WHITE RIVER JUNCTION — No one remembers how a team starts a season. The only thing people remember is how it ends.
The Hartford High boys hockey team has struggled early in back-to-back seasons, but the Hurricanes found their groove around the midway point each time. The Hurricanes started off 0-9-1 last winter, then finished 7-5-0, a mark that included an opening-round win in the VPA Division II tournament.
This season has brought more of the same. Hartford lost its first six games and was 2-7-1 through its first 10. Once again, the Canes have heated up in the second half of the campaign, finishing 5-4-1 for a 7-11-2 mark and a spot in the playoffs.
Hartford coach Todd Bebeau compared the early struggles of both seasons to assembling a jigsaw puzzle.
“I was constantly trying to put the right pieces together,” Bebeau said on Tuesday after a practice at Wendell A. Barwood Arena. “I tried to put people where they would have the most success. As the season went on, they gained confidence, and it showed on the winning end.”
Bebeau has a group of players who weren’t taken down by the losses. They instead worked hard night in and night out, which in turn delivered victories.
Junior goaltender Ross McFate believed that team chemistry played a big part in his team’s turnaround in both seasons, but specifically this time around.
“This year, we really stuck together as a team,” McFate said. “We just know better than we did last year, and it’s showing on the ice and the scoreboard.”
Sophomore forward A.J. DeBois also felt that last season helped to keep this year’s team calm and in position to turn the season around again.
“It was definitely on some of our minds, since (the slow start) happened last year, too,” DeBois said. “So when it happened again, we were all more confident we could turn things around.”
Bebeau knows that shifting lines can be tricky. Finding the right fit with different playing styles and personalities can take time, and shuffling lines can make it hard to build cohesive line chemistry. But it is a necessity that all hockey teams have to go through at some point before figuring out what works for them.
“Chemistry is critical,” Bebeau said. “There are times I walk into the building grumpy and tired, and I just look at these kids having fun, listening to music, kicking the soccer ball around, (and) it really puts things into perspective.”
Although having fun is important and winning isn’t everything, the Hurricanes still have a team goal for the season: win at least one playoff game, although the players and coaches are obviously hoping for more than just one victory.
“Our goal is to finish the season with a win,” DeBois said.
McFate thinks Hartford can find success, and the key is simple.
“The key is for us to stick together as one,” McFate said. “I think we should keep rolling with what we have going.”
The Canes should learn their state tournament assignment on Thursday morning.