From: Colorado Springs Gazetteby Milo F. Bryant
(left) The Broadmoor Trophy is awarded to the WCHA playoff champion
The Broadmoor Trophy is probably nice and sweet looking. Hoisting it high above the head while skating around the ice is probably a great feeling, too.
Maybe in another season seizing that trophy might be the goal for Colorado College’s hockey team. This season it would be gravy, a complement, nothing more.
This team should have its sights and thoughts set four games higher than the Broadmoor Trophy is named after the hotel that sits at the base of Cheyenne Mountain, a few miles from the World Arena, where the Tigers play their home hockey games.
The trophy has been associated with the Western Collegiate Hockey Association since 1981 when it was given to the conference’s regular-season champions. The trophy, a substitute for the MacNaughton Trophy from the 1981-82 season to the 1983-84 season, is awarded to the winner of the WCHA Tournament, which begins Friday when the Tigers play Alaska-Anchorage.
If you’re counting, that’s 26 seasons the Broadmoor Trophy has existed. The Tigers, who made their home in the Broadmoor Ice Palace for 55 seasons, have never held the trophy as champions.
It’s an ironic point that isn’t lost on Tigers coach Scott Owens.
“It’s an elusive thing for us,” Owens said. “We haven’t had a lot of success in trying to capture it.”
The Tigers came close in 2005. They beat St. Cloud State and Minnesota to make it to the championship game only to lose 1-0 to Denver — even as Tigers forward Brett Sterling was named the tournament’s MVP and Curtis McElhinney its best goalie.
“The regular season is a wonderful thing because it’s over four or five months,” Owens said. “But the playoffs, and especially because it’s named after The Broadmoor, the people who basically started Colorado College hockey — it signifies that you’re the team playing the best college hockey going into the NCAAs.
“It’s definitely something that we’re eyeing. We’ve had some success in the NCAAs. We’ve had a fair amount of success in the regularseason championship. But we have not had success there. So, it’d be one of those voids you’d like to fill in your career.”
Most years, winning the trophy would be a big deal. But this year, Owens has what might be his most cohesive unit. This Tigers team doesn’t have the amount of talent as the 2002-03 team that featured Peter Sejna, Noah Clarke and Tom Preissing. But it is definitely a better collective than that team or the teams that boasted Sterling, Marty Sertich and Mark Stuart.
There was a vast gap between the great players on those teams and the good players. This squad doesn’t have a gap that big. That means it gets contributions from many areas because it has to. The team isn’t interchangeable as much as it is interactive.
Somebody gets hurt or is given the night off and the other players interact with his replacement differently, but achieve the same goal. That ability has made this team one of nation’s best.
It might even help them claim their first Broadmoor Trophy — on their way, that is, to loftier goals.
Maybe in another season seizing that trophy might be the goal for Colorado College’s hockey team. This season it would be gravy, a complement, nothing more.
This team should have its sights and thoughts set four games higher than the Broadmoor Trophy is named after the hotel that sits at the base of Cheyenne Mountain, a few miles from the World Arena, where the Tigers play their home hockey games.
The trophy has been associated with the Western Collegiate Hockey Association since 1981 when it was given to the conference’s regular-season champions. The trophy, a substitute for the MacNaughton Trophy from the 1981-82 season to the 1983-84 season, is awarded to the winner of the WCHA Tournament, which begins Friday when the Tigers play Alaska-Anchorage.
If you’re counting, that’s 26 seasons the Broadmoor Trophy has existed. The Tigers, who made their home in the Broadmoor Ice Palace for 55 seasons, have never held the trophy as champions.
It’s an ironic point that isn’t lost on Tigers coach Scott Owens.
“It’s an elusive thing for us,” Owens said. “We haven’t had a lot of success in trying to capture it.”
The Tigers came close in 2005. They beat St. Cloud State and Minnesota to make it to the championship game only to lose 1-0 to Denver — even as Tigers forward Brett Sterling was named the tournament’s MVP and Curtis McElhinney its best goalie.
“The regular season is a wonderful thing because it’s over four or five months,” Owens said. “But the playoffs, and especially because it’s named after The Broadmoor, the people who basically started Colorado College hockey — it signifies that you’re the team playing the best college hockey going into the NCAAs.
“It’s definitely something that we’re eyeing. We’ve had some success in the NCAAs. We’ve had a fair amount of success in the regularseason championship. But we have not had success there. So, it’d be one of those voids you’d like to fill in your career.”
Most years, winning the trophy would be a big deal. But this year, Owens has what might be his most cohesive unit. This Tigers team doesn’t have the amount of talent as the 2002-03 team that featured Peter Sejna, Noah Clarke and Tom Preissing. But it is definitely a better collective than that team or the teams that boasted Sterling, Marty Sertich and Mark Stuart.
There was a vast gap between the great players on those teams and the good players. This squad doesn’t have a gap that big. That means it gets contributions from many areas because it has to. The team isn’t interchangeable as much as it is interactive.
Somebody gets hurt or is given the night off and the other players interact with his replacement differently, but achieve the same goal. That ability has made this team one of nation’s best.
It might even help them claim their first Broadmoor Trophy — on their way, that is, to loftier goals.
5 comments:
Someone's in your head! The obsession continues:
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Colorado College (163)
well ahead of less important topics like 'DU Recruiting' and 'DU Alumni'.
Big deal...we now have the official word from Scottie. What is their lame excuse for not winning a NCAA since 57?
slow news day for the Peons?
Best not write anything about the bulldogs, as it may come back to bite you?(pun intended)
Aspen
nice find, you get a link for this one since Milo is by far the best writer at that sh*tty paper
"and especially because it’s named after The Broadmoor, the people who basically started Colorado College hockey" - The Broadmoor is an icon of "class", so I find irony in this quote. Sure doesn't sound like there is any "class" left around the Colorado College community. And that, is sad.
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