NH College Hockey: UNH's new players show grit right away
Oct. 12—THE UNH men's hockey team had its toughness tested and got contributions from several of its 12 new players right away to start the season.
The Wildcats swept their visit to New York's North Country with a 4-3 overtime comeback win at then-No. 17 Clarkson University and a 4-1 triumph at St. Lawrence University last weekend.
UNH will host Boston College (0-1-0) in both its Hockey East and home opener on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Whittemore Center. It will also be the Wildcats' first game on its new 200-by-90 feet ice sheet.
UNH trailed Clarkson, 2-0, after two periods and 3-1 after the opening five minutes of the third.
Chase Stevenson, as part of what coach Mike Souza considers the senior captain's best career weekend, scored the game-tying goal 7:13 into the third. Sophomore forward Liam Devlin followed up with the game-winning power-play goal 4:03 into the extra frame.
"Especially with a young group, those are games that are never easy to win no matter what," Wildcats senior forward and alternate captain Harrison Blaisdell said. "When you can do it in your first game of the season with a bunch of fresh faces, it kind of just sets a standard for the rest of the season where when you do get down a few goals, the game is never over ... Just kind of proving that to ourselves was as big as anything going forward."
The Wildcats had four players notch their first points for the program last weekend.
Cy LeClerc, a freshman forward from Brentwood, had a goal and an assist against Clarkson. Ryan Black, a fifth-year transfer from Division III Babson College, tallied three assists last weekend.
Freshmen Morgan Winters, a forward, and Damien Carfagna, a defenseman, both scored their first collegiate goals against St. Lawrence.
UNH freshman goaltender Tyler Muszelik made 31 saves against the Saints in his debut, one night after senior David Fessenden earned a 28-save win over Clarkson.
Carfagna was named the Hockey East defender of the week and Muszelik was chosen as the Hockey East rookie of the week.
Blaisdell said it was a nice surprise to have freshmen contribute on opening weekend.
"It's not easy transitioning from juniors," Blaisdell said. "It's a tough transition but these guys are skilled and they bring a lot to the table for us. If we're going to win a lot of games this year, we're going to need those contributions from them."
Souza was especially impressed with Black, who captained Babson last year as the Beavers reached the NCAA Division III quarterfinals. The Pomfret, Conn., resident was the New England Hockey Conference player of the year last season, leading the league in goals (19) and points (39).
"You bring in a guy who's not only a fifth-year player but he's a leader," Souza said of Black. "Instantly he brings an element to your team that a freshman cannot bring. We've certainly welcomed having him here and he's been a great addition."
Blaisdell said opening with two four-goal outings was a relief for he and his fellow returning forwards coming off last season, when UNH scored the third-fewest goals (76) in the 11-team Hockey East.
"We really had to fight hard for our wins last year," Blaisdell said. "There were a lot of games where it was 2-1 or 1-0 one way or the other. Obviously, those games can be tough mentally, especially when guys are expected to score and deliver and it's just not happening. Getting those four, five goals right off the bat and getting everyone involved is just a big weight off your shoulder.
"It just helps you really create more offense because you're not squeezing your sticks as much and you know that the team's capable of doing it."
Souza said he feels Boston College, like it does most seasons, has tons of skill and speed on its roster with players like junior forwards Nikita Nesterenko and Colby Ambrosio and senior defenseman Marshall Warren.
Nesterenko and Warren are both Minnesota Wild draft picks. The Colorado Avalanche selected Ambrosio in the fourth round of the 2020 NHL Draft.
And, of course, Boston College has a new coach: former star Greg Brown, who is replacing the legendary Jerry York.
The Eagles, who lost, 4-0, to Quinnipiac last Friday, eliminated UNH in the first round of the Hockey East playoffs last season. BC tied with UMass Lowell for fifth place in the league's preseason coaches' poll.
Wildcats freshman forward Kristaps Skarastins will likely miss Saturday's game with an upper-body injury, Souza said. Skarastins did not play last weekend.
"You name the guy, they've got some guys who can beat you one on one," Souza said of the Eagles. "We're just going to have to make sure that we manage the puck. We don't want to get into a track meet with Boston College."
Honoring Ciocco
There will be a reception for the Ciocco family honoring former UNH men's hockey captain Josh Ciocco at Salvatore's Italian Restaurant in Lawrence, Mass., next Tuesday from 3-6 p.m.
UNH will play at Merrimack College that night and there will be a tribute to Ciocco before the game for his contributions to both schools, programs and campuses.
Ciocco, who died earlier this month at age 38, played at UNH from 2003-07 and spent the past four seasons as an assistant men's hockey coach at Merrimack.
