official thread of the UNH wildcats

HEfanatic · 10-29-2002, 04:32 PM

i thought i would start a thread dedicated to UNH so that the discussion of the wildcats could have a permanant home and wouldnt take over any other threads. so...UNH fans...what is your opinion so far? i think this weekend will be a true test for the wildcats. maine has some talent and beat vermont 4-0, 4-1 this weekend. these games are important for UNH to win. if they can shut down aarts they will be in good shape.

interestedobserver · 10-29-2002, 05:47 PM

Great idea to start this thread. Forgive my ignorance - what is/are aarts?

HEfanatic · 10-29-2002, 05:50 PM

megan aarts is a forward for maine. her and droog will be the forwards to watch out for on the black bears.

10-29-2002, 06:04 PM

Is that like Martial Aarts?

Da Big Bad Cow · 10-29-2002, 06:04 PM

raffi wolf is back too but it looks like shes playing defense right now.

unh is playing well and hopefully they can keep it going...hopefully vicki davis can get out of the doghouse this weekend and put up a few points..i really liked her game against assabet

HEfanatic · 10-29-2002, 06:07 PM

what is the deal with vikki davis? she had a great game against assabet but McCloskey hasnt gone to her much since then.

Da Big Bad Cow · 10-29-2002, 06:15 PM

it may just be a matter of other players have been scoring so they're getting the ice time right now. mccloskey wants to be more offensive and eventually davis will be a factor in that. but for now, it looks like shes just gonna have to work a little harder than everyone else to climb off the 4th line.

might be a confidence issue. once she gets a couple points maybe she'll settle down and play better.

maybe its none of the above...who knows? its not a lack of talent though, she definitely has a little bit of that.

ClOuD 9 · 10-29-2002, 10:58 PM

Gonna dig out the ol' "Beat Maine" signs they handed out at the Whitt two years ago for this one, maybe return the sieve signs too, figured I wouldn't do it this year as I can only make it to Saturday games as opposed to last year where I was there every game, but it is Maine after all, sure there isn't as much of a rivalry between the womens teams but I hate 'em anyways. Funny thing is last year after one of the Maine games my girlfriend locked herself out of her car so we had to go back in to the Whitt and call AAA and who happened to be using the pay phone, the Maine goaltender. I'm sitting there signs and all and she gets off the phone and I congratulate her on the good game as they won and have the signs turned around as to avoid being pummeled.

uvmcats · 10-29-2002, 11:18 PM

I watched the first Maine-Vermont game which Maine won 4-1. The one attribute Maine had over Vermont was their size. They were hugh comparitively. They were slightly quicker overall but their size emphasized that difference immensely. UVM stayed close for most of the first 2 periods but the size difference beat them down and Maine totally dominated the 3rd period.

HEfanatic · 10-29-2002, 11:35 PM

i dont think maines size will affect UNH as much as it did vermont...however, i do think maine is one of the most underrated teams in womens hockey this year. i think they are going to challenge PC, UNH, and NU for a top spot in hockey east and have the chance to be a real upset team against ECAC competition. they definately have gotten alot better in the past few years and i dont think anyone will take them lightly. UNH will have their hands full

topshelf25 · 10-30-2002, 05:07 PM

I have heard from team members that Vicki Davis has been nursing a reoccuring injury since the beginning of the season. This might account partly for her recent lack of icetime. Hopefully she will be back at full strength soon.

HEfanatic · 11-03-2002, 06:11 PM

well, 2 wins for the wildcats this weekend and the streak continues. i think the cats looked alot better on offense than I expected. the first period of saturdays game was sloppy defensively but it only got better for the cats from there. nice overall effort this weekend. Maine isnt a weak team in the least.

Da Big Bad Cow · 11-03-2002, 07:01 PM

yup..maine had a total of ONE shot on goal in the 3rd period of the two games.

vicki davis also played 5 of 6 periods on a line with lindsay hanson and janine goulet and played significant minutes...hopefully her injury woes have subsided

HEfanatic · 11-03-2002, 07:12 PM

ok...its fair to say now that UNH can beat failry good teams. they beat ohio state twice and maine twice, two teams that will contend with the their leagues best competition. however, this coming weekend is going to be a huge indicator. St.Lawrence is a legitimate top ten team and will have the strongest offense of anybody UNH has seen. We will see how Huggon holds up against a team ranked higher than the cats and whether or not UNHs offense will be able to muster up the goals needed to win these games. Without kristen thomas, not only will UNH's defense have to step up but so will the UNH offense. StL doesnt lose anyone to the 4 nations cup do they?

unh_hockey · 11-03-2002, 07:42 PM

I am not entirely sure about this league, but UNH has two games here vs. princeton in the near future. If I recall, princeton is decent as well. That weekend will also be a good indicator where UNH stands. Their puck movement in the offensive zone , as a whole, improved since assebet. Hopefully they will carry this type of play forward.

HEfanatic · 11-03-2002, 08:37 PM

UNH has struggled against stlawrence in the past. In the past 3 seasons, UNH is 1-5 against the saints. yet, four of the five losses have been one goal losses( two 2-1 losses and two 1-0 losses). the last time the cats beat the saints was in the '99-'00 season. UNH struggled to score against them the past few years. however, the UNH offense has so far this season clicked better than any i have seen for the cats in the past 3 years. st.lawrence this season has tied providence and beaten northeastern by one. i think the cats will have to play extremely well but can take both games if they are on.

as far as princeton is concerned, the tigers are stronger than they have ever been. they have some very offensive defenseman in stewart and holmes and kilbourne is tough to stop up front. i think UNHs home ice advantage will come into play here. the tigers arent used to the larger ice surface of the whitt. if UNH wants to be considered one of the best teams in the counrty they will have to beat the tigers, because princeton is behind a few other teams in the ECAC (at least on paper). i think UNH has the better goalie. this will definately be a great couple of games to watch.

11-03-2002, 09:43 PM

Without Kristen Thomas in the Lineup, it will be tough for UNH this weekend. A Split would be outstanding for the Wildcats

HEfanatic · 11-03-2002, 09:56 PM

i disagree. i think that UNH, unlike other teams, doesnt rely too heavily on one single player. Thomas is an outstanding member of the team but neither the wildcats offense or defense is built around her more than anybody else. she sets up alot of goals because she isnt afraid to shoot the puck from the point but i think that a few other members of UNH on both offense and defense can step up and fill her shoes for the weekend. i think that it would be easier for UNH to win with thomas present but that there is still no reason that they cant contend to take both from st.lawrence. to be content with a split for the cats because thomas isnt there shouldnt be the mentality and i dont think that mccloskey will be content with a split just because thomas is out.

11-04-2002, 02:58 PM

HEFanatic is right on track...

Kristen Thomas is valuable - no doubt about it or she would be with the Wildcats this coming weekend instead of playing for the National Team...

That said, look for Carolyn Gordon, Freshman Vicki Davis, and Captain Annie Fahlenbock to take up the slack in the scoring department while Jen Huggon continues her winning ways between the pipes (4 shutouts in 7 games!!!).

The team wasn't happy with their performance in the second game against Maine yesterday and felt they should have played faster than they did and had a lot more shots on net. They won't let it happen again.

This isn't the Wildcat Team of the past few years! These ladies are happy to play, fast on their feet, and ready to win big!!! They ought to be ranked in the top 5 within a week or two!

11-04-2002, 03:05 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by AnniesFannie

The team wasn't happy with their performance in the second game against Maine yesterday and felt they should have played faster than they did and had a lot more shots on net. They won't let it happen again.

I understand that, but St. Lawrence is LEAPS AND BOUNDS better than Maine. I saw both games this weekend, and Maine hasn't improved that much over the last two years....