PROVIDENCE, R.I. - Massachusetts hockey coach Don Cahoon has stressed the depth of his offense since the start of the season and this weekend proved he was correct.
The Minutemen (4-1-1, 2-0-1 Hockey East) scored 14 goals in a variety of ways in their sweep of Providence (2-4-0, 0-4-0 Hockey East) over the weekend. The Minutemen won 9-4 Friday at home, with 12 different players earning at least one point. It was the most goals they have scored in 12 years. They added five more in a 5-1 win over the Friars Saturday at Schneider Arena.
The Minutemen used tips, deflections, slap shots, cycling and quick passes to score their goals this weekend. That ability will continue to benefit the Minutemen throughout the season, not allowing opponents to anticipate UMass in its offensive zone.
The point-earning powers of senior Alex Berry, senior Cory Quirk and sophomore James Marcou headlined the weekend. They entered the weekend having nine points as a line, and as they left Providence on Saturday they had 19 more - earning 12 points on Friday - totaling 28 for the season. All three of their skills compliment each other and add up to many goal-scoring opportunities.
"I think we've got good offensive capabilities. You've got one line there that I think we've all hoped would be prolific. You've got Berry who's got great puck skills, Quirk who's got a combination of skating and puck skills and is tenacious and Marcou who is just a brilliant play maker," Cahoon said.
"You've got these guys playing in rhythm with one another and they are going to produce some chances, you're hoping you are going to get goals out of them," he added.
This weekend, Berry tallied six points on four assists and two goals, Quirk had four assists and one goal and Marcou earned three goals and five assists. But Quirk's line wasn't the only line that earned points this weekend. UMass had goals from nine different players over the weekend and assists coming from eight.
Freshman Casey Wellman has shown his speed and aggressiveness this season at center. Wellman and line mates Chase Langeraap and Chris Davis have the chemistry they need to lead the Minutemen offensively.
Wellman tallied three assists on Friday. Langeraap has earned a point in every game since his return from an injury on Oct. 21 - he has two goals and three assists in four games. He scored a goal and had an assist on Friday. Davis scored two goals over the weekend, and totals four goals this season.
Sophomore Michael Lecomte, who typically centers freshman Danny Hobbs and junior Will Ortiz, tallied two power-play goals this weekend. Lecomte has three power-play goals this season and one assist. Ortiz played only in Friday's game, giving freshman T.J. Syner a chance at right wing on Saturday. Ortiz scored the ninth goal for the Minutemen on Friday on a hard slap shot in the slot.
Junior captain Brett Watson typically centers senior Scott Crowder and sophomore Brian Keane. Watson doesn't have any points this season, but plays a key role in the defensive zone and on the penalty kill. Keane played only on Friday, giving sophomore Marc Concannon an opportunity to play on Saturday, where he scored UMass' third goal of the game.
"This is a more balanced team than any other team I've ever had [at UMass]," Cahoon said. "Wellman is a talent in his own right, Lecomte is certainly an accomplished center iceman and Watson is a very good defensive center. You start with the anchors of each line, I like the composition of the forward lines and we've got some depth."
This weekend, Cahoon rotated in two players that don't see as much ice time - Syner and Concannon.
"The great thing about our team is we've got a lot of depth so far, a lot of guys that can fill in each others spots and, like I said, team speed is huge for us," Davis said. "We have a fourth line that can skate very fast and get in there and disrupt other teams defenses, so coach has had no problem switching guys in and out and everyone's been contributing."
The Minutemen have scored 25 goals this season, for an average of 4.2 per game. In four of UMass' six games, it has scored three or more goals - including a 6-0 win over Rensselaer and the 9-4 and 5-1 wins over Providence.
"[It's] great to see how many goals we're scoring because in the past few years it's been a little tough, but guys are putting the puck in the net which is huge," junior defenseman Justin Braun said.
Braun and fellow defensemen senior Topher Bevis, senior John Wessbecker and freshman Michael Marcou all contributed offensively this weekend. Braun tallied three assists and a goal, Bevis earned an assist, Wessbecker assisted on two goals and Marcou assisted on another.
Melissa Turtinen can be reached at mturtinen@dailycollegian.com.
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