UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Season?

[HockeyRef]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

Back to UNH hockey...schedule. I see NU fans have their schedule so that means that the HE schedule is out? If that's the case schedule has been or is very close to being formalized (speculation). We know a lot of variables already just curious if the rest is carved in stone yet...

With very little digging I see that: (and in addition to what's been posted here already)

BC: Nov 1 (away) March 6-7 Home and Home
BU: Oct 26 Home
NU: Away, Dec Plus Friendship 4 games

 

[Chuck Murray]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

Regardless of rooting interests and predictions, hopefully we can all agree that this year's SCF provided lots of entertainment, drama and storylines. It will be interesting to see if there are any attempted "copycats" out there trying to mimic the Blues' reliance on the heavy game. I heard or read someone saying this was two years in a row - and I'm not sure I'm ready to put the Blues in the same company as the Capitals, but I do see an LA Kings' blueprint - but while the overall trend has been away from physical play, it's interesting any time a team bucks the trend and has success like this.

Honest question to the B's fans ... there was heavy booing of Commish Bettman in the midst of the post-game ceremonies. I know he usually gets razzed a certain amount any time he shows up to hand out the Cup, but this seemed pretty loud. Is there something specifically bad in the Bettman-B's history beyond "the usual"? It sounded to me more like Pats' fans screaming at Goodell (understandable). Just curious. Anyway ...

Not the start I expected from the Bruins but in no way am pinning this on Rask. 'Blues just doing their effective stymie thing and all the stuff that held up the Bruins all series are happening to them tonight. Which, is so typical if you ask me; whatever you don't fix...Binnington brilliant esp in the first. 20 to go...and if the Blues win hats off to 'em. And I'd have to agree Chuck, and that is, the Bruins prob won't have this chance again.....

Ps...Bruins playing like, well, you know.

Pss..Congrats to the 'Blues, you def deserved it. My work here is officially done. aLso just have to add: Told my hubby that if the Bruins didn’t get it together it would be 4-1...true story.

I agree, HR - this one shouldn't be dropped on Rask's doorstep. I'm not sure there's much he could have done on Goals 1, 3 & 4. And Goal 2 - which I agree with Tony Amonte was the back-breaker at the end of the first period - should be laid squarely on the doorstep of Marchand, who was inexplicably looking to get off the ice for a line change in his own end, with less than 10 seconds left in the period. Not sure if that's on him or on his coach, but it was a shocking lack of game awareness at the worst possible time. One goal down after one, that's not ideal but still manageable. Down two felt catastrophic.

GM Sweeney will have his work cut out for him, trying to keep this bunch in SC contention. I thought Krejci played well but was underutilized. You can see him not coming back. No one is talking about whether Chara is coming back, so I assume he's planning to come back. He is going to be tough to replace when he retires, even at his current age. Carlo certainly isn't ready yet to take on a first pairing role on a team capable of Cup contention.

I do not think that Rask has been stellar tonight, but Binningtin has.

Chuck will be able to use this game as Exhibit A for every future SOG argument.

Edit: I am relieved that this game was not decided by the refs.

And, nice to see Matt Gryzlyk get one. I do not see why this Bruins team cannot be relevant again next season. Just about everyone will be back, and healthy.

Yeah, the SOG fallacy took another hit last night. My "score first and you can have your lousy SOG's" fared pretty well, too. And that silly "the two goal lead is the most dangerous lead in hockey" took it square in the shorts too. Never has a lead felt more safe than the Blues' two goal lead over the final 40 minutes of last night's game. I was having flashbacks to the '71 SCF and Ken Dryden shutting down the powerful Big Bad Bruins of the Orr Era in the first period. Kind of surprised they didn't give the Conn Smythe to Binnington, or even to Pietrangelo. O'Reilly should be a top Selke candidate though.

FWIW? It’s worth about exactly zero. Zilch. Nada. Goose egg. Couldn’t be more meaningless, kinda like the statement “the Cup is theirs to lose”.

Take those two statements and $1.29 into a Dunkin and you’re still only coming out with a small coffee, black.

Go B’s.

The "FWIW" disclaimer pretty much admits it might be a worthless observation to some, 'dc.

But the Cup was the B's to lose for over a month, from the day the first round of the playoffs ended, right up through the middle of this SCF series. Plowing through an Eastern field of the Islanders, 'Canes and Blue Jackets was pretty much a given. It's too bad the B's ended up facing the wrong team in the Finals, as it's probably the only one from what was left in the West who was going to give them a run for their money. It was just a bad match-up, but even at that, the B's were the solid favorites and did not close the deal. Don't shoot the messenger.

 

[Snively65]

Regardless of rooting interests and predictions, hopefully we can all agree that this year's SCF provided lots of entertainment, drama and storylines. It will be interesting to see if there are any attempted "copycats" out there trying to mimic the Blues' reliance on the heavy game. I heard or read someone saying this was two years in a row - and I'm not sure I'm ready to put the Blues in the same company as the Capitals, but I do see an LA Kings' blueprint - but while the overall trend has been away from physical play, it's interesting any time a team bucks the trend and has success like this.

Honest question to the B's fans ... there was heavy booing of Commish Bettman in the midst of the post-game ceremonies. I know he usually gets razzed a certain amount any time he shows up to hand out the Cup, but this seemed pretty loud. Is there something specifically bad in the Bettman-B's history beyond "the usual"? It sounded to me more like Pats' fans screaming at Goodell (understandable). Just curious. Anyway ...



I agree, HR - this one shouldn't be dropped on Rask's doorstep. I'm not sure there's much he could have done on Goals 1, 3 & 4. And Goal 2 - which I agree with Tony Amonte was the back-breaker at the end of the first period - should be laid squarely on the doorstep of Marchand, who was inexplicably looking to get off the ice for a line change in his own end, with less than 10 seconds left in the period. Not sure if that's on him or on his coach, but it was a shocking lack of game awareness at the worst possible time. One goal down after one, that's not ideal but still manageable. Down two felt catastrophic.

GM Sweeney will have his work cut out for him, trying to keep this bunch in SC contention. I thought Krejci played well but was underutilized. You can see him not coming back. No one is talking about whether Chara is coming back, so I assume he's planning to come back. He is going to be tough to replace when he retires, even at his current age. Carlo certainly isn't ready yet to take on a first pairing role on a team capable of Cup contention.



Yeah, the SOG fallacy took another hit last night. My "score first and you can have your lousy SOG's" fared pretty well, too. And that silly "the two goal lead is the most dangerous lead in hockey" took it square in the shorts too. Never has a lead felt more safe than the Blues' two goal lead over the final 40 minutes of last night's game. I was having flashbacks to the '71 SCF and Ken Dryden shutting down the powerful Big Bad Bruins of the Orr Era in the first period. Kind of surprised they didn't give the Conn Smythe to Binnington, or even to Pietrangelo. O'Reilly should be a top Selke candidate though.



The "FWIW" disclaimer pretty much admits it might be a worthless observation to some, 'dc.

But the Cup was the B's to lose for over a month, from the day the first round of the playoffs ended, right up through the middle of this SCF series. Plowing through an Eastern field of the Islanders, 'Canes and Blue Jackets was pretty much a given. It's too bad the B's ended up facing the wrong team in the Finals, as it's probably the only one from what was left in the West who was going to give them a run for their money. It was just a bad match-up, but even at that, the B's were the solid favorites and did not close the deal. Don't shoot the messenger.

Dunno about the Bruins fans screaming loudly at Commish Bettman, but my guess is that they were still mad about a couple of calls that should have been 5-minute majors to the Blues earlier in the SCF.

But, time to move on. More than enough to keep ourselves preoccupied until October, like assessment of our memories about the senior checking line in the 2015-2016 season.

 

[Chuck Murray]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

Dunno about the Bruins fans screaming loudly at Commish Bettman, but my guess is that they were still mad about a couple of calls that should have been 5-minute majors to the Blues earlier in the SCF.

But, time to move on. More than enough to keep ourselves preoccupied until October, like assessment of our memories about the senior checking line in the 2015-2016 season.

No kidding. Who knew the SCL would still be fueling discussions almost four years after the fact, eh?

It's like the gift that keeps on giving … or re-gifting … or something ...

 

[HockeyRef]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

No kidding. Who knew the SCL would still be fueling discussions almost four years after the fact, eh?

It's like the gift that keeps on giving … or re-gifting … or something ...

At least we are talking about somethin' in my genre Season 7...comin' up!

 

[chickod]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

Regardless of rooting interests and predictions, hopefully we can all agree that this year's SCF provided lots of entertainment, drama and storylines. It will be interesting to see if there are any attempted "copycats" out there trying to mimic the Blues' reliance on the heavy game. I heard or read someone saying this was two years in a row - and I'm not sure I'm ready to put the Blues in the same company as the Capitals, but I do see an LA Kings' blueprint - but while the overall trend has been away from physical play, it's interesting any time a team bucks the trend and has success like this.

Honest question to the B's fans ... there was heavy booing of Commish Bettman in the midst of the post-game ceremonies. I know he usually gets razzed a certain amount any time he shows up to hand out the Cup, but this seemed pretty loud. Is there something specifically bad in the Bettman-B's history beyond "the usual"? It sounded to me more like Pats' fans screaming at Goodell (understandable). Just curious. Anyway ...



I agree, HR - this one shouldn't be dropped on Rask's doorstep. I'm not sure there's much he could have done on Goals 1, 3 & 4. And Goal 2 - which I agree with Tony Amonte was the back-breaker at the end of the first period - should be laid squarely on the doorstep of Marchand, who was inexplicably looking to get off the ice for a line change in his own end, with less than 10 seconds left in the period. Not sure if that's on him or on his coach, but it was a shocking lack of game awareness at the worst possible time. One goal down after one, that's not ideal but still manageable. Down two felt catastrophic.

GM Sweeney will have his work cut out for him, trying to keep this bunch in SC contention. I thought Krejci played well but was underutilized. You can see him not coming back. No one is talking about whether Chara is coming back, so I assume he's planning to come back. He is going to be tough to replace when he retires, even at his current age. Carlo certainly isn't ready yet to take on a first pairing role on a team capable of Cup contention.



Yeah, the SOG fallacy took another hit last night. My "score first and you can have your lousy SOG's" fared pretty well, too. And that silly "the two goal lead is the most dangerous lead in hockey" took it square in the shorts too. Never has a lead felt more safe than the Blues' two goal lead over the final 40 minutes of last night's game. I was having flashbacks to the '71 SCF and Ken Dryden shutting down the powerful Big Bad Bruins of the Orr Era in the first period. Kind of surprised they didn't give the Conn Smythe to Binnington, or even to Pietrangelo. O'Reilly should be a top Selke candidate though.



The "FWIW" disclaimer pretty much admits it might be a worthless observation to some, 'dc.

But the Cup was the B's to lose for over a month, from the day the first round of the playoffs ended, right up through the middle of this SCF series. Plowing through an Eastern field of the Islanders, 'Canes and Blue Jackets was pretty much a given. It's too bad the B's ended up facing the wrong team in the Finals, as it's probably the only one from what was left in the West who was going to give them a run for their money. It was just a bad match-up, but even at that, the B's were the solid favorites and did not close the deal. Don't shoot the messenger.

Just a quick post-mortem. Not sure that it was a "bad matchup" as much as the Bruins didn't handle it well. When you blow out a team twice (7-2 and 5-1) it's hardly a bad matchup. Rather, they just stopped doing the things they needed to do. The way to beat this team is to SKATE. Utilize your speed. I don't know what was up with that first line but they were comatose. It will be interesting to see if it ever comes out whether or not Bergeron was hurt. On the other hand, I'd be "hurt" too if I had those two wingers (shocking, I know, but it's true). Pastrnak was absolute garbage. He fanned on the puck more times than there are integers to count. He played like he was drugged half the series. Marchand fiddles and diddles too much, and on the one play that COULD HAVE gotten them back in game 7 (Binnington unable to push off from his left to his right, leaving half the net WIDE open), he shoots it right into his belly. The cliche "Your best players have to be your best players" was certainly borne out in this series and this line fell flat on its collective face. It's almost inexplicable. I think the key to this series was the Bruins got suckering into playing the Blues game instead of using their superior speed and skating. They should have gone around them like traffic cones and finished this thing. Instead, they engaged them and tried to match the rough stuff. You notice how there was NO hitting in Game 7, but the Bruins were pressing by then and it was too late. The longer you let someone hang around, the more confidence they gain. They weren't going to win in Chicago in Game 7 in 2013, but THIS one was there for the taking. It's going to hurt for a long time.

 

[HockeyRef]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

Just a quick post-mortem. Not sure that it was a "bad matchup" as much as the Bruins didn't handle it well. When you blow out a team twice (7-2 and 5-1) it's hardly a bad matchup. Rather, they just stopped doing the things they needed to do. The way to beat this team is to SKATE. Utilize your speed. I don't know what was up with that first line but they were comatose. It will be interesting to see if it ever comes out whether or not Bergeron was hurt. On the other hand, I'd be "hurt" too if I had those two wingers (shocking, I know, but it's true). Pastrnak was absolute garbage. He fanned on the puck more times than there are integers to count. He played like he was drugged half the series. Marchand fiddles and diddles too much, and on the one play that COULD HAVE gotten them back in game 7 (Binnington unable to push off from his left to his right, leaving half the net WIDE open), he shoots it right into his belly. The cliche "Your best players have to be your best players" was certainly borne out in this series and this line fell flat on its collective face. It's almost inexplicable. I think the key to this series was the Bruins got suckering into playing the Blues game instead of using their superior speed and skating. They should have gone around them like traffic cones and finished this thing. Instead, they engaged them and tried to match the rough stuff. You notice how there was NO hitting in Game 7, but the Bruins were pressing by then and it was too late. The longer you let someone hang around, the more confidence they gain. They weren't going to win in Chicago in Game 7 in 2013, but THIS one was there for the taking. It's going to hurt for a long time.

No.Truer.Words. And the B's know it...what a squandered chance. Oh well...harrumph, and, one final sigh about the whole thing!!!!

 

[Chuck Murray]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

Just a quick post-mortem. Not sure that it was a "bad matchup" as much as the Bruins didn't handle it well. When you blow out a team twice (7-2 and 5-1) it's hardly a bad matchup. Rather, they just stopped doing the things they needed to do. The way to beat this team is to SKATE. Utilize your speed.

…

I think the key to this series was the Bruins got suckering into playing the Blues game instead of using their superior speed and skating. They should have gone around them like traffic cones and finished this thing. Instead, they engaged them and tried to match the rough stuff.

Even with the Stanley Cup now in their possession, the Blues continue to be drastically underrated.

They had the best record in the NHL dating back to early January. Better even than the B's, who were already in the midst of an impressive regular season run themselves at the time IIRC.

The Blues clearly had enough speed to effectively deal with the B's top line. The B's had more speed on their lower lines, and back on defense too. Problem is, their lower lines weren't good enough to pick up the slack that was left when the top line did nothing with their full strength play. And if your D is faster, hey that's great, but when SLB started to gum up the neutral zone, the back end speed was neutralized.

Frankly, I don't think there was much (if any) of a skills gap between the two teams. The B's aren't going to be confused with Toronto, TBL and a small handful of other skills-rich teams anytime soon. You probably have two HoF players on your roster at this time - Chara, who won't be remembered as a fast skillsy guy … and Bergeron, who is skillsy, faster than average but not a speed demon, and will be remembered as an elite two-way player, multi-time Selke winner, but not an MVP type either. The Blues got a lot more out of their depth than the B's did. Especially back on defense.

The other night I heard a well-known Boston media type describe Tuukka Rask as a "future Hall of Famer". Again, I'm not the guy dropping this loss on his lap … but it's observations like these that lead me to the conclusion that a lot of folks overrated the talent level of the B's. And pretended that "hey, we're now a fast skillsy team" when in fact, it was their grit that got them past Toronto in Game 7 (hint - it wasn't overall talent), and saw them survive the potholes that sunk TBL, Washington and Pittsburgh.

Was this the B's Cup to win after they survived the first round purge? Yes, I've believed that all along.

Did they lose to modern day equivalents of Ogie Oglethorpe and Tim "Dr. Hook" McCracken? Uh, no ...

 

[JAB]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

I'm beating a dead horse.. or bear.... But - how can the Bruins be so dominant in 2 games - what were they doing in those that they didn't do in game 7? Or was it a case of Binn withstanding the initial onslaught and Rask playing a sub-par game? Once they got behind they changed their strategy? I'm a casual fan so I don't know, and very curious about this: it's one thing if there were 6 close games, but that wasn't the case here.

 

[After the Whistle]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

Back to UNH hockey...schedule. I see NU fans have their schedule so that means that the HE schedule is out? If that's the case schedule has been or is very close to being formalized (speculation). We know a lot of variables already just curious if the rest is carved in stone yet...

With very little digging I see that: (and in addition to what's been posted here already)

BC: Nov 1 (away) March 6-7 Home and Home
BU: Oct 26 Home
NU: Away, Dec Plus Friendship 4 games

REf
If you go to the schedule website you can find all of the schedules...except that UNH only shows 20 games by my count. It has the 8 out of conference but only 20 games total. Me, MC and UVM are missing.

 

[Snively65]

Back to UNH hockey...schedule. I see NU fans have their schedule so that means that the HE schedule is out? If that's the case schedule has been or is very close to being formalized (speculation). We know a lot of variables already just curious if the rest is carved in stone yet...

With very little digging I see that: (and in addition to what's been posted here already)

BC: Nov 1 (away) March 6-7 Home and Home
BU: Oct 26 Home
NU: Away, Dec Plus Friendship 4 games

Dunno about a schedule website referenced by ATW, but see schedule thread in forum and check out Google doc spreadsheet managed by Liveatjrl. Some of your dates are ok, but wrong location, according to spreadsheet. As usual, we will learn our entire schedule from other schools before our release.

 

[Chuck Murray]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

I'm beating a dead horse.. or bear.... But - how can the Bruins be so dominant in 2 games - what were they doing in those that they didn't do in game 7? Or was it a case of Binn withstanding the initial onslaught and Rask playing a sub-par game? Once they got behind they changed their strategy? I'm a casual fan so I don't know, and very curious about this: it's one thing if there were 6 close games, but that wasn't the case here.

I'll take a stab at this one. In the two games the B's won by a comfortable margin, those were the only two games where Binnington gave a sub-par performance. I'm not 100% sure this is correct, but I heard someone in the last 24 hours say that while Rask's save percentage was 91.2% in the SCF … Binnington's save percentage was (wait for it) also 91.2%.

Furthermore … when the Blues fell behind relatively early and/or by multiple goals, that would have forced them outside of their comfort zone, and when they had to play a more open game - something the B's were more equipped to do - then those leads tended to get bigger. I think there may have been an ENG or two mixed in there as well to inflate the final margins? In short - decisive B's wins, no doubt, but still only a single win apiece. Margin of victory - especially in the playoffs - is irrelevant.

Those who've focused on the two comfortable B's wins, I ask you this … in Game 7, the Blues never trailed, and at one time were ahead 4-0, until the B's scored a meaningless late goal. Wasn't that a "comfortable" win for the other guys? Isn't it fair to ask why the Blues didn't bring that kind of game to the other six games, too?? The B's won 5-1 in Game 6, but it was still a one goal game after 2 periods. That doesn't seem too "comfortable" or dominant to me. Even in the Game 3 blowout win, the B's got outshot by the Blues (meaningless SOG's as always ) so take that for what it's worth. Look at it with the shoe on the other foot, maybe??

The Blues were better equipped to win close, physical contests … and that's what they did, four times (or three, if you buy that Game 7 was a blowout, which I don't buy BTW). It's something they got into a habit of doing over the last few months of the regular season. Once they managed to get their noses out front in Games 4, 5 and 7, they made it stick. You play to win the game. The B's did that better than anyone in the East for a month-and-a-half this Spring, as did the Blues in the West. It was a fun series, but someone had to win, and someone had to lose.

And if the (slightly) more talented team lost, hey, that happens sometimes.

 

[Snively65]

Agreed; seven games; Kaching$, Kaching$

B's will win only if Charlie Coyle's line continues to deliver.

As much as I would rather discuss the senior checking line from five years ago, looks like I was two for two with my post a couple of weeks ago.

 

[Darius]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

UNH, coach Souza high on their hockey recruits:
https://www.unionleader.com/sports/...cle_c97f8063-3c14-5561-a51e-8235be076af5.html

 

[NCAA watcher]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

So, Engaras has another 9 games to serve.

 

[HockeyRef]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

So, Engaras has another 9 games to serve.

What is up with that? One full season wasn't enough? I'm glad he's sticking with us...but wish he could get on the darn ice!

 

[Dan]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

When UNH made the belated Engaras announcement late last season, I noted the lack of a follow up question regarding whether it was officially just the one year suspension or otherwise. I guess I wasn't crazy after all. However, nine additional games is interesting math. Engaras only played SIX Swedish Hockey League games - so a year, plus six would make more sense. With 34 regular season games and a minimum of two post-season games, is nine extra games a coincidence (based on three additional 'illegal' appearances in Swedish leagues) or is this actually a 1.25 season suspension. Hard to make sense of it all, so not surprised UNH is appealing again. At least we finally have a straight answer on when to expect Engaras on the ice. Nine games last season put us into mid-November...

With his two-way ability, he certainly seems like the most important addition (and biggest impact) 'newcomer' to the UNH line-up this season. As for the rest (basing comps more on expected production/impact than direct stylistic match-ups), just for fun...

Engaras ---> M. Radja
Griffin ---> BVR-plus/B. Butler-lite
Herrman ---> MacAdams
Stevenson ---> Esposito

Eriksson ---> Cleland
McElhaney ---> Boyd

 

[Scott]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

I just can't fathom the continuing Engaras' "double-secret" game suspension. Seriously, doesn't the NCAA have bigger fish to fry??

 

[HockeyRef]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

I just can't fathom the continuing Engaras' "double-secret" game suspension. Seriously, doesn't the NCAA have bigger fish to fry??

Exactly Scott! Totally frustrating...hope their appeal is granted. Looking so forward to seeing Filip skate.

 

[Chuck Murray]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2019 Offseason - How Much Progress Did We Really Make This Past Seas

I certainly hope all of this attention being paid to the whole Engaras situation proves worthwhile once the kid finally gets onto the ice, and isn't just a distant replay of the "much ado about nothing" the whole Eddie Caron Experience turned out to be for UNH a decade-and-a-half ago.