[00:00:00] Speaker A: Foreign.
[00:00:03] Speaker B: The following program is brought to 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. It's our Wednesday podcast with men's head hockey coach Josh. How's he? Josh Trying to stay warm out there. How's it going?
[00:00:36] Speaker C: Yeah, it's, it's tough. It's. It's cold right now.
[00:00:38] Speaker B: I rarely came into the office. I rarely see you with a toque on and you have one today. I mean, I know you and I are frog hair challenged, so yeah, I.
[00:00:48] Speaker C: Got to do something to keep the head warm.
[00:00:50] Speaker B: Well, before we get into the Mayor's cup, we have some breaking news that just happened at about an hour before we started taping here in Josh. I just showed him on the way up. So he was stunned with this news.
Brown head coach Brendan Whittett has stepped down as head coach to take a family medical leave, and when he returns, he will begin a new role in athletic administration.
Jason Smith will serve as interim head coach for the rest of the season.
Statement from Brendan for over half my life, Brown University has been more than just an institution to me. It has been my home, my community and my passion. From my days as a student athlete to my tenure as head coach, I have poured my heart into this program and this university. This place is woven into the fabric of who I am. However, at this moment, I need to prioritize my family's health and recovery and will be taking a family medical leave as my energy needs to be directed toward my loved ones. While stepping away from the bench is difficult, I am incredibly grateful for the support of Dr. Grace Calhoun and, and Jake Silverman, who will allow me to transition into a new athletic administrative role upon my return. I look forward to continuing to serve the university I love in this new capacity. As I mentioned, you just heard the news when I showed you the tweet. How shocking is this news?
[00:02:16] Speaker C: It's really shocking. I mean, first my thoughts go to his family and that hopefully everybody is okay and on the road to recovery or whatever's going on there.
But yeah, he's been, you know, in the league for a long time and, you know, someone that's always treated me really well. So, you know, my thoughts are with him.
[00:02:36] Speaker B: Yeah, Brendan, I mean, he's been Good to me over the years in my, you know, time covering, he's been more than willing, you know, win, lose or draw chats with me. I think maybe one time he didn't. When you guys beat him a couple years ago, I think there was, he was some angry, some Union fans giving him some crap about some stuff which probably shouldn't, should not have happened. But yeah, he's one of the good guys. I mean he played for Brown with Bob Goddetta Dartmouth and then got the head job in Brown. And he's been there a lot. It's gonna be strange not to see him behind the bench.
Of course you'll see Brown at the final weekend of the regular season. It's going to be kind of weird not to see him across the ice.
[00:03:11] Speaker C: Yeah, for sure. And he's, you know, someone that's, you know, played some big games against him whether it was in, you know, in the playoffs or just, you know, regular season games. He had a good run to get the team to Placid a few years back when, when we were there when I was with Clarkson. So like.
Yeah, again, caught me off guard with that one a little bit.
[00:03:32] Speaker B: Yeah, I mean just, I mean like, like I said, he's been there a long time and yeah, that's. So we know the least two job openings in EC hockey, the Yale one. I know Joe Howes right now, the interim head coachman. He's been doing a good job so maybe he has a shot of getting that. But yeah, we're going to see what happens with this situation at Brown and all the best to Brendan and his family. So let's get back, let's get on. Talk about the Mayors Cup. You just had the one game and that was the Mayors cup at against RPI at MVP arena. And boy was it a memorable game. After giving up what seemed like to be a game clinching empty net goal with 254 left, the Garner Chargers scored two extra attacker goals at 1:17 apart to tie it and send it into overtime. And that's where Brandon Burr, who had scored one of those extra attacker goals and he uses baseball skills to bat the puck into the net. 225 and 2 OT to give Union an improbable 54 win over RPI and capture its fifth straight Mayor's cup and 10th in the 13 games that have been played. Without getting too specific because we have a lot to talk about here, what are your general thoughts on the game?
[00:04:41] Speaker C: Yeah, it was a chaotic game. I thought the, you know, the first Period, I thought, was, you know, kind of a boring first for us. I didn't think we generated much, you know, give credit to RPI for staying above us and frustrating us.
Then the second period, I thought we completely dominated, you know, for at least the first 15 minutes, but we're only able to get one then. Yeah, the third period, it was a little bit back and forth and then it looked bad. And then all of a sudden, you know, I think Brandon's goal kind of has taken away from what happened there in the last three minutes just because his goal was so fantastic as well.
[00:05:18] Speaker B: Of course, that made the SportsCenter top 10 play on Saturday night, and that was amazing in itself. Well, let's start with the opening period, and it was a good one for rpi, not so much for Union. As you just mentioned, the Engineers seem to have more energy than the Garner Chargers and RPI got. The game's first goal was on the power play, and Brandon Rayner's ruler scored on a shot from the right circle, beating goalie Cameron Corpy over his right shoulder at 621 to give the engineers a 1 nothing lead. And that was the score. At the end of the period. The shots on goal were seven apiece. RPI hit a couple of posts with its shots.
The Engineers deserved to have the lead. Why do you think the team, your team, didn't match RPI's energy in the first period?
[00:06:01] Speaker C: I thought they did a really nice job just staying above us and frustrating us and, you know, we weren't attacking the game the way we needed to. And, you know, I think anytime it's, you know, that game, it's just, it's a little bit of a feeling out process. And, and I, I thought we were kind of dipping our toe in and I thought RPI just jumped right into the game.
[00:06:21] Speaker B: What was said in the locker room at the first intermission, you know, it's.
[00:06:25] Speaker C: Just talking about our work ethic and just our compete level and how, you know, it takes for us to, you know, what it takes for us to be good. And then we, you know, we just really wanted to attack the second and be aggressive. If you make a mistake, make sure it's with your feet moving. And I thought the guys really, you know, transitioned well.
[00:06:43] Speaker B: Yeah. The second period begins and we see a much more determined Union squad. We saw speed, we saw good checking, we saw good defense, and we saw a goal. Carter Rose takes a Lucas Buzio pass, skates to the net, and beats goalie Nate Krawchock 334 into the period to tie the score. It was Rose's first goal as a member of the Garner Chargers. He transferred to Union from Clarkson in the off season. So how good was it to see Rose get his first Union goal?
[00:07:07] Speaker C: Yeah, really happy for him. And especially on the big stage, you know, it was a really nice play from Lucas and even, you know, Will Felicio was kind of interchanging up top there, so it got them a little bit confused. And then a great shot by Carter.
[00:07:21] Speaker B: Yeah, he made a nice move and had an open lane and then nobody really checked him.
[00:07:25] Speaker C: Yeah, I thought we had a lot of movement up top and it really, you know, confused their forwards and that allowed him to get in free.
[00:07:31] Speaker B: Well, unfortunately, Roseville was involved in RPI second goal. He had the puck in the Union right wing Corner when RPI's Dovar Tinling took it away from him. Tinling skated to the net and put the puck over Korpi's right shoulder with 122 left in the period to give RPI a 21 lead heading into the third, Union outshot RPI 166 in the period. Despite dominating the period.
You're down one. Was everyone frustrated?
[00:07:57] Speaker C: I think that everybody, you know, knew that we had played better. And that, you know, is kind of what we talk about all the time, is our process and how we do things. And, you know, the score will sort of take care of itself. So, you know, we felt like we should at least be tied, but we weren't and, you know, just kind of had to refocus and go.
[00:08:15] Speaker B: Well, the Engineers made things tougher on the Garner Chargers when Lucas Lemieux scores 143 into the third to make it 4 to 2.
I'm sorry, 3 to 1. What's the mood like on the bench after that goal?
[00:08:27] Speaker C: You know, can't feel sorry for yourself. Just kind of have to, you know, pick yourself up and go and, you know, get back to trying to take care of pucks.
[00:08:35] Speaker B: And Union presses to cut RPI's lead. And he gets that goal when Colby MacArthur scores with 7, 4, 44 remaining. What's the feeling like now?
[00:08:43] Speaker C: Yeah, obviously nice play and everybody's feeling good and, you know, within striking distance again.
[00:08:49] Speaker B: Okay, now the fun begins. With 302 left and a face off in the RPI zone. You decide to pull Korpi for an extra attacker. And I'll be honest, Josh, I thought that since it was a one goal game, it was too soon. I was down in the media room with the Times Union Sean Martin.
And we looked at each other and we thought, you know, it was too soon. And then of course, what led to that decision to make the move at that time instead of waiting maybe for another minute?
[00:09:16] Speaker C: Well, we wanted to get our guys on the ice that, you know, we feel are most dangerous.
They were all rested, ready to go face off. In the offensive zone, though, to me, the worst thing you can do is pull your goalie too late and you know, you run out of time versus, you know, you got to score. So like, that was, that was our mindset.
[00:09:36] Speaker B: Yeah, I know that the philosophy of when to pull a goalie for an extra attacker has changed over the years. I mean, I'm old enough to remember when coaches wait until there was a minute left in the third period to pull the goalie and nobody, nobody, nobody even thought of pulling with two goals down.
[00:09:49] Speaker C: Yeah, I mean, all the, I mean, it's crazy when you look at the analytics on what they say you should actually pull. Like they say when you're down by a goal, you should put like six minutes left and you're down by two. It should be like 10. So it's crazy what the analytics tell you. And I just think that those are some crazy times as well.
[00:10:06] Speaker B: Well, stepping off track here, I remember a game with Princeton at Mesa Rank when Union was up 4 nothing and Guy Gadowski, who was coaching the Tigers at the time, pulled his goaltender and they scored three goals and almost got the game time goal at the buzzer. So, I mean, that was really the first time I had seen a coach do that. Now obviously, you know, we see Patrick, I think Patrick Wild introduced it into the National Hockey League and seems like it's the wave now. Yeah, because people think you ice the puck, that's not good. But now you don't mind teams icing the puck, right?
[00:10:39] Speaker C: Yeah. So there's a lot of stories of big comebacks now and people being a lot more aggressive with it.
[00:10:44] Speaker B: Well, unfortunately for Union, RPI's Tyler Wallace scores 6 seconds after you pull the goaltender to make it 4 2. Still plenty of time to try and tie it. But there had to be a sinking feeling that Union's run of winning four straight Mares Cups was ending.
[00:10:58] Speaker C: Yeah, I mean, definitely that thought goes in when they score the empty netter.
You know, fortunately for us, there was still a lot of time left.
[00:11:05] Speaker B: Well, you pull Korpi again and this time it worked quickly. Twelve seconds after the Wallace goal, Brandon Burr was in the right spot to make it a one goal game again.
[00:11:15] Speaker C: Now Union down by two once again. Korpi is back to the ice.
[00:11:18] Speaker A: Their shot rebound, Fred score.
[00:11:21] Speaker B: So Union will not go away quickly.
[00:11:25] Speaker C: As it's back to a one goal.
[00:11:27] Speaker B: Game now at 242 to go and.
[00:11:29] Speaker C: It'S Brandon Bure who's gonna get the goal for Union.
[00:11:32] Speaker B: Boy, they come right back down.
[00:11:34] Speaker C: They pulled Korpi before we could even.
[00:11:36] Speaker B: Say Korpi had come off.
That's a call from Andrew Santillo and Steve Sheridan on unionathletics.com you close the gap to one. Do you think the momentum is your favorite at this point?
[00:11:47] Speaker C: Well, I definitely think that, you know, you went from being basically, you know, dead to having a heartbeat again. So I think it was, you know, really important and I thought everybody had that belief again.
[00:11:58] Speaker B: Well, Korpi is pulled again. RPI just misses an empty net goal and is called for icing with 142 left. The engineers call their timeout so that they can change players on the ice. Union wins the ensuing face off. Parker Lundauer has the puck to the right of the net of the RPI net. He sees Rally Bruick in front of the net with 125 to go.
They're announcing the goal here and everyone shot score.
Bruick ties it. Riley Bruick has tied it at 4 with 125 left.
Unbelievable. Well, just unreal what we witnessed in the last couple minutes there, Josh. The period ends that tied at four and we heads overtime. First talk about Brook's goal. He outmuscled an RPI defenseman, Kashmir Sobieski in front and one timed Lindauer's pass.
[00:12:50] Speaker C: Yeah, nice play by Lindy to get the puck across. And you know, being strong on your stick is something that our coaching staff talks about a lot. And you saw that from Riley.
[00:12:58] Speaker B: What is the feeling like as a game heads to overtime?
[00:13:01] Speaker C: You know, still the job isn't done.
You know, talking to some of our guys, they, they said that they knew the game was over at that point, I think just with all the momentum they had. But, you know, just wanted to make sure we possessed the puck and held onto it as much as possible in overtime.
[00:13:16] Speaker B: Overtime begins and Union for the most part controls the puck. And about midway through ot, Lucas Buziol has the puck in the slot and he takes a shot. Krawchuk makes the save, but the puck is floating in the air. Brandon Burr is there, hits his stick just below the shoulder and then he swats at the puck with a second.
[00:13:34] Speaker C: Try, turns the brakes on.
[00:13:38] Speaker B: Drops it for Buzio.
[00:13:40] Speaker C: Buzio.
[00:13:40] Speaker B: Shot, save, rebound, score.
Brandon Bur wins it. The Mayor's cup stays in Schenectady.
Brandon Bu open in front of the net.
[00:13:59] Speaker C: And was able to bat it home out of midair, I believe.
[00:14:04] Speaker B: Well, RPI challenges for a possible high stick which would have nullified the goal. The review is quick and the goal is confirmed and Union pulls off an improbable victory. What was it like on the bench after the goal?
[00:14:16] Speaker C: Yeah, I think when you coach a lot of games are similar. A lot of games where the loss is really hard and the wins, it's kind of just like a deep breath.
That was one that I think we all really enjoyed and just to be a part of was pretty special.
[00:14:30] Speaker B: As I mentioned earlier, Burrs goal was the top play on ESPN SportsCenter top 10 plays on.
First time the union has had a SportsCenter top 10 play. Ranked number one since Max Novak's falling to the ice. Power play goal against Vermont in the 2014 NCAA Men's Hockey Tournament East Regional. I mean, just incredible night. Makes you wonder what they missed on Braden Gillespie's glove save against Brown a few couple weeks earlier. I don't know but. Well, we have postgame sound. Let's start with Union and Brandon Burr, Lucas Buzzio and Riley Bruick.
Everybody ready?
Brandon, I'll start with you. Obviously the game winner with the baseball bat swing. Are you trying for the Union baseball team this morning?
[00:15:17] Speaker A: Might have to. I mean, I probably still won't make it though.
[00:15:20] Speaker B: Talk about that goal. What, what happened on the play?
[00:15:22] Speaker A: Well, I'm pretty sure Lucas to my left just shot that on net and it was in the air, so I just.
Reaction, I guess, just to hit it out of the air.
[00:15:30] Speaker B: Is that something you practice at all or just there's this instinct.
[00:15:33] Speaker A: No, I've never. Yeah, no practice there. That's just instinct, I guess.
[00:15:36] Speaker C: And then what's the reaction to seeing it go to the net and you know, obviously it was a review but.
[00:15:40] Speaker A: Like knowing it was.
[00:15:41] Speaker C: It could have been a game winner.
[00:15:43] Speaker A: Yeah, it was pretty surreal. I mean the situation we're in with like four minutes left, like I don't think anyone expected that. So it's just very surreal feeling with.
[00:15:50] Speaker B: The crowd, with the crowd going crazy too.
[00:15:51] Speaker A: It was obviously very heated atmosphere, you.
[00:15:54] Speaker B: Know, how cool is it to have.
[00:15:55] Speaker C: The crowd back at you and hear them roar, you know.
[00:15:57] Speaker A: Oh, it was awesome. I'm happy those, those fans that stayed, stayed like brought the energy for overtime, helped us.
What was the feeling on the bench.
[00:16:05] Speaker B: After they got the empty net goal to make it 4:2.
[00:16:09] Speaker A: Yeah, I mean obviously them scoring with that being down 2 wasn't great but I mean there was still a lot of time on the clock and you know coach Helge believes in pulling the goalie a little bit early and you see tonight why that works out when we, we buried too with the empty net and obviously going winning overtime. So you know there was still belief, I mean there was still lots of time on the clock so anything can happen.
[00:16:27] Speaker B: What did you see on Brandon's goal? Just talk us, walk us through that whole situation.
[00:16:32] Speaker A: Yeah, I mean if I recall I think Sarge made a really good play, just dropped it, had a nice pick and you know I was kind of a little tired and just shot on that and then I turned the other way and Bersey just did the rest. So I mean pretty fired up. When I turned around the home crowd went nuts.
[00:16:43] Speaker B: So it's pretty cool Riley, for you to get the game time goal the way you did and just you won puck battle there now puck battle, you established yourself in front of the net there and Parker with the pass. Just talk about the huddle flag and how big that goal was.
[00:16:57] Speaker A: Yeah, I mean it's been something we've been working on a lot lately, me and Booze especially just in practice and stuff getting reps at that obviously it's a big play at a big time. So Lindy made a great play and you know all I had to do is kind of just put my stick there and hope for the best and just lucky it worked out.
[00:17:13] Speaker B: Brandon, how important was you to get that first goal so quickly after they got the M tenetter?
[00:17:17] Speaker A: I think it was very important just to get us right back in that game because obviously that M10 error to make a two goal game is kind of a little bit of a dagger. But to answer back right away really gave us life.
[00:17:25] Speaker B: Brandon, what does it say about the teams resilience?
[00:17:27] Speaker C: You know you guys were down three one, made it three two. Obviously they had the empty natter but you know, you know what happened.
[00:17:31] Speaker B: What does that say about the teams.
[00:17:32] Speaker C: Resilience to come back, you know, two separate ways?
[00:17:34] Speaker A: We just don't quit. We know a lot of belief in our room and it's also Saturday so we can't lose.
[00:17:40] Speaker B: Let me start with Riley. How important was this win coming off the.
You've been on a three game loser. You had, you lost this game, you lost to Harvey, got shot out, you lost at Yale, you got shot out of Harvard on Monday and you're just a couple minutes away from losing. But what does this help? How does this help you guys when you return to ECAC hockey player next Friday?
[00:18:02] Speaker A: Yeah, I mean, for sure gives us some juice.
You know, it was good, resilient effort. Kind of a gutsy win there for us.
But yeah, going back into ECAC play, I mean, you know, that's just big to know that we can do that, we can come back from big games. You know, we came back at Princeton and then we've been struggling a little bit lately, but, you know, we've had to do some soul searching and, you know, everybody's been up to it and we've been grinding away. So it's nice to see a couple go through and get a win.
[00:18:28] Speaker B: Brandon?
[00:18:29] Speaker A: Yeah, I think Riley said it perfectly. It's just, it's a very nice feeling to get those bounces today.
[00:18:33] Speaker B: Lucas.
[00:18:34] Speaker A: Yeah, I mean, obviously we were in a slide, but it wasn't like we were in a crazy slide. I mean, we lost two games and it wasn't like the end of the world. So, I mean, we have belief in our group, like Brandon said. I mean, we love, we love the guys in the room, everyone around the team. So I mean, we had tons of belief. And it's a two game slide. It's not like it was the end of the world. We were losing four or five, so we believed in our group. And you saw tonight how much, how much blood.
[00:18:55] Speaker B: Brandon, sometimes it could be cliche when.
[00:18:57] Speaker A: They say any game with a trophy means something, but what does it mean.
[00:19:00] Speaker B: To win it again tonight in this.
[00:19:02] Speaker A: Setting, neutral setting against rpi? Yeah, it means a lot to me and I know for the rest of the seniors, except me, Lindy and Miles, it's their fourth in a row. And it's not easy to win these games. Like RPI gets up every year for like, it's a big game, so it shows a lot of heart from us.
[00:19:19] Speaker C: How special is it to play in this game given just the way it went down, Mayor's cup, everything involved.
[00:19:24] Speaker D: Just how special was it to have.
[00:19:26] Speaker C: This game play out the way it did?
[00:19:27] Speaker A: Yeah, it was super special. Me, and I can tell you I'll probably never forget this game. That comeback was something, something special to.
[00:19:34] Speaker B: Win again in overtime two years in a row. What does that mean?
[00:19:38] Speaker A: We're kind of too close, I think.
[00:19:42] Speaker C: Thanks, everyone.
[00:19:43] Speaker A: Thank you, guys.
[00:19:46] Speaker B: Now let's hear from RPI head coach Eric Lang and Ford Dovar Tinling.
Okay, coach, what would you say to the guys after the game.
[00:20:09] Speaker D: Yeah, sometimes I like to let the.
I think that's player time.
I did go in there and I just said, hey, I want to be in there with the hard times with this group. And I thought that was an important message. We're not covering any hockey stuff at that moment. I just want to let those guys know that that's, that's a tough way to lose a hockey game. But I wanted to be in there with them and that was important.
[00:20:33] Speaker B: How frustrating is it because Wallace gets the empty net or you're thinking, good, shape up 4 to 2 and then Union Banks 2 in there and then gets the overtime winner? How frustrating is that to lose a game like that way?
[00:20:47] Speaker D: Yeah, I don't know. Frustrated's the word that comes to mind.
I think there's some great lessons inside of this for our group as a young group in transition.
These games are hard to win as we just learned the hard way.
I did think we, you know, we got, we were a little overzealous after the empty net goal.
You know, we tell our bench, calm down, we've got a long way to go here.
And then I thought we were, you know, it was just a sleepy neutral zone face off.
We're in the right spots, we just don't defend it hard enough. And then it's a one goal game and then, you know, anything could happen from there. It was just, I thought that face off was really important for us. We needed to win the face off and, and get it in and just let the game breathe a little bit. But, you know, hey, and then we miss an empty netter by a couple inches. Another empty netter by a couple inches. So there's some good stuff inside of this. When we say every puck matters and every play matters, there's some hard truth to that.
[00:21:51] Speaker C: Bill Bar, what was the mindset of players at that point after the empty netter? Then Union responded about 20 seconds.
[00:21:59] Speaker A: I think we were a little excited, obviously, when the puck went in the.
[00:22:01] Speaker C: Net, but immediately after, I think the.
[00:22:03] Speaker A: Message was, it's not done yet.
[00:22:06] Speaker D: Fortunately.
[00:22:07] Speaker A: It just didn't look like you're ready.
[00:22:08] Speaker C: For the face off and you're able to get back right away. The rest is history.
[00:22:14] Speaker A: What's the spirit like heading into overtime there?
I mean, obviously you're in a little bit of shock. You always are when the team scores.
[00:22:23] Speaker C: Last minute tied up, especially in a situation like that. But we just kept emphasizing that one shot is all that matters. I thought the bench reacted pretty well.
Just it was A great play by their player and they won it.
[00:22:37] Speaker B: So how tough is me? Obviously it's probably a wrong feeling right now, but how tough is this? You know, you guys are just over two minutes away from winning Maris cup for the first time since 2020.
[00:22:52] Speaker D: Not easy.
[00:22:53] Speaker A: It's not easy.
[00:22:55] Speaker C: Obviously we're right there and didn't get the job done. So it's definitely heartbreaking, especially as for.
[00:23:02] Speaker A: Myself and the older guys.
[00:23:03] Speaker C: But I think it was nice for the younger guys to see what it's all about and how much it means. So.
[00:23:11] Speaker B: Eric, was this your first Mayor's Cup? Was it all you could imagine? Yeah.
[00:23:16] Speaker D: You know, hey, we're on the wrong side of, you know, union playing 60 minutes and we kind of. I thought we stopped playing there for a little bit, but what a neat experience for our student athletes. You know, it's a full building and it's kind of an epic college hockey game tonight. There was lots of momentum swings. I loved everything about what our guys did in our preparation for the week. I thought our process was as good as it gets. I even thought our process inside of the game was outstanding outside of a 10 or 12 minute stretch in a second where Union made a good push. I loved everything about what we did tonight except the outcome, you know, and I'm proud of the way our guys.
We've got some pretty good buy in right now with our group and our record is what it is.
We're going to be a tough out for somebody here in a little bit of time here. We are going to be a tough out for some college hockey team in ECAC that's going to get us maybe in a one game set and I like the way our team is trending. This would have been a good one to get some traction for our program.
But you know what, it is what it is and you know, sometimes the lessons inside of the loss are monumental for great progress ahead.
And I think there's some great stuff inside of this for some of our younger guys and this is something that we can lean on as our program builds and gets pretty good and then we're going to get freaking really good. You could take that to the goddamn bank.
[00:24:53] Speaker B: Well, Josh, do you agree with Erica that RPI will be a tough team to face in the EC hockey tournament first round game?
[00:24:59] Speaker C: Yeah, definitely. I think they're, you know, they've, they've taken good steps as a program and you know, he's got them, you know, buying in.
[00:25:07] Speaker B: Well, let's take a break. When we come back, we'll talk about Friday's big ECAC hockey matchup against Dartmouth in Hanover and we'll get the chance to answer listeners questions. You're listening to the Parting Shots podcast.
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Welcome back to the podcast. I'm Gazette Union hockey beat writer Ken Shot. I'm joined by Union Meds head hockey coach Josh Halji. Josh, before we get into Friday's matchup with Dartmouth, I wanted to ask you about goalie Cameron Corpi. He got the start against RPI. He allowed three goals in 20 shots. I thought he played okay. There wasn't.
Say, that really stood out to me. I mean, there were a couple shots that hit the post. What did you think of his performance?
[00:27:17] Speaker C: Yeah, I thought early in the game he was, you know, not as confident as he normally is.
You know, kind of worked his way in and then, you know, I thought like just gave a calming presence there as the game went on for him and he made a really nice play on, I believe it was our second goal where he transitioned the puck up the ice and I kind of thought it settled him into the game.
So yeah, I think that, you know, for him it was a big one. We needed him to get the win and he needed to be in the net for a win.
[00:27:43] Speaker B: The tinling goal. And this is not a criticism of him, it's just the way goaltenders are with the butterfly style. He goes down on that and exposed the over his right shoulder.
Like I said, again, not. It's not a criticism. It's. It's all goalies. They do that.
Why.
What about. Is there a way that some of these goaltenders can do some stand up make.
Yeah, I think especially a tall goalie like Cameron.
[00:28:12] Speaker C: Yeah, you really shrink yourself up when you get down and put your. You know, I know they want to be strong at the net, but like it allows people to get to that back post at times. So yeah, I think there's a time where you need to, you know, be big and you know, stands stand up.
[00:28:23] Speaker B: Well, RPI did something I thought was pretty cool. Both the men's and women's teams wore alternate jerseys with the City of Troy on the front and Uncle Sam in the middle of the logo. I mean, is this something Union should look into?
Something similar next season? Maybe the teams would make it a tradition.
[00:28:39] Speaker C: Yeah, I think that was a nice touch by them and I think we could do some stuff to honor Schenectady as well would be nice.
[00:28:44] Speaker B: Yeah. Well, it's another one game weekend for Union. It's also the start of the ECAC hockey stretch drive as the Garner Chargers head to Hanover, New Hampshire for a 7pm game Friday against Dartmouth.
Union finds itself tied for eighth and the final East CAC Hockey Tour in the first round game home slot with Clarkson with 17 points. Both teams are nine points behind Cornell for the fourth and final first round by slot. We have talked enough about unions win one, lose one weekends in conference play. So. But how critical is this game Friday?
[00:29:16] Speaker C: Yeah, I think for us again it's all about us, you know, continuing to play good hockey and we've seen parts of it where, you know, against RPI where I thought we were really good and then there's parts where we're mismanaging the puck and not being responsible. So Dartmouth will make you pay. They're very detailed, they're very structured and you know, they're the type of team you're going to have to beat in the playoffs.
[00:29:37] Speaker B: Well, Dartmouth has had unions numbered lately. The Big Green, which is tied for second place with Harvard, has a seven game winning streak against Union. The Big Green have eliminated the Gardner chargers from the ECAC hockey tournament best of three quarterfinals the last two years. In 2024, Dartmouth swept the series in Hanover. Last year, the Big Green repeated that sweep this time at Messerink. Why has Dartmouth been a thorn in Union side of late?
[00:30:00] Speaker C: Well, they're, they're extremely hard to play against and you know, again, as I mentioned like they don't give you much. They're, you know, very responsible and, you know, they have two goalies that are pretty good.
[00:30:11] Speaker B: Dartmouth got off to a hot start, winning its first 11 games since then. The Big Green are 3, 6 and 1 in their last 10. They lost at Cornell in overtime last Friday and at Colgate in regulation last Saturday. And we'll hear from Dartmouth head coach Reed Cashman on Thursday's podcast.
So how important will it be to get off to a good start against Dartmouth and get that early lead and take control of the game?
[00:30:32] Speaker C: Boy, they're a different team when they're playing from behind.
So for us it's important that we have a good start.
[00:30:38] Speaker B: Well, as always, we like to take questions from our listeners. Adam Shano writes. Coach with three challenging road games ahead, of course you guys go to St. Lawrence and Clarkson next weekend, including a ranked opponent. It's been tough on you in the postseason in recent years.
How are you getting the group ready and what do you want to see from them on the road?
[00:30:57] Speaker C: Well, I thought it was a good spark for us. Just, I mean, the energy and everything that went into winning the Mayor's Cup. So I just want to continue the way we finished that. And you know, I think everybody's got a little chip on their shoulder with how the season has ended.
[00:31:10] Speaker B: Andrew Jarrett, who's becoming a regular, the question has a few more this week.
Is it naive to think that the current union players can expand their games by studying the strengths of former union players who were coached by the current staff? Specifically, Dunbar and Prokob have somewhat different ways of generating offense, as Josh has mentioned. Is there a way to teach Dunbar Prokob's more blue line oriented style as an addition to his existing approach?
[00:31:38] Speaker C: Definitely, I think. When you, you know, when you're a player that's in college like you're always looking at, you know, different players to model your game after. And I think, you know, you know, Dunny has some characteristics that are very similar to John, so I think he can learn from him and, you know, watch some of his shifts and grow.
[00:31:54] Speaker B: Andrew says. I believe Ben Muthesbach has approved his stick handling, quickness and playmaking this year, likely due to hard work. You agree with that?
[00:32:03] Speaker C: Definitely. I think his vision has really taken a, you know, he was only a shot first player, you know, at times last season and has really expanded his game.
[00:32:12] Speaker B: Could Ben further benefit from studying Liam Robertson, who graduated in 2024, to learn how to leverage his size and strength to become a more Significant presence, relentless, feisty, pain in the butt near the net.
[00:32:23] Speaker C: Well, I think Liam was a pretty special talent in front of the net. We haven't had too many players that can do what he does.
You know, obviously in the power play, they play in different positions, but I definitely think he can, you know, you know, see some of those, you know, net front tactics that Liam utilized.
[00:32:39] Speaker B: Can coaches in video analysis effectively help replicate the skills of former players? Or are there too many limitations due to physical factors and other influences?
[00:32:49] Speaker C: There are definitely are some, you know, physical limitations at times or, you know, some guys have, you know, different skill sets that maybe a guy didn't have. So the one nice thing is when you've had a player that has had success, you know, doing something, you kind of as a coach, learn how you how he got there.
[00:33:06] Speaker B: As Josh may know, face offs are pretty important. Union has been performing pretty well in this area this year. How much practice time is dedicated to developing face off skills?
[00:33:15] Speaker C: Yeah, it's, it's a consistent part of our week. We do a lot of stuff from 5 on 5, right from the draw. And then we have our centerman, you know, after practice, always taking face offs.
[00:33:24] Speaker B: What should Union's face off specialists ideally be thinking about focusing on and keying off of as the puck is about to drop?
[00:33:31] Speaker C: Well, you know, if you're, you're looking at the ice, you're too late. You got to be watching the referee's hand.
You got to have a plan and everybody's got to know what that plan is.
[00:33:39] Speaker B: Does a player decide their strategy in the moment, forehand, backhand, tie up, et cetera, or are strategies typically dictated by the coaches?
[00:33:47] Speaker C: A little bit of both. I think they're, you know, we have some face off plays that we talk about.
You know, guys kind of learn as they're going up against someone what works for them. But typically guys are always trying to pull to their backhand.
[00:33:59] Speaker B: And Andrew's final question. Who is the best faceo player you have ever seen, regardless of the team, what qualities make that player stand out?
[00:34:06] Speaker C: I mean, Nico Sturm has made a living, you know, off of face offs in the NHL. That was something he took a ton of pride in at Clarkson. And, you know, I think last year he led the NHL in face off percentages. And, you know, this year he's having, you know, maybe not as good, but still, still, still good season, really good hand, eye coordination, really good detail.
He gets low and is strong in the dot.
[00:34:32] Speaker B: Professor Brian Cohen has a couple questions. We'll wrap it up with him first. What did you say to the team to keep them motivated after the empty net goal?
[00:34:40] Speaker C: You know, it's just one thing we talked about after the second is we just never quit no matter what and we got to stay true to who we are. And I think that's exactly what you saw from the guys.
[00:34:49] Speaker B: And this is a tongue in cheek question from Brian. Did you draw up Brandon's game winning goal?
[00:34:54] Speaker C: No, no. These guys think the game at a pretty high level and that was just pure instinct.
[00:35:00] Speaker B: Well, thanks for the questions everyone. If you have a question for Josh, email them to shot. That's s c h o t
[email protected] 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&threads slap shots the Daily Gazette EC AC hockey 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 a
[email protected] well Josh, good luck this weekend and we'll talk after the game.
[00:35:33] Speaker C: Sounds great.
[00:35:34] Speaker B: All right, that's Josh Hauge. Coming up on Thursday's podcast, we'll preview the Union Dartmouth men's matchup. I'll have interviews with Forest, Brandon Burr and Colby McArthur and defenseman Nick Young.
The Union women also won the Mayor's cup game against rpi. They're going to charge a return to ECAC hockey action this weekend, hosting Brown and Yale. I'll have interviews with Union head coach Tony Macy, defenseman Stephanie Bourque, forward Carrie Ann Engelbert and goalie Emma Ryumi. I'll also speak with Darwin's men's associate hockey Associated head coach and former Union men's hockey associate head coach Jason Tapper, who was recently named the winner of the American Hockey Coaches Association Terry Flanagan Award, which honors an assistant coach's body of work. Also, as I mentioned earlier, Darth men's head hockey coach Reed Cashman will come on to talk about Jason as well as Friday's matchup.
Steven Wino of the Associated Press, who, like me, is a graduate of Holy Ghost Prep in suburban Philadelphia, joins me to talk about the hiring of John Harbaugh by the New York Giants as their new head coach. Wino, who covers the NHL for the ap, previews, the men's hockey tournament in the Winter Olympics and the return of NHL players after a 12 year absence.
Finally, San Francisco sports talk show host Notre Dame, Bishop Gibbons graduate, Indiana University graduate and former Daily Gazette paperboy Damon Bruce comes on to bask in the glory of his Hoosiers winning the College Football Playoff national championship. I hope you tune in.
The views expressed on the Parting Shots podcast are not necessarily those of the Gazette newsgroup. The Parting Shots podcast is 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 from the Parting Shots podcast studio in Schenectady, New York. Good day, good hockey.
