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UNH Wildcats 2013-14 Season Thread

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Re: UNH Wildcats 2013-14 Season Thread

Lots of good posts and insights on here overnight, with many circling around some familiar themes. On the issue of "flat" ... there's no doubt the UNH kids came out with energy. But I'll echo what Aerman and others after put out there and suggest energy alone - without a clear focus for that energy - isn't going to get it done ... especially against a Top Ten opponent. Even Coach Umile's comments seem to back up what Knodel had to say. 3-0 in your own barn a couple of minutes into the second period speaks volumes.

Now that UNH has "scouted" Union up close and personal for 60 minutes, there's no excuse tonight for UNH not knowing what's coming at them. Tonight, UNH will have an opportunity to turn talk into action, energy into focused energy, turn the tables and get a win.

IF UNH can learn from last night's pitfalls, put the lessons to good use tonight and carry them into the HE regular season run-out, then maybe this will have served a purpose.

Trying really hard to be a "glass-half-full" kinda guy right now. :)
 
Re: UNH Wildcats 2013-14 Season Thread

It may not be a lack of urgency
NCAA watcher said:
Re: past results/future performance.

No current UNH player has finished higher than 40th in USHL scoring. The highest ranked player is Goumas (40th), and not surprisingly, he leads UNH in scoring. (Of interest, Mike Vecchione is currently 14th in USHL scoring.)
Only one has earned any sort of USHL honor (Brett Kostolansky, all-rookie team).

Greg Burke 256th in USHL scoring
Brett Kostolansky 144th
Scott Pavelski 80th
Dalton Speelman 43d
Kevin Goumas 40th
Eric Knodel 127th
Nick Sorkin 61st
Justin Agosta 164th
Jeff Silengo 164th
Casey Thrush 82nd
Jay Camper 198th
Maxim Gaudreault 79th
Jamie Hill 54th

The law of averages would dictate that in 4 years (160 USHL top-40 spots), and only 30 or so competitive DI teams, a team would have someone higher, but UNH managed not to.
Only a crazy person would expect a team with that sort of talent procurement to be competitive in a major division.
Click to expand...
 
Re: UNH Wildcats 2013-14 Season Thread

I think Watcher nailed it today and on his original post. Not sure if there is much more you can say.
 
CarlS said:
I think Watcher nailed it today and on his original post. Not sure if there is much more you can say.
Click to expand...

I agree that Watcher nailed the problem. So, perhaps UNH should not be scheduling such good teams for OOC games? Then again, our OOC schedule was weak and our SOS low two years ago, and we missed the NCAAs for the first time in over a decade. Will need to sweep Maine regardless what happens against Union tonight. Need home ice for HE tourney and a trip to the Garden this year.
 
Re: UNH Wildcats 2013-14 Season Thread

#6 beat #17 3 - 1 last night. A casual observer would see that as an expected result.

Union was all over the 'cats in the 1st 10 minutes. UNH adjusted and by the end of the game Union looked like the more tired team.

It is all about how the 'cats respond tonight. A win would be great, a tie OK. #17 losing again to # 6 is not devastating as long as we respond with our level of play. Coming out flat again is unacceptable given the post game comments from Coach and the players.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCr_vBUqEjE&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Amusing thought last night: nice to see the Dutch don't have a problem with the Dutchmen as the Sioux did with the Fighting Sioux.

Go 'cats!
 
Darius said:
#6 beat #17 3 - 1 last night. A casual observer would see that as an expected result.

Union was all over the 'cats in the 1st 10 minutes. UNH adjusted and by the end of the game Union looked like the more tired team.

It is all about how the 'cats respond tonight. A win would be great, a tie OK. #17 losing again to # 6 is not devastating as long as we respond with our level of play. Coming out flat again is unacceptable given the post game comments from Coach and the players.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCr_vBUqEjE&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Amusing thought last night: nice to see the Dutch don't have a problem with the Dutchmen as the Sioux did with the Fighting Sioux.

Go 'cats!
Click to expand...
Thus the problem. UNH ranked #17 and Union ranked # 6. I would think that UNH would have the resources to do better. :(
 
Re: UNH Wildcats 2013-14 Season Thread

So, loss of TVR and Downing offset loss of Vecchione, I guess?

Time to regroup for Maine.
 
Last edited:
Re: UNH Wildcats 2013-14 Season Thread

C-H-C said:
"UNH Loses Game, TvR, and Downing; Union Wins 3-1"
Updated to include Tyler Kelleher goal on the shift immediately after TvR was helped into the locker room.
Click to expand...

Boys worked hard last night; was a fast paced game thanks for these clips! Here's hoping TVR and Downing are going to be ok but sure doesn't look good from the clips...

Maine; not good on the road, tough to beat at the Alfond. Someone in the know, what's the skinny on the loss as per the pairwise and is it up to winning the Hockey East to make the Regionals...or, too early to make that kind of prediction? Man, what a volatile sport! Love it. :p Going to make the road trip to Black Bear country me thinks...
 
Re: UNH Wildcats 2013-14 Season Thread

Disappointing weekend for UNH ... played OK but simply lost to a better, more talented team last night. Having said that, I thought Union's defense was incredibly loose with the puck in their own end WAY too often in the first two periods, and a better team would have punished them for it. For that reason, unless the Dutchmen cut that out of their game ASAP, I don't see them going too deep in the postseason. It was hard to tell how good their goalie (Stevens) was, as the quality of the shots he faced was pretty routine, no matter the volume. When it comes to SOG's, give me quality over quantity every day of the week (and twice on Saturdays ;) ).

The two injuries are obviously a huge concern looking ahead. I thought the defense played pretty well overall, against an aggressive group of talented, quick forwards. The impact of TvR missing the better part of the last two period seemed to have a bigger impact on UNH's attacking play, which seemed totally devoid of creativity in the absence of him and Downing. Points made by 'watcher, sonar and others about the overall paucity of UNH attacking talent were never more apparent than in the last 30 minutes of last night's game. It sounds like there may be some exciting prospects in the pipeline, but sadly they're not going to arrive soon enough for this year. :(

At the risk of "going negative" a step too far ... while no one can credibly challenge the effort being put in by this team, it still bothers me that UNH does not play more aggressively and physically. Maybe I'm mistaken, and I'm happy to accept opposing opinions on this, but it seems to me that UNH teams traditionally get outhit by even the high-skill opposition (and I'll throw Union into that group, with BC and recent PC teams also featuring in there, and many past BU and UMaine teams as well). While several of UNH's smaller players may actually be among the most physical players on the team - and I have no issue with Knodel in this area at this stage of his UNH career, despite previous misgivings - there are more than a few players out there who should be more of a physical presence. UNH is hardly a team full of munchkins and waterbugs, so they should be playing "bigger" than they do. And if the team IS going to have to rely on a quantity vs. quality attacking philosophy, they'd be well-served by getting their players to establish a goal-front presence in the opponent's end more often than they do.

And it's not only just the hitting part of the game ... too often, I see defensemen backing off very makeable plays at the point and playing it safe to prevent getting caught behind an odd-man rush. This is not a "this year" thing ... it's not even a "recent years" thing (i.e. Tortorella) ... I'm not even saying its a Coach Umile thing, but it seems to have been a constant theme for a long time, and I wish they'd be a little more aggressive thinking on the makeable plays. Especially earlier in the game. Last night, the defensemen seemed to be doing it (and doing it rather well) in the latter stages of the game, and of course that's understandable, given the game situation and all. It just seems to me there is a lot (too much?) of "erring on the side of caution" going on, and while I understand the risk is to be too reckless, and giving up too many chances ... the upside is to set a more positive tone in the attacking zone, especially with the current limitations of the talent level up front.

Anyway ... what's done is done, the OOC record is what it is, and unfortunately it is not a misrepresentation or "bad luck" or anything but what the team has earned (or more accurately, not earned). So far, this is basically a .500 team in AND out of the conference, and unless that changes over the next 10 games, that is going to get them something between the 5th-8th seed in the HE playoffs, which likely means no bye for the play-in round, and no home ice period on the hoped-for road to the TD Garden.

Hate to say it, but Friday night's home game against UMaine is pretty much a "must win", given the Black Bears' record at Alfond this year (9-1-0). As the old saying goes ... while this weekend's results may not be "the end of the world" for UNH's hopes for a trip to Boston and a berth in the NCAA's ... they are now definitely close enough to the precipice to see "the end" from here.

Let's go 'Cats. :)
 
Re: UNH Wildcats 2013-14 Season Thread

My first visit to Whittemore (though admittedly enhanced by the visitors' success) left me pretty impressed. That's an immense sheet, my only quibble is lack of video boards, just like our high school scoreboards at Messa. A little sterile but great fan facilities and sight lines. Also very friendly and helpful staff. I'm guessing with students and a packed house, it's a very tough place to come into. The Van Riemsdyk injury looked pretty serious, best to him, he is an immense talent. UNH showed a lot of grit by coming back almost immediately after he went down to get a score. I think there is a return visit by Cats to Schenectady next year so hopefully some of you can make it down to our cozy little place, just don't expect any creature comforts (there aren't any).
 
Wholin1 said:
My first visit to Whittemore (though admittedly enhanced by the visitors' success) left me pretty impressed. That's an immense sheet, my only quibble is lack of video boards, just like our high school scoreboards at Messa. A little sterile but great fan facilities and sight lines. Also very friendly and helpful staff. I'm guessing with students and a packed house, it's a very tough place to come into. The Van Riemsdyk injury looked pretty serious, best to him, he is an immense talent. UNH showed a lot of grit by coming back almost immediately after he went down to get a score. I think there is a return visit by Cats to Schenectady next year so hopefully some of you can make it down to our cozy little place, just don't expect any creature comforts (there aren't any).
Click to expand...

Glad you enjoyed your visit to "Wildcat Country"! It's qute a place when the students are all back this Fridays Maine game will be rocking. Yeah we all would love anything other than our 'Lite Brite' board... :). Best wishes with your club in the big pic they play a well disciplined hard hitting game.
 
Re: UNH Wildcats 2013-14 Season Thread

Chuck Murray said:
Disappointing weekend for UNH ... played OK but simply lost to a better, more talented team last night. Having said that, I thought Union's defense was incredibly loose with the puck in their own end WAY too often in the first two periods, and a better team would have punished them for it. For that reason, unless the Dutchmen cut that out of their game ASAP, I don't see them going too deep in the postseason. It was hard to tell how good their goalie (Stevens) was, as the quality of the shots he faced was pretty routine, no matter the volume. When it comes to SOG's, give me quality over quantity every day of the week (and twice on Saturdays ;) ).

The two injuries are obviously a huge concern looking ahead. I thought the defense played pretty well overall, against an aggressive group of talented, quick forwards. The impact of TvR missing the better part of the last two period seemed to have a bigger impact on UNH's attacking play, which seemed totally devoid of creativity in the absence of him and Downing. Points made by 'watcher, sonar and others about the overall paucity of UNH attacking talent were never more apparent than in the last 30 minutes of last night's game. It sounds like there may be some exciting prospects in the pipeline, but sadly they're not going to arrive soon enough for this year. :(

At the risk of "going negative" a step too far ... while no one can credibly challenge the effort being put in by this team, it still bothers me that UNH does not play more aggressively and physically. Maybe I'm mistaken, and I'm happy to accept opposing opinions on this, but it seems to me that UNH teams traditionally get outhit by even the high-skill opposition (and I'll throw Union into that group, with BC and recent PC teams also featuring in there, and many past BU and UMaine teams as well). While several of UNH's smaller players may actually be among the most physical players on the team - and I have no issue with Knodel in this area at this stage of his UNH career, despite previous misgivings - there are more than a few players out there who should be more of a physical presence. UNH is hardly a team full of munchkins and waterbugs, so they should be playing "bigger" than they do. And if the team IS going to have to rely on a quantity vs. quality attacking philosophy, they'd be well-served by getting their players to establish a goal-front presence in the opponent's end more often than they do.

And it's not only just the hitting part of the game ... too often, I see defensemen backing off very makeable plays at the point and playing it safe to prevent getting caught behind an odd-man rush. This is not a "this year" thing ... it's not even a "recent years" thing (i.e. Tortorella) ... I'm not even saying its a Coach Umile thing, but it seems to have been a constant theme for a long time, and I wish they'd be a little more aggressive thinking on the makeable plays. Especially earlier in the game. Last night, the defensemen seemed to be doing it (and doing it rather well) in the latter stages of the game, and of course that's understandable, given the game situation and all. It just seems to me there is a lot (too much?) of "erring on the side of caution" going on, and while I understand the risk is to be too reckless, and giving up too many chances ... the upside is to set a more positive tone in the attacking zone, especially with the current limitations of the talent level up front.

Anyway ... what's done is done, the OOC record is what it is, and unfortunately it is not a misrepresentation or "bad luck" or anything but what the team has earned (or more accurately, not earned). So far, this is basically a .500 team in AND out of the conference, and unless that changes over the next 10 games, that is going to get them something between the 5th-8th seed in the HE playoffs, which likely means no bye for the play-in round, and no home ice period on the hoped-for road to the TD Garden.

Hate to say it, but Friday night's home game against UMaine is pretty much a "must win", given the Black Bears' record at Alfond this year (9-1-0). As the old saying goes ... while this weekend's results may not be "the end of the world" for UNH's hopes for a trip to Boston and a berth in the NCAA's ... they are now definitely close enough to the precipice to see "the end" from here.

Let's go 'Cats. :)
Click to expand...

The ECAC historically has been a physical league. You often find teams that play physical are lacking in skill and so to compensate they play nasty or with an edge. Union does not lack skill but they play with an edge, finishing checks etc. a la the hit on TVR. This is a lethal combination and one which UNH had trouble with this weekend. It appeared to me Friday while watching the game that Union was targeting TVR. Would an ECAC team do that you ask? Answer: Without a doubt!!
 
HockeyRef said:
Glad you enjoyed your visit to "Wildcat Country"! It's qute a place when the students are all back this Fridays Maine game will be rocking. Yeah we all would love anything other than our 'Lite Brite' board... :). Best wishes with your club in the big pic they play a well disciplined hard hitting game.
Click to expand...

I like to call it the amber alert board. Bright lights at least have colors
 
e.cat said:
The ECAC historically has been a physical league. You often find teams that play physical are lacking in skill and so to compensate they play nasty or with an edge. Union does not lack skill but they play with an edge, finishing checks etc. a la the hit on TVR. This is a lethal combination and one which UNH had trouble with this weekend. It appeared to me Friday while watching the game that Union was targeting TVR. Would an ECAC team do that you ask? Answer: Without a doubt!!
Click to expand...

Watching the game Fri at the Whit there was one hard hit in TVR that he had a hard time getting up from but that's not the first game I've seen him get decked of course... Goumas took a few hard hits in that game as one would expect. Yep they were physical...TVR's prognosis is yet to be announced but couldn't help but think in slow mo looked very remincient of a Stamkos injury. Here's hoping I'm wrong!
 
UNHhockey29 said:
I like to call it the amber alert board. Bright lights at least have colors
Click to expand...

Ha good point! Sad testimony to our board situation which I suppose is the least of our issues! Is there a tron at the Alfond? Just bought a ticket up there. Pricey! Not sure if I'll wear my UNH jersey :)
 
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