Castleton men eye the next level
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Castleton State goalie Jeff Swanson sprawls to the ice to stop a shot from Neumann's Mark Van Vliet during the championship game of the Rutland Herald Invitational on Nov. 25, 2007, at Rutland Regional Fieldhouse. Defending for the Spartans are Jonathan Lafrance (4) and Jeff Lazeren. FILE / RUTLAND HERALD |
Toolbox
By Carleton Laird Herald Staff - Published: November 21, 2008
When building a program from the ground up, it's necessary to take baby steps. Now in his fourth year at the helm of the Castleton State College men's hockey team, Alex Todd hopes his team is ready to take a couple of giant ones.
"I told them from Day One that we are here to win championships," Todd said.
The route to a championship can often be circuitous and long. While Todd's not exactly clearing shelf space for the NCAA Division III trophy yet, he has a plan.
This season began with a weeklong trip to Germany in October, during which the team played four games and did some touring. They went 3-1 on the ice, beating a trio of Third Division German teams and losing to a high-level Austrian unit.
Off the ice, the team visited two castles, saw Munich and made a trip to the Dachau concentration camp.
"We saw a lot of culture and experienced it. We wedged as much into seven days as we could," Todd said. "The team-building and team chemistry is going to be great from the start this year."
The first step to the season will be taken tonight when the Spartans travel to Henniker, N.H., to take on New England College. On Saturday, Castleton will meet St. Anselm College in Manchester, N.H. Although the Spartans have tied both teams, they haven't beaten either outright.
Then comes the first of five straight home games, beginning when CSC hosts the Rutland Invitational Tournament on Thanksgiving weekend. Neumann will meet Becker at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 29, while Castleton faces Brockport State at 6 p.m. at Rutland Regional Fieldhouse.
"You've got to start step by step," Todd said. The team's goals include winning the RHI and performing well in the Cardinal Classic at Plattsburgh State College after the first of the year.
"We want to bring home the Rutland Herald trophy and Plattsburgh is a huge tournament," Todd said. "That is the kind of stage we want to be on. Hopefully we can do well in those two events and that will springboard us toward the postseason."
Todd and the Spartans are not looking too far ahead, however. They realize that the ECAC East in which they play is a very tough conference.
The Spartans have tasted some success, hosting a playoff game last year in which they "didn't play well," according to Todd. So they have to take care of business in their own barn.
"We have to play very well at home all year, starting with the tournament," Todd said. "(Also) play well on the big stage — being the Plattsburgh tournament — and then take our strong home-ice play, our ability to play under pressure in the big games, translate that into success in the playoffs, which leads to the championships everybody's looking for."
Being Todd's fourth year, this team is finally all his.
"Everybody on the roster is a recruit of mine," Todd said. "We have my first group of seniors (nine of 11) who have been here for four years, so that gives us high hopes.
"Their first year was tough, they had to battle and they learned a lot. The next year they had a reasonable amount of success. The hope is that they rise to the challenge in their last year. They've accomplished a lot but there's still a lot they can do, a lot they want to do.
"You take a motivated, experienced player; they can do a lot of good things."
Two of those four-year players are goalies Jeff Swanson and Jay Seals. Although Swanson saw the bulk of time between the pipes last year, they are both in the mix.
"They've got a ton of experience," Todd said. "They've both won big games for us, they've got good numbers. Plus, they push each other really hard."
Swanson played 989 minutes, and made 418 saves with a .907 save percentage and a 2.61 goals-against average. Seals spent 568 minutes in net and stopped 238 shots (.904) with a 2.64 GAA.
The Spartans will carry a third goalie, big freshman (6-foot-3, 215 lbs.) Seth McNary.
Senior defenseman and captain Jared Lavender fronts a back line that includes junior Nick Westcott, seniors Craig Richardson and Mike Anderson; sophomores Jonathan Lafrance, Omar Pacha and Blake Barber; and freshmen Tyler Atkins and Tom Carroll.
"My first year I remember the only thing we wanted to do was win our first game." said Lavender, who missed eight games last season due to injury. "Now, in my senior season, we were able to travel to Germany. Trips like this show that we are serious about hockey and ready to compete anywhere."
Todd expects Atkins to make an impact immediately. He says the 5-foot-11, 185-pounder from Brockville, Ontario, is "a great skater, very smart and positionally very sound."
Senior assistant captain Brandon Heck, who netted six goals overseas, was the leading scorer last season with 16 goals and 18 assists. Four of the next five point producers from 2007-2008 are juniors this year. Sophomore Stuart Stefan (11-15) was second on the team with 26 points, followed by Evan Romeo (14-9), Kirk Bolduc (8-14) and Steve Culbertson (8-14), who tallied five goals in Europe.
Senior Marlin Froese, who transferred in last year, boasts a big body (6-foot-3, 210) and a big shot to match. Other players up front include seniors Ross Carmichael, Jeff Lazeren and Andy Broisma, and freshmen Cody Ayers, Dan Mauriello and Lindsey Gullett.
ICING: The Spartans held their Green and White scrimmage last weekend at the Fieldhouse with a skills competition after. … Alexander was the fastest skater, Bartlett won the puck-control competition, Atkins was the accuracy champ and Froese won the fastest shot, cranking one up to 101 mph.
Contact Carleton Laird at carleton.laird@rutlandherald.com
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