Christmas Wishes: Part 1

Wish #1:  Extended Good Health to All, And to All A Good Night

My first Christmas Wish focuses on the rampant injuries that have plagued the Terriers to begin the 2009-10 season.  If BU is going to get back into the Hockey East race at all, they are going to need their players to perform better, and the first step to performing better is....well, it's to stay on the damn ice.

The first thing most Terriers' fans thought when they heard Colin Wilson and Brian Strait were jumping ship to the NHL was, "well at least Nick Bonino will still be around."

After all, Bonino was an incredible source of offense for BU in his first two seasons.  As a freshman, he impressed with 16 goals and 13 assists.  As a sophomore he absolutely dazzled, scoring 18 goals and helping on 32 more.  How good is 50 points in Division I hockey?  Well it's only good enough for a tie for fourth in the freakin' nation.

Bonino was also more than durable, missing a grand total of one game last season.  He missed one game in his freshman campaign as well.  This is not Brandon Yip we're talking about here.

Nonetheless, the biggest offensive force on the Terriers suffered a significant injury on October 24 against Michigan.  Bonino dislocated his shoulder when he hit the ice hard, and the injury kept him out for five games.  Granted, he recovered from the injury much faster than expected, but it could not have been worse timing.

The Terriers are a young team, and Bonino was to be the glue to hold it all together.  But without Bonino in the offense, BU tripped and fell flat on its face out of the gate.  They scored a total of 12 goals in those 5 games Bonino was out, and besides a five goal outburst to beat Lowell, they looked out of sorts the entire time. 

Bonino Was Slated to Lead A Young BU Team

Ironically, as Bonino began his recovery process, sophomore Ross Gaudet was on the tail end of his for the same injury.  The injury to the star may have actually cleared a little bit of space for Gaudet, who started his first career game in the first game Bonino missed against Lowell.

The injury bug was biting the Terriers before they even put on their skates this year.  Sophomore blue-liner Ryan Ruikka, who also didn't have a chance to skate in a game in 08-09, destroyed his ACL while jogging before the season started.  Yes, jogging.

Backup Goalie Grant Rollheiser also began the year among the crawling wounded after spraining his ankle in pre-season workouts.  Not a big deal, you say, for the backup netminder to be hurt?  Well, it certainly seems like a big deal now that Millan did not have someone to spell him early when he was struggling.  Rollie the Goalie got his first game action in a 6-4 win over Merrimack, ironically the same game that Nick Bonino returned from his injury. 

Sophomore D-Man David Warsofsky, often a spark on special teams thanks to his speed, missed three games due to an injured adductor muscle.  Yeah, I have no fucking clue what that is either.  But Eric Gryba is to blame, according to the FreeP:

"Gryba’s 2009 victims include teammates David Warsofsky, who was collateral in a Gryba hit laid on an opponent, and freshman forward Alex Chiasson, whom Gryba injured in practice."

  Moral of the story is that he hurt his hip, I think.  In any case, he sat out, came back too fast, and had to sit out some more. 

Then Alex Chiasson, who was just about the only Terrier finding the net got hurt.  Eric Gryba decided that hurting opponents was boring, so he nailed Chiasson in practice, cutting up his face and giving him what sounds a whole lot like an un-diagnosed concussion.  When the poor chap recovered from being Gryba smashed, he came down with the flu.

Freshman Alex Chiasson Was Excellent Early On, But Got Bit by the Gryba Bug

Let's not forget about Chris Connolly, another speedy sophomore who BU was counting on for a good deal of offense at the outset. A faulty shoulder kept him out for two games as well.

Alright, let's review.  Nick Bonino, Chris Connolly, David Warsofsky, Grant Rollheiser, Alex Chiasson, Ross Gaudet and Ryan Ruikka have all missed at least two games due to injury.  A grand total of nine players have been in every single game for Jack Parker.

In fact, the Red Hot Hockey game against Cornell, 13 games into the season, was the first time the Terriers were fully healthy for the first time all year long against Cornell.

Injuries are one of the biggest, if not the single biggest reason that the Terriers have looked so lost out of the gate here in 2009.

What's the Number For 911?

How do the coaches set up a roster, or develop any line chemistry whatsoever when everyone on the team seems to be falling down each and every night?  Sometimes, a team can rally in the face of a tough injury, or two.  But a young team like this?  There was no doubt that it would be difficult, and it has been incredibly tough for BU.

So my first Christmas wish is a fully healthy Terriers' team.  Is that so much to ask, hockey gods?  I understand that injuries are a part of the game.  But what kind of horrible luck is it to have this many guys go down in just 15 games?

I'm no fool, and I fully respect the laws of karma.  Nobody has more instant karma than I do.  And I realize that most of BU's karma was used up back in April, but I'm hoping the Scarlet and White can finally call it even with karma. 

Karma and The Terriers Have Some Settling to Do

This team can still have a bit of bite if they can all just stay on their damn feet.

One positive from all these injuries is that we've got an extended look at some players who may not have otherwise had a chance in hell to get on the ice.  Ross Gaudet showed off some offensive talent, scoring three goals.  Vinny Saponari and Zach Cohen have both matured tremendously as offensive players, even since the beginning of this season.  The same can be said for Corey Trivino.  The three have meshed as a line so well together that Parker bumped them up to the number one forward line against Boston College.  Hell, even Andy Glass has come into his own over the past few months.

Zach Cohen Has Emerged as a Powerful Offensive Force

But I've had my fill of seeing other guys.  If they still want to contribute, I'll be very happy.  But now I want my regulars back, and I want them to stay.  I want Rollheiser to get a legitimate chance to play, because, well Kieran Millan has played pretty poorly.  I want Alex Chiasson to stay upright long enough to play up to his potential.  I want our best forward to lead the team in points.

I want BU to stay healthy.

Santa, I hope you're listening.