McGoverners
Member
I love this team, but first place votes seems... ambitious
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University of Maine 2024–2025: Freel-ing good
- Thread starter UMO Better Blues
- Start date
I love this team, but first place votes seems... ambitious
umhockey91
Well-known member
It’s a poll mirroring current conditions…every other team has bad and/or more losses so why not? That being said….BC should be ranked ahead of Maine until Maine proves they can beat them.
Sparkee
Blackbear
Will have to be in the post season, so I hope Maine does prove it!
I think how far Maine goes depends on two things(assuming no big injuries anymore):
1) getting a 4th line that plays with good chemistry and can contribute on score sheet a little, this allows Maine to continuously roll lines and wear down opponents defense
2) limiting turnovers or eliminating them completely. Would be very hard to score on Boija if this were the case.
If those two things can come together I see no reason why Maine can’t garner more votes and dominate. Getting Holt back certainly can help second point. And more attention to detail from the bottom 4 defensemen to eliminate these fumbling of the puck, oor falling down, or blind passes toward there own net, etc… On the first item I think some games for a fourth line of Pichette/Komarov/Niemo where Pichette can play off wing. Pichette has a nice one time shot from the left dot he showed in juniors. They might find this is a potent combo but they haven’t had time together in games. If Maine can accomplish these two things they have a wonderful shot at it, IMO.
NorthMike
Well-known member
I think losing Breen is going to hurt the boys some down the stretch. He added a leadership element that is irreplaceable at this point, and his play added a layer above what is available for replacement. He is the heart if this program right now.
Im fairly sure they will make the garden and the ncaa, but getting beyond these first rounds is when they will need all cylinders firing perfectly, without Breen their down some horsepowers.
I think that's a fair assessment. I'm not sure that Russell is a centre and I might be tempted to try Komarov as the 3rd line centre. If that works, it has the added benefit of improving the 4th line by dropping either Scholle or Russell to wing there.
tylerzx2002
Well-known member
Breen's absence will be felt for sure but there are enough upperclassmen on this roster that I think they can handle it without missing a beat.
I just want Barr to be able to find the right guy to round out the fourth line without having too much plug-n-play trying to find someone who fits well. There was a fair amount of bottom six shuffling last year and that ultimately showed as the games got bigger. Niemo looked better than I expected making his first action of the season, so he's a pretty easy bet to handle that responsibility.
Sparkee
Blackbear
Extended highlights Game 1 vs Stonehill : https://youtu.be/eYlFEmc6-qM?si=1fathE8ow-n3T9HA
ICECAT1811
New member
Wow!!! Just read you guys only have 1 NHL draft pick on your roster. The season you’re having is pretty remarkable when you’re playing BC BU Providence who all have at least a dozen picks. Very impressive Black Bears.
Fishman'81
Black Bear since D-2
Breen was a key piece. but I think that Scott is the heart of this team.
He does everything well, and never takes a second off.
A natural leader.
He's been an awesome pickup. This was a guy who was a solid, but unspectacular player everywhere else (I'm guessing on his EP, but could be wrong). I think it shows the importance of the fit between coaches and players. Guys like Breazeale, Freel and Holt are all guys who flew under the radar but have enjoyed success at Maine. A big part of this is how well they fit what Barr is looking for (the Breazeale article on CHN sort of gets at this).
ticapnews
Never Forget!
I was hoping to buy Club or Deck seats but my broker at the Garden said she didn't have access to sell them yet. Said it "might be a while" and offered me Loge or Balcony. Disappointing. They're a little pricier, but the free admission to the sports museum that is the 5th and 6th floors is worth it. Free apps in the Sports Deck, too!
grooverider
Your Team Sucks
Holt will be back by the Denver series
Sparkee
Blackbear
He probably will be back for the Bentley game on 28th.
Here are extended highlights for the 2nd game vs Stonehill : https://youtu.be/WKHnRc7Pa1c?si=ky48jb5daMFAPMyO
Iirc, the years Union and yale won the ncaa championships, they had upperclassmen who knew how to play together, not a bunch of 17 and 18 year old first rounders who had tons of talent, but were used to being prima donnas
who was the last team that won it all with young talent like BC or Michigan? Even Eichel lost to a more seasoned PC squad
Sparkee
Blackbear
Sparkee
Blackbear
Pretty big correlation between how young a team is and success as shown here: https://www.collegehockeynews.com/almanac/funfacts-ageavg.php
tylerzx2002
Well-known member
Only a few of the youngest teams have won in recent years. Overall most in the top-20 and a couple older teams like Quinnipiac a couple years ago.
Maine is currently at 22.6 (T-36th) so they might actually be one of the oldest average teams in NCAA history if they can win it. [TABLE="border: 1, cellpadding: 1, width: 500"]
[TR]
[TD]SEASON[/TD]
[TD]TEAM[/TD]
[TD]AVG AGE[/TD]
[TD]RANK[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]23/24[/TD]
[TD]Denver[/TD]
[TD]21.0[/TD]
[TD]2nd[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]22/23[/TD]
[TD]Quinnipiac[/TD]
[TD]22.4[/TD]
[TD]T-31st[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]21/22[/TD]
[TD]Denver[/TD]
[TD]21.4[/TD]
[TD]3rd[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]20/21[/TD]
[TD]UMass[/TD]
[TD]21.9[/TD]
[TD]T-16th[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]18/19[/TD]
[TD]Minnesota-Duluth[/TD]
[TD]21.6[/TD]
[TD]T-16th[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]17/18[/TD]
[TD]Minnesota-Duluth[/TD]
[TD]21.6[/TD]
[TD]T-13th[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]16/17[/TD]
[TD]Denver[/TD]
[TD]21.9[/TD]
[TD]T-25th[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]15/16[/TD]
[TD]North Dakota[/TD]
[TD]21.2[/TD]
[TD]T-7th[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]14/15[/TD]
[TD]Providence[/TD]
[TD]21.10[/TD]
[TD]T-27th[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]13/14[/TD]
[TD]Union[/TD]
[TD]21.8[/TD]
[TD]T-20th[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]12/13[/TD]
[TD]Yale[/TD]
[TD]21.6[/TD]
[TD]T-17th[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]
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Sparkee
Blackbear
Since there are 64 teams, even 31st is younger than the median. Most of those teams are young. If you look at average age you will see they are younger because they came in early because they are talented enough to bridge the physical body gap. The way the rules are today speed and skill win.
Interesting you’d roll your eyes pointing out Denver
when Denver won without a single player under 20 and without a single first round pick (reread what I wrote about first round 17 and 18 year old prima donnas)
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Sparkee
Blackbear
Denver had 4 players under 20 last year when they won. Most noticeable was Zeev Biuim who was outstanding in the tournament and is a 1st round NHL draft pick. Denver also had 2 more players that had just turned 20.