BU Terriers Women's Hockey Continues To Roll

Since our last writing about this squad, the season has continued to go much in the fantastic way that it had all along--despite a single-game hiccup at home against #2 Cornell, the Terriers have continued to roll with a home win against that same Big Red team, and wins this past weekend against Maine and Robert Morris.

Showing poise in the face of disappointment, the Terriers rebounded from the 5-2 Saturday night loss to get a phenomenal effort from the phenomenal duo of Marie-Philip Poulin and Isabel Menard--single Terrier goal was scored or assisted on by one of these two players who have come on so strong lately for the Terriers.  Sperry also performed phenomenally in helping the team work its way back from a rough previous outing.

While this past weekend's games might have been expected to be something of a walkover, Maine put up a tough fight on Friday night, only losing 4-2 and keeping pressure on the Terriers until late in the game.  In a rare start for goalie Alyssa Fromkin, she held strong, keeping the Black Bears at bay for all 3 stanzas.  Kayla Tution made a case for herself as a top-3 player on the Terriers by potting a pair, and picking up a 3rd for the weekend the next day in a 3-0 win over Robert Morris.  Sarah Lefort also returned to form with two of her own in the final weekend game, although Sperry probably again deserves the most accolades for her 24-save shutout.

BU moves up to #12 in new USCHO poll

The BU Terriers moved up one spot from 13 to 12 in the USCHO.com poll this week coming off their sweep of UMass this past weekend. The Terriers prepare to take on #5 North Dakota this weekend as the team will travel to Grand Forks,ND for a pair of non-conference games. Here is my take on the rest of the polls.

1. BC(38)- Still overrated but you aren't going to get bumped out of #1 when you sweep another ranked team like Lowell
2. Minnesota(3)- Struggled last weekend. Tied the US U18 team in an exhibition and the struggled to a 1-0 win over Cansius on Saturday night
3. Denver(6)- The Pioneers are still undefeated and look they will be one of the teams to beat out west.
4. Miami
5. UND- North Dakota is coming off a 3 point weekend against Alaska Anchorage at home.

UMass recap Game 2- BU sweeps, gets all 4 ponies(points) on the weekend

The BU Terriers finished off the home and home sweep of the UMass Minutemen with a hard-fought 3-2 victory at the Mullins Center in Amherst. The game was played in front of a hostile 7,300+ fans. BU put itself in an early 2-0 hole after a power play goal by Shane Walsh and a penalty shot goal by Rocco Carzo. On both of the goals, BU goalie Matt O'Connor was in position and got a piece of each shot but was unable to make the save. It certainly is promising to note how well he is consistently positioned. He made a great glove save late in the first to keep the team in the game at a time when UMass had momentum. Walsh's goal came on a powerplay, which was a result of a weak call on Ahti Oksanen.

BU bounced back quickly after the penalty shot goal by Carzo when the top line of Evan Rodrigues, Cason Hohmann, and captain Wade Megan produced once again. Megan banged the puck in the net in the middle of a pile as the self-proclaimed "leader in greasy goals" banged in another one to cut the UMass lead in half in the middle of the second. BU tied it up at the end of the second when Matt Nieto made a great tip off a pass from freshman Danny O'Regan who had a coming out party this weekend. O'Regan posted a 2-2-4 line over the two games over the weekend. He really has played well on that new second line with Nieto and Sahir Gill who is playing the off-wing. This line was on the ice for the game-winning goal which defenseman Sean Escobedo banged home off a rebound over UMass goalie Kevin Boyle with 1:22 remaining.

NFL Week 8 Pick 'Em

So last week I lost my one and only game. Oh well. I expect to hold serve later in the season against the Pats. Hopefully I could predict this weeks game better than I do in HE Pick 'Em. As always: aim for perfection.

•  NYJ vs Miami: the Jets should've lost the first meeting between the teams. I expect Miami to play with a chip on their shoulder and win.
•  Pats vs Rams: playing this game in LondonTown, and by the tweets from ESPN Pats beat reporter the Hooded One is taking this seriously by practicing in a parl across the street from hotel. Expect a close game. Pats win.
•  NYG vs CowGirls: Eli is undefeated in the Girls in new home. Expect that to continue. Best road team I've ever seen. 
•  Falcons vs Eagles: Got the Eagles in this one. I think I am just feeling the Andy Reid undefeated after bye week record.
•  Saints vs. Broncos: I think while Peyton is having a slice of two from Papa Johns, Drew will put a number that Peyton can't match.
•  Saints win. Cardinals vs. 49ers: I think the Cardinals have something to prove but am taking the SF. Extra: Tigers vs Giants (MLB): who cares? lowest tv ratings for a World Series since 1968. When does Spring Training start? 

UMass Game 1/2 - Hearts on Fire

I'm going to make this recap more of a summary and less of a play-by-play. This change is mostly because a) I really want to go get Dunkin but I told myself I'd do this first and b) the more time I spend cheering at games, the fewer notes I take, which means the details of plays are coming from my hungover memory.

Whatever, let's get down to it. Last night the Terriers bested the Minutemen from UMass and their commie bastard Yevenko, who's either going to be standing in a bread line tomorrow or summarily executed by the remnants of the KGB. Sucks to suck. BU topped UMass 5-2 behind some impressive performances by multiple freshman and sophomores. The youngest legs fed the wolf last night, and while some were worried after a poor showing at UNH last weekend I think we all know how Parker got the boys ready for this home-and-home series.

A Fans Perspective: Islanders Moving to the BK(Brooklyn)

The One Thing Ranger Fans Hate the Most: 4 in a Row,
Mike Bossy:
Maybe the Best Player Ever If He Didn't Have Bad Knees.

So big news in the NHL the other day. The New York Islanders just signed a 25 year lease, to start in the 2015 season, to play in the Barclays in Brooklyn, the new home of the Brooklyn Nets of the Association. So part of me is happy about the move and the other part of me screams to kill someone. So a little background about what exactly happened.

Links Links Links Links Links Links (Everybody!): 10/25

Slapshots:
This ranking of college basketball conferences for '12-'13 furnished for me by MWW shows what a huge upgrade the Patriot League is over the 'Murica Least

USCHO picks BU women to beat BC. I like USCHO.

Kerrin Sperry--the only reason you should ever consider reading something on Bleacher Report

NHL fans--Obama wants the lockout over!  Four More Years!  Four More Years!

Wristers:
Colby and Grizz get some positive (Grizz compared to Warso) and mixed (Colby) reviewage in Hockey's Future's Bruins prospects to watch list. But never fear CC, at least you didn't get shipped up to the ECHL like Tommy Cross did! (Point goes to the Terriers)

Josh Seguin picks the weekend's HEA games over at CHN. (Spoiler Alert: Maine picked to get swept)

Jim Connelly breaks down the weekend's series for NESN

Point Shots:
Always worth bookmarking-- the USCHO college hockey composite TV schedule. Most games are regional but if you can't make it to Agganis and get WBIN (pretty much if you're in between Manchester, Portland, Boston and Lowell) UNH/NU in Durham will be a real good game. Also notable--who knew anyone had TVs to play UMaine games on in the Bangor/Orono area? Not me! Still no indoor plumbing though.

Weak Dribbler:
Jerry York taking a holier than thou attitude about BC and cursing from fans at hockey games? Call me surprised!   As clarification, I have no problem with occasional cursing from student sections (I'm not prudish) but PROTIP: if you're sitting right behind kids (attn: UNH assholes chanting Fuck BU right behind my 12 year old cousin at the Whit last weekend) especially on the road, do rep BU positively by toning things down a bit (except for The Song, obviously). I've never heard opposing adult fans say anything but positives about the Dog Pound when we hit the road. Classing it up errywhere we go.  Ironically this letter prompted me to have a civil interaction with a BC fan on Twitter.  Go figure.  I feel so dirty about that.

Hockey East Pick Em Week 4

Here are the updated standing after 3 weekends of Hockey East teams in action. We don't have ties in our standings because we are predicting ties. So if there is a tie, your prediction is wrong unless you predicted a tie.

QQ 14-8 (.636) Last week- 6-5
FM 13-9 (.591)  Last  7-4
HS 10-9 (.526) Last 7-4
Raymundo 9-10 (.473) Last 7-4
MWW 9-10 (.473) Last 4-7
GW 7-12 (.368) Last 1-10

Week 4
Friday 10/26

BC @ Lowell

QQ- 3-3 tie. I think Doug Carr can keep the River Hawks in the game and manage a point at home.
FM- BC 4-1-The Whatsariverhawks haven't shown ability to hang with top teams and BC is starting to roll.
HS- BC 3-1. BC sweeps the weekend, LOL fans slit wrists and the crack supply per capita in Lowell doubles.
Raymundo- BC 3-1
MWW- BC 3-2. I think BC can play well this weekend away from home. They won't seem mediocre and have to pull one out their ass like last weekend.
GW- Lowell 5-2. I'm not kidding I won't pick BC once this year.

Maine @ PC

QQ- PC 7-0. PC is legit taking Miami to OT twice on the road while Maine got killed at home. Easy pick here. Things will get worse before they get better for the inbreds from Maine.
FM- PC 3-0. Friars are gonna make a run at home ice and Maine looks like they may be the worst team in the league
HS- PC 2-1 OT I don't want Maine to keep embarrassing themselves on the ice but I also kind of do, as long as it's against a HE team. Diamond finally gets his second misconduct of the year as PC sweeps.
Raymundo- PC 4-3
MWW- PC 3-1. PC has been playing better than Maine in every aspect of the game.
GW- PC 4-3. FTP: For The Pope

Weekend Preview: Seeing Red

Following a disappointing showing up in New Hampshire last Saturday, your BU Terriers look to bounce back with a home and home against our friends from Amherst.  This weekend is definitely an important one for the team's collective confidence, and a strong showing will go a long way to helping the young guys settle in.  Luckily we have at least one thing working our favor - Slamherst has a Commie on their team, and BU has a decent history against the Reds...



 Read on.

Feliz Miguel's Cawlidge Hawkey Power Rankings 10/24

Leading off with HEA...

1.  UNH (3-0-0) (LW: 3, QQ: 1) -The 'Cats offense continues to be stellar, rolling over BU with a big loud crowd at their back in NH.  Would become clear favorite in HEA with a sweep at NU.

2. BU (1-1-0) (LW 1, QQ: 2)--Tough loss against UNH but O'Connor looks like he could be shaping up to have a great season.  Win against Providence also looks even better after this past weekend.

3. BC (2-1-0) (LW: 4, QQ: 3)--Shakiness for first 2 1/3 frames against Deerfield State should be a cause for concern among Eagles devotees.  Should be worried if they don't take 3 points from seemingly mediocre Lowell

4. Providence (0-2-1) (LW: 5, QQ, 5)--Performances have not been reflected in their record, with 2 road losses to highly ranked teams, one of which was in OT this past weekend against really strong Miami.  Tying the Redhawks ain't too shabby either.

A Freshman's Guide To Dog Pound Chants

It's finally here, Terriers. The second installment of the burgeoning Dog Pound Hockey for Dummies series, all about Dog Pound chants. A rundown of the best ways to use the air in your lungs for the betterment of BU hockey, whether by supporting our Terriers or heckling the opposition. Let's get to it.

This first section will focus on all the miscellaneous chants you'll see and hear during games at Agganis. This is not comprehensive - there are chants in the original post that I didn't bother to recopy here. 

Updated USCHO poll

The new meaningless polls came out this afternoon and BU fell 2 spots due to Saturday's loss at UNH. BU now sits at #13 overall in the middle of a pack of HE teams from 11-15(With Minnesota-Duluth squeezed inbetween). Here is a breakdown of the rest of the poll.

1. Newton University(27)- They scraped by against UMass and then beat NU at home. Micheletto(Umass coach) should have gone all Denny Green after they blew a 4-1 lead to BC in the third on Friday night.
2. Minnesota(12)- When you lose to Michigan Tech, you don't deserve to be number 1 anymore.
3. Miami(4)- Went to OT 2 straight nights with PC at home and came away with 3 points
4. North Dakota(1)- They are really going to free fall when BU sweeps them next weekend in UND.
5. Denver(3)- They beat Lowell like all good teams should

UNH Week 2 Recap

In their first road test of the 2012-13 season and the first game against ranked team, the #11 Terriers fell last night 4-1 to the #15 Wildcats at UNH. There were a lot of issues with BU's play during the game. Instead of laying them out in a more organized manner, I'm going to be lazy and base this recap off of my chronological notes taken during the game.

That way, I don't have to spend as much time thinking about how unpleasant last night was.

NFL Week 7 Pick 'Em: Jets vs Pats Special Edition

Brady vs SanBow, The Hooded One vs Foot Sucker, Manigold vs Wilfork. Jets vs Pats. It always is a delight watching these games. The last few years all of the games have been good and exciting to watch. By now most of you know I am Jets fan and now you know Hatrick is a Jets fan too. The rest of the BSRS crew (FM, GW etc) are Pats fans. Somehow we all coexist (common good is BU Hockey). So as we do for College Hockey Pick 'Em I got the crew to give their predictions for the game.

MWW- Jets over Pats 24-21. Jets defense will struggle at first but pull together. Somehow a special teams play goes in the Jets favor and they gain a lead in 4th quater and hold on to the lead when Brady throws a pick to Cromartie (that's directed at GW).

HS- Jets over Pats of course, 27-24. Sanchez redeems himself and runs the 2-minute drill for the winning TD scored by Tebow playing fullback like he should have been his entire life.

GW- Pats over Jets 24-7. Jets ground game never gets going, Sanchize throws 2 picks, Brady terrorizes Antonio "how many kids do I have again" Cromartie.

 FM- Pats 35-24--Jets offense barely inept enough to not beat inept Pats passing defense.

So there you go. So thoughts on todays big game, AFC  East lead is on the line. As always aim to for perfection. 

UNH Preview

The 1-0-0 BU Terriers go on the road for the first time this season on Saturday night. They will travel about an hour north to good ole Durham,NH to take on UNH. UNH is 2-0-0 on the season with a pair of non-conference wins against St. Cloud State last weekend. Casey DeSmith seems to be their clear #1 as he got both starts last week and posts a .900 save percentage and 2.50 GAA early in the season. Their offense is lead by junior Dalton Speelman who dominated St. Cloud last weekend posting a 2-2-4 line.  D-men Connor Hardowa and Trevor van Riemsdyk along with forwards Nick Sorkin and Grayson Dowling all posted 3 points last weekend and will be guys to keep an eye on. UNH coach Dick Umile picked up his 500th win last weekend. Exactly 0 of those have been in important or significant games but still impressive for a guy like that.

Hockey East Pick EM Week 3

We all made picks last week. Some probably wish they hadn't made picks...I'm looking at you Raymundo. Here are the standings through 2 weekends of hockey and our picks for this coming weekend.

GW (6-2) .750
QQ (8-3) .727
MWW (5-3) .625
FM  (6-5)  .545
Hatrick Swayze (3-5) .375
Raymundo (2-6) .250

Week 3
Friday 10/19

BC @ UMass

QQ- BC 3-2. Close game as I am sure that Mullins will be rocking. I'll be pulling for the minutemen but it isn't ideal to be playing BC coming off a loss.
FM - BC 4-2-BC will still be rusty but UMass doesn't have offense or goaltending to compete.  By February this probably would be a 5-1 BC win
HS- NCC 4-2.  The Outhouse on the Hill rebounds from an embarrassing loss at Matthews last weekend after a very motivational prayer service by Jerry York. UMASSholes riot, predictably
Raymundo -BC 4-1
MWW- BC 3-1. BC should win this one
GW - UMass 5-0. Please don't riot, UMass.

St. Lawrence @Maine

QQ- Maine 4-2. They break through with another in the win column over an EZAC school at home.
FM- Maine 3-2 Bears finally get off the schneid
HS- STL 3-2. STL looked shaky splitting a series against #12 W.Mich last week, bailed out by tender Matt Weninger who combined for 69 saves on 75 shots. Assuming he keeps his cool, expect them to top the incestuous Bears on the road.
Raymundo- SLU 2-1
MWW Maine 4-0. Maine is playing at home and I expect a win against a crappy St. Lawrence team.
GW - Maine 3-1. I've got Sullivan as my tendy in Fantasy College Hockey, let's go guy.

Start The Kazmaier Campaign Now--Lefort/Poulin 2013

The Terrier women's hockey team continued their phenomenal roll through a schedule of high-ranked college andprofessional squads with a big W last night in America's most deplorable hockey venue, Matthews Arena against the number 8 ranked (for now) Northleastern Huskies.  Kerrin Sperry earned her BU program record 44th career win (she's only a junior) in the 4-1 romp. 

The real takeaway from this game has to be the continued ridiculous scoring touch of first-line frosh Sarah Lefort who picked up a 6th goal on the season last night and playmaking from her linemates Marie-Philip Poulin (2a for a line of 0-7-7 on the season) and Jill Cardella, who also added a goal and an assist on the night.  With the caliber of numbers BU's stars are putting up on a nightly basis, one has to wonder if they will be able to break past ECAC and WCHA high-profile stars to break into the discussion for college hockey's highest individual honor, the Patty Kazmaier award.  We'll know more if the Terriers can impress in a revenge series against #2 Cornell this weekend.  If the Terriers sweep, they immediately become an odds on favorite for the Frozen Four and begin to look like the one team nationally that can challenge Minnesota for a national title.

Dog Pound Hockey for Dummies

[second installment here: Dog Pound Chants] FAQ: What is the Dog Pound?
We are The Dog Pound. Founded in 1972, we are a group of rabid and passionate fans who support BU's athletic teams.

What does the Dog Pound do?
We show up in droves at Agganis Arena, Case Gym, Nickerson Field, Walter Brown Arena, and anywhere BU is competing, near or far.

What are the goals of the Dog Pound?
Our main objectives are to stand, be loud, go crazy, and have fun while supporting Terrier athletics.

How does the Dog Pound describe success?
2012 longtime BU Head Coach Jack Parker stated "I think they think they help us win, but I don’t think they know how much they help us win." In 2005, CBS College Sports recognized The Dog Pound as the best student section in all of college hockey. The players agree... AS DO OUR ENEMIES.

What are the most important things for the Dog Pound?
That the opposing team knows when they come to play BU, they will be hearing us the whole time.

What does it mean to be in the Dog Pound?
The only requirement for being a member of The Dog Pound is the willingness to show up at games, be loud, and passionately support our Terriers.

_________________________________________________________

New polls..BU continues to climb

The BU Terriers rose one spot in the USCHO.com poll for the second straight week. They now sit at #11 overall after winning in their season opener against PC.  The Terriers continue to climb from their pre-season spot at #13. Here is my breakdown of the rest of the poll.

1. Minnesota(46)- Minnesota is the new number one. They dismantled Michigan State this weekend putting up 12 goals during the two game set. Those wins along with a BC loss leads them to get 46 of the 50 possible first place votes. They should have gotten all of them.
2. North Dakota(1)- Minnesota's chief rival comes in at number 2 by not playing this weekend. That tells you what kind of weekend the top 5 had.
3. BC(2)- I would like to know what morons still voted BC 1 after they got abused by Northeastern Saturday night.
4.Miami- Two wins and they jump up 4 spots
5. Michigan- They lost to RIT at home on Friday, but rebounded on Saturday with a decisive win. Still not a good look to be losing to Atlantic Hockey teams at home as us BU fans learned all too well last October.

BU Women's Hockey Continues Flying Start

While Noonsy and the boys were handling the Friars this weekend our other future 2013 Natty Champs picked up a couple nice OOC wins to keep their record unbeaten on the season against a couple EZAC teams from the gross lovely Albany metropolitan region.  Although in fairness, the ECAC is the ECAC was the second best women's college hockey conference in D1 before Hockey East and Brian Durocher's magical recruiting. 

The weekend started off with a little bit close for comfort win against RPI by a score of 3-2.  2 GA on 17 shots was a little more than we'd like to see get past Kerrin Sperry, but a real balanced attack provided goals from Sarah Lefort and Dakota Woodworth show that we will get great production from our freshmen this year, while Jenelle Kohanchuk represented for the upperclassmen with her own goal in the first.  With two assists each,  Jill Cardella and Kathryn Miller looked like players who will be creating for others quite regularly this season. 

As much as Friday might have shown a team shaking off some rust, the Terriers rebounded Saturday by absolutely crushing Union.   From the net out the Terriers shined, with Sperry only allowing a PPG on 8 shots in two periods of work and Alissa Fromkin putting in a great effort with the game out of hand in the third, only allowing a 5-on-3 PPG despite facing 12 shots in the period.  Again the Terriers showed a very balanced attack, Lefort scoring two more goals as the heir apparent to graduated Jenn Wakefield to go with two from Kayla Tutino and one each from Isabel Menard and Dakota Woodworth.  As the Terrier offense seems to developing into a very lethal weapon, Durocher and Co. can only be excited.  If a team manages to pot 6 goals without needing any from the best player in the country, they can beat any team, any night.  Terrier Nation, be excited about this team.  Anyone with a sports pass who doesn't become a regular at these games is making a huge mistake. 

Cawlidge Hawkey Power Rankings: 10/15/12

Here's the first in a series for the season which probably will go from blogger to blogger between weeks, but here's my take on how the Hockey East teams are shaking out after finally playing some real games.

1.  BU - BS(R)S consensus number one holds serve at home.  If Providence is as good as we think, this could be a sign of good things to come as the offense solidifies and the O'Guires become more confident in the net.

2. Northmostern - Any team that beats Newton CC deserves props in my book, if only temporarily.  Granted at least two goals were soft or fluky, any defense only yielding 1 to the Eaglets has a shot to really make noise in this league.  Merrimack win was nice too

Hockey East Weekend recap

So you can Hatrick Swayze's recap below for a more detailed analysis of the BU 4-2 win over PC last night.  I am going to recap the weekend in Hockey East as there were 3 conference games and the rest of the conference went 4-1 in out of conference games.

UNH sweeps St. Cloud State- UNH got off to a good start to the year taking 2 at home from a decent St. Cloud State team. The good start is a welcome site after last year in which UNH got to a 0-4-0 start and never really recovered from it. BU travels up to the Whitt for a tough road test next Saturday, which should be a great hockey game.

Vermont ties Lowell- This was the upset of the week as Lowell, who was picked by many to finish in the top 2 in the conference, tied Vermont at home.  Vermont has been picked by everyone to finish last in the conference. They proved some fight and took advantage of a less than stellar performance by Lowell.

Providence College Week 1 Recap

And the regular season is finally underway. Last night at Agganis, the Terriers defeated the visiting Friars from Providence College to the tune of 4-2. While we got a preview of the team in last week’s 5-0 beatdown on the boys from America’s Hat, this game was highly anticipated as the first real test of a very young team against a conference opponent.

Ryan Ruikka starting the scoring with a goal from the center point.  Cason Hohmann carried the puck up the boards from the corner of the offensive zone and hit Ruikka with a sweet saucer pass past a lunging PC stick. Ruikka’s high shot from the point at 7:52 into the first period found its way past highly regarded PC freshman goalie Jon Gillies, who couldn’t track the shot through a great Wade Megan screen.

NFL Pick 'Em Week 6

Recently I decided to abbreviate this to something similar we do for college hockey pick 'em. So I am going to do each week the 2 New York teams, the Pats(of course), and 3-4 other big games for that week. Doing each game is too boring esp for those Raiders vs Browns type of games. So as always aiming for perfection. Leggo!:

Colts vs Jets: I want the Colts to go on a tear and win 5-6 games straight for their head coach. Sadly that can start next week. Jets play better this week. Win by a TD.

Cowboys vs Ravens: some smart people on ESPN picked this as a Super Bowl match up. I didnt. Cowgirls suck. Ravens bring the defense this week and win comfortably.

Patriots vs Seahawks: Seahawks have a underrated defense, IMO, but the Pats offense looks too good when they give Welker the rock. Pats win by 2 TDs.

Giants vs 49ers: rematch of the NFC Champ game, should hold to the billing. 49ers will again have an upper hand with Giants from last year on their team plus they are home. Giants win this by a late FG.

Packers vs Texans: I wasnt impressed last week by the Texans. If the Jets could move the ball, the Pack can def move it. Packers will need to play better defense to win this game. I dont think they can. Texans play a smart gameplan and win.

Lions vs Eagles: Lions need this bad and Eagles need this bad too. Both QBs havent been impressive. Need fantasy points, Go Lions!

Preview Week 1 PC @BU, NCAA screws Oksanen

Here we go for the first game of the regular season this year. First off, we have some negative news. According to multiple sources including the Boston Hockey Blog,  Finnish freshman dman Ahti Oksanen has been suspended or forced to "sit out" two games for playing two games with a professional player while in Finland. He was never paid but his teammate was so he is forced to sit out.  The rule is one of the many bullshit rules the NCAA decided to enforce on its players. They haven't had a good week as the NCAA also suspended incoming freshman forward Nic Kerdiles of Wisconsin for interactions with an agent. Kerdiles was suspended for the year however and is most likely heading for the CHL even though he wants to play college hockey,  which is just a shame. The NCAA sucks and needs to get it together before the product on the ice is diminished and disrupted more.

Now, on to the game. BU opens the regular season Saturday night at home against Providence College. Providence finished last season 14-20-4 (10-14-3). They are replacing their goaltender as is BU. PC landed big time recruit Jon Gillies after he decomitted from Northeastern. Gillies will be the starter right away. Their leading returning forwards are Ross Mauremann(10-15), Derek Army(11-11-22), and Tim Schaller. Schaller(14-7-21) led the team in points per game. The defensive corps is lead by senior captain Myles Harvery (7-10-17). Second year coach Nate Leahman has really changed the culture down in PC and it is certainly a program heading in the right direction.

Hockey East Pick Em Week 2

So last week there was 3 games and only 2 of us even made picks so the standings are going to be based on winning pct this year since it is highly unlikely all of us will make picks each week. We will do our best though. Here are the standings thus far and picks for week 2.

QQ(2-1-0) .6667
FM( 0-3-0) .0000
GW(0-0-0)
Raymundo(0-0-0)
HatTrick Swayze(0-0-0)
Mister Worldwide(0-0-0)

BU moves from 13 to 12 in USCHO.com poll

BU has moved up one spot in the USCHO.com poll this week despite only playing an exhibition game this past weekend. They switched spots with Minnesota-Duluth who also didn't play a meaningful game this weekend. This just shows how easily the polls can shift. The only teams who played regular season games made some significant movement in the polls. Merrimack climbed into the polls at #19 due to their win at now #10 Union(dropped from #5). Maine dropped from 15 to 20 due their one goal loss now #18 Quinnipiac. BC remained # 1 overall while Lowell climbed up one spot to #6 due to Union's loss to Merrimack(which I predicted). Here are what the polls look like now:

University of Toronto Recap

The first game recap of the 2012-13 season comes to you from guest blogger and BSRS correspondent HatTrick Swayze. Enjoy...

Well, that was interesting. In a game that most will remember as an absolute circus that certainly got most of the Dog Pound riled up and chanting, there actually were some important things to take away from the 3 hour party that was held on the Agganis ice Sunday afternoon. Let’s break it down by pros, cons and a few words on the FNGs.

NFL Pick 'Em Week 5

Welcome to Mister Worldwide's Pick 'Em. I'll give it another goal to get the week 100% correct. So shall we:

• Mia vs. Cincy: Cincy should prevail. I like the overall feel for this team. Passing game is nice with Dalton and Green. Also the defense is underrated. And Miami just sucks. 
• GB vs. Indy: GB is just too talented to lose away against Luck and the Colts. Expect a big game by Rodgers and Co. 
• Ravens vs. KC: Ravens are my super bowl pick so I obviously going to say they wil every game against lesser opponents. 
• Atlanta vs. Washington: Atlanta looks like the team to beat in the NFC South this year. I expect them to continue their form against RG3 and Co.
• Cleveland vs. NYG: Giants are home. They need this game to right the ship and I expect them to do so.  And Browns just suck.
• Philly vs Steelers: Battle of PA. Steelers should have most of their defense going today. Steelers win and break a Mike Vick rib.
• Seattle vs. Carolina: toss a coin and see what happens. I think the coin says Seattle. They need the game more to stay in touch with the surprising NFC West. 
• Chicago vs. Jacksonville: Chicago should win this game but I don't think so. Jags with an upset. 
• Tenn. vs. Minni: 2-3 years ago this game would be all about Chris Johnson and AP now the focus is on young QBs trying to make a name for themselves. Vikings have better pieces in their team. Viks win by a few. 
• Denver vs. New England: Brady VS Manning. Manning VS Brady.  I DONT CARE. Denver wins.
• Buffalo vs SF: SF made me cry last week when they just destroyed the Jets. SF are ready to put a string of wins together and it continues this week.
• SD vs NOLA: I going with SD. I think NOLA is a big mess and nothing will be done about until next year. Also Congrats to Brees when he breaks the record.
• Houston vs NYJ: Yeah I expect Tebow chants by midway 2nd quater. I also expect a win by the Jets. Jets have always given the Texans fits historically and history does tend to repeat itself.  

PS: I've been surprised I have kept up with this. You should too. 

NCAA Realignment

Recently, University of Notre Dame shifted their major collegiate sports, besides football, from the Big East Conference to the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Accordingly, the Big East had a back up plan and knew of a possible departure. Starting within the next few years, future schools such as Navy, SMU, UCF will be joining the Big East to make up for the departure of other schools (UWV, 'Cuse, UND).

So this had me thinking. Will the shifting in bigger conferences change the dynamic in the smaller conferences? History has said yes and history is repeating itself. Small conferences are losing members to the bigger and better super-conferences (Pac12, Big10, SEC etc.) and/or the intermediate conferences (Big East, Big12 etc.) either to make up for a change in a different realignment conference or have an even number of programs in the league.

University of Toronto Preview: What to watch for

                                            -photo credit to Goterriers.com

The BU hockey season finally kicks off this coming Sunday in an exhibition game against the University of Toronto. Toronto is a Canadian college(duh) that has already begun its pre-season schedule. It currently stands at 1-2 with a win over UOIT(idk who that is) and two losses to York University(Not BC but they still suck if they have that name). They have both of their goalies returning with Brett Willows(8-5-0, .913, 2.99 GAA) and Garrett Sheehan(8-7-0, .914, 2.96). Their leading returning scorer is senior Kyle Ventura who put up 24(15-9) pts in 28 games last season. Toronto will also play Lowell on Saturday so it will be interesting to see how they do against two of the best teams in Hockey East. Their coach is Darren Lowe who has been there since 1995 and that's about all the relevant information we got for you. The opposition seems pretty excited to play here according to goalie Brett Willows on twitter. Here is the tweet in response to us calling him a sieve...

  " excited to see you too... But mostly to play in front of more then 100 fans who actually know what  hockey is"

 Here are some things to keep an eye for BU as guys battle for jobs. There are 14 forwards and 1 BOD fighting for 12 spots up front while 7 dmen and the same BOD fight for playing time as well. 2 freshman goalies along with junior 3rd goalie Anthony Moccia round out the roster. 

USCHO.com pre-season poll released

The USCHO.com pre-season poll was released yesterday and has BU ranked #13 nationally at the beginning of the season. Now this poll means nothing besides to give fans an idea of perception around the country. The meaningful rankings in the pairwise don't come out and mean much until the second half of the season in January and February.  There is almost a Madden-level jinx on the #1 overall in the USCHO poll though. #1 this year happens to be BC. Only one team ever has won the national title after being proclaimed #1 before the season begins. Also, 4 of the last 7 have missed the NCAA tournament all together as BC did in 08-09(what a glorious year). USCHO has a more detailed breakdown of the struggles of number 1 teams since the polls began. Now like I do every Monday during the season, I will give my opinion on other Hockey East teams ranked and select other teams throughout the country.