I'm Happy Mike And I'm Proud To Be A Terrier

You know what struck me most about the Harvard game yesterday? The fact that this was only really one of the few games this year that I can think of where our Terrier hockey team really failed to put forth a winning effort on the ice. Not to say its the first time they've lost, but compared to last year's team where I really felt that many of the players on the ice were not cut out to be in the jersey they wore, I am immensely proud of how far this young team has come this year.

Think back to this time last year? How did you feel about that team? Disappointed? Frustrated? I know I did. Seeing guys like Kevin Shattenkirk and Vinny Saponari go out on the ice night after night and seemingly not put forth the effort needed to win games was just about as bad a situation as I can imagine the year after a national championship.

This year, even after Monday I feel nothing but optimism and good things about this team. Players like Alex Chiasson have stepped up hugely compared to last year, and others like Joe Pereira, David Warsofsky and Chris Connolly have proven to be much stronger leaders than last year's team possessed. Maybe we're not a tournament team this year. But looking to next year, with almost every player coming back from a team that has shown immense amounts of promise throughout the year and our usual heralded BU recruiting class coming in, I am incredibly excited to see our team take the ice. And make no mistake, this is a team that could make a run in HE and get into the NCAAs. But even if that doesn't happen, I'm still so impressed with this year's team and am proud to be a BU fan. Bravo, men.

Haters gonna hate, but our skaters are gonna go on and skate.

BU Bridge must have had quite the crowd last night...

So our Terriers had a rough weekend out at the Shillelagh tournament in Chicago. The Terriers got thrashed by Brown 6-1 Saturday night. Coach Parker was critical of the team's play as they outshout Brown 42-24 but did not capitalize on any opportunities and could not bounce back after giving up a 2-1 lead early in the second. Kieran Millan had his worst game in net all season and the rest of the team followed. This was a poor effort with no excuses by the team. The team also lost forward Alex Chiasson in the game to a leg contusion that left him barely able to walk Sunday morning. The team also already missed Charlie Coyle who was competing in the World Juniors for Team USA(who got thrashed 4-1 by Canada tonight in the semifinals). Andy Glass was also suspended indefinitely for being late and missing team meetings according to Parker.

They needed to bounce back last night against #12 Notre Dame and they put forward a pretty good effort despite all of the adversity. It was not a perfect night as they gave up the tying goal while on the powerplay. Parker played only three lines with 11 forwards as he dressed 7 defenseman even though MacGregor did not see the ice all night. This lack of bodies seemed to take its toll as the Irish scored two in the third to tie the game. The game ended in a 3-3 tie with ND winning in a shootout which does not count in any rankings or polls. The Terriers got goals by driving hard to the net and tipping shots. These are the little things they did not do Saturday night and why they lost the game along with the difference in goaltending by Millan. I really give Parker and the goalie coach credit for rolling with Millan again because he is the best goalie we got and we need his confidence up for him to play at his best.

BU currently stands #14/15 in the nation and #19 in the pairwise rankings which decide the NCAA tournament pairings. It is also January so it is not a time to panic. I followed the live blog for both games on the Boston Hockey blog and I could not believe the amount of people bashing this team left and right. Are they playing their best hockey right now? Of course not but they just tied the #12 team in the nation with 11 forwards and missing their top 2 forwards arguably. The Terriers travel to Vermont this Sunday with a full team(Coyle returns Thursday, Chiasson should be healthy by then) and look to get a big win in the conference and for their confidence. I am a firm believer that this team will right the ship and end up making the tournament. There are going to be growing pains with a young team and this is one of those times. So don't jump off Bu Bridge just yet. They have a whole three months left of hockey(including the Beanpot to beat those bastards down in Newton) to turn this season around and build up some momentum for a post season run. Keep the faith.