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NCHA Men’s Hockey Preview: Bulldogs once again favorites in conference play

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The Adrian Bulldogs enter the year as the favorite in the NCHA. (Photo provided by Adrian Athletics)

As another season of hockey gets underway in the NCHA, there is no doubt the conference is poised to have a big year.

Adrian is the reigning national runner-up and has played in the title game the last two seasons, winning it all in 2021, while Aurora is once again among the top teams nationally. And don’t count out St. Norbert, which has a tradition of success.

The league is always one of the more competitive in D-III hockey and this year should be no exception.

Adrian

The Bulldogs are the favorite to win the conference once again and expected to contend for the national championship as well. They finished 25-5-2 overall and 13-4-1 in the NCHA last year.

While four players have gone on to play in the pros this season, the cupboard isn’t bare for the Bulldogs. Sixteen players are back, with 11 of those guys playing in the national championship game against Hobart.

Zach Heintz and Riley Murphy are expected to step up in a big way offensively after the team lost its top four scorers, while Matt Rehding will be counted on to contribute in a key role as well and bring consistency to the table. Ryan Pitoscia is a year older and set to step into a more prominent role on the team.

Jaden Shields will be vital to Adrian’s success and is a big-time playmaker, dishing out 27 assists last season, making him the top defenseman in the nation when it comes to dishing out the puck. He’ll be motivated having been left off the All-American team last season.

Matt Couto aims to bounce back from a season-ending injury and Dershahn Stewart should rise to the occasion in goal.

Western Michigan Transfer Theo Thrun should make an immediate impact. He previously played in the NAHL and tallied 88 points in 120 games. Julien Jacobs is a newcomer to watch as well after playing in the OJHL.

If the Bulldogs play up to their potential, and all signs point to them doing just that the opportunity is there for this team to make another run at the title.

St. Norbert

The Green Knights were 17-9-2 overall and 12-5-1 in the conference and should be in the title hunt once again.

Liam Fraser will help lead the way after coming off a year where he was the points leader for the Green Knights, scoring 16 goals and dishing out 19 assists.

Adam Stacho also returns and was one of the key contributors last season. He tallied 15 goals and 10 assists. Brock Baker is back as well after scoring five goals and racking up 11 assists.

Curtis Hammond will be a key player as well. He finished with seven goals and eight assists last season. Johnny Roberts will anchor the goalie position. He played in 18 games last year, fashioning a 2.29 goals against average.

Aurora

The Spartans finished third overall in the conference last season, winning nearly 20 games. They finished 19-8-2 overall and 13-3-2 in the NCHA.

Aurora has been a program on the rise and looks to take the next step forward in a conference that is one of the most challenging night in and night out. 

Eighteen players are back, including Giovanni Procopio, who ranked third on the team in points, coming through with 10 goals and 20 assists. He’ll be a big part of the offense again this year.

Derrick Budz also returns after tallying 12 goals and 16 assists and Hassan Akl is also back after dishing out 21 assists. He also scored six goals. 

Matt Weber (14 goals, 8 assists), Juliano Santalucia (3 goals, 7 assists) and Tyler Pang (3 goals, 13 assists) are also among the key players back.

Aurora has added several new players who could make an impact right away, including Spencer DenBeste from Lake Superior State, as the Spartans take aim at a title and NCAA tourney bid.

Trine

The Thunder have had a pretty good run in the NCHA but are going to be younger this year after graduating three of their top five scorers and five of their top 10 scorers overall.

Both goalies return in Kyle Kozma and Christian Wong-Ramos, and both players split time in the net and had success. 

Bobby Price and Sam Antenucci will lead the way offensively for Trine. Price scored seven goals and dished out 17 assists while Antenucci ranked second on the team in scoring with nine goals and 19 assists despite missing the last few games of the year. 

Josh Wright will also make an impact. He’s the team’s top defender and came through with 13 points last year.

Another winning season is possible for the Thunder. It may take time to get the offense rolling but the defense should keep Trine in games early on in the year.

MSOE

The Raiders finished with a winning record last year, going 15-12 and they were right at .500 (9-9) in the conference.

A total of 23 players are back. Among them is Gramm McCormack, the NCHA Freshman of the Year. He’ll be a player opposing defenses will focus but he seems to be up for the challenge. McCormack punched in 12 goals last season and also dished out 18 assists, ranking third on the team in points.

Carson Jones is another player the Raiders will turn to for production. He scored three goals and tallied 10 assists last year. Cole Beilke is also back after tallying three goals and nine assists a year ago.

Jacob Bosse should develop into more of an impact player as well this season for the Raiders.

One area where MSOE shouldn’t have any concerns is in goal, and that will benefit the team in its quest to contend in the conference.

Austin Schwab had the most starts (20 games) last season, making 534 saves, and Nick Stofcheck started five games, racking up 151 saves. Spencer Northway started only once but is capable of stepping up when needed.

Marian

The Sabres had a strong second half of the season, winning eight of their final 14 games. They finished 11-14-2 overall and 8-8-2 in the league. They are hoping to carry that momentum into this season.

They shouldn’t be short on confidence having beaten three ranked teams last year, including top-ranked Adrian on the road. 

Marian also has experience. Jayes Knee led the team in goals (12) and tied for the team lead in points (28), scoring five game winners. 

Noah Pickart was one of the top scoring defenseman in the NCHA, recording two goals and 11 assists while Daunte Fortner ranked third in points (19 and tallied a point in nine of the team’s final 11 games. He finished with nine goals and 19 assists.

Keep an eye on newcomers Nolan Flint, Andreai Proctor-Ramirez and Hayden Tuba. All three have the ability to be impact players when it comes to scoring goals and tallying assists.

Lake Forest

The Foresters are coming off an 11-12-4 campaign last season that included a 7-8-3 mark in the NCHA and a trip to the conference tournament. They hope to take steps forward this year in what will be the first season for Sean O’Malley as the head coach of the program. He had been the interim coach and has been on the staff since 2014.

Success is possible for the Foresters, who return seven of the nine players who hit doubles figures in points last year. That group includes one of the top freshman in the league from the 2022-23 season in Collin Bella,who led the team in goals (11) and also tallied 11 assists.

Justin Ross ranked third in points last season, racking up nine goals and eight assists, while Matteas Derraugh was right behind him with four goals and 13 assists.

Jared Gerger (8 goals, 7 assists) and Tyler Nielsen (8 goals, 7 assists) also return for the Foresters and play key roles in the team’s success. Ben Perkins (4 goals, 8 assists) is a key returnee as well.

Bobby McCloskey brings experience to the goalie position, though he only played in two games last season. Alexander Rohlf, Dylan Kraus and Salve Regina transfer Kohl Reddy are also listed as goalies on the roster.

Concordia

The Falcons are just hoping to take some steps forward after going 4-22-1 last season. That record included a 4-13-1 mark in the NCHA.

This will still be a young team but the potential is there to be an improved team from a season ago.

Colin Kerchoff, Nick Wieben and Zach Brydes lead the way for Concordia, with Brydes leading the team in goals scored (9) to go along with four assists.

Wieben and Kerchoff both came through with four goals and 11 assists and should build on that production this season.

Gabe Rosek comes back with experience in goal. He boasted a .902 save percentage last year. Newcomers to keep an eye on for the Falcons are transfers Garrett McArthur (SUNY-Potsdam) and Seth Bergeron (Stevenson) as well as freshman Logan Kroyman.

Lawrence

The Vikings won just four games last year, going 4-19-2 overall and 3-14-1 in the NCHA. Their top returning player is Kyle Gierman, who was an all-conference pick last year as a defenseman. He tallied three goals and dished out 12 assists.

He’s among the 17 players back for the Vikings, who also welcome back key players Jayden Jensen, Will Crull, Oliver DeCroock, Cory Checco and Owen Carlson.

Checco ranked second on the team in points with seven goals and nine assists while Crull scored two goals to go along with seven assists. Jensen racked up four goals and four assists.

Fourteen newcomers have been added as well, including Chatham transfer Max Wigfield and Framingham State transfer Dylan Marty.

Defense should be a strength for the Vikings, in part because Owen Carlson is back in goal. He started 17 games last year and owned a save percentage of just over 90 percent (.902).

Dubuque

While the Spartans are new to the league, there is some familiarity with this team. For starters, Seamus Gregory is the head coach. He used to coach at Northland, which was once in the NCHA.

Dubuque also added many players to its roster from Finlandia, which closed this past year and had been a team in the NCHA. The team will feature 12 upperclassmen and 16 newcomers.

No one knows what to expect with this being a new team, the first NCAA hockey team in Iowa, but the Spartans hope to lay the foundation for future success during their inaugural year.

The lines on this week’s top 20 matchups are not particularly enticing: USCHO Edge college hockey podcast Season 2 Episode 3

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USCHO Edge hosts Jim Connelly, Dan Rubin, and Ed Trefzger look at money lines and over/under as well as providing further analysis of five weekend college hockey matchups. They find it tough to pick any compelling money lines among these five, and are especially reluctant when it comes to over/under.

This week’s games:

  • Michigan State (+150) at Boston College (-195); over/under 6
  • Massachusetts (+145) at Boston University (-190); o/u 6
  • Wisconsin (+220) at Minnesota (-298); o/u 6
  • Maine (+220) at Quinnipiac (-298); o/u 5.5
  • Minnesota State (+140) at North Dakota (-180); o/u 5.5

Subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, in your favorite podcast app, or on Spreaker.

Check out all of USCHO’s podcasts, including USCHO Weekend Review and USCHO Spotlight, plus our entire podcast archive.

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This Week in ECAC Hockey: Cornell ‘ready to go’ with 2023-24 season as Minnesota Duluth invades Lynah Rink this coming weekend

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Ian Shane has been steady in the blue paint the past two seasons for Cornell (photo: Matt Dewkett/Cornell Athletics).

College hockey spent the last three weeks raging its way through a number of different storylines.

Top-ranked teams came and went as early season wins and losses piled up. A couple surprising outcomes raised eyebrows and drew eyeballs to potential risers and fallers. Hotshot prospects and seasoned veterans battled into corners and along the walls of arenas and rinks dotting the entire North American landscape, and the ever-present Pairwise Rankings popped into water cooler talk despite the annual reminder not to take it too seriously until after the first of the year.

Through it all, six teams sat silent. They scrimmaged teammates and walked to and from practice without a game awaiting them at the end of the week. Maybe they watched other games, just hung out and enjoyed the last few days of their fall, but after three weeks of waiting, college hockey’s family completes its circle with the first games of the Ivy League’s schedule.

“We can watch teams that have been playing for three weeks,” said Cornell coach Mike Schafer, “but that’s difficult for everyone. The coaches, the players, the fans, we’re all chomping at the bit. We know we’re behind everyone else, but those are the cards that we get dealt as Ivy League teams. We’ve simulated as much as we can, and our exhibition games were key to us seeing the pace of the game and the skill that can’t be duplicated when teams play different styles. But we know we’re going to have our hands full against a team that’s a heck of a program.

“We’re ready to be taught some lessons from a good hockey team, and we’re ready to start toughening up.”

The Ivies typically make up for their lack of runway by playing one another in their first games, and this weekend will feature customary opening weekends between travel partners like Harvard and Dartmouth or Brown and Yale. The lone holdout, Princeton, is on a bye to start this season but heads on a league weekend to Harvard and Dartmouth with travel partner Quinnipiac to kick off the November schedule with its second weekend welcoming Yale and Brown to Hobey Baker Rink.

Cornell is the lone exception, and the Big Red open this season with one of ECAC’s most critical nonconference matchups when they host Minnesota Duluth for two games at Lynah Rink. A rematch of last year’s two-game sweep by the Bulldogs, it’s one of less than a handful of series between ECAC and the NCHC, which enters this weekend having lost three games outside of St. Cloud State’s 2-4 overall record.

“You’re getting ready to see what the journey’s going to be,” Schafer said. “That’s the most exciting part. Every coach goes through it where they ask if their team is going to be any good, and they ask what adversity they might face or get caught up with because everyone wants to play well. That journey never gets old, and that first game is all the same thing. We might not know what we have until about Thanksgiving [because of the late start], but we will get there and want to see what we have by playing a good team [like UMD].”

What Cornell might have is what makes this weekend’s series so intriguing. The Big Red were 12-3-1 at home last year and haven’t lost more than four games at Lynah since a 12-6-0 season in 2018-2019. Even during that year, the team went 7-2-4 on the road and advanced to both the ECAC championship and the East Regional Final, and it’s been seven years since the team didn’t seriously challenge for a national tournament spot with less than 20 overall wins.

Comparing that to the NCHC requires little to no hype, but Minnesota Duluth is the kind of team capable of bringing its strength right into Cornell’s bread basket. The Big Red team that allowed less than two goals per game last year while limiting opponents to 20 shots per game faces an offense that’s averaging just under five goals per game on roughly 40 shots per game.

UMD’s power play opened its first five games with a 44 percent scoring rate, but expecting any regression to the mean counters a Cornell power play that scored at a 25 percent clip last season. The Big Red, meanwhile, has a number of players who threatened to score at or near 30 points despite the lower number of games, and UMD is a team that surrendered 30 power play goals against a roster that took 172 penalties last year.

Nearly every offensive wizard from Scott Sandelin’s crew returned, including Ben Steeves, who nearly broke the 30-point barrier last year with 21 goals, but Cornell goalie Ian Shane should garner Richter Award consideration if he can produce another year with a goals-against average well under 2.00.

All told, the matchup lines up for a pair of instant classics as long as the Big Red can find their sea legs, a task that took a few minutes during last year’s trip to Amsoil Arena.

“You can be as fresh as you want,” Schafer said, “but there’s no preparation like playing the game. Last year, the pace at the start would have left people asking if we’d ever done any conditioning, but we got our legs and adjusted to the pace and started shortening shifts. We know we’re starting later than everyone. It’s what we’ve dealt with [in the Ivy League].”

This is a big weekend for ECAC. The six Ivy League-affiliated teams play a handful less games than their six conference counterparts, and the non-conference schedule balancing act is a key to building postseason resumes. A number of teams will play Hockey East schools before the year is over, and the usual Atlantic Hockey and Division I Independents offer ways to fill out schedules for teams that have those extra games.

The main difference comes in the form of these games, which themselves are the rare times that an eastern team travels west or vice-versa. Given the less number of games and the opportunity presenting itself, there is a real chance for ECAC to grab headwinds from the rest of the country, though at the end of the day, it’s tempered by the first opportunity to watch a team skate its first games against solid national competition.

“We want the league to do well,” Schafer said. “The better the league does, the better it is for everyone, but we’re locked in right now. For us, I used to spend [the extra weeks] watching games, but then I’d just get more frustrated. Our guys might see the games or talk to guys at other schools, or they might talk to the graduate transfers that left Cornell for their fifth year. They’ve missed it, but now we’re over the hump. We’re ready to go.”

NEHC Men’s Hockey Preview: Statesmen chasing repeat of last season’s championship run

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Hobart’s Damon Beaver will backstop a talented Statesmen squad in pursuit of back-to-back NEHC titles (Photo by Kevin Colton/HWS)

When Hobart celebrated their first-ever national championship last spring head coach Mark Taylor noted they would love to be back this season with a chance to repeat especially for some key players that were unable to play last year due to injury. Those players are healthy and the challenge of the NEHC is right in front of the Statesmen with a host of contenders looking to unseat the current conference title holders.

As always, the league has great depth and ultra-competitive teams that will challenge for wins each and every game. Look for some of the usual names to emerge as key challengers to Hobart who was the unanimous pre-season pick across the coaches in the NEHC.

The Favorites

Hobart returns a talent laden roster including All-Americans Luke Aquaro and Jonah Alexander along with a healthy Matthew Iasenza, goaltending phenom Damon Beaver and a big and mobile defensive group led by Cooper Swift and Austin Mourar. There really are no question marks with this group and the leadership is there to focus on the here and now in one of the most competitive conferences. Opening night at Oswego is a challenge right out of the gate for Taylor’s team who demonstrated last year they are big game ready.

Norwich is always in the hunt, but this year will be looking to replace All-American goaltender Drennan Atherton from amongst four goaltenders on the roster. Defenseman Joe Nagle and forward Clark Kerner bring an offensive spark to the Cadets who will be looking for some early contributions from a large group of freshman and sophomore forwards.

The Dark Horses

Skidmore has seen recent success in the conference tournament including a championship game appearance two years ago and a 1-0 loss at Hobart last season. Goaltender Tate Brandon is one of the more under-rated netminders in the country but can steal wins. A solid group of forwards including Connor Wood, Kaeden Patrick, Jaden York, and Everett Wardle gives the Thorughbreds depth and experience.

Babson is always a threat to play good hockey building to great when it matters most in February and March. Thomas Kramer and Wyatt George lead a deep group of forwards that will see contributions across each of the four lines. Team defense is always a hallmark of Jamie Rice coached teams and this year’s squad will be no exception as the Beavers look to find their next stud goalie amongst Nate Mueller, Mason Rosado and Brett Cleaves

Players to watch:

Babson:                                           Thomas Kramer – forward; Wyatt George – forward

VSU – Castleton:                               Andrew Stefura – forward; Zach Papapetros – defense

Elmira:                                             Chance Gorman – forward; Ryan Reifler – forward

Hobart                                              Luke Aquaro – forward; Damon Beaver- goaltender

Johnson & Wales:                           Brendan Shandley – forward; Brendan Doyle – Forward

UMass-Boston:                                 Corey Clifton – forward; Sam Best – goaltender

New England College:                    Jhuwon Davis – forward; David Novotny – forward

Norwich:                                      Clark Kerner – forward; Joe Nagle – defense

Skidmore:                                   Tate Brandon – goaltender; Kaeden Patrick – forward

Southern Maine:                           Curtis Judd – forward; Cole Ouellette – defense

USCHO predicted finish

  1. Hobart
  2. Norwich
  3. Babson
  4. Skidmore
  5. Elmira
  6. Massachusetts-Boston
  7. Castleton
  8. Southern Maine
  9. New England College
  10. Johnson & Wales

Among the great East v. West matchups this opening weekend is a Babson squad traveling to face the Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE) and Lake Forest. A lot of other non-conference action on the slate as well before conference play commences in November.

This Week in Big Ten Hockey: Coming off sweep over Michigan Tech, Wisconsin surging into weekend border battle with Minnesota

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Wisconsin swept aside then-No. 17 Michigan Tech last weekend (photo: Wisconsin Athletics).

A week away from a full slate of Big Ten games, there are a number of interesting nonconference series for B1G teams, including No. 8 Michigan State’s pair at No. 3 Boston College and No. 16 Ohio State visiting an old CCHA foe, No. 20 Omaha.

Last weekend, B1G play began with a single series, Ohio State at No. 6 Michigan. The Wolverines took it to the Buckeyes in a 7-1 win Friday, but Ohio State rebounded with a 2-2 tie and extra point in the shootout.

This week, there’s another single Big Ten series and it’s a doozy – No. 14 Wisconsin at No. 1 Minnesota.

Mike Hastings, in his first year behind the Wisconsin bench, understands the significance of this rivalry and he’s eager for the challenge the series will bring.

“When I was hired at Minnesota, I was told that there was only one thing that couldn’t happen, and we couldn’t get beat by the Badgers,” said Hastings. “So that I learned a long time ago, on the side of Minnesota.”

Hastings knows the Minnesota side of hockey. After 14 seasons as a head coach in the USHL, Hastings made his return to college hockey as the Minnesota assistant coach for a single season in 2008-09. After that, he spent three years as an associate head coach at Omaha. Prior to coming to Wisconsin, he was the head coach at Minnesota State. He’s a native Minnesotan, too, and a St. Cloud State alum.

“Whether it’s any sport you talk about in the Big Ten, when you have a border battle like Minnesota and Wisconsin,” said Hastings, “it’s unique, it’s special, it’s historic.”

Wisconsin comes into the series with a 5-1-0 record, the lone loss to North Dakota in the Icebreaker title game Oct. 14. The Badgers are off to their best start since 2004-05.

Last weekend, the Badgers swept Michigan Tech on the road, 4-2 and 5-2. That series earned Wisconsin its first appearance in the USCHO.com Men’s Division I Poll this week. For some additional perspective, the wins brought Wisconsin’s road win total to three – the same number of away-game wins the Badgers had for the entire 2022-23 season.

Because the series in Minnesota is Thursday-Friday, Hastings said that there hasn’t been a lot of time to focus too much on the rivalry. “Probably a little bit more focus on cleaning up what happened Friday, Saturday [against Michigan Tech], discussing that, and then turning the page.”

Hastings said that the first three weeks have given him some hope that the Badgers will have depth this season, and he’s impressed with the tenacity of his squad.

“Hopefully we can maintain a mentality of resiliency,” said Hastings. “We’ve been down quite a few times on the road and still found ways to come back, a couple of times to come back and win a hockey game.

“The opportunity at North Dakota, we didn’t quite get there, but I like that we didn’t go away, even though we were down, so that’s the positive.”

Having some difficulty with North Dakota is something that the Badgers have in common with their opponent this week. After beating the Fighting Hawks 4-0 in Grand Forks Friday, the Golden Gophers fell 2-1 the following night. Minnesota took a lot of penalties in the two games, including six for 12 minutes in Saturday’s loss.

“It’s pretty simple,” said Minnesota coach Bob Motzko after the loss. “We can’t take the penalties we took. A couple of questionable calls, too, on top of us being really dumb tonight, that put us behind the eight ball.”

Motzko said that there were “a ton of positives” for the Gophers from the weekend, but added, “We’d better learn that we can’t take penalties like that. We got worn down by killing penalties and North Dakota had a hard charge tonight.”

The Gophers made a third-period push in that loss to North Dakota, outshot 24-12 through the first two periods, largely because of those penalties. When asked about the play of Justen Close in the Minnesota net, Motzko said, “You want to go back and forth with this again? He’s just a really good goalie.”

Close stopped 57 of 59 shot he faced in North Dakota, with a 1.01 GAA and .966 save percentage, earning him this week’s Big Ten first star.

“There’s not a moment too big,” said Motzko after Saturday’s game. “He just stood in there tall for us and gave us a chance tonight. We need to play better in front of him.”

The series between the Badgers and the Golden Gophers goes all the way back to 1922, and Minnesota leads all-time 181-101-24. Last season, Minnesota took three of four games from Wisconsin, but the teams split a series in Madison (Feb. 10-11), with Wisconsin picking up the win in the second game, 3-1.

“Any time that you get into a rivalry situation, I think you can take records and throw them out the window because there’s history there,” said Hastings. “We’re in a situation where we’ve gotten off to a good start. They’ve gotten off to a good start. Both head coaches and their staffs are going to learn a lot about their teams by the end of Friday.”

The Badgers and Gophers have similar numbers offensively and defensively heading into the series. Through six games, the Badgers are averaging 3.33 goals per game and allowing 1.50. Through four games, Minnesota is averaging 3.50 goals per game and allowing 1.75.

A significant difference is in special teams. The Gophers have yet to allow an opponent power-play goal through 16 attempts, while Wisconsin’s PK has a success rate of 86.2 percent. Minnesota’s power play (27.3%) is also significantly better than Wisconsin’s (11.5%).

Hastings said that the series in Minneapolis gives the Badgers the opportunity to “look in the mirror a little bit.”

“I think there’s a wealth of respect on both sides of the fence,” said Hastings, “and you’ll find out if you’re not prepared and not playing well. You’re not only going to get beat, you’re probably going to get embarrassed because they’re that quality of a hockey team.

“Obviously, what they did at North Dakota was pretty impressive. North Dakota had to put together a really good game plan and execute it on Saturday to beat them.

“I don’t think that’s going to be any different for us. We’re going to have to be really good if we want to go in there and get points this weekend.”

Women’s Division I College Hockey: Wednesday Women – Digging into the WCHA with Nate Wells

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Nicole: Welcome to the first Wednesday Women of the year.  This week I’m joined by Nate Wells, a freelance journalist from Minnesota who has covered women’s college hockey for The Athletic, Minneapolis Star Tribune, and a large number of other outlets over the last decade. Nate and I often message each other about our observations and after we chatted during last Tuesday’s Minnesota/St. Cloud game, it seemed like a good time to bring some of those thoughts public. Thanks for joining me Nate! 

In my WCHA season preview I talked about how important it was going to be for the Gophers to replace the leadership of Taylor Heise and a few weeks into the season, that seems like an even more prescient statement. Minnesota is a team in need of an identity. Heise had an outsized personality both on the ice and in the locker room and it feels like so far, this squad is struggling a bit to be a team without her and Grace Zumwinkle leading the charge. What have been your impressions so far?

Nate: First of all, thank you for inviting me this week, Nicole! I’m honored to be here. 

As strange as it is watching WCHA hockey on a Tuesday night, it’s taking that same adjustment to feeling out this year’s Minnesota team. Undefeated through five games and only allowing two goals, one being in the final minute of regulation, is nothing to be disappointed with. Lucy Morgan, coming in from St. Lawrence, and Skylar Vetter have been a solid goaltending duo. Abbey Murphy continues to show why she is an Olympian/USWNT mainstay and someone who finds herself in the middle of the action.

And yet I would agree that the Gophers are figuring out this season’s identity. It’s not “we’re here for unfinished business” after losing Heise, Zumwinkle, and ⅔ of their top-six. Brad Frost is taking a long view with a number of players entering new roles, which includes Murphy being the focus. So far I can’t see where it is yet. 

Honestly, Minnesota’s defense and goaltending might be their 2023-24 identity. The Gophers have shown it can control play and limit scoring chances with a blue line led by Madeline Wethington. That will keep Minnesota in most games against Wisconsin and Ohio State.

However, how far this team goes beyond controlling play. It depends on creating more Grade A chances and building scoring depth to match those teams. Someone like Josefin Bouveng or Peyton Hemp stepping up in new roles goes a long way as teams are able to match and focus on shutting down Murphy. We saw it with St. Thomas and St. Cloud State to various successes (Murphy’s 1.40 goals per game leads the conference). Ohio State in Columbus is next up for Minnesota, which will be a solid measuring stick for where the Gophers are and want to be.

Tuesday hockey aside, I was happy to see Minnesota and St. Cloud State get a chance to showcase nationally. BTN broadcast the game. What did you think of the broadcast and getting more women’s college hockey in the national spotlight?

Nicole: I’m always happy when there’s women’s hockey on tv. Friday’s Quinnipiac vs. Brown game was also on NESN and I heard the Bruins broadcast did a promo, so I’m hoping that brought more attention to it. There are just far too few tv broadcasts of women’s college hockey or even high-quality streams. I wouldn’t be so down on some of the stream if it weren’t for bad rinks with poor camera set ups, shoddy camera work, bad announcers and costly subscriptions. I’d like to see this sport get more recognition and for that to happen, people have to be able to see it and watching it has to not be painful and an exercise testing the limits of your devotion to the sport. 

Considering three of the best teams in the country are Big Ten schools (Minnesota, Ohio State and Wisconsin), it’s actually pretty pathetic that more women’s hockey games don’t get televised on Big Ten Network (BTN). On the men’s side BTN made a point of making a college hockey showcase night on Thursdays. Obviously that being a Big Ten league, there’s a closer relationship in terms of figuring out scheduling, but I feel pretty confident in saying that if BTN wanted to do a men’s and women’s double header or highlight women’s hockey on another night of the week, those programs (and Penn State) would work to make that possible. 

We watch a lot of sports in my household and any time I have to go through my cable guide to find what we’re planning to watch and I scroll through pages of fringe or niche sports like padel, bowling, cornhole, ultimate frisbee and so many more, it just reminds me of all the sports and activities that are giving that opportunity and given actual production value and air time when no one wants to give that to women’s hockey. It’s both infuriating and depressing. 

As for Tuesday’s game, I think Sloane Martin does a good job preparing for the games and handling hockey play by play. Generally they pair her with a former player, who adds in color. It does sometimes feel like those former players rely on their own experience heavily and don’t do a ton of additional research, which can be frustrating – the context of what’s happening elsewhere in the league and nationwide and what has happened in the past is often missing from these broadcasts. And generally in women’s hockey broadcasts, we don’t see enough technical explanation or breaking down of plays. It’s all very surface and the broadcasts suffer from the fact that viewers are treated like they are brand new to hockey overall, so everything gets very dumbed down and the same info is repeated game after game.

I actually feel like BTN Volleyball broadcasts do a great job of balancing the fact that they know the sport is growing and bringing in new audience members that need to learn things with doing more technical analysis of plays. Shoutout to Emily Ehman, who does volleyball color and brings a true excitement to her broadcasts. She’s just always clearly excited to be watching very good volleyball and it draws the audience in. Here’s hoping BTN can find that balance for women’s hockey. 

I don’t know, but I’m very done with any sort of “just happy to be here” attitude when it comes to women’s hockey. There should be more games on tv and they should be aired and produced with the same level of care and professionalism as men’s hockey and other sports get. Anything else is just simply unacceptable. 

That’s probably more than you were bargaining for with that question, but do you have any thoughts about the broadcast I didn’t cover? 

While we’re at it, let’s talk about the other team that played in that televised Tuesday night game, St. Cloud State, who went out east and won the Ice Breaker tournament at Sacred Heart last weekend, with a 2-0 win over Northeastern in the first game and a 5-0 win over Lindenwood in the second. 

The Huskies are 7-2 to start the season, with losses to Mercyhurst and Minnesota. They are up to XX in this week’s polls and look like they’re going to push to be a fifth WCHA team to make the NCAA Tournament at the end of the year. I talked a bit in my season preview about how SCSU is sort of stuck in that fifth spot in the standings in the conference with Wisconsin, Ohio State, Minnesota and Minnesota Duluth ahead of them and how those big teams sort of limit their potential ceiling. What are your thoughts on what St. Cloud can do this year? Will they give UMD a serious fight for fourth in the standings

Nate: You touched on most of my thoughts as far as the broadcasts go. I’m happy to see more games and teams being broadcast. In addition to the two we mentioned, the Sacred Heart-Lindenwood Ice Breaker game was shown on SNY in the New York City area. Ohio State-St. Thomas was locally shown in the Twin Cities as the WCHA increases the number of games broadcast in its footprint. At the same time, these games exist in a vacuum rather than as part of a big picture.

Going back to the Ice Breaker, I was not surprised to see the western Huskies shut out the eastern Huskies. Both Jojo Chobak and Sanni Ahola, who has yet to allow a goal in four starts, are overachieving their high expectations. Just as impressive was the way SCSU won, out-shooting Northeastern and killing a 5-on-3 penalty in the third period with a one-goal lead. That is a total team effort against Hockey East’s best program over the past 6 seasons and changes the perception nationally. 

It speaks to the WCHA as a whole where a team like St. Cloud State can take a large step forward and possibly be in the same spot of the standings. Even with the NCAA Tournament expanding to 11 teams, I find it tough to see a path for the WCHA to get five bids. So much needs to go right. SCSU’s loss to Mercyhurst doesn’t help. 

Still, the Huskies being a fringe top-ten team and dangerous opponent night in and night out makes series with Minnesota State, St. Thomas, and Minnesota Duluth more interesting than ever. And what do you know, SCSU travels to Mankato this weekend.

I’ve always felt what separates the middle of the pack from the top is the consistency of winning games against teams they are favored. SCSU did that last year while struggling against the top tier. Defeating Northeastern and taking Minnesota’s best shot is a great first step. Let’s see if the Huskies can take the next and find ways to beat the opponents ahead of them.

Nicole, you know Wisconsin as well as anyone. The Badgers look to be up to speed early with some lopsided scores. What is your take on the defending national champions?

Nicole: I got a lot of questions on Friday as top-ranked Wisconsin was held scoreless by Bemidji State through the first two periods of their weekend series, despite holding a 34-6 shot advantage. But to me, that was a typical game against the Beavers, who have given Wisconsin fits and starts for years. Their particular brand of defense just really matches well against what the Badgers try to do and Wisconsin isn’t always able to keep from getting frustrated and in their own heads about it. 

I actually thought UW looked as good as they have in a while in the face of Bemidji clogging the middle of the ice, forcing them outside, blocking shots and lifting sticks. They needed to force their way into the middle a little more, which they did in the second, but this wasn’t one of those games where they attempt 100+ shots and only a third or so of them are on frame. All of which is to say that I did not watch Friday’s game and think, “uh oh, Wisconsin is in trouble.”

We’ve yet to see the Badgers really get tested by a similarly strong team – they first face off against one of the other top teams in the WCHA in mid-November – but what I think bodes most well for them is the depth and creativity of their scoring. Just two players on this team have not tallied a goal so far – defenders Anna Wilgren and Laney Potter (but they have nine and five assists, respectively). Nine players have three or more goals. Wisconsin has definitely put up some lopsided scores, so I’m not going to read too much into how high-scoring some of the players are, but the fact that third and fourth line players are not just scoring goals, but scoring them in important situations – like Katie Kotlowski’s goal on Friday to put UW up 2-0 – should be giving opponents pause. 

Players like Marianne Picard and Sarah Wozniewicz on the third line have shown marked improvement this season and Mark Johnson said he’s seen the payoff from work they put in over the last year after not being content with their playing time last season. 

The biggest thing out of this weekend for Wisconsin was an injury to KK Harvey. The hit she took looked incredibly scary both in real time and when I saw a replay, but it appears what they are calling a “lower body injury” might not be as bad as first feared, so she was not on crutches on Saturday, walking on her own with a slight limp onto the bench during warmups. Time will obviously tell with that, but I’m curious your thoughts on if you think the Badgers are still the #1 team in the country without her? That is to ask, how important is she to Wisconsin’s long-term success this season?

Nate: Harvey may be the most important player to the Badgers, but that doesn’t mean Wisconsin doesn’t find success without her. At the moment, I would give the nod to the Badgers. Wisconsin has the depth and the luxury of its returning core to withstand an early injury to Harvey. These other teams are searching for an identity. Wisconsin knows what it is in late October.

Long-term? It gets muddier as the season continues. Each contender aims to peak at the right time, something Wisconsin knows better than anyone. Mark Johnson’s team has the fewest questions to answer among the group, however, I am curious to see how teams like Ohio State and Minnesota match up line for line against the Badgers’ depth. 

Or even one another. Ohio State made big noise in the offseason bringing in an all-star team of transfers. It’s a different squad than the one who nearly repeated as national champs and one that is entertaining to watch under Nadine Muzerall’s tutelage.

Nicole: I’m excited to watch Minnesota at Ohio State this weekend. I feel like I don’t have a good handle on what to expect from the Buckeyes this year yet. There were some bobbles that very first weekend against Colgate, which were to be expected, and they seemed to have a pretty easy time handling UMD. Now that we’re a few weeks in and they’re playing a team that usually matches up particularly well with them style-wise, I feel like it will help me gauge how they matchup relatively to the other top teams in the country. I’ll be paying a little extra attention to their defense, to see how it has evolved and also who seems to be emerging as their big playmaker(s).

Nate: I’m curious to see if the all new Joy Dunne-Kiara Zanon-Hannah Bilka line ends up being that group up front. There is an abundance of riches in Columbus. Haven’t even mentioned Cayla Barnes, Olivia Mobley, Jenn Gardner, Makenna Webster, or Kelsey King. Coaches have their hands full figuring out the best way to match up. 

I’m also curious to see how Muzerall matches up against Abbey Murphy this weekend with the last change and how effective it will be. Who wins a battle says a lot about where the two teams are in late October. The only thing I’m certain about how this weekend goes with Ohio State is that the Buckeyes will be a much different team when OSU heads to Minneapolis in January and Madison to end the regular season.

We’ve touched on several teams and players in the WCHA. A month into the season, has anyone stepped out of the shadows and surprised you? Two for me that have in different ways are Hailey Armstrong of Bemidji State and Mannon McMahon of Minnesota Duluth. Armstrong has five of BSU’s eight goals. She is nearing the Beavers’ leading goal total of all last season. McMahon, on the other hand, is someone under the radar at times and overshadowed by other players on the Bulldogs. She’s no longer that, captaining a team with a number of new players.

Nicole: I’m not sure this quite answers your question, but the freshmen at St. Thomas have been absolutely outstanding. Going into the season, they were certainly impressive on paper, but you and I both know that doesn’t always translate, so I’m really interested to see how they keep growing.

Five of the six women on the top two forward lines and one of the top defensive pairing are rookies. Ella Boerger, Rylee Bartz and Cara Sajevic lead the team in scoring. Ellah Hause leads the team in blocks and is second in the conference. Bartz is second in the WCHA in shots and fourth in shots per game. The team is just generating more offense in every metric, but most importantly, thus far is scoring 3.3 goals per game compared to last year’s 1.5 goals per game. 

Bemidji goalie Abbie Thompson has bided her time behind Hannah Hogeson and Kerrigan Dowhy and has really stepped up when finally getting her shot as the starter this season. The pesky, shut down defense that the Beavers pride themselves on doesn’t work without a goalie that can anchor it and she sure seems to be up to the challenge. 

I also want to shout out transfers CC Bowlby and Katie Kaufman, who are obviously new to the conference, but are already outpacing their own previous outputs paired together with Klára Hymlárová on the top line at St. Cloud. 

I’m not interested too much in trying to guess the league’s final standings, but I do love some reckless far-too-early predictions, so I thought I’d ask who your outstanding players are so far? Let’s go with a Forward, Defender, Goalie and Rookie. 

Nate: Great choices all around. One of the fun things watching St. Thomas in year 3 of D1 play is seeing the program’s development play out in real time. Seeing the Tommies’ young core already making a difference gives hope for the future. 

As far as outstanding players goes, Murphy takes it for forward. I wouldn’t be shocked if a Lacey Eden or a Hannah Bilka ends up with it, but it’s easier for Murphy to stand out than a number of players on Wisconsin and Ohio State. Harvey is my outstanding defender over Cayla Barnes. 

Goaltender is extremely tough given how many teams are currently rolling platoons. It’s hard to pick one, let alone one from a team. I keep waiting to see more from Raygen Kirk of Ohio State and am interested in Eve Gascon’s development at UMD. Whoever takes it is going to be someone who ends up grabbing the number one role through play or injury, but if Sanni Ahola is in a 1A/1B while being literally perfect then good luck. So let’s just say Kirk.

Looking forward to seeing how wrong I am in February.

Arizona State’s Powers on Sun Devils’ early season, move to NCHC in 2024: USCHO Spotlight college hockey podcast Season 6 Episode 3

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Hosts Jim Connelly and Ed Trefzger are joined by Arizona State head coach Greg Powers to talk about this year’s team, the move next year to the NCHC, having the full complement of three assistant coaches, and this weekend’s college hockey series at Miami.

Subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, in your favorite podcast app, or on Spreaker.

Check out all of USCHO’s college hockey podcasts, including USCHO Weekend Review and USCHO Edge, plus our entire podcast archive.

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This Week in Atlantic Hockey: After upsetting Penn State, American International aiming to ‘want and need results’ going forward

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Nils Wallstrom has been sharp in net so far this season for AIC (photo: AIC Athletics).

American International has been on the wrong end of three close games to open their 2023-24 campaign — and one not so close — but last weekend, the Yellow Jackets flipped the script, picking up their first win of this young season.

Eric Lang’s team opened with a 5-3 loss to Massachusetts that saw AIC make it a one-goal game in the third after falling behind 4-1.

Up next was a two-game series with defending national champion Quinnipiac. AIC couldn’t hold the lead and fell 3-2 in overtime the first night, and round two was an 8-0 blowout at the hands of the Bobcats.

Fast forward to last weekend, another two-game series, this time at Penn State.

Friday was a familiar story: another close game, another lead lost, and ultimately another defeat, 3-2 on a late goal.

But while Saturday was a familiar story, there was a different ending.

The Yellow Jackets raced out to 4-1 lead, saw Penn State knot it at 4-4 with under four minutes to play, but eventually got the break that had eluded them through their first four games.

Casey McDonald’s highlight-reel goal 93 seconds later put AIC back in front, and the Yellow Jackets sealed it with an empty-net goal to win 6-4.

That broke the Nittany Lions’ nonconference winning streak of 20 games dating back to Oct 8, 2021. It also broke a 23-game winning streak by Penn State against Atlantic Hockey teams.

Lang says there was some frustration in his team’s early games, but many positives.

“We played some really good games, had three one-goal leads heading into the third period against NCAA-tournament caliber teams,” said Lang. “But at some point, players don’t want to hear about playing well (in losses), they want and need results.”

On Saturday, they got some.

“We squandered leads to get it to 4-4,” he said. “We needed somebody to make a play.”

Sophomore forward Casey McDonald made that play, taking a beautiful feed from Dustin Manz and cutting through the Penn State defense for the game-winning goal.

Sandwiched in between the close games was that 8-0 loss at Quinnipiac.

“That was a weird game,” said Lang. “They only had 25 shots, but they scored eight goals. Everything that could go wrong, did go wrong.”

Did his team dwell on the lopsided loss, or flush it?

“We learned, threw it out, and moved on,” said Lang. “That kind of game happens once or twice a year if you’re a good team. If it happens more than that, you’re probably not a good team.”

It will probably take some time for the Yellow Jackets to gel, as they welcomed 13 new players this season, three transfers and 10 first year players hailing from four different countries, including four from Sweden and two from Finland.

Lang said recruiting international players has paid dividends for AIC, and other programs are taking notice.

“Seven years ago there were maybe 40 international players (in Division I men’s hockey),” he said. “It’s over 100 now. We’re focusing on getting commitments earlier, before they come over to play (junior hockey).”

AIC begins conference play on Friday when it hosts Army West Point. It’s the sole game of the weekend for the Yellow Jackets, which will play the Black Knights three times this season. An unbalanced conference schedule will see teams play each other two, three or four times, keeping the number of conference matchups at 26 despite Robert Morris rejoining the league.

Lang says that he’d like to see the conference return to a 28-game schedule (as it had for many years) even if it means reducing the number of nonconference games from eight to six.

“I’m OK with it,” he said. “A good nonconference schedule is important when recruiting players, but we know how critical and competitive our conference games are.”

UCHC Men’s Hockey Preview: Pioneers reload in pursuit of another UCHC crown before MAC split

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Stevenson’s Liam McCanney, last seasons top player in the UCHC returns to help the Mustangs pursue a conference title (photo: Sabrina Moran/SKM Photography).

The UCHC was among the front runners in seeing changes for this season and even bigger ones for the 2024-25 season where the D-III hockey landscape will be dramatically different with the emergence of the MAC conference and the Little East conference. Misericordia will field its D-III hockey squad next season that enables the six MAC teams to create their own conference away from the UCHC with an auto-bid to the national tournament. Brockport and Geneseo will break away from the SUNYAC to join the UCHC next season and the conference merry-go-round probably has a few more ponies switching leagues before we play a game next season.

With three new head coaches taking the reins at Alvernia (Steven Rowe), Arcadia (Patrick Carroll) and Chatham (Bill Connelly), everyone in the eleven-team league will be going after the reigning champs from Utica who lost some key talent to graduation and migration to professional leagues. The young Pioneers will see some bigger challenges from a host of teams that pushed them hard in last year’s campaign.

The Favorites

Gone are several All-Americans from the Utica roster and in come 13 new freshmen to the roster for Gary Heenan to mold into champions. Bryan Landesberger returns in goal and Brian Scoville provides experience on the blue line for a team that will be looking for their offensive identity amongst the talented newcomers. Opening the season with a two-game set against Adrian will certainly give an indication as to what this year’s Pioneers can do against one of the country’s elite teams.

Nazareth has lost the scoring prowess of Henry McKinney and will need to find consistency among some new goaltending talent, but George Roll teams always seem to battle and pressure the opposition and stay in games to win late and by low margin if necessary. Last year’s run to the UCHC title game was not a fluke so look for the Golden Flyers to build on that experience.

The Dark Horses

Stevenson brings back the offensive skill of Liam McCanney but will be looking for a goaltender to replace the graduated Ryan Kenny. Coach Dominick Dawes has teams that compete hard, and this year’s edition will be difficult to play against especially at home where the Mustangs are less than hospitable hosts.

Manhattanville should be among the top teams in the UCHC this season led by the offensive abilities of AJ Bella and Artem Mateichenko and a strong surrounding cast. James Gregory was nearly a 20-point scorer from the blueline, and goaltender Sebastian Woods showed he could play among the league’s best. Quick maturation from the incoming first-year players could see David Turco’s Valiants competing near the top of the league standings.

Players to watch

Alvernia:                              Isaac Chapman – forward: Brandon Daigle – goaltender

Arcadia:                                James Spaargaren – forward; Dylan Florit – forward

Chatham:                            Caden Smith – forward; Nick Cyprian – forward

King’s:                                   Jack Cooper – forward; Tyler Blanchard – forward

Lebanon Valley:                Blake Tosto – forward; Darion Benchich – forward

Manhattanville:                Artem Mateichenko – forward; AJ Bella– forward

Nazareth:                            Blake Frost – forward; Logan Tobias – forward

Neumann:                          Luke Croucher – forward; Brady Mistler – forward

Stevenson:                         Liam McCanney – forward; Frank Vitucci – forward

Utica:                                 Bryan Landesberger – goaltender; Brian Scoville – defense

Wilkes:                               Jimmy O’Kane – forward; Michael Paterson-Jones – goaltender

USCHO predicted finish 

  1. Utica
  2. Nazareth
  3. Stevenson
  4. Manhattanville
  5. Wilkes
  6. Chatham
  7. Alvernia
  8. Arcadia
  9. King’s
  10. Neumann
  11. Lebanon Valley

Other intriguing opening weekend matchups beyond the Adrian v. Utica series includes, Elmira at Nazareth, Neumann hosting Geneseo, Chatham at Brockport and Wilkes facing Cortland.

 

 

 

 

This Week in Hockey East: Even in weekend loss to Denver, Boston College lives up to its billing, ‘excited to go forward from here’

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Boston College’s Will Smith scored two goals against Denver last Saturday night (photo: Meg Kelly).

Boston College faced its biggest test of the young season last Saturday night, and passed, even though the final score would indicate otherwise.

Yes, the Eagles were handed a 4-3 loss by visiting Denver before a standing-room-only crowd of 7,884 Saturday night at the Silvio O. Conte Forum. And second-year coach Greg Brown would rather not have had to watch his team take three penalties in the third period, two of which led to Denver goals, including the game winner with just over two minutes remaining.

The positives, however, were not lost on Brown, nor were they lost on the voters in the latest USCHO.com Men’s Division I Poll — the schools remained static from the week prior — Denver at No. 2 and BC in the third spot.

“In a game like that, with two good teams, you have to really be smart and execute down the stretch,” Brown said. “We can take a lot of positives. A lot of guys played well and competed hard. We made some plays. But at the end of the day, you have to close it out.”

There were affirmations aplenty for BC (3-1-0) on Saturday, including the play of its second line, which features three freshmen up front — Gabe Perreault, Will Smith and Ryan Leonard — all of whom played together the last two years with the U.S. national team development program. The trio combined on the Eagles’ first goal, which put BC up 1-0 just over four minutes into the contest, and Smith finished with a pair of goals. Smith now leads the Eagles in scoring with three goals and two assists.

“They’re getting more comfortable every game,” Brown said. “They read off each other so well (and) see the game very similarly. There’s a lot to be excited about for those guys.”

Perreault, Smith and Leonard are just three of 14 newcomers this season — more than half of the Eagles’ 27-man roster.

“There’s a lot of jelling that needs to happen, but for the most part, when there have been breakdowns, the guys have had extra effort — blocked a shot or got a stick in the lane,” Brown said. “So we’ve been able to minimize a lot of (opponent) chances. So as we become more familiar with each other and really read each other more, hopefully those mistakes will be fewer and fewer.”

Another newcomer, goalie Jacob Fowler, has contributed to BC’s success. Through four starts, he has posted a 1.98 goals-against average and a .913 save percentage. His 24-save performance Saturday earned high praise from Denver coach David Carle.

“He was good,” Carle said. “I would have liked us to make him make a few more saves. (He) makes you earn it. He’s an excellent goaltender.”

Including Friday night’s 6-1 win over Rensselaer, BC drew more than 13,000 fans to Conte over the weekend. So large was Saturday night’s crowd, a long line of students was turned away at the front entrance just moments before puck drop. This weekend, the Eagles welcome Michigan State for a two-game home set starting Thursday night.

“(We saw) a lot of challenges against a good hockey team,” Brown said Saturday night. “We’ll learn from it. I thought for our kids, especially our young kids, in that kind of atmosphere, they did very well. We’re excited to go forward from here.”

Nomination period now open for 2024 Hockey Humanitarian Award candidates

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Minnesota Duluth’s Gabbie Hughes was the 2023 recipient of the Hockey Humanitarian Award (photo: Hockey Humanitarian Award Foundation).

The Hockey Humanitarian Award is presented annually to college hockey’s “finest citizen” and seeks to recognize college hockey players, male or female, who contribute to local and/or global communities in a true humanitarian spirit.

Each year, the Hockey Humanitarian Award Foundation receives many submissions from SIDs and hockey coaches across men’s and women’s Division I, II and III varsity programs. The committee then reviews the achievements of this group of nominees.

Since 1996, the committee has welcomed a wide range of candidates, including team captains, role players and campus leaders – all of whom have led volunteer efforts that help children, the handicapped, the homeless and the disadvantaged. These student-athletes reaffirm each year that there are, throughout this and other college sports, young people who deserve notice for reasons that ultimately are far more important than mere personal athletic statistics or won-lost records.

The Humanitarian Award will again be presented at the NCAA Men’s Frozen Four in conjunction with the Hobey Baker Memorial and Mike Richter Awards in St. Paul, Minn., on April 12, 2024. A list of nominees will be announced in January followed by a list of finalists. All finalists will be interviewed in person or via Zoom.

Nominations must be received on or before Dec. 22, 2023.

For more information or to nominate a player, email Tom Wright at [email protected] or Matt Patrick at [email protected].

TMQ: What college hockey teams have been surprises in early part of 2023-24 season? Which teams should we keep an eye on?

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Denver scored late Saturday night to upend Boston College (photo: Meg Kelly).

Each week during the season, we look at the big events and big games around Division I men’s college hockey in Tuesday Morning Quarterback.

Dan: Greetings once more to everyone enjoying their week with us. I hope you’re not like me and on the run to figure out your Halloween costume with one week left to dress your kids for trick or treating.

One thing I know we’re all doing is trying to catch our breath from an incredible weekend. I feel like I say this to someone every year, but the schedule makers (i.e. coaches, administrators, sports gods, whomever) all find ways for us to ramp up and explode out of the gates before the season really ramps up. This weekend was no different, and like we talked about on last week’s USCHO Edge podcast, big time matchups bring big time storylines.

I don’t even know where to begin, but I suppose it’s worth going back to the most famous – or infamous – rivalry in college hockey (arguably). Minnesota and North Dakota did NOT disappoint, and as I look at you, Jim, I think you called it. These teams put together two games worth rewatching if you missed them.

It was a split, but I think we learned something more about North Dakota than we did about Minnesota. We knew the Gophers were good, but after Saturday’s game, is it time to call the shot of North Dakota officially being back?

Jim: You nailed that, 100 percent.

The Fighting Hawks had their collective backs against the wall after Friday’s 4-0 loss to the Gophers. You can’t show up to a rivalry series and lay an egg twice, so North Dakota’s ability to win 2-1 on night two said a lot about the team’s character, particularly considering how inexperienced this team is at certain positions, especially the back end.

I feel like a lot of teams were in a similar position this weekend, needing to find a way on the second night to save a weekend series. The one that comes to mind the most is Denver, which lost to Providence 4-3 on Friday but then rallied from a 2-1 deficit on Saturday at Boston College, let slip a 3-2 lead in the third, but got the game-winning goal from Carter King with 2:02 remaining in regulation.

Wins like these are character wins to me. Doing so on the road, when the team has traveled from Denver to the East Coast, seems even more impressive.

When I look at the NCHC, obviously there are impressive candidates in both leagues. But both North Dakota and Denver made me take extra notice this weekend. Do they deserve, let’s say, extra attention as well?

Dan: Denver, to me, feels like one of those Oklahoma-type football programs. It doesn’t matter how good the team is year-over-year because they’re guaranteed to win X amount of games and contend for the national championship. They might not always win the title, but they’re always in the picture – and further represent exactly what it’s like to live in that tier.

Keeping with that comparison, think about how much Oklahoma wins on a consistent basis. A 9-3 season is essentially a disappointment, and it’s almost always in contention for a national championship. When it comes to Denver, the coach, the players, the personnel – they can undergo almost every conceivable change and still churn out winning teams. I’d kill for that type of consistency out of my team if I’m not a Denver fan. I can’t think of a team that’s been better since the 2000-2001 season, though the COVID season is aside.

Coming back to that point, it’s an interesting cross-section whenever teams get hot or not in the early part of the season. 20-25 wins is a benchmark for some programs and a reach for others, and if a season starts to falter early, nothing kills things faster than bad juju.

Enter BU. The preseason No. 1 team feels like the opposite of Denver and North Dakota right now, but the talent is clearly there. How panicked should we be about the Terriers after the split with Notre Dame?

Jim: There should be concern for Boston University fans. Their team lost on the road at New Hampshire, 6-4, and then lost again at Notre Dame, 4-1.

Had BU not rebounded an absolutely dominated on Saturday at Notre Dame, I’d not be pressing a panic button. I would be sitting on it, if I was BU central.

There is something very difficult about integrating a lot of very talented, young players into a team and system. We hear the name Macklin Celebrini a lot. He is a generational player. But what about some other very young players who have never been anything except a first-line player? How do they fit in at age 18? Will they immediately adapt? That’s always a question mark faced by not just Jay Pandolfo, but a good number of college hockey coaches each year.

Honestly, I think BU will be just fine and by year’s end will contend for a top spot in Hockey East and will be an NCAA tournament team. The question is whether early losses hurt their PairWise, something we don’t always talk about in October.

The same can be said for a team like Notre Dame, which actually beat BU on Friday. That’s a decent win if BU boosts itself higher nationally (in the PairWise, of course, we’re not talking polls). But the Fighting Irish are 2-3-0 right now. They got smoked on Saturday when they should’ve been riding high and ready to try for a sweep. They also lost on the road at RIT last weekend without scoring a goal.

Notre Dame is a team that I feel should and could be good with an aggressive Big Ten schedule ahead. But right now I don’t know how to grade their performance to date. What do you think?

Dan: Notre Dame intrigues me, but I don’t know what else to make of the Irish beyond that statement.

I want to believe in Notre Dame, but the losses are glaring. I’m a big buyer on Clarkson being a threat to the national tournament this year, but the 3-0 win was tempered by a 3-0 loss to an Atlantic Hockey club, which as much as I love RIT and a league that’s long been “my league,” I also recognize the disparity between the Big Ten and the AHA on paper.

So those games cancel each other out, right? Well the BU games also cancel each other out. Had Notre Dame lost the second game even remotely better than an 8-2 final, I’d probably be a buyer on the Irish, but the final score is a bad night at the office. And even if we lean into the fact that every team has a bad game, we still don’t know if it’s just an off-night or a sign of something bigger because there’s proof of everything around every corner.

We’re going to learn a good amount this weekend when Mercyhurst comes to town. If the defense can gel in front of Ryan Bischel, I think there’s going to be an intriguing stone wall in the back. The power play needs to get going, and the offense needs to pepper a Laker defense that’s allowed over 40 shots per game with an average of three goals allowed per game. All of that’s easier said than done, but I need to see it across two nights.

That said, you know how much I love my Atlantic Hockey teams when their backs are against the wall, and I would never count any of those teams out. They always pack a good punch, and someone always – ALWAYS – has their national championship dreams blown to smoke by losses to AHA teams.

Tell me something, though, is there a team that we’re not talking about at all right now that’s hiding in the wings? Is there an independent, or an ECAC team that you like (or Atlantic Hockey or something)? Is there maybe a CCHA team that more people need to look at – maybe one that jumped directly from Division III to Division I out in the state of Minnesota?

Jim: Yes, I get it, you want to talk about St. Thomas. And maybe we’ll do that soon as Rico Blasi has his team playing really well right now and possibly surprising people.

But you asked the question and now have to take my answer. Yes, there is a team we’re not talking about, and it’s Arizona State.

The Sun Devils are now comfortably inhabiting Mullett Arena and right now stand at 4-0-0 after sweeping a very good Merrimack team and a Northern Michigan club that I thought had a lot of promise coming into the season.

Timing is interesting for ASU. They’ll play 20 homes games this year, something that likely won’t happen once the team enters in the NCHC. Home ice is certainly a major advantage for this club and there is a need to take advantage.

But one has to think – and this is no disrespect to the Sun Devlis team – but as an independent, this might be the best opportunity to make an NCAA field. Yes, plenty of NCHC teams have made it in the past and will continue to do so. But navigating that league is such a grind that things are not even close to being guaranteed and winning games as an independent seems a whole lot easier.

MIAC Men’s Hockey Preview: Auggies, Saints among top teams

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Augsburg won the MIAC tournament last season and went on to play in the NCAA tourney. (Photo provided by Augsburg Athletics)

The MIAC is one of the more interesting leagues in D-III hockey. The usual contenders always seem to thrive but you never know who might emerge as a surprise team. And the battle for conference tournament spots? That always seems to be tight right up through the last weekend of the season.

A year ago, St. Scholastica won the regular-season crown but it was Augsburg that claimed the tourney title and automatic bid to the playoffs as the only team from the MIAC to make the NCAA tournament.

What is in store for this season? Only time will tell. Here’s a quick look at the season ahead.

Augsburg

A new era begins at Augsburg as Garrett Hendrickson takes over as the head coach of the Auggies, who won the conference tournament a season ago and played in the NCAA tourney.

Hendrickson is just the sixth head coach in the modern history of the program after serving as a full-time assistant the last two seasons. He’s no stranger to the MIAC having played college hockey at Concordia.

The Auggies were 16-10-2 a year ago, finishing 10-5-1 in the MIAC and are coming off their sixth conference title and eighth NCAA tourney appearance in program history.

Erik Palmqvist is the top returning scoring threat after tallying 11 goals nine assists a year ago. Daniel Chladek also returns for the Auggies, who racked eight goals and 10 assists, while Fritz Belisle came through with five goals and 13 assists.

The Auggies also welcome back one of the top goalies in D-III hockey in Samuel Vyletelka, who racked up 498 saves a year ago and won 12 games. He fashioned a 2.15 goals against average. 

Augsburg always seems to have a team poised to contend and this year should be no different.

St. Scholastica

It was a memorable year for the Saints, who put together one of their best seasons in program history, advancing to the MIAC tourney final for the first time. 

Don’t be surprised if they are playing for a championship again this year.

After all, a total of 20 players are back, including six all-conference picks. 

Among them are Arkhip Ledenkov and Filimon Ledenkov, two of the best offensive threats in the conference. Arkhip is the reigning offensive player of the year in the MIAC while goalie Jack Bostedt is the reigning defensive player of the year. The Ledenkov brothers and Bostedt were All-Americans last season as well.

Nathan Adrian, Alec Severson and Casen Richels are back as well for a Saints team that was 17-7-3 overall and 13-1-2 in the conference.

Arkhip led the attack with 21 goals and 27 assists while Filimon tallied 13 goals and 29 assists. Richels finished third in points with 19 goals and 21 assists and Adrian was a force as well on offense, scoring 16 goals and dishing out 17 assists.

Newcomers Hunter Hanson, Isaac Suppin, Elowan Orme-Lynch, Matteo Orme-Lynch and Emmett Wurst all could make an immediate impact as well for the Saints.

The Saints gained valuable experience last season and are poised to contend once again.

Saint John’s

The Johnnies are always in the mix for a MIAC title. They finished 13-10-2 overall last season and 9-5-2 in the conference, appearing in the MIAC tourney for the fifth consecutive year.

A lot of key players are back, including Lewis Crosby, who scored seven goals and dished out 15 assists. He led the team in power play points (13) and is a two-time All-MIAC pick.

Max Borst scored nine goals last year and heads into this season as a team captain while Bailey Huber is back in goal after starting 19 games last season. He won 11 and made 457 saves.

Other key players back are defensemen Mason Campbell and Jack Olsen. Campbell scored six goals and is coming off a year where he was on the USCHO All-Rookie team. Olsen finished with three goals and is a team captain as well this season.

Matt DeRosa (3 goals, 7 assists), Jackson Sabo (4 goals, 8 assists) and Spender Rudrud (1 goal, 9 assists) will also be key contributors.

The Johnnies have also brought on several key newcomers, including seven that played in the NAHL, along with UW-Eau Claire transfer Conner Couet.

Concordia

The Cobbers went 12-12-2 last season, fashioning a 9-6-1 mark in the MIAC, and they are hoping to be among the to teams again this season. It shouldn’t be a problem.

Concordia, after all, returns its top seven players in terms of points, including Joe Harguideguy, who led the team with 12 goals and 11 assists. His goal total was the best on the team.

Cole O’Connell (7 goals, 14 assists), Liam Haslam (3 goals, team-best 17 assists), Isaac Henkemeyer-Howe (8 goals, 10 assists), Mason Plante (7 goals, 10 assists), Caden Triggs (9 goals, 7 assists) and Hanson O’Leary (9 goals, 5 assists) will all once again be key contributors as well for a team that should have one of the top offenses in the conference.

Goalie Matt Fitzgerald returns as well. He started 15 games and won eight games while making 299 saves.

St. Olaf

The Oles return 90 percent of their scoring and that experience bodes well for the Oles as they take aim winning a championship and playing in the NCAA tournament like they did in 2022. A year ago, St. Olaf made it to the semifinals of the MIAC tourney.

Troy Bowditch leads the way for a team that has 24 players back. The all-conference pick tallied 10 goals and 17 assists for an Oles team that finished 14-11-2 overall and 7-8-1 in the MIAC.

Connor Kalthoff was an All-MIAC pick as well, scoring six goals and dishing out 10 assists. Jonathan Panisa (8 goals and 8 assists) is also a key contributor while Thomas Lalonde brings experience in goa after saving more than 90 percent of the shots he faced. 

Keep an eye on newcomer Joey Kennelly as well. He played for the Renfrew Wolves of the CCHL.

Bethel

Better days could very well be ahead for the Royals, who were 10-14-1 last season, including a 5-10-1 mark in the MIAC.

Among the 22 players back for Bethel are three of the top five point scorers. Justin Kelley leads the way after transferring in from St. Thomas last season. He tallied eight goals and nine assists in his first year with the program.

Dane Stoyanoff is also back after coming through with a goal and 12 assists, the most on the team, and Austin Ryman made a solid impression in goal, starting 16 games and recording two shutouts. He sported a 2.36 goals against average.

The leading goal scorer for the Royals is also back in Tyler Braccini, who scored 10 times last season to go along with six assists.

Several newcomers could make an impact for the Royals. Tyler Kostelecky transfers in from Long Island University and Joe Westlund and Luke Anderson both played in the NAHL.

That experience, coupled with the fact that Bethel ranked third in the nation in penalty kill (91.8 percent), should put the Royals in the mix for a conference tournament spot.

Saint Mary’s

It was a cool offseason for the program as the team spent nine days in Italy, playing a couple of games against teams from Switzerland.

Now the Cardinals are hoping for a turnaround season after going 11-13-1 overall and 7-9 in the MIAC last year.

A total of 25 players are back, including the top two point scorers in Landon Poellinger and Kellen Theraldson. Poellinger scored five goals to go along with 11 assists while Theraldson tallied three goals and 12 assists.

Warner Young also returns after scoring six goals and dishing out eight assists last season. Jack Campion came through with four goals and eight assists. Callahan Nauss punched in six goals last year.

The big thing the Cardinals are counting on is leadership. There are 12 seniors on the roster and expectations will be high.

Hamline

The Pipers finished 13-11-1 overall but just 6-10 in the MIAC and look to improve on that mark with 17 returnees. The roster also features 12 newcomers.

Leading the way is Bailey Sommers, who punched in six goals and also dished out 10 assists. Ryan Brandt tallied four goals and 10 assists and Jordon Halverson was a key scorer as well, tallying four goals and seven assists.

Filling the void left by the graduated Kevin Lake will be key to a strong year. Lake was an all-conference pick last season who made more than 1,400 saves in his career with the Pipers.

Gustavus

It was not an easy year for the Gusties, who won only once in conference play, finishing 3-19-3 overall and 1-13-2 in the MIAC.

But better days could be ahead as Gustavus returns its top six players. Nate Stone leads the way after scoring six goals and dishing out six assists a year ago.

Kyle Heffron (4 goals, 8 assists), Jac Triemert (5 goals,3 assists), Stanislav Danaev (4 goals, 4 assists), Jack Kubitz (1 goal, 7 assists) and Joey Gibmerlin (8 assists) are all expected to play key roles as well for the Gusties.

Nothing ever comes easy in the MIAC, but the Gusties at least have some experience that should lead to a much improved season.

 

Life at the top is difficult, plus our first buy or sell: Weekend Review college hockey podcast Season 6 Episode 3

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Hosts Jim Connelly, Derek Schooley, and Ed Trefzger discuss the results of the weekend and the news of the week in college hockey on the October 23, 2023 edition of USCHO Weekend Review:

• Life at the top is difficult, as several top teams see splits on the weekend

• Eight more teams are undefeated (not counting the Ivies)

• Our first edition this season of Buy or Sell (or Hold)

Subscribe to this college hockey podcast on Apple podcasts, in your favorite podcast app, or on Spreaker.

Find our college hockey podcast archive at USCHO.com/podcasts

Minnesota stays atop USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll, gets 42 first-place votes in Oct. 23 rankings

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Minnesota goalie Justen Close makes one of his 25 saves during the Gophers’ 4-0 shutout at North Dakota last Friday night (photo: Russell Hons).

After splitting with North Dakota last weekend, Minnesota remains No. 1 in the USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll, garnering 42 first-place votes.

Denver remains No. 2, getting six first-place votes, while Boston College stays third with one first-place vote.

North Dakota moves up one to No. 4 and Quinnipiac drops one spot to sit fifth this week.

USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll – Oct. 23, 2023

Michigan rises one to No. 6, Providence jumps up three to No. 7, and also earned a first-place vote, while Michigan State remains eighth, Boston University falls three spots to sit ninth, and Western Michigan falls one to No. 10.

Three new teams that were not ranked last week enter the rankings this week as Wisconsin comes in at No. 14, UMass at No. 19, and Omaha at No. 20.

In addition to the top 20 teams, 15 others received votes this week.

The USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll is compiled weekly and consists of 50 voters, including coaches and media professionals from across the country. Media outlets may republish this poll as long as USCHO.com is credited.

Hockey East suspends Holy Cross’ Saarela one game for hitting from behind penalty Oct. 21 against Boston College

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SAARELA

Hockey East announced Monday that Holy Cross senior forward Bryn Saarela has been suspended for one game stemming from an incident at 17:29 of the second period on Oct. 21 at Boston College.

On the play, Saarela was given a major penalty for hitting from behind and a game misconduct.

Saarela is ineligible to play Oct. 27 at Northeastern and is able to return to the Crusaders’ lineup on Oct. 28 against the Huskies.

Women’s Division I College Hockey: Weekend Wrap October 23, 2023

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Bemidji State at (1) Wisconsin

BSU goalie Abbie Thompson surpassed her previous career high in saves (33) before the second intermission, keeping the top-ranked Badgers off the scoreboard. In the third, Wisconsin poured it on with 30 shots on goal. Casey O’Brien opened the scoring :50 into the third period. Katie Kotlowski, Britta Curl and Cassie Hall all also scored in the final frame to make it a 4-0 Badger win. On Saturday, Curl scored in the first minute, but Bemidji State got the goal back with about five to go in the first thanks to Hailey Armstrong. But Maddi Wheeler put UW back ahead for good a few minutes later to send the teams to the locker rooms with Wisconsin up 2-1. Wheeler scored again early in the second and then Kirsten Simms scored twice to make it 5-1. Cassie Hall, Kelly Gorbatenko and Vivian Jungels also lit the lamp, giving the Badgers an 8-1 win and the weekend sweep. 

(2) Ohio State at St. Thomas 

The first game of the series started out close, with Hannah Bilka scoring first for Ohio State. Cara Sajevic responded for the Tommies just a few minutes later to tie the game 1-1. But the Buckeyes took over from there, reeling off three goals in fewer than three minutes at the midpoint of the first to put OSU up 4-1 and they did not look back. Emma Peschel’s second-period goal extended it to 5-1 before Sajevic got her second of the game to make it 5-2. Bilka’s goal late in the third secured the 6-2 win for Ohio State. Kenzie Hauswirth’s goal two minutes into the game was the only tally until a very busy seventh minute of the second period in which OSU’s Olivia Mobley and Jenn Gardiner and then St. Thomas’ Allie Monrean scored all in a matter of 53 seconds to make it a 3-1 game. Once again, the Buckeyes pulled away, this time with two goals from Kiara Zanon and one each from Kelsy King and Cayla Barnes to give Ohio State the 7-1 win and sweep.

(13) St. Cloud State at (4) Minnesota

It took until the final minute of this game to decide a winner. Minnesota took a 1-0 lead at the midpoint of the second thanks to a goal from rookie Ava Lindsay, who lifted the puck over the glove of SCSU goalie Jojo Chobak. The Gophers extended their lead with an empty-net shorthand tally from Taylor Stewart to go up 2-0. The Huskies clawed one back with an extra attacker with seconds left on the clock, but ran out of time to complete the comeback as the Gophers took a 2-1 win. 

(5) Yale at (14) Princeton

It took half a period for Yale to find their stride in the opening game of their season as Anna Bargman scored to put the Bulldogs up 1-0. Elle Hartje doubled the lead midway through the second and Bargman added an empty-netter to secure a 3-0 win for Yale. 

(5) Yale at (6) Quinnipiac

Quinnipiac pressured Yale early and jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the first 15 minutes of the game, putting the Bulldogs at a deficit they were not able to come back from. Emerson Jarvis scored 1:20 into the game and then Kahlen Lamarche picked up a puck in the neutral zone and carried it in herself to score her first as a Bobcat just 28 seconds later. Maya Labad added a power play goal off a rebound and Sadie Peart got a pass from Lamarche in transition that she buried to make it 4-0. Yale started to climb back in the second, with a pretty wrister from Carina DiAntonio and then a deflection off a shot by Jordan Ray cut the lead to 4-2 at the second intermission. Stephanie Stainton scored her first collegiate goal to make it a one goal game, but the Bulldogs could not find an equalizer. Just three seconds after they pulled Pia Dukaric, Quinnipiac scored on the empty net. Forty seconds later, the Bobcats did it again, finding the net just nine seconds after Dukaric departed it to give Quinnipiac the 6-3 win. 

Brown at (6) Quinnipiac

Despite being outshot 44-18 in the game, Brown held the Bobcats scoreless into the third frame. Nina Steingauf was able to put away a deflection from a Julia Nearis shot to get on the board and that would prove to be the game winner, as Quinnipiac eked out a 1-0 victory.

(7) Clarkson at Robert Morris

The Golden Knights attempted 40 shots in the first, but went into the first intermission up just 1-0 thanks to a goal from Anne Cherkowski four minutes in. Robert Morris tied the game early in the second with a goal from Alaina Giampietro. Two minutes later, Darcie Lappan scored what would prove to be the game-winner and from there Clarkson began to pull away. Cherkowski scored a second goal, Keira Hurry added a power play tally and Lappan scored a shorthanded empty netter to secure the 5-1 win. In the second game, it was all about special teams as Brooke McQuigge scored on the player advantage in the first and Alexie Guay doubled the lead on a power play in the third. The Colonials pulled within one when they pulled their goalie for an extra attacker and Giampietro lit the lamp, but could not complete the comeback as Clarkson took the 2-1 win and sweep.

(8) Minnesota Duluth at Minnesota State

Mary Kate O’Brien put UMD up 1-0 after the first period on Friday, but Mankato’s Jamie Nelson scored on the power play in the second to even the teams at one. Reece Hunt’s solo effort midway through the third put the Bulldogs up 2-1 and Hanna Baskin’s goal in the final minutes ensured the 3-1 victory. On Saturday, Gabby Krause got credit for a power play goal that deflected off her leg and into the net to put Minnesota Duluth 1-0. Charlotte Akervik tied the game for the Mavericks in the second, but it didn’t last long. O’Brien’s shot from the slot put UMD up 2-1 just 90 seconds later. Jenna Lawry picked an MSU pocket and quickly put the shot on net to make it 3-1 Bulldogs. Krause batted home a rebound a few minutes later to put the game out of reach at 4-1 and give UMD a sweep.

Syracuse at (9) Cornell

Katie Chan and Avi Adam each scored twice while Izzy Daniel, Rory Guilday, and Kaitlin Jockims each lit the lamp once to lead Cornell to a 7-0 win. Gabbie Rud also had four assists in the game for the Big Red. 

(9) Cornell at Mercyhurst

In the first game, Cornell got on the board first as Georgia Schiff deflected in a puck from Ashley Messier to make it 1-0. It looked like that’s how the teams would go to the locker rooms, but Mercyhurst struck just before intermission, scoring twice in three seconds in the final minute of the first. Sydney Pedersen’s unassisted goal tied the game and Sofia Nuutinen came back right off the ensuing faceoff to put the Lakers up 2-1. The score carried into third when Izzy Daniel knotted the game 2-2 just 24 seconds into the frame. Midway through the third, Sara Boucher scored on a breakaway during a 4-on-4 to put Mercyhurst up 3-2. The Big Red pulled their goalie for an extra skater, which paid off when Daniel scored her second of the game to force overtime. Daniel received a penalty shot with two seconds left in the extra frame, but her shot hit the pipe and the game ended in a 3-3 tie. On Saturday, the Lakers once again scored first, this time when Thea Johansson put home a third-chance opportunity. Daniel tied it up early in the second with a shot from the slot. It looked like overtime might be necessary to decide game two, but Kaitlin Jockims made it 2-1 with five minutes to go and Daniel added an empty-netter to secure the 3-1 win.

(13) St. Cloud State vs (10) Northeastern – Ice Breaker

Junior defender Grace Wolfe tallied six of St. Cloud’s 18 blocks and Sanni Ahola recorded her fourth straight shutout to open the year as SCSU defeated their Husky counterparts at Northeastern. The game was scoreless into the third, where St. Cloud killed off a 5-on-3 while allowing just one shot while down two skaters and used that momentum to take the lead. Katie Kaufman scored with an incredible individual effort where she carried the puck behind the net before turning and perfectly placing her shot from a narrow angle to make it 1-0. Klára Hymlárová added an empty-net goal to secure the 2-0 win. 

(10) Northeastern vs. Sacred Heart

Taze Thompson scored twice to open the game for Northeastern and Skylar Irving snuck a goal home with seconds left in the first to give the Huskies a 3-0 at the first break. Ella Blackmore made it 4-0 in the second. Sacred Heart ruined the shutout with a goal from Nicole Bessinger in the third, but Northeastern took the 4-1 win. Irving factored in all four Husky goals, adding three assists. Katy Knoll also had three helpers for Northeastern. 

(13) St. Cloud State vs. Lindenwood

Junior defender Devyn Millwater scored her first collegiate goal just 11 seconds into this game to put SCSU up 1-0. CC Bowlby added a shorthander to make it 2-0 and then Klára Hymlárová tallied a hat trick and the Huskies took a 5-0 win and the Ice Breaker Championship.

RIT at (11) St. Lawrence

On Thursday, St. Lawrence jumped out to an early 2-0 lead thanks to a rebound goal from Suyeon Eom and a snipe from Abby Hustler. RIT pushed back in the second and third, as the Saints failed to put the game out of reach. Nicole Ness scored midway through the final frame to cut the lead to 2-1, but penalty trouble late kept them from pulling their goalie and making a final push as St. Lawrence escaped with the 2-1 win. 

(12) Vermont at Merrimack

Krista Parkkonen scored her first career goal with a slap shot on the power play to put Vermont up 1-0 early on Friday. A period later, Evelyne Blais-Savoie went coast to coast and clanged a shot off the post and into the net to make it 2-0 Catamounts. The final few minutes of the second her busy, as Merrimack began to push back. Natalie Nemes scored on an odd skater rush to cut the lead in half and less than a minute later Allison Reeb received a pass off the faceoff to tie the game 2-2. With 60 seconds until intermission, Sara Levesque picked the top corner to put Vermont up 3-2. Blais-Savoie scored on the empty net to secure a 4-2 win for UVM. In the second game of the series, the teams played a back and forth, but scoreless first period. From there, it was a game of taking advantage of opportunities. In the second, Mary Edmonds scored on a third-chance opportunity for the Warriors to give them their first lead of the weekend. Celine Tedenby picked up a rebound a few minutes later to give Merrimack the 2-0 advantage. Unfortunately for the Warriors, Vermont kicked into gear from there. Rose-Marie Brochu scored her first career goal by cleaning up a rebound with a shot to the top shelf to make it 2-1 heading to the second intermission. Lily Humphrey collected her own rebound and carried to the opposite faceoff circle before wristing the puck home to tie the game 2-2. Natalie Mlynkova intercepted a pass to create a 2-on-1 where she gave Vermont the 3-2 lead. Kaylee Lewis scored her first career goal with a shot from the slot to ensure the 4-2 Catamount win and weekend sweep.  

Brown at (14) Princeton

Rookie goalie Uma Corniea earned her second shutout in just her third career start to lead Princeton to a 3-0 win on Saturday. The Tigers outshot the Brown Bears 37-17. Emerson O’Leary continued her hot start, tallying the first goal of the night. Sarah Fillier doubled the lead in the second and ensured the win with an empty-netter. 

Monday 10: Top six ranked teams all lose over weekend, Big Ten starts conference play, half-dozen OT games Saturday night

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Minnesota Duluth senior goaltender Zach Stejskal secured his first collegiate shutout with 23 saves against Bemidji State last Friday night (photo: Terry Cartie Norton).

Each week, USCHO.com will pick the top 10 moments from the past weekend in our Monday 10 feature.

1. Hiccups in the top 6

Each of the top six teams in the USCHO.com Men’s Division I Poll lost a game this past weekend.

No. 1 Minnesota split with No. 5 North Dakota in Grand Forks, with the Gophers winning 4-0 Friday and the Fighting Hawks taking Saturday’s game 2-1.

Jake Livanavage had the game winner for North Dakota 59 seconds into the third period Saturday.

On a trip east for the Pioneers, No. 10 Providence beat No. 2 Denver, 4-3. Denver then beat No. 3 Boston College, 4-3.

No. 4 Quinnipiac split on the road against New Hampshire, winning 5-2 before a 5-4 OT loss.

2. The Big Ten begins

After crushing No. 13 Ohio State 7-1 in the opening game of Big Ten conference play, No. 7 Michigan took one point from the visiting Buckeyes the following night, as OSU came from behind to tie Michigan Saturday.

The Buckeyes earned the extra shootout point as well.

That’s junior goaltender Logan Terness with the post-shootout arm pump. Terness made 30 saves in the tie.

3. Apparently, it takes 10 goals to sweep

The only two teams in the top 10 to sweep the weekend were No. 8 Michigan State and No. 9 Western Michigan, and each put up 10 goals against their opponents.

The Spartans beat the visiting Canisius Golden Griffins, 6-4 and 4-3. Daniel Russell had a hat trick for Michigan State in the Thursday night game, the first of the sophomore’s career.

Western Michigan took two 5-2 games from Bowling Green in a home-and-home series. Sam Colangelo picked up a hat trick of his own with an empty-netter in the third period of Saturday’s home win.

4. AIC takes down No. 12 Penn State

American International split on the road against Penn State, winning 6-4 Saturday after dropping the first game 3-2. Eight different Yellow Jackets scored in series.

Alexandros Aslanidis made 36 saves for AIC in the win, the first of the season for the Yellow Jackets.

5. Give a minute to Massachusetts

With three straight wins over ranked opponents, unranked Massachusetts is now 5-1-0 to the start of the season.

The Minutemen swept No. 19 Minnesota State on the road, following Friday’s 6-3 win with a 1-0 blanking Saturday.

Aydar Suniev’s game-winning goal Saturday was his second career marker. The first was the opening goal in Friday’s game.

Freshman goalie Michael Hrabal made 60 saves in the series, including 32 in his first career shutout Saturday.

6. Extra hockey, especially on Saturday night

Seven games went to overtime on the weekend, with six OT games played Saturday night.

Friday night, Lindenwood and St. Thomas tied 4-4.

Saturday saw two ties in Atlantic Hockey and one in the Big Ten, plus three nonconference OT games with winners.

In Minnesota Duluth’s 5-4 road win over Bemidji State, the Beavers overcame a two-goal deficit with late in the third when Lleyton Roed scored at 13:04 and Adam Flamming tied it at 17:54.

When overtime play began, the Bulldogs needed just 27 seconds to win the game.

Cole Spicer had the game-winner in the three-on-three OT, unassisted. It was Spicer’s third goal of the season. The sophomore had three goals in 32 games last year.

7. A shoutout to a couple of seriously overworked goalies

Through five games, Robert Morris’s Chad Veltri has made 174 saves. That’s an average of nearly 35 per game, including 46 in Saturday’s tie against Holy Cross.

Veltri’s 1-2-2 record belies his skill. Through five games, he’s posting a .946 save percentage and 1.94 GAA.

Another netminder playing solidly with little fanfare is Lindenwood’s Trent Burnham (1-3-2, .927 SV%, 2.91 GAA).

In the Lions’ 4-4 tie with St. Thomas Friday, Burnham stopped an astonishing 59 shots on goal. He had 35 saves in a 3-1 loss to the Tommies Saturday.

8. A rookie on a roll

Through four games, Northern Michigan’s Tanner Latsch leads all D-I players with seven goals. The freshman from Muskegon, Mich. had a hat trick in his collegiate debut in the Wildcats’ 5-5 tie with Minnesota-Duluth Oct. 13 and added two more goals the following night.

Latsch had a goal in each of NMU’s two losses to Arizona State this past weekend. Six of Latsch’s seven goals have come on the power play.

9. This looks familiar

With a record of 23-7-3, the NCHC has the best win percentage (.742) in early season interconference action. The Big Ten (23-9-1, .712) is a close second, with Hockey East (26-12-1, .679) in third.

10. This looks familiar, too

The seven current teams not affiliated with any conference have a combined .386 win percentage. Among the independents, Arizona State is off to an impressive 4-0 start, following up a sweep of Merrimack with two wins over Northern Michigan, 3-2 Friday and 5-1 Saturday.

Eleven different Sun Devils accounted for the 11 total goals against the Wildcats in the series. TJ Semptimphelter made 39 stops in two games. Semptimphelter has impressive numbers (1.24 GAA, .952 SV%) through four games this season.

Rankings roundup: How the top 20 NCAA hockey teams fared, Oct. 20-21

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Arizona State players celebrate a goal over the weekend against Northern Michigan (photo: Sun Devil Athletics).

Here is a rundown of how the top 20 teams in the USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll of Oct. 16 fared in games over the weekend of Oct. 20-21.

No. 1 Minnesota (3-1-0)
10/20/2023 – No. 1 Minnesota 4 at No. 5 North Dakota 0
10/21/2023 – No. 1 Minnesota 1 at No. 5 North Dakota 2

No. 2 Denver (3-1-0)
10/20/2023 – No. 2 Denver 3 at No. 10 Providence 4
10/21/2023 – No. 2 Denver 4 at No. 3 Boston College 3

No. 3 Boston College (3-1-0)
10/20/2023 – Rensselaer 1 at No. 3 Boston College 6
10/21/2023 – No. 2 Denver 4 at No. 3 Boston College 3

No. 4 Quinnipiac (3-2-0)
10/20/2023 – No. 4 Quinnipiac 5 at RV New Hampshire 2
10/21/2023 – No. 4 Quinnipiac 4 at RV New Hampshire 5 (OT)

No. 5 North Dakota (3-1-0)
10/20/2023 – No. 1 Minnesota 4 at No. 5 North Dakota 0
10/21/2023 – No. 1 Minnesota 1 at No. 5 North Dakota 2

No. 6 Boston University (2-2-0)
10/20/2023 – No. 6 Boston University 1 at RV Notre Dame 4
10/21/2023 – No. 6 Boston University 8 at RV Notre Dame 2

No. 7 Michigan (3-2-1)
10/20/2023 – No. 13 Ohio State 1 at No. 7 Michigan 7
10/21/2023 – No. 13 Ohio State 2 at No. 7 Michigan 2 (OT)

No. 8 Michigan State (5-1-0)
10/19/2023 – Canisius 3 at No. 8 Michigan State 6
10/20/2023 – Canisius 3 at No. 8 Michigan State 4

No. 9 Western Michigan (3-0-1)
10/20/2023 – No. 9 Western Michigan 5 at Bowling Green 2
10/21/2023 – Bowling Green 2 at No. 9 Western Michigan 5

No. 10 Providence (4-1-0)
10/20/2023 – No. 2 Denver 3 at No. 10 Providence 4
10/21/2023 – Rensselaer 2 at No. 10 Providence 4

No. 11 Cornell (0-0-0)
10/21/2023 – U.S. NTDP* 4 at No. 11 Cornell 5

No. 12 Penn State (4-1-0)
10/20/2023 – AIC 2 at No. 12 Penn State 3
10/21/2023 – AIC 6 at No. 12 Penn State 4

No. 13 Ohio State (2-1-2)
10/20/2023 – No. 13 Ohio State 1 at No. 7 Michigan 7
10/21/2023 – No. 13 Ohio State 2 at No. 7 Michigan 2 (OT)

No. 14 Minnesota Duluth (3-0-2)
10/20/2023 – Bemidji State 0 at No. 14 Minnesota Duluth 4
10/21/2023 – No. 14 Minnesota Duluth 5 at Bemidji State 4 (OT)

No. 15 Harvard (0-0-0)
Did not play.

No. 16 Northeastern (2-0-0)
Did not play.

No. 17 Michigan Tech (0-3-2)
10/20/2023 – RV Wisconsin 4 at No. 17 Michigan Tech 2
10/21/2023 – RV Wisconsin 5 at No. 17 Michigan Tech 2

No. 18 Arizona State (4-0-0)
10/20/2023 – RV Northern Michigan 2 at No. 18 Arizona State 3
10/21/2023 – RV Northern Michigan 1 at No. 18 Arizona State 5

No. 19 Minnesota State (2-2-0)
10/20/2023 – RV Massachusetts 6 at No. 19 Minnesota State 3
10/21/2023 – RV Massachusetts 1 at No. 19 Minnesota State 0

No. 20 St. Cloud State (2-4-0)
10/20/2023 – RV Alaska 1 at No. 20 St. Cloud State 4
10/21/2023 – RV Alaska 5 at No. 20 St. Cloud State 2

RV = Received votes
* = Not eligible for poll

SATURDAY ROUNDUP: No. 5 North Dakota downs No. 1 Minnesota, No. 2 Denver defeats No. 3 Boston College, UNH drops No. 4 Quinnipiac in OT, AIC bests No. 12 Penn State

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Jake Livanavage’s first NCAA goal stood as the game winner as North Dakota defeated Minnesota Saturday night on home ice (photo: Russell Hons).

North Dakota notched a pair of goals from its freshmen to collect a 2-1 victory over top-ranked Minnesota and salvage a series split on Saturday night from Ralph Engelstad Arena in Grand Forks, N.D.

After failing to crack the scoreboard last night, UND finally broke through early in the second period on a Jayden Perron deflection off a Garrett Pyke shot that found its way past goaltender Justen Close to give the Fighting Hawks a 1-0 lead less than six minutes into the stanza.

Then just 59 seconds into the third period, Jake Livanavage fired a puck from an awkward angle into the crease that found its way into the net to increase the advantage to 2-0 and give Livanavage his first career goal.

Minnesota clawed back into the contest with a deflection goal of its own by Jaxon Nelson at the 8:04 mark of the third, but UND did not let the Golden Gophers get any closer and closed out the 2-1 victory.

Ludvig Persson was strong between the pipes once again for the hosts, finishing with 21 saves on 22 shots.

Close made 32 saves for the Gophers.

USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll – Oct. 16, 2023

No. 2 Denver 4, No. 3 Boston College 3

Denver scored three third-period goals to defeat Boston College 4-3 on Saturday night at Kelley Rink at Conte Forum in Chestnut Hill, Mass.

Carter King scored the game-winning goal with 2:02 remaining in regulation during a scramble in front of the goal, netting the Pioneers’ second power-play marker of the period. Tristan Broz tallied with the man advantage earlier in the frame.

The Pioneers trailed 2-1 entering the final period but outscored the Eagles 3-1 in the period. Connor Caponi began DU’s run at 4:33 before BC briefly retook the lead on a Will Smith goal.

Massimo Rizzo also scored in the contest, evening the outing at 1-1 at 6:12 of the second frame. Jack Devine had two assists for his fourth consecutive multi-point game.

Denver goaltender Matt Davis made 24 saves in the victory.

Smith had two goals, Oskar Jellvik also scored, and netminder Jacob Fowler made 24 saves.

New Hampshire 5, No. 4 Quinnipiac 4 (OT)

Cy Leclerc’s second goal of the game at 3:51 of overtime gave the Wildcats a thrilling 5-4 win over Quinnipiac at the Whittemore Center in Durham, N.H.

Colton Huard, who also had two assists in the game, had tied the game 4-4 for UNH with a power-play goal at 3:01 of the third period.

Morgan Winters and Marty Lavins also scored and Robert Cronin and Ryan Conmy chipped in two assists each.

In goal, Tyler Muszelik made 35 saves for the win.

Vinny Duplessis and Matej Marinov combined to stop 26 shots for the Bobcats.

No. 6 Boston University 8, Notre Dame 2

Boston University scored five times in the first period en route to an 8-2 victory over Notre Dame on Saturday night at Compton Family Ice Arena in South Bend, Ind.

Eleven different Terriers recorded a point, with eight of those players tallying multiple points. Luke Tuch led BU with three points, all in the opening frame, as he scored a goal and assisted on two others. Shane Lachance scored the first two goals of his collegiate career while Macklin Celebrini also lit the lamp twice. Aiden Celebrini also scored his first goal as a Terrier and assisted on another.

Dylan Peterson recorded a goal and an assist, while Quinn Hutson lit the lamp, and Devin Kaplan, Sam Stevens and Jeremy Wilmer added two assists apiece.

BU goalie Mathieu Caron made 28 saves in the win.

Ryan Siedem and Tyler Carpenter scored for the Irish and Ryan Bischel and Jack Williams combined on a 42-save effort in goal.

No. 13 Ohio State 2, No. 7 Michigan 2 (Ohio State wins shootout)

Ohio State came from behind to tie Michigan 2-2 Saturday at Yost Ice Arena in Ann Arbor, Mich.

The Buckeyes opened the scoring in the first on a Patrick Guzzo goal and held the lead until two Wolverine power-play goals in the third from Gavin Brindley and TJ Hughes put UM ahead, but Ryan Gordon tied the game with just under five minutes remaining.

Ohio State then won the shootout, 2-1 in five rounds, to pick up the extra point in the Big Ten standings.

Logan Terness made 42 stops for OSU, while Jake Barczewski finished with 35 saves for Michigan.

No. 9 Western Michigan 5, Bowling Green 2

Sam Colangelo’s hat trick lifted the Broncos over the Falcons 5-2 Saturday night at Lawson Arena in Kalamazoo, Mich.

Colangelo also contributed an assist for a four-point game.

Chad Hillebrand rang up four assists and Matteo Costantini added a goal and two helpers for the Broncos.

Ethan Phillips also scored for WMU and Cameron Rowe took the win in goal making 14 saves.

For Bowling Green, Spencer Kersten and Gustav Stjernberg scored goals. Cole Moore stopped 42 shots in a losing effort.

No. 10 Providence 4, RPI 2

Providence rallied to a win on Saturday at Schneider Arena, topping Rensselaer with a 4-2 final score on home ice in Providence, R.I.

The Friars crawled back after an early 2-0 deficit, paced by a pair of short-handed goals by senior captain Chase Yoder.

Hudson Malinoski and Craig Neddham. also with an assist, added goals for the Friars.

Ryan Brushett and Danny Ciccarello scored for the Engineers.

Providence goalie Philip Svedebäck finished with 16 saves for the victory.

Carson Cherepak made 38 saves for RPI.

AIC 6, No. 12 Penn State 4

Penn State erased a three-goal deficit, but couldn’t complete the comeback as AIC scored two late goals to secure the 6-4 victory in non-conference action at Pegula Ice Arena on Saturday night in University Park, Pa.

Matt Rickard started the scoring for AIC just 2:54 into the game before Simon Mack tied it for Penn State at 6:30 of the opening frame.

The Yellow Jackets regained the lead late in the first period pushing it to 3-1 with a pair of goals less than three minutes apart from Julius Janhonen and Austen Long. AIC pushed the lead to 4-1 midway through the second period on a goal by Alexander Malinowski.

The Nittany Lions cut into the deficit as Chase McLane, Danny Dzhaniyev, and Reese Laubach scored to make it a 4-4 score late in the third period.

The Yellow Jackets fought back and Casey McDonald delivered on an odd-man rush for the 5-4 edge at 17:47 and then an empty netter from Brian Kramer sealed the deal.

Alexandros Aslanidis made 36 saves in the victory for AIC.

Liam Souliere allowed four goals on 15 shots over the opening 32:55 before being lifted for sophomore Noah Grannan, who stopped seven of the eight shots he faced the rest of the way to take the loss.

Air Force 4, Alaska Anchorage 3 (OT)

The Falcons’ Austin Schwartz went coast to coast for the short-handed overtime game winner to beat Alaska Anchorage 4-3 Saturday night at the Avis Alaska Sports Complex in Anchorage, Alaska.

Air Force trailed 3-0 in the second period but came all the way back to force overtime by scoring on the power play, short-handed and even strength.

“We all just witnessed magic tonight,” Air Force coach Frank Serratore said. “Give Alaska Anchorage credit, they were clearly the better team for the first two periods. Thankfully for us, Guy Blessing was the best player on the ice. It is hard to turn a game around and we had absolutely nothing going when we were down 3-1 and killing a major, but we found a way to get it done. When Schwartz got his legs moving, their defenseman just couldn’t keep up. What great substance our guys scored to come all the way and get a split up here.”

Just 38 seconds into the game, the Seawolves scored as Porter Schachle set up Ben Almquist for a 1-0 lead.

UAA then scored two goals in less than four minutes for a 3-0 lead in the second as Almquist scored his second of the game and Maximillion Helgeson redirected a point shot by Gunnan Vandamme.

The Falcons got on the board late in the second period on the power play. Clayton Cosentino gained the zone and dropped the puck for Will Gavin, who slid the puck to the center point to Chris Hedden, who gave it back to Gavin in the right circle for a one-timer and Gavin’s second goal of the season.

Air Force’s penalty kill not only got the job done but scored a short-handed goal. Mason McCormick forced a turnover deep in the Seawolves end and scored from Chris Hedden at 1:40 of the third period to cut the deficit to 3-2. Air Force tied the game with 12:01 remaining on Luke Rowe’s first goal of the season. Lucas Coon, playing his first game in nearly a year after recovering from injuries, collected the assist by getting the puck to Hedden. Hedden set up Rowe for a one-timer from the top of the left circle to tie the game.

Blessing made 25 saves for the Falcons. Jared Whale made 18 for the Seawolves.

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