First Half Review- Defensmen and Goalies

Dmen

1. Matt Grzelcyk(2-10-12,15 GP)- The freshman Bruins draft pick has exceeded expectations as he performed extremely well in his first semester of college hockey action. He has settled into a defensive pairing with classmate Ahti Oksanen and they both are seeing plenty of ice time. Both of his goals this year came against BC, which makes it even better. Grzelcyk will miss the Terriers' next game on 12/29 at Denver due to being away at the WJC with team USA. He will be missed for sure but if he helps beat those fraudulent Canadians, it will be worth it.

2. Garrett Noonan(3-7-10, 15 GP)- The freshly appointed assistant captain has had a solid first half for the Terriers even if his goal total is not quite as high as last year. Noonan finished last year with a 16-11-27 line in 38 games. He isn't quite on pace to reach that goal total again but his assists have gone up which is a positive sign. Teams have actually somewhat covered him on the backdoor powerplay this year which was the source of a majority of his goals last season. He has been nothing short of solid defensively He will need to have a solid second half for this team as he is a crucial defenseman and sees large amounts of ice time. He is on a similar pace for penalty minutes from last year. This would be nice to cut down on but penalties happen when you play with as much passion and emotion as he does.

BU Hockey Line Projections Take 1

So posting has been a little slow around here which is typical of the summer months. I figured I would take this chance to take a stab at some new line combination for the coming season. Technically, the recruiting class is not filled and has not been officially announced because Adam Clendening's scholarship has not been officially filled. The 2012 recruiting class as of now looks like this:
Forwards: Sam Kurker(2nd 2012 Stl) , Matt Lane ,Wes Myron(6th 2012 Van), Mike Moran, and Danny O'Regan(5th 2012 SJ).
Defensemen: Matt Grzelcyk(3rd 2012- Bos), TBD(Marc Hetnik?- wouldn't require a scholarship since his father is employed by BU)
Goalies: Sean MaGuire(4th 2012-Pitt), Matthew O'Connor

So now that the incoming class is as established as we could hope here is what I think the lines will look like on opening night vs PC without having seen most of these guys play yet.

1- Nieto-Gill- Cisse  - Cisse is obviously the guy who I have jumping from the 4th line to the 1st so he has to have a big summer  but I think since this is his first healthy summer in 3 summers, he certainly is a guy capable of making this type of jump. Gill seems like the best option at center with his hands and Nieto is the fastest guy in Hockey East and I would expect 40-50 points from him this year.

2 Megan-O'Regan-Kurker  - This line has the captain with two very skilled freshmen who I think can compete in Hockey East right away and will need for success. Megan can make their lives much easier with how hard he drives to the net and opens up space for his linemates.

3 Lane- Hohmann- Myron  -This line could easily include sophomore Evan Rodrigues on right wing depending on how Myron looks in camp along with Lane but I see both of them being successful collegiate players.

4- Courtnall- Rosen-Santana - This is really the only line that is set in stone in my mind. This is going to be the most experienced, grinder line in Hockey East easily. They will give this team depth as they are able to roll 4 lines in important games.
Extra forwards: Evan Rodrigues, Mike Moran,  Matt Ronan, Jake Moscatel,

D-Pairs
1 Noonan- Privitera - This d-pair is going to be a force throughout Hockey East as Privitera had a strong second half minus the wrist injury and Noonan will be all Hockey East first team.
2. Escobedo- MacGregor- Coach Parker usually puts one offensive D and a "stay at home" dman together but I don't see him forcing that this year unless he wants to break up Noonan and Privitera. Escobedo will be one of the most steady dmen in Hockey East this season and I think MacGregor will have a coming out party as an upperclassman(maybe even score a goal...nah).
3. Grzelcyk- Ruikka- This pair will be solid to begin the year as Ruikka is a veteran to help lead Grzelcyk as he gets accustomed to the speed of the college game.

Extra dmen- Marc Hetnik, TBD?

Goalies
1a. Sean MaGuire- These top two goalies are going to split starts fairly regularly until winter break and probably beyond unless one of them separates themselves as the clear starter.
1b. Matt O'Connor
3. Anthony Moccia

BU sweeps UVM, back on track

The BU Terriers improved to 9-0 on the road in 2012 with a pair of wins, 5-0 on Friday and 3-2 OT win Saturday at the University of Vermont. I made the trip up to Burlington for the first time so you all are lucky enough to get a first hand recap of both games. First, on Friday night BU came out flying despite all the haters out there all of last week. The team didn't let the PR problems off the ice affect them on the ice as they beat Vermont 5-0. They broke out after a long review of their first goal which was a wrist shot that hit off a UVM d-man's leg past Madore barely. The review by my favorite referee Bunyon took several minutes but it was eventually ruled a goal. In Bunyon's defense, I was right on the goal line and couldn't tell if the puck fully crossed the line. It apparently was very close as it took the referees several minutes to figure out the call. These reviews make you appreciate the NHL system that much more where one phone call is the whole review. That was Escobedo's first goal of the season. BU poured it on from there as Cason Hohmann scored on a great low wrister that beat Madore 5-hole due to a great screen by Justin Courtnall. Escobedo scored his second of the game during a 5 minute powerplay on a questionable call on UVM. Either way, we will take the call as it put BU up 3-0 heading into the third. Wade Megan added a goal in the third and Courtnall made a great move to fool Madore on a break away. It was great to not only win easily, but also get scoring from some from unusual places. Sahir Gill and Ryan Ruikka added 2 assists each and BU sailed to a win behind senior Grant Rollheiser who made 18 saves for his second career shutout, his first of this season. Rollheiser looked solid throughout the game and had great rebound control and I wouldn't be surprised to see him this Friday on Senior night at Agganis Arena. The highlights from Friday night are below.

On Saturday night, it was a total different hockey game. Kieran Millan was in net for BU and he let in a soft goal early when Connor Brickley beat him five hole. UVM stretched the lead on a powerplay goal by Sebastian Stalberg who beat the whole Terrier defense backdoor. UVM would then play well to finish out the period and keep the 2 goal lead. In the second, the only scoring was Sahir Gill on a spectacular diving goal on the pass from Wade Megan. Gill layed out full extension and pushed the puck past Madore, who played well in his senior night. BU continued to buzz and had a goal called back after it was ruled that a rebound was kicked in the net which was a questionable call at best since it seemed the puck just came out of a scrum in front of the net. I never got a chance to see the replay so maybe I was wrong, but that is highly unlikely. The Terriers continued to play hard into the 3rd but couldn't get one past Madore until the final 2 minutes when Millan was pulled for a 6th skater and Wade Megan banged home a greasy, rebound goal which is what he does best for this team. The goal was Megan's 17th of the year and sent the game to OT even as Sahir Gill hit the post in the waning seconds of regulation. BU kept the momentum going into OT and crushed the UVM crowd's spirit as freshman Alexx Privitera sent a low slapper 5 hole on Madore and completed the gutsy comeback.

This team showed some heart this weekend taking 4 points with all the controversy heading into the weekend including the tough comeback on Senior night. Privitera played outstanding in his first games back from a broke wrist and showed some guts playing through some pain after he blocked a shot on Saturday night. This team continues to battler through adversity and prove they have what it takes to win games. They return home Friday for the final weekend of the regular season for a home and home with Northeastern. I'll get to that tomorrow or Wed though. I will leave you with the updated standings and playoff picture here. BU has clinched the 3rd seed in the conference at worst case and can still win the regular season title with a little help from UVM this weekend. BU needs to gain 2 points on BC this weekend to win the regular season title. BU also reached the 20 win plateau for the first time since 08-09 and are currently sitting 4th in all three polls(Pairwise, USCHO, and USA Today). Sean Escobedo, Sahir Gill, Grant Rollheiser, and Alexx Privitera were all named Hockey East Top Performers which is great to see heading into the playoffs. Alex Chiasson was also recognized for playing his 100th game as a Terrier. Chiasson seems to be the emotional leader of the team right now in what could be his last season if he turns pro, which seems likely at this point. He set up the game-tying goal Saturday night so be sure to recognize Chiasson on senior night as well as he is also most likely playing his last home regular season game for the Terriers.

P.S. if you're not going to the game Friday night for the return of Vinny Sap to Agganis and Senior night then you have no life and no friends. That is all.

BU Hockey Notes, Past and Present

Former Terrier Colin Wilson scored his first goal of the year last night, as his Nashville Predators edged the defending NHL champion Chicago Blackhawks 3-2. Wilson is starting this season up with the big club, after being sent down to the AHL for the majority of last year...


Another former Terrier standout, Nick Bonino, suffered a mild concussion last friday night while skating for the Syracuse Crunch (the Ducks AHL affiliate). Bonino skated in practice yesterday, and says he will be ready to play in their game on Friday...

College Hockey News awarded  BU it's "Team of the Week" award following the Terriers victories this past weekend. Click the link to read the article, including quotes from Coach Parker...

As part of their "Get to Know..." series, the Lake Erie Monsters website posted a quick interview with former Terrier defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk. Shattenkirk tallied the winning shootout goal for the Monsters last Friday night against Bonino's Syracuse squad. If you ever wanted to know what junk food he likes most, here's your chance...

Another former Terrier and Hobey Baker award winner Matt Gilroy has yet to log any ice time this year with the New York Rangers, being edged out of playing time by a few rookie defenseman. Gilroy spent all but a few games with the Rangers last season, as he was demoted to the AHL partway through the season and then shortly brought back up...

Nesn.com recently posted an article about this season's BU men's hockey team, noting the importance of the leadership of its captains - Pereira, Connolly, and Warsofsky...

The BU Athletics youtube account posted the postgame interview of junior David Warsofsky and sophomore Sean Escobedo, both blueliners, following BU's victory over Notre Dame last Sunday...


If any of you are fans of BU women's hockey, or just want to see a nationally ranked women's team play some good solid hockey, make your way over to BU's Walter Brown Arena tomorrow night or Saturday afternoon to see our Lady Terriers take on Wayne State. It's free for students and very cheap for non-students. This year's team figures to build upon last year's NCAA tournament run and Hockey East Championship. They are led by head coach (and former BU men's player) Brian Durocher...