Grading the defense

This year was a good year for the BC defensive core, in my opinion the Eagles were at the top of Hockey East in terms of D play. We will grade each player starting today on how their season fared.

Tommy Cross- Got an injury early in the season that kept him out a long time but I thought that Cross was the best D man on the team. He had the OT goal to beat BU and got a huge goal vs NU in the Hockey East semis. Tommy did struggle in the NCAA quarterfinals vs CC but that should not diminish what Tommy was able to accomplish this year.

Pat Wey-Most likely the best D man when it comes to getting the puck out of the zone and breaking it out. I thought this was a good year for Wey but he could be a great defenseman in this league next year. One game that sticks out in my head for Wey is the 1/22/11 game @ BU. Wey had a great game in his own zone, and was able to get the transition going.

Brian Dumoulin- Yes Dumoulin was an All American for the Eagles, but next year I am expecting him to be the best defenseman in Hockey East. He needs to be more of an offensive threat. To many times this year, he was getting caught up and it led to odd man rushes for the other team.

Philip Samuelsson- This was an average year for Samuelsson, who gave up many goals for this team. I do think that Philip did have some good games at the end of the year, mostly in the Hockey East playoffs. I hope that Samuelsson will be back next year because I think, with hard work, he could be the Eagles second or third defenseman.

Edwin Shea- Honestly, I think Edwin Shea had a god year. He did not play many games, but he seems to try very hard, and did not make as many mistakes as he has made in the past. He is starting to look for a good pass instead of just shooting the puck into the zone. One thing that he must work on is his shot, he needs to have a harder slap shot.

Patch Alber- Of all the d man, Patch has the most speed. Patch will need to have a better year next year for the Eagles to be successful and will need to be more physical in his own zone.

Issac Macleod-Issac should be a regular for the Eagles next year, and we are all hoping that he can find a way to help out this D core and have a great year.