These past few weeks have challenged people all across the United States in all facets of life.
Just barely a month ago, Jerry York certainly didn’t have this particular challenge of coronavirus and “flattening the curve” in mind.
However, that is our new reality. The normalcy we all knew in life when the Watertown, Mass., native’s Boston College Eagles completed another Hockey East regular-season journey atop the standings ― complete with 24 wins and a NCAA tournament berth in sight ― feels like nothing but a distant memory these days.
So much of York’s storied career can be measured. Wins, championships, players sent to the pros. This time, though, there is no measurement for everything that has gone on since Hockey East was scheduled to launch its postseason best-of-three quarterfinal round series back on March 13.
“You have the fall season, the winter season, the playoff season, but now we’ve got a different season going on and there’s just no playbook for it,” said York, the sport’s all-time winningest head coach whose 48th year leading a Division 1 bench and 26th at BC ended unlike any other.
In an ideal world, a national champion would have been crowned last Saturday night in Detroit.
“Generally, because I’ve coached for a number of years, I know the feelings. When you go to a regional, either you lose it or win it and I can relate to that. Go to the Frozen Four? Lose it or win it, I can relate to that. When the season looked so promising for our team and just came to a crashing halt, it was difficult for all of us.”
In the days leading up to the sport’s mass cancellation, there were rumblings of a possible change in Hockey East playoff formats in order to crown a champion a bit more quickly than the traditional two-week “road to the TD Garden.” The initial thought was that perhaps a shortened, four-team bracket or single-elimination playoff could be salvaged before the league’s tournament ― and, shortly thereafter, NCAAs ― ultimately were canceled completely.
But, seemingly in an instant, the sports world stopped, all hopes of a finish to “trophy season” were dashed, and today’s life of online learning and social distancing would soon begin.
BC teams look forward to this time of the year on an annual basis, but it was at that typical beginning of the end when a promising fall and winter’s work suddenly ended. For the team from Chestnut Hill, hope always seems to spring eternal around the Beanpot, no matter how the first few months of a season go.
Though the aforementioned Boston-based trophy returned to Northeastern for a third straight year, York’s club did have plenty of expectations for March and April while the sport of college hockey was still being played. It did feel like something special was brewing after the Eagles had gone three consecutive seasons without an NCAA tournament appearance.
“It was such a hard thing to see,” York said of the mood in his team’s locker room immediately after digesting the news of the NCAA tournament’s cancellation. “Just the feelings were there of, ‘Why us? Why did they take something away from us?’ But once the NBA and the NHL shut down, you really started to grasp about how serious this all was.”
In typical York fashion, the topic of conversation at that point began to change to what the team could control in the face of a difficult situation.
“We started to shift to, ‘Guys, this is something we have to be really careful about,’ and worrying about how our families, moms and dads were going to be,” York said. “All of a sudden, the players were flying home and the campus was basically deserted within 48 hours. The twins (graduating seniors Julius and Jesper Mattila from Finland) flew back to Helsinki. Will we see them again? We’re not sure. Those are the things that start to hit you, the finality of it all.”
Coaches typically have much to do during March and April, whether or not their teams are postseason bound. There are game films to watch, offseason strength and conditioning programs to distribute to players, exit meetings to conduct and plenty more.
Times sure have changed quickly. The NCAA even has put recruiting to a halt, and interactions with the team have moved from the confines of the Conte Forum rink and offices to Zoom and the technological world.
Still, one thing that hasn’t changed for York is a disappointment for the players. There was so much left to accomplish when the season came to a halt, especially for a senior class that headed to the Heights a year after a host of players departed early for the National Hockey League.
Alex Tuch, Zach Sanford (Auburn, N.H.) and Colin White (Hanover, Mass.) were among those who turned pro, with the likes of the Mattilas and captain David Cotton becoming Eagles and capping their careers with BC’s best season since a 28-win campaign in 2015-16 that ended at the Frozen Four.
“You feel particularly bad for the seniors who worked so hard because we felt like we had a legitimate chance to win a national championship,” York said. “Some other teams did, too, but we were right in that mix. It’s been a difficult couple of weeks for the players, our staff, and it’s in all sports. You’re used to going, going, going, but this is something none of us have experienced. It was just a sudden stop.”
When hockey does resume, the Eagles will have to like their chances once again.
Goaltending sensation Spencer Knight (Darien, Conn.) and newly crowned Tim Taylor National Rookie of the Year Alex Newhook are both back with a full year’s experience, while junior Marc McLaughlin (North Billerica, Mass.) will take over the captaincy from Cotton.
Another door opens when one closes, but all of the veteran players donning maroon and gold in the future will have quite the example left behind for them in one of the Carolina Hurricanes organization’s newest members.
“Everyone coming back has watched David, and he left a part of himself right here at BC,” York said. “They saw him handle some real tough losses and huge wins and just how he reacted as a captain. He was such a mature guy. It’s part of the legacy he left here, whether it’s Logan Hutsko or Michael Karow or some of the freshmen.
“(Cotton) thinks, and I think, we’ll have a really good class and a really good team next year. What he’s left behind is certainly part of all that.”
Right now, though, there is a new opponent in the way. Though social distancing is the main objective over the coming weeks and perhaps months, York and the Eagles hope that returning to a fresh sheet of ice won’t follow too far thereafter.
