The answer to the question in the title is, frankly, not a whole lot. BC is pretty much going to be the #1 seed in Manchester, NH. With their series win last weekend, UNH has solidified themselves as a solid 2 or 3, meaning the committee SHOULD put the Eagles in the Northeast Regional.
With that said, the field is starting to take shape, and the bubble is getting thinner for the borderline schools.....
1 Yale
2 North Dakota
3 Boston College
4 Michigan
5 Miami
6 Denver
7 Minnesota-Duluth
8 Merrimack
9 Union
10 Notre Dame
11 New Hampshire
12 Western Michigan
13 Nebraska-Omaha
14 Colorado College
15 Dartmouth
16 RIT (Atlantic Hockey leader)
Bubble: RPI, BU, Maine, Minnesota all need some help this weekend. None of these teams are alive in their respective conference tourneys.
BC stands pat as a #1 in the latest PWR, but the big thing here is that with one more win, Northeastern enters as a TUC. This would not hurt BC much, as they would have a 2-2-1 record against the Huskies should they fall Friday night, but it won't help, either. A loss would probably keep them in 1 seed land, which means a favorable opening round opponent and an easier route to the Frozen Four, but that added TUC record could turn ugly. Its best to beat NU and get the auto berth as Hockey East champs.
UNH is in pretty good shape here, too. A loss to a top ten PWR team like Merrimack would not hurt their standing either. This is good, a 4 seed for UNH means BC is going out west.
Here's the take home message: BC does not NEED this weekend to go terrifically well to get where they want to go in the NCAA tourney. They do, however, want to win this thing. WE want them to win this thing. This is playoff hockey, and the more of it you play, the better. They will put their best effort to take home another Hockey East championship. We'll take a look at the final four later this week....
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Friday, March 11, 2011
Hockey East Quarterfinals Preview
The Hockey East Tournament has officially begun, with Northeastern's upset of BU in game one of their series last night. Another year, another post-Beanpot meltdown for the puppies on Comm Ave....
Your Eagles begin their quest for another HE title and trip to the Frozen Four tonight at Conte Forum when they take on our highly esteemed State U (top 50 in the nation, they say) tonight to open their best of three series with the Minutemen.
For a look at every series this weekend, lets start with the most talked about and probably most exciting:
#4 Merrimack vs. #5 Maine
Merrimack enters this series on a bit of a slide. Coming off a huge weekend against the U of No Hardware two weeks ago, the Warriors were threatening to take the #1 seed in both the HE and NCAA tourneys. But, MC was brought down a notch the following weekend when they drove waaaaaay up I-95 and got their asses beat by Maine.... who happen to roll their Winnebagos into North Andover this weekend. MC is loaded with talent, as this is definitely the best team the Warriors have ever rolled out on the ice in their brief D-1 history. Super Soph Stephane De Costa, who missed the Maine series, will be back on the ice this weekend and will no doubt wreak havoc on the shaky at best Maine goaltending all weekend. MC has a pretty good goalie between the pipes in Joe Cannata, but he will be tested by a high-powered Black Bear offense lead by Gustav Nyquist. FWIW, these Black Bears completely pantsed North Dakota early on this year, so they can bring it when they want to. Maine is pretty familiar with the situation they are in, having to win the HE tourney last year to make the NCAAs, since they had to do it last year and fought all the way to the finals, losing to BC in OT 7-6. This one looks like its going to be a great series, with the home team holding serve. (Merrimack has lost only 2 games at home this year)
Merrimack in 3
#3 Boston University vs #6 Northeastern
Thise series already started, with game one going pretty much how I had thought it would. BU has been treading water ever since they took three of four points from Maine at the end of January, but they have looked better of late. The Terriers' main issues have been consistency, and not playing BC. (Cuz we all know thats all they care about over there) Kieran Milan has been solid in net. Its scoring that has been an issue for BU. That and holding late leads (see UVM game two weeks ago). Southie's Team has had their issues, but there is one certain thing in this world, and that is that BU will find a way to screw up an opportunity for NU to advance in a tournament. The Boys from the 'Berry have been red hot to end the season, grabbing three of four from BC, one of four from UNH, and two from BU last weekend.Goalie Chris Rawlings has been solid, and their top line of McNeely, McLeod, and Silva has been clicking all year. The big difference for NU now has been the youngsters stepping up. It seems like the Huskies' young talent is starting to gel and this team is going to be downright filthy in the years to come, as long as Greg Cronin keeps that cell phone in his pocket when he's supposed to. I like the Huskies to make this one interesting. I also DO NOT want any part of BU again in a potential title match at the Garden.
Northeastern in 3
#2 New Hampshire vs. #7 Vermont
The University of No Hardware lived up to its name last weekend, blowing a 2 goal lead to your Eagles and therefore handing over the Hockey East regular season crown to BC. UNH laid an even bigger egg the night before, putting up 12 shots on goal (cue Harry Doyle..."12 shots? We only had 12 god damn shots?") in a 4-0 loss to the same BC team. So.... what does that leave us? A UNH team that struggles to show up in big games, thats what it leaves us. Are these games against UVM big? Yeah, but not as big as, say, the following weekend will be. Vermont is strong in nets, with Rob Madore right around the middle of the pack in Hockey East for goaltending stats. UNH is just better all around, with Hobey Baker candidate Paul Thompson and his senior linemates putting up gaudy numbers this year. I fully expect UNH to cruise this weekend, Vermont doesn't bring much to the table. They do own a winning record against the Wildcats this season, but two of those games were in Burlington. These are all at the Whitt, where UNH is usually pretty strong. Besides, if UNH loses these games, they may end up being a 4 seed in the NCAAs, meaning BC is shut out of both East Coast regionals. Lets hope Dick Umile can right the ship.
UNH in two
#1 Boston College vs. #8 Massachusetts
BC started their road to the Frozen Four last weekend, picking up the first of what they hope is an armful of trophies. After surgically dismantling UNH Friday night, the Eagles fought back from a 2-0 deficit on the road to claim their first regular season title since 2005. BC has full intentions of getting back to the Garden next weekend, and it all starts with a series against UMass. The Minutemen have been improving on their dismal start, picking up a much-needed tie against Maine on home ice last Saturday to make the playoffs. It should be noted, however, that UMass has not won a league game since January 22nd. Ties don't count anymore. It hasn't been for lack of effort, however, as they gave BC two good games a few weeks back. They have a standout netminder in Paul Dainton, who keeps them in games. Offensively, they are paced by 12 goal scorer Mike Pereria, a freshman. They don't put up a lot of shots, and if BCs gets into Beast Mode with their top two lines, there is no stopping the Eagles from blowing them away. Last year's opening round saw pretty much the same thing, even when UMass had some strong offensive players up front. Not so this year. BC will roll in this one, getting to the Garden to play Northeastern...
BC in two
Your Eagles begin their quest for another HE title and trip to the Frozen Four tonight at Conte Forum when they take on our highly esteemed State U (top 50 in the nation, they say) tonight to open their best of three series with the Minutemen.
For a look at every series this weekend, lets start with the most talked about and probably most exciting:
#4 Merrimack vs. #5 Maine
Merrimack enters this series on a bit of a slide. Coming off a huge weekend against the U of No Hardware two weeks ago, the Warriors were threatening to take the #1 seed in both the HE and NCAA tourneys. But, MC was brought down a notch the following weekend when they drove waaaaaay up I-95 and got their asses beat by Maine.... who happen to roll their Winnebagos into North Andover this weekend. MC is loaded with talent, as this is definitely the best team the Warriors have ever rolled out on the ice in their brief D-1 history. Super Soph Stephane De Costa, who missed the Maine series, will be back on the ice this weekend and will no doubt wreak havoc on the shaky at best Maine goaltending all weekend. MC has a pretty good goalie between the pipes in Joe Cannata, but he will be tested by a high-powered Black Bear offense lead by Gustav Nyquist. FWIW, these Black Bears completely pantsed North Dakota early on this year, so they can bring it when they want to. Maine is pretty familiar with the situation they are in, having to win the HE tourney last year to make the NCAAs, since they had to do it last year and fought all the way to the finals, losing to BC in OT 7-6. This one looks like its going to be a great series, with the home team holding serve. (Merrimack has lost only 2 games at home this year)
Merrimack in 3
#3 Boston University vs #6 Northeastern
Thise series already started, with game one going pretty much how I had thought it would. BU has been treading water ever since they took three of four points from Maine at the end of January, but they have looked better of late. The Terriers' main issues have been consistency, and not playing BC. (Cuz we all know thats all they care about over there) Kieran Milan has been solid in net. Its scoring that has been an issue for BU. That and holding late leads (see UVM game two weeks ago). Southie's Team has had their issues, but there is one certain thing in this world, and that is that BU will find a way to screw up an opportunity for NU to advance in a tournament. The Boys from the 'Berry have been red hot to end the season, grabbing three of four from BC, one of four from UNH, and two from BU last weekend.Goalie Chris Rawlings has been solid, and their top line of McNeely, McLeod, and Silva has been clicking all year. The big difference for NU now has been the youngsters stepping up. It seems like the Huskies' young talent is starting to gel and this team is going to be downright filthy in the years to come, as long as Greg Cronin keeps that cell phone in his pocket when he's supposed to. I like the Huskies to make this one interesting. I also DO NOT want any part of BU again in a potential title match at the Garden.
Northeastern in 3
#2 New Hampshire vs. #7 Vermont
The University of No Hardware lived up to its name last weekend, blowing a 2 goal lead to your Eagles and therefore handing over the Hockey East regular season crown to BC. UNH laid an even bigger egg the night before, putting up 12 shots on goal (cue Harry Doyle..."12 shots? We only had 12 god damn shots?") in a 4-0 loss to the same BC team. So.... what does that leave us? A UNH team that struggles to show up in big games, thats what it leaves us. Are these games against UVM big? Yeah, but not as big as, say, the following weekend will be. Vermont is strong in nets, with Rob Madore right around the middle of the pack in Hockey East for goaltending stats. UNH is just better all around, with Hobey Baker candidate Paul Thompson and his senior linemates putting up gaudy numbers this year. I fully expect UNH to cruise this weekend, Vermont doesn't bring much to the table. They do own a winning record against the Wildcats this season, but two of those games were in Burlington. These are all at the Whitt, where UNH is usually pretty strong. Besides, if UNH loses these games, they may end up being a 4 seed in the NCAAs, meaning BC is shut out of both East Coast regionals. Lets hope Dick Umile can right the ship.
UNH in two
#1 Boston College vs. #8 Massachusetts
BC started their road to the Frozen Four last weekend, picking up the first of what they hope is an armful of trophies. After surgically dismantling UNH Friday night, the Eagles fought back from a 2-0 deficit on the road to claim their first regular season title since 2005. BC has full intentions of getting back to the Garden next weekend, and it all starts with a series against UMass. The Minutemen have been improving on their dismal start, picking up a much-needed tie against Maine on home ice last Saturday to make the playoffs. It should be noted, however, that UMass has not won a league game since January 22nd. Ties don't count anymore. It hasn't been for lack of effort, however, as they gave BC two good games a few weeks back. They have a standout netminder in Paul Dainton, who keeps them in games. Offensively, they are paced by 12 goal scorer Mike Pereria, a freshman. They don't put up a lot of shots, and if BCs gets into Beast Mode with their top two lines, there is no stopping the Eagles from blowing them away. Last year's opening round saw pretty much the same thing, even when UMass had some strong offensive players up front. Not so this year. BC will roll in this one, getting to the Garden to play Northeastern...
BC in two
Thursday, March 3, 2011
UNH preview
HUGE games this weekend. Huge. Every game from here on out is a must win… it must be March baby!
The Hockey East regular season title comes down to the final weekend again this season, but the teams are much closer than they were last year. This time last year, UNH only needed a tie, which they got in game one of the weekend series. With both teams separated by one point, both games become critical here. BC needs 3 points to take the championship. UNH needs two. That’s the bottom line, children. Playoff hockey one week early… oh yeah!
Since the last time these two foes met on the Conte ice, things have been a bit different. In their first meeting, November 5th, UNH pulled out a 2-1 victory over a BC team struggling to score. That is no longer the case, as BC is the top scoring team in the conference, averaging 3.7 goals per game. They have started to get significant contributions from their second and third lines, evidenced by the offensive emergence of Jimmy Hayes and Bill Arnold. Solid goaltending (except against Northeastern, for some reason) has also helped the Eagles soar to the top of the rankings and threaten for their first Hockey East regular season trophy since 2004-2005. They have shown their mental toughness in back to back barn-burners, battling Northeastern goal for goal, refusing to lose. This team is a definite tough out, and is poised to make another run in the early spring.
UNH is also a tough out. They are #2 in HE in goals, averaging 3.48 per game. They are lead by seniors Paul Thompson, Mike Sislo, and Phil DeSimone, who have the lion’s share of the team’s goals on the year. Matt DiGirolamo has been solid in nets as well, helping UNH to the best GAA in Hockey East. These guys can flat out score, and keep other teams from scoring. They have struggled of late, having played the easier portion of their schedule early in the year. This allowed BC right back into the HE race after it looked like the Wildcats would take advantage of two games in hand and run away with the regular season. But they have played well enough to be right where they wanted to be, playing meaningful hockey games in March. BC will need to shut down the Thompson line to get anything done in this series, as that just may be the key to beating the Wildcats.
Predictions? Great hockey both nights. I think BC can take the 3 points they need here, but I think they get the tie at home Friday night. UNH always plays well in Conte. In contrast, the Whitt’s huge ice surface plays well to BC’s strengths, and they perform well up there. I think BC can win on the road, capturing the trophy Saturday night.
The Hockey East regular season title comes down to the final weekend again this season, but the teams are much closer than they were last year. This time last year, UNH only needed a tie, which they got in game one of the weekend series. With both teams separated by one point, both games become critical here. BC needs 3 points to take the championship. UNH needs two. That’s the bottom line, children. Playoff hockey one week early… oh yeah!
Since the last time these two foes met on the Conte ice, things have been a bit different. In their first meeting, November 5th, UNH pulled out a 2-1 victory over a BC team struggling to score. That is no longer the case, as BC is the top scoring team in the conference, averaging 3.7 goals per game. They have started to get significant contributions from their second and third lines, evidenced by the offensive emergence of Jimmy Hayes and Bill Arnold. Solid goaltending (except against Northeastern, for some reason) has also helped the Eagles soar to the top of the rankings and threaten for their first Hockey East regular season trophy since 2004-2005. They have shown their mental toughness in back to back barn-burners, battling Northeastern goal for goal, refusing to lose. This team is a definite tough out, and is poised to make another run in the early spring.
UNH is also a tough out. They are #2 in HE in goals, averaging 3.48 per game. They are lead by seniors Paul Thompson, Mike Sislo, and Phil DeSimone, who have the lion’s share of the team’s goals on the year. Matt DiGirolamo has been solid in nets as well, helping UNH to the best GAA in Hockey East. These guys can flat out score, and keep other teams from scoring. They have struggled of late, having played the easier portion of their schedule early in the year. This allowed BC right back into the HE race after it looked like the Wildcats would take advantage of two games in hand and run away with the regular season. But they have played well enough to be right where they wanted to be, playing meaningful hockey games in March. BC will need to shut down the Thompson line to get anything done in this series, as that just may be the key to beating the Wildcats.
Predictions? Great hockey both nights. I think BC can take the 3 points they need here, but I think they get the tie at home Friday night. UNH always plays well in Conte. In contrast, the Whitt’s huge ice surface plays well to BC’s strengths, and they perform well up there. I think BC can win on the road, capturing the trophy Saturday night.
Monday, February 14, 2011
Beanpot Final Tonight vs. Northeastern
Tonight your #1 Eagles go in search of their second straight Beanpot title when they face Northeastern at 7:30. The senior class is looking to wrap up their 3rd pot o beans in the last 4 tries, while Northeastern is looking for their first championship since 1988. It should be a very good game with plenty of great storylines, but its also the first of three straight this week against the Huskies. Lets take a look at how the teams match up:
Northeastern is a middle of the pack Hockey East team who has hit their stride of late. Gone is the team that lost three straight to Atlantic Hockey foes earlier this season. Coach Greg Cronin has his guys skating as one now, and its starting to pay off. Defense and goaltending has never been a problem for NU, as they are #2 in Hockey East in goals allowed (behind BC). Chris Rawlings has been stellar in net, and he covers quite a bit of it (6-5 210). BC could have some issues scoring tonight, as they have struggled in their last two outings to get the puck in the net.
Offensively, NU relies on their top line for most of their scoring, lead by seniors Wade MacLeod and Tyler McNeely. They account for 23 of the teams 67 goals (34%) this year. As mentioned earlier, BC leads the league in goals allowed, and will try to make it tough for these guys. John Muse has been an animal in the Beanpot, with a career 6 wins in the tournament, and he has been on fire of late, surrendering only 2 goals in his last 3 starts.
As an added bonus, former BC recruit Cody Ferriero plays for NU. He left BC before the season even started, claiming BC wasn't physical enough for him. Tonight, BC can show him that physical doesn't always translate into titles. There is also no love lost here between the fan bases, as Northeastern kids get up for games against BC, and Eagle fans can all remember the embarassing arse-whupping NU handed BC in 2009 (6-1 final in the first round of the Beanpot). Look for this game to again come down to the wire, with BC icing the win with an empty-netter late to kill NU's chance for a Beanpot breakthrough.
Prediction: BC 4 NU 2
This can serve as a preview for the entire week, as BC and NU face off twice this coming weekend as well, Friday at Conte and Saturday at Matthews Arena. It should be a great week of hockey for the two rivals. We'll have a breakdown later this week as well as another round of tournament projections, where Merrimack is making a push for a #1 seed.....
Northeastern is a middle of the pack Hockey East team who has hit their stride of late. Gone is the team that lost three straight to Atlantic Hockey foes earlier this season. Coach Greg Cronin has his guys skating as one now, and its starting to pay off. Defense and goaltending has never been a problem for NU, as they are #2 in Hockey East in goals allowed (behind BC). Chris Rawlings has been stellar in net, and he covers quite a bit of it (6-5 210). BC could have some issues scoring tonight, as they have struggled in their last two outings to get the puck in the net.
Offensively, NU relies on their top line for most of their scoring, lead by seniors Wade MacLeod and Tyler McNeely. They account for 23 of the teams 67 goals (34%) this year. As mentioned earlier, BC leads the league in goals allowed, and will try to make it tough for these guys. John Muse has been an animal in the Beanpot, with a career 6 wins in the tournament, and he has been on fire of late, surrendering only 2 goals in his last 3 starts.
As an added bonus, former BC recruit Cody Ferriero plays for NU. He left BC before the season even started, claiming BC wasn't physical enough for him. Tonight, BC can show him that physical doesn't always translate into titles. There is also no love lost here between the fan bases, as Northeastern kids get up for games against BC, and Eagle fans can all remember the embarassing arse-whupping NU handed BC in 2009 (6-1 final in the first round of the Beanpot). Look for this game to again come down to the wire, with BC icing the win with an empty-netter late to kill NU's chance for a Beanpot breakthrough.
Prediction: BC 4 NU 2
This can serve as a preview for the entire week, as BC and NU face off twice this coming weekend as well, Friday at Conte and Saturday at Matthews Arena. It should be a great week of hockey for the two rivals. We'll have a breakdown later this week as well as another round of tournament projections, where Merrimack is making a push for a #1 seed.....
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Exciting Beanpot win and climbing the polls
Monday night, BC won a thriling game over BU 3-2 to advance to the Beanpot finals. This is an important win for the Eagles, as it moves them to the finals of this tournament and it moves them up in the pairwise as well. In addition, BC has never lost the Beanpot and won a national championship, so there's that to ponder as well....
As far as the polls go, BC is still your #1 team, followed by Yale. The Eagles were near-unanimous #1, save for a few single votes to the Bulldogs, Minnesota-Duluth and UNH. Funny enough, the Wildcats are actually the leaders in Hockey East right now, but trail the Eagles in all of the polls. Other Hockey East foes appearing in the polls are the aforementioned Wildcats (6/6), Merrimack (11/11), BU (14/14), and Maine (18).
USCHO
USA Today
As far as tournament projections go, here is what the field of 16 would look like, based on today's PWR:
1 Yale
2 Boston College
3 Minnesota-Duluth 26
4 New Hampshire
5 North Dakota
6 Denver
7 Rensselaer
8 Wisconsin 21
9 Union
10 Merrimack
11 Notre Dame
12 Michigan
13 Western Michigan
14 Nebraska-Omaha
15 Dartmouth
16 RIT (auto bid from Atlantic Hockey)
Based on this, BC would not be playing in Manchester, as UNH would automatically get that spot. More than likely the Eagles would be in Bridgeport (oh boy!) with Dartmouth, RPI and Merrimack. Not a bad regional, actually. BC is catching up to Yale in the comparisons, but does not have another TUC game until they play UNH in March. They are going to need to keep taking care of business in order to keep pace for the top spot in the tournament. A Harvard matchup in the Beanpot would have helped that (common opponent with Yale), but to no avail.
We're getting there, and the Eagles continue to play winning hockey. They have a possible trap game with Providence this weekend. Hopefully they do not look ahead to Monday night and can finish off a season sweep of the Friars on the road.
PC preview coming soon...
As far as the polls go, BC is still your #1 team, followed by Yale. The Eagles were near-unanimous #1, save for a few single votes to the Bulldogs, Minnesota-Duluth and UNH. Funny enough, the Wildcats are actually the leaders in Hockey East right now, but trail the Eagles in all of the polls. Other Hockey East foes appearing in the polls are the aforementioned Wildcats (6/6), Merrimack (11/11), BU (14/14), and Maine (18).
USCHO
USA Today
As far as tournament projections go, here is what the field of 16 would look like, based on today's PWR:
1 Yale
2 Boston College
3 Minnesota-Duluth 26
4 New Hampshire
5 North Dakota
6 Denver
7 Rensselaer
8 Wisconsin 21
9 Union
10 Merrimack
11 Notre Dame
12 Michigan
13 Western Michigan
14 Nebraska-Omaha
15 Dartmouth
16 RIT (auto bid from Atlantic Hockey)
Based on this, BC would not be playing in Manchester, as UNH would automatically get that spot. More than likely the Eagles would be in Bridgeport (oh boy!) with Dartmouth, RPI and Merrimack. Not a bad regional, actually. BC is catching up to Yale in the comparisons, but does not have another TUC game until they play UNH in March. They are going to need to keep taking care of business in order to keep pace for the top spot in the tournament. A Harvard matchup in the Beanpot would have helped that (common opponent with Yale), but to no avail.
We're getting there, and the Eagles continue to play winning hockey. They have a possible trap game with Providence this weekend. Hopefully they do not look ahead to Monday night and can finish off a season sweep of the Friars on the road.
PC preview coming soon...
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Beanpot 2011: Preview
Its the first Monday in February, so you know what that means.... Beanpot time! BC looks to defend their crown against Beanpot royalty BU while Northeastern and Harvard look for a rare championship game appearance in the early game. As always, anything can happen in the Beanpot, but the favorites are playing each other this year at 8pm on the Garden ice.
Game One: Northeastern vs. Harvard 5pm
The early game pits two of the less-storied Beanpot entries, as Harvard and Northeastern have won 14 titles combined, one less than BC has alone. This should be a hard-fought game, as both of these guys are almost never in the finals, so any chance to get to the late game next week is taken very seriously.
Northeastern has been hot of late, winning or tying every game they played up until last Fridays setback to Merrimack in OT, including a 3-0 victory over Harvard on January 19th. The Huskies hang their hats on solid goaltending from their sophomore goalie Chris Rawlings and their senior leadership in forwards Tyler McNeely and Wade MacLeod. MacLeod has scored 13 goals this season, leading the team and putting him in the top 10 in Hockey East. Defensively, NU has a plus 3 goal differentia, and they can be a force to be reckoned with in this tournament. They played BC tough early on this year in October, and even though they own a 1-2 record against Beanpot teams, the Huskies lost both of those games by close margins.
Harvard comes into this tournament on a two game skid, dropping their last two to Ivy rivals Cornell (2-1) and Yale (1-0). But some good things can be taken from those games, based on the fact that both games were hard fought contests and they only yielded one goal to the top offense in the nation, Yale. Offensively, Harvard struggles to score, netting an average of 1.8 goals a game. Lead by the Biega brothers (Michael and Danny), the Crimson offense has been anything but dominant. Defensively, they are surrendering 3 goals a game, with senior Kyle Richter taking up most of the time between the pipes.
The Huskies are going to try to impose their will on the Crimson in this one. Their top line will put plenty of pressure on a Harvard defensive unit that is frankly not that good. The only way Harvard has a shot in this is if they get some lucky breaks and score some goals on the power play, but even that has not been great for the Crimson this year. It won't be a bloodbath, but I've got NU moving on for a shot to end their schneid in the Beanpot.
Prediction: Northeastern 3 Harvard 1
Game One: Northeastern vs. Harvard 5pm
The early game pits two of the less-storied Beanpot entries, as Harvard and Northeastern have won 14 titles combined, one less than BC has alone. This should be a hard-fought game, as both of these guys are almost never in the finals, so any chance to get to the late game next week is taken very seriously.
Northeastern has been hot of late, winning or tying every game they played up until last Fridays setback to Merrimack in OT, including a 3-0 victory over Harvard on January 19th. The Huskies hang their hats on solid goaltending from their sophomore goalie Chris Rawlings and their senior leadership in forwards Tyler McNeely and Wade MacLeod. MacLeod has scored 13 goals this season, leading the team and putting him in the top 10 in Hockey East. Defensively, NU has a plus 3 goal differentia, and they can be a force to be reckoned with in this tournament. They played BC tough early on this year in October, and even though they own a 1-2 record against Beanpot teams, the Huskies lost both of those games by close margins.
Harvard comes into this tournament on a two game skid, dropping their last two to Ivy rivals Cornell (2-1) and Yale (1-0). But some good things can be taken from those games, based on the fact that both games were hard fought contests and they only yielded one goal to the top offense in the nation, Yale. Offensively, Harvard struggles to score, netting an average of 1.8 goals a game. Lead by the Biega brothers (Michael and Danny), the Crimson offense has been anything but dominant. Defensively, they are surrendering 3 goals a game, with senior Kyle Richter taking up most of the time between the pipes.
The Huskies are going to try to impose their will on the Crimson in this one. Their top line will put plenty of pressure on a Harvard defensive unit that is frankly not that good. The only way Harvard has a shot in this is if they get some lucky breaks and score some goals on the power play, but even that has not been great for the Crimson this year. It won't be a bloodbath, but I've got NU moving on for a shot to end their schneid in the Beanpot.
Prediction: Northeastern 3 Harvard 1
Game Two: Boston College vs Boston University 8pm
These two schools have won the last 17 titles between them, with the vast, vast majority of those wins coming from the downtown end of Comm Ave. BC has had the upper hand of late, winning 2 of the last 3. BC also swept the season series from BU this year, winning two of the three on the road. The Eagles are also the defending champions, having beaten the Terriers in a thriller last year.
Boston College, fresh off the programs fourth national championship, enters the tournament as the on-paper favorite. They are the #1 team in the nation, according to both major polls, and they sit atop Hockey East as well. They boast one of the top goal scorers on the country in Cam Atkinson. They can score goals... alot of goals. But BC has weaknesses, and if there is one team in the country that knows how to push their buttons, its BU.
Boston University is Beanpot royalty. They have won 29 of the 59 tournaments. They get up for this more than any other school. Some may even say this is their national championship, so to speak. Whatever the case, they know how to win this thing. The Terriers have been pretty hot lately, grabbing three of four points from Maine in Orono two weeks ago and a beating down on UMass Lowell last Friday. Kieran Milan is playing well for them in nets, and he'll have to be on his game against a tough BC attack.
BU is going to try to force BC to play their style: physical, punch you in the mouth hockey. BC will need to out-finesse the Terriers or they will be forced to play a style they don't like. The Terriers are built to beat one team and one team only - BC. They have the horses and the memories of three tough losses this year to fuel their fire..... Only I just don't think that will be enough. If BC gets out to an early lead, and avoids the penalty box (tough to do against BU), then they win going away. If BU forces BC to take stupid penalties, they can keep it tight with goals on the man advantage. I see a nailbiter.... par for the course with these two clubs
Prediction: BC 4 BU 3 (2OT)
Big Win In Beanpot Tune-up
BC continued their winning ways with a solid 5-0 win over UMass Friday night. If the score doesn't tell you, it was a dominating effort for the Eagles. BC now heads into the Beanpot on a high note. Monday should be great, and we'll handicap the Beanpot next. Oh, and Denver split their series with Colorado College this weekend, so that could help BC immensely in the Pairwise.
Friday, February 4, 2011
UMASS and PWR Musings
The Eagles stay at home this weekend for a one game Beanpot tune-up against the good ol' state university. Gametime is 7pm on Friday night. BC is riding a 3 game winning streak and as of today, are the #1 team in the nation. The Minutemen come into town off a one point weekend series with Northeastern and are currently in seventh place in Hockey East.
Its hard to get a good read on this game. The Beanpot, and a rematch with BU stand on the horizon, and this could be a trap game. UMass has never really given BC trouble, and they lost a lot of talent from last years team that wasn't any good either. But, if any team can get up for a chance to catch BC napping, its UMass. They average a mere 2.7 goals per game, however, so it could be tough sledding against a team that can match you goal for goal like no other (except maybe Yale). I expect that BC will remain focused, though, and get the job done.
Prediction: BC 4 UMass 2
Also, it is worth noting that in the latest PWR, BC is currently tied for #3. This puts them in line for a #1 seed in the NCAAs. This happened due to Robert Morris falling out of the TUC (TUC = team under consideration, which is any team with an RPI above .500) list, giving BC the edge over North Dakota. (NoDak won two against RMU, who lost this week) In order to move up any further, however, BC is going to have to work on their RPI and TUC record. Their closest competition for the #1 seeds are Denver and North Dakota, both of whom have played waaaay more TUCs due to their membership in the WCHA. With Hockey East having a down year as far as parity goes, and BC's less than stellar record against Merrimack this year, it is critical that BC win their remaining TUC games : the Beanpot vs BU, and a home and home vs UNH in March. If they can sweep or go 2-1 in these games, combined with a strong showing in the HE tournament, the Eagles should grab a #1 seed. They are very close to Denver in RPI.
Enough math... They play the games for a reason! We will be back Sunday/Monday for a Beanpot preview!
Its hard to get a good read on this game. The Beanpot, and a rematch with BU stand on the horizon, and this could be a trap game. UMass has never really given BC trouble, and they lost a lot of talent from last years team that wasn't any good either. But, if any team can get up for a chance to catch BC napping, its UMass. They average a mere 2.7 goals per game, however, so it could be tough sledding against a team that can match you goal for goal like no other (except maybe Yale). I expect that BC will remain focused, though, and get the job done.
Prediction: BC 4 UMass 2
Also, it is worth noting that in the latest PWR, BC is currently tied for #3. This puts them in line for a #1 seed in the NCAAs. This happened due to Robert Morris falling out of the TUC (TUC = team under consideration, which is any team with an RPI above .500) list, giving BC the edge over North Dakota. (NoDak won two against RMU, who lost this week) In order to move up any further, however, BC is going to have to work on their RPI and TUC record. Their closest competition for the #1 seeds are Denver and North Dakota, both of whom have played waaaay more TUCs due to their membership in the WCHA. With Hockey East having a down year as far as parity goes, and BC's less than stellar record against Merrimack this year, it is critical that BC win their remaining TUC games : the Beanpot vs BU, and a home and home vs UNH in March. If they can sweep or go 2-1 in these games, combined with a strong showing in the HE tournament, the Eagles should grab a #1 seed. They are very close to Denver in RPI.
Enough math... They play the games for a reason! We will be back Sunday/Monday for a Beanpot preview!
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Highly-Touted Prospect Chooses BC
According to sources, top prospect Michael Matheson has committed to Boston College. The 16 year old defenseman, who had college offers from BU and Vermont, dropped an opportunity to enter the QMJHL draft, where he was the projected #1 pick. Had he done this, he would have forfeited his NCAA eligibility. He will play one year in the USHL (our version of Canadian Junior... not nearly as good) before enrolling at BC.
Call this guarded optimism, but we shall see what transpires here. This kid could be good, and probably is, but I'm just not sure why someone passes over Quebec Major Junior (which is arguably better hockey than any US-based minor league, including the AHL) for college. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad he did, but we're going to have to see how this plays out. To me, the best case scenario is that he plays one year here and moves on to the NHL. Solid grab by Jerry, though.
Call this guarded optimism, but we shall see what transpires here. This kid could be good, and probably is, but I'm just not sure why someone passes over Quebec Major Junior (which is arguably better hockey than any US-based minor league, including the AHL) for college. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad he did, but we're going to have to see how this plays out. To me, the best case scenario is that he plays one year here and moves on to the NHL. Solid grab by Jerry, though.
Moving On Up!!
With only the one game being Saturday, and the massive amount of snow in New England, things are delayed a bit....
BC moves to # 2 in both the USCHO and USA Today polls this week after a sweep of all 4 available points in Hockey East play. The Eagles had victories over arch rival BU (3-2 on Friday) and UMass Lowell (5-3 on Saturday). Yale remains the top team in the nation, but the Eagles are hard-charging toward the Bulldogs claim to #1. Other teams from Hockey East that are UNH (7, 8), Maine (12, 11), and Merrimack (14, 14). BU drops from both rankings after a tough weekend that saw the Terriers lose two of three to their ranked Hockey East brethren.
USCHO Poll
USA Today
As far as Pairwise goes, these are the 16 teams that would be in the NCAAs if the tournament started today:
1 Yale
2 Minnesota-Duluth
3 North Dakota
4 Denver
5 Boston College
6 Michigan
7 Wisconsin
8 RPI
9 Notre Dame
10 New Hampshire
11 Merrimack
12 Western Michigan
13 Union
14 Nebraska- Omaha
15 Dartmouth
16 RIT (auto bid from Atlantic Hockey)
Bubble: Miami, BU, Colorado College, Princeton
At first glance we see a very diverse tournament with some new faces, like Merrimack, N-O and Union, but any of those teams could find themselves on the outside looking in if they slip up or lose in conference tourney games. RIT, a Frozen Four team from a year ago as the 16 seed, is still in the hunt to repeat their fate, but Niagara is right behind them in the AH standings.
The Eagles seem to be getting screwed here by the computers, simply because they played Lowell and BU last week. This weekend, and several weeks to come, will be more of the same for BC, as they have Lowell again, then UMass, and then BU in the Beanpot. They do not have a “TUC” game (TUC = team under consideration, or any team that ranks in the top 25 in Pairwise) other than BU (which doesn’t count) until UNH on the last weekend of the regular season. BC, therefore, needs to win these games against “inferior” competition. You don’t get penalized for beating weak teams, but those wins don’t really count for a whole lot either. The best you can do is keep winning, and win more pairings in the rankings. A Hockey East regular season title, and a tournament title would most definitely garner the Eagles a #1 seed in the NCAAs and what should be a automatic nod to Manchester for the Northeast Regional (provided UNH doesn’t get a #1 seed as well, which would bump them into the NE and move BC elsewhere).
There’s still a whole lot of ifs, ands, or buts floating around, so that’s why they play the games. BC only has one this weekend, so they will need to focus on Lowell and winning in a place they seldom do.
BC moves to # 2 in both the USCHO and USA Today polls this week after a sweep of all 4 available points in Hockey East play. The Eagles had victories over arch rival BU (3-2 on Friday) and UMass Lowell (5-3 on Saturday). Yale remains the top team in the nation, but the Eagles are hard-charging toward the Bulldogs claim to #1. Other teams from Hockey East that are UNH (7, 8), Maine (12, 11), and Merrimack (14, 14). BU drops from both rankings after a tough weekend that saw the Terriers lose two of three to their ranked Hockey East brethren.
USCHO Poll
USA Today
As far as Pairwise goes, these are the 16 teams that would be in the NCAAs if the tournament started today:
1 Yale
2 Minnesota-Duluth
3 North Dakota
4 Denver
5 Boston College
6 Michigan
7 Wisconsin
8 RPI
9 Notre Dame
10 New Hampshire
11 Merrimack
12 Western Michigan
13 Union
14 Nebraska- Omaha
15 Dartmouth
16 RIT (auto bid from Atlantic Hockey)
Bubble: Miami, BU, Colorado College, Princeton
At first glance we see a very diverse tournament with some new faces, like Merrimack, N-O and Union, but any of those teams could find themselves on the outside looking in if they slip up or lose in conference tourney games. RIT, a Frozen Four team from a year ago as the 16 seed, is still in the hunt to repeat their fate, but Niagara is right behind them in the AH standings.
The Eagles seem to be getting screwed here by the computers, simply because they played Lowell and BU last week. This weekend, and several weeks to come, will be more of the same for BC, as they have Lowell again, then UMass, and then BU in the Beanpot. They do not have a “TUC” game (TUC = team under consideration, or any team that ranks in the top 25 in Pairwise) other than BU (which doesn’t count) until UNH on the last weekend of the regular season. BC, therefore, needs to win these games against “inferior” competition. You don’t get penalized for beating weak teams, but those wins don’t really count for a whole lot either. The best you can do is keep winning, and win more pairings in the rankings. A Hockey East regular season title, and a tournament title would most definitely garner the Eagles a #1 seed in the NCAAs and what should be a automatic nod to Manchester for the Northeast Regional (provided UNH doesn’t get a #1 seed as well, which would bump them into the NE and move BC elsewhere).
There’s still a whole lot of ifs, ands, or buts floating around, so that’s why they play the games. BC only has one this weekend, so they will need to focus on Lowell and winning in a place they seldom do.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Weekend Preview Jan 21-22
This weekend the Eagles have back to back games, and luckily don’t have to travel far for either. Friday night, BC jumps on the Green Line to take on Comm. Ave. rival BU at Agganis Arena. Then, Saturday, Jerry’s kids stay home to entertain the RiverHawks of UMass Lowell. Here is a look at both games, and what we can expect:
Friday, January 21, 2011 @ Boston University (7:30pm TV= NESN)
Its been over a month since these two rivals met in a much-hyped home and home series right before winter break. In that series, the Eagles scored a total of 14 goals to BU’s 7, winning both games easily. Since that series, the teams have gone in opposite directions. BC continued their winning streak all the way to last Sunday, winning four straight before finally falling to Maine. BU, on the other hand, have only won 3 of their last 7, including a bad losses to Brown and RPI and a 3-2 setback to Merrimack. They did, however, average 3 goals a game in that span. BU’s issues appear to be inconsistency across the board. Some nights they are scoring in bunches and keeping their opponents off the scoreboard, while others they are not scoring at all and letting in a bunch. There has not been a time where one facet of the game can make up for the other’s shortcomings and, because of that, the Terriers have been up and down.
Now, this is that magical time of year for BU, where they start to play great hockey heading into the first two Mondays of February, so expect a different Terrier team from about now until March 1st. Nevertheless, they are still a dangerously talented team that can score goals. And they are very young, which means the future is bright for BU. Their top two scorers are freshmen Alex Chiasson and Charlie Coyle, while in typical Terrier fashion they also have defensemen that can put the puck in the net. They play an aggressively physical game, and grind down opponents into submission. This is where they usually run into problems when they take on BC, who is more speed and finesse. They will try to slow down the game and draw BC into committing penalties, forcing them to be more careful and slow.
Between the pipes Kieran Milan has proven to be something of a one year wonder. His rookie season, Milan lead BU to the national title. Since then…. not so much. Junior Grant Rollheiser has been ok in relief, but both goalies were lit up like Christmas trees back in December.
BU ALWAYS gets up for BC. Always. This will be no different. BC will be out to get back on the winning track after a rough outing in Orono last weekend. There really are no excuses for the way they played Sunday, but Alfond Arena is a tough place to play. So is Agganis. Look for BU to get out to an early lead and force BC to scramble a bit. This could force the Eagles into mistakes. It may really come down to who Hockey East assigns to officiate this one. If they get a crew who loves to blow the whistle, this one can go either way. In the end, I think a veteran team like BC can overcome adversity, and I see them taking a season series sweep here.
Prediction: BC 3 BU 2
Saturday January 22, 2011 vs UMass Lowell (7pm, no TV)
UMass Lowell is, in the words of the immortal Joe Namath, “strug-a-ling.” The Riverhawks have lost a ton of talent from their teams of the last few years that could hang with anyone in Hockey East. With a goal differential of -45, Lowell ain’t doing so good. As one can gather, a lack of returning talent and an abysmal goal differential translates into very few wins. Well, 2 to be exact. Lowell has won 2 games in Hockey East this year, to go along with their two ties against Atlantic Hockey foes Niagara and RIT. Tough times indeed along the shores of the Merrimack River.
Sophomore Riley Wetmore is Lowell’s captain and leading scorer, with a 10-7-17 on the year, averaging almost a point per game. In net, Marc Boulanger and Doug Carr, both freshmen, see the majority of the minutes, with Carr posting both UML wins this year. Both have GAAs floating around 4. Not good. Bottom line, if you can’t score, and you can’t stop the other guy, you aren’t going to win.
So, this is where I put a positive spin on the Riverhawks and tell you how BC can lose this game. There is only one way: mistakes. If they take UML lightly and step off the gas a bit, they can get into a dogfight with this team. Look no further than the first meeting between these two teams, when BC let up in the third with a 4-0 lead and UML scored two quick goals to make it interesting. The Eagles ended up taking it 5-2, but it got a bit hairy there for a bit. Look for BC to go with Parker Milner in net, with Muse getting the work Friday against a tougher opponent. I still think BC rolls in this one, but they need to be focused and take care of business every night in Hockey East.
Prediction: BC 5 UML 1
Friday, January 21, 2011 @ Boston University (7:30pm TV= NESN)
Its been over a month since these two rivals met in a much-hyped home and home series right before winter break. In that series, the Eagles scored a total of 14 goals to BU’s 7, winning both games easily. Since that series, the teams have gone in opposite directions. BC continued their winning streak all the way to last Sunday, winning four straight before finally falling to Maine. BU, on the other hand, have only won 3 of their last 7, including a bad losses to Brown and RPI and a 3-2 setback to Merrimack. They did, however, average 3 goals a game in that span. BU’s issues appear to be inconsistency across the board. Some nights they are scoring in bunches and keeping their opponents off the scoreboard, while others they are not scoring at all and letting in a bunch. There has not been a time where one facet of the game can make up for the other’s shortcomings and, because of that, the Terriers have been up and down.
Now, this is that magical time of year for BU, where they start to play great hockey heading into the first two Mondays of February, so expect a different Terrier team from about now until March 1st. Nevertheless, they are still a dangerously talented team that can score goals. And they are very young, which means the future is bright for BU. Their top two scorers are freshmen Alex Chiasson and Charlie Coyle, while in typical Terrier fashion they also have defensemen that can put the puck in the net. They play an aggressively physical game, and grind down opponents into submission. This is where they usually run into problems when they take on BC, who is more speed and finesse. They will try to slow down the game and draw BC into committing penalties, forcing them to be more careful and slow.
Between the pipes Kieran Milan has proven to be something of a one year wonder. His rookie season, Milan lead BU to the national title. Since then…. not so much. Junior Grant Rollheiser has been ok in relief, but both goalies were lit up like Christmas trees back in December.
BU ALWAYS gets up for BC. Always. This will be no different. BC will be out to get back on the winning track after a rough outing in Orono last weekend. There really are no excuses for the way they played Sunday, but Alfond Arena is a tough place to play. So is Agganis. Look for BU to get out to an early lead and force BC to scramble a bit. This could force the Eagles into mistakes. It may really come down to who Hockey East assigns to officiate this one. If they get a crew who loves to blow the whistle, this one can go either way. In the end, I think a veteran team like BC can overcome adversity, and I see them taking a season series sweep here.
Prediction: BC 3 BU 2
Saturday January 22, 2011 vs UMass Lowell (7pm, no TV)
UMass Lowell is, in the words of the immortal Joe Namath, “strug-a-ling.” The Riverhawks have lost a ton of talent from their teams of the last few years that could hang with anyone in Hockey East. With a goal differential of -45, Lowell ain’t doing so good. As one can gather, a lack of returning talent and an abysmal goal differential translates into very few wins. Well, 2 to be exact. Lowell has won 2 games in Hockey East this year, to go along with their two ties against Atlantic Hockey foes Niagara and RIT. Tough times indeed along the shores of the Merrimack River.
Sophomore Riley Wetmore is Lowell’s captain and leading scorer, with a 10-7-17 on the year, averaging almost a point per game. In net, Marc Boulanger and Doug Carr, both freshmen, see the majority of the minutes, with Carr posting both UML wins this year. Both have GAAs floating around 4. Not good. Bottom line, if you can’t score, and you can’t stop the other guy, you aren’t going to win.
So, this is where I put a positive spin on the Riverhawks and tell you how BC can lose this game. There is only one way: mistakes. If they take UML lightly and step off the gas a bit, they can get into a dogfight with this team. Look no further than the first meeting between these two teams, when BC let up in the third with a 4-0 lead and UML scored two quick goals to make it interesting. The Eagles ended up taking it 5-2, but it got a bit hairy there for a bit. Look for BC to go with Parker Milner in net, with Muse getting the work Friday against a tougher opponent. I still think BC rolls in this one, but they need to be focused and take care of business every night in Hockey East.
Prediction: BC 5 UML 1
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
This Week in Hockey East
We are starting to enter the meat of the league schedule, and the race for home ice is getting hotter. As of this morning, the Hockey East standings look like this:
1 New Hampshire (10-1-2) 22 pts
1 Boston College (11-5-0) 22 pts
3 Maine (8-4-2) 18 pts
3 Boston Univ (7-4-4) 18 pts
5 Merrimack (7-4-3) 17 pts
6 Northeastern (6-7-3) 15 pts
7 UMass (4-6-3) 11 pts
8 Providence (3-7-4) 10 pts
9 Vermont (2-8-3) 7 pts
10 UMass Lowell (2-14-0) 2 pts
The race is closest at the top, where the top 6 teams all could conceivably grab a home ice spot. It will tougher for Northeastern to get it than, say, BU or Merrimack, but it can still happen. At the bottom of the standings, its safe to say that Lowell has its work cut out for them. They could catch up to Vermont for 9th, but thats not going to get them into the playoffs. A serious winning streak is going to be needed to get back into this thing. The race for the last few spots, really, is now between UVM, UMass, and Providence, with only two of those teams moving on. There is still a lot of hockey to be played, however, so anything can happen.
This week's slate of games are as follows:
Friday
Providence @ UNH 7pm
UML @ Merrimack 7pm
UMass @ Vermont 7pm
BC @ BU (7:30pm , on NESN)
Saturday
BU @ UNH 7pm
UML @ BC 7pm
Maine @ Northeastern 7pm
UMass @ Vermont 7pm
We could see some significant movement in the standings after this weekend, as Merrimack is making a move for home ice, beating BU last night and hosting cellar-dweller Lowell Friday. BU continues its murderer's row schedule Friday with a home date with BC, then they move up to Durham for the Wildcats Saturday. Maine drives down to Boston for one game with Northeastern, who are always tough at home, while UNH could be tested in both of their games this weekend.
At the bottom of the league, Lowell is going to have a tough time getting out of the basement with games on the road at Merrimack and BC, while UMass and Vermont battle for the last playoff spot up in Burlington all weekend. We should know more about who is in position for the postseason this time next week, with only a little over a month left to play. This is the time of year where season series wins are crucial, as home and homes determine the series outcomes. This stat can be huge when it comes down to ties for seedings and home ice. We'll see how this weekend plays out, it should be a good one.
As for BC, the Eagles sit right at the top, but have played three more games than UNH. They are going to need UNH to drop some of those in-hand games, which are against Providence, Maine, and Merrimack. This is definitely possible. BC still needs to take care of their own business and that starts Friday night at Agganis Arena against BU. We'll have more on this matchup tomorrow.
1 New Hampshire (10-1-2) 22 pts
1 Boston College (11-5-0) 22 pts
3 Maine (8-4-2) 18 pts
3 Boston Univ (7-4-4) 18 pts
5 Merrimack (7-4-3) 17 pts
6 Northeastern (6-7-3) 15 pts
7 UMass (4-6-3) 11 pts
8 Providence (3-7-4) 10 pts
9 Vermont (2-8-3) 7 pts
10 UMass Lowell (2-14-0) 2 pts
The race is closest at the top, where the top 6 teams all could conceivably grab a home ice spot. It will tougher for Northeastern to get it than, say, BU or Merrimack, but it can still happen. At the bottom of the standings, its safe to say that Lowell has its work cut out for them. They could catch up to Vermont for 9th, but thats not going to get them into the playoffs. A serious winning streak is going to be needed to get back into this thing. The race for the last few spots, really, is now between UVM, UMass, and Providence, with only two of those teams moving on. There is still a lot of hockey to be played, however, so anything can happen.
This week's slate of games are as follows:
Friday
Providence @ UNH 7pm
UML @ Merrimack 7pm
UMass @ Vermont 7pm
BC @ BU (7:30pm , on NESN)
Saturday
BU @ UNH 7pm
UML @ BC 7pm
Maine @ Northeastern 7pm
UMass @ Vermont 7pm
We could see some significant movement in the standings after this weekend, as Merrimack is making a move for home ice, beating BU last night and hosting cellar-dweller Lowell Friday. BU continues its murderer's row schedule Friday with a home date with BC, then they move up to Durham for the Wildcats Saturday. Maine drives down to Boston for one game with Northeastern, who are always tough at home, while UNH could be tested in both of their games this weekend.
At the bottom of the league, Lowell is going to have a tough time getting out of the basement with games on the road at Merrimack and BC, while UMass and Vermont battle for the last playoff spot up in Burlington all weekend. We should know more about who is in position for the postseason this time next week, with only a little over a month left to play. This is the time of year where season series wins are crucial, as home and homes determine the series outcomes. This stat can be huge when it comes down to ties for seedings and home ice. We'll see how this weekend plays out, it should be a good one.
As for BC, the Eagles sit right at the top, but have played three more games than UNH. They are going to need UNH to drop some of those in-hand games, which are against Providence, Maine, and Merrimack. This is definitely possible. BC still needs to take care of their own business and that starts Friday night at Agganis Arena against BU. We'll have more on this matchup tomorrow.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Tuesday's look at the polls
This week saw only a little activity in the three big polls, with BC staying put at #3. Last week’s top dog Yale continues to roll, remaining at #1 in all three polls.
The USCHO.com poll saw only slight movements, with Denver jumping two spots to 4, while UNH was the biggest slider, down three spots from 4 to 7 after their loss to Dartmouth this past weekend. Here is their top ten, with Hockey East teams highlighted:
1 Yale 15-2-0
2 North Dakota 17-6-2
3 Boston College 15-6-0
4 Denver 14-5-5
5 Minnesota-Duluth 15-5-3
6 Michigan 15-6-4
7 New Hampshire 12-4-4
8 Notre Dame 15-8-3
9 Wisconsin 15-8-3
10 Maine 11-6-4
In the USA Today poll, we see pretty much the same thing, with Maine exchanged for Union in the 10 spot:
1 Yale
2 North Dakota
3 Boston College
4 Denver
5 Minnesota Duluth
6 Michigan
7 New Hampshire
8 Notre Dame
9 Wisconsin
10 Union
In the Pairwise Rankings, the formula used for the NCAAs, its pretty much the same. If the tourney started today, here is what the field of 16 would look like:
1 Yale
2 North Dakota
3 Denver
4 Minnesota-Duluth
5 Boston College
6 Michigan
7 Notre Dame
8Wisconsin
9 New Hampshire
10 Maine
11 Dartmouth
12 Union
13 Boston University
14 Merrimack
15 Nebraska-Omaha
16 RIT (current Atlantic Hockey 1st place, auto-bid)
This looks pretty good for Hockey East, with 5 bids, but that would be the max, I think. There aren’t really any league teams on the outside looking in with a shot to qualify, and Merrimack and BU are the teams with the most to lose right now, sitting firmly on the bubble. Coincidentally, they play each other (weather permitting) tonight at Lawler Arena. (Both teams tied the first two games.) The Warriors mark the beginning of a brutal week for the Terriers, who, in addition to their game in North Andover tonight, have arch rival BC at home Friday before a trip to UNH on Saturday. This week could really make or break the season for Parker’s crew. Its still early, however, and a lot can change as the meat of the conference season begins.
BC looks to be in good shape despite a loss to Maine Sunday night. They are cemented into the field as a 2, with the opportunity to move into a 1 spot with a good run. Their schedule coming up looks favorable, minus a trip to Agganis Friday night. All in all, you can’t be disappointed in what’s happened so far.
Up Next: A look around Hockey East
The USCHO.com poll saw only slight movements, with Denver jumping two spots to 4, while UNH was the biggest slider, down three spots from 4 to 7 after their loss to Dartmouth this past weekend. Here is their top ten, with Hockey East teams highlighted:
1 Yale 15-2-0
2 North Dakota 17-6-2
3 Boston College 15-6-0
4 Denver 14-5-5
5 Minnesota-Duluth 15-5-3
6 Michigan 15-6-4
7 New Hampshire 12-4-4
8 Notre Dame 15-8-3
9 Wisconsin 15-8-3
10 Maine 11-6-4
In the USA Today poll, we see pretty much the same thing, with Maine exchanged for Union in the 10 spot:
1 Yale
2 North Dakota
3 Boston College
4 Denver
5 Minnesota Duluth
6 Michigan
7 New Hampshire
8 Notre Dame
9 Wisconsin
10 Union
In the Pairwise Rankings, the formula used for the NCAAs, its pretty much the same. If the tourney started today, here is what the field of 16 would look like:
1 Yale
2 North Dakota
3 Denver
4 Minnesota-Duluth
5 Boston College
6 Michigan
7 Notre Dame
8Wisconsin
9 New Hampshire
10 Maine
11 Dartmouth
12 Union
13 Boston University
14 Merrimack
15 Nebraska-Omaha
16 RIT (current Atlantic Hockey 1st place, auto-bid)
This looks pretty good for Hockey East, with 5 bids, but that would be the max, I think. There aren’t really any league teams on the outside looking in with a shot to qualify, and Merrimack and BU are the teams with the most to lose right now, sitting firmly on the bubble. Coincidentally, they play each other (weather permitting) tonight at Lawler Arena. (Both teams tied the first two games.) The Warriors mark the beginning of a brutal week for the Terriers, who, in addition to their game in North Andover tonight, have arch rival BC at home Friday before a trip to UNH on Saturday. This week could really make or break the season for Parker’s crew. Its still early, however, and a lot can change as the meat of the conference season begins.
BC looks to be in good shape despite a loss to Maine Sunday night. They are cemented into the field as a 2, with the opportunity to move into a 1 spot with a good run. Their schedule coming up looks favorable, minus a trip to Agganis Friday night. All in all, you can’t be disappointed in what’s happened so far.
Up Next: A look around Hockey East
.... And We're Back!
Its been a while, I know. There have been quite a few developments since we last left you, chiefly another BC national championship! The 2010-2011 season has started off great, with the Eagles sitting pretty atop Hockey East and in the hunt for another trophy at the end of the year. We're going to try to keep the same schedule weekly as last year, with game recaps as they are played, poll updates and league discussions during the week, and previews on Thursdays.
Recently the Eagles headed north to Maine to play the #10 Black Bears, falling short 4-1 in a nationally televised game. Cam Atkinson had the lone goal for BC, as he continues to lead the team in goals. A rematch with BU looms Friday, followed by a visit from the Riverhawks of UMass Lowell. We will preview both games later in the week.
Up next: a look at the national polls.
Recently the Eagles headed north to Maine to play the #10 Black Bears, falling short 4-1 in a nationally televised game. Cam Atkinson had the lone goal for BC, as he continues to lead the team in goals. A rematch with BU looms Friday, followed by a visit from the Riverhawks of UMass Lowell. We will preview both games later in the week.
Up next: a look at the national polls.
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