Bobcats turn to ECAC play after strong start to season
The Quinnipiac men’s hockey team started its season with eight games in a 14-day stretch. After emerging with a 6-2 record, the 12th-ranked Bobcats will now turn their focus to ECAC conference play on Thursday at St. Lawrence.
“We’re happy to be 6-2 at this juncture,” Quinnipiac coach Rand Pecknold said. “It was an ambitious schedule to play eight games in 14 days.”
Quinnipiac has recorded two-game sweeps over Sacred Heart, Holy Cross and AIC, while dropping a pair of decisions to Bowling Green, which is currently ranked No. 7 in the country.
“The boys handled it well, and I think coaches handled it well too,” Pecknold said. “We had to adapt how we coach and keep it a little simpler with less practice time but great start to the year and we are looking forward to getting started with our ECAC schedule.”
With only four teams participating, the ECAC schedule will look far different. Quinnipiac will be compete with St. Lawrence, Clarkson and Colgate for the conference title.
“St. Lawrence hasn’t even played a game yet,” Pecknold said. “I know Brent Brekke does a nice job, he is going to get that program going back to where they were years ago. Colgate looks really good and Clarkson is top ten in the country.”
Quinnipiac will play each conference opponent six times to make up its 18game conference schedule.
“It doesn’t faze me, we just want to play games,” Pecknold said. “We had a nine-and-a-half-month break. We were so worried we weren’t going to play a season and some of my colleagues don’t have a season so we are fortunate that we have it. I would have been fine playing everybody eight times.”
With 18 games and three opponents, Quinnipiac’s schedule is made of consecutive games against the same opponent and two three-game weekend series against Clarkson.
“It’s definitely different,” Pecknold said. “The simplest thing is when you play the same team on a weekend as opposed to a different opponent Friday and Saturday, it makes it a lot easier a lot easier on a coaching staff. Only having to cut video and getting a game plan prepared for opponent as opposed to two, it’s a game changer.”
Quinnipiac has shown its resiliency early , a skill the team will need the rest of the way.
“It is a different year. In the end, we want to play games,” Pecknold said. “My kids want to play, let’s get as many in as we can.”