This is part of a partnership between the Huntington News and the Husky Hockey News blog. The opinions expressed herein are those of writer, not necessarily The News. For more from Husky Hockey News, visit their website at huskyhockeynews.com and follow them on Twitter at @HuskyHockeyNews.
Not too long ago, I mentioned what could make this season a measured success for the men’s hockey team. There were two clear scenarios covered: Making it to the TD Garden for the Hockey East semifinals, and/or winning the Beanpot. Both were daunting tasks given the schedules at hand, but since the Huskies would likely have to go through both Boston University and Boston College to win the Beanpot, their odds dipped heavily with bias below the clean 25 percent chance each of the four Beanpot teams receives going into the tournament.
On the conference side of the success coin, Northeastern was trounced 9-3 at home by BC, and came away from a home and home weekend against University of Massachusetts-Lowell with just one point due to lackluster late-game efforts against a hot team. To cap things off, the Huskies dropped a 3-1 decision at home against University of New Hampshire and now sit dead last in Hockey East.
The only way the Huskies can avoid a first-round playoff matchup at BC or the University of New Hampshire is if they jump seven points to pass Lowell, which is a pretty lofty goal. Making the playoffs at all will have to be the long term goal now and is very obtainable, with the team just two points out of eighth place.
However, Monday night presented an interesting opportunity for the Huskies. Despite being winless the last 25 years against BU in the Beanpot, Northeastern reminded fans that having the propensity to lose in disappointing fashion, they also have the talent and big-game performers to beat some of the best teams in the country.
They went into the semifinal game well-prepared and with a mentality that employed less hoping and more imposing of will, evidenced by a perfectly choreographed penalty kill. The new look defense, while unable to handle BU’s speed at times, was superb in the Northeastern zone. They blocked plenty of shots and prevented clean plays from occurring in high-scoring areas, all while giving goaltender Chris Rawlings a clear look at the puck. And when the quality opportunities snuck through, Rawlings was there to close the door. The senior goaltender combined his size with poise to turn away numerous scoring chances, and had his best performance of the year in the process.
Then there was Kevin Roy. The freshman forward – now with 15 goals and 30 points – is the top freshman scorer in the country, and scored all three of NU’s goals on the night. Of Northeastern’s 60 goals total this season, Roy has had his fingerprint on half of them, and Monday marked a performance where he was simply the best player on the ice (Saponari gets an honorable mention). Roy’s hockey IQ and instincts led to all three of his big opportune goals on the night, even if the second one was a bit of a gift. Combine these parts and Northeastern wins impressively to advance to the final round, 3-2.
So Monday, the Huskies have a chance to fulfill that scenario of winning the Beanpot, and unlike making the playoffs, this goal only requires 60 or so minutes of hockey to complete. The problem is they go up against a team that drubbed them 9-3 in their previous meeting, led by the one underclassman in the nation with more points than Roy, Johnny Gaudreau.
The Eagles have taken the last three Beanpots and eviscerated Northeastern 7-1 in the 2012 semifinal contest. The Huskies used some “clean slate” advice from Beanpot hero Wayne Turner to erase a 25-year drought from the equation before the game against BU. It won’t be so easy to forget the recent maladies against BC. But the message is the same: the past is the past and there’s no use dwelling on it forever. Just learn from the mistakes made and move forward as a team that’s much more unpredictable, that much hungrier to win.
Madigan and his players have said they’re focused more on current determination than past records. And despite the odds, if you work hard enough at something you can find a silver lining. The Beanpot would be that, and so much more, for a talented yet inconsistent Husky team. And that’s it – the right mindset, any given Monday.
– Cory Bigda can be reached at [email protected]
