Volume CXXXIII, Number 17 February 22, 2002 f

Men's hockey faces Amherst in playoffs
ALISON L. McCONNELL
ORIENT STAFF

Most teams don't want to lose. However, men's hockey head coach Terry Meagher asserted that last weekend's losses were, in fact, exactly what his team needed.

"[Hamilton and Colby] were very good tests; that's what you want-games like that in your last weeks of the regular season," he said.

Bears head into playoffs 17-3-3 after a losses to Colby and Hamilton. (Colin LeCroy, Bowdoin Orient)

2 MB movie: [Men's Hockey] [Quicktime 5 required]

The Bears split the last pair of games in the 2001-2002 season, and head into the playoffs 17-3-3 overall. Their 14-2-3 league record placed them at second in NESCAC season-end standings.

After a rough loss to Colby on February 9, the men turned their practice focus inward, realigning themselves as a team and readying for Amherst and Hamilton. The focus worked last Friday, when the Bears squeezed eight goals out of the Jeffs for an 8-2 victory.

"We rebounded really well after the Colby game. We paid attention to fundamentals, and we were much more disciplined as a team," Meagher said. "We put things in perspective: maybe [against Colby] we hadn't played the game we were capable of, but that was the first time in the context of season, and we had been doing a lot of good things too."

At 11:28 in the first period, Albert Mayer '03 put the first Bowdoin goal on the board, and it wouldn't be long before a pair of Sean Starke '03 goals put the Bears up 3-0 going into the second.

Mike Carosi's pass found fellow senior Bill Busch out front, who backhanded the puck past Jeff goaltender Justin Jagher. Andy McNerney '02 and Chad Hart '03 both scored within the 13th minute to give the Bears the biggest margin they'd see: 6-0.

The Jeffs answered at the end of the second period, as Dave Moore beat sophomore goaltender Mike Healey for a 6-1 score. The third frame saw another Amherst goal, from Scott Aldrich at 12:11, but goals from sophomores Marty Brisebois and Mike Stevens capped the 8-2 Bowdoin win.

Healey turned away 21 in the game, while Jagher saved 29 Bear attempts. "Michael made some key saves," Meagher said.

When Hamilton visited Dayton last Saturday, the outcome was a different story. The Bears fought their way through a back-and-forth game that needed overtime for Continental Kevin Audit to break a 3-3 tie.

Juniors Kevin Castonguay, Adam Mantin, and Ryan Seymour netted goals for the Bears, but they wound up on the losing end of a 3-4 score.

"[Hamilton is] a very good team," Meagher said. "It was just a good hockey game," he said. "We were playing very well defensively; both teams were technically very sound.

"We had some fundamental breakdowns that should never happen in a game," he added. "We let it go too far. That was the tough part of the weekend-it was like a playoff game, and we learned that breakdowns are going to cost you."

The Bears face off with Amherst for the second time in two weeks tomorrow in the first round of NESCAC playoffs. "We've had the whole week to prepare for an opponent we've just seen; that's fresh in our minds," Meagher said. "The challenge is to find that balance, to maintain what we do well and not overanalyze."

Despite his team's 8-2 margin over the Jeffs last Saturday, Meagher isn't overconfident. "I go into every game with the feeling that if we play our game, we'll be competitive. It comes down to execution and mental preparedness and good goaltending."

He has a lot of faith that his men's performance over the course of the season will serve them well in the playoffs and beyond. "I'm very proud of this team," he said. "They've handled themselves on trips, been good citizens on campus...

"I'm a firm believer that your team is a product of your leadership," he added. "The senior class's leadership is so important; they do a great job of keeping the team on an even keel."

The Bears can count on a reliable goaltender as their last line of defense in playoff games, too. According to Meagher, Healey's play in net has been steady, even in the face of injury. "He went into the first game injured and played through it, then took a hard hit in the Hamilton game," he said.

First year Nathan Riddle, hit in the Colby game on February 12, is out for the remainder of the year with knee problems. "It's a big loss; he quiets the game so well," Meagher said. "He's very important to us, and it's hard because it was a joy for a lot of people to watch him play."

While past games and performances are a major consideration in postseason preparation, tomorrow is a fresh start for the Bears.

"It's a new season-nothing that happened prior matters anymore," Meagher said.