UVM captain Andrew Lucas will help steer the Catamounts this season under a first-year coach. (Thom Kendall/Vermont Athletics)
For a rebuilding Vermont team that finally played its first games last weekend, coming home from UMass with a win proved to be too tall an order.
Under first-year coach Todd Woodcroft, the Catamounts lost twice to the 10th-ranked Minutemen but learned lessons that should pay dividends down the road.
“It was a good starting point for our players to understand how hard it is to win in Hockey East going against a team as structured and as good as UMass,’’ said Woodcroft. “Whether (UMass) had (six) games under their belt or not, it doesn’t matter. It gives us a place to go in games and say, that is the standard we have to get to.’’
After being outshot 34-15 in a 4-0 loss on Saturday, Vermont had a better start on Sunday before losing, 4-1.
