Clutch N’ Crab Hockey Weekend Preview 020

MARYLAND BLACK BEARS vs. Maine Nordiques

With only one win in their last 10 games, the Black Bears are in for a crucial match-up against a team creeping up on them for that fourth and final playoff spot. With the line-up set, everyone is going to have to step up in a bigger way to keep hold of that fourth spot while holding off the competition behind them. Hopefully, Brayden Stannard will be back in the line-up to add to the offensive punch of the Black Bears.

TEAM MARYLAND vs. Philadelphia Little Flyers, North Carolina Golden Bears

After plenty of goals in their split last weekend, TM has a task in the Little Flyers to start the weekend, a team they’ve already beaten three times; while they’ll have North Carolina come in for the first of three games to end the season. While these are primer games, TM shouldn’t take any of these games for granted going into the playoff season. Despite playing a weaker team in North Carolina, the pedal still needs to be to the floor to gear up for the second season.

STEVENSON UNIVERSITY MUSTANGS D3 MEN at Nazareth University, Utica College

After sweeping the weekend last weekend, the Mustangs will look to continue that on the road, where they have only lost one game all year. The power play clicked well last weekend, though the penalty kill did let up three goals against Neumann on Friday. With first place in the UCHC within reach, every conference point matters– especially against a team in Utica who is right behind the Mustangs in the standings

STEVENSON UNIVERSITY MUSTANGS D3 WOMEN at Lebanon Valley College, Chatham College

After a less than desirable finish to their home schedule, the Mustangs head out on the road, where they are the opposite of the men’s side– winning only one game on the road. With only road games left, the Mustangs will need to find an extra gear in order to get over those road woes, and bring home at least one victory out of this trip to stay up in the playoff conversation.

STEVENSON UNIVERSITY MUSTANGS D2 MEN’S CLUB at MACH Playoffs

With their first task being Rowan University, the Green Horses will be taking their most successful team in the brief three year period into the MACH playoffs. They run into a Rowan team who is second in the conference and has taken both match-ups this season. Yet, the playoffs are a different beast and with all the adversity Stevenson has faced already– what’s a little more to overcome to get to the next round and maybe a title shot.

LOYOLA UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND GREYHOUNDS WOMEN’S CLUB at DVCHC Playoffs

The Greyhounds won the South Division of the DVCHC, so they’re automatically into the semi-final game, where they’ll take on the second lowest seeded team in that game. Loyola comes in winning seven of their last eight to end the year and with Jessica Chicko playing out of her mind with four hat-trick in her last five games, including three straight. It’s always good to have that hot a hand when going into the playoffs– especially in a one-game scenario.

UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND TERRAPINS WOMEN’S CLUB at DVCHC Playoffs

While they looked like world beaters in the early going, the Terps had a bit of a bumpy patch late in the season, going only .500 in the last six games. They’ll take on West Chester in the first round, a team they met and lost to two weeks ago. If there’s any time for a revenge game and for Alix McKillop to really bust out the scoring– it’ll be here.

UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND TERRAPINS D2 MEN’S CLUB at MACH Playoffs

The Terps have a bit of an uphill climb for the MACH playoffs, coming in as the last seed and facing powerhouse Liberty in the first round– a team that swept the Terps two weeks prior. The Terps have only won one game since semester break (seven games) and will have to dig deep or they’ll be preparing for the Crabpot tournament a little bit earlier than they’d hope.

Everything That’s Awful in Hockey This Week

In what could be a semi-regular gimmick– here’s a bit of a list of things that I feel are awful in hockey this week.

The Stadium Series Uniforms: With the reveal of the Avalanche helmet, the horrific uniform for Colorado is complete. The plot has long gone away from the Stadium Series jerseys when it comes to “Turning Ahead the Clock” gimmick. Any designer claiming it’s their passion and then shows these things off is not a good look on the company whose name is on it. The Stadium Series jerseys were bland at first, but now they’re way too out of left-field. I’d almost rather unoriginal designs than the polar opposite of it– which are these jerseys.

Nick Kypreos Ending People’s Careers: Former Sportsnet insider Nick Kypreos caused a stir on Wednesday, saying the injury that Shea Weber had suffered was not only season-ending, but possibly career-ending from his surgically repaired foot. Then the Canadiens came out saying it’s an ankle injury and it’ll be 3-6 weeks. Kypreos is standing by his story, so we’ll see what happens. But for a former TV guy to still try to run down a story, only for it to really backfire on him is very irresponsible and Kypreos should know better than that.

Losing a Hockey Team: With the Vegas Golden Knights buying the San Antonio Rampage to move them to Henderson, Nevada; it’ll end a long-standing independent team with a fairly consistent following. Sure, hockey is a business, but you have to feel for the supports of San Antonio, the staff there, and everyone else associated with the team. They were a nice change of pace from the Spurs and helped grow more hockey fans in nontraditional markets. We’ll have to see if there will be a new minor league team to go there or if they’ll go the USHL or NAHL route should they want a new team.

The Jay Bouwmeester Incident: This is only horrible because a premier athlete had a cardiac episode and almost had their life cut short. The good news is that the training staff on both sides worked super quickly, as did the medical personnel there, so Bouwmeester is still with the living. Plus, reports that Bouwmeester is in good spirits while recovering is always a good thing. It’ll be interesting to see what the causation was and if it’ll force him to retire.

Too Much Hype for Back-ups: With Jack Campbell winning a game, the Maple Leafs faithful exalted him as their new leader and savior. The say that they did with Curtis McElhinney and Garret Sparks before him. The fact the Toronto fans go this overboard for a back-up goalie is beyond fanatical. Some people might think it’s a great story and something that could be a turning point; but it won’t be. It’ll just be another case of hockey fans looking at Toronto doing this and shaking their heads in disappointment because we all know how this ends– with no Stanley Cup this season.

Clutch N’ Crab Hockey Weekend Preview 019

MARYLAND BLACK BEARS at New Jersey Titans

Last time the Black Bears were in New Jersey, they were able to get a split out of the weekend. While taking four points against the divisions top team is a tough task, it’s something that the Black Bears have a chance to do. With the new guys being acclimated to the team, it’ll be a task to harness that energy toward the Titans while trying to keep a gap in the East Division playoff hunt.

TEAM MARYLAND vs. New York Applecore

After a tough couple weekend against New Jersey, New York shows up to Team Maryland HQ with a 1-2-0 season record against TM so far. With TM trying to stay in the top-six, Applecore has the role to play possible spoilers– or at least rattle the cages of TM– in this weekend’s match-ups.

STEVENSON UNIVERSITY MUSTANGS D3 MEN vs. Neumann University, Manhattanville College

The Mustangs return home after a less than desirable weekend in Pennsylvania. With a bitter taste in their mouths, Stevenson will take on two teams they beat handily at the beginning of the season and hope to find some home-ice advantage, despite being only two games over the .500 mark at Reisterstown SportsPlex.

STEVENSON UNIVERSITY MUSTANGS D3 WOMEN vs. Manhattanville College, Neumann University

Finishing up .500 last weekend, the Mustang women come back for one last home series of the regular season, which will be the last for the seniors in their careers. With the home-cooking, the seniors and the rest of the Green Horses are looking to get over their overall .500 mark on the season and gain momentum heading into the last two weekends of the season.

STEVENSON UNIVERSITY MUSTANGS CLUB at/vs. University of Maryland

In their last weekend of the regular season, the Green Horses club team take on the Terps in a home-and-home weekend. The last three games, the Mustangs have outscored their opponents 20-3 and look to pounce on a Maryland squad who has had plenty of troubles scoring this season. With playoffs looming and a chance to improve their position, we’ll see the best yet from the Mustangs this weekend.

NAVAL ACADEMY MIDSHIPMEN MEN’S D1 at West Chester University, vs. Lehigh University

As they sit atop the ECHA standings, the Middies look to hold onto that spot in order to get a first-round bye in the playoffs. With wins already this season against these teams, the Navy squad will look to revenge their loss in the finals last year and turn into a big win and possible National Championship bid because of it.

NAVAL ACADEMY MIDSHIPMEN MEN’S D2 at Georgetown University, Rowan University

While they may not make it to the ACCHL playoffs, the D2 Midshipmen will look to end on a high note in an otherwise tough season. They will hope to spark some offense that was off and on this season, but in a chance to play spoiler for Georgetown’s hopes; you can bet they’ll take advantage of it if possible.

NAVAL ACADEMY MIDSHIPMEN WOMEN vs. University at Buffalo

In order to get into the top-four of the Southeast, the Middies will need to big wins over Buffalo, who are right behind them in the standings. Sitting fifth and hoping for computers to be on their side, Navy’s women will have to leave no doubt when it comes to these games in their last ride of the season.

LOYOLA UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND GREYHOUNDS WOMEN at George Washington University, vs. West Chester University

Battling for the top spot in the South Division, the Greyhounds will take on a team they defeated 10-0 last weekend in GW, but then will take on a tough foe of the North Division in West Chester. It’ll really be a big test for the Greyhounds to see how they’re able to hang with the top teams in the other division for championship time.

UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND TERRAPINS MEN vs/at Stevenson University, at University of Delaware

We mentioned the Terps ahead of this with the Mustangs, but the key point is the lack of scoring for the Terps this season, as it seemed that they haven’t been able to get that flow they had at the start of the season and find consistency throughout the season. With two tough tasks ahead, the Terps will probably sit in the MACH playoffs in the bottom spot.

UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND TERRAPINS WOMEN vs. George Washington University

In what could be a big scoring game, the Lady Terps will look to end the season and into the playoffs with a big win over GW, while hoping that Loyola has some struggles and won’t be able to end the year at the top of the table.

TOWSON UNIVERSITY TIGERS MEN vs. Drexel University, West Chester University

In what was a tough season, the Tigers will finish it up at home and hope to get some wins in the instance. A lot of key elements are graduating, which could cause trouble for next season if things don’t improve to the level three seasons ago when the Tigers were in the ECHA championship game. Maybe something can click and they get back to those days of glory.

TOWSON UNIVERSITY TIGERS WOMEN at West Virginia University

After their second win of the season, the Tigers will wrap up their season in West Virginia and hope to build their program back up. While they did get two more wins than last year, it’s something to build on for another Towson program trying to get back to the glory days of success in the area.

Is There a Plan To Save Jack Eichel From His Loyalty??

June 30th, 2022. That’s the last day that Jack Eichel has no modifier on his contract. While he has no desire now to leave…what if these dreadful seasons in Buffalo continue??

Parallel thinking is a helluva thing because as we were discussing on FOHS the possibility of Eichel asking out of Buffalo, TSN’s Darren Dreger did a hit on TSN about this same topic (as you see from his tweet above). Meanwhile, Greg Wyshynski of ESPNNNNNNNNNnnnnnn talked about the disastrous seasons for the Sabres. So– for once, Buffalo is getting people in the hockey world talking.

For me, this is the same discussion I’ve had for a couple years about Connor McDavid and the dreadful way the Oilers have been playing around him. For their sake, they have gotten things together for the most part, as to not waste another year of his stardom– but now it seems the focus is shifting to Eichel. For all intents and purposes, Eichel has come into his own slowly and silently for the Sabres and the league for that matter. It’s a damn shame that the team around him hasn’t had the same climb he has.

In this “win now” culture of sports, there’s little room for error– which Jason Botterill is finding out right now. Even the absentee landlords that are the Pegulas are paying attention to the Sabres after the Bills made the playoffs and Penn State’s season is winding down. Maybe not good for this scenario, but Botterill has to find a way out or he’ll be on his way out.

However, I mentioned the Pegulas as absentees and that’s kind of how it’s been. Once they sunk their claws into the Sabres as their new shiny toy– they touted them around, touted the heritage of the team around, and tried to make Buffalo a hot spot for people. Yet, once they bought the rest of Buffalo and some of Happy Valley, the Pegulas really have thrown this toy to the side for their new– and more profitable– ones; which the fans have noticed and really been pissed off about in the blue-collar town.

The Pegulas can be as upset as they want, but until there’s action and some kind of direction for this team, they’re going to be a but of many jokes. I honestly wouldn’t be surprised to see the tales of player mismangement from this era of the team from some players who left and became bigger stars elsewhere.

Leading me back to Eichel. With nothing on his contract until his full no-move clause kicks into effect July 1st, 2022; you’re going to have the rumors of him wanting out or teams wanting to find a way to get him out. With situations not improving, you have to feel bad for a kid who’s too loyal to a team that may or may not get better because of him. A kid who probably won’t get to see his full potential on a squad that doesn’t seem up to snuff to get into a playoff race in the Atlantic Division.

Odds are, his loyalty will keep him in Buffalo despite what’s going on around him. He’ll focus on what he can do, how he can do it with what’s given to him, and then let the cards fall as they may. With six years remaining on his deal and two left with no modifier, we’ll see how much his loyalty holds if he keeps getting better and the team doesn’t.

Minor League Silly Season: Vegas Leaving Chicago, Richmond Back at It, ECHL in Quebec??

Photo via Vegas Golden Knights website

One of the bigger stories that broke for this week in the NHL/AHL landscape was the note that the Vegas Golden Knights are looking to buy an AHL team in order to move them to the Orleans Arena in Vegas to get their prospects close. It would be in line with what other Western Conference teams have been doing. Currently, the Chicago Wolves are the Knights affiliate, which is quite the ways away from each other. And in reality, that’s probably the only reason why the Knights want to leave.

As an independent team, the Wolves are one of the most successful on and off the ice in the AHL. They want the player’s best and want to win at the box office as well, to which they have been successful despite the cluttered market in the Chicagoland area. However, this news of a chance doesn’t come as a shock to Wolves Chairman Don Levin, telling the Chicago Sun-Times, “The Chicago Wolves will be here next year, we just don’t know who we’ll be affiliated with. There’s no scenario at all the Wolves will be affiliated with Vegas. We knew that before. Our affiliation would be over at the end of the year.”

The issue that arises is the need to Vegas to get an independent team to sell to them. There are some that have contracts coming up like Hershey, Grand Rapids, and Milwaukee– but all of them are in good spaces right now and won’t sell because their markets are strong. Rockford has been brought up as a selling mate because they have dropped in their attendance over the last five years. We could definitely see the IceHogs move west before the puck drops next season.

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Richmond has been endorsed by the ECHL to get a hockey team with a proposed arena popping up in the Navy Hill district. Richmond has Richmond was a long-standing member of the ECHL from 1990 until 2003 as the Renegades, with the UHL having the RiverDogs 2003 until 2006, and then the Renegades name popped up again, this time in the SPHL from 2006 until 2009.

All this, of course, hinges on getting an arena in the $1.5B project which would see many restaurant and shopping areas, akin to what many cities have done with stadiums and arenas in the past. The team also has an owner ready to go and with an understanding of the ECHL structure in Fred Festa– former owner of the Greenville Swamp Rabbits.

It would be great to see Richmond back in hockey, though in this landscape, especially in the ECHL with rivals in Norfolk and Wheeling already slotted in. Now, it’s just a matter of getting the project approved and then getting the money to get the team into the new arena.

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A few weeks back, the push to bring the ECHL to Trois-Rivieres, Quebec seems to have hit a road block. In an interview with SB Nation’s Montreal Canadiens blog, Dean MacDonald– the lead in bringing an expansion team into Trois-Rivieres– made a point to say that there was a lot of miscommunication between many parties and it seemed that the Mayor of the city was more focused on getting the University team into the fold rather that the ECHL and cohabitation is something they didn’t want to do. Not to mention, they would need the Canadiens to be in the fold in order to make it work.

The last part is pretty easy, as the Habs don’t have an ECHL affiliate right now. That said, the government being very indecisive and kind of throwing the expansion group curveballs doesn’t show a lot of confidence that the city wants a team there. It would be a nice fit and go with the Montreal-Laval connection already, plus adding another Canadian team to the ECHL fold; though you can’t really force yourself into that spot if the city is unwilling to have you.

Not to mention, you have to wonder if the QMJHL will see all this and try to get back into the Trois-Rivieres fold since it seems like a hot ticket to be at. If that Major Junior money gets in there, then the ECHL bid may have a bigger hill to climb.

UND HOCKEY: Eight is Enough for UND’s Big Win Over Tigers

GRAND FORKS, ND– After only scoring one goal in last night’s win, the University of North Dakota Fighting Hawks made up for it on Saturday night, pummelling the Colorado College Tigers 8-1 to sweep the weekend. UND finished with seven goal scorers, 13 players with points, multi-point games from Kawaguchi, Weatherby, Adams, Mismash, and Andrew Peski; all while getting a bye-week to rest up the wounded like Gavin Hain and Gabe Bast who left early due to injury and Matt Kiersted who sat out the weekend to heal up. 

“Last night took a while, but we just kind of stuck with the process,” Kawaguchi mentioned post-game. “That’s what we want. We want to jump on teams early and hopefully go up a couple like we did tonight.” 

After a penalty to linemate Gavin Hain, Cole Smith took it upon himself to drive the net hard from the outside and put it through Matt Vernon to give UND a power play goal. Under two minutes later, Collin Adams continued his breakout season taking a cycle pass to just below the blueline and got it passed Vernon thanks to a Jordan Kawaguchi screen in front. UND kept the pressure and got a little puck luck with Vernon misplaying the puck in front of his net, allowing Jasper Weatherby tapping it in between his legs. As that goal was announced, Jordan Kawaguchi fed it across ice to Grant Mismash to beat Vernon far side and make it 4-0 in the first period of play. 

The Fighting Hawks kept the pedal down, as they took it to the Tigers early, which resulted in Kawaguchi getting his 14th of the year, driving to the net and putting it between the wickets of Vernon to make it 5-0 early in the second. Colorado College did put some pressure on in the middle of the frame, but Peter Thome stood tall and kept the Tigers off the scoresheet. With under five minutes left, Mark Senden drove the net and picked up Harrison Blaisdell’s rebound from Vernon’s pad to make it 6-0 UND. 

After Jon Flakne got into net for the Tigers, the Hawks took 50 seconds before a bouncing puck hit Kawaguchi’s pants to make it 7-0 for UND. Four minutes later, the Hawks made it eight with Jacob Bernard-Docker taking a skate before feeding Shane Pinto in front for his 13th of the season. Matt Vernon went back into net shortly after to try and stop the bleeding for Colorado College. The Tigers did get one back, as Connor Mayer put one past Thome after a centering feed from Alex Berardinelli to stop the shutout bid for Thome and the eventual final goal of the contest. 

Andrew Peski/Photo by Jen Conway

THEY SAID IT

“A couple of guys got banged up there so we had to move some lines and d-pairs around a bit. That gave us the opportunity tonight with a lead like that to see other guys like Harrison Blaisdell and Judd Caulfield in some other situations.”– Brad Berry on dealing on the fly with some injuries in his roster throughout the game. 

“We were just sticking with it. We watched some video this morning and looked at each other and said, ‘We got to pick it up a little bit.’ We didn’t have our best game last night. Even against Duluth we were playing our best. We got to take responsibility for that and go out there and do what we can.”– Kawaguchi on his line creating more chances tonight opposed to the start of the semester

“Matt (Kiersted)’s a great defenseman. He’s definitely a key to our offense and our power play, but at the end of the day as Bubs (Brad Berry) always says– next man up mentality. You saw Josh Rieger come in, he was playing defense and forward a little bit, so we call him the Swiss Army Knife. He did a great job and it’s just doing the job that you have and doing it well.”– Peski on the versatility of the roster for UND. 

“They’re a workhorse line. Smitty works the hardest I’ve ever seen. Senden works hard, too. Gavin has the most skill on that line and he’s a hard worker, too. I wouldn’t want to play against them. They’re tough and fast and play the right way. Those three together are unbelieveable.”– Kawaguchi on the energy line of Smith, Hain, and Senden