[00:00:03] Speaker A: The following program is brought to you.
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The Daily Gazette Company presents the parting Shots podcast.
[00:00:18] Speaker C: Now here's your host, Daily Gazette sports editor Ken shot.
[00:00:24] Speaker B: Thank you, Sky Geezy and welcome to the Parting Shots podcast, available wherever you get your podcast. Subscribe today. Thanks for joining me from the parting Shots podcast studio in Schenectady, New York, as we talk Union College men's hockey with head coach Josh. Howdy, Josh. Welcome back. And it's postseason time.
[00:00:40] Speaker D: Yeah, best time of the year. Exciting time.
[00:00:42] Speaker B: Yeah. The six seated garner charges begin the road to Lake Placid with the ECAC hockey tournament first round single elimination game against 11th seed at Brown on Saturday at 04:00 p.m. That's on Saturday. We'll talk about that game in just a moment. But first, let's look back at last weekend's road games against Cornell and Colgate, the final ones of the regular season. Union was still on the hunt for a first round buy going in the weekend, but it was going to be tough, especially opening against Cornell at linear Rink, where Union hadn't won since 2019. Of course, last season's game at line, it was a ten one loss. Yeah, things didn't get off to a good start last Friday when Jonathan Castanga, who had two goals and two assists in that Cornell six one win last month at Messer rank, scored 137 into the game to give the big red a one nothing lead. What was your initial thoughts when Castagna scored and was it ono here it's last year all over again?
[00:01:33] Speaker D: Yeah, I mean, that might have went through my head. I thought, are you kidding me? This is the way it's going to go. And I was a little frustrated because I thought our first shift was really good and then all of a sudden just make a mistake and it ends up in the back of your net. But then you just saw how the guys responded and you didn't have to worry about it.
[00:01:51] Speaker B: Yeah, because Union didn't allow Cornell to dictate the pace of the game. After that goal, the garden of chargers get power play goals from Chad Smedrud and Liam Robertson to take a two one lead in the first period. How big were those goals?
[00:02:02] Speaker D: Yeah, our power play really settled us in and just guys working hard to earn those.
You get down and then be up two one after the end of the first period. I thought it was a great statement by the group and was really proud of them.
[00:02:15] Speaker B: Yeah, you take that two one lead into the second period. But Cornell looked like. I thought they controlled that second period. The big red was very good with puck possession.
Credit was only ten shots on goal in the second. I thought it seemed like a lot more. You had to take a time out of 454 left, 454 into the period, I should say, because you had some tire players out there on the ice. I mean, how important was that time out to settle things down and get some fresh legs out there?
[00:02:42] Speaker D: Yeah, at that time, we were hemmed in and guys did a good job surviving that because it was a long shift and you play a quality opponent like you're going to spend some time in your own end. And obviously we got to do a better job limiting. So when they cycle through players and they make that change and you get hemmed in is where you get in trouble. But we talk about bending and not breaking, and I thought we did a good job of that. And for the most part, again, they did have some quality shifts where they were pushing the pace on us, but our guys handled it. And then unfortunately, we took a penalty.
[00:03:15] Speaker B: Yeah, it leads into the Gabriel seager, former union hockey player. He ties it for Cornell on that power play with 437 left in the second. Here's another moment where Cornell could have taken some control of that game, maybe had the momentum. Did you say anything to the players to encourage him after that goal?
[00:03:31] Speaker D: I mean, we talk about just having trigger point moments in the game when a goal is scored and kind of refocusing. And I guess, first off, I thought the penalty was a bad call.
I thought it was a line of call, like we were up to one at their rank and the officials were feeling a little pressure from that. I didn't think it was deserving, but they get the power play, they score, and then we're able to punch right back and get one. And I thought we got rewarded with a little bit of bounce, the puck bounce rate to where we needed it to, but it was because we were working hard and got one when we needed it.
[00:04:11] Speaker B: Well, I hope the ECAC is not listening to this.
[00:04:14] Speaker D: You know what? I thought the officials in that game were really good for the most part. I mean, I disagreed with one call.
I haven't disagreed with too many this season.
[00:04:23] Speaker B: So you're saying there's still one of those arena calls where the referees are influenced. That never happens.
[00:04:30] Speaker D: Does mean I could not do what those guys do. I mean, it's that job. It's got to be miserable at times. And for the most part, I think in our conference, every once in a while there's some questionable things, but for the most part they do a good job.
[00:04:45] Speaker B: Yeah, well, you mentioned here the secret goal. It didn't really bother the team. With 103 left in the second, the puck made its way to the net off of Cullen Ferguson left point shot, deflected off of someone in front and landed on a stick of Colby MacArthur. And with Cornell goalie Ian Shane out of position, MacArthur banks at home to give the corner chargers a three two lead. How important was that goal?
[00:05:07] Speaker D: Yeah, that was the difference in the game. I mean, again, we started by just getting a puck in deep and we got pinched off and got that puck deep and were rewarded with just a low to high play. And then again, you get that bounce and we needed that and we were working really hard. So to be up three two, especially after just kind of how the game was going, that's where we needed to be and it was great.
[00:05:30] Speaker B: Yeah. That third period, to me, I thought was union's best of the season from a defensive standpoint. And the Gardener Chargers limited the big red to five shots on goal. They didn't give him really any scoring opportunities, especially when Shane was pulled for an extra attacker with 111 left. Union wins it to snap the losing skid. Atlanta, that had to feel good.
[00:05:47] Speaker D: Yeah, it's as big of a win as we've had right now with the program and I thought it was a complete effort from the guys. Again, you're playing a really good hockey team. They're going to have moments where they control it. But I thought it was a back and forth game and was just overall proud of like you get down and just to not panic, just to keep working and stay the course.
You want to be playing your best hockey going into the playoffs and I thought that was our best game of the season.
[00:06:17] Speaker B: Would you say in your just two years here at union your biggest win of your career so far?
[00:06:22] Speaker D: I mean, I think so.
You can say it doesn't bother you when you lose ten one, but mentally that's a hard game to come back from. And you get there and you're like, oh, boy, this is where it happened. And for our guys to block that out and just play and just do what they do, it was a statement win for us and I thought that our energy and our effort was outstanding.
[00:06:49] Speaker B: What was the celebration like in the locker room?
[00:06:51] Speaker D: You know, I thought it would be a little bit.
[00:06:55] Speaker B: There was a video posted, I think, on instagram and it sort of like, was exciting but not as crazy as maybe a lot of people thought it would be.
[00:07:03] Speaker D: Yeah, I agree with that. I think this group has been pretty even keel. And I think they know that it was just a little disappointing to come back in. And both games needed, maybe needed a little help. Didn't go our way. So I think that was probably the only downside of it, was that Clarkson and Dartmouth had both won. And you thought maybe one might slip that.
[00:07:26] Speaker B: Yeah, I was going to say here, you didn't get any help. Elsewhere, Dartmouth beats Brown to keep it total in fourth place. And the final first round by fifth place, Clarkson shocks Quinnipiac with a three two overtime road win. I think that's two wins for Clarkson over Quinnipiac this year, which is amazing. So the team knows what's at stake when you took on Colgate on Saturday, a class of 1965 arena. And just like Friday, Colgate gets a goal from Ryan Sullivan, minute 17 into the game. But union does tie it on a Billy Eman and power play goal 15 minutes later. So one, one after one. So the guy's feeling good.
[00:08:01] Speaker D: Yeah, I didn't think we had the energy, and I just didn't think it was the same. I mean, obviously, you're playing in Areink on Friday night that the atmosphere was unbelievable. And then Saturday was kind of a stale environment. And I think in those games, you have to create your own energy and you got to be cheering each other onto the bench. And it was a quiet atmosphere, and I didn't think our effort was where it was night before.
[00:08:28] Speaker B: Yeah. Not to be critical, Chloe. I love Donny Vaughn and enjoy talking with him over the years and going to star rink, which was a hellhole for this hockey program. I think they won three games. All told. I saw some ugly games back in the day, but they have this new arena. It seems like the fans aren't coming out, which I think you have a new building.
Is there anything else better to do in Hamilton?
[00:08:53] Speaker D: Watch mean. It's a nice building, too. And hopefully they find a way know, get people going. I don't know if that was just our game or if it's consistently that way, but it was just kind of stale. And it is the polar opposite of the night before.
[00:09:09] Speaker B: Yeah. Well, Colgate, unfortunately for union, scores twice in the second period to take a three one lead. Chats Medrude scores 31 seconds into the third to pull union within one. But a back breaking breakaway goal by Sullivan with 846 left gets Colgate. It's two goal lead back. Kaden Vegas scores with Kyle Chavez out for an extra tacker with 139 to go. But Union couldn't get that tying goal and suffers a four three loss. Sullivan's breakaway goal was Colgate's third breakaway of the game. Chavet stopped the first two, but what do you think led to those breakaways?
[00:09:41] Speaker D: I thought it was just a little bit of like our lack of attention to detail and that's been a strength for us all season. And again, just disappointing. Like guys watching the puck and taking chances. That one we take a completely unnecessary chance. We don't even have possession and we're trying to get to the back door, a defenseman and he's sneaking in and you get beat up the ice and then it's pretty much game over.
Every kind of ten minutes we are getting kind of updates as far as in that period. So we knew that kind of where we were at and that our fate was sealed as far as moving up. So we tried to manage minutes and still try to win the game. So you're maybe putting the guys in a couple of spots, but we definitely didn't play pro cup as much as we normally would. His minutes were down a little bit, but it was frustrating because I thought that was a game we could win.
[00:10:36] Speaker B: Is that something that maybe the team will need to work on next season? The consistency from game to game? Because those back to back games, because some of these Friday games you get played well and then Saturdays have been a little bit of a letdown.
[00:10:48] Speaker D: Yeah, I think when you look at us as a group that we're really good when we play with high energy, high effort and push the pace. And right now we've been able to do it for 60 minutes on a weekend. We've got to like 90 or 100, but we haven't consistently been at 120 and I think that's a challenge for us going forward and hopefully we can take care of business on Saturday and give ourselves an opportunity to try to be able to do that again.
[00:11:16] Speaker B: Well, we'll talk about that matchup with Brown on Saturday in just a moment, so we'll take a break and you're listening to the parting shots podcast.
[00:11:33] Speaker E: It's the most historic conference in college hockey. It's a battle night in and night out. ECAC hockey. An iconic conference, home to twelve of the most prestigious universities and programs in the world and showcasing the best student athletes in the sport. Top notch facilities and arenas, incomparable traditions, passionate fans, alumni who go on to become elite professionals, leaders and champions. ECAC hockey, there's no experience like it.
[00:12:06] Speaker F: Hi, I'm Daily Gazette news columnist Andrew Waite. And host of the Weighing in podcast, which takes you inside my award winning featured news column by offering the backstory, thought process and interviews that inform my work. Plus, readers have their chance to respond. The Weighing in podcast is
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[00:12:44] Speaker A: What's up everybody? This is Freddie Coleman from ESPN Radio's Fredie and Harry Show. 03:00 p.m. To 07:00 p.m. Eastern time Monday through Friday. You're listening to the party shots podcast with my man Ken shot, the Daily Gazette sports editor.
[00:12:57] Speaker B: Welcome back to the podcast. The Union men's head hockey coach Josh Halgie joins me. Let's now look ahead to the Saturday game as the postseason gets underway this weekend in ECAC, hockey Union begins a quest to make to Lake Placid at a 04:00 p.m. Saturday when the Garner Chargers host Brown at Messerink. The teams each earned three points into two regular season matchups. The Bears rallied for a three two overtime win at mess on January 5. Union returned to favor February 3 down at me and auditorium, scoring two late third period goals to tie the score and send the game into overtime. Union gets the extra point by winning the shootout. What were your takeaways from those games, starting with the overtime loss?
[00:13:37] Speaker D: Well, I thought that we didn't handle those situations well. Late game mean, it was one of the first times where he'd kind of blown a lead and give Brown credit. They put pressure on us and we made some mistakes and ended up giving one up.
That was a frustrating one because I thought for us, you look at it and I think it was a good turning point for us in our season that we learned a lot from it. And I thought we really took some steps after that weekend. But it was a disappointing weekend in general.
[00:14:10] Speaker B: And then the shootout win, you guys came back from, like I said, two down to tie it, and you really put a lot of pressure on Brown that third period.
[00:14:18] Speaker D: Yeah, I think for us we sort of learned that we have to be physical, we have to finish hits on defensemen, we have to really push the pace. And I think that it helped us in the sense that we were able to kind of lean on them and wear them down a little bit and then we're able to take advantage of some turnovers late.
[00:14:37] Speaker B: Yeah. Brown has always been a tough team to play against. I mean, the Bears can be frustrating to play. They can make things really tough on you. What makes them so tough?
[00:14:45] Speaker D: Well, I think it starts for them. They have an extremely talented freshman goaltender who's been great for them.
Their young players have been outstanding and really, I think they're going to be a scary team here this weekend and moving forward. They have a lot of really good young players, I think done a great job recruiting and they can make plays with pace. They're dangerous off the rush. They have a good power play and they're willing to block shots. I mean, watching the Harvard game, Harvard had a five minute major and I think they block like ten or eleven shots on that penalty kill. So they're sacrificing and playing for each other. So it's always a scary opponent when you see that.
[00:15:25] Speaker B: Yeah. Brown's been dealing with a number of injuries in their game at Harvard on Saturday, the Bears dressed just 17 skaters, two under the limit. They only had five defensemen dressed and they lost one of them, Brett Bliss, 331, into the game after he was assessed a five minute major for hitting from behind in the game misconduct. How important will it be to take advantage of a Brown team that is dealing with a number of injuries?
[00:15:47] Speaker D: Well, I think for us it's about how we play and how we want to. We need to be physical, we need to push the pace and we can. Offensively, we need to play with speed and make it a skating game because the more pressure we can put on them, the more pace we can play. Hopefully you can wear them down, but I'm sure they're going to have some guys back and they'll be healthy and a little healthier and bliss will be back for sure. So they did have some guys that played a high amount of minutes, though.
[00:16:16] Speaker B: Those factors you just mentioned, those are the keys, you think, to beating Brown?
[00:16:19] Speaker D: Yeah, I think and for us is just managing the puck when we turn pucks over. It's not a recipe for success. I think special teams will be important and then obviously we have to get traffic and we scored some tip goals the last time we played. So I think if we can do that, I think we'll have a chance to be successful.
[00:16:37] Speaker B: Well, this is the second year of the one game first round.
Have your feelings changed about it?
[00:16:46] Speaker D: As a league we would like to play a best of three, but again, you kind of know going into the season that this is the way it's going to play out and I'm hoping it'll be a great atmosphere for our son Saturday and we can use the fans to our advantage. But yeah, I think the more you can get games in, it's always great. But at the same point, understand, will.
[00:17:07] Speaker B: The coaches try to convince the conference's athletic directors during the offseason that a best of three first round is fairer than a single elimination game?
[00:17:16] Speaker D: I think that it's definitely on the docket to talk about and at the end of the day I think it comes down to finances, it comes down to what's fair and equitable for everybody.
But I do think the coaches will make a case to at least talk about it.
[00:17:31] Speaker B: Yeah, it's kind of inconsistent because you have the one game first round, then you have the best of three quarter finals. Yes, I understand semifinals and championship round, that's single elimination. Everybody gets that. But it's just either go best of three the first two rounds or just go best of one.
What format would you like to see?
[00:17:54] Speaker D: I think it's playoffs. If you can get a couple more games, go 3311.
I don't think I would like one.
[00:18:04] Speaker B: Straight across, but I think Hockey east does that.
[00:18:06] Speaker D: Yeah.
[00:18:08] Speaker B: You want your best teams getting to the postseason.
Do you want to see seven, eight, nine and ten or 8910 eleven in Lake Placid? I don't know if you want that.
[00:18:18] Speaker D: Yeah, I think you spend all this time in the regular season competing for points. There's got to be a reward to it. And given somebody makes a mistake, has one bad game and all of a sudden now their season is done. It's tough.
[00:18:31] Speaker B: And also, this is one thing that Ron Brogoty pointed out last year. The Ivy leagues, they play six less regular season games. And if you get that single elimination game and you lose, you're done. You only play 30 games.
Even after Princeton beat union last year in that single game format. I know I talked to him before, days prior to the game and he said he didn't like the format. And I asked him after the game after winning and he says no, he still doesn't like the format because it's just the fact that you don't play as many games as you should. Because maybe it's time for the ivies to get on board and play 34 regular season games.
[00:19:09] Speaker D: Yeah, I know the ivies are always trying to increase their limits, but you want to get the best teams to advance and you want to give the players. It comes down to giving them the best experience they can have. And when you're pulling games from them, sometimes again, I don't know.
[00:19:28] Speaker B: That's the best experience, especially with the mean. It's Cornell right now. Could be on the outside looking. ECAC hockey could be a one bed league this year.
[00:19:36] Speaker D: Yeah.
And them having more games right now and it would be helpful.
[00:19:41] Speaker B: Yeah. One union player I want to ask you about is sophomore forward Colby MacArthur. He had a goal and an assist in that. Cornell wim. He's worked his way into a regular spot in the lineup. He has four goals and six assists in 26 games this season. He had three assists in 13 games last season. What has been the difference in his play this season?
[00:19:58] Speaker D: I think he's just playing with a lot more confidence. And you come from the league he came from, which is there's not a lot of players that play college hockey. He was by far the best player in that league. But then he comes and it's a culture shock and it's a lot different. And I think with the amount of forwards we had last year, he probably could have got a little better opportunity from us as a staff. But you went with some different guys and he kept just staying the course, kept working, and he's played his way into an everyday guy. He's getting power play and penalty kill time.
He's really earned it. So it says a lot about him and just his perseverance and what he's done, and it's pretty cool to see.
[00:20:40] Speaker B: And that league is the maritime hockey league, correct?
[00:20:42] Speaker D: That's correct.
[00:20:43] Speaker B: Why don't many players come from there for college?
[00:20:47] Speaker D: Yeah, I think there's major junior hockey is a lot more prevalent there, and I think that that's kind of the path a lot of people take. So he decided to go a different route, and we're thankful for that.
[00:20:57] Speaker B: Well, Josh, appreciate a few minutes. So we'll see you Saturday at 04:00 awesome.
[00:21:01] Speaker D: Thank you.
[00:21:01] Speaker B: All right, that's Josh Halge. I'll have another edition of the Parting Shots podcast on Thursday, and the majority of that podcast will preview the Union Brown matchup. I'll have interviews with union players Ben Tucker, Kyle Chauvette, Liam Robertson and John Procop. I'll also speak with Brown head coach Brendan Whittake. I'll also look back at an important game in the Union Brown rivalry from the 1993 94 season, when Union beat Brown to clinch its first ever ECAC hockey tournament berth. Team captain Jeff Giampetti and goalie Michael Galat will join me to reminisce.
The views expressed on the parting shots podcast are not necessary, not necessarily those of the Daily Gazette company. The parting Shots podcast is a production of the Daily Gazette Company. I'm Daily Gazette sports editor Ken Shots. Thanks for listening, and I'll catch you next time from the parting Shots podcast studio in Schenectady, New York. Good day. Good hockey.
