Hockey Axemen will be okay

After the Acadia hockey Axemen began the 2007/ 2008 season with one win in their first 10 games, there was probably some temptation to write them off and shift focus to next season.

The Axemen, with 14 new faces on their roster, weren’t lacking in character and work ethic, but they really didn’t match up to the Monctons, SMUs and UNBs.

People who would have given up on this team either have short memories or don’t really have a grasp on how things work in the ever-changing world of university sport.

After their poor start, the Axemen ended the first half of the schedule with three wins in four games. Then, after starting off the New Year a disappointing 0-3, they rang up six straight wins to vault right back into serious playoff contention.

I hope no one is surprised at this turnaround.

To anyone who has followed the Axemen for more than a couple of years, it’s like déjà vu all over again.

Back in 2002, Acadia had a similar team makeup – a group of young players who lacked AUHC experience and, with only a few exceptions, weren’t even household names when they were in junior.

After finishing seventh and out of the playoffs for three straight seasons between 2001/ 2004, Acadia jelled as a team in 2004/ 2005, finishing the regular season first at 14-8-6 and losing in double overtime in the fifth and deciding game of the AUHC final.

The following year, essentially the same team went 19-7-1 and won the conference title.

Then, as seems to be the habit in university sport, half the team graduated. In the spring of 2007, following an 11-14-3 record, a sixth-place finish and first-round playoff exit, Acadia lost 14 more players, leaving Burns an unenviable recruiting job.

Yes, the 2007/ 2008 Axemen got off to a terrible start, but they have been playing much better of late as all those first and second-year players get their legs under them and get used to the steep learning curve that is university hockey.

Some are no doubt wonder ingwhich are the real Axemen: the team that started 1-9 or the one that, as of last week, had gone 10-6 (including exhibition games).

It’s a good question, but not one I need to ask myself. I’ve seen it all before.

The 2007/ 2008 Axemen may not end up making the playoffs. They may even miss out on the final weekend, like the 2003/ 2004 team did after a similar second-half run. Anything is possible.

But make no mistake. They are sowing the seeds, like they did four years ago, for greater success in the future. They may not be the most talented players, but they have great character and an outstanding work ethic – that, to me, is worth a lot.

Right now, man for man, this year’s team probably isn’t as good as the 2003/ 2004 squad that, within two years, was skating around with the conference championship trophy. For one thing, they don’t have a real “lights-out” scorer like Kevin Baker. There’s still lots of time to try and find one. Burns has certainly proven his worth as a recruiter, particularly as a judge of talent that just might have been skating under everyone else’s radar.