Re: UAH Hockey 2014-15: The 30th Varsity Season
UAH returns to WCHA play this weekend where they've played well recently. I'm glad Tech's trip to Huntsville was earlier in the season. Any thoughts about what we might see in Houghton this weekend?
Well, you got Guerriero right up there at the peak of his powers, but the only problem was that Reid-Pierce-Fletcher couldn't play against both of your top two lines.
We do all the gritty stuff. Guys block shots. Guys finish checks. We're not as fast as you are, and we're not as offensively skilled, but we will keep coming and coming. It's lunch-pail hockey, but it's winning hockey right now.
Max McHugh has gotten it nailed. If we stay out of the box, Prince-McHugh-Brears can flat bring it. Prince likes to shoot and has a heavy shot, and he often shoots to generate a rebound unless he's playing a big body in front of the net. McHugh has good hands and is pretty elusive. Brears has a nice wrist shot that he can get off without need a lot of time and space.
Our second line of late has been Alex Carpenter (a WMU kid that didn't stick there and transferred here), a small guy that likes to bang it combined with Brennan Saulnier and Matt Salhany. Saulnier has good hands and likes to stickhandle low when he doesn't have a good passing lane, which is probably a result of him being 1) from the Canadian Maritimes, where they like to dangle and 2) really small. He has a tendency to take dumb penalties, including taking two majors in a game earlier this year. But he can be fun to watch. And Matt Salhany may not have great hands, but he has an extra gear that he's learned to use well. If he can't get a path to the net, he's really good at slowing just a hair and looking the defense into thinking that he'll pass. That's a new development, and he's also bought in completely to the defense end of things. 13-24-22 is our smallest line by far.
Then there's the Bulldog Line, which sadly will be missing Craig Pierce for a little bit. Reid-Pierce-Fletcher really frustrated Mel down here, and they're a matchup problem. They take pride in shutting guys down: winning pucks along the walls, good sticks in the neutral zone, etc. They're not the fastest, and they're not the biggest (okay, Fletch is a big guy), but they play their butts off, and I love them, and they know it.
The fourth line has been a bit of a jumble this year, and what you'll probably see is Regan Soquila in at LW with Jeff Vanderlugt and Josh Kestner. Soquila hasn't really shown the numbers he had with the Merritt Centennials, but every so often I see a flash that he might make the jump. Vandy, man, I just like that guy. Smart, funny, gives a crap. He's got a big body, decent feet, decent hands, and makes good passes. And then Kesty is our local kid who lit up a lower-level junior league and is now getting a chance in D-I. It finally looks like the game is slowing down for him, and he gets a few good shots on every game.
In back, the four best folks are Brandon Carlson, Brandon Parker, Frank Misuraca, and Cody Champagne. Carlson can play all over the ice and is a lot of fun. Parker makes great passes and loves that slap pass from the point and putting a shot in to make a rebound (though I want him to get a geno before the year is done). Frank has a great shot, moves the puck well, skates well, and doesn't get overwhelmed by bigger players. Champagne doesn't look like a freshman anymore.
After those guys, you'll see some combination of Ben Reinhardt (seriously, go on YouTube to see how much they loved him in Pembroke), Graeme Strukoff (likes to hit), Richard Buri (who has all the tools and sometimes knows how to use them), and Anderson White (kinda the same, although he's probably the fastest skater not named Salhany).
I think that the legend of Carmine Guerriero is well-known, but dangit, Matt Larose looked great last weekend against the U-18 team — the best that he has all year when I've been watching. It would be easy to be losing your edge, but he's there. And Jordy Uhelski may make the trip because they like having him around.
It's good to see the work and the coaching pay off. I've gone from expecting to lose to expecting to win (although I really only have hope this weekend at Houghton).
GFM
