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River Hawks prepared for successful season

Photo courtesy of UMass Lowell
Kyle Gaudette
Connector Editor

An excruciatingly long offseason has left fans of NCAA hockey hungry for America’s game to return.

Ok, so maybe hockey is not considered “America’s game,” but around the hallways and dorm rooms of UMass Lowell, hockey remains king. With the 2015 season set to get underway on Friday, the River Hawks are poised to continue the team’s historic run.

“We look to get better every single day,” said head coach Norm Bazin. “We want to focus on making our team the best possible that it can be.”

Coach Bazin is entering his fifth year as UML head coach and has compiled quite the résumé in that short period of time. Under Bazin, the River Hawks have competed in, and won two of, the past three Hockey East championship games. Bazin also led the 2012 team to the NCAA Frozen Four in Pittsburgh in what was only his second year as coach.

The River Hawks, however, failed to reach the NCAA tournament last season, ending the 2014 campaign with a tough loss to rival Boston University in the Hockey East championship.

As the River Hawks looks to avenge how last season ended, they will face a gauntlet of talented Hockey East opponents. Defending NCAA champions Providence Friars bring back a worthy squad, while perennial powerhouses Boston College and Boston University have retooled for their respective seasons.

The River Hawks have added their fair share of new faces: freshman forwards Connor Wilson and Nick Master will look to add more explosiveness to an already potent River Hawks offense. The team also welcomed in two freshman goalies, Sean Cleary and Christoffer Hernberg, to back up senior shot-stopper Kevin Boyle.

“There are eight freshmen and seven seniors, so that’s a nice balance between old guys and new guys,” said Bazin on his freshman talent. “We’re going to have to let a couple games play out before we realize what kind of impact they can have right away, but so far I like their work ethic, and I like their attention to detail.” 

The freshmen will certainly have their share of older talent to learn from. CJ Smith led the team with 16 goals and 35 total points as a freshman last season. As a sophomore, Smith will continue to play a big role in the offense. He will have his help though, as the River Hawks are returning nine out of their top ten point leaders from last season.

Junior defensemen and co-captain Michael Kapla is one of the nine leading scorers from last year who is returning. Kapla is using last year’s loss to Boston University as added motivation, but he knows that the new season is a fresh beginning.

“You start fresh every year, your records a blank sheet and you just got to be ready to compete,” said Kapla. “We got a lot of core players coming back, and the young guys are looking good so far.”

Kapla totaled 25 total points on the season last year, which was second for defensemen on the team behind fellow returning linemen Dylan Zink. A Zink-Kapla defensive pairing is just one of the many that Bazin could put on the ice that would generate success.

Kapla is sharing the captain responsibilities this season with senior forward A.J White. White is one of the few players remaining from the team that reached the Frozen Four in 2012. He is aware of what it takes for a team to succeed in the postseason, and knows that the River Hawks can not take any opponent for granted.

“Hockey East is interesting as it is, there are so many good teams,” said White. “You have to be prepared every game, and if you’re not you’ll find yourself at the wrong end of the score.”

The two captains both have been a part of River Hawk teams that have won huge games at the highest of collegiate levels. Both will certainly lead by example to teach the young guys how to perform as River Hawks.

The team is expected to perform well this season according to many Division 1 coaches. The River Hawks were ranked fourth in Hockey East according to a coaches poll that was released on media day, and the team will start the season ranked 14 in the nation. Coach Bazin, however, knows those numbers mean nothing.

“I’m not sure it’s been mentioned around the locker room very often,” said Bazin. “After media day that’s when those preseason rankings go out the window and you just focus trying to establish your team and trying to solidify your group so there’s some chemistry.”

What the River Hawks have this year more than anything is that chemistry. The team is a mix of an exciting group of talented returning players who have experience together, with skilled freshman that will give the team a small glimpse of the future.

Predominately, the mentality around the locker room is taking the season one game, one period, and one shift at a time. The veterans on the team know that the season is far too long and grueling to be looking ahead.

Guys like White know, however, that if the team works hard to get better every day, then the River Hawks can achieve great things in 2015.

“We just want to give ourselves the chance to win as much as we can,” said White. “Hopefully we’re right there in the top four with home ice in playoffs.”    

       

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