Bowling Green State University Athletics
BGSU vs. UAH
October 15, 2006 | Ice Hockey
Oct. 15, 2006
Recap | Final Stats
OPENING STATEMENT
"It was clearly an interesting game that's for sure. It wasn't a great way to start down 3-0, but I really liked the way we were able to get the game back. We stayed pretty poised with it. We had the game in the third period, but I thought the difference in the game was our inability on the two five-on-threes to start the third period and midway through the period. We didn't extend the lead in those situations, and I think we lost a little bit of focus. When you are a minute away from a really tough loss, but to be able to get that goal, that can be a real positive."
Can you talk about your special teams?
"I was pleased with the fact that our penalty kill threw the shutout out there. That is an important start for us. I thought our power play was like Jekyll and Hyde, we were outstanding at times and the goals were really good. We wanted to get a few more chances to score on both of those five-on-threes. It's a critical part of the game, but give credit to Huntsville, they killed off a lot of penalties as well."
What'd your team do to get back in the game?
"There was one breakdown there, their third goal, but other than that we had some chances and weren't playing too poorly. But the goal gave us a little bit of a spark. I thought we were playing okay all the way through, and then to get it to 4-3 was good."
What are your thoughts on Eddie Neville?
"Eddie [Neville] came in today and did a really good job. Going in early, he made some saves and went a long time shutting the door. I thought he played very well."
What did you say to the team when you were down 3-0 in the first period?
"Stay positive and remember everything we talked about in the locker room. Get the forecheck going. I thought we could be a factor that way and get our feet moving. We got it back on the power play and it gave us a pretty good spark. There were a lot of opportunities, and we kept the same guys out there a little too much.
Would your rather play more five-on-five or are you less adverse to a special teams game?
"Two games in, I still think for our group that we are better getting more people involved consistently. I thought the game had a pretty good pace to it. We have a lot of guys that had a lot of power play time. It hurt keeping guys fresh, that's for sure. I think we are better keeping penalties a lot lower."
What do you take away from this opening weekend?
"I find a lot of positives out of it. Our team worked hard and made plays, and still there are certainly things to work on. Even giving up five goals, we gave up 45 shots on the weekend. I did feel like our team defense was a little bit better, even thought the five tonight doesn't merit that. I liked the way we battled back from 3-0 and the way we battled back 5-4. Those are certainly tangibles that are really important."
What are your thoughts on the game tonight?
"It's tough to swallow. There were some positives and also some things we need to work on. We should be able to keep a lead in the third period going into our own building. Also in the first period when we were down 3-0 and we were able to come back and take the lead 4-3. That shows a lot of character with our guys that we just kept clawing away. We still have a lot of work to do. We have to be able to put the nail in the coffin in the third period and keep the lead."
What did your coach say to the team when you went down 3-0?
"We don't need a timeout. I think that gave our guys a little extra jump. It showed that he believed in us and that we could answer back without having to make it know that we were panicking. I think that's the big thing that he wanted to establish in us, that we don't need to panic right now being down 3-0 and we don't need a timeout. We kept chipping away and we were able to get two goals in the first and come on in the second and take the lead. Unfortunately we weren't able to hold the lead in the third."
Do you think one of the differences in the game was not being able to score on the two five-on-threes?
"We had chances, and I hit a post when the score was 4-3. It might have put the game out of reach, but who knows. It's frustrating when we get those chances and don't capitalize and they come down the ice and score and take the lead 5-4. Also, at the same time we did come back with our power play late in the game with Todd [McIlrath] scoring the goal, to give us a lift into overtime. We need to keep working on our special teams and power play and sooner or later it is going to click and we'll start rolling."
Talk about the freshman coming into net and keeping you guys in the game.
"It was good. Eddie [Neville] is a warrior and a good goalie. I didn't know much about him before he got to school here, but I know that every day in practice he works hard and he's capable of playing well. Give him a lot of credit for coming in. Jimmy [Spratt] is a great goalie as well, but it just happened that he wasn't on his game right away. With Eddie coming in and doing well was a good boost for us as well. It was probably a good confidence booster for him as well."
Have you started thinking about next weekend at all?
"Everyone is still thinking about the tie. It would have been nice to get the two points and get a win in our barn again, but we did come back and tie the game which is something we can build off of. We'll take it in stride and tomorrow we will get focused on the games against Boston College and Providence."
"I think so far we're still undefeated in this rink. It's going to be huge for us all year to play well at home. There is no exception, we shouldn't lose a hockey game in the third period or tie a game in the third period when we're up 4-3, or have any type of lead going into the third period. The coaches will look at that and relay that to us. All the guys know that home ice to us is really important and we need to protect this house and keep doing well. You have to take all the positives out of this weekend, we learned what we did wrong and what we did right and keep looking forward to the upcoming weekend."
