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The Forecheck: Complete performances continue to elude the Huskies

One thing always seem to go wrong each game for UConn.

January 17, 2022

Welcome to the revamped UConn Hockey Hub newsletter, which catches you up on all the stories, trends, and anything else you might have missed, along with some quick takes and leftover notes from the weekend.

Complete performances continue to elude the Huskies

There’s a persistent theme in each of UConn men’s hockey’s performances this season, regardless of the final result. At least one thing seems to go wrong every time the Huskies take the ice.

Sometimes it’s small and they can overcome to get a win, like a relatively low energy level against Colgate or a bad night from the power play. Other nights, very little goes right, like at AIC on Tuesday.

During UConn’s Friday night loss to BU, the Huskies couldn’t finish. The offense created plenty of chances and got the puck to the net but failed to get it past Terriers goaltender Drew Commesso more than once. That inability to score spoiled Darion Hanson’s best outing of the season, made a gutsy effort by the penalty kill inconsequential and cost the Huskies a chance to claim a more-than-winnable game.

As the season progresses, the feeling that something’s not quite right with this team continues to grow stronger and stronger. UConn is still in a good spot to make a run down the final stretch, but it’s becoming more difficult to imagine such a thing happening.

Just over a week ago, the Huskies scored their best victory of the season at Boston College. They followed it up with their worst loss of the year at AIC and then came up short against the Terriers.

UConn has the talent to be better. It should be better. The coaching staff has proven it can lead a second half turnaround. But unless the vibes change, it’s hard to have much confidence in this group going forward.

Week in review

News

BU 2, UConn 1 (OT)

Three stars

First star: Darion Hanson

Hanson made the save of the season — maybe even the best stop since UConn joined Hockey East? — with a remarkable kick-save in the second period. He contorted his leg in a way that still doesn’t seem possible to deny the Terriers and came in at No. 5 on SportsCenter the next day.

The goalie didn’t stop there, though. Just a few minutes later, Hanson made a key stop on a breakaway in the final seconds of the period and had a handful of other big saves throughout the night. Though he didn’t play well in the Huskies’ first two games of the second half, Hanson recovered in spectacular fashion with his most impressive performance of the season against BU.

Second star: Chase Bradley

After being held scoreless for 53 minutes, UConn finally broke through when Chase Bradley buried a bad clearance from the Terriers into the open net. The Huskies absolutely deserved to score, even if it came courtesy of a little puck luck. While UConn eventually fell in overtime, Bradley’s goal helped secure one point so the home side didn’t come away completely empty-handed.

Third star: Carter Turnbull

Though he didn’t record a point and was only credited with two shots on goal, Turnbull was arguably UConn’s best player on Friday. After a nearly year-long funk, Turnbull is beginning to look like his old self again.

He’s fast and dynamic with and without the puck, consistently gets himself into dangerous spots on the ice and nearly scored an incredible highlight reel goal when he took the puck behind the net, faked out the goalie and hit the post on a tough, back-handed shot from the far face-off circle.

With Ryan Tverberg on a seven-game goal drought, UConn desperately needs someone to step up and lead the offense. Turnbull looks to be answering that call.

Play of the week

Ice-cold capture

Best of social media

Parting thoughts

  • File this under: No games in Hockey East are easy. UNH looked like it would be a sweepable team just a couple of weeks ago when it lost to Dartmouth and fell to 7-10-1 on the season. But the Wildcats have rattled off four straight wins and are coming off a sweep of No. 20 Boston College. UConn’s in for two tough games at a time where it really needs to start putting together some victories.

  • BU just hit the post again.