ORONO – Looking back, Shawn Sirman acknowledges he wasn’t fully prepared for his first season of Division I hockey.
While the University of Maine men’s hockey team finished among the top four teams in Hockey East and reached the league championship game last season, Sirman battled to learn the ropes as a freshman goalie adjusting to college hockey.
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He had to learn to balance the rigors of academics and athletics. He had to figure out his role on the team. And he had to learn to handle the losing: In eight games last season, Sirman had just one win.
“I’ve always been a really competitive person, and I lost that a bit,” said Sirman. “Over the summer I got it back, and I hate losing anything.
“Last year, I wasn’t really mentally ready.”
Sirman made 24 saves last Sunday in a 4-1 victory over Boston College, ranked third in both national polls. Maine has rotated Sirman with freshmen Dan Sullivan and Martin Ouellette throughout the season and while Sirman’s performance didn’t necessarily solidify a spot as the No. 1 goaltender, his efforts helped establish some consistency heading into the heart of the Hockey East schedule.
With Sullivan out of the lineup for up to two weeks because of a knee injury, it provides a chance for Sirman to prove himself.
“He’s put himself in a position where he can shine,” Maine Coach Tim Whitehead said of Sirman, who is 3-0-2 with a .919 save percentage entering Saturday’s game at Northeastern. “The first step is showing you have the potential, and Shawn has showed me he has the potential.”
Yet in his first season with the Black Bears, Sirman had unimpressive statistics. He was 1-6 with a 5.19 goals-against average and an .832 save percentage.
“He wasn’t in condition to get the No. 1 job,” Whitehead said. “When he had the opportunity to prove himself, he wasn’t prepared.”
It wasn’t just a problem isolated to Sirman, who was among a group of freshmen who needed time to make an impact.
“We came in as freshmen and no one really expects how long (the adjustment) is going to be,” said Kyle Beattie, Sirman’s roommate. “You just do your best to get better.
“If you’re not playing, and Shawn and I didn’t play a lot last season, you try to get better through practices. And when you do play, you make the best of the games.
“And I think that the more you play, the more confident you get and that’s what’s happening for Shawn.”
Sirman also made an offseason commitment to improvement. He concentrated on improving his strength, conditioning and flexibility, incorporating weights, yoga and cardiovascular work into his offseason training.
“He came back stronger, both physically and mentally,” defenseman Jeff Dimmen said. “Mentally, he was a little more mature than he was as a freshman and he didn’t let the little things get him down. He stayed with it and stayed focused all the time.”
Furthermore, there’s much to be said for Sirman’s work ethic and his easygoing disposition. On the nights he’s not the starting goalie, he runs on the treadmill, and during drills he treats every shot like a game-type situation.
“As long as you’re working hard, that will always give you the opportunity to be playing well,” Beattie said. “Like Shawn, he hasn’t played in a while but he kept working and keeps working as hard as he can so he can jump back in.
“If you slacked off, didn’t really try and went through the motions in practice, you wouldn’t be able to step in like it’s no big deal.”
Now, Sirman sees it as a chance to contribute to the Black Bears, who are in pursuit of their first NCAA tournament berth since 2007.
“Hopefully, there’s consistency,” Sirman said. “I’ve got to be consistent and do whatever I can to get a win.
“Consistency, playing 60 minutes night in and night out, will be key for us, too, and we’ve got to put some wins together.”
Staff Writer Rachel Lenzi can be contacted at 791-6415 or at:
rlenzi@pressherald.com
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