October 6, 2008
WCHA Preview, Part I
by Brad Salmen and Joshua Berhow/CHN Reporters
First of two-part preview of the WCHA
Minnesota
Coach: Don Lucia
2007-08 Record: 19-17-9, 9-12-7 WCHA
How they finished: After knocking out Minnesota State in the first round of the WCHA playoffs, in a series where all three games were decided in overtime, the Gophers beat Colorado College in the semifinals but lost to Denver in the Final Five Championship game. Eventual-champion Boston College ended the Gophers' season in the first round of the NCAAs.
Changes: Kyle Okposo left the team last year midseason and forward Blake Wheeler left in the offseason, both to the NHL. Wheeler led the team in goals (15), assists (20) and points last season but never quite peaked as much as Minnesota though he would. Defenseman Stu Bickel also left after his freshman season. Forwards Ben Gordon (15-14—29), Mike Howe (7-14—21), Evan Kaufmann (9-10—19) and Tom Pohl (1-5—6) have used up their eligibility, along with defenseman Derek Peltier (4-17—21). Jordan Schroeder, a forward, and defenseman Aaron Ness lead the recruiting class. The biggest addition to the team, however, will be a healthy Ryan Stoa, who played in just two games last season before injuring his knee in a game against Michigan. Jeff Frazee also left early for the Gophers, but Alex Kangas solidified the starting spot in net last season.
Strength: The Gophers received a big boost in the second half from Kangas, who owned a .930 save percentage and 1.98 goals against average. Kangas has size (6-2, 180) and postseason experience, making 115 saves and allowing just four goals during the playoff series with MSU — in 262 minutes of hockey. ... "He’s obviously going to be real key for us," said Minnesota head coach Don Lucia. "If he can cover up some of the mistakes all these young guys make early, I think we can be a factor at the end of the year."
Weakness: With so many young players (18 underclassmen, 12 freshmen) the Gophers need to mature quickly and find more scoring. "We need some of our freshmen to step in and play a significant role up front, and the returning players need to take a step in their development," Lucia said. Though the Gophers lack a big-time scorer, they have lots of players who can score. Jay Barriball enters his junior year as the team’s top returning scorer, with 21 points last season. Barriball, however, had just six goals after netting 20 his freshman year.
Outlook: The goaltending will be good and like most years the Gophers revamped their roster with talented freshmen. A lot of Minnesota’s success will rely on how fast its young players can develop. If Barriball can find the success he had his freshman year, he can give the Gophers their big-time scorer they lack at the start of the season, which might be all they’re waiting for to jump back to the top of the WCHA.
"We have to have some people step forward and score," Lucia said. "That junior class with (Mike) Carman, (Ryan) Flynn, Tony (Lucia) and Barriball, those guys have to score some points and goals for us this year. They’re not going to be 20-goal guys but if we can get them to a 10-goal plateau, I think that would go a long way."
Predicted Order of Finish: Fifth
Denver
Coach: George Gwozdecky
2007-08 Record: 26-14-1, 16-11-1 WCHA
How they finished: Denver swept Minnesota-Duluth in the first round of the WCHA playoffs and then went on to beat North Dakota in the semifinals and Minnesota in the finals to win the Broadmoor Trophy. Wisconsin, however, beat the Pioneers in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Not a bad season considering two of Denver’s top players, forwards Brock Trotter and Tyler Ruegsegger, missed a good portion of the season.
Changes: Trotter’s departure midway through last season left the Pioneers without their then-top scorer (31 points in 24 games), and soon after Ruegsegger missed 10 games with an injury. But Tyler Bozak (18-16—34), in his freshman season, stepped up and became a bigger part of the offense. Chris Butler (early departure), Tom May and last year’s captain, Andrew Thomas are gone, along with goalie Peter Mannino. All were a big part of the second best penalty-killing unit in the nation. The Pioneers bring in freshmen Joe Colborne and Patrick Wiercioch, both NHL draft picks from this summer, as their top recruits. Colborne is a big, talented player who should mesh well with Bozak, Ruegsegger and Rhett Rakhshani.
Strength: Ruegsegger, Rakhshani and Bozak are three of the top forwards in the league and combined for 84 points last season. All of them could easily eclipse their totals from last season. "Tyler Bozak has had a tremendous offseason and he’s looking better than he did last year," said Gwozdecky. "Guys like Kyle Ostrow, Anthony Maiani, Jesse Martin, Dustin Jackson, they are guys who have really made the next step in their development and Tyler Ruegsegger and Rhett Rakhshani are big time players in the league." The penalty kill should be one of the best in the nation, as it was last season. The Pioneers had 10 shorthanded goals last season, five by Bozak. Though a few players on last season’s penalty-killing unit are gone, the additions of Colborne and Wiercioch still make a sound unit.
Weakness: Sophomore Marc Cheverie takes over for Mannino, who played in all but one of Denver’s games last season. In limited time last season, Cheverie had a 1.70 goals against average and .925 save percentage, but now takes over the full-time job. "Marc is a very talented goaltender and his development from last year at this time to now is tremendous," Gwozdecky said. "He doesn’t really have a lot of playing experience at this level but I’m very confident that he’s going to give us a chance in every game we play."
Outlook: The Pioneers should score a ton of goals. Trotter’s presence will be missed but a couple prized recruits can plug in holes quickly. "We have a very good nucleus coming back," Gwozdecky said. "We had a lot of inexperience in our lineup last year and those young guys really developed over the course of the year — we’re looking forward to the season."
Predicted Order of Finish: First
Colorado College
Coach: Scott Owens
2007-08 Record: 28-12-1, 21-6-1 WCHA
How they finished: The No. 1 seed in the WCHA playoffs swept Alaska-Anchorage to start the postseason but lost to North Dakota and then to Minnesota in the third-place game. Michigan State ignominiously ended Colorado College’s season in the first round of the NCAA tournament, on CC's home ice. The Tigers lost three straight games early in the season and to end the season, but never had consecutive losses otherwise.
Changes: The Tigers lost a big part of their defense, and offense, with the graduation of Jack Hillen. Hillen’s (6-31—37) presence will be missed on all levels. CC’s third-leading scorer from last season, forward Jimmy Kilpatrick (15-16—31), is also gone, Scott Thauwald (5-10—15) and Derek Patrosso (5-3—8). Six freshmen join the team: three defensemen, three forwards.
Strength: CC’s success starts and ends with sophomore goalie Richard Bachman, who had a 1.85 goals against average and .931 save percentage. Bachman was last season’s WCHA Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year, only the second player ever to be named both in the same season. Special teams play for the Tigers was outstanding last year, ranked 7th in the nation on the power play and 4th on the penalty kill. Hillen was a big part of both but a good core returns to the units, which should be strong again, especially with the new rules changes favoring the power play and penalty kill.
"We’ll miss [Hillen’s] presence on the ice and his ability to generate offense, there’s no doubt," said Tigers head coach Scott Owens. "We feel we return a lot and we’re hoping everybody can step it up a couple percentage points to help make up for that difference."
Chad Rau enters his senior year as one of the top two-way players in the country, and building on a 28-goal season that included six shorthanded goals. Andreas Vlassopoulos (23 assists) and Bill Sweatt (10 goals), a pair of juniors, combined for 58 points last season, a total both should reach again. Juniors Nate Prosser (17 assists) and Brian Connelly now lead an experienced defensive unit, with Hillen being their only loss. Connelly is expected to help ease the load left by Hillen offensively.
Weakness: As good as the Tigers were last season, Hillen played in all situations for them and leaves a big hole in several areas — offense, defense and special teams, as does Kilpatrick. Bachman was a wall last season but can he match his freshman campaign? Early reviews by some say he looks even better than last year.
Outlook: Many key players return from last season’s WCHA regular season championship team. With Bachman and Rau returning and a strong supporting class, the Tigers will once again compete for the top spot in the conference.
Predicted Order of Finish: Second
St. Cloud State
Coach: Bob Motzko
2007-08 Record: 19-16-5, 12-12-4 WCHA
How they finished: After sweeping Wisconsin in the WCHA playoffs, the Huskies lost to Minnesota in the WCHA Final Five quarterfinals 3-2. SCSU then lost (again) in the first round of the NCAA tournament to Clarkson. It was the Huskies’ second straight first round exit of the tournament, and they have never won an NCAA game. The Huskies lost only one of their final nine regular season games (two ties).
Changes: Gone are seniors Matt Hartman (7-13—20), Nate Dey (10-11—21) and Aaron Brocklehurst (4-18—22), three solid scoring options. But the biggest loss from a young team was junior-to-be Andreas Nodl (18-26—44), who left in the offseason for the NHL. Nodl ended his Huskies career with 90 points in just 80 games and was a key part of SCSU’s power play. The Huskies bring in four freshmen forwards and three freshmen defensemen.
Strength: Just like last season, scoring won’t be a problem for the Huskies. Junior Ryan Lasch (25-28—53) led the league in scoring last season and Garrett Roe (18-27—45), John Swanson and Garrett Raboin all have good offensive games. Except for Nodl, the entire power-play unit from last season — which ended the season fifth in the nation — returns. Jase Weslosky solidified his spot in goal last season, with a 2.11 goals against average and a .931 save percentage — both school records — in his sophomore season. "We have two proven guys back on offense in Lasch and Roe and that’s a nice place to start," said Motzko. "No question those two have been awful special and from an offensive standpoint, that’s going to be how things come together."
Weakness: The defense will be mostly made up of a new bunch this season, with Raboin heading the unit. Swanson might see time on defense too. The Huskies aren’t likely to get another rookie sensation as they have the previous two years with Lasch and Roe, and need to find a replacement for Nodl on what was a very good power play last season. SCSU needs to find more scoring options other than the top line, as well as consistency at the second and third defensive pairings. "Garrett Raboin comes back as really our only contributor [on defense] that played power play and special minutes for us last year, and the other five spots are up for grabs," Motzko said. "But that’s going to be our crew that we’re going to have to really work with and develop."
Outlook: If the Huskies can stay healthy, they’ll have good enough goaltending and a few explosive scorers to compete in the conference. See if sophomores Nick Oslund or Aaron Marvin can step up and help fill the offensive void left by Nodl. "I think we’re going to get there and be a very competitive team in our league and in the college hockey scene," Motzko said. "But we need to get experienced and play games. If we can survive that early part of the season and get better I think we’ll be fine."
Predicted Order of Finish: Sixth
Michigan Tech Huskies
Coach: Jamie Russell
2007-08 Record: 14-20-5, 9-15-4
How they Finished: The Huskies had high hopes to open last season after losing only three seniors to graduation following their Final Five appearance in 2006-07. The Huskies climbed to 8-8-4 on Jan. 5 after a nonconference sweep at Mercyhurst, but finished 6-12-1 over the last half of the season, including being swept at home by Wisconsin and on the road at St. Cloud St. MTU managed to steal one game at North Dakota in the first round of the WCHA playoffs, but ultimately bowed out to the Fighting Sioux to end their season.
Changes: The Huskies lost four seniors to graduation, but this includes their top three scorers in Pete Rouleau, (12-17-29), Tyler Shelast (16-10-26), and Jimmy Kerr (9-10-19). The team was also hurt by the early departure of junior netminder Michael-Lee Teslak (.918 save pct., 2.20 GAA), who signed with the Philadelphia Flyers. The Huskies will have nine freshmen on their roster, including G Josh Robinson (29-19-4 for the USHL Sioux City Musketeers) and C Brett Olson (17-37-54 for the USHL Waterloo Blackhawks).
Strengths: The Huskies return a strong Defensive Corps, including Seniors Geoff Kinrade (5-14-19), a strong puckhandler, and captain John Schwartz. They also will feature a roster with nine seniors, none of whom will be counted on more than G Robbie Nolan. Nolan, who split time with Teslak for his first three years, "has always performed at the top of his game when he's been the clear No. 1 goaltender," said Russell, who said Nolan will be the team's bona fide number one to start the season. The Huskies will also count heavily on seniors Malcolm Gwilliam (5-9-14) and Alex Gagne (5-4-9) to pick up scoring slack.
Weaknesses: Bottom line, the Huskies need to find some goal scorers. "We need to find a way to start scoring more goals," said Russell, who added that this year's team will change their system a little bit to take advantage of some strong forward speed. "We're going to get away from the dump-and-chase and allow our forwards to be a little more creative with the puck." While the Huskies have nine seniors, they also have nine freshmen, and they will need several of them to step up immediately to have success in the always-tough WCHA.
Outlook: "We've got a veteran D-corps, and we're strong down the middle," said Russell. "The big question is, 'Who's going to score?' We need a lot of players to have a breakout season — it's a little bit of a different situation in that we have a lot of veterans and a lot of rookies. But the older guys have been great so far in helping the young guys understand what needs to be done to have success at this level … our fans should enjoy our style of play, we're going to give our players a little more freedom to make plays with and without the puck."
Predicted order of finish: 9th
vizorooOct 7 2008, 1:19 am
Looking forward to a banner year. Go DU !!!
DeejerOct 7 2008, 1:23 pm
A correction on your Colorado College writeup: Forward Scott McCulloch will be back after being granted a 5th year of eligibility by the NCAA due to a medical hardship. So he will be playing for CC as a senior this year.
DeejerOct 7 2008, 1:30 pm
Another correction, this time to SCSU's writeup: After referring to Lasch and Roe, you say this: "SCSU needs to find more scoring options other than the top line...." Any SCSU follower knows that Lasch and Roe did not play on the same line last year...they only were on the PP line together. Lasch played with Nate Dey and Tony Mosey, and Roe played with Nodl and Matt Hartman. They are NOT expected to be on the same line together this year either, so you can't make reference to them as "the top line"...you have to play together to be on a top line.
CHN EditorOct 7 2008, 5:44 pm
Thanks. Correction was made.
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