A changed-up mix on the ice this morning, not least because of the three goalies. Anders Nilsson looked and felt pretty good, though no immediate timetable on getting him back in a game. More from him in the paper tomorrow.
There was also a new defenseman in the mix, wearing No. 5: Mike Keenan, a two-year captain at Dartmouth, former Catholic Memorial player before moving to the USHL. Scott Pellerin says everything he’s heard on him is good; character, leadership, and a good defensive defenseman from first impressions.
Jason Clark’s back from a few good months in the ECHL and a bad month with injuries that includes a shoulder that, with the neck involved, mimicked a concussion. Not fun. But the chance to play down there, “I was pretty lucky to get to play for Coach (John Wroblewski),” Clark said. “Pelly, it was nice of him to get me down in a good place. It’s a great group.” They were gearing up for the playoffs, and Clark was looking forward to getting back for that, but the call back here is fine. What did he work on the most down there? “D-zone,” he said. “D-zone was the big thing for me, to kind of establish what role I have at this level.” He wants to establish himself as a reliable guy in the middle, to get beyond the fourth-line, in-and-out role he had the first time around.
Two players off to Vegas. Adam Huxley, going back, sounded like a mutual thing. “He came in and did the job we asked him to do,” Scott Pellerin said. “The circumstances of the way we’re playing, the way we’re rolling the lines, he was not getting a lot of ice time. He’s the kind of player, he plays with a lot of energy.” Down there he can use that more, “play more and be with his family.” He looked solid in the shifts he got, and he had a couple of impressive fights against some big guys. Were they looking for someone to fill that role? “As of now, what we have is what we have,” Pellerin said. “I’m confident with the group we have right now. They’re playing for one another. They’re sticking up for one another.”
The other player to Vegas was Marc Cantin. “Looking at the numbers on the back end and the way we need him to play — I thought he played well the last two games,” Pellerin said. “I want him to continue to play that way. It’s an opportunity for him to go down and play big minutes.”
John Persson remains out; Pellerin didn’t expect to have him for the weekend. So they remained at 11 forwards, with Halmo and Clark skating together and the other lines looking familiar.
From Hartford, three members of the 1980 U.S. Olympic team will be at the XL Center on April 5 for a good cause. Today, Micheal Haley was sent back down and Chris Kreider recalled.
Don’t think I ever linked to this: video from the weekend’s Chicago-Rockford brawl. Here’s the suspension fallout.
Andre Deveaux suffered a nasty injury last night in Cedar Park, but he was at least able to go home with the team.
Seven months later, I guess kinda sorta Voyager 1 is sorta outside the solar system but not really. (Still cool.)
And what a great game last night at Ingalls. Two state powers going head-to-head, with tons of respect for one another, tied deep into the third period. David White finished up with 150 career points, fifth in school history; a couple of guys named Drury had 179 (Ted’s got the tiebreaker). When you get so wrapped up you forget to send your story at the buzzer, it’s a good one. When you wake up the next morning comparing it to the five-OT game from 14 years ago, it’s a good one.
Three years ago, Fairfield Prep and Hamden played a barnburner in the final. They traded 11 goals. Literally. Hamden scored first, Fairfield Prep tied it five times and never led. Hamden won 6-5. Another reporter told Prep coach Matt Sather that it was a classic. “Sure,” Sather said, “from your perspective.”
That line came back to me last night as I walked from the Notre Dame side to the Prep side, past the spot where Sather had said those words; they were in a different dressing room last night. At the end, I wondered if it was any different, being a part of that but being on the other side this time.
He laughed. “I don’t think it’s sunk in yet,” he said. He figured he’d see the players in school today and have a chance to reflect on it a little. Hope so.