By John Raymond
Every year, the Beanpot rolls around and the single, burning question on Huntington Avenue remains the same: “Will this be the year?”
It’s been that way for the last 19 Beanpots, at least since the Huskies last won it in 1988. This year’s installment of the annual February hockey tournament will mark Northeastern’s 20th try at the elusive Beanpot title No. 5.
But this year, the feeling among fans and alumni is that the answer to that question could be a resounding, “Yes.” “This is the year,” Northeastern alumnus and Nashville Predators general manager Dave Poile said confidently at the Beanpot Media Day luncheon Tuesday.
His sentiments echo those of a student population who purchased NU’s allotment of 1,500 Beanpot tickets in six hours two weeks ago, a record time.
The players, as always, are more guarded with their comments. But they remain confident that they have what it takes to bring the Beanpot back to Northeastern. “Obviously, it’s very exciting the ticket sales and how it sold out so fast,” said junior captain Joe Vitale. “Obviously, there’s a huge buzz right now with our school and obviously our chances are pretty good this year compared to the last couple years I’ve been here.”
The story behind the Beanpot is generally well-known. For years, it’s been Boston University’s tournament; they’ve won 28 titles. By comparison, Northeastern, Harvard and Boston College have won 27 combined.
Were this a typical year, BU would likely be the resounding favorite to bring the trophy home again. Fortunately for fans of the other three schools, this doesn’t appear to be a typical year. BU comes into the Beanpot struggling this season at 7-13-4 overall, and is tied with Vermont for sixth in Hockey East.
So, this year’s Beanpot figures to be a wide open race. The Huskies, who sit at 11-8-3 overall and are ranked No. 13 in the nation, have looked as good as any team in the country at times this year. The Huskies ran off an 11-game unbeaten streak in November and December, which saw them rise as high as seventh in national polls.
Despite a 1-0 win over UMass Friday, the team has struggled since the new year, and went 2-4-1 in January. The last time the Huskies won before Friday was Jan. 12 when they beat Merrimack 3-0 at Matthews Arena. But the Beanpot could provide the spark the team needs to dig itself out of the slump, said head coach Greg Cronin.
“We started getting ranked sometime in the middle of November and there’s always the excitement that goes with watching you rise from 15th to 12th all the way to seventh. That’s the fun part,” he said. “Now we’re in the success management part. When you lose a couple games, how do you respond to that?
“We’re in a section of our season where we’re going to have to buck up and get back on the winning track and I think the Beanpot comes at a time when you could really energize the crew. You win a couple games in the Beanpot and you could catch lightning in a bottle.”
To do that, the Huskies will first need to get by Harvard, who are sitting at 7-10-3 this season and have, at times, popped up in the national rankings. But the Crimson, like NU, has seen its share of struggles lately. The team went 0-6-1 following a 7-2 loss to BC Dec. 12 before breaking out of that streak with a 3-1 win over Dartmouth Jan. 26.
The Huskies will want to employ the disciplined, poised style of play they exhibited throughout their winning streak, Cronin said. The third year head coach said that in a tournament like this, that style of play all starts with the goalie.
“The goalie’s the biggest player in these tournaments,” he said. “The goalie can win you the game. [Sophomore goaltender] Brad Thiessen’s got the ability to win games. He’s a gamer too. He seems to respond all the time under this pressure.”
Cronin’s vaunted freshmen class, who has played a pivotal role in this season’s success, will also need to play well for the Huskies to have a shot at the Beanpot trophy. They’ll be led by forwards Tyler McNeely, Wade MacLeod and Steve Silva, who have combined for 41 points this season “I think with the run that we went on there, the freshmen were sort of the catalyst. They were very, very visible during that run. And I was nervous going into it because you’re asking freshmen to play critical roles when you’re rebuilding a program and it’s a lot of weight to put on kids,” Cronin said. “But they’ve obviously demonstrated an ability to handle pressure pretty well and I’m hoping that’ll translate on Monday night.”
Ultimately, the chance to give the school its first Beanpot title in 20 years and spur the team toward a strong second half to the season is exciting for the team, said senior forward Jimmy Russo. The senior is the only one on this year’s squad, and making his last go at winning a Beanpot. “We can’t wait to get on the ice on Monday. Personally, it’s been a fun four years, and there’d be only one way to go to make it better: win a Beanpot,” he said. “And I know if Northeastern won a Beanpot it would be a pretty big deal to the city. Not just to us but the whole city. We haven’t won in 20 years. I think everyone’s sick of BU winning. Hopefully we come on top this year.”
