UNH Wildcats 2017-2018 Season - The Quest Continues

[Snively65]

Personally I felt that Chris Miller was one of the few Wildcats who played a decent game both nights. Good for him for getting that acknowledgement. A bright spot on what was pretty much a dismal weekend for the 'Cats. Right now anything is better than nothing. Go 'Cats!

Agree on Chris Miller. But, two putrid weekends in a row for most on the first two lines. How does Fregona continue to sit on the pine while Salvaggio, McNickolas, Nazarian, Eiserman, and especially Vela continue to stink?

[Chuck Murray]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2017-2018 Season - The Quest Continues

Two themes tend to emerge at times like these:

* If you can't spot (and beat) the cupcakes on your schedule, then YOU are the cupcake; and
* When a team is circling the drain, the kids sitting up in the stands look better and better by default

I'm still trying to wrap my head around 4 straight losses to Army, Merrimack, Dartmouth and Yale.

I want to say that Brown (5-7-1) at home should be a gimme. It suddenly feels like anything but ...

[Snively65]

Two themes tend to emerge at times like these:

* If you can't spot (and beat) the cupcakes on your schedule, then YOU are the cupcake; and
* When a team is circling the drain, the kids sitting up in the stands look better and better by default

I'm still trying to wrap my head around 4 straight losses to Army, Merrimack, Dartmouth and Yale.

I want to say that Brown (5-7-1) at home should be a gimme. It suddenly feels like anything but ...

And, I was so sure that Brown would be the NRN, I was willing to buy all of you a round at Libby's. What a jinx I am. Happy New Year, everyone. We will need it!

[Chuck Murray]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2017-2018 Season - The Quest Continues

First of all, a happy and healthy New Year 2018 to all of you and your families. To say your perennial former "Champions of December" spit the proverbial bit down the stretch during Cupcake-a-Palooza on both sides of the winter break would be an understatement, and the rampant enthusiasm that had gripped this thread (and the UNH Hockey universe beyond USCHO) has virtually evaporated, as our weary fan base turns its lonely eyes towards Head Coach In Waiting Mike Souza. The March has officially returned to the uncertainty of a Quest, which was probably fitting all along. The Long Goodbye Tour lurches forward again this weekend, but the bandwagon that was forming a few short weeks ago has emptied quickly, as WIS presents its latest prognostications in this latest "We Can't Really Lose to Brown This Weekend - Can We?" edition of "Umile's Last Stand - The _____ for 600".

"Umile's Last Stand - The Quest for 600"

Coach Umile's current career wins total: 595
Wins Remaining to NRN (Next Round Number): 5
Games Remaining (plus 2 min. MBPBEGAM games): 17
Win Pct. Required to Hit Target: 29.4%
WIS Estimated Likelihood of Success: 70%
2017/2018 Cupcake Conversion Ratio (CCR): 5/11 (45.5%)

To describe this past weekend in UNH Hockey as anything but a full-blown flustercuck would be disingenuous and naïve. Maybe we can try to create some arguments about how "unlucky" UNH was to be facing an in-state rival on their home ice after they'd toppled the D-1 defending champs before the break (as did recent cupcake slip-up Merrimack this past weekend, I believe). I'm thinking back over my decades of fandom of the UNH program, and I can't ever remember a UNH squad losing four straight to such a weak collection of teams. And now, with the historically creamiest of the crème-filled confections on their way to Durham for this coming weekend, it suddenly seems that even shoe-ins like this one can't be taken for granted. And with Coach Souza apparently attempting to revive the Axis powers with his recent recruiting strategy, WIS must point out that at least a couple of Souza's former Brownie recruits are likely still skating for his former program. So the possibility that these kids might find some extra motivation won't make things any easier for Souza's mentor and current boss this weekend, who has now suddenly and unexpectedly been tossed back into a white-knuckle thrill ride to reach the NRN.

Looking at the big picture ... WIS' panel of experts projected in the preseason that Coach Umile's Wildcats would amass at least 10 wins in the opening 19 game stretch of the season through completion of the Ledyard Bank Classic, before we turn the calendar into 2018. That prediction - which seemed to be a lead pipe cinch just four games ago - now lies in tatters by the roadside, a casualty of the downturn in performances by the overrated 'Cats, who can now be expected to deservedly fall entirely out of the Top 20 in the polls. A win over Brown this coming weekend would leave UNH a game late and a dollar short of what was deemed baseline preseason expectations with the WIS panel here in Effingwoods. The WIS panel's meeting last evening saw decisive action taken. and a unanimous downgrade of the outlook for the NRN to a Quest, signaling a return to great uncertainty for a happy ending. Mind you, we still see the NRN being attained, but chances for an unsuccessful fate more than doubled after this past weekend. Here is the prediction for this coming weekend:

Prediction:

Saturday: UNH 3 Brown 3

NEXT CUPCAKE ON THE SHELF: 1/26/18 v. UConn

WIS CONTEST - GUESS THE DATE COACH HITS THE NRN!!!

So here is the final qualifying list of the NRN predictions. Winner buys the first round at Libby's on date/time TBD. HR or another suitably qualified candidate will be inviting the GOH to the event (while WIS runs for cover ):

1/06/18 vs. Brown @ home: Snively65, HockeyRef
1/12/18 vs. BU @ home: phb, e.cat
1/19/18 vs. UMaine @ Alfond: Dan, deltabravo, Nifty16
---------------------------------------------------------------
1/20/18 vs. UMaine @ Alfond: After the Whistle, Scott, scoreboard, Darius
1/26/18 vs. UConn @ home: Aerman
2/03/18 vs. UMass @ home: WIS

Three more of our contestants are off the hook for the *victory* in our NRN contest, with 4 more now totally dependent upon a now seemingly impossible run of 5 straight W's to remain alive in the contest. The earliest date now for the magical event to be taking place is mid-January at Alfond Arena. I was liking Aerman's prediction the best until this past weekend, but now I'm starting to really like my own prediction, knowing full well that even that conservative pick could turn out to be wildly optimistic as well. I'm still praying (in a realistic, we're not going to sweep our games before then) way that it works out so we can all enjoy the plethora of empty platitudes that would no doubt be flowing from that Eddie Haskell Luce Canaan character behind the UConn bench for the big NRN occasion.

We've also added a new "watch" to the collection here, which was brought to the fore by Dan regarding the prospects of Patrick Grasso's potentially lost season, and the chances he'll be allowed a "medical redshirt". We'll revisit the specifics as we get closer to the end of the regular season, but in short, it appears a minimum of six (6) post-season games will be necessary for Grasso's 2017/2018 season not to become a total loss. So the Grasso Red Shirt Number (GRSN) sits at a 40 game UNH slate. The WIS panel sets Grasso's chances of following in the career path of the great Tommy Nolan to be Slight. We'll revisit this assessment periodically as things progress.

GO UNH - GOT TO GET THE GOODBYE TOUR TO THE GAHDEN!!!

[Darius]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2017-2018 Season - The Quest Continues

Personally I felt that Chris Miller was one of the few Wildcats who played a decent game both nights. Good for him for getting that acknowledgement. A bright spot on what was pretty much a dismal weekend for the 'Cats. Right now anything is better than nothing. Go 'Cats!

The 2018 UNH wall calendar January picture is shot from behind the players as they charge onto the Whitt ice behind the UNH flag. The player in the foreground of the shot? Chris Miller. Happy New Year!

[HockeyRef]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2017-2018 Season - The Quest Continues

And, I was so sure that Brown would be the NRN, I was willing to buy all of you a round at Libby's. What a jinx I am. Happy New Year, everyone. We will need it!

Hey you still can....we need it! I'll be there with a school friend on Saturday. Maybe see you there?

[Snively65]

Hey you still can....we need it! I'll be there with a school friend on Saturday. Maybe see you there?

Hope to be back by this coming weekend, if the roads are snow- and ice-free. But, decisions, decisions. Do I visit the verable Matthews Arena on Saturday night, home of the Boston Bruins in 1924, where Bentley plays the second half of their home and home, after a nearly four-week layoff? Or, do I brave the longer drive to Durham from west of Rte 125?

Now, for some advanced metrics, of questionable relevance, in early December, Bentley, in back-to-back games (four nights apart), beat the Brown Bears 3-1 and the Dartmouth Big Green 6-1 in their barns. You can complete my drift here.

[HockeyRef]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2017-2018 Season - The Quest Continues

Hope to be back by this coming weekend, if the roads are snow- and ice-free. But, decisions, decisions. Do I visit the verable Matthews Arena on Saturday night, home of the Boston Bruins in 1924, where Bentley plays the second half of their home and home, after a nearly four-week layoff? Or, do I brave the longer drive to Durham from west of Rte 125?

Now, for some advanced metrics, of questionable relevance, in early December, Bentley, in back-to-back games (four nights apart), beat the Brown Bears 3-1 and the Dartmouth Big Green 6-1 in their barns. You can complete my drift here.

ok, see you another time then...catching your drift! The next weekend for the 'Cats is BU Friday (which is a hard drive if you are South) and BC on Sunday. We are going to the BC game as I mentioned and ONLY because we got free tix and parking pass from a friend who is a STH and can't go...At any rate, sounds like Bentley is on a decent path while our 'Cats struggle to find...something.

[HockeyRef]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2017-2018 Season - The Quest Continues

UNH Alum Bobby Butler named to USA Men's Ice Hockey Olympic Team:

https://www.sbnation.com/nhl/2018/1/...nta-troy-terry

[HockeyRef]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2017-2018 Season - The Quest Continues

Interesting concept to chew on as we wait for the next installment of UNH hockey. I did a search about losing streaks, just for fun. Though this was an interesting paragraph if anyone wants to discuss it:

Your team probably isn't as good as you think it is when it is it winning seven games in a row and getting every possible break to go its way, and it's not as bad as you think it is when it's losing five out of six and not getting any breaks.
Don't become a prisoner of the moment.

As a fan it's easy to become a prisoner of the moment, teams too! When you are winning games you think that's what you are going to keep on doing. You don't realize there is REAL work to be done because at the time... It just seems so easy. You left behind the thrill of the first couple when you actually had to grind it out and play your best. Yet THAT is when you have to really push yourself because you have become a TARGET other teams want to take down. When you are losing games you think you are going to continue to lose (which is why some of us might be wary of the Brown game. Hey, no more cupcake talk, ya hear???)

I knew if Yale scored first that we would go on to lose the game because as anyone who has ever coached during a losing streak this only confirms what the team is already thinking. They are playing not to lose, but they aren't playing to WIN either. Nothing good ever comes from this type of approach. Recipe for disaster in fact! And one constant to remember is that ' you are never as good' or are 'never as bad' as you think you are. So....what/how do you coach this team this week? Business as usual? Somebody has to STEP UP on that team. That's what I'm telling them. Who is going to STEP UP and give it a full 60? Fascinating, this coaching stuff; sometimes I wonder why I left it...(I have many reasons). Link for above quote:

https://www.cbssports.com/nhl/news/a...-teams-go-bad/

Ps. I do have to remind myself that UNH has young players in key positions getting a ton of minutes. But those who are veterans need to really lead the way. They have to be the ones to step up.

[Snively65]

Interesting concept to chew on as we wait for the next installment of UNH hockey. I did a search about losing streaks, just for fun. Though this was an interesting paragraph if anyone wants to discuss it:

Your team probably isn't as good as you think it is when it is it winning seven games in a row and getting every possible break to go its way, and it's not as bad as you think it is when it's losing five out of six and not getting any breaks.
Don't become a prisoner of the moment.

As a fan it's easy to become a prisoner of the moment, teams too! When you are winning games you think that's what you are going to keep on doing. You don't realize there is REAL work to be done because at the time... It just seems so easy. You left behind the thrill of the first couple when you actually had to grind it out and play your best. Yet THAT is when you have to really push yourself because you have become a TARGET other teams want to take down. When you are losing games you think you are going to continue to lose (which is why some of us might be wary of the Brown game. Hey, no more cupcake talk, ya hear???)

I knew if Yale scored first that we would go on to lose the game because as anyone who has ever coached during a losing streak this only confirms what the team is already thinking. They are playing not to lose, but they aren't playing to WIN either. Nothing good ever comes from this type of approach. Recipe for disaster in fact! And one constant to remember is that ' you are never as good' or are 'never as bad' as you think you are. So....what/how do you coach this team this week? Business as usual? Somebody has to STEP UP on that team. That's what I'm telling them. Who is going to STEP UP and give it a full 60? Fascinating, this coaching stuff; sometimes I wonder why I left it...(I have many reasons). Link for above quote:

https://www.cbssports.com/nhl/news/a...-teams-go-bad/

Ps. I do have to remind myself that UNH has young players in key positions getting a ton of minutes. But those who are veterans need to really lead the way. They have to be the ones to step up.

Whatever, HR, but Brown Bears = Cupcake, with capital C. :-)

I hope that we do not need to post Dennis Green's rant after this game.

[HockeyRef]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2017-2018 Season - The Quest Continues

Whatever, HR, but Brown Bears = Cupcake, with capital C. :-)

I hope that we do not need to post Dennis Green's rant after this game.

Yeah, they do fit that analogy I suppose! Wonder how the USCHO HE team will see us this weekend; if we get a split from them I'd be surprised. UNH has to bury this cupcake then. That's what I'm expecting. Go 'Cats!

Ps...who is Dennis Green?

[Lemonade]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2017-2018 Season - The Quest Continues

At this point in the season I am a little surprised at being 9-9-1. I think we caught a few times on rough nights - but that happens. Lets not forget that most prognasticators had them at the bottom of the HE standings before the season and thats probably where they will end up.

[Felger]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2017-2018 Season - The Quest Continues

Ps...who is Dennis Green?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWmQbk5h86w

[HockeyRef]

Re: UNH Wildcats 2017-2018 Season - The Quest Continues

Matias Cleland joins Matt Willows in Reading:

https://royalshockey.com/cleland-joi...ronto-marlies/