Yet another mediocre weekend of picks for Dave and me. Guess that’s a product of how tight this league is. Jim’s last week: 5-4-0 Dave’s last week: 5-4-0 Jim’s record-to-date: 81-60-13 Dave’s record-to-date: 84-57-13 Friday, February 3 Boston University at Merrimack Jim’s pick: Even though I rarely pick against Merrimack at home (though did last weekend and … Read more
There were four weekend sweeps in Hockey East – Massachusetts-Lowell over Massachusetts, Maine over Boston University, Boston College over New Hampshire and Northeastern over Vermont – that taught me just one thing (that can be divided into three different groups). So here are the three classes that will make up the Hockey East race as … Read more
Was there a more pathetic performance last weekend than my picks? I’ll give you Kyle Williams and Billy Cundiff but can you name a third? I didn’t think so. Dave last week: 4-6-0 Jim last week: 5-5-0 Dave’s record-to-date: 79-53-13 Jim’s record-to-date: 76-56-13 Here are this week’s picks: Friday, January 27 Maine at Boston University Dave’s pick: … Read more
These are three things I think I learned from this past weekend. 1. Northeastern is in trouble. The Huskies, who two weeks ago projected to be an NCAA tournament bubble team after running off eight straight wins, now sit in ninth place in Hockey East and 27th in the Pairwise. Making matters worse, the teams immediately ahead of … Read more
Neither Dave nor I had stellar weeks, but at least I picked up a game on the old man (finally!) Jim’s last week: 5-3-1 Dave’s last week: 4-4-1 Jim’s record-to-date: 71-51-13 Dave’s record-to-date: 75-47-13 Friday, January 20 Providence at BU Jim’s pick: Love the way the Terriers are playing right now. Providence, not so much. … Read more
One Hockey East team earned two wins this weekend and that’s the Boston University Terriers. They lead my list of three things I learned this weekend: 1. Terriers beginning to fill offensive gaps: They may have lost some of their top scorers, but the Boston University Terriers seem like one of Hockey East’s hottest teams. … Read more
BOSTON – The 2012 version of Frozen Fenway is officially over. Let me be the first to say, “Thank heaven.” I know. I’m what you might call a Negative Nelly. You can say I don’t appreciate the aura of Fenway Park or the nostalgia of outdoor hockey. To that I would disagree. I think outdoor … Read more
The departure of two of Boston University’s most prodigious scorers severely thinned the Terriers’ offensive ranks during the December holiday break. First, Corey Trivino – BU’s leading goal scorer – was dismissed from the team after an off-ice incident. Just four days later, Charlie Coyle left the Terriers to sign with the Saint John Sea … Read more
I could have resorted to the four-corners offense last week — you youngsters out there will need to look that one up on Wikipedia — but I didn’t. I went against Jim’s picks in three of the five games and almost went three-for-three. But as Meatloaf once sang — more Wikipedia research there for you, kids … Read more
Yes, there were other games but when I looked at the top three things I learned, they all centered on the Fenway games. 3. The Minutemen are heating up In the first half, Massachusetts had some very nice ups (wins over Boston College and Northeastern) and some not-so-nice downs (two five-game winless streaks). More recently, … Read more
“We have to find our Fenway.” The Vermont Catamounts have endured a brutal season so far, entering their Frozen Fenway contest against Massachusetts with a 4-14-1 overall record and even worse, a 1-10-1 mark within Hockey East. That left them seven points behind in the race for the last playoff berth. But going against UMass, an … Read more
Whenever you play an outdoor game and the temperature rises, the immediate concern is how well the ice will hold up. While the temperature dropped to a manageable 49 degrees by the start of the second game, it stood at 59 degrees for the first. “It was a little bouncy out there, I’m not going … Read more
The New Hampshire – Maine nightcap to the Frozen Fenway doubleheader is now expected to start at 8:00. It was originally penciled in for 7:30, but the actual time depended on how long the first one lasted. Of course, if there’s overtime — Vermont and Massachusetts are now tied, 2-2, partway through the third period … Read more
While fans of the schools involved (and those not involved) will certainly focus on the change in teams, there are a few other differences from the first Frozen Fenway, two years ago in 2010. First, the 2010 weather made the phrase Frozen Fenway truly apt. Family members of mine who attended both ends of the doubleheader were … Read more
Welcome to the New Year! Hopefully I can do something to close the old man’s gap in the picks department. Jim’s last week: 9-6-2 Dave’s last week: 10-5-2 Jim’s record-to-date: 64-46-11 Dave’s record-to-date: 68-42-11 Saturday, January 7 Merrimack at BU Jim’s pick: Even though they’re at home, I don’t have much confidence in BU right … Read more
The annual weekend of in-season tournament madness came to an end and Hockey East fared the best of all the league involved earning three tournament victories. If you told me the league got three wins at tournaments, though, I’d have guaranteed you that Boston College had one of those victories at the GLI. Man, how … Read more
It’s been a while since we’ve picked a game, but that doesn’t hide the horrid final weekend I had before the break. Jim’s last week: 0-2-0 Dave’s last week: 2-0-0 Jim’s record-to-date: 55-40-9 Dave’s record-to-date: 58-37-9 Here are picks for this weekend’s non-league and tournament action and games through next Thursday: Thursday, December 29 Clarkson … Read more
We’ve reached the unofficial halfway point of the college hockey season so it’s time to take out the pen and paper and assess each teams progress just like the professors who teach these student athletes. Just like college, there are good grades, some teams that need improvement and other that, to this point, are in … Read more
Or at least I think so. 3. The bloom is off the rose for Merrimack. Just a few short weeks ago, the Warriors were the number one team in the country, the last to have their record still unsullied by a loss. I suspect that of those who sang the praises of this team — and … Read more
Last weekend was an improvement for Jimmy and me over the previous week’s debacle, but we barely kept our heads above water. Here’s hoping for a 2-for-2 finale going into the holidays. And may all of you have a wonderful holiday season. Dave last week: 2-2-1 Jim last week: 2-2-1 Dave’s record-to-date: 56-37-9 Jim’s record-to-date: 55-38-9 Here are this … Read more