or having the common decency to at least provide a courteous heads up about the decision in advance, Learfield hijacked the award winning broadcast team Duff developed and continue to own some of the broadcasting rights to this day.
But sometimes money isn’t everything as one of the most famous writers on the planet pointed out shortly after the decision.
"Tabby and I are very disappointed with the University's decision to move its sports broadcasting rights to Clear Channel, a company which is based far from the college it will be serving. We understand that monetary considerations were a prime consideration, but feel the Athletic Department in particular and the University in general may not understand that making money the prime consideration in any dealing is usually short-sighted. My wife and I feel that may prove to be the case here; we feel that what UM Athletics has gained for their programs may be offset by a loss in the area of community relations.”
And as you see in the image below, Blake James, former President Robert Kennedy, and others took a public beat down for months after the announcement.
Looking back at it even in 2022, the folks in Orono couldn’t have handled this any more poorly if they had driven up to the King mansion on West Broadway and started a book burning of King novels.
But perhaps The Master of Horror is getting the last laugh and a little revenge in true Carrie style.
Prior to the F.U. from Blake and the athletic department, UMaine men’s hockey had been to the NCAA tourney 7 years in a row.
Since their last appearance in March of 2007, around the time of this controversy, they have only been back one time.
There’s more. Since the King snub, you can add up zero regular season Hockey East titles and zero conference tourney titles for the Black Bear skaters. In fact the men’s hockey team has just four winning seasons in the 15 years and a miserable record of 195-263-43 since making the move to Learfield and WVOM. All of this after being one of the most successful programs in he country for years and years.
The program is now a true horror story. Is it the King Curse? The Hockey Hex? Maybe so….
Publicly the always gracious Kings took the high road and forgave the folks in Orono. But perhaps in some dark corner of the mansion in Bangor behind that black iron fence, there’s a little Bananas stuffed animal with some Voodoo pins still stuck in the middle fingers of those paws.
Cue the horror music as the hockey hex lives on."
Good Luck today Team.
"Fifteen years ago this month, Blake James and his compadres at the University of Maine massively disrespected Stephen and Tabitha King by yanking Black Bear broadcasting rights from locally owned WZON.
And UMaine men’s hockey may still be paying the price for it to this day.
I’ve said it dozens of times: it’s not necessarily what they did it. It’s how they did it. I mean you’d have to be some of the dumbest or most brazen people alive to blatantly insult your most famous graduates and generous donors by not even giving the them the courtesy of a heads up that this move was coming.
But Blake and the boys had Learfield dollar signs in their eyes and in March 2007 essentially told Bananas the Bear to put the middle fingers on each of his paws right up in the air at their most well known alumni.
I worked at WZON at the time as the afternoon show host and play by play voice of UMaine women’s basketball. I also did a few men’s hoops games and baseball and softball too.
I will tell you Dale Duff, General Manager Bobby Russell and everyone involved at Zone Corp never thought this would happen.
But one March morning in 2007 we got the news. After a decade of broadcasting hundreds of Maine games, the plug was being pulled. Even back then, while I was sore that I had broadcast my last game, anyone could look at the contract and see that it was good deal for UMaine. It was guaranteed cash they has never had before, and that’s major for a cash strapped athletic department.
So after not even consulting the Kings, or having the common decency to at least provide a courteous heads up about the decision in advance, Learfield hijacked the award winning broadcast team Duff developed and continue to own some of the broadcasting rights to this day.
But sometimes money isn’t everything as one of the most famous writers on the planet pointed out shortly after the decision.
"Tabby and I are very disappointed with the University's decision to move its sports broadcasting rights to Clear Channel, a company which is based far from the college it will be serving. We understand that monetary considerations were a prime consideration, but feel the Athletic Department in particular and the University in general may not understand that making money the prime consideration in any dealing is usually short-sighted. My wife and I feel that may prove to be the case here; we feel that what UM Athletics has gained for their programs may be offset by a loss in the area of community relations.”
And as you see in the image below, Blake James, former President Robert Kennedy, and others took a public beat down for months after the announcement.
Looking back at it even in 2022, the folks in Orono couldn’t have handled this any more poorly if they had driven up to the King mansion on West Broadway and started a book burning of King novels.
But perhaps The Master of Horror is getting the last laugh and a little revenge in true Carrie style.
Prior to the F.U. from Blake and the athletic department, UMaine men’s hockey had been to the NCAA tourney 7 years in a row.
Since their last appearance in March of 2007, around the time of this controversy, they have only been back one time.
There’s more. Since the King snub, you can add up zero regular season Hockey East titles and zero conference tourney titles for the Black Bear skaters. In fact the men’s hockey team has just four winning seasons in the 15 years and a miserable record of 195-263-43 since making the move to Learfield and WVOM. All of this after being one of the most successful programs in he country for years and years.
The program is now a true horror story. Is it the King Curse? The Hockey Hex? Maybe so….
Publicly the always gracious Kings took the high road and forgave the folks in Orono. But perhaps in some dark corner of the mansion in Bangor behind that black iron fence, there’s a little Bananas stuffed animal with some Voodoo pins still stuck in the middle fingers of those paws.
Cue the horror music as the hockey hex lives on."
ticapnews
Never graduate.
As much as I appreciate reading Jeff's work, please only quote a few paragraphs and then provide a link. Not only is it courteous, it's a problem for USCHO re: copyright claims and safe harbor.
I think the downturn in Maine hockey (and the athletics department as a whole) has more to do with the 2008 economic disaster, Harold Alfond's passing and a series of terrible decisions by leadership. This was just another example of those decisions.
But I wouldn't completely discount a Stephen King curse.
I think the downturn in Maine hockey (and the athletics department as a whole) has more to do with the 2008 economic disaster, Harold Alfond's passing and a series of terrible decisions by leadership. This was just another example of those decisions.
But I wouldn't completely discount a Stephen King curse.
Chuck Murray
WIS & Effingwoods Hockey Almanac
Question: Why is it that so many media types can't help but interject themselves into stories like this? Seems like Solari can't help himself, especially when everyone knows the downfall of UMaine Hockey definitively began with Walshy's tragic passing, not due to some silly made-up curse or "hoax". By the time of the events that apparently so scarred his broadcasting career that he's still babbling about it 15 years later, the horses had already left the barn ...
tylerzx2002
Well-known member
I like reading Solari, but this feels like nothing more than a cheap way to get clicks...
Still seems weird that Blake James would just take the Learfield offer without at least seeing if the Kings would match it.
Makes no sense to completely trash that long-time partnership by blindsiding the Kings and then giving them just cause to turn their backs to Maine hockey altogether.
Last edited:
- Status