BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings
STORRS, CT – The UCONN Huskies will take on the 11th ranked Boston University Terriers in a home-and-home series this weekend as the final month of regular season play commences.
The Huskies head to BU for a match-up at the Walter Brown Arena and will then host the Terriers on Saturday in Storrs for a 4 PM face-off. The game will be televised in Connecticut on the CW20, with Randy Brochu and Bob Crawford calling the action.
“It’s gonna be a tremendous challenge for us. They have been playing some great hockey. They took two series from Boston College and UMASS, the two top teams in our league. They’ve been consistent. They started a little later and (even) without David Farrance, who hasn’t played in a while.
“He’s still their leading scorer, and he’s played only six games. He quarterbacks their power play, and he pushes the pace, and you have to account for him whenever he is on the ice,” UCONN Head Coach Mike Cavanaugh stated in his weekly media Zoom call.
“They’re certainly going to be a formidable opponent; we’re going have to be on top of our game this weekend for sure.”
CAVANAUGH HAS HISTORY AT BU
The Walter Brown Arena was BU’s home from 1971 until 2005 before the Terriers moved to the beautiful Agganis Arena that same year.
The building for Cavanaugh, who spent many years at it as a BC assistant, will provide some challenges for the Huskies.
“I was talking to the team about this today. I haven’t been there in a long time. It’s been 14 years since they moved there. It’s a lot like Merrimack. It’s a low roof (ceiling) building. Without fans, it’s going to be very different.
“Because it was a loud building with such a low roof with those fans that it always gave BU a tremendous advantage. The fans are right on top of you, and the glass, you know, the glass was always low. Games took forever when you played there because pucks were always going out of the rink there.
“I don’t know if they rectified that or not, but it was always a fun, electric building to play in, and the game happens pretty fast there.”
BU IS AN OFFENSIVE POWERHOUSE
A team with serious offensive depth will challenge the Huskies defense Yan Kuznetsov, Jake Flynn, Adam Karashik, Carter Berger, Harrison Rees, Ryan Wheeler, and John Spetz. BU has two players in double digits scoring after just ten games and several others knocking on the door.
BU is very hungry after missing the start of the season in the first semester because of COVID. They have had only ten games on their skate blades and have an 8-2 record. Since losing on opening night on January 7th, they haven’t lost in regulation since.
“The team is pretty deep, and that’s difficult to defend against. When you can’t just match up against their top line, they’re pretty much all equal (their lines) and can hurt you, and you have to play a more fundamentally sound hockey game, which will be the key for us to be successful this weekend.
They have excellent goaltending. They can roll four lines, and they’re a well-balanced team; not that many holes in their lineup. They’re a great team. That’s why they’ve been successful.”
INJURIES FORCE LINEUP CHANGES
The Huskies lineup will have a different look. Vladislav Firstov (lower-body injury) and Hudson Schandor (concussion) join Roman Kinal (knee) on the injured list.
“Vlad is out for the weekend, and Hudson is doubtful at this point. We’ll see Friday or Saturday, but right now, it’s doubtful.” Cavanaugh said.
The Huskies will need secondary scoring, something missing the past few games as the offensive pilot light has gone out. The slack will need to be picked up by Carter Turnbull, Marc Gatcomb, Nick Capone, and Berger.
“There are a lot of guys on our team capable of scoring. They have worked hard all year, now they’re gonna be given different opportunities, and I’m looking forward to seeing them making the most of this opportunity.
“After this call, we’re going to sit down (with staff) and finalize our lines. It’s not going to be a whole lot different. You’ll see many of the same combinations.”
OPPORTUNITIES
Now, with Firstov out, it will allow BU to concentrate their attention more closely on leading scorer Jonny Evans. Junior Jachym Kondelik has 16 assists this season and leads Hockey East, but the Huskies need him to get into the scoring column, which he has not been able to do thus far.
Freshman Artem Shlaine saw his season-long point streak snapped at seven games (goal and seven helpers over that span) in the 4-0 loss at Providence. Shlaine’s streak was the longest by a Husky this season. With Firstov out, there will be more pressure for the freshmen center.
“Against UMASS-Lowell, it was a tight-checking defensive game. We got chances, good chances, we just didn’t score, and that happens. I look at the (Boston Celtics) Seth Curry the other night. He was 3-for-17 (from the floor) but hit three big threes down the stretch. I listened to him, and he said the game of basketball will humble you sometimes, but you have to keep working at it.
“That’s how we have to be with our offense. Hockey will humble you, and we have to keep getting bodies and pucks to the net, and the blue paint (area) and good things will happen.
“We did get away from that against Providence. We had the puck more than they did, but we had possession and no penetration, and that’s no recipe for success,” Shlaine said.
WHERE THEY STAND
The Huskies are coming off a pair of losses last week. Their three-game winning streak came to a sudden end with a 3-2 overtime loss at UMASS-Lowell. They then got shut out for the first time this season, falling 4-0 at No. 16 Providence.
With the pair of losses, the Huskies fell out of the Top-20 rankings after making the program’s debut on February 8th at No. 20 in the USCHO.com Top-20 and No. 15 in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Top-15.
The Huskies and Friars split their first two games this season, with each team earning a home shutout. UConn and PC were scheduled for a game in Storrs last Saturday, but it was canceled due to COVID-19 protocols with the Friars. It’s unlikely, but not impossible, that the game will be rescheduled with the season coming to an end.
Junior goaltender Tomas Vomacka continues his streak of having played every minute for the Huskies, as well as the most minutes by any Hockey East goaltender this season. He’s made 515 saves, also the most by any goalie in the league. He ranks fourth in save percentage at .916 percentage, and his 2.58 goals-against-average is fourth among league leaders.
CAVANAUGH AND PLAYOFFS
The national post-season landscape got a bit clearer this week, with the NCAA announcing the criteria in how they will conduct their selection process. There will be the absence of the Pairwise system being used since 1996-97 will be implemented.
“I don’t think they had any other choice,” commented Cavanaugh. ”It’s so hard because the Big 10 hasn’t played any non-conference games (but did admit Arizona State to play their regular season, but not in any post-season play). We have played a non-conference schedule, so the Pairwise has to be thrown out the window.
“Without out-of-conference play, it’s a useless statistic, so from that standpoint, I understand it. It’s going to go back to the 80s, where guys get in a room. It’s gonna be old school. They’ll decide who goes and who doesn’t go.
“For a long time, it’s been pretty statistical, pretty cut and dried than in making arbitrary decisions, and unfortunately this year that is going to be the case.
“It’s going to be really important for the (various) league commissioners to advocate for the teams in their leagues. It’s going to be an integral part of it.”
MORE CAVANAUGH
Given a choice, Cavanaugh comes down on the side of supporting the Pairwise system as the final barometer for the NCAA Regionals.
“I think the Pairwise is a very good option because it’s transparent. You know where you stand. You know what you have to do. It’s pretty fair, and for the most part, it’s an accurate representation of the teams that should be going.
“If you’re the team that is 16, 17, or 18, ya’ gotta work to get in the 12th or 13th spot where it isn’t an issue. I’ve liked it, but this year is going to be different. But everything this year has been different.”
When asked if he is on the committee, Cavanaugh quickly responded with a laugh and said, “Thank God I’m not!”
