Quinnipiac Men’s Ice Hockey Drops Opener to Bowling Green

Photo: Liz Flynn

Ryan Flaherty
December 19, 2020

Post-game sound by Tom Krosnowski

Highlights by Steven Pappas

Story by Ryan Flaherty

Quinnipiac men’s ice hockey head coach Rand Pecknold summed up his team’s performance Friday night in just five words:

“We did not play well”

The Bobcats (2-1-0, 0-0-0 ECAC Hockey), who began their season with two impressive home wins, could not extend their winning streak to three as they were dominated by the Bowling Green State University Falcons (7-1-0, 0-0-0 WCHA) from start to finish and fell 4-1.

The Bobcats were poised to continue their offensive outburst, after a two-game stretch that saw 10 different Bobcats score goals, 14 score at least a point, and 70 shots on goal. However, after 40 minutes of play, they had put just seven shots on goal and were held scoreless as the Falcons were having their way.

As the game progressed it was clear that this was a much different Quinnipiac team than we had seen just a few days ago. So, let’s take look at what went wrong for the Bobcats.

Special Teams

Just a few short days after singing their praises, the Bobcats’ special teams units appeared to have a chink in their armor. Since going 3-5 in their first game, the Bobcats are 0-15 on the man advantage and have garnered only a handful of quality scoring chances.

“It wasn’t very good tonight,” Pecknold said after the loss. “Execution was poor, a couple guys just struggled the whole game…they tried to do too much and it was a struggle”

Unfortunately for the Bobcats, the penalty kill wasn’t much better. The Falcons jumped out to a 2-0 lead thanks to two powerplay goals and finished the night 2-6 on the man advantage.

To make matters worse, one of those goals went in off of a Bobcats player who was out of position in front of the net.

Compete

Plain and simple, this game came down to who wanted it more and that was Bowling Green.

“I think they just out-competed us,” said Pecknold, “they were hungry, they had emotion, and unfortunately for us, we struggled”

The most basic key to this team’s success is being able to play a full 60-minute game and a full 120-minute series. At their core, they are one of the most explosive offenses in the country with a smart and pesky defense, but that did not show on Friday as poor execution and a lack of smart plays were prevalent.

“It’s a learning moment, a teachable moment for us.” Pecknold remarked, “We have to be prepared to compete and win battles and win races and, again, lock in on details”

As this condensed season progresses, this young Bobcats team is going to be challenged with quicker turnaround times than they’re used to and recovery will continue to be of the utmost importance. Expect this team to have a short memory as they get back to playing to their identity.

Up next for both teams is a quick turnaround as they get set to do it all over again Saturday night. Puck drop for game two of this series is set for 7 p.m. at the People’s United Center.