Monday, March 26, 2012

UNH Recruits Update: Week 25

Player of the Week - Tyler Kelleher

For the third time this season, 17-year-old forward Tyler Kelleher has been named "Player of the Week" among all UNH Recruits. The first time Kelleher earned the honor back in November, he had helped lead the US National Under-17 Team to the Championship of the 2011 Under-17 Four Nations Tournament. In the three victories over Russia, Switzerland, and Slovakia, Kelleher scored 2 goals and an assist.

In mid-January, Tyler Kelleher was named "Player of the Week" for the second time. He lead the U.S. Under-17 NTDP team to back-to-back, away game wins over the Youngstown Phantoms. Kelleher scored a goal each game including the game-winning-goal the second night. At the time, Kelleher was the second leading scorer for Team USA in USHL competition.

Last Saturday night, Tyler Kelleher scored his first hat trick in this, his first season in the USHL. He scored Team USA's first goal in the game against the Chicago Steel. In the second period, Kelleher scored a short-handed goal to tie the game at 3-3. He also scored the team's 4th and final goal but it wasn't enough as Chicago won 6-4.

With 23 points in 31 USHL games, Kelleher maintained his status as the second leading scorer on the U.S. National Under-17 Team. His 14 goals places him in a tie for second in goal-scoring, just one goal behind Anthony Louis (a Miami University commit).

Both the Under-17 and Under-18 NTDP Teams compete in the United States Hockey League. At the end of the USHL regular season, the combined records of the two teams determines Team USA's place in the final standings. If the combined record is good enough to qualify for the USHL Playoffs, the Under-17 team competes in post-season play. As of today, the combined record of Team USA is 25 wins, 25 losses, and 5 overtime loses. Although Team USA has not yet clinched a playoff spot, they are 12 points ahead of the Chicago Steel in the battle for the 6th and final seed in the Eastern Conference.

Last season, Tyler Kelleher was a freshman at Deerfield Academy and scheduled to graduate in the Spring of 2014. Unless he accelerates his schooling, he's on track to enter UNH in the Fall of 2014. If he graduates from high school a year early, he will have played two seasons with the U.S. National Team Development Program. At that point, he would be ready - both academically and in terms of his hockey development - to enroll at UNH in the Fall of 2013.

NOTE
The statistics for the recruits, presented in the table, are categorized by the projected year they will enroll in UNH. For example, the "2012 Recruits" are projected to begin playing for UNH in the Fall of 2012. I have based these projections on a number of factors including:
~ How old the player would be upon admission.
~ Number of years in junior hockey prior to admission.
~ Anticipated date of high school graduation.
~ Number of seniors leaving the team at the end of the previous season.
~ The player's performance in the current season.

PlayerTeamLeagueGPGoalsAsstPtsPIM
2012 Recruits
Dan CorrealeNanaimo ClippersBCHL259132214
Maxim GaudreaultSioux CityUSHL5313112451
Jamie HillWaterlooUSHL477192657
Collin MacDonaldJersey HitmenEJHL4527184514
PlayoffsEJHL62130
Brett PesceJersey HitmenEJHL1715618
Harry QuastBay StateEJHL458243258
PlayoffsEJHL20000
Jamie ReganPhilly RevsEJHL259W16L3.97.903
Kyle SmithJunior BruinsEJHL4324386232
PlayoffsEJHL21120
2013 Recruits
Jordan MastersMuskegonUSHL315101539
Matias ClelandWaterlooUSHL3417836
Dylan MallerTri-CityUSHL3936910
Andrew PoturalskiBuffalo Jr SabresOJHL3316223832
PlayoffsOJHL85274
2013 or '14 Recruit
Michael McNicholasMuskegonUSHL4154914
2014 Recruits
Dylan ChanterMerritt CentsBCHL532111347
PlayoffsBCHL41010
Shane EisermanCushing AcademyNEPSAC29182644-
PlayoffsNEPSAC1000-
Tyler KelleherUSA U17 TeamUSHL311492316
2015 Recruits
Jason KalinowskiSalisbury Prep NEPSAC25 1215 27-
PlayoffsNEPSAC2213-

News & Notes

British Columbia Hockey League:

~ 2014 Recruit Dylan Chanter and the Merritt Centennials swept their Semi-Final series agains the Chilliwack Chiefs. Chanter, a 6'3", 195 lbs. defenseman, scored a goal in the third game of the series.

Merritt will now face the Pentiction Vees in the finals of the BCHL Interior Conference beginning on Tuesday, March 27th. Penticton had a record-breaking regular season setting the record for most BCHL wins in a season (54) and the most consecutive wins (42) in Canadian Junior Hockey history. The Vees only lost 6 regular season games. One was to the Merritt Cents back in mid-November. Overall, the Vees won 7 out of 8 games against the Cents during the regular season. Two of Penticton's wins came in overtime while their one loss to Merritt was also in overtime.

United States Hockey League:

~ 2013 Recruit Dylan Maller is out for the remainder of the USHL regular season with an injury. According to the Storm's website, Maller might be available to play in the second round of the USHL Playoffs if Tri-City advances that far.

There are 7 games remaining in the regular season of the USHL. The top 6 teams in both the Western and Eastern Conferences qualify for the USHL Playoffs. If the season ended today, 5 UNH Recruits currently playing for USHL teams would participate in the playoffs:
Jamie Hill & Matias Cleland (3rd Place, Waterloo Black Hawks)
Maxim Gaudreault (5th Place, Sioux City Musketeers)
Dylan Maller (6th Place, Tri-City Storm)
Tyler Kelleher (6th Place, Team USA)
The USHL Playoffs begin the third week in April.

Monday, March 19, 2012

UNH Recruits Update: Week 24

Last week, 2012 Recruit Collin MacDonald and the Jersey Hitmen competed for the Championship of the Eastern Junior Hockey League. After defeating Kyle Smith and the Junior Bruins in the semifinals, the Hitmen faced the New Hampshire Junior Monarchs in the two-game Championship Series at the New England Sports Center in Marlborough, MA. After losing in overtime in Game 1, the Hitmen were trailing the Jr Monarchs 2-0 early in the second period of Game 2. On their second power play of the game, the Hitmen got to within one as MacDonald assisted on a goal scored by Jason Stephanik (Quinnipiac Recruit). However, the Jr Monarchs went on to win 6-1 and clinch the EJHL Championship.

In the 2011-12 regular season, Collin MacDonald scored 27 goals and 18 assists in 45 games. The 6'2", 196 lbs. left winger was tied for 6th in goal-scoring in the EJHL. Last season, current UNH freshman Matt Willows was the leading EJHL scorer with 27 goals and 43 assists. MacDonald is scheduled to enroll at UNH next fall.

NOTE
The statistics for the recruits, presented in the table, are categorized by the projected year they will enroll in UNH. For example, the "2012 Recruits" are projected to begin playing for UNH in the Fall of 2012. I have based these projections on a number of factors including:
~ How old the player would be upon admission.
~ Number of years in junior hockey prior to admission.
~ Anticipated date of high school graduation.
~ Number of seniors leaving the team at the end of the previous season.
~ The player's performance in the current season.

PlayerTeamLeagueGPGoalsAsstPtsPIM
2012 Recruits
Dan CorrealeNanaimo ClippersBCHL259132214
Maxim GaudreaultSioux CityUSHL5212112351
Jamie HillWaterlooUSHL457182555
Collin MacDonaldJersey HitmenEJHL4527184514
PlayoffsEJHL62130
Brett PesceJersey HitmenEJHL1715618
Harry QuastBay StateEJHL458243258
PlayoffsEJHL20000
Jamie ReganPhilly RevsEJHL259W16L3.97.903
Kyle SmithJunior BruinsEJHL4324386232
PlayoffsEJHL21120
2013 Recruits
Jordan MastersMuskegonUSHL315101539
Matias ClelandWaterlooUSHL3117830
Dylan MallerTri-CityUSHL3936910
Andrew PoturalskiBuffalo Jr SabresOJHL3316223832
PlayoffsOJHL85274
2013 or '14 Recruit
Michael McNicholasMuskegonUSHL3944814
2014 Recruits
Dylan ChanterMerritt CentsBCHL532111347
PlayoffsBCHL20000
Shane EisermanCushing AcademyNEPSAC29182644-
PlayoffsNEPSAC1000-
Tyler KelleherUSA U17 TeamUSHL301192016
2015 Recruits
Jason KalinowskiSalisbury Prep NEPSAC25 1215 27-
PlayoffsNEPSAC2213-

News & Notes

Eastern Junior Hockey League:

~ In the two-game, EJHL Semi-Final Series against the Jersey Hitmen, 2012 Recruit Kyle Smith scored a goal and an assist. In the 2011-12 regular season with the Junior Bruins, Smith scored 24 goals and 38 assists in 43 games. The 6'1", 180 lbs. right-shot, center finished 10th in scoring in the EJHL. Smith is scheduled to enroll at UNH next fall.

British Columbia Hockey League:

~ 2014 Recruit Dylan Chanter and the Merritt Centennials are competing in the Semi-Final Series in the Interior Conference of the BCHL. The Cents have a 2 games to none lead against the Chilliwack Chiefs.

United States Hockey League:

~ There are 10 games remaining in the regular season of the USHL. The top 6 teams in both the Western and Eastern Conferences qualify for the USHL Playoffs. If the season ended today, 5 UNH Recruits currently playing for USHL teams would participate in the playoffs:
Jamie Hill & Matias Cleland (3rd Place, Waterloo Black Hawks)
Maxim Gaudreault (5th Place, Sioux City Musketeers)
Dylan Maller (6th Place, Tri-City Storm)
Tyler Kelleher (6th Place, Team USA)
The USHL Playoffs begin the third week in April.

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

DeSmith & van Riemsdyk Make Hockey East All-Rookie Team

The Hockey East Association announced today that goalie Casey DeSmith and defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk were named to the 2012 Pro Ambitions All-Rookie Team. The UNH Men's Hockey Blog would like to extend its congratulations to Casey and the DeSmith family of Rochester, NH as well as Trevor and the van Riemsdyk family of Middletown, NJ.

Casey DeSmith

Prior to the Hockey East Quarterfinal series, fans outside of the UNH community may not have known much about freshman Casey DeSmith. Following DeSmith's outstanding performance on three consecutive nights against Boston University, Hockey East fans know a great deal about the UNH goalie. In Games 1 thru 3, DeSmith was awarded the #2 Star, #1 Star, and #3 Star, respectively.

In a preview of the Hockey East Playoffs, I wrote the following about Casey's emergence as the backbone of the 2011-12 UNH Wildcats:

"When Casey DeSmith committed to UNH in late October, 2010, he was the starting goalie for the Indiana Ice and among the leading netminders in the United States Hockey League. His goals against average was 1.86 per game and he had a save percentage of .943. In November, 2010, DeSmith (a native of Rochester, NH) was named to Team USA for the World Junior A Challenge. DeSmith did not play in the first four games of the tournament but in the Gold Medal game, he got his opportunity to perform under pressure. Early in the second period with Team USA trailing Team Canada 4-1, the starting goalie was pulled and DeSmith entered the game cold. Team USA went on to score 6 goals while DeSmith posted a shutout for the remainder of the game.

In the USHL playoffs last spring, DeSmith lead Indiana to a 2-game sweep in the opening round, posting a shutout in the opening game. In the quarterfinals, facing a do-or-die game against the Green Bay Gamblers, DeSmith made 39 saves in what was described as a "super-human effort" on the Indiana Ice website. The Ice lost in overtime 2-1 to Green Bay who eventually lost to Dubuque in the USHL Finals.

So, Casey DeSmith enrolled at UNH with a reputation for rising to the occasion in high-pressure games. Although UNH lost to BU 2-1 on Dec. 8th, Casey DeSmith played solidly in his first NCAA start making 32 saves.

Before DeSmith took over as the starting goalie, UNH's record in Hockey East was 4 wins, 6 losses and 1 tie. With DeSmith in goal, the record improved to 7 wins, 7 losses and 1 tie. More importantly, DeSmith was giving UNH an opportunity to win every game. 7 of the 8 loses were by a single goal and 4 of those were overtime loses.

Casey DeSmith has joined the ranks of the top goalies in Hockey East. His save percentage of .928 places him in a tie for the #1 rank in Hockey East. His goals against average of 2.29 is the 4th best in the league. He is essentially neck-and-neck with BU's senior goalie Kieran Millan (.927 Save%; 2.39 GAA). Nationwide, among all NCAA Division I teams, Casey DeSmith is ranked #7 in save percentage.

DeSmith has played some of his best games for UNH in must-win situations - like he did last year as a junior player in the USHL. When UNH fell to 9th place in Hockey East, they faced a home-and-home series against Providence in early February. UNH won the first game in Durham 3-1 and DeSmith made a total of 37 saves, including 14 saves in the final period. The following night in Providence, UNH held on to win 3-2 in overtime. Once again, DeSmith came up big when the game was on the line. In the third period, DeSmith made 14 saves and added 2 more in overtime.

Casey DeSmith's most impressive performance came two weeks ago at UMass-Amherst. Facing three away games to end the season, UNH needed to win one to clinch a spot in the Hockey East Playoffs. In the UMass game on Friday night, DeSmith faced a barrage of 51 shots on goal. UMass was desparate to win in order to keep their playoff hopes alive. DeSmith turned away 48 shots, including 25 in the second period as UNH won 4-3. DeSmith relied on all his strengths to pull out the victory. DeSmith stands tall in the crease leaving few gaps for shooters. His glove hand is lightning quick and he's adept at anticipating where the opponent's shots are coming from. In the final game of the season at Maine, DeSmith only allowed one goal and that came when a shot from the blueline was redirected by a UNH defenseman into the upper corner of the net. To beat DeSmith, a team needs to score fluke goals or to screen his view of shots. In scrums around the net, he is relentless."


Trevor van Riemsdyk

Trevor van Riemsdyk also played with poise throughout the playoff series with Boston University. In the first two games, TvR generated 3 shots on goal and 2 SOG. In the winner-take-all final game, TvR produced 4 shots on goal and assisted on UNH's third goal. He nearly won the game for UNH on a wrist shot in the double overtime period.

In late January, UNH played an important home-and-home series against Boston College. UNH was on the verge of recovering from too many early season loses and TvR was emerging as a key ingredient to the turn around. What I wrote then sums up his importance to the team:

"In the two games against BC, freshman defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk reasserted himself into UNH's offense. In the Friday game, TvR had two assists. Tonight, he carried the puck into the offensive zone several times and skated in deep to make plays. During one sequence midway through the third period, TvR carried the puck out of the UNH zone, through center ice and into the BC zone, fired a shot, then chased a BC forward all the way back into the UNH zone and poke-checked the puck away as the forward was about to shoot on DeSmith. TvR also made some outstanding defensive plays in the UNH zone. In the first period, the speedy John Gaudreau tried to break free of TvR by skating with the puck from one circle to other. Not only did TvR keep up with him, he stole the puck and Gaudreau grabbed him and was called for a holding penalty."

It's important to acknowledge that all the UNH freshman who suited up this season made key contributions to the team. We would like to congratulate forwards Grayson Downing, Casey Thrush, Matt Willows and Jay Camper as well as defensemen Eric Knodel and Justin Agosta (who played in their first games this season). We look forward to seeing them develop further next season.

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Climactic Finale to UNH Season



BOSTON, MA - Those who witnessed the marathon quarterfinal series between the University of New Hampshire and Boston University will remember it as a classic. It represented the very best of what college hockey offers. The veteran goalie Kieran Millan, a former NCAA Rookie of the Year, matched up against Casey DeSmith, a freshman goalie with the best save percentage in Hockey East competition. The highest scoring offense in Hockey East against a UNH team shaped to play stingy defense. Two Spenser Penrose Award coaches - Jack Parker celebrating his 67th birthday and Dick Umile seeking his 500th career victory.

By dramatically winning Game 1 in double overtime on Friday night, the UNH Wildcats established themselves as a legitimate contender for the Hockey East Championship. BU's rebound on Saturday reminded everyone that they still could score goals in bunches when they absolutely needed to. Then came the epic battle on Sunday afternoon in the longest hockey game ever played at the Agganis Arena.

BU's 5-4 victory over UNH in double overtime was an extravaganza in three acts. In Act I, UNH stole the role of potent offensive machine by building a 4-1 lead. Act II began very late in the second period when BU regained its scoring touch against a determined UNH defense. The second act ended less than a minute into the third period when BU tied the game at 4-4. Act III stretched for nearly 46 minutes of regulation and overtime. In the final act, BU and UNH were two damn good hockey teams.

Highlights - Period 1

UNH came flying out of the gate and only stopped when the buzzer sounded to end the first period. Against the #1 offensive team in Hockey East, UNH generated 16 shots on goal and only allowed BU a stunning 4 SOG.

In the first 30 seconds, junior John Henrion and freshman Trevor van Riemsdyk fired two testing shots against Millan. A minute later, sophomore Nick Sorkin legitimately crushed a BU player who was trying to break the puck out of the BU end.

Three minutes into the period, freshman Grayson Downing appeared to score the first goal of the game. Downing scrambled just to the left of Millan and batted the puck out of midair and into the net. The referee, positioned just behind the net in a perfect location to see the play, immediately signalled a goal. After an extended review of the video, the referee disallowed the goal. He then brought the puck down into the UNH zone while making the gesture for high-sticking. A faceoff ensued.

The video replay of the disallowed goal shows Downing making an upward motion with his stick in an apparent effort to bat the puck away from Millan. During the follow through, the blade of his stick appears to rise above his shoulder. Subsequently, the puck descends to just below Downing's knees and he backhands it into the goal. Presumably the upward swat with his stick lead to the eventual, high-stick ruling.

About one minute later, BU would execute a play they used often in the three-game series. They positioned a forward way up near the UNH blueline when the puck was still just inside the BU end and tried a long-distance, homerun pass. This time it worked as BU gained a partial 3-on-2 break. Evan Rodrigues maneuvered past a UNH defenseman, swooped across the top of the crease, and beat DeSmith along the ice to the glove side. BU 1 - UNH 0.

By happenstance, UNH had a fresh pair of legs in the lineup for Game 3 in the person of freshman Casey Thrush. During the regular season, Thrush played in 31 games, scored 4 goals and 8 assists, and had a +/- rating of +7. Thrush had become a regular on UNH's third forward line. However, Grayson Downing was nursing a hip injury which caused him to miss the final game of the season against Maine. In the first two playoff games, Downing was moved down to the third line in place of Thrush and sophomore Jeff Silengo was moved up to UNH's second line. Late in the third period of Game 2, Silengo was involved in a collision in the neutral zone and got up in obvious pain with his right arm held down limply. He reportedly broke his hand. For Game 3, Downing returned to the line with Burke and Henrion, and Casey Thrush was reunited with Austin Block and Matt Willows.

From the outset of the rubber game, Thrush was running on all cylinders. At the 8:00 mark, Block and Thrush surrounded the front of the BU net, Block made the initial shot on goal and Thrush slapped the rebound forcing a second save by Millan. However, Millan left another rebound and Thrush batted it home. UNH 1 - BU 1.

Throughout the first period, UNH had the distinct advantage in territorial play. One effective strategy was to dump the puck into the corner of the BU end and have the forwards race the BU defensemen to the puck. Another was to shoot at Millan and storm the net. BU on the other hand was out of synch. Their passing was off, they were called for icing and off-sides a few times, and they were forced to just flip the puck into center ice.

At the 9:09 mark, BU was called for hooking. In the ensuing powerplay, both the Downing-Burke-Henrion and Sorkin-Goumas-Moses lines moved the puck smartly. Though UNH didn't score, they got two effective shots on Millan. Their offensive pressure continued after the power play. 15 minutes into the period, UNH had 14 SOG to BU's 4.

Next, freshman Matt Willows intercepted a BU pass at the blueline and made a perfect pass to Casey Thrush on the left wing. Thrush whistled a wrister from beyond the top of the left circle and beat Millan high on the glove side. It was Thrush's second goal of the night and Willows' second assist. Time of the goal, 14:30. By the end of the first period, UNH lead 2-1 and had outshot BU 16-4.

Period 2

An element of UNH's success was effectively containing BU's leading scorer Alex Chiasson, a second round draft pick of the Dallas Stars. In the first period, junior Greg Burke, a sixth round pick of the Washington Capitals, had battled one-on-one with Chiasson behind the UNH net and come away with the puck. In the first minute of the second period, junior defenseman Connor Hardowa won a similar battle with Chiasson.

At 1:40, sophomore Nick Sorkin was tripped by Adam Clendening as he advanced from the right faceoff circle toward the BU net. On the UNH power play, Burke drew the faceoff back to TvR who blasted a slap shot that was tipped just wide of Millan. As the puck bounced off the back boards, Downing poked a backhand pass to Burke, who was positioned at the top of the crease. Burke beat Millan high on the blocker side. UNH 3 - BU 1.

Three and a half minutes into the second period, sophomore Kevin Goumas was called for tripping Chiasson in the corner to the right of Casey DeSmith. It wasn't a blatant violation but it probably wasn't necessary for Goumas to put his stick near Chiasson's legs. Chiasson was moving away from the net and another UNH defender was nearby. BU was presented with an opportunity to impose the #1 power play in Hockey East when they needed it most.

Over the first minute of the power play, BU was unable to generate a shot on goal. Connor Hardowa effectively rubbed Chiasson out behind the UNH net and Kevin McCarey broke out of the UNH end. Just after he crossed his own blueline, McCarey laid a perfect pass onto Mike Borisenok's stick at center ice. Borisenok was several strides ahead of the nearest BU defender and broke in on Millan. He beat him over the blocker. Time of the goal 4:34. UNH 4 - BU 1.

Jack Parker called timeout and gave his team an earnest talking to. Backup goalie Grant Rollheiser was standing with his helmet on and looked poised to enter the game. When fans reflect on this game over the coming years, some may remember this lecture as the turning point in the game. It wasn't. At the time, BU had only 5 SOG. In the remaining minute of the power play, they generated only one more shot on goal. Parker tried adjusting the line matchups by putting the Chiasson out against the Thrush-Block-Willows line. In the subsequent 6 minutes of 5-on-5 play, BU produced only 4 more shots on goal.

At 10:25 of the second period, BU had another golden opportunity to get on track. First-year defenseman Eric Knodel was penalized for slashing. One minute into the power play, Casey DeSmith made a terrific glove save on a point blank shot from the slot. UNH successfully killed off the penalty and only allowed 2 SOG. SOG: UNH 25, BU 10.

Over the next 5 minutes of play, UNH tested Millan a few more times. Henrion's wrist shot between a BU defender's legs resulted in a partial screen of Millan but the save was made. Kevin Goumas and Stevie Moses worked a couple of give-and-go plays for 2 more shots. At the 14:50 mark of the second period, UNH was outshooting BU 30-13 and lead 4-1. That's when Act I of the show ended and the BU offense got on track for Act II.

The UNH players began to look winded, especially in their own zone. DeSmith was making the initial saves but UNH had trouble clearing or moving the puck out of their zone. With about 4 and 1/2 minutes left in the period, Casey DeSmith made an amazing pad save on a point blank shot but UNH iced the puck when they may have had room to skate it out of the zone instead.

With 4 minutes left, the puck took an unusual bounce off the half boards, a BU forward gathered the puck and fed a wide-open Garrett Noonan. Noonan beat DeSmith on the blocker side. UNH 4 - BU 2.

With a minute left in Period 2, UNH failed again to clear the puck. BU defenseman Garrett Noonan, who had pinched all the way down into the right corner, threw the puck toward the net. DeSmith was surrounded by UNH and BU players near the crease but managed to cover up the puck while on his knees. Justin Courtnall hacked at DeSmith's glove, which was covering the puck and it squirted into the goal. This was the second time in two games that DeSmith appeared to have frozen the puck on the ice with his glove only to have it poked into the net. Sometimes, a team doesn't get the quick whistle when it's needed. UNH 4 - BU 3. SOG: UNH 37, BU 20.

Period 3

The puck was dropped to begin the third period and BU carried it into the UNH zone. BU did not appear to be executing any particular play and the entry into the zone looked relatively harmless. UNH had the BU players closest to DeSmith covered. Wade Megan took a wrist shot from between the top of the faceoff circles and the two UNH defensemen appeared to be far enough apart to give DeSmith a clear look at the shot. On this one occasion, DeSmith's quick glove hand let him down as the puck sailed into the top corner of the net. BU's leading scorer Alex Chiasson assisted on the goal; his third of the game. In Act II, Chiasson had managed to reassert himself. Score tied. UNH 4 - BU 4.

Act II of the drama was over. A combination of adrenalin, determination, and other unknown factors re-energized the Wildcats. For the remaining 19 minutes of regulation and 26 minutes of double overtime, both UNH and BU battled to a virtual draw. The final act was characterized by outstanding defensive plays and quality shots on goal by both teams.

During the remainder of the third period, UNH produced 13 shots on goal. At the 7 minute mark of the period and again at the 9:40 mark, Casey Thrush effectively lead rushes into the BU zone. The first rush lead to a shot on Millan and on the second instance, BU defenseman Ben Rosen tried to stop Thrush with a hooking penalty. The UNH power play units generated a few shots on goal and one appeared to hit the inside of the post to the right of Millan. At the next stoppage of play, Coach Umile requested a review of the shot. The referees watched the video and ruled "no goal."

With 4 minutes left in regulation, a pass by McCarey sent Borisenok and junior Scott Pavelski in on a 2-on-1. Pavelski fired a testing wrist shot and Millan made his 45th save of the game. By the end of the third period, UNH had produced 50 shots on goal - an impressive accomplishment against one of the top teams in the country.

Goalie Casey DeSmith also appeared re-energized. During a BU power play with 15 minutes left in the period, DeSmith made a great glove save. In all, DeSmith made 15 saves in the third period. At the end of regulation, the score was tied 4-4 and UNH had outshot BU 50 to 36.

First Overtime

Both UNH and BU played somewhat more cautiously in the overtime period. Each had quality opportunities to end the game. Shortly after the puck was dropped, DeSmith made a nice save with his gut on a point blank shot. About 3 and 1/2 minutes into overtime, there was a scrum of players in front of DeSmith and a BU forward carried the puck from left to right across the top of the crease. The player shot and DeSmith flashed a pad save.

6 minutes in, Grayson Downing made a graceful spin move and centered a pass to Henrion who shot and missed the net by inches. With about 13 minutes remaining in overtime, Casey Thrush tapped a shot which almost went in over Millan's shoulder.

With less than 4 minutes left, UNH had perhaps its best chance to score the game winner. Nick Sorkin and Stevie Moses broke into the BU zone on a 2-on-1. The play was reminiscent of a Goumas-Moses rush in Game 2 in which Goumas made a beautiful behind the back pass to Moses who buried a wrister over Millan's shoulder. That goal made it onto the ESPN Top 10 replay.

This time around, Sorkin made a terrific cross-ice pass to Moses. Millan came out of his net slightly farther than he had the night before, perhaps trying to cut down Moses' angle. Moses tried to beat Millan high on the glove side but Millan won this battle.

In the first overtime, UNH generated 14 SOG while BU had 16. Total for the game to that point: UNH 64, BU 52.

Second Overtime

For the second time in three playoff games, UNH and BU headed to double overtime. On Friday, UNH won 3-2 in what was then the longest game ever played at Agganis Arena. This game would beat that record.

UNH had a few more chances than BU to win in the double overtime period. UNH had 8 SOG and BU had only 3. A few of the UNH chances were outstanding. 2 minutes and 48 seconds into the double overtime, Trevor van Riemsdyk got off a great wrist shot through a screen but Millan came up with a huge save. About 4 minutes in, Kevin Goumas made a great breakout through center ice, went to the top of the circle to the right of Millan, and whistled a wrister. Millan flashed his glove while practically sitting on the ice and caught the puck.

With about 14 minutes left in double overtime, Grayson Downing did an amazing job controlling the puck in traffic in the BU end. Downing passed to Connor Hardowa who sent a wrist shot at Millan. Another save.

After 85 minutes of do-or-die, playoff hockey, both teams must have been running a fumes. The game had to end somehow. With 13 minutes and 30 seconds left on the clock, Wade Megan took a wrist shot from the faceoff dot to the right of Casey DeSmith. DeSmith made the initial pad save but the rebound went to that guy Alex Chiasson. Chiasson knocked the puck home. Final Score: BU 5 - UNH 4. SOG: UNH 72, BU 55.

Three UNH Stars of the Game

#3 Star - The UNH Penalty Kill Units
In the final quarterfinal game, one of the most potent power plays in the country did not score during three opportunities. Across the entire series, UNH prevented BU from scoring on all 11 power plays.

#2 Star - Casey DeSmith
The freshman goalie was the backbone of a resurgent UNH team in the last half of the regular season. In his third game in three days, DeSmith played outstanding - particularly in the third period and two overtime periods. His performance in Game 3 was only exceeded by senior goalie Kieran Millan.

#1 Star - Casey Thrush
In his first college playoff game, freshman Casey Thrush scored 2 goals on 5 shots on goal. Thrush, who entered UNH a year earlier than originally planned, is representative of the young talent that will return for the 2012-13 season.

Monday, March 12, 2012

UNH & BU in Heavyweight Marathon



The 2011-12 UNH hockey team will be remembered as the underdog who battled the #6 team in the country until the bitter end and then some. The team that scrambled to make the Hockey East playoffs arguably outplayed the Boston University Terriers in the rubber game of the quarterfinal series. But when the opponent scores the final goal in double overtime, the season ends.



Monday will be the time to recap the game and reflect on the accomplishments of the season. But for tonight, many thanks go out to the UNH Seniors:
Captain Mike Borisenok
Captain Damon Kipp
Alternate Captain Stevie Moses
Kevin McCarey
Matt Di Girolamo
Tyler Scott

Saturday, March 10, 2012

UNH Defeats BU in Double Overtime: Hard Work Finally Pays Off



BOSTON, MA - Moments before the puck was dropped for the second overtime, the scoreboard at the Agganis Arena provided a clue to just how determined UNH was to win Game 1 of the Hockey East Quarterfinals. The score was tied at 2 and UNH had outshot Boston University 49 to 35. Up until that juncture, UNH had played its best road game of the season - building on another outstanding effort in the final regular season game against the University of Maine.

UNH's balanced and persistent attack is best summed up by a comment from a BU fan sitting a couple rows behind this writer: "They were hungrier."

The two teams played evenly through the opening 15 minutes of the game. Seven minutes in, junior Austin Block stole the puck behind the BU net, snuck to the left of senior goalie Kieran Millan, and got off a nice backhand shot on goal. Moments later, freshman UNH goalie Casey DeSmith made an initial blocker save, a BU forward pounced on the rebound and snapped off a shot requiring a nice glove save by DeSmith.

With 5 minutes left in the first period, the shots on goal were tied at 6. That's when Matt Nieto skated past Connor Hardowa along the half-boards creating a 2-on-1 with Alex Chiasson skating to the slot and Trevor van Riemsdyk defending. Nieto connected with Chiasson who deked around TvR and beat DeSmith with a backhand shot.

A few minutes later, UNH would answer with a 2-on-1 of its own. Sophomore Nick Sorkin skated to the top of the circle to the right of Millan and fed a beautiful pass between the BU defender's legs to senior Kevin McCarey. McCarey drew the puck to his backhand, shot and appeared to hit the post. Sorkin, who was storming toward the net, flicked the rebound past Millan, tying the game at 1-1.

By then, UNH had picked up some momentum outshooting BU 11-6. Less than a minute later, Sorkin made a touch pass at the UNH blueline to fellow sophomore Kevin Goumas who flew through center ice. As Goumas entered the BU end, he fired a wrister between the two BU defenders and beat Millan on a shot reminiscent of the short-handed goal he scored against Maine at Frozen Fenway.

Casey DeSmith would end the first period with a sequence of 3 nice saves: a save with his gut at the 18:53 mark followed by a chest save on a rising slap shot from the top of the circle at 19:39. In the waning seconds, a BU defenseman ricocheted a shot off the backboards which DeSmith tracked, covered and cleared. SOG: UNH 12, BU 10.

In the second period, UNH tempted fate on two separate occasions by giving the most potent power play in Hockey East the man-advantage. At the 14:15 mark, TvR was called for cross-checking. On the penalty kill, McCarey first cleared the puck out of the zone and moments later, Hardowa would do the same. BU had a hard time bringing the puck back into the UNH zone and did not register a single shot throughout the power play.

A couple minutes later, Alexx Privitera made a pass from the BU end across the red line to Kevin Gilroy just before he crossed the UNH blue line. Gilroy went in alone, faked a forehand shot, drew the puck to his backhand, and shot it past the flashing pad of DeSmith. Game tied 2-2.

With less than 3 minutes left in the second period, a frustrating sequence would lead to BU's second power play. In the BU end, Kevin Goumas set up Stevie Moses with a shot at a nearly open net. Moses missed. Then, as the puck moved out of the UNH zone, Moses was called for slashing. Fortunately, the UNH penalty kill would come up big again only allowing 1 SOG.

In the third period, UNH would gradually build a lead in shots on goal. At 8:42, UNH began a power play in which they moved the puck extremely well and managed 3 shots on goal. Regulation ended with the score tied at 2-2 and UNH outshooting BU 36-28.

The first shift of the first overtime period lasted over a minute and Connor Hardowa finally iced the puck. Coach Umile used a strategic timeout to rest his players and to get a fresh group of five out for the faceoff. Ten minutes into OT, sophomore Jeff Silengo made a nice fake at midice and sent Greg Burke into the zone with a nice backhand pass. Burke fired on Millan who went to his knees and looked behind himself, not knowing if the puck had slipped through the five hole. It hadn't.

With a little more than 3 minutes left in OT, Eric Knodel was called for hitting from behind. BU would have the unique opportunity to go on the powerplay in an overtime period. UNH's penalty kill, which has been solid in the last half of the season, rose to the task. Greg Burke broke out of the UNH zone with the puck and drew a holding penalty. The two sides played 4-on-4 briefly followed by less than a minute for a UNH power play. The first overtime period ended just after Stevie Moses whistled a shot just wide of the net.

Less than 2 minutes into the second overtime, freshman Matt Willows - who had played a pesky, aggressive game - stopped BU's attempt to clear the puck around the boards behind the BU net. Freshman Grayson Downing swooped in, gathered the puck and fired a wraparound shot which beat Millan to his glove side. A 3-2 double overtime victory for UNH.

Player of the Game - Grayson Downing

Perhaps the biggest unknown entering tonight's game at the Agganis Arena was the status of Grayson Downing. As the regular season progressed, the freshman from Abbortsford, British Columbia had emerged as the team's second leading goal scorer with 6 goals in Hockey East competition and 10 goals overall. Yet, up until gametime, it was not clear if a reported groin/hip injury would keep him out of the lineup. Downing had missed the final game of the regular season against Maine.

As Downing went through the pregame warmups (see photo above), it was clear to this writer that his mobility was limited to some degree. As his teammates revved up their skating to full speed, Downing appeared to be throttling back. Perhaps in deference to his reduced agility, Downing was moved down to the third line with fellow freshman Matt Willows on right wing and junior Austin Block at center.

What's remarkable is that Downing found ways to compensate for his reduced mobility. He anticipated the puck movement and got himself into the correct spots on the ice. He made some outstanding passes while in an almost stationary position. Then there was the game-winning goal.

UNH will face off against BU in the second game of the best-of-three series Saturday at 4:00 PM. The game will be broadcast by NESN.

Wednesday, March 07, 2012

UNH Ready For Hockey East Playoffs


For the 24th consecutive year, the UNH Wildcats have qualified for the Hockey East Playoffs. Since the inaugural season of Hockey East in 1985, UNH has only missed the playoffs twice. Yet, as recently as the last weekend in January, UNH was in 9th place in Hockey East and in danger of missing the playoffs. Since then, UNH has won 5 games, lost 3 and tied 1. They are seeded #6 and will play a best-of-three quarterfinal series against #3 seed, Boston University beginning Friday night at 7:00 PM.

The last time UNH faced BU was a full three months ago on December 8th in Durham. BU's 2-1 victory came in a tight, evenly-matched game. UNH registered 29 shots on senior goalie Kieran Millan while BU generated 34 SOG. The game represented a turning point for UNH as freshman goalie Casey DeSmith made his first start in NCAA competition. More on UNH's development since early December later but first, a look at the tumultuous times at BU.

BU Shorthanded

Shortly after their win against UNH in early December, the BU Terriers experienced a string of early departures by key players. On December 14th, senior center Corey Trivino was dismissed from the team after being arrested and arraigned for an alleged sexual assault on a female student. At the time, Trivino was the leading goal scorer in Hockey East with 13 goals in 15 games. Two days later on December 16th, sophomore forward Charlie Coyle left BU to play for the Saint John Sea Dogs in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. Coyle was the Hockey East Rookie of the Year last season and had scored 3 goals and 11 assists in 16 games this season. Finally, on February 21st, junior defenseman Max Nicastro was arraigned for alleged rape of a female student. BU announced that same day that Nicastro was no longer enrolled at the university. Up until that point, Nicastro had played in 26 games and had scored 3 goals and 6 assists.

The record shows that BU swept UNH this season winning 5-0 in the season opener on Oct. 8th at Agganis, 4-1 on Nov. 19th also at Agganis, and 2-1 on Dec. 8th in Durham. Trivino scored a goal in each of the three games, Coyle added 2 assists in the first game, and Nicastro scored a goal in the second game. Senior goalie Kieran Millan played a decisive role in all three victories. Millan stopped all 35 shots he faced in the first game, turned aside 33 out of 34 shots in the second game, and made 28 saves against 29 shots on Dec. 8th.

Changing of the Guard in UNH Net

As mentioned earlier, the last meeting with BU in early December marked the beginning of a major transition for UNH. Senior goalie Matt Di Girolamo had started in 16 out of the first 17 games of the 2011-12 season. Last season, Di Girolamo had the second best save percentage (.923) among Hockey East goalies and the third best goals against average (2.44). He was named a Hockey East Honorable Mention All-Star and was expected to be one of the top goalies in the nation again this season.

Di Girolamo played well from late October into early November when the team won 5 games and tied one. During that stretch, DiGi's goals against average was 2.00 and he shut out UMass-Lowell 5-0. However, he did not maintain the consistent play as the team lost the next 4 out of 5 games. After leading Harvard 4-0, DiGi and the team gave up 7 goals in a shocking loss.

Freshman Casey DeSmith was given his opportunity on Dec. 8th against BU and gave up only 2 goals. Following the three week holiday break, Di Girolamo got the start against Brown but was pulled at the end of the second period after giving up 3 goals. DeSmith replaced him in the third period and has been in the UNH goal ever since.

Unfamiliar Territory for UNH

UNH is not accustomed to playing the quarterfinal round of the Hockey East Playoffs outside of the friendly confines of the Whittemore Center (and Snively Arena prior to 1995). Over the 28 seasons of Hockey East, UNH has earned home-ice 20 times. The last time they played the quarterfinals on the road was in the 1995-96 season when they finished in 6th place. Since then, UNH has finished the regular season as the #1 Seed six times and #2 three other times.

Despite a subpar, Hockey East season in which they won 11 games, lost 14 and tied 2, UNH has steadily improved in several key phases of the game. The improvements began in goal around midseason and grew from there.

Goaltending

When Casey DeSmith committed to UNH in late October, 2010, he was the starting goalie for the Indiana Ice and among the leading netminders in the United States Hockey League. His goals against average was 1.86 per game and he had a save percentage of .943. In November, 2010, DeSmith (a native of Rochester, NH) was named to Team USA for the World Junior A Challenge. DeSmith did not play in the first four games of the tournament but in the Gold Medal game, he got his opportunity to perform under pressure. Early in the second period with Team USA trailing Team Canada 4-1, the starting goalie was pulled and DeSmith entered the game cold. Team USA went on to score 6 goals while DeSmith posted a shutout for the remainder of the game.

In the USHL playoffs last spring, DeSmith lead Indiana to a 2-game sweep in the opening round, posting a shutout in the opening game. In the quarterfinals, facing a do-or-die game against the Green Bay Gamblers, DeSmith made 39 saves in what was described as a "super-human effort" on the Indiana Ice website. The Ice lost in overtime 2-1 to Green Bay who eventually lost to Dubuque in the USHL Finals.

So, Casey DeSmith enrolled at UNH with a reputation for rising to the occasion in high-pressure games. Although UNH lost to BU 2-1 on Dec. 8th, Casey DeSmith played solidly in his first NCAA start making 32 saves.

Before DeSmith took over as the starting goalie, UNH's record in Hockey East was 4 wins, 6 losses and 1 tie. With DeSmith in goal, the record improved to 7 wins, 7 losses and 1 tie. More importantly, DeSmith was giving UNH an opportunity to win every game. 7 of the 8 loses were by a single goal and 4 of those were overtime loses.

Casey DeSmith has joined the ranks of the top goalies in Hockey East. His save percentage of .928 places him in a tie for the #1 rank in Hockey East. His goals against average of 2.29 is the 4th best in the league. He is essentially neck-and-neck with BU's senior goalie Kieran Millan (.927 Save%; 2.39 GAA). Nationwide, among all NCAA Division I teams, Casey DeSmith is ranked #7 in save percentage.

DeSmith has played some of his best games for UNH in must-win situations - like he did last year as a junior player in the USHL. When UNH fell to 9th place in Hockey East, they faced a home-and-home series against Providence in early February. UNH won the first game in Durham 3-1 and DeSmith made a total of 37 saves, including 14 saves in the final period. The following night in Providence, UNH held on to win 3-2 in overtime. Once again, DeSmith came up big when the game was on the line. In the third period, DeSmith made 14 saves and added 2 more in overtime.

Casey DeSmith's most impressive performance came two weeks ago at UMass-Amherst. Facing three away games to end the season, UNH needed to win one to clinch a spot in the Hockey East Playoffs. In the UMass game on Friday night, DeSmith faced a barrage of 51 shots on goal. UMass was desparate to win in order to keep their playoff hopes alive. DeSmith turned away 48 shots, including 25 in the second period as UNH won 4-3. DeSmith relied on all his strengths to pull out the victory. DeSmith stands tall in the crease leaving few gaps for shooters. His glove hand is lightning quick and he's adept at anticipating where the opponent's shots are coming from. In the final game of the season at Maine, DeSmith only allowed one goal and that came when a shot from the blueline was redirected by a UNH defenseman into the upper corner of the net. To beat DeSmith, a team needs to score fluke goals or to screen his view of shots. In scrums around the net, he is relentless.

Team Defense

Through the first half of the season, UNH did not play effective team defense. Take a look at the goals scored in the Oct. 8th and Nov. 15th BU games and the two goals scored by BU in DeSmith's first collegiate start on Dec. 8th (courtesy of free access to BU Hockey Highlights on go.terriers.com and UNH highlights on UNHWildcats.com). These goals illustrate the common mistakes UNH was making in their defensive zone. Opposing forwards were getting loose behind the UNH net, free to make plays and set up goals. Opposing players were being left uncovered in front of and to the sides of the UNH net. Finally, UNH was allowing too many odd-man rushes into their zone.

Under the guidance of Associate Coach Jim Tortorella, in his first year at UNH, the team defense began improving around the time DeSmith became the starting goalie. The improvements became noticable in the weekend split against Merrimack College in mid-January. Since then, team defense has become a strength for UNH. When the puck is in their zone, the UNH center covers any opposing forward who goes behind the UNH net. The UNH forwards are hustling back to help the UNH defensemen when opponents rush into their zone. Opponents are being covered or pushed out of the area in front of DeSmith. Finally, UNH players are blocking shots and deflecting passes with their sticks.

Penalty Killing

This season, UNH has committed the fewest, by far, penalties in Hockey East. The UNH penalty kill units have faced only 82 power plays in 27 games. The team with the next fewest penalties is UMass-Lowell with 102. Boston University has been called for 536 penalty minutes, the most in Hockey East. UNH has the fewest penalty minutes with 287.

UNH has been very effective in killing off penalties. BU and UNH are essentially tied in penalty killing - both teams are successful at killing off about 85% of the power plays they face. The strategies that have worked for UNH are to attack the puck carrier and to aggressively deflect or intercept passes.

BU is tied with Maine for the most effective power play in Hockey East. They convert on 25% of their power play opportunities. It will be important for UNH to continue to minimize the penalties they commit and to kill off the ones that happen. In the final game of the regular season, UNH effectively killed off both of Maine's power plays.

Goal Scoring

The UNH team which enters the 2011-12 Hockey East Playoffs is different from the prototypical Wildcat team of the past. Its strength lies in goaltending and defense, not goal scoring.

The Table below shows the number of goals scored in Hockey East games by UNH players over the last two seasons. Overall, the 2010-11 UNH team that made it to the NCAA Regional Finals scored many more goals in Hockey East competition than the 2011-12 team. Last year's team scored 90 goals in 27 games while the current UNH team scored 68.

The pattern of scoring by various UNH players and by particular classes helps to account for the drop off in goals this season.

~ Last season, Seniors Phil DeSimone and Mike Sislo scored about the same number of goals as Mike Borisenok and Kevin McCarey this season.

~ The biggest discrepancy in scoring was between the leading scorers. Last season, Paul Thompson's 23 goals were the second highest in Hockey East. This season, Stevie Moses leads UNH in goal-scoring with 11 in Hockey East competition. Moses is tied for 6th in goals in Hockey East.

~ All three senior forwards increased their goal-scoring when compared with their totals as juniors.

~ The loss in goal-scoring attributed to three defensemen ending their UNH careers last season - Blake Kessel, Mike Beck and Matt Campanale - was compensated for by the three first-year defenseman this season. Trevor van Riemsdyk scored 3 goals, Eric Knodel scored 2, and Justin Agosta added 1.

~ Three junior forwards - Greg Burke, Austin Block, and Scott Pavelski - modestly increased their goal production this season.

~ Two junior forwards - John Henrion and Dalton Speelman - scored fewer goals this season than last season.

~ John Henrion's goal production fell from 7 to 3. In years past, one UNH junior typically emerges as a primary goal scorer (e.g., Stevie Moses in 2011; Paul Thompson in 2010; Matt Fornataro in 2007).

~ The loss of Dalton Speelman to a wrist injury in mid-November was costly. Up until then, he had scored 3 goals and was on track for at least equalling the 10 goals he scored last season.

~ Although Sophomores Nick Sorkin, Kevin Goumas, and Jeff Silengo have emerged as key players in UNH's offense, they did not increase their goal-scoring substantially over last season.

~ This season's freshman forwards - Grayson Downing, Casey Thrush, Jay Camper, and Matt Willows - essentially matched the goal production of last season's freshman forwards.


Player2010-112011-12Player2010-112011-12
Thompson23-Moses711
DeSimone7-Borisenok35
Sislo6-McCarey04
Kessel4-Kipp22
Beck2-Silengo31
Campanale0-Goumas45
Henrion73Sorkin34
Burke24Downing-6
Block24Thrush-2
Speelman103Camper-1
Pavelski02Willows-0
Kostolansky42TvR-3
Hardowa23Knodel-2
---Agosta-1


What Lies Ahead

The best-of-three series this weekend at the Agganis Arena will feature Hockey East's highest scoring offensive team - BU - against one of the best defensive teams - UNH. Given their season long record, BU is almost certain to qualify for the NCAA Tournament regardless of how they play in the Hockey East Playoffs. UNH, on the other hand, needs to win the Hockey East Championship to continue their 10-year run in the NCAA Tournament.

So far, BU has handled the early departure of three key players well. Since the first departure on December 14th, BU has won 10 Hockey East games and lost 5. Since early January, UNH has played some of their best hockey of the season. Both goaltenders - Kieran Millan and Casey DeSmith - have demonstrated they can make the routine saves and the occasional spectacular saves.

Given UNH's lower goal production this season, they will probably need to prevent BU from scoring more than 1 or 2 goals per game. At the same time, UNH players with the highest capacity to score goals will need to step up. Should be an exciting matchup.

Monday, March 05, 2012

UNH Recruits Update: Week 22

Player of the Week - Jason Kalinowski

For the second time this season, 16-year-old prep school hockey player Jason Kalinowski** has been named Player of the Week among all UNH Recruits. Kalinowski and the Salisbury School finished the regular season of New England Prep School hockey with a record of 23 wins and only 3 loses. They were ranked #1 in the final U.S. Hockey Report's Division I Prep Hockey Poll of the regular season. Kalinowski, a 6'0", 180 lbs. right-winger, scored 12 goals and 15 assists in 25 regular season games. He was the 2nd leading goal scorer on a very talented Salisbury squad and the 3rd leading point getter.

The Salisbury School earned the #1 Seed in the Elite Eight Tournament; the tourney which determines the New England Prep School Champion. In the opening round, Salisbury faced off against #8 Seed, Cushing Academy. 2014 UNH Recruit Shane Eiserman, a sophomore, is the leading goal scorer for the Cushing Penguins. Salisbury defeated Cushing by a score of 6-0. In one of the biggest games of his young career, Jason Kalinowski had a second period to remember. He scored Salisbury's second goal of the game on a power play midway through the second period. About a minute and a half later, he assisted on Salisbury's fifth goal, also on a power play. A little over a minute later, Kalinowski scored his 2nd goal of the game. In the span of 4 minutes, Kalinowski had scored 2 goals and an assist and Salisbury was ahead 6-0.

In the semifinal game on Saturday at the Ice Center in Salem, NH, Salisbury was defeated 3-2 in overtime by Lawrence Academy. Lawrence went on to win the New England Prep School Championship on Sunday by defeating Noble & Greenborough 3-2.

I had an opportunity to watch Jason Kalinowski play in an earlier game against Cushing held on the practice rink at UMass-Amherst on February 12th. Although he didn't score in that game, Kalinowski impressed me with his physical style and determination. In the offensive zone, Kalinowski frequently positioned himself in and around the front of the net and held his ground despite the pushing and shoving of Cushing's defensemen. The picture shown above captures one of these instances. Kalinowski also battled hard for puck possession along the boards.

Last September, when Jason Kalinowski committed to play at the University of New Hampshire, he was projected to enroll in the fall of 2015. Last season, as a sophomore at the Salisbury School, Kalinowski scored 4 goals and 10 assists. This season, he tripled his goal scoring and doubled his point production. If Kalinowski (DOB: 7/2/95) continues to progress on the ice at an accelerated rate, he might join fellow 1995-born recruits Shane Eiserman (10/10/95), Dylan Chanter (DOB: 9/17/1995), and Tyler Kelleher (1/2/95) who are projected to come to UNH for the 2014-15 season.
** Photo Credit: Kenny Fitzgerald

NOTE
The statistics for the recruits, presented in the table, are categorized by the projected year they will enroll in UNH. For example, the "2012 Recruits" are projected to begin playing for UNH in the Fall of 2012. I have based these projections on a number of factors including:
~ How old the player would be upon admission.
~ Number of years in junior hockey prior to admission.
~ Anticipated date of high school graduation.
~ Number of seniors leaving the team at the end of the previous season.
~ The player's performance in the current season.

PlayerTeamLeagueGPGoalsAsstPtsPIM
2012 Recruits
Dan CorrealeNanaimo ClippersBCHL259132214
Maxim GaudreaultSioux CityUSHL4811112236
Jamie HillWaterlooUSHL406152150
Collin MacDonaldJersey HitmenEJHL4527184514
PlayoffsEJHL21010
Brett PesceJersey HitmenEJHL1715618
Harry QuastBay StateEJHL458243258
PlayoffsEJHL20000
Jamie ReganPhilly RevsEJHL259W16L3.97.903
Kyle SmithJunior BruinsEJHL4324386232
PlayoffsEJHL00000
2013 Recruits
Jordan MastersMuskegonUSHL315101539
Matias ClelandWaterlooUSHL2715630
Dylan MallerTri-CityUSHL3836910
Andrew PoturalskiBuffalo Jr SabresOJHL3316223832
PlayoffsOJHL85274
2013 or '14 Recruit
Michael McNicholasMuskegonUSHL3344810
2014 Recruits
Dylan ChanterMerritt CentsBCHL532111347
Shane EisermanCushing AcademyNEPSAC29182644-
PlayoffsNEPSAC1000-
Tyler KelleherUSA U17 TeamUSHL271192016
2015 Recruits
Jason KalinowskiSalisbury Prep NEPSAC25 1215 27-
PlayoffsNEPSAC2213-

News & Notes

British Columbia Hockey League:

~ 2012 Recruit Dan Correale and the Nanaimo Clippers have been battling for the 4th and final playoff spot in the Coastal Conference of the BCHL. Last week, Correale scored a goal and 3 assists in the Clippers' two games. However, Nanaimo was mathematically eliminated from the playoffs. Barring unforeseen circumstances, Correale will enroll at UNH next fall. He was originally scheduled to come to UNH in September, 2011 but the plan was postponed for one year due to Correale's shoulder surgery last summer.

Ontario Junior Hockey League:

~ 2013 Recruit Andrew Poturalski and the Buffalo Jr. Sabres were eliminated in the second round of the OJHL Playoffs by the Oakville Blades. In the Jr. Sabres playoff run, Poturalski scored 5 goals and 2 assists in 8 games. Poturalski finished tied for 4th in goal scoring over the first 2 rounds of the OJHL playoffs. Poturalski is scheduled to graduate from the Nichols School in June and has an excellent chance of making the active roster of the Cedar Rapids Rough Riders (USHL) next season.

Eastern Junior Hockey League:

~ 2012 Recruit Collin MacDonald and the Jersey Hitmen won their matchup against the Valley Junior Warriors in the quarterfinal round of the EJHL Playoffs. MacDonald scored a goal in the two-game series. The Hitmen will face the Junior Bruins in the semifinals next weekend at the New England Sports Center in Marlborough, MA.

~ 2012 Recruit Kyle Smith did not play in the Junior Bruins' quarterfinal series against the New England Huskies. It is not clear whether he will play against the Hitmen next weekend.

~ 2012 Recruit Harry Quast and the Bay State Breakers were defeated by the Rochester Stars in the "play in" series.

Sunday, March 04, 2012

RePost of "UNH Drops Tight Matchup with BU"


The following is a repost of an article which appeared last November on The UNH Men's Hockey Blog. It covers the last time UNH played Boston University at the Agganis Arena. It's remarkable how much has changed since then - for both UNH and BU. Look for a "Preview" of the upcoming Hockey East Quarterfinals between #6 Seed UNH and #3 Seed BU coming soon on TUMHB.

BOSTON, MA - Although UNH's second visit to the Agganis Arena this season ended in a loss, the team's performance was measurably better than the first time around. In the season opener for both teams on October 8th, UNH did not score as five players played in their first NCAA game. Tonight, UNH looked poised and made very few mistakes. When Freshman Trevor van Riemsdyk (TvR) scored his first collegiate goal at 5:05 of the final period, the score was tied at 1-1 and the shots on goal were even at 20 - a good indicator of just how tight this game was.

For the second consecutive Saturday, UNH juggled its lineup to compensate for players unable to play. Last weekend, Connor Hardowa was away on a family emergency and Kevin Goumas was shown the exits at UVM following a major penalty midway through the first period. Prior to tonight's game, two veteran forwards were injured and not in uniform. Junior Dalton Speelman got hurt last night against UMass-Lowell after crashing awkwardly into the bottom of the boards behind the net. His arm injury is still being evaluated. Sophomore Jeff Silengo was unable to play due to a sore, upper body injury. That gave Freshmen Jay Camper and Matt Willows the opportunity to step up. Playing in just his fifth college game, Camper centered the third line with fellow freshman Casey Thrush on left wing and Austin Block on right wing. Willows, playing in his inaugural college game, was on the right wing of the fourth line with Mike Borisenok at center and Kevin McCarey on left wing. UNH has only played 12 games this season and already seven new players have been integrated into the lineup.

In the first period, BU played with noticably less energy than the last time I saw them play (in the season opener). They appeared to be skating at medium speed and there were few body checks thrown. Offensively, the period was uneventful as BU outshot UNH 9-4. At about 11:30 of the period, Greg Burke made a nice rush up the left side of the BU zone and passed to John Henrion for a quick one-timer - one of Henrion's five shots on goal for the night. UNH's defensive play was solid. TvR won a few 1-on-1 battles in the defensive zone. Casey Thrush made an outstanding defensive play on BU's Charlie Coyle. With less than a minute left in the period, Coyle carried the puck around Thrush in the neutral zone, forcing him to spin around but Thrush hustled to catch up to Coyle and ended up blocking his shot. Coyle, who is BU's third leading scorer, did not get any shots on goal all evening.

The second period began much the same way. It took an unusual turnover followed by a sharp-angle shot for BU to get onto the scoreboard with 11:35 left in the period. Captain Damon Kipp, who was positioned just outside the UNH blueline, went to poke the puck toward the BU end. The puck jumped over his stick and BU's Wade Megan gathered the puck and skated well wide of Matt Di Girolamo toward the left corner. Just before the puck reached the goalline, Megan got off a rising wrist shot from a nearly impossible angle. Di Girolamo was forced to stand taller than normal and the puck slipped past his blocker into a tiny opening inside the post. In the ensuing minutes, UNH was able to test Kieran Millan a number of times. With about 9 minutes remaining in the period, Eric Knodel sent Kevin McCarey off on a partial breakaway with a pretty pass. McCarey got a shot on goal and was promptly hooked down to the ice. At the 14:32 mark, Mike Borisenok got off a quick shot from the top of the slot requiring a nice save by Millan. A minute later, Grayson Downing circled in the BU zone and got off a shot that Millan bobbled.

At 17:25 of the second period, Stevie Moses went after the puck behind the BU net and, in one continuous motion, poke checked the puck and contacted the skate of a BU player. The player went down and Moses was called for tripping on what looked like a marginal call from my position about 15 rows away. Behind 1-0, UNH could not afford to give up a goal so late in the second period and their penalty killing responded. Early on, Casey Thrush made a nice play, poke checking the puck out of the zone. The UNH defensemen did an effective job for the remainder of the BU power play keeping the BU players away from the front and sides of the net. BU was not able to score. At the end of two, the shots on goal were 19-11 in favor of BU.

At the start of the third period, UNH noticably stepped up the offensive pressure. In the first minute, TvR carried the puck into the BU zone, deked around one BU player, then deked around another, got a shot off on Millan, circled behind the net, went to the blueline, stopped the puck from clearing the zone and got off another wrister on goal. Two testing shots by TvR in less than half a minute. At 1:08, Alex Chiasson was called for high sticking. With some nice passing on the power play, UNH registered four more shots on goal. Then at 5:05 of the third period, TvR tied the score with a wrist shot - his first NCAA goal.

In an attempt to relieve the UNH pressure, BU tried a home run pass from inside their zone across two lines but the puck was iced. Seven minutes into the period, Freshman Matt Willows raced with the puck from his own end into the BU zone and wristed a shot on Millan. The momentum had shifted in UNH's favor.

In a quick turnaround, BU scored twice in less than a minute. At 7:29, Max Nicastro's slap shot from between the top of the circles got past a screened Di Girolamo. At 8:05, BU broke in on Di Girolamo with a 2-on-1 and the puck appeared to go off Corey Trivino's upper body into the goal. The play was reviewed and the goal stood. At that time, the shots on goal were even at 22 and BU was ahead 3-1.

Over the last eleven minutes of the final period, UNH pressured BU outshooting them 12 to 5. At times, UNH was swarming around the net getting shots on goal and trying to poke and jamb the puck past a sprawling Millan. At one point, the first line of Goumas, Sorkin, and Moses kept the puck in the BU end for an entire shift. But, it was not to be. Di Girolamo was pulled with 1:43 left to play. Austin Block poked at the puck a couple of times but Millan stood his ground. At 18:47, Matt Nieto sent a weak shot toward the empty net - it bounced and dribbled down the ice and curved ever so slightly into the net. Final score: BU 4, UNH 1. SOG: UNH 34, BU 27.

UNH HIGHLIGHTS

~ Trevor van Riemsdyk has figured out what it takes to play at the Division 1 level and his confidence is evident. In the offensive zone, he doesn't rush when he is controlling the puck and often feathers tape-to-tape passes. In the defensive zone, he is difficult to beat one-on-one and his positioning has improved.

~ Eric Knodel has quietly played solid defense. When he gains control of the puck in his own end, he handles it with poise and patience.

~ Matt Willows, in his first college game, played with speed, tenacity, and grit. He didn't shy away from using his body when he was forechecking. In one sequence in the third period, Willows was checked by a much larger BU player just inside the blueline but retained the puck and passed to Kevin McCarey who got off a shot on goal.

~ Kevin Goumas, playing in Speelman's place on the first line, seemed to be around the puck much of the night. He finished the game with 6 shots on goal.

Next up, a rare game against Harvard. Gametime 7:00, Tuesday, November 22nd at the Bright Hockey Center.
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