Cannata named Hockey East Defensive POTW
Freshman goaltender Joe Cannata was named the Pure Hockey Defensive Player of the Week on Monday.
This is the second time Cannata has received a weekly honor from Hockey East, as he was the Pro Ambitions Rookie of the Week on October 20.
Ranked the highest of all NCAA draft-eligible goaltenders in the Central Scouting Rankings released on November 18, Cannata stopped 33 shots in a 4-3 win at #15 New Hampshire on Saturday.
Cannata is 2-1-3 with a 2.15 goals-against and .928 save percentage in seven games this season. His lone loss was in overtime against Boston College.
Merrimack (4-7-3, 2-6-2 HEA) hosts the University of Maine on Sunday at 2 p.m. with the team’s hosting its annual Skate with Santa and the Warriors immediately following the game.
ANALYSIS: On the surface, three goals against doesn’t earn someone a Defensive Player of the Week nod, but in Cannata’s case, it does. Anyone who saw Saturday’s win at the Whitt knows that all three goals can’t be blamed on the ‘tender, who surrendered goals on a 5-on-3 power play (on a re-directed puck that was going wide), a 2-on-1 break, and a breakaway. Cannata made saves on Saturday that secured the victory, making some incredible point-blank stops that held the Wildcats in check.
Cannata then withstood the UNH pressure in the final few minutes to preserve the two points.
In six starts, he’s lost just once (4-3 OT loss to Boston College), and even then, you could make the argument that had the Warriors stayed out of the penalty box late in the third period, that would have been a win as well.
He’s listed as a freshman, but he’s playing with the poise of a senior. From what I’ve seen, the only part of his game that needs some tweaking is playing the puck. Positionally, he’s always where he needs to be. His athleticism is deceiving (he is an incredibly gifted athlete) and doesn’t make the acrobatic stops because he simply doesn’t force himself to. There hasn’t been one Hockey East coach I’ve talked to yet that hasn’t been extremely impressed with the Warriors’ freshman netminder.
