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Sports See other Sports Articles Title: Terriers Men's Hockey Start Dancing Against Michigan State GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — The sun, unusually pronounced for this time of year 20 miles inland of Lake Michigan, gave Chris Higgins and Luke Popko a chance to recline and soak in a few rays. They lay back against a concrete wall outside Van Andel Arena, closed their eyes and waited for Sean Sullivan and John Curry to leave the arena after their press conference finished. The rest of the Boston University hockey team joined them on the wall, sitting, leaning or walking around. And judging by their dispositions — as bright as the weather — the Terriers didn't seem to be on the way to any ulcers. But the late afternoon lounging makes some sense. Second-seeded BU goes into its NCAA Regional game Friday night against No. 3 seed Michigan State (8:30 p.m.) with a pretty clear idea of its opponent — without having watched video on the Spartans as of Thursday afternoon. The Terriers (20-9-9) know what they're up against, and, as coach Jack Parker said all week, the opponent is in the BU locker room. They're aware of the issues. No need to get too agitated, at least not yet. Parker and the staff will have a good idea of what's coming from the Spartans (22-13-3). Michigan State University coach Rick Comley, third behind Parker in all-time wins for active coaches, is one of Parker's close friends. But whereas Comley's team ran a wide-open, faster offense at Northern Michigan, the Spartans play a slower, defense-oriented system that funnels the puck toward goalie Jeff Lerg. So BU's real opponents (Michigan State) will look a whole lot like BU's real opponents (BU). "I think he can coach in any style," Parker said of Comley. "At State, he has a very similar team to what we have, as far as a couple of solid first and second lines, not overwhelming offensively. And I think he's playing like we are, a little close-to-the-vest defensively, relying on the goaltender and defense." When the game opens Friday night, however, the Terriers need to arrive with that internal inferno that's gone AWOL lately. Any more lounging, any more relaxation, will make sure that BU's next game falls sometime in mid-October. "Primarily, we wanna focus on ourselves because we're our worst enemy sometimes," Sean Sullivan said. "We had a solid week of practice, we wanna skate and bump and get them off their game a little bit on the small ice surface. We're just looking out for ourselves now, and hopefully, if we play our game, all will go well." The loss against BC last Friday revealed a team unprepared for the postseason. BU had only a slight chance to make the game close, and when a torrid second-period stretch ended scoreless, the Terriers caved. It wasn't just a lack of scoring or defense or technicality, though none of those things made it to the Garden that night. The lack of the intangible stuff, from leadership to motivation to maturity, complicated matters much more. But the same story's been rehashed all year (with apologies from this writer): Ups and downs, hot and cold streaks, anticipation and frustration. Parker said he was happy with this week's practice, but has said the same before losses and 0-0 ties this year. However, if there's been a time when a week of intensity should translate into the game, it'll be Friday night. And the BC loss, which was at the very least, one of the season's low points, afforded BU some perspective, said BU goalie John Curry. "That game highlights how we can't afford to play," Curry said. "I think we've shown this year it's almost irrelevant who we're playing. It's all about what team, which version of us, shows up." Remember, too, that every down has followed an up. When this team clicks, it's played some of the best hockey in the country, including beating the University of New Hampshire handily and sweeping the University of Maine on the road. So if a sputtering offense (2.58 goals per game) can catch a scoring bug, it could do some damage. The Terriers get Kevin Schaeffer back, after the senior defenseman sprained his right MCL in BU's 4-2 loss to Northeastern University on the final day of the regular season. Schaeffer, beyond bringing both an offensive and defensive presence to the D-core, injects a whole lot of what BU's been in need of, Parker said. "He gives us leadership out there and a lot of poise out there with the puck and experience in the dressing room as well as on the bench," he said. "You can't count how important that is to a team that's looking to win a big game." Schaeffer will help anchor a defense still second in the country, with 1.9 goals-allowed per game, which will try to dice apart a MSU offense that's scoring 3.2 per game. He'll also bring his career-high six goals (in only 32 games) to a Blue Line that will be called on to juice up an offense. Certainly, the game won't fall just on his shoulders. But there are few people more capable of helping this team get its fire back than Schaeffer, Sullivan said. "Kev has been a big part of our four years here," he said. "He brings our senior leadership back. Guys look at him, he's a solid defenseman, he knows what to do. He very rarely makes mistakes. He talks on the bench, lets you know what's going on, he's observing everything that's going on out there." "It's huge [to be back]," Schaeffer said. "You never want to end your college career getting injured, so it's nice to get back for a big run here. . . . We want to make our last year our best year, our most memorable." This is a BU program that's bowed out of the NCAAs bitterly the last two years. In 2005, North Dakota speared a young Terrier club that gutted its way through the regular season. Then last year, the No. 1 team in the country crashed at the feet of a BC team that won, 5-0, in the semifinals. But this bracket provides the Terriers with a fresh breath. In a year when Hockey East sent more teams (5) to the NCAA tournament than ever before, BU escaped having any conference teams in its bracket, while two brackets — Manchester (BC and UNH) and Rochester (Maine and University of Massachusetts-Amherst) — both feature two Hockey East teams. So, with the slate wiped clean, BU can work outside of the drudgery that life in the conference has become, with the Terriers losing four of their last six games. "I'm happy that we're playing western schools," Parker said. "The national tournament should be a national tournament and not a repeat of the weekend before. I'm happy that there won't be a Hockey East rivalry here. Last year we had to play BC, we've had to play UNH on a Saturday in the Hockey East final then play them again in the NCAAs a week later." Finally, another dynamic that could help this twisted team — the same one that pretended that its final two games at home in the Hockey East quarterfinals were actually away games — get an edge; MSU sits just a little over an hour from Grand Rapids. "We had to take a road trip, we're gonna play in somebody else's not home building, but somebody else's state," Parker said. "It's not gonna be quite the home-ice advantage that UNH might have in Manchester, New Hampshire, but it'll be an advantage for State, I'm sure. ... But our best hockey's been played on the road this year, and hopefully we'll continue that."--
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#1. To: SmokinOPs (#0)
Hmmmmm. Nope. A few one-liners come to mind here, but none very satisfying.
"Toad, Toad, wake up. It is May now." |
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