Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Foreign.
[00:00:03] Speaker B: The following program is brought to.
[00:00:05] Speaker C: You in living color on elliot gazette.com or wherever you get your podcast.
The Gazette News Group presents the Parting Shots Podcast. Now here's your host and shot. Thank you, Scott 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 for the 495th podcast episode. And after a couple of weeks off, it's good to be back and it's good to have Union Man's head hockey coach Josh Howjee back after he had a couple of weeks off with his team and went off the went into the break on a high note with a couple of victories over Alaska Fairbanks. Josh, welcome back. Happy New Year. And first of all, how was your Christmas and what did you finally do? I saw some pictures posted on Facebook. Guys back in Minnesota.
[00:00:53] Speaker B: Yeah, we went back to Minnesota and it was, it was a nice break.
It's, it's also nice because you can go watch some hockey there. So there's high school games and some junior hockey games and then after that we were up to Ottawa. My two boys had a hockey tournament and then there's also some major junior games that were able to catch while we're up there.
[00:01:11] Speaker C: It's too bad you had to have to play on Saturday because stayed for the World Juniors in Minnesota.
[00:01:16] Speaker B: That was probably the, the most disappointing part of the trip is because, you know, last year when we found out that the tournament was going to be there, you know, my kids were very excited about possibly going to a game there. So we did get to go to a Minnesota Wild game which was fun and you know, we're, you know, we try to make that an annual tradition.
[00:01:35] Speaker C: Well, the Wild are playing pretty good. A big trade for they're getting Hughes from Vancouver.
[00:01:38] Speaker B: Yeah, it was exciting to be able to watch him. And then, you know, I was lucky enough in college to be able to coach Nico Sturm. So he was very generous and took some time to spend it with our family. So appreciated that.
[00:01:49] Speaker C: That's great. So after a three week break, Union returns to action. Saturday it'll be an exhibition game against Canada's Royal milit college at 5pm at M& T Bank Center. First of all, how exciting is it to get back on the ice and get ready for the second half of the season?
[00:02:05] Speaker B: It's really nice and you know, for us to have this exhibition so we can kind of get a little bit of a walk through before we get back into League play. I really like that. This portion of our schedule, you know, we had a full week of practice in before we get the exhibition game and then, you know, a full week into ECAC play.
[00:02:21] Speaker C: What was the thinking about playing an exhibition game to start the second half of the season?
[00:02:26] Speaker B: I think just again, like we had a long break, make sure we get a little bit of the rust off and you know, again, this is a great opportunity. Everybody who's healthy will play, you know, right now. So that's, that's a nice part of it too. So you get everybody some game action. Get some guys maybe an opportunity to showcase what they've, you know, been working on all season and, you know, hopefully improve their, their spot in the lineup.
[00:02:47] Speaker C: Yeah, we'll talk about that a little, just a little bit. That's one of my questions for you.
Is this something that you may consider in future years, playing an exhibition game before returning to ECAC accuplay after the holiday break?
[00:02:57] Speaker B: Yeah, you know, and it's really dependent on the ECAC schedule. You know, we're sort of given that and have to work around it and if it allows, I think this is a great way to, you know, get your feet wet and again, get back into action.
[00:03:11] Speaker C: Professor Brian Cohen over at Union had the same thought as I did. What is the strategy for the game? Obviously you want to win and with exhibition games you can dress extra players, but will the regulars play a lot or will players who haven't seen much action this season get a chance to have more ice time?
[00:03:27] Speaker B: I think guys, you know, that we want to get a better, you know, better look at, we'll get, you know, some, some heavy minutes. But I also think it is really important to get, you know, at least two really good periods from, you know, the guys that, that are, you know, everyday guys for us and see, you know, how they, how they are transitioning here to the second half.
[00:03:46] Speaker C: You ended the first half with an intriguing goalie situation. Freshman Braden Gillespie started the final three games and won them all, including a shutout of Quinnipiac. Sophomore Cameron Korpi had struggled against Princeton the night before. Against Quinnipiac the night before, he played Quinnipiac and was pulled from that game. The second time he has been pulled from a game this season for performance base. I know he was pulled from the UMass low game after giving up that controversial goal.
And freshman Brendan Holohan has made a couple of late game appearances. What is the plan on which goalie or goalies play against Royal Military College?
[00:04:21] Speaker B: Yeah, I think you'll see all three this weekend. I think this is a good opportunity to get, get them all some, you know, action and kind of see how they all look.
[00:04:29] Speaker C: Has it been decided who's going to get the start?
[00:04:32] Speaker B: No, we haven't really, you know, discussed much of anything other than just trying to get our pace and our details back in our game, you know, and again, like, we'll get all three of them in and to me, it doesn't matter who starts. It's going to be how the practices go and, you know, how they play in that game. Before we make a decision for, you know, going into ECAC play, you mentioned.
[00:04:53] Speaker C: Before the break that Cameron had been battling a cold and maybe that had been a reason for his struggles. How important will this playing a period to get his form back will be against in the exhibition game?
[00:05:07] Speaker B: Well, he played a lot of hockey in the first half of the season and you know, anytime you do that, you can get a little bit tired and run down and I think that's kind of what happened. The nice thing is, as we found out that we got some good goalies that, that are right there with him that will continue to push him. And, you know, I think you'll see a little bit in the second half where we can get some guys in and making sure that, you know, everybody's rested and ready to go.
[00:05:27] Speaker C: Has that surprised you how good Braden Gillespie has looked?
[00:05:30] Speaker B: Well, you know, I think you look at his track record, he's, he's been pretty successful everywhere he's been. You know, our goal, goaltending coach Brian McDonald is extremely high on him when we got him and, you know, a little bit is, you know, for us it's, it's a unique situation. When you get a goalie from the ushl, you typically know what you're going to get.
Getting somebody from the CHL is a little bit different, so it was a learning curve for us. But he's done a great job of earning our trust and confidence and has really put himself in a good spot.
[00:06:00] Speaker C: Union entered the holiday break on a three game winning streak. The Garner Chargers are 12, 5 and 2 overall and ranked 20th in the USCHO.com poll. In ECHCUplay, Union is 341 for 11 points. The Garner Chargers are a tie for six with Quinnipiac. Those two teams will meet next Friday in Hampton, Connecticut in the second game of the unofficial M and T Bank cup series.
Looking back on the first half, Josh, what have you liked about the team's play?
[00:06:26] Speaker B: I think that, you know, analytically we've done a really good job creating chances and scoring and then, you know, we've done a pretty good job, you know, defending and limiting teams opportunities.
You know, I think there's been a lot of positives. I think our special teams have been, you know, outstanding. I think our penalty kill's been, you know, top five in the country all season.
Power plays has been successful for the most part. When you needed a goal, they've always been there. And I think they're, you know, I don't know what their percentage is. I kind of am blanking on that right now, but I'm thinking It's around 25%.
[00:06:57] Speaker C: What needs to be improved in the second, for the second half, I think.
[00:07:00] Speaker B: It comes down to just our consistency and us playing to our identity.
You know, there's a few games I think we wish we could have back and I think it came down to we weren't as physical as we needed to be, we weren't as hard as, you know, we need to be in front of our net and the opposition's net. And I think that's been the challenge for us.
You know, late, you know, we talked about the last four games before break and the later portion of the second half of playing teams that are hard to score against. And you know, we had success in three of those games and one game we didn't and that was the Princeton game. So I think we definitely learned what it takes for us to be successful.
[00:07:34] Speaker C: What player or players have stood out in the first half?
[00:07:38] Speaker B: Oh, yeah, it's a good question. I think up and down our lineup, I've been really happy, you know, with the group. I mean, obviously you look at what Tyler Dunbar's done, I think we all thought he'd have a, have a very good season for us. But if I, I'd be lying to you if I said I thought he'd have 21 points at Christmas.
You know, I think you look at, you know, other guys, you know, I've been really happy with Riley Bruick. He plays in all situations for us.
You know, a guy that's really, you know, taken a step and him and Connor Smith, I think that sophomore class has really stepped up so, you know, proud of those guys.
[00:08:12] Speaker C: Well, you mentioned Tyler Dunbar to me. I think he's probably been the most pleasant surprise, as you mentioned. I mean, you expect him to score, but he came in from Colorado College with just a goal and Assistant, I think 31 or 33 games with Colorado College the first year and the fact he's one of the top defensemen not only in ECAC hockey but in the country with the scoring.
So besides Tyler, what other play or players have been pleasant surprises?
[00:08:38] Speaker B: Well, I mean you look at all the transfers, I think we've been really pleased with, you know, Will Felicio has done a nice job, you know, quarterback in a power play.
You know, you look at Etienne Lessard and him stepping in and being a really good, you know, first year defenseman.
I mean honestly, I think all of our Di Cal Mel's really taken a nice step. Carter Rose has been outstanding.
DJ Hart has had a couple injuries but when he's played he's been really good. So I mean and I'm not even talking about Nick Young who's our captain and been, you know, a bit of the heartbeat for the team. Parker, Lynn Nellar has been outstanding. So again, yeah, up and down our lineup. I've been been pretty happy.
[00:09:19] Speaker C: You've had for three months now in the new building at does it still feel like brand new?
[00:09:24] Speaker B: Yeah, it's, you know, everything below for us is first class. We're really fortunate that union made the investment in our hockey program to give us what we needed. And I think the game night atmosphere has been great. The crowds have been loud, they've been fun. I know early on people had little things they wanted to see improve, but I think for the most part you got to be pretty happy with everything that's going on.
[00:09:48] Speaker C: We got to work on the concession prices though. $9 for a pretzel?
[00:09:52] Speaker B: Yeah, that's a tough one. As someone who has, you know, a couple kids and you know, sometimes my wife will tell me what she spent on food there and it's, I'm going to have to get another contract here soon.
[00:10:06] Speaker C: Thanks for that extension. So. Well, I have to ask you about the teddy bear toss game against Alaska Fairbanks on December 13th. It's the first time Union hockey held a teddy bear toss in. You just hope things don't go awry or a bad situation happens. And it appeared Lucas Buzziol scored late in the first period to give union a one nothing lead. And teddy bears come raining down from the stands. And while the bears are being clear from the ice, Alaska Fairbank coach and your good friend Eric Largin, who turned to be the scrooge of this situation, decides to challenge the goal believing busy will kick the puck in. The referees review it and they rule in the nooks favor.
I mean that was the worst case scenario for a teddy bear toss because he tossed the Bears, and now you don't have them anymore. So when Newton does officially score his first goal, I mean, it's been three weeks since that game. Do you think Buzzy all kicked the puck in? Because I, I looked back later that night on demand, and it's tough to tell. I mean, it looked like the skate was probably behind his stick. I mean, I don't know how the referees could tell it up. We don't see an overhead shot. I'm assuming there's overhead cameras above the, above the nets, but they never show those on the, on the, on the ESPN plus broadcast. So when this show this. The press box angle. So what. What happened? Did you think they made the right call?
[00:11:23] Speaker B: Well, a couple of things. I, I was able to talk to, you know, Eric Largen about it first, and he's like, you know, if it wasn't for the teddy bear toss, we probably don't challenge it because we got to look at it 50 times and it was so close. We didn't, you know, we couldn't tell, but we, they thought it was worth the risk. And then spoke to Peter Fiola who's, you know, obviously the referee in chief, and he said, you know, that was as close of a, as a kick as anyone he's seen and that they were going to send it into the National Committee to kind of get everybody's ruling on it. So I think it was a coin flip. You know, the fact that they called it on the ice, I thought maybe they would stick with it.
Yeah, I'm probably pretty biased. I thought it was a good goal.
But again, I think for the most part this year we've had know, pretty solid officiating. So, you know, if that was the one that was, was really bad for us and, you know, we still won the game, we'll take it.
[00:12:13] Speaker C: Yeah, I mean, that was, I was, you know, thinking about that all along. Oh, what happens? There's a video review and it gets reversed. Like, oh, you can't give the Bears back to the fans here. But I think you have to be happy, though, that the. No. When union did get its first goal in the second period, no one threw anything on the ice because at that point you're risking a game penalty.
[00:12:32] Speaker B: Yeah. And I think that's one too, where hopefully the, the officials would have used common sense and not, you know, giving us one if something happened. But who knows?
[00:12:41] Speaker C: So, yeah, sometimes common sense doesn't prevail. So anyway, we always like to take questions from our listeners and the regular contributor, Ryan Fay. Me ask how did the exhibition against Royal Military College get on the schedule? And what opportunities does a mid season exhibition game like this offer?
And Ryan points out, mid season exhibition games like that are historically rarity, historical rarity for a union schedule. You might have to go back to the 2009-10 season to find something comparable that late in the schedule versus the US under 18 team on December 11th of 2009. So talk about how this whole exhibition came because obviously it's rare, as Brian said, it's rare to see an exhibition game in the middle of the season.
[00:13:24] Speaker B: Yeah, typically this would be, you know, out of conference series.
But what ended up happening is when we were invited to go to Belfast, we had to move something. So it was this weekend that got moved.
So we ended up, instead of, you know, being off Thanksgiving, we were in Belfast. So this week when it was open, I just didn't like having a month off. I thought that was too long. So instead of having it right after or right before Christmas, thought the best solution was to have it right after coming after break. And we started reaching out and actually Coach Sannella found this game for us. We were calling a lot of universities up in Canada and I think with their ability for those players to come here, I think some teams were, you know, didn't want to do it. So we were happy we were able to find, you know, and you know, what a great way to play a team like Royal Military College, a team we know is going to compete hard and everything they do for Canada.
[00:14:21] Speaker C: Peter Bo has two questions. First of all, the first one is, after an extended break like this, do players ever come back a little out of shape and how do you as a staff respond?
[00:14:31] Speaker B: Well, luckily no one came back out of shape. Everybody came back in a good spot. You know, I think everybody knows how important this stretch run is for us. We've given ourselves an opportunity to, you know, have a, have a really successful season if we have a good second half. And I think the guys took that serious.
But we do some weigh ins and test for body fat and do different things to make sure we kind of see where guys leave and where they come back.
Surprisingly, we were hoping a lot of guys actually added some weight because we had some guys that were, you know, a little light and some guys were able to put some weight back on with the break.
[00:15:05] Speaker C: Yeah. And the second one from Peter is on about the fourth line. What is the thought process on who is scratched or plays? Is it totally performance based or. Or is it gut instinct or a combination of both. And how do you decide to sit someone if they are having a good stretch?
[00:15:22] Speaker B: Yeah, I think it's the guy's job that's in the lineup to sort of keep that position. So if we feel someone's playing well, we're going to keep them in and keep giving them that opportunity.
And then it's the guys that are out of the lineup to try to force our hand and sort of kick the door down to get their way back in.
It's a little bit of both. I mean, I think it's. It's definitely based on performance, but every. Every once in a while, we'll, you know, somebody will have a really good week of practice, and we get the gut instinct to kind of give them, you know, a little bit more of an opportunity.
It's really the hardest part of our job is to kind of make those last sort of decisions because you got, you know, we have 27 guys, and they all want to play, and when you.
When you don't get them in, it sort of. Well, it does. It ruins their. Their happiness and their. And their experience. So we want to get everybody in.
I think this year at least, everybody's got to play three or four games at the bare minimum. So that's nice that everybody's got a bit of an opportunity. And, you know, a game like Saturday is. It could be, you know, the springboard for someone to, you know, to really have a big second half.
[00:16:23] Speaker C: Is everybody healthy at this point?
[00:16:25] Speaker B: No, not right now. We have a couple guys that are dealing with minor injuries. Colby MacArthur is coming back, you know, hoping to have him. Him back right away here for the second half. We have.
And then we have.
Who else is down?
Yeah, just some, you know, bumps and bruises guys in red jerseys right now. So those are Colby's. Probably the one right now that we're really. He won't play on Saturday. We're hoping to have him back ready to go for the Quinnipiac, Princeton, and.
But we'll get him. Get him conditioned so he's ready to go.
[00:16:57] Speaker C: Well, thanks for the questions, everyone. And if you have a question for Josh, you can email him to shotchotdailygazette.com or you can post them on Facebook, on my personal page and the Parting shots podcast page. You can also send them via bluesky X and threads at Slapshots, the Daily Gazette. Ecs Yockey Face off selections are back for another season. I'll post my picks usually on Wednesdays, and then you can send your picks to me. I'll Post those pics before the first game, usually on Fridays. To play, send your picks to shotailygazette.com Josh, appreciate you coming in for a few minutes and we'll talk after the game on Saturday. Good luck. We'll see how things turn out that exhibition game and you know, get back into ECA Seokey Swing next week and talk about that and have a happy New Year.
[00:17:41] Speaker B: Yeah, looking forward to it. And Happy New Year to you and everyone else.
[00:17:43] Speaker C: All right. Thanks, Josh. That's Josh Algae. Let's take a break. The Union women's hockey team returns to action this weekend. We'll talk about that Next on the 495th episode of the Parting Shots podcast.
[00:18:07] Speaker A: 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 12 of the most prestigious universities and programs in the world and showcasing the best 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.
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Welcome Back to the 495th edition of the Parting Shots podcast. I'm your host, Ken Schott. We're going to add the union women's team to this podcast with Josh Hauge because the podcast will be posting on Thursday. The first one in the new year will be a year in review. So we don't want to. I didn't want to put the Union women in that one. So it's a good time to talk about the Union women. They're back in action this weekend after having a month off. They head back to ECAC hockey play this weekend. They visit Yale on Friday and Brown, the team they beat in the ECAC Hockey Tournament first round game last year.
They'll play there Saturday at 3:00'. Clock. Both teams ranked in the polls. Yale 14, 15 depending on which poll you look at. And Brown is number 15. Brown's a much improved team this year. Had a chance to speak with Tony Macy, the head coach of the Garner Chargers, along with defenseman Stephanie Dvorak and goaltender Monya Wagner. We'll begin with Tony Macy, get his thoughts on getting ready to play the second half of the season. Union find themselves right now in last place in the standings with eight points, eight and a half points. Excuse me. They're a half point behind RPI.
Dartmouth is in 10th with 10 points and Yale is at number nine at 12 and St. Lawrence at 14 points at number eight.
So Union looking to try to move up in the standings and maybe try to get a at least secure a first round home game in February or so. They have to get off to good starts. They didn't get off to a good start in their game at Harvard about a month ago. They were down 3 nothing in the first period, down 4 nothing into the second period before rallying. Came out short in a 4, 2 loss. And the next day at Dartmouth they played to a scoreless tie. A great game. Both teams has a great chance. Ammonia Wagner was outstanding in that game.
And we'll eventually talk a little bit more about her performance when I introduce her. But let's talk with head coach Tony Macy about getting back into action and getting ready for the stretch drive here of ECAC hockey play. Plus, I couldn't help myself. Tony being a Detroit Lions fan, I had to ask him what happened to the Lions this year. That'll be at the end of this interview. So here's Tony Macy.
Well, Tony, how good is it? Get back to some play here after just about a month off.
[00:22:01] Speaker A: Well, it feels good. I think the group was ready to get back on the ice. We were back travel day Sunday, so we were back on the ice yesterday Monday. So definitely felt good to get everybody back in the building, back on the ice and moving.
[00:22:17] Speaker C: Is there any concern with that kind of a layoff that there could be some rust maybe the first few minutes of the game on Friday against Yale?
[00:22:25] Speaker A: I think there's always that. But I think that, you know, if we prep well this, this first week or, you know, I think that will, we can put a good foot forward. We're coming right out of the gates.
[00:22:37] Speaker C: How would you assess the first half of the season?
[00:22:41] Speaker A: Well, I think it was, you know, good learning for us for sure. I think that you Know, we definitely had some games that, you know, we improved on. We got a lot of good reps in.
[00:22:53] Speaker C: We.
[00:22:54] Speaker A: We played some high level teams to kind of gauge where we were at and what we needed to do in the second half to make a push towards playoffs.
Obviously, we're not in standing wise where we want to be, but that comes with playing more league games and I think getting a little bit better on the road as well. We didn't have very many road trips in our league play on the road, which is something we talked about. Our meeting today is something that we want to definitely improve upon. And, you know, it starts this weekend.
[00:23:28] Speaker C: Yeah, I mean, the last games you played at Harvard, you got off to a slow start there and really never recovered.
I mean, how big was that Dartmouth game? Even though you didn't win, you got. You got one and a half points and you won the shootout. But how big was that going into the break? And do you think with the way that you guys bounce back, I mean, how you think you can build some momentum off of that?
[00:23:50] Speaker A: Yeah, I think so. I think the big thing is, you know, the first half can be a bit of a grind. Right. It's a longer portion of the season.
You know, you get into spots where, you know, we have exams during certain times and that can be a long time.
So, you know, we get those extra two weeks after those exams that come and also, you know, feel a little bit longer. So I think being refreshed after that is good. And I think going into the break, it kind of gave us like, okay, you know, got a win and a shootout under our belt and.
Or, sorry. Yeah, in a shootout under our belt. So I think that was something that we could definitely take moving forward. And, you know, we had some other times during the course of the year earlier that kind of prepared us for the.
[00:24:39] Speaker C: How important was that game for Mona against Dartmouth? She got pulled from the Harvard game. I mean, you could have gone with Ryumi, the start against Dartmouth, but how important was that bounce back for Monia?
[00:24:52] Speaker A: Oh, I think that was part of it. I think the poll for Mona in the Harvard game wasn't a poll for her sake. It was more of a poll for everybody else. Like, hey, she's been playing. All of our goalies have been playing well in front of us or behind us, I should say.
We got to play better in front of them. And that was kind of the message to the team at that point.
So going back with, with Wags and getting her in that next day, I think was good. And you know, she was able to bounce back and put a good performance together.
[00:25:22] Speaker C: Yeah, you mentioned the standings earlier. You're last place right now.
So how important is it to get off to a good start here in the second half and make a move up the standings?
[00:25:33] Speaker A: Yeah, we talked about it today in our meeting.
You know, we gotta, we gotta go and grab points where we can. Good thing is right now, everybody that we're chasing is above us. So we gotta make sure that we're taking advantage of those games and those opportunities. You know, we get to start the first half here against two teams that, you know, we haven't seen yet. So being able to kind of look at something a little bit new, a little bit fresh is going to be good. And you know, going into two teams that are right now, I think they're 14 and 15 or 15 and 15, whatever poll you're looking at, you know, so those will be good opportunities for us to try and grab points and, and start to move our way up the standings.
[00:26:20] Speaker C: I mean, are you surprised with Brown because being ranked and they're playing well, I know they finished eighth last year, but they seem to be a lot better this year.
[00:26:30] Speaker A: Yeah, I think that's just the part of our league and part of, you know, what their team's done.
You know, they're an older team now. I think that was a big thing. They had to get some classes through their new coaching staff. You know, that's something that we're working on as well.
Just to have that continuity and that familiarity with the coaching staff I think has been big for them. You know, they started off hot again last year.
So, you know, I think they're a team that is still in that mode similar to the way we were where, you know, you surprise some teams that aren't expecting it because the history, recent history of it has been, you know, the other way. So, you know, I think we just got to go into each game ready to go and put our best foot forward.
[00:27:19] Speaker C: What are your thoughts on Yale?
[00:27:22] Speaker A: Oh, they're, they're a different team from what they've had. I think they're, you know, they're younger, they, they've got some, some talent there.
You know, they think that we got to try and we're gonna have to be ready for a 60 minute game. That's a big thing. Like they're a team that, that plays full 60. So we gotta make sure that we're trying to push for that full 60 and come out of the gates better than we have in the first half at times.
[00:27:48] Speaker C: I mean, how important is it to get off to those good starts and not, you know, fall behind, especially on the road.
[00:27:53] Speaker A: Yeah, it's tough when you're chasing games, right? Like that's, that's one thing that we've talked about. It's, it's easier when it's either a one goal, you know, one goal up game or you're winning or even if it's tied, you know, it's tough when you're chasing the score clock. So you know, we got to put ourselves in better situations out of the gates and a lot of that stems from us putting more pucks on the net, possessing pucks, a little bit more stuff that we're working on and have talked about in the first half and you know, trying to do some new things here. Moving in the second half to progress.
[00:28:28] Speaker C: Our play non hockey question, how disappointed are you in your Lions?
[00:28:33] Speaker A: Oh gosh, it was a tough year.
I mean we were, we had the high hopes coming in. I think it was what, seven and two and then all of a sudden wheels fell off and too many fourth down, let's try and go for it and tough plays. You know, I think they abandoned the running game a little bit too early. When you have two horses back there, you got to let them kind of pull the cart.
[00:29:01] Speaker C: I will be a big Detroit Lions fan on Sunday. I want them to beat the Bears so my Eagles can beat the Commanders and get the number two seed. So I will be sitting at Philly Sports Bar in Latham watching the Eagles and keeping an eye on the Lions and Bears. So I'll be thinking about you as I watch those games.
[00:29:17] Speaker A: Well, the good thing I think is I think what Chicago's probably going to arrest some people based on, on the game and Detroit's probably still. They're all Dan Campbell trying to still play hard and play for positioning and jobs for next year.
[00:29:34] Speaker C: Up next, our defenseman and team captain Stephanie Borkin. Goaltender Amania Wagner. I mentioned Wagner performance in the Dartmouth game earlier in the Harvard game she was pulled at to giving up four goals and as you heard on my questioning with Tony Macy and he said it was not due to her performance as the team in front of her not playing well. While she had an outstanding game against Dartmouth the next day, a 35 save effort, 14 saves in the third period and four in the three on three overtime. Union getting a point and a half for that tie. Union won the shootout which I don't know why the women don't adopt a shootout at this Point. What's the point of having a shootout, I guess as a tiebreaker somewhere down the road if there's a tie between the teams, but I don't know how that's going to work. But anyway, enough about my ranting about shootouts. Let's listen to Stevie Deborah and Monya Wagner.
Well, guys, I hope you had a great holiday and getting ready back to get back to play. How excited are you to get back to playing hockey after a month off?
[00:30:41] Speaker D: I think we're really excited. I think we're in a good place. We had a good couple of days of practice, and I think a break was good for us, but everyone was really excited to get back and to start playing again.
[00:30:50] Speaker E: Monya, I agree it's great seeing everyone again, and I think the energy is high and we're ready to go.
[00:30:57] Speaker C: What's going to be important for you guys in the second half of the season? I mean, I know right now you're last place in the standings, but not that far out of that first round home ice. Bertha, what do you got to do to get back on track here in the second half?
[00:31:12] Speaker D: I think it's going to go back to really harping on the details. Being good in our D zone, blocking shots, helping our goalies out, but also creating more movement in the offensive zone. I think that's going to help us out a ton and trying to confuse other teams in their D zone. So. And getting shots through. So I think that's what's going to give us success in the second half.
[00:31:30] Speaker C: Mojo.
[00:31:32] Speaker E: Yes, I agree. I think we need to just dig down on our systems and on our details and then also just like, play together as a team and have fun and then it's gonna end well.
[00:31:45] Speaker C: Well, let me ask you, I mean, you know the game against Harvard, you got pulled, and in talking with Tony, he says more, that was more of a performance by the team in front of you instead of you. But how important was it for you to bounce back against Dartmouth, get the shutout? I know it wasn't a win, it was a tie. You guys won the shootout. But how important was that for you and your confidence heading into the second half?
[00:32:09] Speaker E: It was huge. I'd say it's never fun to get pulled as a goalie, even if it's not your fault.
So it was really nice to.
To get that feeling back of really having a good game. And I think we also pushed together as a team, and it wasn't just my effort. It was like a full team effort to get that shutout So I think that is really gonna give us a lot of energy and me personally too, and obviously confidence for the next half.
[00:32:38] Speaker C: Stephanie, did you guys feel bad that Mona got pulled out of harbor game because you guys had a rough first period and really never recovered?
[00:32:47] Speaker D: I mean, obviously, like, that's not how we want to be as a team and that's not like how we want to start as a team. But at the same time, like, we win as a team, we lose as a team and like, yeah, we do feel bad because, like, our goal is in wax. Like, she stands on her head for us and. And she saves our butts sometimes. So we want to do the same for her. So it's kind of just disappointing that we weren't able to do that. But I think now we're looking into that. We saw, we took it as a learning opportunity and we're heading into the second half in the right frame of mind.
[00:33:12] Speaker C: Yeah, guys go on the road this weekend for Yale and Brown, both ranked teams.
How. Yeah, I know you haven't, you haven't played a lot of road games and you haven't won one yet, but how important it will be starting Friday night to get on, get some road wins here. What do you have to do as a matter of getting off the strong starts?
[00:33:32] Speaker D: Yeah, I think it's. It's just going to have a lot of confidence in ourselves. Like we're, we're a good team as well, just not to be scared to give them respect, but not to give them that much respect that we let them walk all over us. So it's just going to be playing hard, stick on puck, playing good defensively. Because if we do play good defensively, chances are that they won't get a lot of chances and that's going to give us more chances in the ozone. So it's just kind of going back to that.
[00:33:58] Speaker E: Yes, I agree. I think even in the past when we've played well defensively, the goals started coming and we are a good scoring team. So we really need to like, bear down on our D zone and then those games are huge. So we all know six points are very important for us and that could really boost our standings. So we all know what job we have to do and we're excited, too.
[00:34:18] Speaker C: Mona, is there any. I'm sorry, is there any concern of rust, obviously being with a month off, you know, do you expect us to have a little rust coming out of the gate here Friday night?
[00:34:30] Speaker D: I don't think so.
[00:34:31] Speaker E: I think the past two practices we've had. We're really good and our team looks ready and we have a lot of energy and we're just like, really excited to be back. So I think we're ready to go.
[00:34:41] Speaker C: Stephanie, your thoughts on that?
[00:34:43] Speaker D: Yeah, I mean, I think our, like she said, our energy is really high and it's just like a positive mindset all over the place. And, and it's kind of just fun to be around. So I think if we just keep up that energy, like, we'll, we'll play well. So.
[00:34:57] Speaker C: And that will do it for this edition, the 495th edition of the Parting Shots Podcast and the final one for 2025. Our first podcast of the new year will be posted on Thursday. It'll be looked back at the Cavalry region sports year 2025.
Our staff members Christian Heintz will talk Hudson Valley sports.
Drew Wemple will talk high school sports. Will Springstead, the executive sports editor, will discuss college football, specifically Union football, with a little mention of Ualbany football. And the college lacrosse scene, of course, unfortunately topped by the death of the Seattle men's lacrosse coach Liam gleason. And Mike McAdam will talk horse racing. And I'll talk about the year in Union College men's and women's hockey. Please tune in Take some time between bowl games to listen to the podcast.
The views expressed on the Parting Shots Podcast are not necessarily those of the Gazette News Group. The Parting Shots Podcast, a production of the Gazette News Group. I'm Daily Gazette Union hockey beat writer Ken Schott. Thanks for listening and I'll catch you next time. And next year, perhaps, from the Party Shots Podcast studio in Schenectady, New York. Good day, good hockey and happy New Year.
