2008 Woodie Awards
Men's Hockey: Vitale, Thiessen return for 2007-08 season
Jonathan Raymond
Issue date: 9/24/07 Section: Sports
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Not since the 2001-02 season has Northeastern finished above .500, but a midseason turnaround and a strong second half of last season have set the bar high for this year's team.
"We have pretty high expectations for all the guys this year," said junior forward Joe Vitale. "Everybody's coming into the season thinking we're going to have a pretty good season. We're looking forward to it."
Last December, the Huskies' season bottomed out with 7-1 loss to Maine followed by a 5-2 loss to Colgate. They rebounded, however, the next night against Holy Cross with a lopsided 7-2 victory.
That victory sparked a second half run that saw the team go 9-6-3 to finish the season before losing to Boston College in the Hockey East playoffs. Players like Vitale, sophomore goaltender Brad Thiessen, sophomore forward Chad Costello and sophomore forward Kyle Kraemer emerged as vital players during the stretch.
"I think after last year, as a team, and personally, we were able to accomplish some things some people didn't think we'd be able to do," Thiessen said. "So I think the bar is set that much higher and we just have to go out and keep what we had going during the last half of last year."
The team will be a younger squad this year due to the loss of senior contributors, like Mike Morris, Ray Ortiz, Steve Birnstill, Yale Lewis and Bryan Esner.
"We lost a lot of seniors. We only have one senior that's returning that's played, so our first goal was to try and get the freshmen acclimated," said head coach Greg Cronin. "We wanted to make them feel comfortable so they have the confidence to contribute immediately. I think our early season success is going to hinge on their development, being able to come in and make an impact."
The freshman recruiting class will be anchored by a trio of forwards - Tyler McNeeley, Wade MacLeod and Steve Silva - who Cronin said he expects to be able to contribute quickly.
"The guys that come out with the most credibility, Steve Silva and Tyler McNeeley and Wade MacLeod," Cronin said. "That's two of the top five leading scorers in the British Columbia league. Those three guys should come out and be able to help us immediately."
On the defensive side, Cronin said there are a number of players who can step into the starting role.
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