UConn v. Northeastern 2/17 @ XL -- 2/18 @ Northeastern

[zls44]

Alex Giner on WHUS is saying this may be the worst period UConn has played all season.

Of course it is. Its at Matthews.

 

[ct06111]

IDK about the worst. I'm here and I agree it was pretty pathetic other than the first 2 minutes.

At least we got some shots on goal(11) compared to getting less than 10 over 2 periods. (Forgot which game that was)

Decent group of UConn fans here.

 

[huskymedic]

 

[huskymedic]

 

[huskymedic]

 

[huskymedic]

 

[mac2351]

UConn is the 2nd lowest scoring Hockey East team for conference games. This team should not have the 2nd worst offensive production in the league.

Unfortunately, there is a good possibility UConn has to trek back up to Northeastern in two weeks.

 

[Adios]

Since no one was willing to car pool, I'll drive up for the playoffs!

NU is a good team. UConn is crappy in cohesion, effort, etc. It's unreal. Entitled mentality. We played better hockey with Bruce Marshall's kids.

 

[Sea Goat]

Mike Cavanaugh will not and should not even be considered for replacement for five more seasons.

Maybe not, we'll see. There are a lot of other concerns for the AD now. He should at least shake up the staff. These kids have been worse than inconsistent lately - they have been listless. Something or, more likely, someone has to fire them up!

 

[gtcam]

This team has shown too much talent in all areas to be playing like they have since the Yale blizzard disaster
Cav is not rising to the occasion and thus the team is not
In early January I had such high hopes for this team now I can see a real quick end to the season and let's see what players decide to stick around
The past 3 -4 weeks have been less than bad

 

[ct06111]

Just a guess. I have no idea.

I wonder if there is some real division seen or un-seen within the team after the world juniors???

The team without huska and tage kicked butt and won a trophy and they haven't been the same since.

Was there some real team building while in Arizona and with tage and huska back, it killed there momentum? Think about it. A standing ovation @ the Yale game for tage and huska, but little to no recognition on winning their first trophy as a team??

I would be kinda bitter and pissed too.

I wonder if those two getting all the attention and other media attention/NHL scouting etc has killed the cohesion as a team. (Not every kid is drafted and have people oohing and awwing every time they touch the puck)

I never played, so I don't know how the team dynamic is affected by some individuals receiving all the attention.

Thoughts?

 

[FDNY99]

Just a guess. I have no idea.

I wonder if there is some real division seen or un-seen within the team after the world juniors???

The team without huska and tage kicked butt and won a trophy and they haven't been the same since.

Was there some real team building while in Arizona and with tage and huska back, it killed there momentum? Think about it. A standing ovoation @ the Yale game for tage and huska, but little to no recognition on winning their first trophy as a team??

I would be kinda bitter and pissed too.

I wonder if those two getting all the attention and other media attention/NHL scouting etc has killed the cohesion as a team. (Not every kid is drafted and have people oohing and awwing every time they touch the puck)

I never played, so I don't know how the team dynamic is affectied by some individuals receiving all the attention.

Thoughts?

If that is the case then these kids don't belong on a team in Hockey East. The WJC is something that only a few achieve. There are other schools in HE that had to deal with this and it hasn't seemed to cause them any issues. If you look closely at the product on the ice, the kids just seem off...a step behind/slow...getting beat off the puck and physically out muscled. It isn't something we haven't brought up in this board before. IMHO it has more to do with their physical conditioning than anything else.

 

[huskymedic]

Just a guess. I have no idea.

I wonder if there is some real division seen or un-seen within the team after the world juniors???

The team without huska and tage kicked butt and won a trophy and they haven't been the same since.

Was there some real team building while in Arizona and with tage and huska back, it killed there momentum? Think about it. A standing ovation @ the Yale game for tage and huska, but little to no recognition on winning their first trophy as a team??

I would be kinda bitter and pissed too.

I wonder if those two getting all the attention and other media attention/NHL scouting etc has killed the cohesion as a team. (Not every kid is drafted and have people oohing and awwing every time they touch the puck)

I never played, so I don't know how the team dynamic is affected by some individuals receiving all the attention.

Thoughts?

Overthinking things...

 

[ct06111]

Overthinking things...

Probably right. It was just a guess. I do agree they are getting pushed around in terms of physicality and endurance on the ice. I agree on changing direction in terms of S&C.

All year, win the ones you shouldn't and lose the ones you should win.

Is it leadership? IMHO, Pratt shouldn't be captain. He's a junior that causes WAY too many penalties that cause the team the game. Richardson or maybe Nichols should be captain. (Probably naas over Nichols)

 

[Bomber36]

I'm certainly not worried about Tage leaving. He doesn't seem ready for Hockey East play at times, let alone a higher level.

 

[FDNY99]

Probably right. It was just a guess. I do agree they are getting pushed around in terms of physicality and endurance on the ice. I agree on changing direction in terms of S&C.

All year, win the ones you shouldn't and lose the ones you should win.

Is it leadership? IMHO, Pratt shouldn't be captain. He's a junior that causes WAY too many penalties that cause the team the game. Richardson or maybe Nichols should be captain.

I think this will be a process and UConn nation isn't used to this kind of a process....most remember Calhoun teams dominating the 90's and 00's...remember RE doing the impossible with football. This is going to take a while...and won't fully flourish until something is done on campus. For Calhoun that was Gampel, for Edsall that was Burton/Schenkman. I know it can be frustrating but IMHO Cav has done a good job and things will improve. I hope he takes a look at his S&C program and makes the changes that seem to be needed.

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

I think this will be a process and UConn nation isn't used to this kind of a process....most remember Calhoun teams dominating the 90's and 00's...remember RE doing the impossible with football. This is going to take a while...and won't fully flourish until something is done on campus. For Calhoun that was Gampel, for Edsall that was Burton/Schenkman. I know it can be frustrating but IMHO Cav has done a good job and things will improve. I hope he takes a look at his S&C program and makes the changes that seem to be needed.

Also put on top of that that basketball and football weren't building their programs in the best conference in the sport while having that significant facilities disadvantage against other conference schools.

 

[RSTuthill]

I think this will be a process and UConn nation isn't used to this kind of a process....most remember Calhoun teams dominating the 90's and 00's...remember RE doing the impossible with football. This is going to take a while...and won't fully flourish until something is done on campus.

HCREv1.0 took FB to the Fiesta Bowl playing in an off campus facility and practicing on campus just like hockey. I don't think that has anything to do with it. JMHO ....

 

[RSTuthill]

We played better hockey with Bruce Marshall's kids.

I was always a Bruce Marshall fan. He did a whole lot with a little. But I dunno. Understand you are deliberately using hyperbole a bit here though. If your point is that they played better fundamental hockey back in the day with far less talented kids, I guess you might have something of a point but you would have to look at film to substantiate that.

 

[huskymedic]

HCREv1.0 took FB to the Fiesta Bowl playing in an off campus facility and practicing on campus just like hockey. I don't think that has anything to do with it. JMHO ....

He's not talking about a sheet of ice - he's talking about high end training and practice facilities.

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

HCREv1.0 took FB to the Fiesta Bowl playing in an off campus facility and practicing on campus just like hockey. I don't think that has anything to do with it. JMHO ....

He had the Burton Complex, hockey does not have anything remotely close to that. Not to mention it's FAR more important for a hockey team to practice on the surface they play home games on than it is for a football team. Cav is at an enormous recruiting and competitive disadvantage not having home games on campus and not even having a decent practice facility on campus. RE also took UConn to the Fiesta Bowl out of the 5th or 6th best conference in the country. If he took UConn to a BCS bowl out of the SEC or Big 10 then you'd have a comparable example.

 

[FDNY99]

He's not talking about a sheet of ice - he's talking about high end training and practice facilities.

He had the Burton Complex, hockey does not have anything remotely close to that. Not to mention it's FAR more important for a hockey team to practice on the surface they play home games on than it is for a football team. Cav is at an enormous recruiting and competitive disadvantage not having home games on campus and not even having a decent practice facility on campus. RE also took UConn to the Fiesta Bowl out of the 5th or 6th best conference in the country. If he took UConn to a BCS bowl out of the SEC or Big 10 then you'd have a comparable example.

@RSTuthill these guys understand EXACTLY what I was talking about! @brasssbonanzaa and @huskymedic thanks for clarifying my point about the on-campus situation.

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

I was always a Bruce Marshall fan. He did a whole lot with a little. But I dunno. Understand you are deliberately using hyperbole a bit here though. If your point is that they played better fundamental hockey back in the day with far less talented kids, I guess you might have something of a point but you would have to look at film to substantiate that.

Did a whole lot? He had two winning seasons in Division 1 and zero in Atlantic Hockey. Yes, he had garbage facilities and no scholarships but he couldn't finish .500 being in the second-worst or worst conference in the country after the CHA disbanded. Zero AHA tournament/regular season championships. Marshall wasn't given much in the way of resources from UConn but to say he did "a whole lot" is not true.

 

[RSTuthill]

Did a whole lot? He had two winning seasons in Division 1 and zero in Atlantic Hockey. Yes, he had garbage facilities and no scholarships but he couldn't finish .500 being in the second-worst or worst conference in the country after the CHA disbanded. Zero AHA tournament/regular season championships. Marshall wasn't given much in the way of resources from UConn but to say he did "a whole lot" is not true.

Won the league tournament championship in the second year. By the time it transitioned to AHA everyone was giving scholarships and UConn could not keep up because they weren't. Even Holy Cross was giving scholarships. It's really as simple as that.

 

[freescooter]

I have to side with Dick here. Bruce had teams that got to the league semi finals a few times. One year the leagues top scorer got hurt in the 1st period and they lost a close one. His teams weren't great but he lacked resources. When they played d3 where nobody had scholarships his teams were very competitive. He wasn't York but he was far from awful.

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

I have to side with Dick here. Bruce had teams that got to the league semi finals a few times. One year the leagues top scorer got hurt in the 1st period and they lost a close one. His teams weren't great but he lacked resources. When they played d3 where nobody had scholarships his teams were very competitive. He wasn't York but he was far from awful.

Sure he wasn't awful, but he also couldn't get a team over .500 while competing against some of the worst competition in the country. UConn regularly finished in the bottom 10% of teams in the PWR in the mid to late 2000s too. He was at beast an mediocre coach, considering UConn gave him so few resources to work with.

 

[RSTuthill]

Sure he wasn't awful, but he also couldn't get a team over .500 while competing against some of the worst competition in the country. UConn regularly finished in the bottom 10% of teams in the PWR in the mid to late 2000s too. He was at beast an mediocre coach, considering UConn gave him so few resources to work with.

The worst competition whose players were nonetheless on scholarship. Not 18 rides mind you but a fair number depending on the year. Btw, UConn's record says we are much better this year despite a bunch of high profile kids.

 

[TheDoggPound]

We really want to use the facilities excuse? The team is under-performing, the end.

 

[huskymedic]

We really want to use the facilities excuse? The team is under-performing, the end.

So in the end - your opinion is that sub par facilities don't matter at all in player development and recruiting or just particularly this year?

 

[RSTuthill]

The worst competition whose players were nonetheless on scholarship. Not 18 rides mind you but a fair number depending on the year. Btw, UConn's record says we are much better this year despite a bunch of high profile kids.

There was a typo in this that I did not catch until too late. Should read:

Btw, UConn's record this year says that they are not much better than back in the day despite a bunch of high profile kids. At the bottom of HE and still losing to the likes of SH.