College Preview - Part II

Western Michigan is at the bottom of the CCHA pre-season poll, and while the coaches and media disagreed on the top team, both list the WMU Broncos at #12 (out of 12). As for Ryan Watson, the Panthers' 7th round selection in 2007, the season is one that will present a lot of opportunity. As a freshman, he started off hot, scoring points in his first three games before tailing off., including a goal in his college debut. Still, his rookie season saw him play in 34 games, scoring four goals and four assists. His role will expand and his versatility is something of which the Broncos can take advantage. The forward has played defense on penalty kills, and he is a consistently responsible player, so while the Broncos may not have the best season, Watson, who shares a spot on the roster with his older brother Cam, stands to have a nice year honing his skills.

In New Hampshire, the goaltending will be passed down as Bruins' prospect Kevin Regan goes pro to likely play in Providence behind Tuuka Rask. For Cats' property Brian Foster, that may or may not translate into permanence. The Wildcats are hopeful that the junior will be able to live up to his hype when he was initially recruited, though he was hardly a standout in his appearences last year (2-2-2, 3.06 GAA, .899%). Foster will have to work hard to stay tops between the pipes despite his only competition coming from a pair of freshmen. All the same, UNH was slotted third in Hockey East's pre-season poll behind #1 Boston College and #2 Boston University. In the national USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine pre-season poll, New Hampshire comes in at #7 overall, twelve votes behind Denver. With everything coming together as it has, Foster will have a fantastic opportunity to make a name for himself this year tending the net of a national contender.

Two years ago, the University of Maine won the East Regional and advanced to the Frozen Four, falling to Michigan State. The following season, the Black Bears struggled, ultimately finishing 13-18-3. Matt Duffy made his collegiate debut for Maine during the season and in thirty games, scored 6 goals, though he added only two assists. This coming season, Maine is ranked 9th out of 10 in the Hockey East pre-season poll, ahead only of Merrimack, but the team is young; there are eleven freshmen on the roster and eight sophomores. While Duffy was drafted as a defenseman, the university's "2008-2009 Men’s Hockey Prospectus" guide lists him as a forward/defenseman. One of only three upper-classmen listed as defensemen, Duffy will have every opportunity to make his senior year a memorable one and with the inexperience on the roster, good playing time is his to lose.

There are two players drafted by the Panthers that will not be playing; Spencer Dillon (Northern Michigan) and Zach Bearson (Wisconsin).

Two years ago, Spencer Dillon was kicked off the team for a rules violation and has not returned to the Wildcats since. In January of 2007, Northern Michigan head coach Walt Kyle said in response to an inquiry, "We have a set of values and standards here and if you step outside those lines, there will be consequences. Spencer may, at some point, return, but right now he is facing the consequences for his actions." Dillon did not return for the 2007-2008 season, and he will not be playing this season, either.

I'd sent an e-mail to the University of Wisconsin just last night and already got a response early this morning and a report from not long ago that 'Zach Bearson and the University of Wisconsin hockey team are parting ways', so I'll pull some quotes from Zach:

"I'm sure they have their reasons upstairs. The meeting we had should best stay with us. It was a decision on their part, and that's all there is to it. . . I want to stay here. I love this place. I dreamed of being a Badger since I was a young kid. I could have gone and played elsewhere, but I just decided I love this place and the best thing for me was just to stay in school. . . I love to play, and I love these guys. They're all great guys and a lot of my best friends here. I don't know if I have a future in the game or not. I think I need some time off right now with the way everything went down. I still love it; it's not that. I just need a little break. Maybe in the future I'll attempt to come out of retirement. But right now I'm going to take a break."

It's a shame, although Bearson only appeared in five games in his first two years. All you can do is wish him the best and maybe he'll get another opportunity somewhere down the road.