UNH Wildcats 2019/2020 Ready to Rock and Roll!!

[HockeyRef]

Nice snipe by Crookshank...liking what I'm seeing from the Frosh..

[Dan]

2-2 after two, shots 20-17 New Hampshire...

* Guelph: Valentine (Stevens, Lemcke) - defense backs in giving clear shot on goal
* UNH: Crookshank, 2 (Pierson, Dawson) - odd man rush
* Guelph: Stevens (Munn, Finoro) - tip on top of crease

* UNH 1/1 PK (3/3 Game)
* Robinson 5 saves, 1 GA (14 saves, 1 GA for game)
* Taylor 1 save, 1 GA
* UNH 12-8 shot advantage in second period

---

* Maine loses 5-0 (0-2, outscored 12-0) on the weekend...
* Miami trails #17 BGSU, 2-1, surrendering two unanswered goals after opening the scoring...

[Dan]

After 3, 4-3 UNH...

* UNH PP: Blackburn (Griffin, Maass)
* UNH: Blackburn (MacKinnon, Crookshank) - rushes in and across net front with great patience...
* Guelph: Aagaard (Templeton) - walks alone to front...

* UNH outshoots Guelph 17-6 (38-23 for the game)
* Taylor 5 saves, 1 goal against (6/2)
* UNH 1/2 on PP (2/3)
* UNH 1/1 on PK (4/4)
* Herrman ejected for Facemasking (second ejection for UNH)

A pretty unremarkable game and just a so-so effort five-on-five, but UNH was great on special teams killing all four penalties against and finishing 2/3 on the PP. Blackburn scores just after the expiration of the third PP as well. Good to see two guys UNH will need to score goals potting four on the night - two a piece. Typical Canadian exhibition with lots of penalties and three total ejections though it didn’t seem unnecessarily dirty except for a few specific occasions...

Hard to fault UNH goaltenders for any goals against even though Taylor’s SPCT won’t look great. All three goals against featured guys left alone or far too much time and space. Plenty to be pleased with. Plenty to clean up.

---

* Miami falls 7-4 to #17 BGSU

[HockeyRef]

After 3, 4-3 UNH...

* UNH PP: Blackburn (Griffin, Maass)
* UNH: Blackburn (MacKinnon, Crookshank) - rushes in and across net front with great patience...
* Guelph: Aagaard (Templeton) - walks alone to front...

* UNH outshoots Guelph 17-6 (38-23 for the game)
* Taylor 5 saves, 1 goal against (6/2)
* UNH 1/2 on PP (2/3)
* UNH 1/1 on PK (4/4)
* Herrman ejected for Facemasking (second ejection for UNH)

A pretty unremarkable game and just a so-so effort five-on-five, but UNH was great on special teams killing all four penalties against and finishing 2/3 on the PP. Blackburn scores just after the expiration of the third PP as well. Good to see two guys UNH will need to score goals potting four on the night - two a piece. Typical Canadian exhibition with lots of penalties and three total ejections though it didn’t seem unnecessarily dirty except for a few specific occasions...

Hard to fault UNH goaltenders for any goals against even though Taylor’s SPCT won’t look great. All three goals against featured guys left alone or far too much time and space. Plenty to be pleased with. Plenty to clean up.

---

* Miami falls 7-4 to #17 BGSU

Thanks for the reflection of the game Dan..Despite some of the messy stuff (and no Gildon) I think we mixed it up fairly well. Off to Miami!!!

[Snively65]

Good to hear that the Cats did not suffer any season-ending injuries. Whassup with Gildon?

[HockeyRef]

Good to hear that the Cats did not suffer any season-ending injuries. Whassup with Gildon?

word is he had been in a 'no contact' jersey in practice...perhaps they didn't want him out there anticipating rough play? Sato also did not dress. Hopefully a precaution and he's back on the ice this weekend...

[Krog Pond]

I was impressed by the play of both Sweeds last night. Engaras is going to be a legit center for UNH once he comes back from sitting out. Eriksson moves the puck and skated very well and seemed very poised and confident handling the puck. Freshman play that impressed included Stevenson, Griffin, and Herrmann. Seeing Herrmann get into the physical altercation in front of the net was a great sign that although a freshman he’s not afraid to get physical, something I feel UNH has lacked. His offensive time was limited but seemed as if he has more in the tank than what he showed last night. I Would have loved to see MacAdams play more. Not entirely sure on the 5 min and Game call. Didn’t seem too terrible of a hit. From a viewing standpoint I was not impressed with the amount of stoppages/long delays for replay and shoveling snow in the middle of the periods. Seems if this stays true for the season it will be hard to cary any momentum and flow throughout the game. PS what the hell is facemasking?

[HockeyRef]

I was impressed by the play of both Sweeds last night. Engaras is going to be a legit center for UNH once he comes back from sitting out. Eriksson moves the puck and skated very well and seemed very poised and confident handling the puck. Freshman play that impressed included Stevenson, Griffin, and Herrmann. Seeing Herrmann get into the physical altercation in front of the net was a great sign that although a freshman he’s not afraid to get physical, something I feel UNH has lacked. His offensive time was limited but seemed as if he has more in the tank than what he showed last night. I Would have loved to see MacAdams play more. Not entirely sure on the 5 min and Game call. Didn’t seem too terrible of a hit. From a viewing standpoint I was not impressed with the amount of stoppages/long delays for replay and shoveling snow in the middle of the periods. Seems if this stays true for the season it will be hard to cary any momentum and flow throughout the game. PS what the hell is facemasking?

Great post! Facemasking? Grabbing the facemask? Really didn't think Eric needed to be tossed but maybe they were trying to make a point. Lots of time in the box for both teams. Holding was certainly a call they didn't wanna make all night that's for sure but guess that was the least of their issues. Grateful no one got hurt as these games are always a concern.

Couldn't agree more about the play of Engaras and Eriksson!!! They made a difference and can't wait til Filip is on the ice. He's a top liner if you ask me but I can see him centering the second line as well. What did we think of the Grasso/Pierson/Kelleher line? As you said the Frosh showed some good stuff.

I do have a question; what is the "womans hockey blue line club"? I noticed a flag up next to the HE teams in the rafters. I had the impression all the 'clubs' have gone by the wayside? Just curious.

Two great goals for Blackburn and Crookshank; both need to have a big year that' s all there is to it. Loved LB's second goal; what a beauty of a deke and top shelf.

[Aerman]

I was less impressed with Hermann as I thought he looked lost and was iffy skating, McIlhaney as well. But I agree on the physicality - need some of that. That segues to my concern about last night’s first line. By our current standards they’re pretty good, but awfully small. Sometimes you can pull that off, but these guys aren’t Haydar, Collins and Saviano. If they are kept together they will need a lot of help from other lines to ensure they don’t draw all of the attention of their opponents - which they got last night from Blackburn’s line. Maybe that’s the “real” first line?
Thought Wyse and Maass looked good, McKinnon pretty good. Verrier looked like he took the summer off mentally and needs to get back into it. Is Dawson an eighth year senior? 😉. Seems like he’s been around forever.
Some of the freshmen looked fun and Robinson looked pretty solid, Taylor seemed a bit shaky at times.
I was hoping the boys might pull away late as the Griffins (your mascot’s not REAL) started the game with 16 skaters and lost two along the way. No such luck.
And finally - the are a lot of “-sons” on this team.
On to Miami - beat those Dolphins!

[Krog Pond]

Grasso Pierson and Kelleher line is too small in my opinion. Yes we have had guys in this category before but never that small for an entire line. Saviano, Collins, Mickflicker always had guys like Martz, Aikens, Hemingway, Fornataro, Winnik out there with them. All night I was thinking please don’t break, please don’t get hurt, please don’t die every time they were getting into the physical action. Never know what those Canadians have up there sleeve. All those Guelph players have played real hockey, ECHL, AHL, OHL, QMJHL and have a chip on there shoulder as their former teammates are getting paid in the show. Crazy thing about Engras is he hasn’t seen game action in over a year and he looked that good. Give him a few games to get his legs back and he will be something special. Crookshank was the best player on the ice by far all game. That kid is skilled. Blackburn looked good but was non existent early on maybe needed to wake up from a Sunday afternoon nap just like the refs. Agree on the goaltender situation. Robinson looked good. Taylor looked a bit nervous and out of position at times. 1st goal against Taylor was on a tip, second goal Taylor went down too early. And gave up the upper portion of the net. More of a lack of game action type goal than anything too concerning. In other notes it looks like our friends from Orono will be in for a long season as Umaine had a rough weekend. 0 goals for 12 goals against all weekend.....

[Snively65]

Grasso Pierson and Kelleher line is too small in my opinion. Yes we have had guys in this category before but never that small for an entire line. Saviano, Collins, Mickflicker always had guys like Martz, Aikens, Hemingway, Fornataro, Winnik out there with them. All night I was thinking please don’t break, please don’t get hurt, please don’t die every time they were getting into the physical action. Never know what those Canadians have up there sleeve. All those Guelph players have played real hockey, ECHL, AHL, OHL, QMJHL and have a chip on there shoulder as their former teammates are getting paid in the show. Crazy thing about Engras is he hasn’t seen game action in over a year and he looked that good. Give him a few games to get his legs back and he will be something special. Crookshank was the best player on the ice by far all game. That kid is skilled. Blackburn looked good but was non existent early on maybe needed to wake up from a Sunday afternoon nap just like the refs. Agree on the goaltender situation. Robinson looked good. Taylor looked a bit nervous and out of position at times. 1st goal against Taylor was on a tip, second goal Taylor went down too early. And gave up the upper portion of the net. More of a lack of game action type goal than anything too concerning. In other notes it looks like our friends from Orono will be in for a long season as Umaine had a rough weekend. 0 goals for 12 goals against all weekend.....

I think that the Orono and Burlington season threads are much harsher on their coaches than our threads ever were with Umile a few years ago.

[Darius]

...Is Dawson an eighth year senior? 😉. Seems like he’s been around forever. ..

Grasso as a Junior on the roster. What is he? On the Blutarsky plan? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjIH1jdx2_A

[New Hampshire 'Cats Fan]

Who is headed to Miami next weekend? I just got a hall pass for Friday night so I am thinking of shooting up there for the night and returning Saturday morning...

I'll be there both nights!

[Darius]

I do have a question; what is the "womans hockey blue line club"? I noticed a flag up next to the HE teams in the rafters. I had the impression all the 'clubs' have gone by the wayside? Just curious.

The UNH 'Cat Club is alive and well. The web site links to UNH Athletics and giving pages. https://www.unhcatclubfootball.com/

Did anyone else receive Marty's October 2 letter explaining the men's hockey donor benefits program?

[deltabravo62]

I was trying to watch individual players in the game as it was going on, so I'll bring a few observations to the table. Players I will be leaving out would be what I consider "as advertised and observed" (See: Blackburn, Crookshank, Robinson, Wyse, Maass, etc.)

Grasso: For the first time since his injury I felt he looked comfortable and confident out there, we saw flashes of it last year but never in a consistent manner which is what I am hoping for going forward. I agree that the first line may need to see some adjustment regarding size and matchups but PG was finding his way to space and getting some good shots and looks out there. Perhaps fully recovered with a new leadership role will push him back into that early freshman form that we saw even with more focus on him from the opposition.

Engaras: Filip looked ready to step in and make some people notice him out there. Still some of the early adjustments will be needed to be truly game ready but easily our #2/#3 center depending on how the lines shake out. With the ever looming possibility of injuries to guys above him there may be chances for him to slide up the chart after he gets into the action in mid November. I look for him to use this season as preparation for a (hopefully) strong 2 season run in the UNH top 6.

Taylor: There was a small sample size ad he did not see a lot of shots in the game. I'm still trying to figure out if my interpretation of his body language in net is just his style or not but something just looks off. I guess maybe I was looking for him to have adjusted a bit after his struggles last year and I'm going to keep watching as time goes on. I hope to see him get a solid 8-10 starts this season and get more comfortable in the net than what we saw last year. I hope we get to see a split in net out in Miami to see both of our goaltenders in game action early.

Our newcomers looked good, nothing really stood out aside from the physicality mentioned and it will be good to see some get ice time and develop throughout the season. I don't see a lot of offensive juggernauts in this class but if they can put in 5-10 goals it will be a good depth group. Our defense this season will not be in need of the new guys being exceptional out of the gate either. The new guys will have the time to learn the speed and systems at this level and will (hopefully) be better for it in the long term. It is a good feeling as a fan to not have to rely on stellar freshman efforts to determine the outcome of the season.

I can see this team getting into 5th/6th in Hockey East this season. Top 4 would be great but I think that might be a stretch for this season. I think there is a good amount of optimism and I'm liking the recruiting classes going beyond this year as well.

[HockeyRef]

The UNH 'Cat Club is alive and well. The web site links to UNH Athletics and giving pages. https://www.unhcatclubfootball.com/

Did anyone else receive Marty's October 2 letter explaining the men's hockey donor benefits program?

Yes, I did...I wondered if my contribution to the 603 drive this summer went into that hahaha. I'd love to give more money to get more thingies but, going to Ireland and just about every other game on the planet will have to suffice. Maybe I'll throw another C note into the mix; gets me a one time blurb on the 'tron...

[Darius]

Yes, I did...I wondered if my contribution to the 603 drive this summer went into that hahaha. I'd love to give more money to get more thingies but, going to Ireland and just about every other game on the planet will have to suffice. Maybe I'll throw another C note into the mix; gets me a one time blurb on the 'tron...

The giving fiscal year ends on June 30. It will be interesting to see if benefits for those who donated during the 603 Challenge apply to this hockey season. I suspect not, but don't know.

[C-H-C]

@THNRyanKennedy's top 100 players in the college circuit in 2019-20 includes @bentonmaass11 #51, @GildonMax #62 & @mike32robinson #87 of @UNHMHOCKEY https://t.co/aOqD6aj5YG

— Mike Lowry (@UNHHockeyBlog) October 9, 2019

[Snively65]

I was trying to watch individual players in the game as it was going on, so I'll bring a few observations to the table. Players I will be leaving out would be what I consider "as advertised and observed" (See: Blackburn, Crookshank, Robinson, Wyse, Maass, etc.)

Grasso: For the first time since his injury I felt he looked comfortable and confident out there, we saw flashes of it last year but never in a consistent manner which is what I am hoping for going forward. I agree that the first line may need to see some adjustment regarding size and matchups but PG was finding his way to space and getting some good shots and looks out there. Perhaps fully recovered with a new leadership role will push him back into that early freshman form that we saw even with more focus on him from the opposition.

Engaras: Filip looked ready to step in and make some people notice him out there. Still some of the early adjustments will be needed to be truly game ready but easily our #2/#3 center depending on how the lines shake out. With the ever looming possibility of injuries to guys above him there may be chances for him to slide up the chart after he gets into the action in mid November. I look for him to use this season as preparation for a (hopefully) strong 2 season run in the UNH top 6.

Taylor: There was a small sample size ad he did not see a lot of shots in the game. I'm still trying to figure out if my interpretation of his body language in net is just his style or not but something just looks off. I guess maybe I was looking for him to have adjusted a bit after his struggles last year and I'm going to keep watching as time goes on. I hope to see him get a solid 8-10 starts this season and get more comfortable in the net than what we saw last year. I hope we get to see a split in net out in Miami to see both of our goaltenders in game action early.

Our newcomers looked good, nothing really stood out aside from the physicality mentioned and it will be good to see some get ice time and develop throughout the season. I don't see a lot of offensive juggernauts in this class but if they can put in 5-10 goals it will be a good depth group. Our defense this season will not be in need of the new guys being exceptional out of the gate either. The new guys will have the time to learn the speed and systems at this level and will (hopefully) be better for it in the long term. It is a good feeling as a fan to not have to rely on stellar freshman efforts to determine the outcome of the season.

I can see this team getting into 5th/6th in Hockey East this season. Top 4 would be great but I think that might be a stretch for this season. I think there is a good amount of optimism and I'm liking the recruiting classes going beyond this year as well.

"5th/6th"? If you want into "The Contest," you need to choose one or the other, DB. :-)

[Dan]

https://miamiredhawks.com/news/2019/...-wildcats.aspx

The key for UNH will he containing Miami’s top-line of Green, Bachman and Gilling, which combined for ALL the offense in the RedHawks, 7-4, loss to Bowling Green last weekend. It seems, Miami will have trouble depth scoring this year (once again) so UNH needs to put the onus on other players to score goals...

Right out of the gate a good opportunity for Robinson and the defense to showcase that they’re the strength of the team and a chance for the question marks on offense to be answered against a team that allowed a seven spot in the opener...

On the road, I’d guess split - but UNH has a real chance to take more. At least one win is an absolute must. Miami could be in for a long year...