Re: UML '09/'10 Season Thread Part II
To try to answer Patman question, I don't believe "blame" is the proper word. We can easily point fingers at coach or the players but keep in mind these are college kids (aka student athletes) who are likable, hard-working citizens of the UML community and have a positive impact on Lowell. I have a policy that "struggle" is the only negative word I will use towards a player and right now, you can take your pick.
Watching this team now for more than fifteen years and I have never have a felt so dejected for a Lowell team as I do right now. This team deserves and should be better but the execution is non-existent. It's been a long time since a Lowell team was outworked by Merrimack for large portions of that game. I mean, Merrimack is an improved team from last year but a measly ten shots after two periods and 0 for 7 on the PP is unacceptable. Half of the shots tonight for Lowell came on the PP.
The loss of Dehner is immeasurable but where have we seen this before when one guy (conceded important) goes down or away from this team and it falls down like a house of cards. I'm not saying that there won't be issues or hardships but this is the second straight year that one member of the River Hawks goes down and they go winless. This is not what I had in mind of a balanced team.
I have said it before but one dimensional dump and chase is a failed method in HE over a long haul. It simply doesn't work over a long course of a season. Every team has a game plan for Lowell and it works almost every time against the BU's, Maine's, BC's and UNH's of the world. Nobody on this team wants to shoot the puck and I don't understand why. As I have said numerous times, it’s pass, pass, pass and when they do shoot, it's nowhere close to the target. I know I've been both applauded and criticized before, but if this is not a head game, please tell me what it is. They always look for the perfect play in an imperfect game.
There is still about 1/3 of a HE season left and the River Hawks are reeling into a very big hole just one point from eighth place. They have their toughest test of the season with three of the next four games on the road against two teams that will likely have home ice in the HE playoffs. They must win Friday, otherwise they may get swept by BC and ME. Right now, I don't see how they can win at Alfond w/o Dehner. Bob Ellis was mentioning NCAA during tonight's post games but it's going to be difficult enough try to claw back into home ice, never mind Garden at this point.
Getting back to the first part of this discussion, the system isn't working between coaches and players. There is a disconnect that started during Thanksgiving week and hasn't corrected itself since. As much as I do like Blaise and his staff I can't help to wonder if the message is lost. At the same time, Patman is right...it's going to be harder to defend the coaching staff as a whole if this season of large expectations (for me: it was an HE Championship/NCAA appearance). It has been ten years and it will be three teams that should have reached the NCAAs (02, 06, and soon to be 10 if things don't turn around quickly). Whether or not people believe a regime change is needed will be something to talk about after the season is over but I don't see the light at the end of the tunnel for a year or two to come after this year.
I'm done for tonight...I was really hoping to see a win at the Alfond Arena to finally break the sixteen year drought (I've never seen a win live in 17 games at Alfond, 0-16-1), but at the rate we are going we are lucky to beat Providence in a couple of weeks.
Time is running out and in some ways, it is probably too late for an at-large NCAA bid.
