Photo Courtesy: QBSN
Contributions were made across the board in Quinnipiac’s 4-2 victory over Holy Cross Saturday evening as Rand Pecknold’s squad got points from some old and new faces. Travis St. Denis and Soren Jonzzon scored their first goals of the season, but the player that stood out the most was freshman Thomas Aldworth.
In the first home game of his career, Aldworth had himself an evening netting his first career goal while adding two assists. A combination of size and speed, Aldworth shined in the eyes of his teammates and head coach Rand Pecknold.
“His face off intensity has been great, I thought tonight it was excellent, he had a lot of jump. I thought that he was one of our better players; obviously he had the three points too,” Pecknold said postgame.
Aldworth’s performance helped Quinnipiac advance to 2-0-0 on the season as it swept the weekend series with Holy Cross. The Bobcats will face off against Arizona St. in their next game Thursday Oct. 15 at High Point Solutions Arena. Here is my breakdown of Aldworth’s game.
Size and Speed:
Aldworth is a force to be reckoned with. At six-foot-one, 190 pounds, he is a dual threat player possessed with game changing speed and size. He used his speed all game to keep Holy Cross defensemen on their heels, notably on the fore check.
Aldworth forced multiple turnovers in Holy Cross’ zone, one leading to Jonzzon’s goal in the first period. “Yea I was talking to coach Rand before the game, he told me to move my feet, move my legs. It’s how I’m effective, so I like to just try to use my speed as much as I can, get on the fore check and create opportunities,” Aldworth said postgame.
Aldworth’s size is what earned him his first goal of the season and career. After a K.J. Tiefenwerth wrap around attempt, Aldworth bullied his way atop the crease and pushed the puck past Crusader goaltender Tommy Nixon.
Learning Curve:
Aldworth still has much to learn despite the auspicious start to his career at Quinnipiac. He comes from the British Columbia Hockey League where he scored 56 points in 57 games. Junior hockey is much different than the NCAA however as forwards are held accountable for their defense, while it can often be overlooked at the junior level.
Despite admiring Aldworth’s play Pecknold did say that the forward still has a lot to learn. “Similar to Sam Anas when he was a freshman, similar to Landon Smith these kids come out of junior hockey scoring a ton of goals and they don’t really have to play defense, so we got to round out their game.”
Extra points:
- Tim Clifton finished the game with a goal, assist and a few scuffles with the adversary. The gritty forward has never been afraid to stick his nose in the fray; the added offense is certainly a plus for the Bobcats.
- It has been a theme the past few season for the Bobcats, but they are still leaving opposing players open in front of the net. It is early in the season and there are two new defensemen in Luke Shiplo and Chase Priskie, but Holy Cross had men open in Quinnipiac’s zone all night. The Bobcats owned puck possession, but the moments the Crusaders were able to hold the zone they were able to produce good scoring opportunities.
