At the start of the 2006-07 season, the Tufts hockey team's locker room was nothing but optimistic. Senior co-captain John Murphy described his teammates as "probably the most talented team we've ever had," and declared that "if we finish any lower than fourth in the league, that will be disappointing."
Four months, six wins, and a last place NESCAC finish later, the team is nothing but disappointed.
It seemed that the Jumbos could never muster the offense, defense or special teams to overcome their opponents.
Throughout the year, the team was plagued with injuries, misfortune and frustration. The end result was a grim three league wins, a total that eliminated Tufts from conference playoff contention for the second-straight season. And this will be the fifth time Tufts failed to make the postseason since the NESCAC went to a playoff format in 2000.
"Obviously our record is the biggest disappointment," coach Brian Murphy said. "Down the stretch, we weren't even in the hunt. I didn't think we'd struggle as much as we did."
"We're definitely not happy about not making the playoffs, or only winning three league games," sophomore Greg McCarthy added.
Coaching a squad dominated by freshman and sophomores, Coach Murphy had to gauge success on more than just the win and loss columns, as the season was devoted to the development of the rookies. A year of experience playing at the college level coupled with the support of juniors and seniors helped to increase the younger skaters' skills and confidence.
"A lot of young players got better as the year went on," Murphy said. "If you look at our record you might feel that we didn't get anything accomplished, but we did. Our guys worked hard, and they supported one another at the rink every day. I think that's going to help us in the future."
"We learned to play with each other as the season went on," McCarthy added. "We worked more as a team towards the end."
The team will lose four seniors next season, including co-captains John Murphy and Pete Corbett. Nevertheless, the team will maintain a solid core, as it was the younger players who led the way on the offensive side. Junior Ross Gimbel ended the year first in points with 12 goals and 13 assists. Sophomores Joe Milo and McCarthy each shared second on the list with 20 points apiece, while juniors Kurt Hertzog and Greg O'Connell tied for third place with 18 points. Freshman blue-liner Doug Wilson ranked highest of any first-year player on the team this season with five goals and 10 assists. In terms of goaltending, junior James Kalec posted better numbers this season, with a save percentage of .877 and a goals against average of 4.55.
Next year's squad will rely on not only the current roster, but also a brand new recruiting class, which is beginning to take shape.
"We've got a bunch of guys in the mix already, and we're still looking," Murphy said. "We need to get better, and that's going to come from recruiting."
Competing in a powerful league like the NESCAC, Tufts will have to improve upon every facet of its game if it wants to make a splash during the 2007-08 campaign. Specifically, the Jumbos will need to focus on its 17 percent power play conversion rate, and 78 percent penalty kill rate, each of which were low compared in NESCAC standards.
Additionally, the team will try to advance offensively, as its opponents outscored Tufts by more than 40 goals. While injuries and unlucky bounces during games can be attributed to some of the Jumbos' adversity, the onus to train harder and improve the level of play is ultimately on the team.
"We definitely could do a better job coaching, and a better job in practice," Murphy said. "We expect to do better, and we will do better down the road. I can't wait for next season."
