Despite losing New England’s Player of the Year and Goaltender of the Year from the previous season, Amherst is making a run at team of the year this time around.
While Norwich has done it in more dominant fashion, the Lord Jeffs are turning in the second-best season in all of New England, compiling a 13-game unbeaten streak and a 14-2-2 record, while taking the lead in the NESCAC at 9-2-2.
It’s the same type of stretch that led to last year’s NESCAC championship and NCAA quarterfinal appearance. That streak lasted 14 games, with Amherst keeping teams to two goals or fewer 11 times.
Amherst, whose goalies talked often about the team’s defensive system during a run to the NESCAC championship last year, apparently was more than just talk. Despite losing three of its top defenseman and goaltender Jonathan La Rose, Amherst still leads the NESCAC in defense and is second in the country, allowing just 1.50 goals per game, second only to the Cadets.
Cole Anderson, who has moved out of a timeshare with LaRose, is saving 93.4 percent of the shots against him, sixth in the country, while his 1.71 goals against is third. Amherst has allowed two or fewer goals 14 times and has surrendered just two in its past five games.
Amherst leads the country in penalty kill percentage, killing off a ridiculous 93.4 percent –- more than three points higher than any other team in the country – while converting on power plays 29.3 percent of the time, second only to Wentworth.
Unlike last year, when it was clear Jeff Landers led the show, there’s no clear guy leading the way. Eight different Amherst players have scored power-play goals, with none scoring more than five.
Junior forwards Joe Brock (7 goals, 13 assists, four power-play goals) and Matt Rhone (10 goals, 8 assists, 5 power-play goals) are currently leading the way on offense. Brock totaled five points over the past weekend as Amherst outscored the University of New England and Southern Maine by a combined score of 8-0.
With an edge on Williams heading into the weekend, and the Ephs set to face Norwich, Amherst faces the toughest pair of teams it has left on its schedule on Friday and Saturday, meeting Colby and Bowdoin, the last two NESCAC teams on the schedule.
A split likely gives Amherst a second-consecutive NESCAC regular-championship. A sweep should send the Lord Jeffs soaring into the postseason once again and starting to conjure up similarities to last season.
NEHJ Player of the Week
Mike Hoban, soph., Babson
Two goals against Norwich this season is probably enough to get a guy on here, but Hoban’s two tallies in a 3-3 tie with the Cadets was just the start. The Medfield, Mass., native finished the week with four goals and three assists, and the Beavers also went on to beat one of the ECAC Northeast’s top teams, Curry, 6-2. He also had the game-winner in a 4-1 win over St Michael’s.
Looking Ahead
Norwichat Williams, Saturday
If the Cadets are losing before the Frozen Four, we bet it’s this weekend. They face rival Middlebury, among the country’s most talented teams, and head right to Williams after that, where the steady Ephs are waiting.
Around the NESCAC
Hamilton sophomore Bryan Kelly (Plymouth, Mass.) scored four goals in two wins, including the game winners in a 4-1 win over Southern Maine and an overtime goal in a 5-4 win over the University of New England. He was the conference’s Player of the Week. … Middlebury’s Martin Drolet is running away with the league’s scoring crown. He scored three goals and three assists, leading Middlebury to a 3-0 week, including the game-winner in a 5-3 win over SUNY-Plattsburgh, reversing the result of a previous game between the two. … Trinity’s Adam Houli enjoyed a big week with four goals and three assists, as the Bantams went 2-1. …. Wesleyan’s Tom Salah (Gloucester, Mass.) has two goals and four assists, but Wesleyan still only went 1-2.
Around the ECAC East
Hoban, the league’s Player of the Week, wasn’t the only Babson player to take advantage of the tie with Norwich. Ryan Smith (Lynnfield, Mass) won Rookie of the Week with five points in three games. …Norwich can thank its own freshman, Blake Forkey, for still being unbeaten. Forkey had two goals against Babson, including the tying one with 50 seconds left and Norwich’s goaltender pulled. That goaltender, Ryan Klingensmith, was the league’s Goaltender of the Week after earning his sixth shutout of the season with 22 saves against UMass-Boston. … The shutout was the first the Beacons had suffered since a Dec. 1, 2007 contest with Trinity. Despite that defeat, UMass-Boston’s 9-8-1 record through 18 games is its best effort at this point in the year since 1991-92. …Castleton State’s Tyler Atkins scored his first goal, then went on to score two more, in the team’s 5-0 win over Connecticut College. … The University of New England had its closest call yet to a point in the league, losing to Hamilton in overtime.
Around the ECAC Northeast
Nichols is doing its best to make it a three-team race, but it’s likely too little, too late for the Bison. Still, the five-game winning streak is a nice way to head into the postseason and got the team some conference honors this week. Forward Matt Sayer (Lowell, Mass.) is the conference’s Player of the Week thanks to an eight-point in three-game effort. He had a hat trick and an assist in a 7-2 win over Western New England and then scored the game-winners in a 7-6 win over Salve Regina and a 3-2 win over Becker. His goal against Salve came with less than two minutes left, part of a two-goal, one-assist effort, while the winner against Becker arrived halfway through the third. Freshman Danny Grenier won Rookie of the Week with five points in the two games. … Wentworth’s 15-2-1 record through 18 games is its best mark ever. Jeff Olitch moved into second-place in career game-winning goals (12), sixth place in points (118) and fourth in goals (96) during the week. He scored twice in a 3-1 win over Western New England, then assisted on the game-winner in a 5-3 win over Johnson and Wales.
Around the MASCAC
Fitchburg State took good hold of first place thanks to wins over Worcester State, Plymouth State and UMass-Dartmouth. Robert Vorse (Leominster, Mass.) led the Falcons with three wins. Kevin McCready scored the winner in overtime of a 5-4 win over Worcester State … Plymouth State went on to help Fitchburg by downing Westfield State, while Worcester did the same by tying Salem State. …You can’t blame Justin Evans (Cromwell, Conn.) for Worcester State’s struggles. He made 50 saves against the league’s best team before surrendering McCready’s overtime winner.
Chris Carlson can be reached at feedback@hockeyjournal.com.
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