Right about now, the skies over Maine’s playoff outlook match the distribution of brightness and darkness on their blue road jerseys. All hope is still not lost, but it is steadily leaking away.
A win Saturday over bottom-feeding Vermont would have literally made all the difference in empowering the program’s push for its first postseason ticket in five years.
But such a springboard didn’t happen due to the untimely return of the Black Bears’ notorious discipline detonator.
In each of their previous six games, the Bears –who entered Saturday’s game with a median of 13.2 penalty minutes per game- had given their opponents no more than five power plays on a given night. On Jan. 15 and 22, respectively, they had confined Northeastern and Connecticut to merely three. And all the while, they were consistently drawing just as many, if not more penalties on their adversaries.
But in Saturday’s 1-0 loss at Alfond Arena, the Mainers regressed to an old habit that has all but singlehandedly hindered an otherwise progressive season under first-year head coach Maria Lewis. They committed nine individual infractions, the most they’ve taken in 13 games, and spent a grand total of 11 minutes and 36 seconds –or just a little less than 20 percent of the game- shorthanded.
In sour symmetry, the trouble began at the five-second mark of the opening frame, when senior Jennie Gallo was flagged for high-sticking, and stretched as far as 16:15 of the third period, with Gallo earning another citation for the same infraction.
The Catamounts –who had to kill six penalties of their own- registered 10 of their 25 shots at Maine goaltender Brittany Ott on the power play, including the game’s lone strike by Chelsea Rapin with 13:55 to spare in regulation.
After Rapin converted, Vermont would have two more 5-on-4 segments, though both were cut off by infractions of their own. Still, in an aggregate span of 3:15, they leveled four more power stabs at Ott, an increased rate doubtlessly explainable by the Black Bears’ loss of energy –and perhaps, a degree of overwhelming dejection.
Teddy Fortin went off for tripping with 1:50 left, negating the last five seconds of the Bears’ final kill brought on by Gallo’s second infraction. Lewis pulled Ott with precisely one minute to work with, but Maine mustered only one shot at Catamounts’ goalie Roxanne Douville on three total attempts with the 6-on-4 advantage.
Again, imagine what might have been if Lewis’ pupils had spared themselves a little more oomph just by staying out of the bin and off the PK?
They could have spent more time testing Douville, who needed to repel a mere 18 shots for her second career shutout and second in succession. The Black Bears could have packed more salsa into those biscuits. They likely would have averted Rapin’s decider and/or tuned the opposing mesh once or twice, enough for the most important two-point package of their season.
And indeed, if Saturday’s loot had been theirs, the Bears would now be tied with New Hampshire for the final postseason passport with 12 points apiece, four ahead of Vermont. Instead, they are knotted with the Catamounts at the bottom, each team bearing 10 points.
In fantasy, Maine would have gleefully shaken hands with the Green and Gold girls and then promptly started rooting for them to sweep the Wildcats in next weekend’s two-night series at Gutterson Fieldhouse. The simple reason being, even if the Black Bears could not add to their bushel, they would then be in a three-way knot for sixth place with the two Cat clubs. And, by virtue of having won both season series with those teams, they would be in a position to accept that coveted playoff bid.
In reality, the circumstances beyond their control present a no-win situation. Vermont is tied with Maine and has won their three-game wishbone, having split in Burlington two months ago. New Hampshire is two points up on both of them, the direct consequence of a startling 4-2 win at Boston University on Thursday.
Sweep or split either way next weekend, the Wildcats or the Catamounts or maybe both will be ahead of the Black Bears in seven days, at which point only two games will remain on the slate.
Unless, of course, Maine can take care of itself, a principle Lewis has continuously preached to begin with. To obtain the most reliable insurance policy, all they will need to do is sweep Boston College at Conte Forum. And for good measure, in the finale weekend, they could stand to whittle something off of BU during the defending champions’ two-night stay at Alfond.
Well, do you believe in miracles? At this point, you’ll have to if you expect the Black Bears’ to put a tangible stamp on their first season out of irrelevance.
Al Daniel is the Hockey East correspondent to Beyond The Dashers
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