UConn v. #7 Maine Black Bears @ XL Center (Friday 1/12/24 @7p & Saturday 1/13/24 @3p). Both games on ESPN+

[mac2351]

We dominated a good part of that game. I can’t agree with your take here. Hit the post twice and had a goal taken away. Then the refs decided to get involved even more, which they seem to do in all of our games. The only really unforgivable thing we did was to give up the short handed goal.

Maine hit posts too. Everyone hits posts

Maine dominated the 3rd. Their talent took over.

 

[The Viking]

They have the gall to see if the elbowing call that decided that turned the game for all intents and purposes was a 5 minute.
And then these god damn weaseks upon seeing the review realize it wasn't elbowing and actually a clean hit. And of course Maine goes on to score.
then. them all. This happens every goshdarn home game and we have a coach who is too nice and never berates them.
And the goal we scored they overturned after reviewing it for three goddam minutes
this crap/ with all due respect

 

[CTBballfan243]

It didn’t go UConn’s way tonight, but still a fun game. UConn did some good things. They need to shake that one off and try again tomorrow. Keep grinding boys!! We’re back at it tomorrow.

 

[mac2351]

 

[Scoe]

We dominated a good part of that game. I can’t agree with your take here. Hit the post twice and had a goal taken away. Then the refs decided to get involved even more, which they seem to do in all of our games. The only really unforgivable thing we did was to give up the short handed goal.

This seems to happen a lot at some point it’s more than bad luck.

 

[SteelCT]

Was that even a penalty? Looked like shoulder to shoulder and I didn't see the elbow come up.

Were not in Sweden, they had to call something after they incorrectly called it a major

 

[TMB4405]

This team is so frustrating. The continued pattern under Cav. We are mediocre, at best. I do agree we seem to get the wrong end of the whistle but we never overcome adversity. Who is surprised we gave up immediate game tying goal after that call?

The SH goal was inexcusable. Love Bradley but that was on him for not going hard and assuming the kid would be happy the puck was just in our zone. As soon as that happened I knew we were in deep trouble.

I think we should move on from Cav. The pattern is the same. Its not going to change. It feels like everyone involved is fine being middle of pack at best and it sucks.

 

[pepband99]

Were not in Sweden, they had to call something after they incorrectly called it a major

Had same thought - the week after that (beautiful, clean, but savage) hit in the WJ, our gets called a major, when it was 1/2 step less than every aspect of that hit.

We get hosed constantly by the same refs. It's gotten past ridiculous.

 

[pepband99]

They have the gall to see if the elbowing call that decided that turned the game for all intents and purposes was a 5 minute.
And then these god damn weaseks upon seeing the review realize it wasn't elbowing and actually a clean hit. And of course Maine goes on to score.
then. them all. This happens every goshdarn home game and we have a coach who is too nice and never berates them.
And the goal we scored they overturned after reviewing it for three goddam minutes
this crap/ with all due respect

Excellent fermented rant.

Every 40/60 call goes against us. Goaltender interference there was a massive stretch.

 

[Scoe]

This feels like the early days of UConn basketball in the BE. In those days they did get shafted by the officials, the most frustrating thing is Cav feels like the Dom Perno of this program, will always be mid.

Need to hire a HC who is a proven winner at a smaller program as a HC, meaning he gets to the NCAA tournament consistently, essentially hiring the Jim Calhoun of this program.

 

[microfich]

That was a wildly entertaining game. UConn came out quicker and took fast advantage. Goaltending was formidable. Once Maine found their feet their talent and finally depth took over. Refs not perfect but not the reason we lost. We made a mistake in rebound coverage on one goal and lost the game on the shorthanded giveaway which permanently slid all momentum to the Black Bear bunch. Also thought we pulled the goalie a bit too early but I'm no coach.

I counted 3 posts and lost count of the wide open misses. Maine refused to fold so credit to them but we have plenty enough to carve out a win today.

 

[Sea Goat]

It’s these games against top teams where UConn’s lack of recruiting success really shows up

So limited offensively and lack of speed and quickness. The dearth of higher level Hockey East scoring talent kills this program. Too many 4th liners

Battening down the hatches with a 3rd period lead is such an indictment on Cav. They even did it against Harvard, one of the worst teams in the country

That Cav got a 600k a year contract is insane and UConn cannot get out of it

Unfortunately you nailed it...

Maine's Ben Barr ($235k/yr.) coaches rings around Cavanaugh. Sadly, we've lived with this for 11 seasons. 4 or 5 years in to his tenure the signs were there that Jerry York's recruiter/assistant wasn't the guy. (Should have known - he was a Manuel hire.) But UConn persisted. To what end? He's locked in to one of the richest contracts in D-1 hockey for 4 more years. Toscano will need a cob web clearing crew between games if this keeps up!

DB must take notice!

 

[Fairfield_1st]

I think we should move on from Cav.

I've been pretty patient, but this year I've come to the same conclusion. I was hoping it was a recruiting thing and Toscano would make things better, but I'm just not seeing it. We're consistently a .500 team give or take a couple wins.

 

[zls44]

This feels like the early days of UConn basketball in the BE. In those days they did get shafted by the officials, the most frustrating thing is Cav feels like the Dom Perno of this program, will always be mid.

Need to hire a HC who is a proven winner at a smaller program as a HC, meaning he gets to the NCAA tournament consistently, essentially hiring the Jim Calhoun of this program.

Eric Lang. Until I am blue in the face. He’s the guy.

 

[zls44]

I've been pretty patient, but this year I've come to the same conclusion. I was hoping it was a recruiting thing and Toscano would make things better, but I'm just not seeing it. We're consistently a .500 team give or take a couple wins.

It’s sad because Cav is a genuinely good guy and got shafted on the arena delay thing.

But at a certain point…you are what you are. It’s a decade. This isn’t year two. The excuses don’t work anymore.

 

[Punkbo]

Terrible loss, but I’m more bullish than others. I think today’s crowd will get people fired up. The fans are willing to support the program and we’ve got a new beautiful arena to help with recruiting. Cav is far from perfect, but he’s ours for a while longer so get used to it.

 

[Bomber36]

Maine hit posts too. Everyone hits posts

Maine dominated the 3rd. Their talent took over.

The refs helped quite a bit. Called back a goal that I didn’t see a replay of, but have been told was a shaky decision at best and gave them a late power play on what was a clean hit. Any time UConn hits someone, the refs blow the whistle. Maine leaves our guys writhing on the ice and it’s just incidental to the play. This has gone on for years. I’m sick of it. At some point the referees have to be brought to task for their obvious lack of evenhandedness.

 

[The Viking]

I'm not saying we didn't have a hand in our own demise. Of course that third period was in part due to us.
As a season ticket holder who goes to most games, I'm telling you we get shafted by officials so much at home it's incredible. This is a sport where the officiating is pretty consistent. They will look for ways to even out the penalties and if there is a call late it tends to favor the home team. I've been watching hockey for 40 years.this is how it works.
But this team? Cav must have slept with every wife or girlfriend of every official in this goshdarn league because it's unconscionable what goes on whether it's XL or Toscano.

 

[The Viking]

The goal they wiped off the board after
Looking at it for five minutes- what is so obvious about that where it took you forever to overturn the call on the ice.
The elbow call that let Maine tie it up- when you look to see if it's a 5 minute and then realize oh shit we screwed the call it was actually a great hit. Overturn that call you hideous beasts.
It's every game where we get hosed like this one way or the other and it's so hard to watch

 

[mac2351]

Eric Lang. Until I am blue in the face. He’s the guy.

Him or I would go up to BU and bring Pereira back. He’d return for 600k per

Pereira is an elite recruiter. One of the best in the country.

All of UConn’s best recruits were got by him while playing out of a shed. He’d make an immediate impact on the recruiting trail with Toscano

 

[zls44]

Him or I would go up to BU and bring Pereira back. He’d return for 600k per

Pereira is an elite recruiter. One of the best in the country.

All of UConn’s best recruits were got by him while playing out of a shed. He’d make an immediate impact on the recruiting trail with Toscano

Not a terrible shout, but two things to consider

1. Would he be willing to do that after Cav got axed? Might not want to. They were close.

2. I’d prefer someone with HC experience.

 

[Sea Goat]

It’s sad because Cav is a genuinely good guy and got shafted on the arena delay thing.

But at a certain point…you are what you are. It’s a decade. This isn’t year two. The excuses don’t work anymore.

Agreed that he is a genuinely good guy. If he wasn't, he would have been gone years ago. This isn't about that.

BTW, coaches have started with less. Pecknold worked out of a broom closet and started a new program. He has been competitive for years, with a Natty last year.

 

[mac2351]

I'm not saying we didn't have a hand in our own demise. Of course that third period was in part due to us.
As a season ticket holder who goes to most games, I'm telling you we get shafted by officials so much at home it's incredible. This is a sport where the officiating is pretty consistent. They will look for ways to even out the penalties and if there is a call late it tends to favor the home team. I've been watching hockey for 40 years.this is how it works.
But this team? Cav must have slept with every wife or girlfriend of every official in this goshdarn league because it's unconscionable what goes on whether it's XL or Toscano.

I was surprised by the goalie interference negating the goal. However, I have become numb to big hits turning into penalties. Probably should adopt the IIHF rule where after review the refs can downgrade to no penalty.

One major issue I have with the roster is there are way too many grinders. You cannot except to compete at the top of Hockey East with 4th liners throughout the roster.

I strongly believe Wood would have a much larger impact if he was playing on a team with better talent. His ability would should shine a lot brighter. I’m worried he realizes that and moves on.

Not a terrible shout, but two things to consider

1. Would he be willing to do that after Cav got axed? Might not want to. They were close.

2. I’d prefer someone with HC experience.

Cavanaugh is a nice guy and probably would tell him to take the opportunity and not to worry about him. This team needs a big upgrade in talent and Pereira would do it.

I would take Lang too. But I want a big time recruiter to come with him.

But this is all moot because he’s not getting fired for at least a couple more seasons.

 

[Sea Goat]

Him or I would go up to BU and bring Pereira back. He’d return for 600k per

Pereira is an elite recruiter. One of the best in the country.

All of UConn’s best recruits were got by him while playing out of a shed. He’d make an immediate impact on the recruiting trail with Toscano

I was touting a swap for Pereira years ago...

 

[mac2351]

I’m really worried about this team getting blitzed off the ice today in front of 9,000 people. This just seems like it has has all the makings of it.

 

[DblCrossbar]

I echo the sentiments about poor officiating and lack of clutch play. At this juncture, other than a chance to win a trophy at CT Ice, this season is likely to be a lost one, and for the first time UConn will probably finish below their predicted spot in the standings.

I will say that the loss of Jake Flynn o injury on the D line didn’t help. With him in the pairing and healthy it would have been tougher for Maine to come back. He was playing a solid game.

However special teams play is a huge problem. The PK unit is not stepping up like they once did and the pathetic power play unit that Cavs has not been able to figure out since the days of Tage and Letunov (or maybe Payusov, maybe). Everytime their PP takes to the ice it looks like 5 on 4 pond hockey with no set plays or positioning, just a random scramble. If that “style“ or approach actually worked then fine, but the numbers speak for themselves.

As for Wood, he is still developing but also overrated. I have read about how he’s be better on a better team, but that’s not true due to his style and mucking up his own chances on breakaways. That and his obvious lack of raw speed which he sometimes compensates with good hands and a long reach, but that won’t work at the next level. At least he’s really good at ping pong.

 

[DblCrossbar]

This feels like the early days of UConn basketball in the BE. In those days they did get shafted by the officials, the most frustrating thing is Cav feels like the Dom Perno of this program, will always be mid.

Newsflash, even after returning to the BIg East and winning a Natty, UConn is still getting screwed by officials In Men’s BBall. Did you see the absolutely horrendous call at Xavier (ok, granted they are neuvo BE but…) involving a cut to the forehead of Karaban sidelining him for 3 minutes and he gets called for the foul. It seems to be part of the UConn aura or something. Beyond talent, an important difference between UConn’s BBall team and hockey teams are is toughness and overcoming adversity. Hurley and his staff have that it factor - even with a stretch of bad games in conference last season. It doesn’t appear that Cavs and his staff bring the same kind of mojo to his team after all these years. Nice respectable guy, but not who we need to lead if we can pattern successful coaches that have served at UConn.

Need to hire a HC who is a proven winner at a smaller program as a HC, meaning he gets to the NCAA tournament consistently, essentially hiring the Jim Calhoun of this program.

I would certainly be open to that. I also love the Joe Pereira suggestions as HC here.

 

[mac2351]

 

[mac2351]

Sergeev to start. Only a decision someone like Cav would make.

First start since the 2nd week of November

Good luck with that

 

[Bomber36]

Let’s go!