Inside College Hockey | 2004 NCAA Frozen Four

April 9, 2004
NCAA Frozen Four Notebook
A Great Day for Denver
Badger Bob's grandson leads the Pioneers, plus more notes from Friday

By Mike Eidelbes and Nate Ewell

BOSTON – If there’s anyone in Boston who knows when it’s a great day for hockey, it’s Denver forward Scott McConnell. The little-used forward from Colorado Springs is the grandson of legendary head coach Bob Johnson, who won national titles at Wisconsin in the 1970’s and later guided Pittsburgh to a Stanley Cup.

Even though his career effectively ended with the conclusion of Friday’s pre-game skate, McConnell appreciates the chance to follow the path his grandfather blazed.

“For me to be here with my grandpa’s status, it’s something that I really take to heart,” McConnell said. “I really appreciate it, and I thank every one of these guys for that chance.”

The significance of the return trip to the Frozen Four hasn’t been lost on the members of the Johnson and McConnell clans. For Scott, the emotions hit him after the Pioneers’ win over North Dakota in the West Regional final, a game he watched from the stands with his grandmother.

“When we won, she started crying,” McConnell said. “I thought, ‘Oh my God, she hasn’t been here since my grandpa was last here, and that was 20 years ago.”

For someone who’s played a half-dozen games over the course of his Denver career, McConnell is an important part of the Pioneers’ make-up. He’s an engaging, fun-loving guy and according to coach George Gwozdecky, the team would be worse off without his presence.

”He’s very vocal,” Gwozdecky said. “He can give out a quick line and take a joke like any of ‘em. He is so well-liked.”

Gwozdecky won a national championship as a member of Bob Johnson’s 1977 Wisconsin team. Still, McConnell says his relationship with Gwozdecky is strictly of a player-coach nature but may change once he earns his degree.

“After I graduate in two months, our relationship will built a little bit more because of that,” McConnell said. “The fact that he played for my grandpa is fun when he comes up with a story every once in a while about when he was playing. Coach has taught me a lot and I wouldn’t trade that for anything.”

RYAN'S HOPE

Perhaps the two most important players to watch in tomorrow night's game are a pair of senior defensemen who share the name Ryan.

Maine's Prestin Ryan and Denver's Ryan Caldwell have a lot of common traits as well. Both are their team's top defensemen, both offensively and defensively. And both were instrumental in their teams' wins on Wednesday.

Their teammates are understandably effusive in their praise for the Ryans' leadership on the ice, but Friday they were quicker to compliment them on how both of them keep things loose in the locker room.

Nick Larson, a junior defenseman for Denver, said that Caldwell does his best work at the team's Secret Santa party, or its preseason skits when the defenseman roast the forwards.

"You definitely don't want to get on his bad side," Larson said. "But he keeps things laid back."

He's doing a good job. The Pioneers were relaxed and laughing after Friday's hour-long skate, enjoying the moment and recalling some of their best laughs in Boston. Their police escorts have been a big hit, as have team singing efforts like "Land Down Under" and "The Cha-Cha Slide."

Maine was more businesslike on Friday, but with smiles all around. Prestin Ryan was talkative during in a fairly rigorous practice for the Black Bears.

"He likes to goof around," freshman forward Mike Hamilton said. "He definitely is talkative, on and off the ice."

SEEN AND HEARD AT THE VAULT

• Tim Whitehead has enjoyed fantastic contributions from freshman defenseman Mike Lundin, a late addition to the Black Bear roster this summer when they learned that Francis Nault had lost his eligibility. Lundin arrived in Orono as a 17-year-old from Apple Valley, Minnesota, who other teams wanted to play a year of USHL hockey.

"Mike is an elite player who came to us when we needed him," Whitehead said. "From day one, I've been amazed by the adjustment that he's made. For him to make as much of an impact as he has, it really shows what a great athlete he is. I'm very proud of Mike."

Lundin has enjoyed his success at Maine as well. A rare Minnesotan-turned-Black Bear, he'll have company next season when his younger brother, goaltender Matt, will join him in Orono.

• Maine narrowly missed a national championship two years ago, when Minnesota beat the Black Bears in overtime in St. Paul. That experience motivates them this year, but remember that Denver – which was No. 1 for most of that season – was close to that title as well.

"Two years ago we should have won the national championship," DU forward Connor James said. "That's hockey. The best team doesn't always win."

"We're a lot like that 2002 team," goaltender Adam Berkhoel said. "We just didn't have to fight that much adversity throughout the year. We went through an easy road all the way to the playoffs and won our league, won our playoff title. When it came down to playing a game at someone else's rink and we were up by a goal, we couldn't close it out. This year we were not supposed to do well, and we've had to go through a lot of tough things. We've all been through it before and we know what to expect in the hard times and the good times."

• James loves the history in Boston, and called it a great host city. But he's appreciated getting to ride in the team bus. "The way people drive here is crazy," he said. "If I were driving here, I'd get in 20 accidents."

• In case you missed it, the crack official scoring staff at the Fleet Center decided to award Denver’s second goal in Thursday’s semifinal win against Minnesota Duluth to Connor James – the goal was originally credited to linemate Gabe Gauthier.

Asked if the scoring change – which was announced at the conclusion of the Maine-Boston College game – was a karmic occurrence for his pass to Greg Keith for an easy empty-net goal, James replied, “You know what? It probably could’ve been. I like to think so.”

• Readers familiar with INCH would’ve gotten a chuckle had they heard a random comment from a Pioneer player during the team’s skate Friday. After being stoned by one of the goaltenders during a shooting drill, a DU player was told by a teammate, “You gotta go five-hole. You gotta go Hauser.”

We trust no further explanation is necessary.

• Sean McDonough didn't take a day off on Friday. The ESPN play-by-play man was working at Fenway, calling the Red Sox game for UPN38, and took the time to give credit to the FleetCenter and Boston University for their efforts at the Frozen Four.

• Maine head coach Tim Whitehead called faceoffs one area where the Black Bears would like to improve Saturday night. Center Jon Jankus spent a significant amount of time during practice taking draws against an assistant coach.

• The scoreboard at center ice still displayed the shots on goal total from last night, showing Maine's 41-18 deficit against BC. According to the scoreboard, however, goaltender Jimmy Howard had an even better game than we originally thought: the score read Maine 2, BC 0.

• Maine forward John Ronan brought some levity to the Maine locker room by grabbing a video camera and trying the old Super Bowl Media Day trick of interviewing a teammate. He turned his attention to defenseman Jeff Mushaluk, who showed off his playoff mohawk for the camera.

• What a long, strange trip it’s been for Denver. The Pioneers played the season’s first game, beating Ohio State in the opening match of the Lefty McFadden Classic in Dayton, Ohio, Oct. 3. More than four months later, they’re playing in the season’s last game.

• The Pioneers were having some fun with Boston accents. Asked to use "wicked" in a sentence, Nick Larson replied, "Caldwell has a wicked hahd slapshot." Connor James thought the accents reminded him of his Czech-born teammate. "It's like trying to listen to [Lukas] Dora."