It was a weekend that removed any doubt about which Division 3 team is the best in New England right now.
Facing its two biggest conference rivals on back-to-back nights, Curry extended its win streak to 13 games by beating Endicott (4-2) and the University of New England (4-3).
The wins locked up first place in the Conference of New England for the Colonels with one game to go, and the top seed for the upcoming CNE tournament.
The weekend in the CNE also featured the return of Endicott senior forward Jack Smiley — from a stroke he suffered three years ago.
Curry cements status as NCAA championship contender
For Curry, Friday’s win against Endicott (16-7-1) was more comprehensive than the score would suggest. When sophomore Nolan McDonough (Dorchester, Mass.) bagged a power-play goal early in the third period, the lead grew to 4-0.
From there, the only question was how much longer standout sophomore goalie Shane Soderwall could extend his program-record shutout streak. The answer – not even a minute longer, as James Davenport (Natick, Mass.) got the visitors on the board.
Soderwall’s streak of not allowing a goal ended at 244 minutes and 3 seconds, the equivalent of more than four full games. His goals-against average (1.44) and save percentage (.945) rank fourth and third in the nation, respectively, and he'll give the Colonels (21-3) a chance against any potential opponent in the NCAA tournament.
On Saturday, McDonough popped in two more goals – both go-ahead goals – to pace the win at UNE (17-6-1) that clinched first place.
With their outstanding regular season, the Colonels have also built themselves a potential cushion in case they fail to win the CNE tournament. Their NCAA Percentage Index, the formula used to determine at-large bids to the 14-team NCAA tournament, ranks second, behind only two-time reigning NCAA champion Hobart.
After two straight years of exiting the NCAAs with losses to Hobart in the quarterfinals — including last year's four-overtime classic — this Curry team might be built for something greater.
THREE STARS
Jack Smiley, sr., F, Endicott
This week, only one star needs to be recognized, and that’s Smiley.
Three years after a stroke stemming from a hit in practice left him paralyzed for weeks, with no movement on his right side, the senior forward achieved a comeback milestone when he skated in Saturday’s game against Johnson and Wales.
Smiley, a 25-year-old Pennsylvania native, skated just one shift, which was more symbolic than game-changing in Endicott’s 4-1 win.
Three years ago, a hit to the back of his neck during practice led to paralysis, and a lengthy stay at the Neurological Intensive Care Unit at Massachusetts General Hospital, where he had to relearn how to eat and speak.
“For me, being a 22-year-old athlete, I didn't even know what a stroke was," Smiley told the Endicott communications department. "Even when I was having it and going through that experience, and even the couple days after, I hadn't processed any of it, and I just remember thinking, 'Oh, I'm indestructible. I'm a 22-year-old kid. I bounce off the ground and I'll be fine in a couple of days.’"
It took a lot longer than that. But his community got to celebrate the player – and the journey – on Saturday.
GAMES TO WATCH
- Suffolk at Nichols, Friday (5:40 p.m.)
- Curry at Johnson and Wales, Friday (7 p.m.)
- UNE at Wentworth, Friday (7 p.m.)
With the top four seeds locked for the six-team CNE tournament – Curry, UNE, Endicott and Suffolk (in that order) – the only remaining drama is which teams finish fifth and sixth. That drama will play out at three different sites Friday night.
Nichols and Wentworth enter the final game tied for fifth with 17 points, though Nichols has a much more manageable finale.
JWU, on 16 points, would need some sort of a result against Curry to have a chance to slide into one of the last playoff spots.
The CNE tournament begins with first-round games next Wednesday. The tournament winner receives an auto-bid to the NCAA tournament.
@MikeZhe603
mzhe@hockeyjournal.com
