Regardless of its record, 2001-02 will be a season of firsts for the Tufts hockey team. For the first time in its 29-year history, the Jumbos will have a permanent home rink of their own, in the new Malden Forum. This season also marks the first time that the team will compete as part of the NESCAC/ECAC East Division. The league, unquestionably the most competitive in all of Div. III, has produced six of the last seven national champions.
The Jumbos (1-1, 0-1 NESCAC/East) have already received a not-so-warm welcome into the league, courtesy of perennial powerhouse Norwich Cadets, who are currently ranked sixth in the nation. After a 6-4 win over St. Michael's in the season opener on Friday, Tufts suffered a 10-2 thrashing at the hands of the visiting Cadets just a day later.
But despite the lopsided loss, junior tri-captain and defenseman Chris Martin remains positive about the switch to fiercer competition.
"We always want to be moving up," Martin said. "And it's only going to make us better, even if its not going to be this year. It was definitely the direction we want to be moving in. We can definitely stick with these guys, we just have to do it for the whole game."
Learning experiences are something the Jumbos will likely experience a lot of over the course of the season, as the team is playing in a new league with a roster featuring 17 underclassmen (nine freshmen and eight sophomores). Nevertheless, coach Brian Murphy remains confident that the kinks will be worked out before the end of the season, as the squad looks to secure its fourth consecutive postseason berth.
"Our goal is to be a better team in February than we are in November," Murphy said. "To do that, we need to teach a lot of these young guys to be more consistent. Right now we understand the system, but we're not thinking about the system, we're relying on instinct. The older guys, of course, don't have to think about what the system is."
Forwards
Coach Murphy's squad will have to compensate for some big losses up front. Forwards Natan Obed and Scott Hayes, who ranked third and seventh, respectively, on the team scoring list a year ago, graduated in the spring, while junior Rob LaQuaglia (fourth) left the team. But the biggest scoring void was left by Jason Boudrow, a junior last year, who is currently not with the team, but may return next season. Boudrow led the nation in scoring last winter with an average of 2.79 points per game (32 goals, 37 assists).In fact, the Jumbos are currently playing with only two (Carceo and sophomore forward Pat Byrne) of their top ten scorers from last year.
"We've lost some scorers, but we've also gained some scorers," Martin said. "We picked up about three or four guys that are definitely going to take [Boudrow's] place. Don't get me wrong, he was a big loss, but these guys are good, big guys. They can handle it."
Carceo, the team's second leading scorer last season (21g-23a-44p), will be back on the first line alongside a sophomore, Matt Spang (1g-3a-4p), and a freshman, Jon Hurd. The second line will feature two sophomores in Timm Schatz and Alex Rovzar, as well as freshman Matt Kniaz. Two more rookies will skate with the third line - Sean Sullivan and Gino Rotundi, along with Byrne, who was credited with 29 points (16g, 13a). The fourth line will consist of juniors Dan Geary and Matt Potts, and yet another freshman, Brandon Hayes.
"We have very strong lines and good depth," Martin said. "The forwards have a lot of speed, they work hard, and they're big and smart players."
Byrne is already off to a quick start this year, with three goals and three assists in two games, as is Rotundi, who has registered two goals (both against St. Michael's) and three assists to date. Carceo is not far behind the pace with two goals and an assist of his own. Rotundi is not the only freshman to make his presence felt early, as Hurd also scored in the St. Michael's game, while freshmen Scott Sullivan notched two assists and classmate Adam Zussman, a defender was credited with one.
"I think we can score," Murphy said. "We're young, but we're going to get some decent chances and we're going to bury it. But there's a lot more to the game than just that."
Defense
Another area where the team also suffered big losses due to graduation is on defense. Former captain and New England Hockey Writer All-Star Dan Mahoney is gone, as is Justin Picone, who collected 16 points (four goals, 12 assists) in his final season."Dan Mahoney could be the best player that ever played here. Period," Murphy said. "As a defensemen, he didn't necessarily get as much credit. But he's a huge loss."
Another key blue liner, Chad Pessini, is also not currently on the roster, but may be back before the season concludes.
The Jumbos do have some experienced defensemen back, however, in Martin and senior tri-captain Rob Greene.
"We've got a lot of work to do before we are where we want to be," Murphy said. "Rob Greene is doing a good job. He's getting more time than he had in the past and he's doing the small things right."
Sophomore Ben Delaney Winn and junior Dan Reinhard, both of whom played sporadically last year, are also back. The rest of the spots will be filled by another crop of freshmen, namely Adam Zussman, Alex Gardner and Ben Horgan.
Goalie
Senior Ian Kell was back in net for the Jumbo's opening game after spending a semester abroad in Germany. Kell showed no signs of rustiness, either, making 35 saves including 14 out of 15 in the third period of the 6-4 win.Against Norwich, though, Murphy turned to sophomore Ben Crapser. As the team's regular goaltender last year, Crapser turned in a 15-6-1 record to go along with a 3.36 goals against average and a 88.6 save percentage.
"We have two good goalies," Murphy said. "We could use either of them. Kell wasn't around last year, so it was hard for him to get elected captain, but he's obviously a team leader as well."
Coach
Murphy is entering his fourth season at the helm of the Tufts program after first serving as an assistant coach for three years. Murphy, who was named ECAC Northeast Co-Coach of the Year last year, has guided his team to three straight playoff appearances. He is also a Tufts grad and former All-Star himself, who captained the 1994-95 team that won 11 consecutive games and is regarded as one of the best teams in school history.
