Clarkson Has Visibly Improved in Attack, Hence the Results Are Changing

Clarkson has seen its struggles this year on offense. It was visible why that was the case throughout much of the early part of the season. The attack lacked any sort of confidence and the possession game were hardly present in many of its games. In a series against Merrimack, Tech faltered and didn’t move the puck. At times it looked inept and without structure in that series, it could hardly get through the neutral zone. In all fairness, Merrimack does that to a lot of teams but Clarkson just looked lost at times.

Despite scoring a lone goal against Union, the attack just looked more dangerous. If not for the Union goaltender playing well, Clarkson deserved a better fate than playing to a 4-1 loss. The power play had its opportunities and at even strength Clarkson dominated the metrics of the game. Stevens made the better saves of the game and the Knights shot themselves in the foot with uncharacteristic mistakes and a lack of discipline. Change the lack of discipline and the dreadful start to the contest, it would have looked down the eyes of a weekend sweep. On Saturday, Clarkson scored five goals in a win against Rensselaer.

The improvement on offense is not only passing the eye test, but also has showed up on the scoresheet. In its last five wins, it has scored  21 goals for an average of 4.20 per game. Since the dawn of the second half, Clarkson has scored at a clip of 2.70 goals per game. The 2.70 is near 3/4’s of a goal higher than what they were in the first half, just over 2 goals per game. The problem for Clarkson is to improve consistency and to be dangerous like they looked at times.

Sitting at .500 in the half is hardly what Clarkson fans like, but seeing improvement is something I really enjoyed. Kevin Tansey, before he took the game disqualification, was  the best player on the ice against Union. The disqualification was a sad ending to what I thought was a great game by a very underrated player. His presense in the rush and pinching on offense was something that Clarkson needs more of because it is what it lacks the most in its attack. Clarkson still has the best hard nose, defenders in the league so the improved offense has led to better results. Clarkson has much of a chance of anyone to get a bye and to hold fort as a home ice team. Now with the increased confidence in attack I can see it competing for one of those spots.

St. Lawrence has grown with Kyle Hayton

Coming into the season, it seemed crazy to think that St. Lawrence would be any good. It lost most of its scoring, its defense was in a sense bad for most of last season, it graduated its stalwart but inconsistent goaltender of four years, it had a freshman in net, the defense had a new person in charge of it and the list of so called issues seemed endless. Early in the year, it seemed that SLU’s early success was unsustainable but lately the success is more than sustainable, it looks the part as the best team in the league.

Kyle Hayton stood on his head, while his team grew around him to find an identity. Against Miami, SLU picked up a win in a game it was outshot 42-16 and the next night it lost in overtime in a contest it was outshot 53-11. Hayton was forced to make 89 saves that weekend and managed to get its team a huge split. The margin in shots was not abnormal for SLU in the first quarter of the season. But as the Saints grew, mainly because Hayton had given them confidence, the possession got better and now usually equals its opponents. The change is apparent not only on the shot clock and the metrics, but it is also visible in the quality of defense.

SLU sits fifth nationally because it covers the grade A area better than any team in the league. it also helps that Kyle Hayton is the best goaltender in the ECAC and arguably the nation. He is deserving of any and all awards he eligible for, which includes mentions in the Richter award and Hobey Baker conversation. Hockey East editor and seniors writer Joe Meloni, mentioned Hayton in his most recent Hobey Watch released this morning. There is no doubt in my mind, that he is not only the most important player to his team in the ECAC but it could be argued that he is the MVP of any in the country. He put SLU on his back, now the Saints are rewarding him with confident play oozing with confident depth scoring, that no other team in the ECAC has

With seven wins in a row, St. Lawrence has put itself in great position to host a quarterfinal series, sitting in second in the league. It also sets itself up to move even closer to a Cleary Cup, as it sits three points behind Quinnipiac for first. O ya the Saints and the Bobcats will play on Friday night, in a game that could decide the league. The Saints, Kyle Hayton and Greg Carvel should all be proud of this team. It has been fun to watch how much this team has grown from day one, arguably the most in the country.

North Country Trip Provides a Great Experience

Despite always snowing (or so it seems), the North Country trip is a must for any fan of college hockey and the league in particular. Whereas Cheel Arena has all the bells and whistles, Appleton arena provides a unique college hockey viewing experience. Ya there isn’t much to do in the area, I found myself at a casino just up the road in Hogansburg to keep myself occupied, but the hockey experiences are well worth the trip.

The experience was helped by the fact that both North Country teams have been pretty good in recent weeks. Clarkson sits in a four way tie for third place and SLU is in second place in the league standings. I can seriously say I am a hockey rink enthusiast, I have covered games for CHN in 23 different buildings and have seen two others as a fan. Cheel has the best concourse I have seen in the ECAC, rivaled only by Quinnipiac. It boasts a bar and a club with great food (well worth the money to get a meal). It also represents the Clarkson hockey and sports tradition well, as banners hang as you walk in telling you all of the accolades they have earned in league and nationally. Clarkson of course is the defending womens hockey national champion and it was nice to find the trophy sitting in a case as I walked into the concourse. Cheel is also getting a makeover in the coming years. If you want to see what  it will look like, Watertown Daily’s Cap Carey, has the plans. I suggest a look.

St. Lawrence’s Appleton Arena, has that whole barn feel to it that I absolutely love in a hockey rink. After a tour from SLU’s long time SID Wally Johnson, I learned the press box that I climbed up to was built in a week for the 1988 NCAA tournament. I literally had to climb up a ladder to get into the wooden press box that stood pretty much in the roof of Appleton, I did not care that my view wasn’t the best , just being in it was fun to me as I basked in the historic nature of the place I was looking down on. Looking below me I took in the wooden bleachers that made there way throughout, a site unlike any other in college hockey.  As guy who loves history, it was one of the funnest places in college hockey and walking around the facilities, it didn’t seem to be behind and they seemed updated. All in all Appleton provides a unique experience unlike any other in college hockey.

Monday, February 9th, 2015 - 5:59 pm | Blogs, ECAC, Notes, Thoughts, Ramblings