Season previews for teams
Up in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, Plymouth State coach Brett Tryder is coming off of two strong years. He has nine of twelve forwards returning, meaning three full lines will be intact. Senior Goose Lacroix will be counted on to at least equal his more than point a game average from last year, … Read more
Team Overview: The Mules enter this season looking for some depth having played several games down the stretch with a limited number of skaters. “We will have a lot better numbers this season, noted head Coach Jim Tortorella. We have a nice mix of some veteran guys and some new guys that should help us. … Read more
Team Overview: Injuries took their toll on the Jumbos coming down the stretch last season as they seemed poised to make the conference playoffs. This year head coach Brian Murphy likes his overall numbers which should provide some much needed depth: “We will have better numbers so we shouldn’t get caught only dressing 13 or … Read more
Team Overview: The Ephs’ second-place finish last season might have been a surprise to everyone else but coach Bill Kangas: “You just want to keep building momentum and its cliché, but play better in every game than one you played the night before. We were fairly young last season but those guys have a full … Read more
Team Overview: OK, not to beat a dead horse but head coach Jim Ward will have a very young team this year and expects the team to grow literally game by game. “We will probably have fifteen or more freshmen and sophomores in the lineup every night,” noted Ward. “I have really been impressed with … Read more
Erik Noack knows where his Johnson & Wales team is strong. “Our strength is in our forwards, like Dave Notartomaso and Matt McGilvary. We also have forwards who have played college hockey for a couple of years.” McGilvary, a sophomore, led the team in scoring last year, and Notartomaso is a redshirt freshman of whom … Read more
Team Overview: “You know the strength of our team is going to be on the blue line,” said head coach Phil Grady. “We surely lost a big class and will have a lot of young guys coming in eager to play this year. Losing Gus(Katsuras) is tough but it may be a good thing in … Read more
First-year coach Chris Bernard is excited about taking over at Western New England College, and he feels his troops are, as well. “We have a really competitive group who’ll play an up-tempo, physical style of play. We’re really bolstered by a big, strong sophomore class.” Some of the sophomores include last year’s leading scorer Mike … Read more
With the drop of the puck finally here, the ECAC Northeast Division III conference is comprised of teams that improve each year, not only on the ice, but off the ice, with more aggressive recruiting efforts. Pre-season polls have the league’s coaches choosing Curry College as the 2006-07 favorite, with UMass Dartmouth second. These are … Read more
R.J. Tolan is preparing for his rookie season behind the Wentworth bench. He seems pleased so far by what he’s seen. “Our depth up front will be our strength. We’ve got Matt Koehler returning, and he was our leading scorer last year, and we’re just going to find out how things go, as they go … Read more
Team Overview: The Pilgrims were on the bubble last year when it came time for the at-large bids for the NCAA tournament despite almost twenty wins. This year’s team looks to be markedly different from recent teams in terms of age and experience. “We graduated a big class and lost some other kids from the … Read more
Team Overview: For St. Michael’s, the battle for recognition in the ECAC East is focused on the regular season. The Purple Knights are a D-II school like St. Anselm’s and hope to earn the respect of their opponents in the conference by succeeding during the season before the playoffs. Jared Silver leads an improved Purple … Read more
Team Overview: When is year two really year one? For head coach Neil Sinclair, he is entering his second season at Skidmore but has his first recruiting class coming on board to his program. “This is my first recruiting class here because of the timing of getting the job when Coach Dion resigned,” Sinclair explained. … Read more
Team Overview: The key thing about taking over a new program is the constant drive to improve the roster and quality of play on the ice. Second-year head coach Alex Todd has been working on both and fit in a pre-season conversation while on the road for a recruiting trip prior to starting practices on … Read more
Team Overview: The continuous improvement exhibited by coach Jeff Beaney’s squad over the past two seasons has not gone unnoticed around the league — the huskies aren’t sneaking up on anyone anymore. BEANEY “We have a veteran team this year,” said Beaney. “But with the experience and depth, we need to have a better start … Read more
Team Overview: Norwich basically reloaded last season with the offensive emergence of Rick Cleaver and Nikita Kashirsky who each totaled over 40 points. In fact, the Cadets scored 151 goals last season while only giving up 56 so they were able to play well in all three zones and dominate opponents. “We have some good … Read more
Team Overview: Bill O’Neill is in that elite group of coaches with over 400 career wins — all at Salem State. O’Neill like the looks of his returning players and is curious about the mix of some of the new recruits coming in: “You just don’t know what you have before you get on the … Read more
Team Overview: Yes the Hawks still continue to face the dilemma of being a D-II team in a D-III league — so once again they will not qualify for tournament play come playoff time in the conference. While they are the reigning D-II tournament champions, coach Ed Seney would like his squad to focus on … Read more
Team Overview: Back for the third season at his alma mater, head coach Jamie Rice really likes his returning players as well as what the newcomers can bring to his team. “We lost a big class last season that were the primary group that redefined the hockey program here at Babson,” Rice said. “No doubt … Read more
Welcome back to all the fans who love D-II/III hockey in New England! Better late than never as the ECAC East and NESCAC schools are last to officially step on to the ice for real practices and the start of games in mid-November. I actually prefer to think of the late start as a good … Read more