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It was a game that left a sour taste in your mouth. Northeastern was playing as routine a game as you can possibly play against No. 1-ranked Boston College. The Huskies held a 3-1 lead with about 12 minutes remaining in the third, yet as we’re so often reminded with games in Hockey East, it requires a complete 60 minute effort (in this case, 65 minutes) to get the job done. The Huskies were cruising on the back of Joe Manno’s first two career goals, but a world-class dangle through traffic by Barry Almeida brought the Eagles to within 3-2, and a goal-mouth scramble just three minutes later gave the Eagles the tying goal. From there, the Huskies looked to be on their heels, and BC took advantage four minutes into the overtime period, getting a rising Patch Alber shot deflected down into the net.

Box Score, via GoNU.com | WRBB QuickCast highlights | Post-game pressers

Our post-game bullet points:

• The Huskies played very strong for about 50 minutes, seemingly flipping the script from Friday’s performance – this time, it was NU who was frustrating an opponent with a stingy forecheck and solid defensive play. But it all unraveled after Barry Almeida’s goal – NU had to ratchet up the intensity to match Boston College’s increased physicality, and couldn’t do it. They struggled to sustain offensive pressure to extend the lead or, after the game had been tied, score the go-ahead goal. BC scored 3 unanswered to get the win.
• Chris Rawlings again had a solid game, though once again, short range shots and lateral movement on plays directly in front of the net let him down. On the game winner, Rawlings could do nothing about the deflection. But again, you have to wonder about the defense in front of him in a tight game. The calls for Clay Witt to get a start continue to echo in the distance – could next week’s game at UNH be the chance to see Witt in net?
• Give credit to Boston College for not backing down, because it was a team that looked puzzled and quite frustrated after two periods. Jerry York is a master at calming his team down and getting them re-focused on the task at hand. Of the two teams on the ice, BC had more talent, but over the last 10 minutes, they had a lot more poise, and were rewarded with the win.
• Joe Manno continues to improve by leaps and bounds. His two goals were fantastic examples of his strength on the puck, and they certainly will make the season-ending highlight reel. Being paired with a very mature Braden Pimm and another strong skater in Ludwig Karlsson made that the best line out there for NU last night.
• Johnny Gaudreau came as advertised, with all of the skill on the puck as expected, though he did not score a point on Saturday night. Luckily Northeastern did not seem distracted by his presence on the ice, though Anthony Bitetto got some words and shoves with Gaudreau during the game. Gaudreau has a deceptive slapshot, but still seems like he could develop more strength on the puck.
• Patrick Wey will be out 6-8 weeks, as disclosed by Jerry York in Saturday’s post-game press conference. Wey suffered a severed tendon on his foot after a skate blade cut through the tongue of his skate.

Next Saturday, the Huskies head back on the road to take on UNH at the Whittemore Center. WRBB will be there with live coverage beginning at 6:45 p.m.

Alex Faust Hockey BC

Merrimack employed its classic grinding forecheck and leveraged a 27-save performance from Joe Cannata to take a fairly dominant 4-1 victory over Northeastern. Click for the Box Score

Instead of providing a game recap that you can get anywhere else, here our our takeaways from the game – our ‘post-game bullet points’ if you will:

• A poor “compete” level doomed NU on Friday night. If there’s a phrase that Jim Madigan loves to use, it’s “compete level,” and NU did not have it on Friday. For a team that used to have an identity of a stingy, pesky, forechecking team (not all that dissimilar to Merrimack), they were unable to settle into that game plan. “We couldn’t sustain any consistent forecheck or get pucks to their net,” Madigan said after the game. A pretty succinct description of Northeastern’s troubles.
• Chris Rawlings played very well and made some impressive saves both from long range and on goal-mouth scrambles. If not for his performance, the Huskies would have been down 3-0 or 4-0 going into the third period, and he deserves credit for a good effort. Getting pulled in the third period was not because of a poor job, but because the team needed a spark. The intensity did pick up after he was pulled, but by then, with 11 minutes remaining and the Huskies in a 3-0 hole, it was too late.
• If time-of-possession were a stat, Merrimack would have easily won it. Merrimack coach Mark Dennehy mentioned two things in his post-game press conference that Northeastern can learn a lot from: his team’s game plan is to win the time-of-possession battle. You can’t score if you don’t have the puck, and Merrimack certainly did that well, not only when they were aiming to extend the lead up 1-0, but after the game was well in hand, they continued to win battles in the corners and along the boards. Dennehy’s second point was to not let his team take the bait from a talkative NU team and just stay focused on their own game plan. Despite a few defensemen jawing at Merrimack players, it didn’t get under their skin.  Credit to ‘Mack on that one.
• Good play from Quailer, Vermeersch, Karlsson, and Manno. All four of these players played well on offense – Quailer’s skating is better by leaps and bounds over last year, while Vermeersch has become more responsible as a forechecker and has toned down his ‘video game’ style moves with the puck. Karlsson and Manno skated very strong as freshmen.
• Playing on the road may be an issue. Though it’s only been two road games thus far, very little has been encouraging from NU’s road performances thus far. We’ll see if the team can bounce back at home against a very skilled Boston College team on Saturday.

Alex Faust Hockey Merrimack

Yesterday was the unoffficial kickoff to a new season of Northeastern hockey – Hockey East Media Day at the TD Garden. A chance for the media to mingle with coaches and league officials, and catch up with other college hockey media folks who have returned from the summer break.

Here’s a breakdown on the major league-wide happenings and talking points from the event:

No Notre Dame…yet: League commissioner Joe Bertagna made mention of expansion only in the sense that he hadn’t started work on a league schedule past March 2013. It was both because of the potential for Hockey East to expand (though no schools were mentioned), and as a result, he would be interested in shortening the league schedule from 27 games. Notre Dame is still reportedly on the fence, likely due to the fluid situation with conference realignment in the football/basketball world. The prevailing thought is that this story won’t go away until Notre Dame makes a final decision.

No TV schedule…yet: This was less about back-room dealings for conference expansion and more to do with finalizing details with league partners NESN and CBS Sports Network, as well as a potential national deal with another TV outlet (likely Versus/NBC Sports Network). It’s expected that the TV schedule will be finalized soon.

Rosters delayed: The league did not publish its media guide for the new season on Tuesday, not only because of the TV schedule, but because several teams have delayed releasing official rosters. Due to three new coaches in the league, several players opting to leave for professional deals during the off-season, and the lack of practice time available to coaches, several teams have not yet finalized their rosters. This is by far the latest we’ve ever seen rosters published. We’re less than 10 days away from the start of the season!

–

Now, onto the Northeastern side of things…

No longer robots: We had an interesting discussion with Steve Quailer about the changes to the coaching staff. The words he used – it’s like a “breath of fresh air,” and the players aren’t being forced to be “robots” anymore. Strong words about a change in coaching philosophy that you could see coming from the moment Jim Madigan was named head coach. Listen for more in the audio we’ll be posting later today.

Exhibition tension: Madigan said that he would dress his entire team in Sunday’s exhibition against St. Francis Xavier, and it would be a “dry run” not only for his team, but for the coaches as well. This is perhaps the most important exhibition game Northeastern has played in several years, as it gives the new coaching staff a first look at real game conditions.

No major change to the system: Jim Madigan, as we know, has been closely tied to the Northeastern hockey program for many years. He said on Tuesday that he’s largely taken the previous system (he didn’t say it outright, but we assume that this includes the cycle) but has let the offense open up a bit. Look for a continuation of the “identity” that Northeastern has developed of a physical defense, but perhaps with a more aggressive offensive look.

Flaman honored: Joe Bertagna let the cat out of the bag, so to speak, as he mentioned that Fernie Flaman would be inducted into the Massachusetts Hockey Hall of Fame this fall. Yet another honor for Northeastern’s best coach in program history.

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Look for part 2 of our Media Day redux this evening as we post full interviews with coaches and players from Tuesday’s event.

Alex Faust Hockey Hockey East

We continue to ascend up last year’s leaderboard in our Hockey East previews, looking now at the Maine Black Bears.

Last season: 17-12-7 (14-8-5 Hockey East), finished 5th. Eliminated in Hockey East quarterfinal by Merrimack.

What happened: Maine came out of the gate as one of the teams to beat, and looked especially strong in a weekend sweep of North Dakota last October. By Thanksgiving, they had just three losses, coming at the hands of Michigan State and Boston College (on the road at Conte Forum). Then, things began to get a bit wobbly. The team dealt with injury trouble all season long, and a 7-1 loss to Merrimack after the winter break was a warning sign. Maine seemed to have all the pieces they needed to contend for home ice, but was not extraordinarily good in one area. While the Black Bears went on a late winning streak to rise to fifth in the standings, they benefitted from a relatively easy schedule to end the season and were promptly swept on the road by an unstoppable Merrimack squad in the Hockey East quarterfinals.

Key Losses:

• Gustav Nyquist (F): One of the most dynamic players in the league, a constant threat not only for his shot but for his athleticism and playmaking ability, Nyquist was recalled by the Detroit Red Wings over the off-season, and it wouldn’t surprise us if he saw some NHL time this year. With him goes Maine’s top scorer not only last year, but of all the returning players, nobody had more career points than Nyquist (144)
• Tanner House (F): We always said Tanner had one of the best names in the league, but he was also very consistent in his production – last year, he was a reliable part of Maine’s offense and had the second-best +/- on the team (+13, behind Brian Flynn)
• Robby Dee (C): Strictly speaking on the offensive side, Dee was one of the top surprises last season, nearly doubling his career offensive output (35 points last season, totaling 74 in his career), and helped shoulder the responsibility when Maine’s blue line was nursing injuries.

Key returns:

• Spencer Abbott (F): Last season was without a doubt Abbott’s breakout year, snapping up 17 goals and 23 assists, nearly doubling his career total. If Abbott can continue to produce at a high level, he, Joey Diamond, and Bryan Flynn should be able to pick up where Gustav Nyquist left off.
• Joey Diamond (F): After two seasons under his belt, Joey will be counted on to be a major producer. While he’s had some highlight reel goals, the numbers need to tick up if Maine is to keep its reputation for explosive offense.
• Dan Sullivan (G): Maine took way too long to search for a top goalie, but once Sullivan got rolling, he easily secured the starting job. Late in the season, Sullivan had a stretch where he allowed just one goal in four games. If Sullivan can turn that two-week stretch into a more consistent approach over the season, he will easily be one of Hockey East’s elite goalies.

2011-2012 Outlook: Maine returns a rather young team that retains its reputation for high-octane offense. Whereas goaltending was the team’s biggest liability last season, this time around the concern shifts to a younger defensive corps, where Will O’Neill will be the only senior. The rest are largely untested on big stages, or at the very least have not risen to the occasion in a post-season environment. Maine should be a contender for home ice at the end of the season, and many will put the Black Bears in their pre-season top 4. If they don’t have any major slips during the year, they should fit that billing.

–Alex Faust

Alex Faust Hockey Fall Preview, Hockey East, Maine

Once again, the guys at Hockey East This Week get you ready for the new season with a new set of team previews for 2012. We kick things off with last year’s last-place finisher, the UMass-Lowell Riverhawks.

Last year: 5-25-4 (4-21-2), finished 10th.

What happened: Last year, it was a question of what didn’t go wrong for Lowell. At the start of the season, they were a young team that had lost a lot of veteran scoring from the year before. But throw in a few injuries to senior anchors such as Patrick Cey and Scott Campbell, along with poor goaltending, and it wound up as a season-long train-wreck. Lowell struggled in every facet of the game: They only had two 20-plus point scorers (David Vallorani, Riley Wetmore), scored the 2nd fewest number of goals (82), gave up the most goals (136), and had the league’s worst penalty kill (76%). On any given night, even in a league with as much parity as Hockey East, Lowell was just miserable. So, not surprisingly, Lowell made the widely anticipated move to fire Blaise Macdonald as head coach, hiring alumnus Norm Bazin shortly thereafter.

Key losses:

• Scott Campbell (F): Campbell had his season cut short due to injury, which is a shame. He likely would have eclipsed 100 points for his career, and was one of Lowell’s few offensive bright spots. That became abundantly clear in his absence, and will continue after his graduation.
• Maury Edwards (D): One of the few remaining stars from the team that reached the Hockey East final in 2009, Edwards finishes his Lowell career with 79 points, though he had a poor year defensively last season (lowest +/- on the team at -31).

Key returns:

• David Vallorani (F): Vallorani was one of the few bright spots for the Riverhawks last season. He scored the 2nd most goals on the team (12), led the team in points scored (31) and was one of the few players who could be counted on to create plays in the offensive zone, while staying out of the penalty box (he was only whistled for 7 infractions all year). He’ll likely eclipse a career 100-point total this year.
• Riley Wetmore (F): While only a sophomore last year, he seized an opportunity to prove his talents after a relatively quiet freshman year. He led the team in goals (14) and got two of Lowell’s five game-winning goals. With 30 points, he doubled his freshman output and does have room to add even more than 30 this season, as he’ll be counted on for more production up top and likely on the power play.
• Chad Ruwahdel (D): Perhaps Lowell’s most reliable defenseman (a +/- of only -10), Ruwahdel immediately made in impact his freshman season both on defense and as a playmaker. He trailed only Vallorani and Wetmore for the team lead in assists (Ruwahdel had 13) but was one of the guys whose name you couldn’t help but notice on the ice. The Riverhawks will need him to continue his solid play, as he’ll likely crack the top defensive pairing.

2011-12 Outlook: One potential rallying point for Lowell is that their team remains largely intact from last season. But at the same time, that group needs sharp improvement to be competitive under new head coach Norm Bazin. This includes all facets of the game – offense, defense, and goaltending. Adding to the misery is that, amazingly, the Riverhawks still don’t have a number one goalie – all three have been mediocre so far. Norm Bazin’s group is still young, but there are some flashes of progress. If they can put a few pieces of the puzzle together, they might be able to fight for a playoff spot, but as of now, this year has “rebuilding” written all over it.

– Alex Faust

Alex Faust Hockey Fall Preview, Hockey East, UMass-Lowell

This story originally appeared in the Huntington News on July 27.

Jim Madigan has come home. Though in all reality, he never left.

In a press conference Tuesday, Madigan was officially named the men’s ice hockey coach at Northeastern University. He becomes the program’s tenth head coach, and the second alumnus to coach the team (Madigan graduated in 1985). Dozens of colleagues and alumni attended the press conference, exchanging handshakes and hugs, beaming with pride knowing that one of their own will get to live his dream as head coach of his alma mater.

It was nearly 30 years ago that Madigan first stepped foot on campus, and though it’s been nearly two decades since he was an assistant coach at NU, he has served in several capacities for university since. From the time he left the coaching ranks in 1993 until 1999, he worked with Northeastern’s physical plant office (where he once worked as a co-op). He then became the director of development for Northeastern athletics, and from 2004 until today, served as an associate dean with the College of Business Administration.

All the while, Madigan continued to be active in the hockey ranks, scouting for the New York Islanders and, since 2006, the Pittsburgh Penguins.

“To say this is the greatest day of my professional life would be an understatement,” Madigan said. “All along, I wanted to get back here to Northeastern University and Matthews Arena. This is where it began; this is where I wanted to come back to. I knew that this opportunity would present itself, or thought it could present itself over the last couple of years,” alluding to former coach Greg Cronin’s aspirations to return to the professional ranks.

The hire may be a surprise to those in the college hockey community, but to athletic director Peter Roby, Madigan was a perfect fit.

“You can’t get someone to make a donation if they don’t trust you,” Roby said, speaking to Madigan’s work in university development. “It’s not really different than recruiting – you’re selling the institution. You’re talking about someone who’s had a 30-year relationship with Northeastern, and every step of the way, he’s proven his passion, commitment, dedication and to the institution.”

Madigan has been closely in tune with the program in recent years, has spoken with current players and has been a close friend of Cronin and current assistant Sebastien Laplante (also an alumnus). As a scout, he has evaluated talent for years, and has signed former Huskies to play professionally (namely forward Joe Vitale and goaltender Brad Thiessen). However, he admitted that it would take time to transition to a head coaching position.

“There’s going to be a ramp-up period,” Madigan said, borrowing a business phrase. “But make no mistake about it, I’m coming to the table with a lot of hockey knowledge. I’ve been surrounded by some great, smart hockey people [in my career].”

Perhaps most important to Northeastern fans is the hope that Madigan can build on the Huskies’ recent success. Madigan won two Beanpot trophies as a player and one as an assistant coach, and he said that returning Northeastern back to competitiveness at a national level is a priority.

“We want to win Beanpots, we want to win Hockey East championships and we want to get to national tournaments,” Madigan said. “I’m not here to promise anything, I’m just going to say that our goal, that’s our aspiration.”

Statements like that will get fans of any program excited. But coming from someone who has won championships at Northeastern, it will likely make ‘MadDog’ a popular man when the season begins in October.

Alex Faust Hockey Jim Madigan

Jamie Oleksiak was selected by the Dallas Stars 14th overall in Friday’s first round of Friday’s NHL Entry Draft and recruits John Gaudreau and Garrett Haar were selected respectively in the fourth round by Calgary and the seventh round by Washington – that much we do know. What is up in the air is whether all three will be in Boston this fall.

Oleksiak has made it clear in comments that he is contemplating his next move, much of it dependent on where Dallas is thinking of placing him – on the NHL roster, or in the minor leagues. “Right now, I haven’t committed to anything and there are some decisions coming up,” Oleksiak said in an interview.

Elsewhere, questions remain over whether John Gaudreau will honor his commitment and join the Huskies as a freshman in the fall. The Fargo Moorhead-Forum, which has covered Gaudreau’s junior team (Dubuque), reported that Gaudreau will de-commit and look at other schools.

College Hockey News is reporting that Gaudreau will meet with Northeastern athletic director Peter Roby to discuss the recruit’s national letter of intent.

Haar, meanwhile, said he will de-commit from Northeastern. His decision, like the one pending for Gaudreau, is motivated by the departure of Huskies head coach Greg Cronin, who left the program to become an assistant with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

This all comes as Northeastern has yet to hire a permanent head coach. Sebastien Laplante was named interim head coach after Cronin announced his resignation, but there has been no indication as of yet that a new hire is imminent. The Boston Globe’s Kevin Paul Dumont says that people in the college hockey world hope that Boston College’s Mike Cavanaugh gets a shot at the gig.

All of this comes at an urgent time for Northeastern. Uncertainty is the word of the moment, referring to not only the vacancy on the bench, but with whether recruits will return, and the longer that uncertainty continues, the easier it becomes for recruits and current players (such as Oleksiak) to look elsewhere to play this fall.

Word on the street is that a bevy of candidates are interested in the Huskies’ job, but the debate must not only be about who to hire in that applicant pool. The question to ask is whether or not to hire a coach with more experience (who may clean house with assistant coaches), or give a chance to a familiar face and an NU alum (Laplante), who already handles the majority of Northeastern’s recruiting.

We’ll find some answers over the course of the next week or two. The sooner, the better.

Alex Faust Hockey NHL Draft, Off the wires

This week, we talk about Greg Cronin’s decision to leave Northeastern to become an assistant coach with the Toronto Maple Leafs, the impact on the program, the search for Cronin’s replacement, and Cronin’s legacy. Plus, we look at Cronin’s recent statements and actions hinting that he was unhappy with the job and wanted to move elsewhere.

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Note: Our podcast got cut off at around the 47-minute mark, but all that’s missing is our sign-off. Our next podcast, in July, will cover the coaching situation at Northeastern (hopefully there is a coach by then), Huskies players and recruits at the NHL draft, and basketball schedule notes.

Alex Faust Audio Dog Pound Sports Sound, Greg Cronin

Late Saturday night, reporter Ryan S. Clark from the Forum of Fargo-Moorhead broke the news on Twitter that has led to rumor, conjecture, and speculation regarding the future of Northeastern head coach Greg Cronin:

Just got it from a very, very good source that Greg Cronin is leaving Northeastern for The AHL. Not sure where Cronin is going, but the source I got it from very very strong and wouldn’t joke about that.

– Ryan S. Clark, via Twitter

Clark later published a more detailed story, primarily reporting that former BU forward Vinny Saponari will be playing at Northeastern next season. But it was the late-night tweet which sent Hockey East media into a frenzy, searching for the coaching vacancies in the AHL, as well as other ways to potentially connect the dots. Ultimately, though, the cardinal rule of journalism had not been applied: the report was not verified by multiple sources.

It’s very possible that Cronin could leave the team. It’s no secret that he and Peter Roby have a somewhat frosty relationship, no doubt reinforced by Roby’s suspension of Cronin for possible recruiting violations back in February. Cronin has strong ties to the professional ranks, especially to the Islanders organization, where he was a former assistant at the NHL level and head coach with the team’s AHL affiliate. The report of Cronin’s departure may be a premature leak of a move that has not yet been finalized.

However, rumors and speculation have come and gone in the past about Cronin’s potential future in the professional ranks, and nothing has materialized. There is a strong probability that Cronin will stay at Northeastern. The program has ascended to new heights, evidenced by this year’s graduating class: at the end of their four years, this year’s graduating seniors had more wins than any other 4-year graduating class in school history. Many of the renovations to Matthews Arena were spearheaded by Cronin’s vision for the hockey program, and have been used as selling points to potential recruits. Cronin spoke at the annual team banquet earlier in the month conveying an urgency to improve, and did not carry the demeanor of a coach intent on leaving the program.

Regardless of the outcome, the rumor of Cronin’s departure spread like wildfire through the college hockey community, with each story appending a question mark to the title because nobody is entirely sure what is going on.

WRBB has made attempts to contact Cronin for clarification on the story but as of yet has been unsuccessful. He is scheduled to be with the US National Team in Slovakia for the IIHF World Championship for the next two weeks.

Here are the stories from the weekend:

• Slightly Chilled: I want my city back…
• Forum of Fargo-Moorhead: Dubuque completes sweep of Fargo Force
• The College Hockey Blog: Cronin leaving Northeastern?
• BC Interruption: Vinny Saponari Heading To Northeastern, Coach Greg Cronin Leaving?
• College Hockey News: Greg Cronin leaving Northeastern?

Alex Faust Hockey Cronin Suspension, Greg Cronin, Off the wires