B L U E R E I G N Men move past nail-biter to eighth conescutive win

Author: Steve Beslow

Middlebury's dominance over Division III men's hockey has reached dynastic proportions…again. After a 22-2-2 regular season, a no-sweat NESCAC title and a solid first-round game, Bill Beaney's squad headed down to Elmira, N.Y. and played their way to a third straight NCAA National Title, Middlebury's eighth in the last 12 years.

This year's NCAA tournament included a new twist. Under previous rules, the Panthers, who finished this season ranked number one in the nation, would have maintained home-ice advantage throughout the playoffs (as they did during last year's championship run). Instead, the Panthers were forced to play the semifinal and final matchups at a "neutral" site. This year, that site was the First Arena in Elmira, home of the UHL Elmira Jackals. But the site turned out not to be quite so neutral as advertised, as the Panthers found themselves in a semi-final bracket with the hometown Elmira College Soaring Eagles. Beaney, however, was not at all upset at having to go up against a hometown team. "Having Elmira in the tournament will bring a lot of fans and a ton of excitement to the game," said Beaney before the weekend, "And that's what this sport is all about."

"It really gives our guys something to play for," agreed Assistant Coach Chris LaPerle. "There's no way we'll be getting too complacent in front of that crowd."

As it turned out, the Soaring Eagles gave their fans something to cheer about. Elmira came out firing against first-year goalie Doug Raeder. Raeder started in place of injured Ross Cherry '08, who hurt his knee after a record-setting run in the NESCAC tournament. But the Panthers were not overly distraught at the turn of events as Raeder's numbers this season were exceptional, ranking among the top five netminders in goals against average.

Huge underdogs coming in, Elmira took an early lead, beating Raeder on the powerplay just 2:40 into the second period. This would be the only goal that Raeder allowed the entire weekend, and the Panthers made sure that the goalie's stellar performances did not go to waste. Middlebury tied the game 12 minutes later when John Sales '07 grabbed his own rebound and forced the puck home. Sales's goal quieted down the Elmira crowd and seemed to swing the momentum back in Middlebury's favor.

But the Soaring Eagles did not back down and the Panthers had serious difficulty getting their offense together, especially on the power-plays, which did not feature the crisp passing that has become Middlebury's trademark. That would all change when defenseman Tom Maldonado '08 found daylight, blasting home a power-play goal from the point with exactly two minutes left in the game. The second goal was a gigantic relief for the Panthers and plenty of wiggle-room for Raeder, who completely shut down the Eagles in the third period and stopped 26 shots in all.

Putting the semifinals behind them, the Panthers, who have never lost a championship game since the inception of the NCAA tournament, were more than prepared to put the finishing touches on an incredible season. To capture that final trophy, Middlebury had to go through old rivals St. Norbert College (SNC) of De Pere, Wis., whom the Panthers defeated two years ago to begin their recent string of championships.

Unlike the day before, Middlebury had no trouble getting on the board. Just 1:36 into the game, the Panthers capitalized on an early SNC penalty when Rob McIntyre '08 grabbed a Mickey Gilchrist '08 rebound in the post and stuffed it into the back of the net.

The Golden Knights had plenty of chances to answer back, but Middlebury's defense was clutch all day and impenetrable when short-handed. Raeder made several spectacular pad saves, but the best save of the night went to captain Smith '06, who cleared the puck from the crease behind Raeder after one of the goalie's particularly impressive stops.

Middlebury gained a bit of breathing room at 7:15 in the second when Sales came through again for the Panthers, taking a crisp pass from Darwin Hunt '07 and scoring on a laser off the inside of the far post and the back of SNC goaltender Kyle Jones. Jones played well on the whole, but was a victim of Middlebury's speed and his own team's seven penalties. With two goals in hand, the Panther's tightened up their defense, holding St. Norbert to only eight shots on goal in the third period. Gilchrist iced the championship with an open-netter with just 45 seconds left in the game, and the celebration was on. It was the team-leading 24th goal of the season for assistant captain Gilchrist who, along with Jeff Smith, was named first-team All-American.

Both teams were honored after the game, and Middlebury's loyal fans showered the team with cheers. Particularly well received were the seniors - Smith, goalie Yen-I Chen and team General Manager Ryan McQuillan. Despite their relatively small numbers, the fans and parents made the First Arena seem just a little bit more like the Chip Kenyon.

"There's nothing in the world like winning a national championship," said McQuillan, summing up the seniors' last hurrah, "let alone a third straight, especially in your last game ever. But, with all of the talent on this squad, this streak will not end until long after we're gone."

There is no doubt that this team's seniors were tremendously influential in bringing home the NCAA title, but with so few graduating players, the future is bright for the Panthers, who will no doubt be the favorites entering next season.

Coach Beaney, however, is not taking anything for granted. "Another year older does not necessarily mean another year better," says Beaney, whose wry smile belies his modesty, "you've still got to go through the fire."