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UNH At The Starting Gate....

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Re: UNH At The Starting Gate....

Very impressed with most of the team last night. Disappointed by the PP and PK, but hopefully they'll focus on that over the next few practices. Digi certainly likes to travel out of the net, which makes me a bit nervous, but I don't think any of the goals were a result of that, so it's hard to find fault with it (for now). Excellent showing by the crowd, I thought, particularly staying for the whole game. I was disappointed to see some fans heading up at the last stoppage in OT (15.4 seconds left), but for the most part, good noise (when prompted) and good showing. The student section was loud and fun (though not particularly varied in cheers, it's great to hear them taking initiative and cheering).

Looking forward to attending a few more games at the Whitt this season.
 
Re: UNH At The Starting Gate....

Last night's game was thoroughly enjoyable. The Whitt seems as bright as it has been in the last 5 or 6 years. Getting rid of the mold and dirt in the ceiling helps, refinished boards, new glass . . . it all makes for a much more pleasant experience. And the crowd was great, into the game from the opening whistle. And the teams did not disappoint as there was uninterrupted end-to-end action all night long. Very entertaining all and all. Also great to see Red Berenson in the flesh, his first trip to UNH since his first year as a coach back in 1984. I have to admit, I don't remember that game.

As for the team, I thought from the defense out they did a good job all night long. The puck possession time for Michigan in the UNH zone was minimal (except on the PP). The puck seemed to get through the neutral zone pretty quickly and UNH ultimately put a lot of good shots on Hunwick (brother of Bruins d-man Matt, BTW). Thompson's goal that tied things was the result of a great set up by DeSimone. DeSimone seemed to lull the defender as he came down the left wing, then burst by him and centered to a basically uncovered Thompson for the goal. The play I think was evidence of what UNH was able to do all night long against Michigan.

Only negative, and not a big one, was DiGirolamo. Third goal was pretty weak (five-hole) and he looked a bit shaky controlling the puck. But, if I am not mistaken, I believe it was his first ever start at the Whit and against a team like Michigan to boot. So we'll give him the benefit of the doubt. UNH has had great success with goalies over the last 10-15 years and, based on that alone, I have to believe that things will work out with the one we have now.
 
Re: UNH At The Starting Gate....

Carmine Scarpaglia said:
Whoops. With all the excitement in this thread I just assumed you guys had won! :D

That'll teach me to be a wise guy!
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"Doosh"bag.

Anyway, it was great to see Michigan and Mr. Berensen in Durham. It was also a pleasure to watch Hunwick play, the kid is just incredible. The 'Cats dominated play for most of the night. It looks like this team could make some noise this year. Good to see the 4th line take a couple shifts each period. John Henrion is going to be a force. 47 shots on net for the 'Cats against Michigan, they can beat anybody this year.
 
Re: UNH At The Starting Gate....

Solid game from the Cats last night. The Powerplay definitely worries me...going nearly 6 minutes un-interrupted and not being able to put one in is somewhat embarrassing. Yes, it's an early season game; but it's something that the coaching staff should certainly work on throughout the season.

DiGi looked shaky at some times, stellar at others. I think it's simply a matter of time, literally. If he gets more time, he'll most likely appear more comfortable in the crease. I remember people saying Foster looked iffy his first start after Regan graduated.

Overall, solid game, solid start against some of the better teams in the CCHA; certainly nothing to sneeze at. That doesn't mean we don't have issues (the most glaring, to me, was the PP) but we don't have as big a hole to dig out of as we did last year.
 
Re: UNH At The Starting Gate....

Copied from the UNH/Michigan thread:

Great game last night. High flying fast paced action on both ends. Other than special teams, UNH dominated much of the game. Hunwick stood on his head and put on a show in the third and in overtime...

Michigan had a decent amount of people in the visitors section as well as scattered throughout the arena. It was great to see them come out east for a game, wish it could have been 2!

No expectations for this season, but I'm optimistic that we'll have an exciting team to follow in Durham.

Couple of pix from Thompson's 3rd period tying power play goal... extra sweet that Burlon got in the frame with the puck in the net after he taunted the crowd (popped the jersey) after his 3rd period goal, and winked at the linesman on the faceoff just before that goal :)
unh3goal.jpg

thompsongtg.jpg
 
Re: UNH At The Starting Gate....

Carmine Scarpaglia said:
Now how could that be? UNH won this game! :D

Nice job guys. UNH is going all the way this year. This is the year!!!!!
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Brilliant Carmine. Hey, before you trip over your dick on your way to the BC trophy case I just have one question for ya. Did it take you all off season to drum that one up?
 
Re: UNH At The Starting Gate....

Gibber said:
Congrats on title 5, we're all playing for 2nd place :D
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Thanks Gib. Given BC's streak over UNH in the postseason, you certainly would be playing for 2nd place if BC was your opponent in the national title game! :D Boy would it shut those WCHA boyz up, though.

But let's be honest, I think we all know you guys will flame out long before the national title game. :(
 
Re: UNH At The Starting Gate....

Carmine Scarpaglia said:
Thanks Gib. Given BC's streak over UNH in the postseason, you certainly would be playing for 2nd place if BC was your opponent in the national title game! :D Boy would it shut those WCHA boyz up, though.

But let's be honest, I think we all know you guys will flame out long before the national title game. :(
Click to expand...

Like I said, congrats!
 
Re: UNH At The Starting Gate....

PSW said:
Regarding the above assessment watching Borisenok last year and 3 games this year, he is a very solid 2 way player including faceoff’s. He handles the puck well and has shown some creativity. In my view he has some upside offensive potential. Moses has a “free wheeling , run around “ style, no one can really set him up. He’s kind of a opportunist that gets to pucks other don’t because of his speed. For example his goal on Saturday night, Borisenok tips way a Miami pass, Moses gets to it because of his speed and scores. That’s the Moses game.
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Your assessment of Borisenok and Moses was right on the money:
"The Wildcats gained the equalizer just 1:37 into the middle stanza when junior Mike Borisenok (Watervliet, N.Y.) won the faceoff in the right circle to classmate Stevie Moses (Leominster, Mass.), who blasted a shot from the top of the circle that beat Michigan goaltender Shawn Hunwick to his left." (from UNHWildcats.com).
 
Re: UNH At The Starting Gate....

CarlS said:
I am sure you might be able to get some of those $75.00 "premium" seats that UNH is selling.
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I could not get to Durham until about 6:30 pm, but there were still a few reserved seats available, so only had to shell out $26. Not much to add to what has already been written, although I thought that Block played great too, and the action in the corners is much more fun to watch now after the reconfiguration. After spending the first two periods behind the net at the far end (great place to watch both goalies make some fine stops), I found that my cousin had an extra seat about 10 rows up in the first section along the sidewall in the corner on the UNH side, which was perfect for watching DeSimone's beautiful feed to Thompson for the game-tying goal. My cousin thought that the UNH goal called back earlier in the game was because Hunwick lifted the post off the ice with his shoulder, AFTER the puck crossed the line. Agreed that UNH needs to get at least one shot on net with 35 seconds of 5-3 PP; just shoot it! With tickets apparently so readily available this season, I will be back for a few more games at Lake Whitt this season. Great start!
 
Re: UNH At The Starting Gate....

Move over Trevor Smith. There's a new mayor in town - Nick Sorkin.
At least that's the opinion of a knowledgable father and son team who sat behind me at Matthews Arena this evening. I second the nomination. Sorkin's combination of size (6'-3") and speed impressed me in the Michigan game. Tonight, he played with Borisenok and Moses and matched them stride-for-stride. The big frame with #21 on the back won't make you forget about JvR but he could develop into a very productive player over the next four years.

Matthews was as spectator friendly as advertised. The Dog Pound was a hoot. The fans were respectful (or at least tolerant) of the visitors in UNH shirts and hats. Great site lines. And the coldest (temperature wise) arena I've ever been in.

As expected, Northeastern was a competitive bunch. They came out flying in the first period and had UNH on it's heels for the first 10 minutes or so. Eventually, UNH's more balanced talent across all offensive and defensive lines regained the momentum. NU got their chances though I think they were outshoot by a small amount. Rawlings is a quality goaltender and compensates for some defensive lapses.

By-and-large, the character of the NU squad was like their coach's - petulant and hot-headed. Whether it was slashing the boards on the way to the penalty box or taking two cheap shots at the head of DeSimone and DiGirolamo, the Huskies aren't going to win any popularity contests outside of Huntington Ave. But, give them credit - they were never out of the game.

One final note. Even on the smaller ice surface, Stevie Moses was all over the place scooping up pucks and leading rushes. Mr. Excitement. Also, DiGi seems more and more comfortable with each passing game.
 
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Clark-Hislop-Cox said:
Move over Trevor Smith. There's a new mayor in town - Nick Sorkin.
At least that's the opinion of a knowledgable father and son team who sat behind me at Matthews Arena this evening. I second the nomination. Sorkin's combination of size (6'-3") and speed impressed me in the Michigan game. Tonight, he played with Borisenok and Moses and matched them stride-for-stride. The big frame with #21 on the back won't make you forget about JvR but he could develop into a very productive player over the next four years.

Matthews was as spectator friendly as advertised. The Dog Pound was a hoot. The fans were respectful (or at least tolerant) of the visitors in UNH shirts and hats. Great site lines. And the coldest (temperature wise) arena I've ever been in.

As expected, Northeastern was a competitive bunch. They came out flying in the first period and had UNH on it's heels for the first 10 minutes or so. Eventually, UNH's more balanced talent across all offensive and defensive lines regained the momentum. NU got their chances though I think they were outshoot by a small amount. Rawlings is a quality goaltender and compensates for some defensive lapses.

By-and-large, the character of the NU squad was like their coach's - petulant and hot-headed. Whether it was slashing the boards on the way to the penalty box or taking two cheap shots at the head of DeSimone and DiGirolamo, the Huskies aren't going to win any popularity contests outside of Huntington Ave. But, give them credit - they were never out of the game.

One final note. Even on the smaller ice surface, Stevie Moses was all over the place scooping up pucks and leading rushes. Mr. Excitement. Also, DiGi seems more and more comfortable with each passing game.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the update CHC! I had tix to the game but had to cancel at the last minute. How did Henrion look? I felt he played great against Michigan with his combination nifty skills and size.
 
Re: UNH At The Starting Gate....

GoUNH said:
Thanks for the update CHC! I had tix to the game but had to cancel at the last minute. How did Henrion look? I felt he played great against Michigan with his combination nifty skills and size.
Click to expand...
Given the negative buzz about Henrion - being on the "milk carton" list - I kind of watched him closely last night. For much of the game, he didn't do much. In fact, I thought he made several bad passes. In the third period, he made a nifty move taking the puck between the faceoff circles in front of Rawlings and drew a penalty. The sophomore line - Speelman-Block-Henrion - is still a work in progress. Speelman continues to impress me with his ability to control the puck.
 
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