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Penalty kill fails as RedHawks drop CCHA Opener
The undefeated and 14th ranked Ferris State Bulldogs used two powerplay goal and an empty-netter to hand 10th ranked Miami a 4-2 loss in the CCHA opener for both squads.
Special teams were again suspect as the RedHawks were 0-5 on the powerplay and surrendered two Bulldog powerplay goals in five shorthanded situations. That’s not going get it done over the course of a season.
Austin Czarnik and Trent Vogelhuber had the goals for Miami, while senior netminder Cody Reichard made 21 saves, several of them of the spectacular variety.
On the season, Miami is converting powerplay chances at a 20% clip and killing penalties at a lackluster 76% rate. Both numbers need to improve for Miami to begin to play more consistently.
The good news is this young Miami team has been in every game this year. Last weekend, they blew a one-goal lead in dropping a 3-2 decision to nationally ranked Colgate, and last night, entered the third period tied at 2 but were unable to grab the lead as Ferris scored 6 minutes into the period and held on for the win despite being outshot 12-5 in the period and 28-25 for the game.
Tonight, Miami attempts to earn the split and even its record at 3-3 on the year as they take on the Bulldogs again at 7pm EST from Big Rapids, Mich.
Miele’s Five-Point Night leads Pirates past Monarchs, Earns Promotion
Well, that didn’t take long.
Former Miami stand out and Hobey Baker Memorial Award winner, Andy Miele, registered a gigantic night offensively with 2-3-5 as his Portland Pirates defeated the Manchester Monarchs 5-3 on Wednesday night.
Miele, the only Hobey Baker Award winner in Miami hockey history, now has a season line of 3-4-7 in just four games with AHL Portland. And, earlier today, his performance was more than enough to earn him a quick promotion to the Pirates NHL parent club, the Phoenix Coyotes, with whom Miele signed a pro contract last spring. Presumably, Miele will suit up for his first NHL regular season game on Sunday night when the offensively challenged Coyotes (2-3-1) will face the Anaheim Ducks (4-1) at the Pond.
Congratulations, again, Andy! And, best of luck in your NHL debut — whenever that may be!
Miami Faces Tough Test at #14 Ferris State
Fans around the CCHA had to be rejoicing when Pat Nagle finally exited the campus of Ferris State University after last season. Nagle, who finished in the top 5 in the nation last year in both goals against average (2.02) and save percentage (.923), capped his career in Big Rapids as one of the most dominating goaltenders in recent league history by earning first team All-CCHA and All-America honors.
Before fans could celebrate too much however, enter C.J. Motte, the nation’s top ranked college goaltending recruit who just happens to suit up between the same pipes as did Nagle at Ewigleben Ice Arena.
All Motte has done through his first two collegiate starts is go 2-0 with a microscopic 0.50 goals against average and ridiculous .977 save percentage. In addition, the “other” goaltender, senior Taylor Nelson, is no slouch. Nelson ranks third all-time at Ferris State in save percentage (.911) and goals-against average (2.55) in 39 career starts. He’s off to an equally impressive start as he sports a 1.01 GAA, .952 save percentage and is also a perfect 2-0.
In all, the Bulldogs have scored 15 goals in their first four games and allowed just three in sweeping ECAC opponents St. Lawrence and RPI.
Returning names of note familiar to Miami fans are junior super pest Travis Ouelette (5-0-5), who is also the team’s leading returning scorer (2010-11 numbers: 10-11-21), junior Kyle Bonis (5-1-6) and senior defensemen Chad Billins and Brett Wysopal.
Needless to say, Ferris State has been tough on Miami in recent years. The RedHawks have had a difficult time breaking longtime Bulldog head coach Bob Daniels trapping system that emphasizes defense first. However, with this year’s Miami squad being a little more offensively challenged than in past seasons, it will be interesting to see how this plays out. It’s no secret Miami is loaded with talent, especially speed up front, but how will the young forwards fare against a system designed to clog the neutral zone and slow the game down? Perhaps a more moderate pace could even help Miami and literally slow the game down a bit for them. Regardless, the RedHawks face a stiff challenge traveling for the second consecutive weekend to open league play against a top 15 opponent who always gets up for the red and white.
Overall, the RedHawks are 44-40-16 against the Bulldogs, including 20-20-9 in Big Rapids. Under head coach Rico Blasi, Miami is 16-9-6 against Ferris State. Last season Ferris beat Miami 3-2 on Friday while Miami salvaged a 1-1 tie on Saturday with the Bulldogs winning the ridiculous CCHA mandated shootout. Miami swept the Bulldogs in Big Rapids in 2009-10, however en route to a dominating conference regular season title.
Weekend Prediction – Let’s light the lantern at least once this weekend.
Friday – Ferris 2-1
Saturday – Miami 2-1
INCH Recruiting Rankings: Miami #1
Inside College Hockey has ranked Miami’s 2011 recruiting class #1 in its annual rankings.
The RedHawks feature four of the top 20 forwards (Biggs, Mullin, Coleman, Czarnik) in the nation, and while there are no defensemen or goaltenders listed for Miami, it’s certain this class would have been even higher if He Who Must Not Be Named Connor Murphy had honored his word and actually suited up on the blueline for the Red and White.
Next season, you can expect to see Pat Sieloff’s name listed at defense, and possibly, both Ryan McKay and Jay Williams at the goaltender position as Miami works to replace four-year starters Will Weber, Cameron Schilling, Chris Wideman, Cody Reichard and Connor Knapp.
In the meantime, let’s enjoy watching all the freshmen grow and mature as student-athletes and young men.
D Joyaux Commits to Miami
Helping offset the loss of prized recruit He Who Must Not Be Named Connor Murphy, Chicago Steel defenseman and Bloomingdale, Ill. native, Chris Joyaux, has verbally committed to play his college hockey for the RedHawks.
Joyaux, a ’92 birthdate, will provide size (6’1″, 195), experience and leadership to a blueline that will see four-year starters Will Weber, Chris Wideman and Cameron Schilling depart Oxford prior to next season. And, along with highly regarded Pat Sieloff and Matthew Caito, Joyaux’s presence on campus will help bolster a very young back end that will once again feature two freshmen goaltenders in Jay Williams and Ryan McKay.
Welcome aboard Chris!
Miami 5th in Latest USCHO Poll
After this weekend’s split with Bemidji State, Miami finds itself 5th in this week’s USCHO.com poll. Considering the number of freshmen on this team, and what we lost from last year, this feels like a much better spot for the RedHawks than the lofty preseason #1 or #2 that was bestowed in most polls.
This weekend, Miami travels to Hamilton, N.Y. to take on #21 Colgate, the freshly minted champions of the Mutual of Omaha Stampede who defeated Robert Morris and host Nebraska-Omaha over the weekend at the CenturyLink Center in Omaha.
Redskin Warriors will have a preview of the series available later in the week.
Miami tops Windsor 4-1
In their only exhibition tune-up before the puck drops for real next weekend, the Miami RedHawks got two goals from “Awesome” Alden Hirschfeld and defeated the Windsor Lancers 4-1 at Steve Cady Arena.
Hirschfeld got his final season in a Miami uniform off to a fast start, and along with classmate Matt Tomassoni and junior Curtis McKenzie, provided all the offense senior goaltenders Cody Reichard and Connor Knapp would need as the RedHawks outshot Windsor 51-13.
Miami went 2 for 5 on the powerplay and surrendered one goal in six shorthanded situations as the game featured 21 penalties for 48 minutes. One night earlier, the Lancers skated to a 6-5 loss in Columbus as their game with the Buckeyes was also a chippy affair for the visitors from Canada who play their hockey in the Ontario University Athletics Conference.
The RedHawks skated without top returning goal scorer, Reilly Smith, but were able to overcome his absence in dominating lesser competition. If Smith is out for an extended period, Hirschfeld and the other upperclassmen will have to shoulder the load until his return.
Next weekend, Miami skates for real against Bemidji State of the WCHA in the first two regular season games of the year. We’ll have a season preview for the RedHawks as well as a weekend preview posted later in the week.
MURedHawks.com has a game recap HERE.
Report: WMU, SCSU Expected to Join NCHC
Curious…
That would be my immediate reaction to reports by both College Hockey News and USCHO that Western Michigan University and St. Cloud State University are expected to join the new National Collegiate Hockey Conference that will start play in 2013-14. According to reports, both schools will be invited by week’s end. Both websites cited separate sources with CHN naming the Grand Forks Herald and USCHO citing the Kalamazoo Gazette.
So, what does this mean for Notre Dame?
I think it means they are going to play as an independent while their administration very likely considers a new conference for their other sports as the dramatic changes in college athletics continue. It wouldn’t surprise me to see Notre Dame join either the Big 10 or the ACC for all sports. Of course, only the Big 10 helps the Irish (why Notre Dame gets away with using “Fighting Irish” and others like North Dakota are crucified for using “Fighting Sioux” is beyond me, but a story for another day) on the ice so things are going to be more difficult for them until the situation is resolved.
Notre Dame has committed to announcing a “decision” within 10 days.
As for the NCHC, the addition of Western Michigan makes all the sense in the world. Heavy commitment to hockey, Division I in all-sports, travel partner and MAC rival with Miami, Andy Murray at the helm, etc.
However, I’m perplexed by the addition of St. Cloud.
When the NCHC announced the formation of the conference, “like-mindedness” and a commitment to hockey were noted as key tenets that brought these schools together. I must confess I do not know a ton about St. Cloud as a university, but I know they aren’t a Division I school (though defending national champion UMD isn’t either), they aren’t highly regarded academically and I can only hope assume their ability to support hockey at this highest level is not a challenge for them financially. Plus, St. Cloud’s president went on the record saying the Huskies would not accept an invite to the NCHC as our pal Goon reported a few months back over at Goon’s World making him either a slick politician or an absolute hypocrite.
So, I’m wondering what SCSU brings that Bowling Green doesn’t?
It’s another Minnesota school which is a boon for recruiting, but Bowling Green is a Division I school and inviting them would have kept the three hockey-playing MAC schools together. If Notre Dame wasn’t (ever) going to accept the invitation, I wonder why the NCHC is going with a small non-Division I school over a program that has won a national title, has reaffirmed their commitment to hockey and is a three-hour drive from Oxford, Ohio?
More on this to come over the next few weeks I’m sure.
Shayne Bingham Added to Miami Roster
Though it’s been a rather tumultuous and loud off-season for the Miami RedHawks and college hockey as a whole, there was one relatively quiet addition to Miami’s roster last week when Danbury, Connecticut’s Shayne Bingham was added as a walk-on for the 2011-12 season.
Bingham, who played high school hockey at Rye Country Day, an independent college prep school located in Rye, N.Y., was initially hoping to play club hockey at Miami after enrolling earlier this year. However, the freshman penned a letter to head coach Enrico Blasi asking for a shot at the big team. With the loss of prized defensive recruit He Who Must Not Be Named Connor Murphy to the Sarnia Sting of the OHL and the impending departures of senior defensemen Will Weber, Cameron Schilling, and Chris Wideman, along with forward/defenseman Matt Tomassoni at season’s end, an extra d-man is a needed insurance policy this year. And, if Bingham makes enough of an impact during practice, he could earn a roster spot next season even when Miami has additional defensemen coming to campus to account for the aforementioned losses.
To be truthful, if Bingham sees the ice this year it likely means injuries or suspensions have decimated the Miami blueline. However, I’m sure he’ll be the hardest worker in practice doing everything he can to earn a shot this year and in the future.
The Journal News of Lower Hudson Valley has a tremendous article on Bingham’s story including the outreach to Coach Blasi that eventually earned him a shot.
Best of luck to Shayne as he begins his Miami career!
20 Questions (or so) with Alden Hirschfeld
As we ramp up our preseason coverage, Miami senior co-captain Alden Hirschfeld was kind enough to sit down with Redskin Warriors to provide his insight into the upcoming year. Hirschfeld (Sylvania, Ohio) enters his senior season with a career line of 24-22-46 in 93 career games for the RedHawks. But last season, he set career highs in goals (12), assists (14) and points (26) in just 34 games as he helped lead Miami to its first ever Mason Cup championship.
Hirschfeld, who is no stranger to scoring big goals for the RedHawks (think 2009 National Semifinal against Bemidji State and 2010 Midwest Region Final against Michigan), is taking on an ever bigger responsibility for Miami as he ascends to take the reins as a co-captain for the 2011-12 season.
So, thanks again Alden for your time. And, here’s our interview with Miami co-captain Alden Hirschfeld.
Redskin Warriors (RW): What are the team’s expectations heading into the season?
Alden Hirschfeld (AH): Obviously our ultimate goal is a National Championship, but we also want to win the Championships for our league. The CCHA regular season and CCHA playoff Championships. It is important for us to get off to a good start and be consistent throughout the entire season.
RW: What’s been different this off-season versus past years?
AH: We changed a little bit of our training routine. Our strength coach did a good job building workouts that are going to benefit us on the ice. Everyone came back in great shape and looking very lean, which is good to see. The numbers guys are putting up in the weight room are great and really shows the hard work everyone put in this offseason.
RW: Clearly, the incoming freshmen are highly regarded. To this point, who has stood out in your mind?
AH: All of the freshman have been outstanding. They are a big class in numbers, but not necessarily size. The smaller ones A. (Alex) Wideman, (Austin) Czarnik and (Jimmy) Mullin make up for their size with their skills. (Tyler) Biggs, (Blake) Coleman, (Cody) Murphy and (Ben) Paulides are bigger guys who are going to fit in great with our style of play. But overall everyone looks great and they are going to be expected to be step in and make a difference right away.
RW: What returning player do you expect to see the largest improvement from?
AH: I think it’s important that we all improve not just any certain individual. Each day you want to get better. That is a mentality that a lot of our guys have, if not everyone, and it will be important for us all to be doing everything we can to be our best.
RW: What are your individual goals this year? How does being named a co-captain impact how you go about your daily business?
AH: I just want to focus on being the best I can each day. Really being consistent and playing great every day. It’s important for me as a captain to make sure I take care of myself as well as the team. There is a little bit more going on when you take the role of captain, but its nice to have Webs (senior co-captain Will Weber) there too so we can help each other out. Obviously there are more people watching you too so its important to always be professional and one of the best on the ice each day.
RW: Describe your leadership style. How are you and Will Weber similar? Different?
AH: I’m a pretty vocal leader. I communicate a lot with the guys. I also try and lead by example. I feel like I have a good work ethic and people respect me for that. I am also a very personable person and am open to the guys to come and talk to about anything. Me and Webs both have good work ethics and compete at a high level. We both try and set good examples and put the team before ourselves. I think that I am a little more vocal than Webs, but he makes up for that in how he leads by example. His demeanor and intensity level are unbelievable.
RW: What’s it been like having former captain Brian Kaufmann back around the program and what does he add to the coaching staff? Has he given you any advice on how to handle the captaincy?
AH: It’s great to have him back. He was the captain my freshman year and I learned a lot from him. Having him around is great because he has great advice about things and is willing to help with anything. He has talked with me and Webs and given us support and ideas that have been very helpful. He will be a great asset to the program this season and we are excited to have him back.
RW: Who do you consider Miami’s key rival in the CCHA?
AH: I think our key rivals are Michigan, Notre Dame and Ohio State. They are all huge games for us and always ones we key in on as “rivals.” Ohio State obviously being close by is a good in-state rival that has developed over the years.
RW: Though you won’t play in the NCHC, what was your reaction to the announcement? Is realignment good for college hockey?
AH: It’s exciting. I would have loved the opportunity to play in it for a year, but I think its great for the program and everyone seems excited. The CCHA has been awesome though and so no complaints there.
RW: What does “The Brotherhood” mean to you? How has it affected your daily life?
AH: “The Brotherhood” is what our team is all about. It’s extremely important to everyone involved with our program. It is what we live by. It’s our document that we created as a program and developed. It’s a way of life and in a basic sentence it means being the best you can be each day in everything that you do. It really helps you hold yourself accountable and make good decisions. It builds relationships that are trustworthy and meaningful as well as a Championship Culture.
RW: We’ve heard the team is getting new uniforms this year. In fact, we’ve heard the Friday jerseys will say “Miami” but the Saturday jerseys will feature the Hawk Head for the first time in years. What else can you tell us about them? Home only? New roadies too? And, is the program finally migrating to adidas like the rest of the athletic department?
AH: I’m not exactly sure. I do know we will have the ones saying Miami and the ones with the Hawk. I have not seen them and don’t know when we will wear which. I’m not sure about the road jerseys either. I suppose it will be a surprise for us all and just kind of see what we decide to wear when. I’m excited to see them though.
RW: What is your major and how close are you to achieving your Miami degree?
AH: I am majoring in Business Management with a focus on organization and leadership, and minoring in coaching. I believe I am about three classes away from the degree after the fall semester.
RW: What does your future after college look like? What are you hoping to do?
AH: My goal is to continue playing hockey. Hopefully, I can have a good year and achieve the dream and goal of playing professional hockey.
RW: What’s been the best part of playing college hockey at Miami?
AH: I would say the Championships we have won and the relationships I have built with teammates and coaches since I have been here. Also playing in the National Championship game was awesome. And just being able to be apart of The Brotherhood is something that I will cherish for the rest of my life.
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