Depth is a vital ingredient in the success of a team. Injuries occur or players have sub-par seasons, so you need to have someone else ready to step in.
For the University of Maine’s hockey team, it is important to have a reliable fourth line that can take a regular shift and at least hold its own.
And that includes going up against the opposing team’s top line, which often occurs on the road when the home team has the last line change.
Being able to roll four lines also ensures that your elite-level forwards can stay fresh.
Through UMaine’s first two games, a 6-0 victory over American International College (Massachusetts) and a 5-0 exhibition win over Army (New York), its fourth line has been productive.
In the win over Army, the four players who were rotated in on the fourth line combined for three goals and five assists.
Junior left wing Owen Fowler, a UMass-Lowell transfer, had a goal and two assists; freshman center Oskar Komarov had a goal and an assist; sophomore right wing Anthony Calafiore had a goal; and freshman winger-center Thomas Pichette notched two assists.
UMaine head coach Ben Barr said Fowler was his team’s best forward.
If Barr can continue to get solid performances from the fourth line, it would be the first time in his four seasons at UMaine that he would have a dependable fourth line.
During UMaine’s glory days when the Black Bears were going to 11 Frozen Fours and winning two NCAA championships, they always had an impactful fourth line.
They were usually a big, physical line that finished their checks, which took a toll on opposing defensemen.
They were also an effective checking line that could also pop in a goal here and there.
In fact, late head coach Shawn Walsh used to put his fourth line out for the center ice faceoff right after the Black Bears had scored a goal.
There have certainly been a lot of positives through UMaine’s first two games highlighted by the fact the Black Bears haven’t allowed a goal yet and only 25 shots on goal.
But American International College and Army are both in Atlantic Hockey America, which is considered at the bottom of the list of the six Division I conferences, although its teams have gotten significantly more competitive in recent years.
American International College, picked to finish fourth in the coaches preseason poll among the 11 teams, and Army, chosen 10th, have young teams. American International College lists 15 freshmen and sophomores on its roster, and Army had 17 for Saturday’s game.
Army coach Brian Riley, a long-time friend of Barr’s, said he watched video of the UMaine-American International College game and was impressed with how relentless the Black Bears were at swarming the puck.
“[The video] didn’t do it justice,” said Riley, who is retiring at the end of the season after 21 seasons as the head coach at Army. “They were so hard on pucks for 60 minutes. I go way back with [Barr], and I knew his team would play like that. They play the right way.”
Sophomore goalie Albin Boija has looked razor-sharp, and the fact UMaine has won two games with returning second and third-leading scorers Josh Nadeau and Lynden Breen combining for just one assist is impressive.
It will be just a matter of time before they start producing.
Each of the other three lines has produced at least two goals, and the veteran defense corps has been solid.
On the negative side, UMaine is just 1-for-10 on the power play, including a five-minute major the Black Bears had against American International College and on which they scored. They have 18 shots on goal.
It will take time because they are integrating new players onto the power play units but the sooner they can start clicking the better.
The Black Bears’ inability to capitalize on a five-minute major while holding a 1-0 lead in the first period of their 3-1 loss to Cornell in the NCAA Tournament a year ago came back to haunt them.
The Black Bears will find out exactly how good they are this weekend when they host the 2022-23 NCAA champion Quinnpiac University (Connecticut) Bobcats.
Game times on Homecoming Weekend are 7 p.m. Friday and 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
Quinnipiac is currently ranked seventh in the country in the U.S. College Hockey Online poll and UMaine is ninth.
Quinnipiac notched a season-opening 3-2 home win over Penn State on Saturday following an exhibition loss to Northeastern, 4-2.
The Bobcats, under 32nd-year head coach Rand Pecknold, were picked second in the Eastern College Athletic Conference preseason poll behind Cornell and are coming off a 27-10-2 season in which they lost to Boston College 5-4 in overtime in the NCAA’s Providence Regional final.
Top scorers Collin Graf (22 goals, 27 assists) and Jacob Quillan (17, 29) signed pro contracts, and three more of their top seven point-getters have also departed as has workhorse goalie Vinny Duplessis.
But they have added some valuable transfers like former Boston University forward Jeremy Wilmer and ex-Boston College defenseman Charlie Leddy.
