Hockey East: Where Do They Go From Here?

Of Hockey East’s top 15 scorers in 2010-11, only two - Maine’s Brian Flynn and Spencer Abbott - will be returning to school in the fall of 2011. With a large crop of offensive talent having graduated and the cornerstones of a strong junior class - BC’s Cam Atkinson and Jimmy Hayes and Maine’s Gustav Nyquist among them - cashing in their NHL paychecks (and let’s not forget all-world sophomore Stephane Da Costa from Merrimack, either), the teams that succeed in the conference next year are going to be those who get a lot of production from their youngsters.

The top 25 returning scorers are as follows:

Spencer Abbott, Maine 17-23=40
Brian Flynn, Maine 20-16=36
Alex Chiasson, BU 14-20=34
Ryan Flanigan, Merrimack 16-18=34
Brian Dumoulin, BC 3-30=33
David Vallorani, Lowell 12-19=31
Jesse Todd, Merrimack 17-14=31
Riley Wetmore, Lowell 14-16=30
Mike Collins, Merrimack 14-16=30
Pat Mullane, BC 8-21=29
Daniel Hobbs, UMass 12-16=28
Chris Connolly, BU 10-18=28
Sebastian Stalberg, Vermont 9-19=28
Brodie Reid, Northeastern 11-17=28
Corey Trivino, BU 8-20=28
T.J. Syner, UMass 9-18=27
Karl Stollery, Merrimack 6-21=27
Blake Kessel, UNH 5-22=27
Charlie Coyle, BU 7-19=26
Paul Carey, BC 13-13=26
Stevie Moses, UNH 14-12=26
Adam Clendening, BU, 5-21=26
Michael Pereira, UMass 12-13=25
Sahir Gill, BU 6-19=25
Chris Kreider, BC 11-13=24

By school:
BU (6) 50-117=167
Merrimack (4) 53-69=122
BC (4) 35-77=112
UMass (3) 33-47=80
Maine (2) 37-49=76
Lowell (2) 26-35=61
UNH (2) 19-34=53
Vermont (1) 9-19=28
Northeastern (1) 11-17=28
Providence (0)

Strangely, Northeastern - despite returning only one top-25 scorer - is in some of the best shape of all the schools. Merrimack will be a different team without Da Costa, BC will be a much younger team that will have to work harder to open the ice for guys like Kreider and Mullane, and while BU could be a threat, the way they mailed it in a few weeks ago leaves a lot of question marks.

A look at the total offense each team has lost:

BC (5) 75-93=168
UNH (6) 55-105 = 160
Maine (6) 51-87=138
Merrimack (8) 36-94=130
Northeastern (5) 48-74=122
Providence (7) 34-57=91
Vermont (7) 29-43=72
Lowell (5) 16-24=40
BU (2) 22-21=41
UMass (7) 16-16=32

The picture becomes clearer. Is there any reason why BU shouldn’t walk to a Beanpot and Hockey East title? If there is, it’s either UMass or UNH, two schools which proved that they can get offense from underclassmen without any problem. But the effect of losing players isn’t just felt in points. UNH’s Sislo-DeSimone-Thomspon line was the best the league had last year; Northeastern’s line of Wade MacLeod, Steve Silva and Tyler McNeely was one of the reasons the Huskies had such a strong second half. While BC announced the promotion of Tommy Cross from Assistant Captain to full-fledged team leader earlier this week, both of those teams are losing their captains (UNH, it seems, will name Kessel its captain for 2011-12 sooner than later).

Of course, there’s still time for underclassmen to sign with agents and depart. There are very strong and very talented recruiting classes coming to Vermont, Boston College and UNH - more on those at a later date. There’s the chance that coaching staffs may recognize their offensive deficiencies and change their game to stymie opponents and try to win a bevy of 2-1 games. But that’s hardly par for the course in Hockey East.

BC will still be good. UNH will still be good. Providence will again be awful, as they rebuild from the loss of nearly 50% of their offense and their coach. Lowell should improve under new leadership. UMass, Northeastern and Vermont are the wild cards. BU should be great. Maine will likely slip a bit.

But this is all on paper. The same paper on which Boston College should have thumped Colorado College. The same paper where UNH had no chance against Miami. The same paper where Merrimack couldn’t be ranked in the top-five nationally if everyone else let them six months ago.

That’s the problem with an extended offseason. There’s always too much time to think.

2011 Hockey East Playoffs: Merrimack Looks To Beat BC, Win First Conference Championship

It was a Friday night in late October when Boston College defenseman Tommy Cross got tangled up fending up a Merrimack forward and found himself down on the ice. The result was a sprained knee, which sidelined Cross for two months.

The result of the game - the first of three between Merrimack and BC on the season - was a 3-2 Eagles win. It was the last time that Merrimack - which went 2-1 in the season series against each of the teams that finished above it (BC, New Hampshire and Boston University) in Hockey East - would lose to the Eagles.

Saturday night at TD Garden, Merrimack will play in its first conference championship in its 21 years at the Division-I level, while Boston College has a chance to even the season series and, more importantly, take home its tenth Lou Lamorello Trophy as champion of the Hockey East tournament.

Cam Atkinson leads BC with 4-1=5 totals against Merrimack this season, while Stephane Da Costa leads Merrimack with 1-4=5 totals against the Eagles.

Da Costa, who returned three weeks ago from a knee injury of his own, has re-ignited a Merrimack offense that struggled through five games without him, scoring only ten goals - a far cry from the 5.2 goals per game that they averaged with him in the lineup in 2011.

Meanwhile, Cross has stabilized the blue line for BC, providing a consistent threat to go both ways with an ability to shoot the puck and a fearlessness when it comes to getting deep and working in the cycle with the Eagles’ forwards. His return has been welcomed by John Muse, who - despite owning a school-record 16 postseason wins - has relied on his offense to keep him in games, rather than the other way around.

On the other end, Joe Cannata suffered a few butterflies early in his first-ever appearance at TD Garden Friday night, where he muffed the first puck he saw - a dump attempt that was deflected off a Merrimack stick - and watched it go into the net behind him. The goal was overturned as UNH was ruled offsides, and Cannata only let one puck past him the rest of the night.

The title game will feature two teams that can score at will, but are also very adept at shutting opposing teams down - BC is first overall in scoring offense and defense, while Merrimack sits second in the conference in both categories. They’re one-two on the power play and one-three on the power play, and one-two in special teams overall. Muse and Cannata are first and second in goals against and in wins on the season, and both teams have five players in the top 25 of conference scoring.

It’s fitting that the two most statistically complete teams in the conference are playing one game to decide who hoists the conference trophy. Boston College will go for its seventh straight win on TD Garden ice when they lace up the skates on Saturday, but don’t expect Merrimack’s lack of experience to factor in; the Warriors didn’t look at all like rookies on Saturday night when they played their first game in 13 seasons in Boston.

It’s BC’s game to lose, but they’re up against a team they’ve already lost to twice this season. And perhaps more importantly, a team that doesn’t have any interest in what they should or shouldn’t do, but only what they accomplish.

Hockey East Playoffs: BC Puts Northeastern On Ice, Advances To 6th Final In 7 Years

Northeastern vs. Boston College
BOSTON, MA - Boston College overcame an early deficit, shaky goaltending, some questionable calls and a late charge by Northeastern to advance to their 15th Hockey East championship and their sixth in seventh years.

Senior captain Tyler McNeely opened the scoring for Northeastern at 13:48 of the first period when he knocked a puck into BC’s Joe Whitney and into the Boston College net. The Huskies had numerous chances when John Muse wasn’t able to control rebounds early on, but weren’t able to extend their lead.

Boston College senior Brian Gibbons responded with a goal of his own at 16:05 of the first, and after one the two teams were tied, despite Northeastern having controlled play in the BC end for much of the period.

They weren’t able to sustain the energy in the second, however, as a series of bad penalties led to BC power play goals by Kevin Hayes and Tommy Cross, and a third goal by Steven Whitney, which the sophomore from Reading, MA scored on the backhand, reaching across his body while being taken to the ice by Northeastern’s Jamie Oleksiak. The shot crossed up Huskies netminder Chris Rawlings, who watched the puck soar above his left shoulder.

Rawlings was pulled in favor of Clay Witt after the second period, and Northeastern responded how they’ve always responded in front of the freshman goalie all season long: with vigor and energy. Despite allowing another goal to Pat Mullane, the Huskies drew three Eagles penalties in 3:16. Garrett Vermeersch scored on a 6-on-3 advantage after Greg Cronin pulled Witt for the extra attacker and Wade MacLeod scored his second goal of the game with just 1:03 to play to make it a one-goal game.

BC’s power play finished 3-for-6 on the night, while Northeastern went 2-for-9.

The Huskies weren’t able to get the equalizer, however, and Muse - who stopped 33 shots on the night - earned his school-best 16th postseason win.

Hockey East All-Rookie Team Announced

Hockey East has announced its All-Rookie team, and BU and Northeastern are the big winners. Each school had two student-athletes make the list, while Maine, UMass, BC and Merrimack each had one. Below is the list:


G: Dan Sullivan, Maine (York, Pa.)
D: Anthony Bitetto, Northeastern (Island Park, N.Y.)
D: Adam Clendening, Boston University (Wheatfield, N.Y.)
F: Bill Arnold, Boston College (Needham, Mass.)
F: Charlie Coyle, Boston University (East Weymouth, Mass.)
F: Mike Collins, Merrimack (Boston, Mass.)
F: Michael Pereira, Massachusetts (West Haven, Conn.)
F: Brodie Reid, Northeastern (Delta, B.C.)

Both Pereira and Coyle were unanimous selections.

Northeastern Upsets BU, Hockey East Semi-Finals Set

Northeastern 5 at Boston University 4 - Northeastern wins series, two games to one
BOSTON, MA - Northeastern netminder Chris Rawlings was pulled just six shots into Friday’s 5-2 loss to the Terriers. In the series’ deciding game, he stayed on the ice for the entire game, and helped fend off a late Terrier charge to send BU packing and the Huskies on to the Hockey East semi-finals.

Visiting Northeastern got two goals from Brodie Reid, and Steve Silva, Wade MacLeod and Cody Ferriero also tallied for the Huskies, who needed every goal they got as BU mounted a late charge, scoring twice in the final 1:22 to make it a game.

The third period featured six goals, three of which were scored on the power play and one by MacLeod with an empty net. Matt Nieto, Alex Chiasson, Justin Courtnall and Wade Megan scored for BU, but Rawlings made 31 saves to earn the win.

Northeastern’s power play went 2-for-6, while BU was 3-for-6 with the man advantage.

Things got chippy in the postgame handshake line, and Northeastern’s team had to be escorted off the ice before they could reconcile their differences with BU, who they’d played their last five games against.

With the win, Northeastern will face Boston College in a rematch of the Beanpot championship Friday night at TD Garden in the 5 PM game. UNH and Merrimack will face off at 8.

Northeastern will head to the Hockey East semi-finals for the second time in three years, and will go as the only team needing wins to be ensured a berth in the NCAA tournament.

Hockey East Playoffs: March Sweeps - BC, UNH, Merrimack Advance In Two Games

at Boston College 4, UMass 2 - Boston College wins series, 2 games to zero

CHESTNUT HILL, MA - Thanks to Jimmy Hayes, Boston College has some accessories to add to their 2011 hardware.

Hayes registered a hat trick, scoring first for the Eagles, potting the game-winner and registering an empty-net goal with 23 seconds to go as regular-season champion Boston College swept UMass out of the quarterfinal round of the Hockey East playoffs.

Joe Whitney had the other goal for BC, which advances to the conference semifinals for the seventh straight season. Chase Langeraap opened the scoring for the Minutemen only 21 seconds in, giving UMass hope with its second strong start in as many nights, but it wasn’t to be for Toot Cahoon’s squad.

John Muse made 18 saves to preserve the win for the Eagles, who went 1-for-5 on the man advantage, while UMass wasn’t able to convert on their five man-advantage chances.

at New Hampshire 4, Vermont 3 - UNH wins series, 2 games to zero

DUHRAM, NH - It had been a long two seasons for Dick Umile, whose UNH teams hadn’t advanced past the quarterfinal round of the Hockey East playoffs since 2008. A year after winning the opening game of a series with Vermont before falling 1-0 in the next two, they left nothing to chance.

After UVM’s Ben Albertson opened the scoring at 3:49 of the second period, the Wildcats answered with three straight goals. Austin Block scored on a partially screened breakaway at 17:14, and Stevie Moses tipped Brett Kostolansky’s blast from the right point 42 seconds later to give second-seeded UNH a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.

Paul Thompson extended the lead to 3-1 on a wicked wrister  at 9:06 of the third, but Vermont came back to tie it at three with less than four minutes to go. UNH captain Mike Sislo responded, scoring his 13th goal with exactly three minutes remaining.

Despite going 0-for-8 on the power play, UNH outshot Vermont 39 to 28. The Catamounts were 1-for-4 with the man advantage.

Matt Di Girolamo stopped 25 shots for the win.

at Merrimack 6, Maine 2 - Merrimack wins series, 2 games to zero

ANDOVER, MA - Mark Dennehy’s squad celebrated its second home playoff series the right way this time, skating Maine out of the building as the Warriors advanced to Boston for just the second time in team history.

Carter Madsen recorded a hat trick for Merrimack, which also got goals from Mike Collins, Ryan Flanigan and Jeff Velleca. Flanigan added three assists for his first career four-point night.

Jeff Dimmen and Brian Flynn scored for Maine, which struggled to find an answer for Merrimack’s aggressive forecheck. After not allowing five goals once all season, Dan Sullivan let five pucks past him for the second straight night, before giving way to Shawn Sirman in the third period.

Despite the teams being whistled for a combined 66 penalty minutes, Merrimack had only three power play chances. They converted on one of them, while Maine’s vaunted power play attack was held quiet on their four opportunities.

Joe Cannata made 29 saves to earn the win for Merrimack, which hasn’t played in the Hockey East quarterfinals since 1998.

Home Cooking: All Higher Seeds Win On First Full Night Of Hockey East Playoffs

at Boston College 4, UMass 1

CHESTNUT HILL, MA - Jimmy Hayes showed up at just the right time. After the Minutemen outshot the Hockey East regular season champs 6-1 through the first ten minutes of the game, Hayes beat UMass goaltender Paul Dainton to give the Eagles a 1-0 lead.

They wouldn’t look back.

Cam Atkinson scored his league-leading 28th goal of the year just 14 seconds into the second period, and by the time UMass’ Daniel Hobbs scored a power play goal at 11:52 of the middle frame, the Minutemen were already down 3-0 and BC cruised to a 4-1 victory at Conte Forum. John Muse stopped 26 shots to preserve the win for Boston College, which moved a win away from its seventh straight appearance in the Hockey East semifinals.

Dainton stopped 31 shots for UMass, but it wasn’t enough as Toot Cahoon’s squad couldn’t find the depth to skate with BC or the offense to make up for it.

UMass had eight opportunities with the man advantage, but was only able to convert once. BC went 1-for-6 on the power play.

The Minutemen and Eagles face off at 7 PM Saturday night at Conte Forum with UMass’ season on the line.

at New Hampshire 3, Vermont 1

DURHAM, NH - Stevie Moses nearly registered more shots himself than his entire team did a week earlier, recording 10 attempts on net, and closing the scoring off a beautiful feed from Mike Borisenok early in the third period to cap a 3-1 Wildcats win.

Despite being outshot 14-4 in the first period, UNH took an early lead on Paul Thompson’s 27th goal of the season at 4:23. It seemed as though that might be the game-winner for a long time, as Matt Di Girolamo was superb against a solid Catamounts attack.

The lone Vermont goal came when Sebastian Stalberg - who had a great chance in the first on a wrap-around that Di Girolamo sprawled backwards with his arm over his head to glove away - was able to pry lose a rebound and put the puck between the UNH goaltender’s legs.

UNH was successful on its only power play chance when Phil DeSimone scored the game’s second goal with four seconds remaining in a Dan Lawson tripping penalty. Vermont went 0-for-5 with the man advantage.

Di Girolamo stopped 32 Vermont shots to earn the win in his first career Hockey East playoff game.

UNH and Vermont go at it again Saturday night as the Wildcats look to avenge last season’s early playoff exit when they beat the Cats 7-4 on Friday night but lost successive 1-0 decisions on Saturday and Sunday and were unable to advance in the Hockey East tournament.

at Boston University 5, Northeastern 2

BOSTON, MA - BU spotted Northeastern an early lead when Brodie Reid scored his ninth goal of the year at 3:25 of the first period, but pushed back to even the series and extend their season for at least one more game, winning a 5-2 decision at Agganis Arena.

Joe Pereira tallied twice for the Terriers, including an empty-net goal with just 35 seconds remaining, and Matt Nieto, Kevin Gilroy and Ryan Ruikka added markers for BU, which struggled to find any offense in a 4-2 loss to Northeastern on Thursday night.

Jamie Oleksiak also scored for Northeastern, making it a 3-2 game after two periods, but BU was too much for the Huskies in the third. Clay Witt, who has faced BU in three of the five games that he’s played this season, made 29 saves in relief of Chris Rawlings, who allowed three of the six shots he saw to go by him.

Kieran Millan made 30 saves to earn the win for BU, which needs to at least advance to the Hockey East semifinals to have a chance at playing in the NCAA tournament.

Despite drawing ten Northeastern penalties, BU was only able to convert on one power play. Northeastern went 1-for-7 with the extra man.

The series will pause briefly as Agganis Arena hosts the America East Men’s Basketball Championship on Saturday before resuming Sunday night at 7 PM with both team’s seasons on the line.

at Merrimack 5, Maine 4

ANDOVER, MA - The Black Bears jumped out to a 2-0 lead nearly halfway through the action, and it looked like the Warriors were going to suffer a similar fate to the one they experienced two weeks ago in Orono.

Three unanswered goals later, Merrimack was in charge and held off multiple attempts at a comeback to take a 1-0 series advantage.

Gustav Nyquist scored his 50th career goal for Maine to open the scoring, and added two assists later to finish with three points. Robby Dee scored twice for the Black Bears and added an assist as well.

While Maine held Joe Cucci and Mike Collins pointless on the night, Merrimack found its scoring from lower down the lineup chart. Elliott Sheen scored twice and Ryan Flanigan added a goal and an assist, as the Warriors’ third line contributed three goals and two assists on the night.

Dan Sullivan - who’d been strong in net recently for Maine - gave up five goals on 24 shots. It was the first time Sullivan had given up five goals all season, though he was pulled twice in games in which he gave up three goals in a period.

The Black Bears lost despite going 3-for-5 on the power play and holding Merrimack to only three man-advantage chances, which they converted one of. 

Joe Cannata stopped 20 Maine shots to earn the win.

The series continues Saturday night, presumably with Maine’s season on the line. Saturday’s game will be televised on NESN and starts at 7:30 PM.