The men's ice hockey team learned a few things about itself in the preseason: It has solid goaltending in Josh Fillman '07, impact first-year players and the ability to score goals. But the team's most important attribute, the ability to come from behind, showed in the opening weekend. Down in both matchups with NESCAC foes Wesleyan University and Trinity College, the Jeffs were able to scrap out an impressive 5-4 win over the Cardinals and grab a 4-4 tie against the Bantams.

In game one of the 2006-07 campaign, the Jeffs found themselves down 0-2 after the opening period of play. However, Joel Covelli '09, a transfer from Colby College, decided to make his presence felt during his first game in the black-and-purple sweater. Covelli brought the Jeffs within one and then proceeded to set-up the next four Amherst goals in a dominating offensive performance. A pair of power play tallies from senior captain Sean Ellis and forward Gregg Adamo '08 third period pushed Amherst past Wesleyan. Forward Kyle Schoppel '08 sent out four helpers in the game for the Jeffs while Fillman turned aside 18 Wesleyan shots.

Amherst then made its way to Hartford, Conn., to battle Trinity. Forward Brandon Powers '09 gave the Jeffs an early lead on the power play when he finished off a feed from Andrew Schremp '08. The Jeffs gave up the lead late in the first period and three straight Bantam goals left Amherst behind 3-1 with 15 minutes to play in the second frame. Powers stopped the bleeding with four minutes remaining in the period when he tucked home a goal during four-on-four hockey while defenseman Brandon Zangel '07 collected the assist. Amherst suffered a blow just 37 seconds into the third period but a five- minute game misconduct penalty on a Trinity player gave the Jeffs an extended power play opportunity for the second consecutive night.

With 15 minutes remaining in regulation, Schoppel brought Amherst within one as Adamo and Covelli gathered the assists. Will Collins '09 tallied the crucial tying goal with just under nine minutes remaining, and the teams skated to a scoreless overtime sending Amherst home with a 1-0-1 opening weekend. "You always want to get off to a good start," said Ellis. "Especially when you're on the road and playing NESCAC games, these points are crucial."

This past weekend Amherst hosted the Ben McCabe Invitational Tournament welcoming Connecticut College, Wesleyan and Trinity on Saturday and Sunday afternoon. Wesleyan and Trinity played in the opening game and a late flurry by the Cardinals earned them a spot in Sunday's championship game. Amherst opened with Conn. College and put on an offensive clinic. Defenseman Rylan Burns '09 led the charge with a pair of goals while fellow defensive mates Zangel and Jeff Landers '09 each tallied goals of their own while shutting down the Camels en route to a 7-0 drumming. There was no need for any come-from-behind hockey on this day as the Jeffs scored a pair in the first period and never looked back.

Olufemi Amurawaiye '09 grabbed his first tally of the season in the second session while Ellis and Schoppel each added to their season tallies. Not to be overlooked were the contributions from rookie forwards Keith Nelson and Ted Vickers, each of whom had a playmaker day with three assists. That type of offensive help will definitely give Amherst a much needed boost as the season progresses. "We're looking for the entire [first-year] class to have impact seasons," Ellis noted. "One guy isn't going to score all of our goals and to have them play well is going to be crucial."

In Sunday's championship game, everyone helped in Amherst's 6-3 win over Wesleyan. Collins, Powers, Covelli, and Amurawaiye all netted scores while Vickers and defenseman Mike McIntosh '08 tickled the twine for the first time this year. The star of the weekend was Fillman, who earned McCabe Tournament MVP honors. He followed his 27-save shutout on Saturday with 31 saves against Wesleyan. "Fillman is going to make a lot of saves and he had a great weekend," said Ellis. "In the opening weekend the amount of goals he gave up isn't indicative of how he played. We have a lot of confidence in him."

The Jeffs should have a lot of confidence in themselves after an impressive weekend in which they flexed a little NESCAC mite. They'll look to prove themselves when they welcome national powerhouse Norwich University to town this weekend.

NESCAC Notes

Defending National Champion Middlebury College is joined by Bowdoin and Colby Colleges as the only unblemished NESCAC teams. Connecticut goalie Matt Gluck was NESCAC Player of the Week, making nearly 80 saves in two games against Williams College and Middlebury.