Danny O’Regan
Q—After your standout season last
year, there was much conjecture among BU fans about whether you’d turn pro or return
for your senior year. What factors convinced you to come back?
A— There were
a lot of factors that convinced me to come back to BU. I wanted to finish
school and get my degree, I wanted to spend another year with all of the great
people here, and I wanted to develop more as a player and a person while
winning a National Championship in the process.
Q—As the top returning point scorer,
do you see your role in the offense changing or will it be the same as last
season?
A— I feel
like my role will be similar to last year as I will need to provide offense for
the team in important situations. However, I do not feel any pressure
individually, I am confident that our whole team can provide offense with all
the talent and depth we have this year.
Q—The power play clicked at 26%
overall and 28% in the conference with you and the four other top scorers
recording more than half of their points with a man-advantage. Can we expect
the same approach to power plays as last year or will there be new wrinkles to
best utilize the talent on this year’s team?
A—Special
teams are so important in this league and power plays can win games so we are
hoping for the same success as last year. I think we will take the same
approach as last year and no matter who ends up on each unit, they both will be
loaded with talent. It will just come down to whether or not we can execute.
Q—What aspects of your game are
getting added attention as you prepare for the season?
A— I am
always trying to improve my shot and my strength. As an “undersized” guy in the
league, every pound matters and I have worked hard in the offseason to put on
more weight for the season.
Q—Captain Matt Grzelcyk says he’s more
of a leader by example than a vocal guy. What will you bring to the team’s
leadership?
A—Both Matt
Grzelcyk and Matt Lane are great leaders for this team and I think the three of
us have a good balance of when to be vocal and when to lead by example. I like
to keep things positive on the bench and in the locker room and I just try to
give 100% every shift and hope it motivates my teammates to do the same.
Q—We always ask this in the annual
Q&A: which returning player (or players) will surprise BU fans by taking
his game to a higher level?
A—I think the
entire sophomore class is going to be great this year. All of them now have a
year of experience under their belts and have worked hard in the off season. I
think they will all have big impacts on our team’s success.
Matt Lane
Q—You scored
a number of critical goals last season especially during second semester and in
the post-season tournaments. With 167 points gone from last season’s
forwards, do you expect your role in the offense will change?
A—Obviously as
you get older and progress from year to year you take on more responsibility
and I expect that for myself offensively. Along with everyone returning, which
is a lot of guys, we will all have to elevate our game and chip in more to make
up for lost players in order to have that same high-end offense.
Q—BU achieved
tremendous success last season in even-strength situations by playing a puck
possession/pressure defense game. Does the current team make-up lend itself to
the same style of play?
A—Absolutely,
we're going to play that fast-pace style game in and game out no matter who our
opponent is. We like to develop a team identity of being fast and tough to play
against and that won't change as our opponents change.
Q—Coach Quinn
has emphasized the importance of face-offs for maintaining puck possession,
especially when killing a penalty. How much attention does this part of the
game receive in practice?
A—A lot of
attention, little things like centers working on face-offs after and during practice
and full team drills working on face-off assignments that we do are extremely
important and highly stressed by Coach Quinn as we all know that so many goals
are scored directly off of draws or shortly after maintaining possession.
Q—What aspects
of your game are getting added attention as you prepare for the season?
A—For my
game, I've been working on face-offs and continuing to work on being the best two-way
center I can be. Reminding myself to use my speed in all three zones, and
working on my shot day in and out because you can never spend too much time on
shooting.
Q—Captain
Matt Grzelcyk says he’s more of a leader by example than a vocal guy. What will
you bring to the team’s leadership?
A—I feel that
I bring a good balance of being a role model for always working hard as well as
being a vocal guy and speaking up when it's necessary - whether it's during
practice, a game, or in the weight room. But, for the most part, we feel that
every guy on the team leads in their own way and last year’s captains along
with everyone right down the line did a great job in the leadership department
and was a huge piece of last year’s success.
Q—We always ask this in the annual Q&A: which
returning player (or players) will surprise BU fans by taking his game to a
higher level?
A—Nikolas
Olsson. He combines a ton of skill with being the most physical player in
college hockey. We played together dating back to the U.S. National team and
he's had injuries on and off. Last year he was healthy for the most part and if
he can maintain that health this season, he’ll surprise a lot of people with his
underrated ability to finish and his constant physical style.
