This is not a letter attacking Maine.
 
This is not a letter attacking the Maine fans.
 
This is not a letter attacking the Maine players.
 
This is a letter discussing the actions of Shawn Walsh last night.
 
 
If someone has a flame (they will be accepted), please post it back to me
personally.
 
 
First of all, let me say that the Maine fans (called "complacent" recently)
showed up in great numbers at BU last night.  Maine brought the largest road
crowd into Walter Brown last night of any team yet this year.  The Maine fans
were great, showing spirit and enthusiasm that has come to be expected of Maine
fans.  I think the Maine fans help make College Hockey what it is... a great
sport.
 
 
The game was an intense, somewhat rough (BU-Maine... never! :-)), but great
game.  Due in part to the horrible ice conditions (fluctuating temperature
outside is NOT helping the ice as they are having trouble adjusting), the game
was 0-0 with players from both teams slipping and falling and the puck
sometimes bouncing more than when Jordan drives to the hoop (well, that's not
saying much) :-)  The puck would not settle down and pretty passes became
almost impossible.
 
The fact is that, even with the bad ice conditions, it was an intense, great
game to watch, what college hockey is all about, for 64 minutes and 52 seconds.
 
 
I do not blame the Maine players for what happened, since they were only doing
what their coach told them to.  When a college coach like Walsh or Parker or
many others tells you to jump, you say "how high?"  The Maine players are not
at fault.
 
 
The situation in questions occurred with apx 7-8 seconds left in overtime.  BU
had a good break out and crossed the red line with a 2 on 1.  Whether BU would
have scored or not, I do not know, but we will never know because Cal Ingraham
jumped off the bench in front of the play and broke up the BU puck-carrier.
The player who was supposedly "coming off" had not even reached the blue line
when Cal was breaking up the play.
 
In my biased opinion as a BU fan, I felt this was intentional and thus should
have resulted in a penalty shot (intentional too many men in OT or 2 minutes
left in regulation) for BU.
 
In an unbiased view, it is the refs call and could have been difficult to
determine whether or not it was intentional or not.  Cal could have been viewed
as just being over-anxious.  I can see the refs just calling the 2 minute
minor like they did.
 
 
BU now had a face-off in the Maine end with 4 seconds left in OT and a 5-4
power-play.  (3 seconds had elapsed before Maine touched the puck after Cal
interfered with play)
 
Walsh decided then to sneak out 5 players for the faceoff and, with the crowd
screaming "5... they've got five!... too many men... 5... 5!" the face-off
occurred with all the BU players covered.  Play ended and, as BU vehemently
protested, Latendresse (Maine) took off for the bench and flew over the boards
into the Maine bench.  Gravalesse (sp?) and Fitzgerald completely ignored it/
missed it and Walsh smirked while running for cover.  The fans, outraged,
unfortunately began pelting the ice with paper cups and little plastic
megaphones.  Silverman took off his helmet and, with a sh*t-eating grin,
saluted the BU crowd and left the ice after most of the Maine team had left.
 
(Silverman was not stupid... by the time he took off his helmet, the ushers
had already gained control of the crowd and the rain of cups and megaphones
had stopped.  He did not expose himself to a dangerous situation.)
 
The pelting should not have happened, and it was stopped quickly, but Walsh,
by blatently cheating, ruined a superb game.  Blair Alison and J.P. McKersie
both played outstanding games in net (dual OT shutout!).
 
There were break-aways, up-and-down action, hard hitting, and true hatred on
the ice.  It was what college hockey is all about! :-)
 
 
The problem is that Walsh's "win at all costs" attitude ruined the game for
everyone involved.  We watched a great game, and yet all we can think about
is the cheapness of the way Walsh conducted his play at the end.
 
 
The fact is, Cal jumping off the bench to break up a 2-on-1 could have been
accidental, but the extra man for the face-off, followed by Latendresse taking
off for the bench AS SOON AS THE BUZZER SOUNDED was intentional.  There should
at LEAST be a five-on-three faceoff in the Maine end with 4 seconds left (time
enough for one good shot) or, in my opinion, a penalty shot for BU.
 
I do not blame the University as a whole, its fans or its players, but Walsh's
display was disgusting.
 
 
End of fact... now just ramblings.
 
 
I have heard many stories and unsubstantiated rumors about Walsh, things from
credit cards being given to players to money being found on beds when players
returned to their hotel rooms after winning the Great Western Freezeout last
year.  I never believed any of it.  I thought it was an outside possibilty, but
until I had evidence, I was not going to hurt someone's character.  I did not
repeat these or other rumors, only commenting on what few things were published
publicly on the list.  I was unsure of whether Walsh knew about Tory's
ineligibility.  I was unsure if Walsh had known about Cal's eligibility.
 
Although I still believe that he just messed up in the Cal case, I now am
giving a closer ear to what is said about his "win-at-all-costs" approach.
I ask this... If the University of Maine itself was not trying to hold up some
self respect and repute, would the transgressions that have occurred ever have
come out?  I know the University and the State of Maine pride themselves on
being intense, but fair.  (My parents lived in Bangor for quite some time...
and they still tell me stories about the high school basketball tourneys in the
sixties... especially Beal's (sp?) Island... six players and a one-man band)
 
Being a BU alumnus, BC is a team I love to hate, but Walsh is someone I just
have no respect for.  It's a shame.  Walsh has become to college hockey what
Texas was to football.  I used to say, "those things would never happen in
hockey..." and now they are.
 
 
A very sad and disillusioned fan.
 
Tony  BU'92'93
Former Ogre
 
PS - I'll be hopping over to the BC-Merrimack game on Tuesday for anyone else
who will be there.  I guess I still like to believe in some innocence.
 
PPS - Tonight, I do hope to see all you Maine fans there again.  The fans from
Maine would still make me root for Maine if they made the tourney, I just hope
none of my students ever play for Walsh (wherever he is in 6 years).  I like
to think that I teach my kids to have moral standards.  I would hate to see
them learn that anything is OK as long as you win.