Spring Break
Young Huskies begin season far from home
Kevin Vellturo
Issue date: 10/10/08 Section: Sports
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UConn only has three senior on its roster, but many of the underclassmen saw significant playing time last year, a fact that causes coach Bruce Marshall to be confident.
"We always have high expectations," Marshall said. "A lot of the guys are thinking 'we should be on our way.'"
Although confidence is high heading into the season, Marshall made sure to mention that the coaching staff needs to keep the team from becoming overly confident.
"We still need to keep them focused," Marshall said. "There are always things you can work on."
Opening the season so far away - Alaska is six hours behind Connecticut - can have its disadvantages. At the same time, however, getting away from home can have positives as well.
"Travel definitely takes its wear on a team," Marshall said. "But we learn some things about the new guys on the team and there's no distractions like there are at home."
Marshall added that since there is a two-week lay off between this weekend and their next game - the home opener against Army - the Huskies will have ample time to be able to get back into their routine.
One of the most detrimental injuries to UConn last season was to senior captain and defenseman Sean Erickson. Erickson played in 13 games last year before suffering a season ending concussion. Sean Erickson will anchor the defense, and according to Marshall will provide leadership on a young team.
Goalie Beau Erickson will be between the pipes again, and was one of, if not the most consistent player on the Huskies last year. His .918 save percentage landed him third in Atlantic Hockey at the end of the year.
The Huskies' leading scorer from a year ago, sophomore Andrew Olson, returns after playing in all 37 games last season. Olson finished the year with 24 points which, aside from being the most on the team, was third among Atlantic Hockey freshmen. Fellow forwards Chris Ochoa and Jason Krispel also return after outstanding 2007-2008 campaigns, and can provide a formidable offense Marhsall says.
"Ochoa was second on the team in scoring," Marshall said. "Hopefully they do it again for us."
Alaska-Anchorage is almost a mirror of UConn in that they are a relatively young team, with 18 underclassmen on the roster. The Seawolves boast a pair of dynamic offensive threats in Paul Crowder and Josh Lunden, who tied each other for the team lead in goals last season.
Although Alaska-Anchorage finished only 13-21-3 last year, they play in the extremely competitive Western Collegiate Hockey Association, which has some of the best teams in the country in Minnesota and Wisconsin.
Alaska-Fairbanks also returns its leading scorer, Dion Knelsen, who had 33 points for the Nanooks last year. Although they only won 11 games last season, Alaska-Fairbanks had to play four games each against perennial powerhouses Notre Dame, Michigan, and Miami (Ohio).
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