The key to beating the Bulldog team this weekend may very well be to stop three players from scoring. If the Seawolves can focus their defensive efforts and disallow Fontaine and the Connolly's from finding the back of the net then they should find themselves with the points needed to secure 8th place for the season.
Awareness of their presence on the ice is a must. They must be shutdown. As they go so goes UMD. In simplest terms, those three players are all nearly Kevin Clark type threats. They can make plays and they can score goals.
The first way to limit their chances is to limit the number of times they're on the ice for power plays. Damn near half of their goals have come on the power play (23 of 48 total). It sure seems like no matter what the Seawolves do on the ice that they're going to get tagged with a penalty or two. So even while trying to limit their opportunities, the Bulldogs are going to get some power play chances. That means the Seawolves PK needs to be as excellent as it can possibly be.
Keep the game 5 on 5. And when it isn't; play your asses off. That's about it. I don't know what else important there is to say.
Going down the rosters and stats, I like the way the Seawolves matchup. Physicality, speed and talent is essentially a push once you remove the three players listed above from the equation.
So backchecking is going to be a huge key. Seawolves forwards and defensemen cannot miss their assignments in their own zone this weekend. One missed coverage could easily equal one goal. The Bulldogs are and will be opportunistic.
Playing two "Saturday" games is important. Failure to muster the effort that we've so often only seen on Saturday nights will mean bad news for UAA. Is this where I revert to the "most important series of the year" meme? Because it is. The difference between losing and winning this weekend is the difference between 8th and 9th place. That couldn't be any clearer.
So I'll not muck up this space with a lot of other BS. Stopping #22, #12 and #37 plus playing two "Saturday" games equals 8th place. Not doing so equals 9th place.
29 comments:
I'm anxious to see Clarky score his 20th goal this weekend! Go get 'em Seawolves. Let's end the home season with two wins and give the Friday night crowd at least one win this year, eh?
I would really like to see a UAA beat down of the blowdogs. They are 2-6 in February. Go UAA.
I think you probably have underrated the rest of UMD's team to talk nice about Fontaine and the Connollies, but there's no doubt they're important.
Not only that, but I don't think you're totally wrong here. Should be a good weekend. Good luck.
4,500 at the game tonight?
Last weekend for the seniors, let's give them a great sendoff, 2 wins for the seawolves.
Predection for tonite.
clark 20 th goal, 1 goal and 2 assists.
lunden 1 goal and 1 assist.
grant 1 goal.
backstrom 1 goal.
score 4 to 3 seawolves.
Pathetic coverage in the Anchorage Daily Snooze. Most people wouldn't even know that the article on the 2nd page was about a UAA hockey game.
Sad thing is, if they lose tonight, they will make headlines tomorrow. Sigh.
"The difference between losing and winning this weekend is the difference between 8th and 9th place."
Each end every time this has presented itself to a Seawolf squad over the last 5 years or so has resulted in the latter. EVERY TIME...let's make a showing this weekend seniors, leave it all out there and walk off with your chin up.
Everybody is gonna have to pick up the slack tonight because me and my little bro will be seeing Cop Out instead. Wonder if this decision will haunt us?
Wolfman,
4,500? I hope!! If I were in Derek's shoes, I would have promoted an "Iditarod weekend special" of some sort.
It's the final weekend of the Rondy and the start of the Iditarod. The hotels are {{PACKED}} and there are people in town from all over the state, country, and beyond.
With some creative, easy, and inexpensive marketing, this makes for the perfect weekend to really get the word out about these two games!
Martin Buser is a big UAA hockey fan and how many times have they had a musher trucking around the ice with their dogs this time of the year?
Martin would have HAPPILY made an announcement for UAA about the games (at the musher's banquet, in the paper, on the radio, wherever).. I haven't seen anything (so far) mentioned about the games, but I dumped adn delivery recently and only read the online version.
Am I too much of a hopeful thinker who needs a reality check, or do you think Derek and the gang found a way to tap into the mass congestion that has ascended on our fair city this weekend?
In any event, with marketing or no marketing, I think it would be AWESOME to see 4,500 there tonight too!
Leave it to UAA to overlook the big events this past week and try to tie in with them. I am guessing there may be about 2300 in the stands tonight. I haven't heard but one ad on the radio and I generally don't watch TV. If I didn't surf Donalds blog, I wouldn't have know there was a game in town. I see no appreciable difference in Dereks presence in the "marketing" side of UAA hockey.
Regarding Derek's role in advertising, I would imagine it has to be pretty tough to sell the Seawolves with what I have heard is a pretty limited adverting budget (that has to be divvied up among all of the other sports as well).
I don't recall hearing Seawolves Hockey related ads on the radio, but I do remember seeing TV spots last year (I can't remember the channel) advertising the upcoming season. It was of some 'weekend warrior/beer belly' type guy getting all excited in his La-Z-Boy in front of his TV. Print advertising has seemed rare as well.
If they haven't already done this, I think it would be helpful if they could get some feedback regarding how effective their advertising is. Perhaps they could conduct some print/phone surveys to the general Anchorage population and offer free tickets in return.
However they choose to go about it, there is little doubt that they need a major image boost in the Anchorage 'sportsphere'. Winning will go a long ways to accomplish that, but effective, edgy, maybe even viral marketing will be necessary as well.
Just my 2 cents, of course.
Woody has done nothing but hurt UAA hockey even more with his lousy "reporting".
with 6 minutes left in the 1st, the Cows are up on SCSU, 3-0.
tell the boys that saturday nights game may need to be tonight
SCSU 0- the cows 4, end of 1st.
3/4 on PP
Well, guys it depends on what radio stations you listen to. I hardly ever hear Seawolf hockey ads on _M, but I hear ads on 550 the Zone all the time-every 2/3 hours I would guess since I just gotta turn my radio on to hear the latest updates _rom ESPN radio every 20 minutes.
And, this weeks is critical: normal Seawolf radio ad voice saying ?Consistenticy? has not been learned this season by UAA and now is the time to learn it be_ore playo_ _s. Last weeks was um, nicer, it had the UA_ horn, then UAA's foghorn, Haddad goal-nice cause he's from _airbanks.
Prediction _or attendence 2,284-its spring break.
last time to see clarky and the seawolves tomorrow, win tomorrow and off to st. cloud.
congrats guys,
Nice win Wolves.
One perfect example of UAA falling short. On the Universities cable channel 9, they advertised the mens and womens basketball games this weekend ... and the womens gymnastics meet on Friday and Sunday of NEXT weekend, but NO mention of hockey. WHY? Who is in charge of that?
It was military weekend, yet the smallest crowd of the season? How well did they promote that? I would never have known it. Come on AD, promote this team!! I am so mad I could spit nails right now.
Nice win guys, Clark was on fire! Solid effort by Jonnie O as well.
Clark is a dynamic offensive player and had two sweet g's tonight but he costs UAA more games than he contributes to. 10 minutes left in the game, UAA dominating the third period, trying to protect a 2-1 lead and he takes a stupid cheapshot penalty after the whistle right in front of 2 officials. What a bonehead. I'd love to see his plus/minus rating and how many opposition power play goals were scored while he was in the sin bin.
Also, tonight's win should be credited to Johnny O. He was truly on fire, I wish he would show up like this every weekend. Of course, he did get smoked on the only one on one he faced.
Go figure eh? The first time we win on a
Friday night and you can't watch the
replay to savor the win and celebrate
the hard work of the seawolves.
What is up with that?
Anyway, great win guys!!!! Let's finish
them off tomorrow night with another win
and send our seniors off with some great
memories and some momentum in the
playoffs. A great effort tonight by all.
Go Seawolves.
Akwolfclan
Kevin was a -10 before tonight and will end up in second place on UAA's career penalty minutes. That being said, who else can create his own scoring chances for UAA? We better have someone be capable of that next year or next year will be worse than this year. Until than let's enjoy Clarkie for one more game tomorrow night.
I was really pissed when the replay cut out.. I didn't know the score, I didn't know who won, I wanted to f'ing watch it. First time ALL SEASON the replay hasn't worked.... First time ALL SEASON the boys play a great game on Friday and WIN!! Dammit....
But good on them all...got 'er done.. J.O. and Clark got the win with tenacity on both ends... J.O. excelled in those first 8 minutes...then just rode the wave in...
Despite his 'tenacity', 'ferociousness', and all out guts... I'd take a team full of Clarkies. :O)
Dean Larson with attitude..
clark will go on to play pro hockey and make this organization proud, he is leading the wcha in scoring goals. Enjoy the run in the playoffs, pro hockey players get penalties but score goals.
He is a canadian, remember team canada and the usa game.
He will help lead this team to the best playoff run in years.
all the best to the seawolves tonite, and let's give the seniors a great sendoff. The seawolves have not lost to minnesota-duluth in two years.
Johnny, selby, backstrom, tutton, clark, lunden, and hunt. Enjoy your last game at the sully.
Prediciton tonite.
4 to 2
Uaa
clark gets one more tonite
lunden gets one,
haddad gets one and baldwin from the point.
fan
Win tonite, and go to st. cloud, win there and off to the final five.
Possible, anything is possible if this team, plays like last nite.
All the best.
what is a kelly, someone who knows nothing about hockey, clarky is averaging 1 penalty a game, and is ne fire in the second half, averaging a 1.5 pts per game.
the team is playing well, win tonite and silence the negative people on the blog.
This is our moment to shine, get out and support your seniors the last time you will see this talented group play.
all the best to the team.
Of course the one night I purposely skip out on the Seawolves my favorite player gets two goals, we win late, then the replay of the game doesn't work, we won, oh and we won on Friday night. I wonder what's karma got in store for me tonight. Lets all give the seniors the sendoff the deserve.
Clarky!:
http://www.wcha.com/sports/m-hockey/spec-rel/030610aaa.html
And, again it'll really come down to the last day to find the playoff seedings.
If we win we'll play SCSU in that much haunted National Hockey Center.
If we lose and MSU loses we'll play we'll either play SCSU or MD-depends if SCSU wins or not.
If we lose and MSU ties or wins they'll leap forg us and we'll play Wisconsin-who we shocked a couple of years ago and they allowed us into our first WCHA Final Five.
So in the easiest way percentage:
We play Wisconsin 25%
SCSU 50%
MD 50%
C'mon Seawolves.
Ok, just watched the whole game, why couldn't coach have thrown a water bottle earlier in the season?? lol I won't change what I said about Clark or J.O., they were spot on, not very many rebounds from him tonight, worked out well. Good game guys, keep it up tonight..
PLEASE, all UAA fans, come out and show your support for this team tonight. Say thanks to the great senior class. Bring a friend, fill the Sully! Yes, YOU.
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