UNH: What to expect in 2015

[zoofer]

Re: UNH: What to expect in 2015

Time for some playoff hockey! UNH goes down to Storrs, #5 vs #$, and as all such match-ups seem to be, the most likely for an upset....hopefully the Wildcats go onto the small ice surface of Freitas leaving the massive Lake Whitt to play an aggressive, competitive, physical style of play.....Freshman Kyra Smith has to match the weekend series that HE All Time saves leader Elaine Chuli will come up with......it should be a great weekend of hockey! If the Wildcats can remember how close they were last year to moving onto the semi's in losing to Northeastern, it should provide a needed kick in the rump...... Let's do this Wildcats!

 

[Nosdravi]

Re: UNH: What to expect in 2015

Time for some playoff hockey! UNH goes down to Storrs, #5 vs #$, and as all such match-ups seem to be, the most likely for an upset....hopefully the Wildcats go onto the small ice surface of Freitas leaving the massive Lake Whitt to play an aggressive, competitive, physical style of play.....Freshman Kyra Smith has to match the weekend series that HE All Time saves leader Elaine Chuli will come up with......it should be a great weekend of hockey! If the Wildcats can remember how close they were last year to moving onto the semi's in losing to Northeastern, it should provide a needed kick in the rump...... Let's do this Wildcats!

UConn 3-1 after 2 (gametracker not working?)

 

[090701]

Re: UNH: What to expect in 2015

Well it was a roller coaster year, but what a finish, triple OT game, girls played their hearts out, I have to say with this years freshman's and the incoming class, it's should be a bright future for UNH.

 

[zoofer]

Re: UNH: What to expect in 2015

I totally agree 090701.....the Ladies made great strides as the season progressed despite some of the issues we talked about at home games....As for what this year's freshman class brought to UNH, one can only be ecstatic that we have 3 more years with their play and growth...in that vein, you know how well respected and happy the fans were that your daughter chose UNH! She sees the whole ice, knows how the plays will develop in front of her, and isn't afraid to take the chance and make the play....hopefully next year's team will be as aggressive.... increasing possession time should also be a priority...the future does look bright, which is a huge step out of the darkness of but 2 years ago!

 

[KTDC]

Re: UNH: What to expect in 2015

I was just perusing your stats.

I see a player listed at 4' 11" that is credited with 67 blocked shots That is extraordinary!! (Marie-Jo Pelletier)

 

[sonar]

Re: UNH: What to expect in 2015

Well it was a roller coaster year, but what a finish, triple OT game, girls played their hearts out, I have to say with this years freshman's and the incoming class, it's should be a bright future for UNH.

Sounds like what the men's team has been saying for 5 or 6 years and look where they are ........

 

[sonar]

Re: UNH: What to expect in 2015

I am a little concerned about future recruiting years. I have watched many of incoming of the next 3 years from NEGHL and NEPSAC. It isn't a group I would expect to help all that much. Hopefully I am wrong.

I don't think you are ....

 

[zoofer]

Re: UNH: What to expect in 2015

I hope you are!! But one of the selling points of having Coach Witt take over the program was her ties with the National team, and her recruiting knowledge and abilities, so hopefully that will help find those diamonds I spoke of.....
And KTDC, Miss Pelletier follows in the footsteps of the others that played here at UNH vertically challenged, like Kelly Paton and Sam Faber, both of whom I believe were All-American (no time now to look it up).....she played great and I am so glad she has 3 more years here that I can watch her play!!

 

[pucko]

Re: UNH: What to expect in 2015

What recruiting knowledge and ability? Before the national team, her team at Yale was not very good and Northeastern wasn't much to write home about when she became an assistant there. It's not hard to recruit for a national team. Everyone wants to play for their country! The difference is can she convince those players to come and play for her at UNH? I was not impressed with her freshman class this year and have caught wind of a few players coming next year who are OK, but not great. Definitely not great enough to turn UNH back into the powerhouse it used to be. I am curious as to the timeline she will get for a contract. At what point will UNH say she isn't the answer? (I'm not saying that she isn't, but I'm also not particularly impressed with what I've seen since she's taken over).

 

[zoofer]

Re: UNH: What to expect in 2015

Pucko, I was reiterating what the Athletic Dept. put out when she was hired.....I might be convinced to agree with everything you say in fact....in response to her contract length, I think that falls under what is being discussed on the UNH men's thread....how much are the hockey programs now being tended too....

 

[3skaters]

Re: UNH: What to expect in 2015

The 16-17 class is her first class she and her staff have recruited. Current freshman class was all committed to 2 years ago just like these 98s and the 99s next year.

 

[3skaters]

Re: UNH: What to expect in 2015

Also BC is about to lose 98 of its 189 goals when Carpenter and that BC Sr class is gone--you can't replace that, same with the 50 goals that 5 ft 2 Kendall Coyne puts in--size in women's hockey doesn't matter like it does for mens hockey. Players like Carpenter and Coyne create huge opportunities for other players to rack up points. If small players can skate, see the ice, and make plays they will get into position to score goals or they will draw many penalties as they get hauled down. I think Witt honored a bunch of scholarships for players that she might not have taken and that don't contribute much and she didn't have to do that. So she took the high road. I think this years team got out to a slow start and had early goaltending problems which they shored up. 16/17 class has one of the top U18 Canadian National D, 2 solid NAHA players, another goalie and girls from highly ranked teams and national development camp players. UNH is graduating seniors that tallied a whopping 11 goals while juniors and sophomores accounted for 68. I would say UNH is headed in the right direction.

 

[pucko]

Re: UNH: What to expect in 2015

Also BC is about to lose 98 of its 189 goals when Carpenter and that BC Sr class is gone--you can't replace that, same with the 50 goals that 5 ft 2 Kendall Coyne puts in--size in women's hockey doesn't matter like it does for mens hockey. Players like Carpenter and Coyne create huge opportunities for other players to rack up points. If small players can skate, see the ice, and make plays they will get into position to score goals or they will draw many penalties as they get hauled down. I think Witt honored a bunch of scholarships for players that she might not have taken and that don't contribute much and she didn't have to do that. So she took the high road. I think this years team got out to a slow start and had early goaltending problems which they shored up. 16/17 class has one of the top U18 Canadian National D, 2 solid NAHA players, another goalie and girls from highly ranked teams and national development camp players. UNH is graduating seniors that tallied a whopping 11 goals while juniors and sophomores accounted for 68. I would say UNH is headed in the right direction.

That's very good to hear. I think UNH still has goaltending issues. I don't think that Smith is the answer so hopefully, they have a stud freshman coming in, or it could be another long year where UNH can outshoot teams, but lose because bad/weak goals are let in. I understand that she was a freshman this year, but when goalie's save percentages are below .900, you're not going to win a championship. Their D zone needs to tighten up as well. From the games I've watched, it doesn't look like they even know how to mark up on someone. So they're either going to have to outscore teams (which they don't have the offensive power - yet? - to do), or they're going to have to figure out how to play better defense.

 

[zoofer]

Re: UNH: What to expect in 2015

Pucko, you hit on one of the 2 major issues I think UNH had this year....I do give Kyra Smith a lot of credit still...as a freshman, she came in and steadied the goal tending position. Apparently she earned her playing time in practice and did very well most of the season....the problem was/is having a defensive corp that as you say, " it doesn't look like they even know how to mark up on someone". Be it holding the point in the offensive zone or continually, and I mean always, backing off the oncoming player! If you have the time, look at the OT winner vs UConn, the D backed in to the point where the shot came from 10-15 feet out! For the most part, that was a constant situation that left Smith either screened and her reaction time muted, or gave the zone for the opposing team to skate as they pleased.....the other main issue, IMHO, was our possession time, or more accurately the lack thereof...it seemed like at times we were satisfied with just getting the puck out of our D-zone, instead of having a set play to regroup and attack...throwing the puck off the boards more than 50% of the time, throw arounds with no one there, going for the home run pass as your #1 breakout.....we never simply controlled the puck with our D, passing back and forth until a good opportunity arose....we'd dump the puck, with no speed by the forwards so we had limited chances to get to the puck first.......Gotta run, but in essence Pucko Smith needed her team to help a bit more......

 

[TonyTheTiger20]

Re: UNH: What to expect in 2015

Hey Wildcattians -- does the Whitt have wifi?

 

[Scott]

Re: UNH: What to expect in 2015

Hey Wildcattians -- does the Whitt have wifi?

Yes, indeed.

 

[TonyTheTiger20]

Re: UNH: What to expect in 2015

Yes, indeed.

Thank you!

 

[KTDC]

Re: UNH: What to expect in 2015

To the UNH people on the forum, thanks to UNH for hosting the tournament!

 

[zoofer]

Re: UNH: What to expect in 2015

I wish we had more to do with it, but thanks KTDC.....credit where credit is due, Steve Metcalf is the Associate AD for UNH, and is usually put in charge of the NCAA events... as I said earlier, it was crazy how I could drive to this national event, 10 miles and have no issues! Parking, crowds, absolutely no hassles on both days....pretty sweet! I don't know if any Bostonians took advantage of Amtrak, but it drops you off a 9 iron shot from the Whitt! Hopefully UNH will bid again for the FF in the future......