Nick Nutcher Anxious For MAAC Semi-Final
9/11/2002 12:00:00 AM | Men's Ice Hockey
March 9, 2002
FAIRFIELD, CT - From his parents' home on Whitney Avenue in Hamden, Sacred Heart's Nick Nutcher can see the lights of the Quinnipiac University campus. Tomorrow, Nutcher and his Pioneer teammates hope to dim some of those lights when they take on Quinnipiac in the semifinals of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Hockey Tournament in Worcester, Mass.
Sacred Heart, the tournament's No. 3 seed, faces off against No. 2 Quinnipiac at 7 p.m. at the Hart Center. Top-seeded Mercyhurst plays No. 6 Connecticut in the 4 p.m. opener. The winners will meet Saturday at noon for the championship and a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
Nutcher, a 6-foot-1, 190-pound junior defenseman, says the Pioneers (16-13-4) are hopeful they can turn tables on Quinnipiac (18-12-5), a team they lost to twice and tied once during the MAAC season.
"Quinnipiac is our biggest rival because we're both located in southern Connecticut," Nutcher said. "We've had a hard time with them, but I think we can win this time. If we come out strong, we can beat any team in the league." The Hamden-based school won their first two games, 4-2 and 4-3, but Sacred Heart rallied to tie in their last meeting, 1-1, on Feb. 2.
Nutcher and his teammates are coming off the biggest game in his three seasons at Sacred Heart -- last Saturday's 3-2 overtime victory over Canisius in the MAAC Tournament quarterfinals at the Milford Ice Pavilion. Trailing 2-0 in the third period, the Pioneers struck for a pair of goals within a 30-second span, the second coming from the stick of Nutcher at the point. It was just Nutcher's second goal of the year. Sacred Heart forward Garrett Larson, a freshman from Rycroft, Alberta, produced the game-winner with 9:29 remaining in the overtime period.
"All the guys were getting pretty anxious to get the puck into the net," Nutcher said in reference to the Pioneers' slow start in the game. "In my three years here, this is the best team we've had to win the championship."
Nutcher starred at Hamden High School and Milford Academy. Although his cousin, Justin Nolan, captained the 1996-97 Quinnipiac team, Nutcher opted to get away from home and enrolled at the Air Force Academy. Unhappy with military life, he left after one semester and played for a junior team, the Butte Irish in Montana, before returning to Connecticut and entering Sacred Heart. The experience in Montana was invaluable, he said. "It was a step above high school and prep school, a lot faster league with a lot of hitting."
Nutcher has developed his game at Sacred Heart, too, citing his improved "back-slap shot" and his ability to maintain composure in high-pressure situations. "Coach (Shaun) Hannah has helped me keep my composure and a balance between hockey and school work." A sociology major, Nutcher was recently inducted into the Sociology Honor Society.
