Bears finish six inches shy of title

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Six inches, and everything could have been different. Or maybe it was five … or even four. Six inches between goal and no-goal. Six inches between a puck plinking off a crossbar and that same puck slapping the back of the net. Six inches between a save on the other end … and the game’s lone goal.

Six inches between a national championship … and a dressing room full of weeping Maine Black Bear hockey players.

How far is six inches?

It’s the length of about half of Mike Hamilton’s left skate – the skate that crept into the crease during the first period of Saturday night’s NCAA title matchup between Maine and Denver.

Derek Damon was on the left side of the net. He gathered in a pass … made a move … then two … then three … and slipped the puck past Denver’s Adam Berkhoel.

Hamilton? He was lurking on the other side of Berkhoel. Berkhoel didn’t see him. Didn’t worry about him. Didn’t even know he existed.

Berkhoel was focused on the puck. He missed it … by about six inches.

A few minutes later, replay officials informed the teams the goal was, in fact, nothing of the sort. It was illegal: Hamilton’s skate had entered that sacred goalies-only no-man’s-land. Barely. But it was there.

A half-hour after the 1-0 loss, Hamilton’s eyes were still red. He knew the questions were coming.

Over the past few weeks, Hamilton has grown accustomed to questions: Along with Howard, he has been one of Maine’s postseason heroes. He scored the first of four third-period goals to spark the comeback against Harvard in the East Regional semifinal. He tallied the game-winner against Wisconsin in the regional final.

And this time, he didn’t really have any answers. Not the kind of answers that would matter. Not the kind that would set back the clock … shave six inches off his skate … make the goal stand.

“I didn’t think I was in the crease,” Hamilton said softly. “I was just kind of standing backdoor, and I guess at one point my skate went in. There had to be a replay, and it was a good call. But I didn’t think I was in.”

He was in. TVs told the tale that an on-ice official couldn’t. No goal.

Damon didn’t worry. He didn’t get angry. He and the Bears just kept plugging.

“There’s got to be more goals than just the disallowed goal,” he said.

Teammate Todd Jackson bristled at the mere description of Damon’s shot as a “goal.”

“It wasn’t a goal, so I don’t think it was a factor,” Jackson said. “We were excited to get the first goal, when we thought it was, but when they waved it off, we were prepared for that.”

Six inches.

Six inches between Jimmy Howard’s pelvis and the ice. Hockey players call it the five hole.

Denver’s Gabe Gauthier looked five hole later in the first, fired the puck past Howard, and the Pioneers led.

It was the last mistake Howard would make all night. As mistakes go, this one was forgivable: It came on the power play, from point-blank range, off a nifty assist.

Maine was in the national title contest because until Saturday night, Jimmy Howard was the hottest college goalie on the planet.

On Saturday, Berkhoel may have been … though he wasn’t tested very often.

An interviewer pressed Howard after the game: Were you seeing a mirror image out there?

Howard would have none of it.

“I think there’s only one Jimmy Howard,” the real Jimmy Howard said. “But at the other end, there was an Adam Berkhoel, who stood on his head tonight.”

Six inches.

Another six inches, and Jon Jankus could have been a hero. He was the guy who rifled the puck off the crossbar during Maine’s frenetic 6-on-3 advantage in the game’s final minute.

Six inches lower? Goal … overtime … who knows?

As it was, the puck glanced upward … harmlessly … and elicited a groan from many of the 18,000 or so FleetCenter fans.

Six inches from blowing the roof off the building, which was filled with Maine fans. Six inches from overtime. Six inches.

For a team that won eight straight games by a single goal, those inches add up. The Bears’ margin of error was slim. The offense struggled at times. The power play – historically a good indicator of postseason success – was anemic at best. And in the end, those factors proved costly.

“That’s just how the season went,” Damon said, choking back a wry chuckle and shaking his head. “Sometimes you got those bounces and sometimes you didn’t.”

And for the past month, it didn’t matter.

Howard was in net. And he was invincible. Wasn’t he?

“I think we relied too much on our goalie at the end of the season,” Damon said. “We weren’t able to capitalize on some of the opportunities that we had. That’s just the way hockey is.”

Six inches between tears and cheers. Six inches between a win and a loss. Six inches between a championship … and something much more painful.

“It was right there,” Hamilton said, reliving it, wondering about it, agonizing about it. “Right in our hands. Somehow, we just couldn’t get it.”

John Holyoke can be reached at jholyoke@bangordailynews.net or by calling 990-8214 or 1-800-310-8600.