Some folks on the list asked those of us who attended the Frozen Four this
year for comments, so here are a few.
I was not planning to attend this year, after my disappointment in my
team's implosion in St. Paul last April. But, when UNH got by both St.
Cloud State and B.U. in the Northeast Regionals, no small feat, especially
after Lanny Gare went down with a separated shoulder at the beginning of
the BU game, I would have felt guilty staying home.
I am grateful to the folks on this list who offer their extra tickets at
face value, which I have exploited five times now (1998, 2000, 2001, 2002,
and 2003). But, with the lack of any airline connections that would get me
to Buffalo in time for the noon game on Thursday, I drove out from the
Boston area on Wednesday night, sleeping in my car for about three hours
on each of two occasions at gas stops along the NY Thruway, arriving just
in time for the UNH pep rally in the HSBC at 10 am (so, about 7 hours
driving, 6 hours snoozing).
First Game: Despite the closer proximity of Cornell to Buffalo, I think
that UNH fans were nearly equal in number, if not decibel level. For me,
the beginning of the game had deja vu 2002 written all over it. Before
Cornell's disallowed goal, Cornell was in command, outshooting UNH 7-1, I
believe. One thing about attending these games at the balcony level is
that you cannot see nearly as well as on TV. The infamous Jumbotron in the
HSBC (the very same that fell and just missed squishing the Boston Bruins
as they were completing practice when the place opened a few years ago)
was not used very effectively, in my opinion. The three or four black &
white video clips of NCAA scholar athletes were shown over and over and
over again during each and every TV time out, and by about midway through
the second game, the clips were generating boos from the crowd (not fair
to the fans or the athletes depicted). However, the loud speaker system
(and/or simply the speaker himself?) was excellent, far superior to those
at the Fleet Center, Verizon Center, and especially the Worcester Centrum,
which are unintelligible from the balconies. So, those of us in the
balcony at the opposite end of the building did not have a clue what was
being reviewed until the announcement was made over the loudspeaker after
what seemed like 10 minutes (maybe it was only 5 or 6?). In any case, as
noted in earlier postings on this list, the extended break was all that
UNH needed to get untracked, while at the same time apparently the delay
disrupted Cornell's focus for the remainder of the first period and the
better part of the second. The first UNH goal, coming from a fourth line
cobbled together to include two defensemen, and the winning two goals by
Steve Saviano were reminiscent of the offensive barrages of the speedy
Wildcat teams of years past. I thought that Schafer was a genius in
calling his time out half way through a Cornell power play that was going
nowhere, which resulted in Cornell getting its first goal. Was UNH a
better team than Cornell this year? Probably not, but anything goes in the
post-season.
Second Game: I really thought that Michigan could have been easily up 5 or
6 to zip, if it had not been for Weber's goal-tending, which probably
would have been too deep a hole for the Gophers to have dug themselves
free, Thomas Vanek or no Thomas Vanek.
On Friday, I enjoyed perhaps what the long-time Frozen Four ticket-holders
find familiar, that is a couple of hours sitting on the soft cushy lower
level seats, watching the teams practice. But, I suppose that TV with its
instant replays even beats these seats if you only want to see the finer
details of every close play. There is no substitution for being there in
person if you wish to experience the excitement of the crowd, of course.
The Hobey Baker and Humanitarian award presentations and their recipients
were excellent. Coca Cola's Fanfest at the Convention Center about half a
mile away from the HSBC seemed to be providing great entertainment for the
kids. And, the same tie-breaking scoring clips from past post-season
tournaments that were too small to see well on the Jumbotron were shown
continuously on a big screen at the Fanfest.
Saturday was a tough day for a UNH fan, as despite the 1-1 tie midway
through the 3rd period, there was no question which was the better team on
this particular day (Minnesota was outshooting UNH about 2-1 at this
point), and the outcome was not at all surprising. This was not the same
Minnesota team that I watched UNH tie and beat on their visit to Durham
last October (Grant Potulny had just broken his ankle and Travis Weber and
Thomas Vanek were not yet so imposing). Of course, UNH also had Lanny Gare
then, although Garrett Stafford was absent for the first semester.
Nevertheless, UNH played well above the expectation of most this past
year. Hockey East probably has as much parity at the top as any other
conference, and I think any of five or six teams could be in contention
for the HE title next year.
I have certainly enjoyed the postings others have made on this list the
past few months. Have a fine summer.
Bring on 2003-2004!
Thom Davis
UNH '71
Go Cats!
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