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It wasn't noted last week (surprisingly) but UMass-Lowell's Marc Salsman was last week's Hockey East Player of the Week. This past weekend he continued to add to his point totals in UML's sweep of Providence with a goal and an assist. Interestingly enough, Salsman was featured in the Hockey News early December in an article which touted his abilities as a "shadow" who shut down players like Mark Mowers (UNH) and Vermont's Martin St. Louis. I recall him being quoted as saying that he wasn't much of a scorer so it was nice to be able to contribute defensively. Well, he certainly has turned around the "not much of a scorer". In the first twelve games of the season leading up to the article he had scored 2 goals. In the twelve games since then he has scored nine goals and is now getting some power play time. "Not much of a scorer" indeed! As a Lowell fan this is very good news indeed. I've been concerned about the lack of production from the non-seniors. The RiverHawks will be graduating the following forwards this year: Jeff Daw, Brendan Concannon, David Dartsch, Jon Mahoney, Billy Riga, and my own favorite Christian Sbrocca. Except for Riga and sometimes Dartsch, all of these have been fixtures on the top two lines. Indeed, aside from an occasional burst from speedster Shannon Basaraba, Neil Donovan has been the only forward who'll be around next year who has consistently generated some offense. Salsman's offensive step forward, important this year, will be critical next season. On the bright side for next year, I've heard exceptional reports about one of Lowell's early signees. Mario Leblanc, a big forward from Cushing Academy, has gotten glowing reviews from people I know. Still, you need to assume that most of your offense is coming from returning players and then count your lucky stars when an impact freshman like Greg Bullock or Marty Reasoner comes along. Salsman and Basaraba will need to consistently produce the rest of this year to provide an expectation that at least one solid offensive line will be out there for the 'Hawks next year. DaveH HOCKEY-L is for discussion of college ice hockey; send information to [log in to unmask], The College Hockey Information List.