With the exception of the postponed Wentworth-Curry game Saturday, regular season play has ended in the ECAC Northeast.
The good news is most of the Curry players appear to be out of the hospital following a scary incident after Thursday’s game at Johnson and Wales.
No makeup date has been announced. The Colonels have already clinched the top seed and a bye in the playoffs, while Wentworth could overtake JWU for the second bye with a win.
Here’s a look at games that did take place over the weekend. Check back later for a playoff breakdown and a look at the final weekend in the MASCAC.
ECAC Northeast
While the result of the makeup game will determine the final seedings, here’s what we do know regarding the playoffs, which are set to begin Saturday.
No. 4 Becker will host No. 5 Nichols.
Either JWU or Wentworth will host No. 6 Western New England.
Curry, along with the No. 2 seed, will both receive byes.
The conference has yet to announce game times.
Saturday, Feb. 19
Becker 7, Salve Regina 5: A game with no playoff implications (Becker had locked up the fourth seed, while Salve was already out) saw the Hawks rally back with four third period goals to erase a 5-2 Seahawks’ lead. Kevin Sullivan had a goal and two assists for Salve, while Brian Murray scored twice for Becker. Salve Regina will play a makeup game Tuesday against Assumption. The orginal date had been moved due to the snow earlier in the month.
Western New England 3, Suffolk 2 (OT): A duel for the final playoff spot went to overtime, with Dan Monahan adding his second goal of the game to send WNEC into the playoffs. Meanwhile, the Rams are going home after entering last year’s postseason as the third seed.
Nichols 6, Johnson and Wales 3: A three-goal outburst in the final period helped the Bisons emerge with a win and put JWU’s playoff bye in jeopardy. All three scores came within a minute, including a pair by Matt Roberts, one while short-handed.
MASCAC
Saturday, Feb. 19
Salem State 5, Westfield State 1: Josh Franklin’s two goals helped Salem coast to a 4-0 lead en route to a 5-1 win on Senior Night. Jame Lacour made 29 saves in net for the Vikings, who hold a one-point lead over UMass Dartmouth for first.
Plymouth Sate 5, Framingham State 4 (OT): Their playoff status is still in limbo, but Framingham State has been giving the conference’s top teams a run for their money. After beating Fitchburg and playing close against Salem State, a Kyle Greco goal under a minute into overtime sent the Panthers over with the win. Daniel Miressi added his 16th and 17th goals of the year for the Rams. With the win, Plymouth is two points behind UMD for second, and three behind Salem State for first.
Fitchburg State 5, Worcester State 2: The Falcons used a pair of third period goals by Trevor Lawler, including an empty-netter, to put some distance between themselves and the Lancers in both the game and the standings. The win snapped a five-game losing streak for Fitchburg, which now has a comfortable six point lead over Worcester for the fourth seed.
ECAC Northeast and MASCAC wrap: Feb. 21
Weekend wrap-up 2/21
Three RIT streaks came to an end and Canisius moved into the role of spoiler last weekend, as the Atlantic Hockey playoff picture began to clear.
To recap:
Canisius was shut out for the third consecutive game on Thursday in a 3-0 loss to Niagara. But on Saturday, the Griffs exploded for six goals and defeated the Purple Eagles, knocking Niagara out of contention for a first-round bye.
Robert Morris celebrated senior night and a sellout by jumping off to a 3-0 lead and then cruising to a 5-3 win over Rochester Institute of Technology. The loss snapped RIT’s (then) Division I longest 11-game undefeated streak, as well as a 15-game unbeaten streak in AHA play. The loss was also the first on the season for Tiger goalie Shane Madolora (14-1-6).
Air Force ended Mercyhurst’s slim chances for a bye with a 5-3, 6-5 sweep in Erie. The Falcons had another dramatic comeback on Friday, scoring three times in the final three minutes for the win. On Saturday, it was Air Force that got out to an early lead, but the Lakers’ late-game rally fell just short.
Holy Cross extended its unbeaten streak to nine games by taking three points from Sacred Heart. The Crusaders limited the Pioneers to 15 shots on Friday in a 3-2 win, and erased a two-goal deficit in a 3-3 tie on Sunday.
A split between Connecticut and Bentley was good news for the Huskies, who maintain a two-point lead over the Falcons for the final eastern pod bye. Bentley got a goal and two assists from Erik Peterson on Friday in a 4-2 win to draw even in the standings, but UConn held off a Bentley rally in the closing seconds on Saturday for a 6-4 victory.
And finally, Army kept its hopes for a bye alive with a sweep of American International. On Friday, the Black Knights scored five goals in the second period to roll to a 6-4 win in front of a big crowd at Tate Rink. Saturday’s outdoor contest at Rentschler Field saw Army come out on top again, this time 4-1.
How’d I do?
I had a good week, going 7-3-1, which was just enough to get by Sean Baxter, who also predicted well, going 6-4-1.
I move to 96-62-23 on the season and clinch a winning season against my guests at 9-6-1.
Check back tomorrow for a look at the playoff picture going into the final week of the regular season.
Commentary: Many questions, not enough answers in Cronin suspension
On Friday afternoon, a news release came across saying Northeastern coach Greg Cronin and assistant coach Albie O’Connell had been indefinitely suspended pending an investigation into possible NCAA violations surrounding communication with potential recruits.
The suspensions came amid a week of highlight performances by Cronin’s team. On Monday night, the Huskies came within a whisker of capturing the school’s first Beanpot since 1988, losing to the nation’s No. 1 team, Boston College, 7-6 in overtime. Hours after the suspension, the Huskies again pushed the No. 1 Eagles to the brink, forcing a 7-7 road tie without Cronin or O’Connell behind the bench. On Saturday, they finally broke through and earned a 2-1 victory over the Eagles.
What should have been three memorable games for Northeastern are suddenly clouded by questions and speculation.
The school hasn’t said much. Athletic director Peter Roby spoke after Friday’s game but focused more on how proud he is of the hockey team than the specific violations that have left his team minus two coaches. His statement earlier in the day talked of a “culture of integrity” that Roby wants within his athletic department.
Integrity right now has to be a focus for Northeastern, which is on probation with the NCAA for major infractions found in recruiting for the men’s basketball team from 2003 through 2005. The probation began in April 2009 and continues through April of this year. Roby, who joined the athletic department as athletic director in 2007, is seen as part of the solution. Thus, any sort of red flag raised by compliance as an error, oversight or mistake in the recruiting process is likely to result in immediate action.
That could be part of the reason that indefinite suspensions resulted. Roby and his athletic department likely want to show swift action regardless of the magnitude of the violation. It’s known that a school’s ability to self-police violations with appropriate and just proactive discipline is looked upon with favor by the NCAA. You can speculate that Roby’s indefinite suspension of Cronin and O’Connell while all of the details are gathered could be a tool to keep the NCAA from further investigating the athletic department.
At the same time, the fact that any recruiting infractions happen within a Greg Cronin-run program is somewhat surprising. Twice prior, Cronin has been involved in programs that have been cited for major infractions by the NCAA.
The most well-known was Maine’s censure in 1996 for a number of violations that led to head coach Shawn Walsh’s suspension for a full year. Cronin arrived at Maine after most of the violations had occurred and his arrival led to his debut as a head coach, taking the reins during Walsh’s suspension and leading Maine to a respectable 27-14-2 record during that span.
The lesser-known past problem for Cronin occurred in the early 1990s while he was a member of the Colorado College coaching staff under the direction of head coach Brad Buetow. There, the staff was involved in the midseason recruiting of a goaltender who was illegally flown to the campus using an assistant coach’s frequent flyer miles, provided free accommodations and allowed to practice with the team despite still being enrolled in junior college. That case was amplified when Buetow didn’t cooperate with the NCAA investigation and was ultimately forced to resign.
Fast forward to the present to an NCAA program that is already on probation and a head coach that has been involved in programs found guilty of NCAA violations, and you would think that Northeastern’s men’s hockey program would be the squeakiest clean program in the nation.
Let me say this: As a reporter, I like Greg Cronin. He’s a no-punches-pulled type of guy who has done a great job in taking a team from 24 losses in his first season behind the bench to the school’s first NCAA bid in 15 years in 2009. He recruits with two powerhouses, Boston College and Boston University, in his backyard and does a great job to attract solid players.
He has built a culture of success and seen attendance consistently grow. Even this season, when the club had a horrific start, he turned things around and less than a week ago was the talk of the town for the Huskies’ effort in the Beanpot.
Now, unfortunately, a week later his name remains in the news but for all the wrong reasons. Selfishly, I hope that Greg Cronin comes out of this investigation clean and that he returns behind the Northeastern bench sooner rather than later. The team — and the game — need his coaching talents.
For now, though, there remain far too many questions and too few answers.
Weekend work-up: Feb. 21, 2011
The landscape in the CCHA changed only a little over the weekend and with one weekend to go, the regular-season title and last two first-round byes are up for grabs.
Ferris State-Notre Dame. For the 10th time in program history, the Fighting Irish have reached 20 wins with a sweep over the Bulldogs, 3-2 and 5-2. The Irish never trailed in the weekend, leading 1-0 after the first in each game and the Irish had a three-goal third period Saturday to cap the weekend. Each team spread out its offense, as 11 different players accounted for the 12 goals scored on the weekend; Nick Larson had two goals for ND. Once again, Mike Johnson and Steven Summerhays split time in net for the Irish. The six points keep Notre Dame in first place with 56 points, one ahead of second-place Michigan, six ahead of third-place Miami.
Western Michigan-Michigan. The Wolverines kept pace with the Irish with a sweep of the visiting Broncos – but they needed extra time to get those six points. Friday’s 6-3 win was closer than it sounds, and Saturday’s 5-4 win came down to the wire for Michigan twice. Carl Hagelin scored the game-tying goal for UM at 19:20 and the game-winner with three seconds left in OT. The 5-4 win was a rare instance of the Wolverines having to battle from behind; Bronco Dane Walters scored 43 seconds into the contest and WMU led 3-2 after one on Walters’ second goal and another by Ben Warda. Hagelin’s game-winner came on the power play, a weak interference call on Luke Witkowski at 4:31 in overtime. It was the first time this season that the Broncos didn’t take a point on a weekend against a CCHA opponent, and they remain in fourth place with 41 points. Of Hagelin’s goals, UM head coach Red Berenson said, “It’s as good as it gets.” Berenson even smiled.
Northern Michigan-Bowling Green. The Wildcats took four points from the Falcons with a 2-2 tie and 3-2 win, and that was enough to make a move in the CCHA standings with a little help from the Irish and the Spartans. NMU is in sole possession of fifth place – for now – with 39 points, two behind Western Michigan. Phil Fox and Justin Florek had big weekends for the Wildcats; Fox had three goals and an assist, while Florek had a goal Friday and assisted on all three NMU markers Saturday. Reid Ellingson was in net both nights for the Wildcats. Both BG goals in Saturday’s 3-2 loss came unassisted at the start of the first and second periods, when Ryan Peltoma (1:22) and Bryce Williamson (2:07) scored, respectively. The Falcons outshot the Wildcats 10-3 in the final period of play. “I don’t know how some of those shots didn’t go in at the end,” said BG head coach Chris Bergeron. BGSU remains in last place.
Michigan State-Alaska. The Spartans and Nanooks split a pair in Fairbanks, with Alaska winning 4-1 Friday and MSU 6-2 on Saturday. Scott Enders had two goals in the UAF win, a game that the Nanooks led 4-0 until Daultan Leveille scored at 18:28 in the third. Andy Taranto had a goal in that game, too, and the only two scores for the Nanooks Saturday. A number of Spartans had multi-point games Saturday; Derek Grant led the goal scoring with two and added two assists. Drew Palmisano got the win for MSU, as he and Will Yanakeff split time in net. Scott Greenham was – of course – the goalie of record for the Nanooks for the series. Heading into the weekend, the Nanooks were knotted with the Lakers and Wildcats, each with 35 points. They’re still in sixth, but now they’re tied with FSU, and each team is just one point behind fifth-place NMU. The Spartans are in 11th place with 29 points.
Lake Superior State-Ohio State. The Lakers set a school record for single-season ties (nine) with Friday’s 1-1 decision before dropping Saturday’s game, 5-2, to the Buckeyes. LSSU took the extra shootout point, and the two points put the Lakers in eighth place in the CCHA with 37 points, two ahead of ninth-place Ohio State and one behind FSU and UAF, tied for sixth. The Buckeyes put 79 shots on net to the Lakers’ 56. Kevin Kapalka played both nights for LSSU, stopping 73. Cal Heeter was the goalie of record for the Buckeyes both nights, but senior Dustin Carlson – whom Heeter beat out for the starting job – played three minutes, 30 seconds in the third, stopping the only shot he faced. The Lakers led 2-0 before the second game was two minutes old on goals by Colin Campbell and Rick Schofield. Five Buckeyes scored in the game, with seniors Corey Toy, Sergio Somma, Danny Dries and Peter Boyd all scoring, and all but Boyd recording assists.
How did I do?
Last week: 5-3-2 (.600)
Season to date: 100-65-25 (.592)
Better than a coin toss – barely. As always, there’s Twitter to help vent your spleen as well: @paulacweston
Weekend recap: Feb. 18-19
Even though Merrimack, Maine and Boston University were the three teams to sweep series this past weekend, I’m going to argue that the big winners were Merrimack and New Hampshire and not the Black Bears or the Terriers.
It all has to do with Northeastern stunning number-one-ranked Boston College by taking three of four points in their home-and-home series. (And without head coach Greg Cronin, I might add.) In terms of impressive achievements, the Huskies won that category hands down over everyone in Hockey East if not the country.
But we’re only two weeks away from the end of the regular season so the standings mean everything and based on the standings New Hampshire was the biggest winner with Merrimack number two.
New Hampshire took three-of-four points in its series with Vermont but with Northeastern’s help is now firmly in the driver’s seat for the regular season title. The Wildcats hold a two-point lead over BC and also hold the tiebreaker based on beating the Eagles 2-1 way back on Nov. 5.
New Hampshire still needs to match BC’s results this weekend and then at least split their home-and-home series the final weekend, but there’s a cushion that wasn’t there a week ago.
[Note: I earlier incorrectly stated that UNH would need only one-of-four points head-to-head to take the title over BC, but that was incorrect. Only a single point would mean BC had wiped out the tiebreaker lead and would then have more wins than the Wildcats. Thanks to a poster for pointing out this brain cramp.]
Unless, that is, Merrimack races past both of them for the title. (Remember that Merrimack holds the season tiebreaker over every team mathematically in contention: UNH, BC and BU.)
Don’t look now but the Warriors are now in second place (tied with BC but holding the tiebreaker) only two points back. Which is why they were the second big winners on the weekend thanks to the Huskies. Merrimack had a really tough time with Massachusetts, needing overtime at the Mullins Center before winning 2-1 back at home, and now must travel to Maine for two.
But second place and two points out of first!
Okay, it’s now time to give Maine and BU their due. The Black Bears shut out Massachusetts-Lowell on the weekend, 4-0 and 3-0, and that was on the road too. I’ve been critical of Maine’s goaltending but Dan Sullivan returned and stopped all 49 shots on the weekend.
Perhaps the death of the Black Bears has been greatly exaggerated.
BU wasn’t quite as decisive in sweeping Providence, 2-1 and 1-0, but played a dominant first 30 minutes against the Friars on Friday and got the much-needed two wins.
Hats off to Northeastern for taking three of four points from the Eagles. Cronin’s suspension casts a cloud over the immediate future for the Huskies, but following up their riveting Beanpot performance in defeat with a 7-7 tie and a 2-1 win deserves a standing O.
Vermont picked up a huge point against UNH. The Catamounts got shellacked, 6-1, on Friday night but came back with an impressive 2-2 tie one night later. That widens the gap between them and Providence for the final playoff berth to three points. And since they hold the tiebreaker, it acts like a four-point lead.
The big losers in addition to BC, then, were the three teams that got swept. UMass and Providence went down swinging as already noted, losing both nights by a single goal. The overtime loss for the Minutemen was particularly excruciating since they’d just taken the lead late in the third period and held it with a minute and a half to go in regulation. That had to hurt.
As did Lowell’s blanking at the hands of Maine, its perennial matchup nightmare. With that disappointing outcome, the River Hawks were mathematically eliminated from the playoffs. Turn out the lights, the party’s over.
Weekend of Feb. 18-19
Well, that weekend was slightly more predictable, but we still had a few surprises in store.
Bemidji State took three from Colorado College
– This. This right here is an example of said surprises and a result that neither Tyler nor I saw.
– Friday was an offensive explosion and, as BSU coach Tom Serratore told the Colorado Springs Gazette’s Joe Paisley,
“It was a crazy game to be part of.”
– 5-5 ties can be like that.
– The Tigers kept getting leads but the Beavers kept coming back to tie.
– Even though Jaden Schwartz was back for CC, Tim Hall was the team’s early threat. I’ll borrow from Paisley here:
“After recording only his second goal of the season last Saturday, the junior from Pittsburgh doubled his season total with two scores 6:25 apart to lead the Tigers to a 3-2 lead after a wild first period.”
– On Saturday, the Beavers rallied from being down 1-0 early to win 2-1.
– One thing that probably hurt CC was losing Tyler Johnson to injury on Friday.
– However, the weekend was an overall good one for the Beavers, as Serratore told the Bemidji Pioneer‘s Eric Stromgren:
“It was a good weekend for us and I’m really happy for the fans because they saw some good hockey this weekend.”
Michigan Tech split Denver
– First of all, congrats to the Huskies for breaking their 26 game winless streak with a 3-2 win on Friday.
– It was funny reading the status updates of Tech fan friends on Facebook – their reactions ranged from extreme elation to utter shock.
– The feat was helped out by MTU’s two short-handed goals … and the rare fact they were able to hold a third period lead.
“Composure is big, and typically as a coaching staff you start looking at your older players; we don’t have any older players,” coach Jamie Russell told USCHO’s Candace Horgan. “You look at the ice and who’s out there with five minutes left and a one-goal game, it’s a lot of freshmen. That’s a learning process; you can talk about the things with X’s and O’s, but I thought our guys did a great job.”
– On Saturday, the Pioneers made some changes and earned the series split (and home ice) with a 5-1 victory.
– The highlight of the game, however, ended up on ESPN SportsCenter as the number three play. While short-handed, DU’s David Makowski sent what should have been a routine clear from behind his own blue line down the ice toward the Tech end … the puck ended up taking a funky bounce and went in past Tech goaltender Kevin Genoe.
– Ironically enough, Russell said that, “For Kevin’s sake, I hope it’s not on SportsCenter.”
– The goal was reminiscent of the one UND’s Robbie Bina scored on UM’s Jeff Frazee a few years ago.
– Well here, why don’t I just embed it?
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6a79Ej7WK5Q
Minnesota State split Minnesota-Duluth
– Unsurprising result here.
– The Mavericks won Friday 3-1 on the strength of two power play goals.
– The Bulldogs outshot MSU 41-27, but couldn’t get much past Austin Lee.
“We did everything but score,” UMD’s Scott Sandelin told fellow columnist Tyler Buckentine. “It’s just not going in right now.”
– It did on Saturday, however, as the Bulldogs earned the split, winning 6-2.
– UMD also clinched home ice in the process and continued to avoid losing back-to-back games.
North Dakota took three from St. Cloud State
– Kind of surprising to see SCSU only get one point this weekend.
– However, the Sioux getting the one point on Friday meant they were the only top team in the league to earn a point (UMD, UNO, DU all lost).
– Matt Frattin scored two including the game-tying goal to help the Sioux tie SCSU, 3-3 on Friday.
– On Saturday, it was Brett Hextall’s turn to score twice as the Sioux beat SCSU, 3-2.
– From loosely following along on live blogs, it sounded like both games were hard fought and both teams had goals disallowed on the weekend.
– “These were highly intense games,” UND coach Dave Hakstol told the Grand Forks Herald’s Brad Schlossman on Saturday, succinctly summing up the series.
Nebraska-Omaha split Alaska-Anchorage
– Also an unsurprising result.
– The Seawolves won 3-2 on Friday, winning their fifth straight home game. Moreover, it was their fifth straight league home win, a first in team history.
– The loss broke a four-game winning streak for the Mavericks.
“They came out and hit, did a good job all over the ice and didn’t allow us to play our skating game,” UNO coach Dean Blais told the Anchorage Daily News’s Doyle Woody.
– On Saturday, from the sounds of Woody’s recap, the Seawolves put forth a good effort, but still lost, 4-1 …
– … thanks to the efforts of UNO’s John Faulkner.
“The difference was they scored on some of their quality chances and we didn’t,” said UAA coach Dave Shyiak. “You’ve got to give credit to their goaltender. He came up with some big saves.”
Minnesota took three from Wisconsin
– In turn helping them out tremendously in terms of home ice, as the Gophers sit in sixth place, just one point behind the Badgers.
– If you’re playing along at home, remember that Wisconsin took three from UM at Mariucci earlier this year … marking it the first time since the 2005-06 season that neither team successfully defended home ice.
– UM won 5-2 on Friday thanks to its upper class stepping up.
– Three seniors (Mike Hoeffel, Jacob Cepis, Pat White) combined for five points (3g, 2a).
– “It looked like we were biking into the wind,” UW coach Mike Eaves told USCHO’s Benjamin Worgull in a fun analogy. “We didn’t make enough hockey plays tonight. It looked like we were really fighting it, and that was the difference in the game.”
– If you’ve ever biked into the wind, by the way, you understand and empathize with Eaves.
– On Saturday, each team exchanged a goal a period to end up in a 3-3 tie.
– The game-tying goal was a big one for not only for the team, but for the player who scored it – it was Badger freshman forward Jefferson Dahl’s first career tally.
– “It was hard fought,” Gopher coach Don Lucia told Worgull. “I think both teams came out, had a sense of urgency with how important this game was, and I think there’s two pretty tired hockey teams right now because they laid it on the line.”
– Also worth noting: Eaves sat goaltender Scott Gudmandson in favor of Brett Bennett on Saturday saying, “pure and simple, it was time for a change.”
WCHA teams in the PairWise
– UND – 2nd
- DU – t4th
– UMD – 7th
– UNO – t-8th
– UW – 14th
– UM – 18th
– CC – 19th
– MSU – t-23rd
– SCSU – t-25th
– BSU – 29th
– UAA – t-31st
ECAC East/NESCAC wrap: Feb. 20
The regular season is over.
Since February has played out like it’s already the playoffs and virtually nothing was locked up entering the weekend, the unofficial playoffs called the regular season in February came to a conclusion on Saturday, and now the intensity and stakes go up considerably entering the real conference tournaments. So here is a look at the individual conferences, action this weekend, and the match-ups for next weekend in the conference quarterfinals.
In the ECAC East, the top spot has a familiar team, as Norwich had a 2-0 weekend against Connecticut College and Tufts and maintained its slim two-point advantage over second place Castleton. The Spartans won two road games against Williams and Middlebury and maintained their second place position in the standings.
The battle for the final two home ice berths came down to three teams fighting for two spots. Massachusetts-Boston took the third spot on the basis of splitting with Hamilton and Amherst while Skidmore and Babson could manage just one point and 0 points respectively in their NECAC match-ups. Skidmore’s taking a tie at Middlebury was enough for earning the final home playoff berth while Babson earns a first round road trip to face the Thoroughbreds next weekend.
The sixth, seventh and eighth spots were pretty much established and this weekend just confirmed the order. Southern Maine took three points in beating Wesleyan in OT and tying Trinity on Saturday to secure sixth place. The Huskies showed they may be up to one of their end of year runs and got some needed offensive production from Zach Joy, whose natural hat trick on Friday included two third period goals as well as the overtime winner. His five points on the weekend may have jump-started the offense the Huskies need on the road against UMB this upcoming weekend. New England College remained in seventh and unfortunately not only lost both games to Colby and Bowdoin but did not score a goal in the 1-0 and 3-0 losses. The Pilgrims played things tight, but are going to need some scoring if they expect to move on next weekend.
The eighth and final spot belongs to UNE, wh,o despite a 14-1 loss at Wesleyan to end the season, beat Trinity on Friday night for its third win over an NESCAC opponent in the second half of the season. Over the past five games, the Nor’easters have scored 23 goals and they will need offensive output if they are going to upset Norwich at Kreitzburg Arena.
So the match-ups next week find UNE at Norwich, NEC at Castleton, Southern Maine at UMB, and Babson at Skidmore, with the quarterfinals playing in the final four at the home rink of the highest remaining seed.
Over in the NESCAC, things were very unsettled entering the weekend, with so many teams battling for every position from top to bottom. The road-hardened Continentals did what they needed to do by taking four points with wins over UMB and Babson to secure their first ever regular season title and the number one seed for the conference playoffs. Forward Michael DiMare scored two goals in each game over the weekend and Anthony Scarpino added a hat trick on Friday night to lead the offense for the Continentals, who finished 11-2-1 away from home this season. Hopefully, they won’t mind the reward of winning the top seed and a quarterfinal home date with a Wesleyan, team that defeated them by a 3-2 score way back in the first weekend of the season in November.
Other key contenders for the top spot and home ice berths didn’t match the success of Hamilton, but did just enough to hold off resurgent Bowdoin and Colby, who just missed out on playing at home next week. Williams split over the weekend, dropping a close game with Castleton on Friday before winning the season finale at home against Skidmore to lock-up second place.
Third place ended in a tie between Middlebury, Amherst, and Bowdoin, which was ultimately decided on the basis of head-to-head tiebreakers to determine the final seeding and last two home-ice berths. The Panthers entered the weekend tied for first, but managed just one point in a tie with Skidmore and a close 3-2 loss to cross-state rival Castleton. Amherst split its weekend games by beating Babson before suffering a 7-2 loss at UMB. Bowdoin made up for its late-season slide by winning both games against St. Anselm and NEC, but still lost both head-to-head tiebreakers to Middlebury and Amherst, so the third and fourth seeds reside in Middlebury and Amherst.
Sixth, seventh and eighth positions pretty much remained status quo based on some surprising results across the board. Colby did what they needed to in winning both games to stay ahead of hard-charging Trinity. Since mid-January, coach Jim Tortorella’s team is 11-2-1, with one of the losses coming against their quarterfinal opponents from Middlebury. Trinity lost some momentum when they suffered a surprise loss at home to UNE on Friday, but rallied to take one point from Southern Maine and maintain the seventh spot. After Friday night’s game where Conn College lost, Wesleyan, despite an overtime loss to USM, was guaranteed the final playoff position and then scored two touchdowns to beat UNE 14-1 on Saturday.
Travel partners Conn College and Tufts saw their seasons come to an end this weekend, as only the top eight teams qualify for the conference tournament. It surely is a disappointing outcome for the Camels and Jumbos, who combined finishing the second half of the season going 6-24-3 sealing their fate outside a playoff berth.
So the very intriguing match-ups for this weekend include Wesleyan at Hamilton, Trinity at Williams, Colby at Middlebury, and Bowdoin at Amherst. In three of the four quarterfinal match-ups, the visitors have won the prior game, so all of the contests are going to be very interesting and exciting hockey games, with the unfortunate outcome of seeing four quality teams having their season come to an abrupt conclusion.
The regular season has been a blast, and this past weekend was a microcosm of the playoffs to follow. Anything can and just as well may happen. I will need the week to come up with this week’s game predictions so stay tuned. Conference hardware is up for grabs.
Play like you don’t want to go home – drop the puck!
Wentworth at Curry Game Postponed
Today’s game between Wentworth and Curry has been postponed, according to the Colonels’ athletic website. The game was the final regular season contest for both teams and was set to take place at 4:35 in Milton, Mass.
No makeup date has been announced.
The postponement comes after 28 Curry players were hospitalized for nitrous dioxide exposure after Thursday’s game at Johnson and Wales, according to MyFoxBoston. The website reported all patients were in good condition.
Curry has already clinched the top spot in the ECAC Northeast, but Wentworth could slide into second place depending on the outcome of today’s Johnson and Wales game. The Wildcats are at Nichols at 4:40.
ECAC Northeast and MASCAC Weekend Preview: Feb. 18
Here’s a look at the final weekend of ECAC Northeast play and what’s on deck for the MASCAC as well.
ECAC Northeast
Saturday, Feb. 19
Suffolk at Western New England: A fight for the last playoff spot, as Western New England’s 3-1 win over Nichols Wednesday moved them into a tie with the Rams, who lost to Becker. WNEC owns the series lead, so a tie would result in Suffolk going home and Western New England advancing. Western New England 4, Suffolk 3
Wentworth at Curry: The Colonels moved into first place with a 4-1 win over Johnson and Wales last night. The Colonels need just one point to clinch the regular season title. If they lose, and the Wildcats win, JWU will get the title thanks to more league wins.
For Wentworth, a win and a Wildcats loss would jump them into second place and a first round bye. Should they tie JWU for second, the Leopards would lose out based on the tiebreaker. Curry 4, Wentworth 3
Johnson and Wales at Nichols: This is a game that could end with JWU in first or missing a first round bye entirely. A Wildcats win would lock up a first round bye and give them a possibility to move into first, depending on what Curry does. Nichols has locked up a playoff spot, but this game could impact their seeding depending on the outcome of the WNEC/Suffolk game. Johnson and Wales 5, Nichols 4
Salve Regina at Becker: The only game of the weekend that doesn’t have any impact on the stadiums. The Seahawks are out of the playoffs, and the Hawks have the fourth seed locked up. Becker 6, Salve Regina 4
MASCAC
Saturday, Feb. 19
Westfield State at Salem State: The Owls have played well of late, upsetting Fitchburg State last night and Plymouth State last week. Can that trend continue against the second play Vikings? Salem State 5, Westfield State 3
Framingham State at Plymouth State: Like Westfield, the Rams have picked it up a bit lately as the two battle it out for the MASCAC’s last playoff spot. Despite the loss to Westfield, Plymouth is a tough opponent. I think they’ll get by the Rams but given the flow of play the last week or so, it wouldn’t be shocking to see an upset. Plymouth State 5, Framingham State 1
Fitchburg State at Worcester State: The Falcons’ boast the conference’s best goalie duo in the tandem of Bobby Leiser and Robert Vorse, but that hasn’t been enough to prevent a four game skid that’s dropped them well into fourth place. Worcester is just 2-7 over the last month. Who wants to end their skid more? In the end, I think Fitchburg will. Fitchburg State 3, Worcester State 2
Finally, a bit late on my part, but still worth mentioning. The Gridiron Club of Greater Boston announced 16 semifinalists for the Joe Concannon award, given to the top American-born athlete playing Division II or III hockey in New England. Several ECAC NE and MASCAC players were selected, including Skylur Jameson (Wentworth) Jermiah Ketts (JWU), Billy Pescosolido (Fitchburg State), and Ryan Warsofsky (Curry). Check out the full list here.
The Midweek That Was.
ECAC Northast
Becker 3, Suffolk 2
Western New England College 3, Nichols 1
Curry 4, Johnson and Wales 1
Wentworth 5, Salve Regina 4
MASCAC
Salem State 3, St. Anselm 1
Westfield State 7, Fitchburg State 5
Salem State 4, Framingham State 2
UMass Dartmouth 7, Worcester State o
MCHA, MIAC and NCHA picks for Feb. 18-19
I was a less-than-superlative 2-3 in last week’s picks, which I blame on Valentine’s Day. I had love in my eye instead of the requisite analytical lens that enables me to critically size up teams in their respective encounters. The end result included missteps in picking a surging Wisconsin-Stevens Point beating Wisconsin-Stout at home Feb. 11 (UW-Stout won 5-4). I also botched the call on the home-and-home Hamline-Gustavus Adolphus series, predicting the host team would prevail. The visitors won. That leaves me at 32-22-4 in the pick’s department.
So, I tread cautiously while wading into this week’s prognostication pool, which includes three Northern Collegiate Hockey Association playoff games as well as the pivotal Midwestern Collegiate Hockey Association tussle between No. 5 Adrian and No. 8 Milwaukee School of Engineering.
Feb. 18-19
Friday-Saturday
UW-Eau Claire at UW-Stevens Point: The No. 5-seed Blugolds (14-10-1, 8-9-1) enter the playoff fray fresh off a pair of back-to-back 3-0 shutouts – courtesy of netminder Brandon Stephenson — over St. Scholastica and Wisconsin-Superior. Coupled with sophomore snipers Jordan Singer (13 goal, 16 assists, 19 points) and Kurt Weston (10-12-22), UW-Eau Claire is a potent foe for No. 4 seed and hosts UW-Stevens Point. The Blugolds have been hot and cold in the new year while the Pointers amassed a 7-2-1 record. Yet the Blugolds have the firepower and goaltending to prevail in an upset. UW-Eau Claire 4-3, UW-Stevens Point 4-2, UW-Eau Claire, 1-0 in mini-game.
St. Scholastica at UW-Superior: The No. 2-seed Yellowjackets (13-11-1, 10-8) would otherwise have nothing to fear in the No. 7-seed Saints (9-15-1, 4-14), who lost eight of their last nine, except for one puzzling trend: UW-Superior has been shutout four times in its last seven contests. The ‘Jackets’ lone win in the seven-game downturn was against St. Scholastica, 4-1, on Feb. 10. Home hasn’t been an advantage, either, where UW-Superior is 5-7 at Wessman Arena (and Duluth Entertainment Convention Center where the team played a handful of games due to ice equipment problems at Wessman). That said, the ‘Jackets still have the ways and means – namely forwards Justin Faryna (11-10-21) and Talon Berlando (8-13-21) along with freshman goaler Drew Strandberg (7-8, 2.30 goals-against, .913 save-percentage) to step it up in the post-season. UW-Superior, 5-2, 3-1
UW River Falls at UW Stout: The No. 3-seed Blue Devils (15-10, 10-8) enter the NCHA playoffs having won four out of their last five as senior Brendan Gay (16-16-32) continues his sparkling season. Goalie Tom Lescovich (12-6, 2.74 GAA, .924 save-pct.) is apparently over an undisclosed upper-body ailment that limited his playing time. The sophomore netminder announced his clean bill of health with consecutive shutouts on the road over UW-Superior, 1-0, and UW-Eau Claire, 2-0, Jan. 29 and Feb. 3. Enter the No. 6-seed Falcons (11-12-1, 7-10-1), who are unbeaten in five of its last six contests (4-1-1). The team’s two-prong scoring attack of Justin Brossman (12-11-23) and Josh Calleja (8-12-20) along with freshman goalie Scott Lewan (8-9-2, 2.24 GAA, .933 save-pct.) continue to shine. Despite the disparity in seeding, these two evenly matched sides will need a mini-game to settle their account. Stout possesses a more offensive weapons needed to advance. UW-Stout 4-3, UW-River Falls, 3-2, UW-Stout 1-0 mini-game.
Adrian at MSOE: This regular-season finale pits MCHA powerhouses in a battle for No. 1 overall and, with it, a first-round bye in the Harris Cup playoffs. The No. 5-ranked Bulldogs (19-3-1, 16-1-1) are loaded upfront as Shawn Skelly (15-19-34), Brad Houston (13-20-33), Eric Miller (14-017-31) and Mike Dahlinger (12-19-31) pilot an offense that has outscored opponents,116-53, and whose 5.04 goals-per game leads the nation. No. 8 MSOE (19-3-1, 16-1-1) boasts its own sizeable arsenal in Jordan Keizer (22-11-33), Todd Krupa (17-13-30) and Bradley Tierney (8-18-26). Though not as prolific as Adrian, MSOE’s 3.96 GPG ranks No. 10 nationally. So, it’s up to the goaltenders to settle things. And that edge goes to the Raiders and Connor Toomey (16-3-1, 1.68 GAA, .933 save-pct.), who is tied with UW-Stout’s Tom Lescovich for the nation’s lead in shutouts with four. When weighing all the variables, this two-game series points to a split, which will require the MCHA folks to employ a tiebreaker to determine the overall regular-season champion. In head-to-head competition, Adrian holds a 1-0-1 edge. MSOE 3-2, Adrian 5-2.
Hamline at Concordia (Minn.): At stake is first place overall in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference in this crucial matchup.The No. 12 Pipers (13-5-5, 8-2-4), who are tied for first on 20 points with idle St. Thomas (14-9-2, 9-5-2), hold a four-point lead over the Cobbers (10-9-4, 6-4-4), who are tied for third with Gustavus Adolphus (13-8-2, 7-5-2) on 16 points. The Gusties have a home-and-home with Saint Mary’s this weekend. Hamline only needs a point to secure top spot while Concordia and Gustavus have to pull off a sweep to create a four-way deadlock for first. Surely, the Pipers are capable of scratching out a point on the road where they are 5-1-4 this season. After all, the team features a balanced attack with Brian Arrigoni (13-16-29), Ryan Kupperman (9-19-28) and Chris Berenguer (12-15-2) at the helm and has dependable Beau Christian (11-3-2, 2.37 GAA, .924 save-pct.) in net. Hamline 4-3, Concordia 5-2.
Candace’s Picks: Feb. 18
Well, I had a pretty awesome week with my picks last weekend, going 16-2-3 (.833). That brings me on the season to 150-49-20 (.731). We’ve got two weeks left in the season before the playoffs start, and the Pairwise has changed little in the last month. However, there could be some interesting position-jockeying in the last couple of weeks. Let’s get to this week’s games.
Friday-Saturday, February 18-19
Wisconsin at Minnesota State: Just as Cornell has been the East’s best and most consistent team, Wisconsin has rolled in the West. Last weekend, they looked impressive in sweeping a tough North Dakota squad. Minnesota State doesn’t have the firepower to hang with the Badgers. Wisconsin 6-1, 5-0
St. Cloud State at Minnesota-Duluth: The Huskies won their first game of the year last week, beating Minnesota State and avoiding the indignity of going winless on the year. However, Minnesota-Duluth is one of the big guns, and should win easy in both games. Minnesota-Duluth 6-0, 7-1
Ohio State at Bemidji State: This is a tough series to pick. The Buckeyes have at times looked good, and at others looked dreadful. Bemidji State has been a pleasant surprise in the WCHA this year, and played No. 1 Wisconsin very tough a couple of weeks ago, losing in OT. I think the Beavers and home ice should equal a sweep, as Bemidji wants revenge for a shootout loss and standard loss earlier in the year. Bemidji State 3-2, 2-1
Minnesota at North Dakota: The marquee series of the weekend, with the subplot of the Lamoureux twins facing their former school. North Dakota has been very mercurial this season, and has settled into a solid fourth in the WCHA. Minnesota has been one of the hottest teams in the country since January. I wouldn’t be surprised by a split, but I’m going to call a Gophers sweep in two close games. Minnesota 3-2 (OT), 4-3
Boston University at Maine: After sweeping Northeastern on the weekend, the Terriers surrendered a three-goal lead in the third to tie the Huskies in the Beanpot, a frustrating result. Maine upset Boston College last weekend, but I think BU is going to come out firing and should sweep. Boston University 3-1, 4-2
Cornell at Dartmouth: Cornell has been dominant this season in the ECAC, with a tie with Clarkson the only blemish on its record. Dartmouth is one of the better teams in the conference and should challenge the Big Red, but I expect they will come up short. Cornell 3-1
Colgate at Harvard: Though they lost a tough Beanpot final to Boston College, Harvard has shown signs of consistency in the second half. I expect they will win this one. Harvard 4-2
Quinnipiac at Yale: An all-Connecticut battle between a team with one of the best freshman in the country and a team motivated by price. Quinnipiac is hot on the heels of Dartmouth and Harvard in the ECAC, and should win this one. Quinnipiac 4-2
Saturday-Sunday, February 19-20
Connecticut/Northeastern: An all-Huskies home-and-home battle between the fourth and fifth place squads in Hockey East. These two are already guaranteed to play each other in the first round, but home ice is on the line. Northeastern looked good at the Beanpot. I’m going to call a sweep for the underdog in two close games. Northeastern 3-2, 2-1
Vermont at Providence: The mistress of ties (nine so far this year) pays a visit to Providence. Is another tie in the works? Very likely, but I’ll call a Friars sweep. Providence 3-2, 3-1
Boston College/New Hampshire: Another home-and-home on the year. The Eagles are coming off an emotional win the Beanpot tournament, but sandwiched that around a loss and tie against lowly Maine last weekend. They might be primed for a letdown again, but I think they will come through. Boston College 3-1, 3-2
Saturday, Feb. 19
Quinnipiac at Brown: Look for the Bobcats to strengthen their position in ECAC against the dismal Bears. Quinnipiac 4-1
Cornell at Harvard: A huge game in the ECAC. While Cornell already has first place locked up, the Crimson need to show the Big Red they are a threat in the playoffs, and what better place to do it on home ice? However, Harvard didn’t look too good against Boston College Tuesday in the Beanpot, and Cornell has been the Big Red Machine this season. Cornell 3-1
ECAC East/NESCAC Game Predictions – 2/18-19,2011
And then there was one…
It may be hard to believe but this is the final week of the regular season and a lot is riding on the final two games for many teams in both conferences. Everyone at the D-III level (no St. Anselm or St. Michael’s) is in the ECAC East conference tournament so the big questions are final placements and what the first round match-ups look like. The only certain thing is that UNE will go on the road to face the first place team regardless what happens in their two games this weekend. In NESCAC things are very interesting from top to bottom with the only sure thing being the Jumbos of Tufts University being eliminated from playoff contention. That said virtually every other position is up for grabs and with just four points separating first from seventh, it will surely be an exciting weekend of hockey.
The teams are totally geared up for this time of year and apparently I have my prognostication skills in line with playing my best at the right time of the year. Let’s see if I can carry it through the final weekend and into the conference tournaments.
Last Week: 18-4-0
Overall Record: 120-91-21 (.565)
Winners in bold.
Friday, February 18, 2011
Amherst @ Babson – Both teams are fighting for a home-ice berth in the first round and trying to build some consistency. The Beavers are coming off a 0 point weekend and need something this weekend to maintain their position. Unfortunately for Babson there are no points on Friday – Amherst 4, Babson 3.
Hamilton @ UMB – The road warriors from Clinton, NY seem to like bus trips. Throw a little Boston traffic into the mix to add to the overall ride time and these guys will be dying to get on the ice – Hamilton 5, UMB 3.
Bowdoin@ St. Anselm – The Hawks aren’t really playing for anything since the NE-10 tournament is outside of their conference play. That said they could play spoiler this weekend. Just not against Bowdoin who dropped two last weekend – Bowdoin 5, St. A’s 2.
Colby @ NEC – Why all the NESCAC picks? It’s not just about what is at stake. Frankly they are all playing some better and more consistent hockey than their opponents from the East. Think that plays out in Hennniker too – Colby 3, NEC 2.
Skidmore @ Middlebury – Both teams rung in the New Year in a non-conference game that saw the Panthers double up on Skidmore. This time the two points are on the line but no difference in outcome – Middlebury 6, Skidmore 3.
Castleton @ Williams – I really thought about picking a tie here because I think Ryan Purdy is just that good. The Spartans still have their sites set on catching Norwich and that’s the fire that is the difference – Castleton 2, Williams 1.
Southern Maine @ Wesleyan – The Cardinals are in the last spot but Conn College is right on their heels. The outdoor game with Trinity didn’t help their situation and neither will a visit from a desperate Huskie team – USM 4, Wesleyan 3.
UNE @ Trinity – The Bantam’s recent roll is all about Wes Vesprini – big time. No let down here as the dash from ninth to wherever is still possible for Trinity – Trinity 4, UNE 2.
Tufts @ St. Michael’s – The Jumbos are just playing out the streak while St. Mike’s is gearing up for the NE-10 tournament. A couple of potential wins against NESCAC schools would be a nice tune-up – St. Mike’s 5, Tufts 4.
Conn College @ Norwich– Coach McShane’s team isn’t going to take anyone lightly the last weekend especially after taking care of business with Castleton and Skidmore last week. Time to keep the troops rolling – Norwich 6, Conn College 2.
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Hamilton @ Babson – The Beavers can’t lose four in a row the last two weekends, can they? Really don’t think so unless they want to be one-and-done next week. Hamilton will be a real dogfight – Babson 3, Hamilton 2.
Amherst @ UMB – See above. Yes they can lose four in row much to Coach Belisle’s dismay. Other than the win against NEC, the Beacon offense has been anemic and when pucks are not going in the last goalie you want to face is Cole Anderson – Amherst 4, UMB 1.
Colby @ St. Anselm – With just two losses in the since mid-January, Colby is playing consistent hockey. The problem is they are facing a team that can be really good when they are on. It hasn’t happened in a week or two so the offense is due for the Hawks – St. A’s 4, Colby 3.
Bowdoin @ NEC – Let the chips fall where they may. The Polar Bears dropped two last week and went from first to fifth. Let’s see what happens after a four point swing on the positive side - Bowdoin 5, NEC 2.
Castleton @ Middlebury – 8-1-1 vs. 7-1-2 over their last ten games. Both teams are playing very well and both want the top slot in their conference. Panthers somehow always seem to find the magic at the right time of the year. Abracadabra – Middlebury 3, Castleton 2.
Skidmore @ Williams - The Ephs can’t afford a two loss weekend and keep home-ice while Skidmore will be looking for help in other games. The Williams seniors who have been a big part of the team’s success end their regular season careers with a win - Williams 4, Skidmore 1.
UNE @ Wesleyan – There is backing into the playoffs and then there is really backing into the playoffs. UNE continues to display its recent spirited play at the expense of the Cardinals – UNE 5, Wesleyan 3.
USM @ Trinity– There is something about that hot goalie that can carry a team and other than Parker Carroll at Norwich, Wes Vesprini is peaking at the right time again for Coach Cataruzolo’s squad – Trinity 3, USM 1.
Conn College @ St. Michael’s – Not the way the Camels want to finish their season but too many tough losses in late January and early February sealed their fate. Even the tiebreaker goes Wesleyan’s way so the Camels have a long trek home – St. Michael’s 4, Conn College 3.
Tufts @ Norwich– Fans at Kreitzburg have grown accustomed to hockey played there in March so why should this year be any different? The road to the NCAA’s starts here and the Cadets are up to the task – Norwich 6, Tufts 1.
I cna’t even think about what the standings are going to look like at the end of Saturday’s games but I can tell you that their will be some compelling first round match-ups and some quality teams are going to see their seasons come to a disappointing end. So for now its about playing all out this week and getting ready go even harder next week.
Playoff positions are on the line – drop the puck!
Hughes humbled by nomination for Hockey Humanitarian Award
The list of finalists for the Hockey Humanitarian Award was announced a couple of days ago. One of the names of the 12 college hockey players on it is Yale’s Aleca Hughes, to the surprise of absolutely no one, and, not surprisingly, to the chagrin of Aleca Hughes.
“I’m definitely honored,” said the junior winger, and Yale’s top goal-getter (with 10). “But it’s just weird, being singled out, I guess.”
That much there tells you a lot about Hughesm, but it doesn’t tell you much about the deeds that earned her the recognition.
However “Bulldog Buddies,” “Be The Match,” and “White Out for Mandi,” efforts into which Hughes has poured endless quantities of time, sweat, and tears, all speak volumes about what makes the heart of this Westwood, Mass. native tick.
It beats in rhythm with the heart of her friend and teammate, Mandi Schwartz, who is receiving palliative chemotherapy in what is a most critical phase of her two-year battle with leukemia.
“She’s affected me in so many different ways,” said Hughes. “A lot of who I am today is attributed to her, (and all) she’s taught me, either directly or indirectly. She’s an incredibly passionate hockey player and an incredibly kind person. She’s so selfless.”
Two years younger than Schwartz, Hughes witnessed her triumphant return to the team a year ago when her cancer went into remission and her somber departure from New Haven to her home in Saskatchewan, and then on to Seattle, to seek more treatment when the disease returned more aggressively than ever.
“I’ll never forget,” said Hughes, “when she left the second time, we were all crying and emotional. And she was the one with the smile on her face, (saying) ‘don’t worry about me. I’ll be back again.’ She was the rock. She was the solid one.'”
It turns out that Hughes, who stands a sturdy 5-foot-10, is made of some pretty rugged stuff too. Fueled by devotion to her stricken linemate, her Bulldog determination, and her Christian faith, Hughes has poured all she has into making life better for Schwartz and her family.
“That encouraged me to try in my smallest and humblest of ways,” Hughes said, “to give back to other people. It’s just always in the front of my mind. Ways to give back, or to help other people. She has helped me so much as a person, I guess.”
As it turned out, many other Mandi’s and many other families will be helped, too. Here’s a for instance for you (and we’re just scraping the top of the iceberg, here).
At the instigation of Hughes and her teammates, nearly 2,000 potential bone marrow donors have been added to the National “Be A Match” Registry. The cruel irony there is that a marrow match was never found for Schwartz, although other patients have already been paired up with critically needed donors.
Hughes also spearheaded a stem cell blood donation drive, which ultimately did prove useful in Schwartz’s treatment.
“It’s just something that I wanted to do,” Hughes said. “I wanted to help, I wanted to do something. It’s just a matter of taking initiative. I guess that’s another thing I’ve learned. There are so many different things that I’ve gotten myself involved with. Yale is such a great place, and we’re so thankful to be here. We’re looking for a way to give back. So many people were willing to help. It was a matter of getting organized.”
When one is immersed in such an endeavor, it’s easy to lose sight of the original purpose.
Not so with Hughes, whose stall in the Bulldog locker room is right next to Schwartz’s, which has been maintained, No. 17 sweater and all. She says Schwartz’s presence is felt in a strong way by all the Bulldogs, through every shift and every practice.
“Mandi’s legacy has affected me,” Hughes said. “It’s affected everyone that’s crossed paths with her, or read her story. And it will forever. She will forever have impacted people in profound ways. I’m just so thankful for that.”
Many can say the same about her “liney”.
NOTES: Joining Hughes as a Humanitarian Award finalist is Robert Morris defenseman Whitney Pappas. Pappas, a senior from Evergreen, Colo., has volunteered for a whole host of events and organizations, including Holy Angels Orphanage, Make-A-Wish Foundation, and Skate for the Cure. She has led several initiatives such as Project Bundle which collects winter wear like coats, scarves, hats and gloves for the needy. Pappas also interned at a recreation center back home in Colorado, for which she helped raise over $17,500 in cash sponsorships and contributions.
Wisconsin-River Falls is the Western threat
And then there was one.
Since late October, the RIT and Wisconsin-River Falls women’s hockey teams have been battling back and forth, matching each other win for win.
Heading into last weekend, both teams remained unbeaten. However, unranked Oswego State tripped up RIT with a 2-1 upset win over the previously top-ranked Tigers to hand them their first loss of the year and prevent them from clinching the ECAC West regular season title.
On the flip side, River Falls rolled through Finlandia to remain unbeaten and take over the top spot in the USCHO Poll for the first time in program history.
“It’s exciting,” River Falls coach Joe Cranston said. “We’ve had a lot of close, one-goal games this year, but we’ve played with a lot of determination and have proven we’re a pretty tough team to beat. It’s a pretty big accomplishment so far, and the girls are excited about it.”
The Falcons (20-0-3, 15-0-3 NCHA) are the lone remaining unbeaten squad in the country, and they have ran the gauntlet through the ultra-competitive NCHA this year where the teams have proven that on any given night, any one of the top eight teams could beat the other.
“In our conference, there are six or seven teams that if you don’t come ready to play, they can and will beat you,” Cranston said. “We have had a lot of hard, tough battles, but we’ve stayed focused and have been consistent throughout the year.”
River Falls has already wrapped up its third NCHA regular season title heading into the final weekend of the regular season with two road games at Marian.
The lone three teams to put blemishes on River Falls’ otherwise perfect record have been St. Norbert, Adrian and Superior who all skated to ties with the Falcons.
Part of the Falcons’ breakthrough season this year has been the arrival of four freshmen that have made a significant impact on the team’s depth.
Kait Mason has 10 goals and 15 assists for 25 points, which leads the team. However, that’s only the tip of the iceberg of what Mason brings to the Falcons, according to Cranston.
“Kait Mason is our best player at both ends of the ice,” Cranston said. “I haven’t seen a player in a long time play like she does. Not only is she our leading scorer, she’ll catch people from behind backchecking. Every shift, she’s tough in the defensive zone and will block shots. She’s one of (our best), if not our best, penalty killers as well.”
Katie Batters and Brook Story are tied for the team lead in goals with 11 each and Michelle Anez has 11 points, giving the Falcons 10 players in double-digit scoring.
The four freshmen, coupled with returners like Katie Flanagan (10-11-21), Emma Nordness (10-9-19), Lauren Conrad (6-13-19), Jessica Thompson (4-14-18), and Breanne Hrabe (10-7-17), have made the Falcons an intimidating foe for their West Region brethren.
“Any of our four lines can score goals,” Cranston said. “We have spread it out the last couple of years, but this year we had a really nice group coming back and then to have Kait Mason, Brook Story, Katie Batters and Michelle Anez step up and help us immediately has really pushed us to the next level and made everyone else better around them.”
In goal, Cranston has juggled four goaltenders, with three seeing a significant amount of game action, and all of them posting solid numbers.
Senior Cassi Campbell has led the group with a 9-0-1 record and a 1.47 goals against average with a .929 save percentage and one shutout. Junior Melissa Deardorff has been right with Campbell every step of the way, posting a 7-0-0 record with a 1.80 goals against average and a .914 save percentage to go along with two shutouts. Freshman Ashley Kuechle is 4-0-2 with a 1.64 goals against average and a .920 save percentage as well to round out the trio.
“Balancing four goalies is never an easy thing, but we’ve been able to do it so far this season,” Cranston said. “All of them have different styles, and it helps coming into a series because the other team has no idea who we’re going to have in the net. Originally, I thought this season Cassi would get about half the starts, but it’s turned into more of thirds between that trio of goalies. It’s nice having that depth there in case someone gets hurt or sick.”
River Falls has outscored its opponents 102-35 this season and ranks third in the nation in scoring with 4.43 goals per game. The Falcons only trail RIT (5.29) and Norwich (4.83).
The Falcons have asserted themselves as the chief challenger from the West so far this season, but they still have some work to do in order to make it back to the Frozen Four for a third time after making appearances in 2003 and 2009.
“In the 12 years I’ve been here, this is by far the best team we’ve had this year,” Cranston said. “In the previous years we have made the final four, I thought we’d do okay. However, if we make it back this year, I think we can do more than okay. We’ve got all the pieces of the puzzle this year for the first time, and as long as we stay healthy, we’ll have a shot.”
If they do make it to the Frozen Four, the Falcons will carry the weight of the West as they try to become to the first Western team to win the national championship after the previous nine titles have all gone to Eastern schools.
Games Feb. 18-19
Last week Theresa: 3-7-2
Season Theresa: 113-70-20
Last week Tyler: 5-5-2
Season Tyler: 118-48-16
Some weeks go well. Some weeks … don’t. Obviously last week was fairly unpredictable.
This weekend, once again, we’ve got all 12 teams playing each other. I also get the feeling that things might start staying unpredictable as the race toward the playoffs gets even hotter.
No. 18 Colorado College (17-14-1, 11-11-0 WCHA) at Bemidji State (11-14-3, 7-12-3 WCHA)
Theresa: CC comes into this series deeply mired in the fight for home ice and is aided with the return of Jaden Schwartz on Friday. His brother, Rylan, is sitting out on Friday, but he will play on Saturday which could make the Tigers explosive. The Beavers are out of the home ice race, but could still make some noise to give themselves a more favorable playoff opponent. Given BSU’s firepower up front and the fact that they’re at home, I could see them taking a game here, but with the return of Jaden and the reunion of the Schwartzes on Saturday, I have to give the nod to the Tigers. CC sweep.
Tyler: Jaden Schwartz is back which will give CC the spark it needs as the Tigers try to gain position for home ice. CC averaged nearly four goals per game before Schwartz left for World Juniors where he fractured his ankle. CC sweep.
Michigan Tech (3-23-4, 1-19-2 WCHA) at No. 4 Denver (18-7-5, 14-5-3 WCHA)
Theresa: Tech rule. DU sweep.
Really not much more to say here except that if the Pioneers get just one point in their next six games, they clinch home ice. They’ll easily end up doing that this weekend. The Huskies have clinched last by a long shot and at this point, are only hoping to finally win another game. Unfortunately, it probably won’t happen this weekend.
Tyler: There shouldn’t be much of an argument here. DU sweep.
No. 5 Minnesota-Duluth (18-6-5, 13-5-4 WCHA) at Minnesota State (13-13-6, 7-13-4 WCHA)
Theresa: If the playoffs were to begin this weekend, this would be your first round match-up. Depending on how things shake out the rest of the season, these two teams might very well be facing each other once again. The Mavericks have proved themselves to be a team that no one will want to face in the playoffs, which makes them dangerous. The Bulldogs, on the other hand, are still in the race for the MacNaughton and also probably want to rebound after being spanked by SCSU last Friday. Odds are, we’ll see a split here this weekend – MSU Friday, UMD Saturday.
Tyler: MSU is going to be one of those teams the top seeds won’t want to play in the WCHA first round and UMD will find out why this weekend. The Mavericks played North Dakota and Denver tough in Mankato in the last two months but the Mavericks will finally beat a top-three team this weekend. Split.
No. 2 North Dakota (21-8-2, 16-6-0 WCHA) at St. Cloud State (12-14-4, 8-11-3 WCHA)
Theresa: This has developed into a nice little rivalry over the past two years and should prove to be an interesting weekend. Despite injuries, the Sioux have been rolling along just fine (as coach Dave Hakstol has said, they’re not technically short-handed). The Huskies, meanwhile, may have found their stride at the perfect time in the season. I believe home ice is a stretch for them (don’t quote me on that), but, like BSU above, they can make their league positioning a lot more favorable. As a result, I believe we’ll see a split – SCSU Friday, UND Saturday.
Tyler: UND’s key injuries (Genoway and Kristo) make it a little more of an even playing field with the series played in St. Cloud. This is probably the last bump in the road for the Sioux before they end the season with Bemidji State and Michigan Tech. Meanwhile, centers Garrett Roe and Drew LeBlanc are finally making strides for SCSU. Split.
No. 13 Nebraska-Omaha (18-10-2, 14-6-2 WCHA) at Alaska-Anchorage (10-15-3, 9-13-2 WCHA)
Theresa: This is kind of an interesting series as there’s no history to draw from to predict how it might go. These two teams have played once prior almost five years ago and they tied. That being said, we know how both play this year and can formulate more of an idea. On paper, this series should be easy - Mavs sweep … especially given that they’re coming off sweeps of both SCSU and UW. The Seawolves, meanwhile, are coming off a tough road sweep at the hands of UND. That being said, like MSU above, UAA is proving to be a team that no one wants to meet in the playoffs. The Seawolves also have the advantage of playing this one on home ice, where they haven’t lost in four games. So, and I know I’ve been doing this a lot this year, I’m going to give the home team the benefit of the doubt and call a split – UAA Friday, UNO Saturday.
Tyler: That loss to Alabama-Huntsville might have brought the Mavericks together because they’ve won four straight games since. Seems like they’ve found the consistency they had through the fall. But the Seawolves have been a team that can take down any team, especially in Anchorage. Split.
Minnesota (12-12-4, 9-10-3 WCHA) at No. 12 Wisconsin (19-10-3, 11-9-2 WCHA)
Theresa: As discussed earlier this week, this series is chock-full of playoff implication fun for both squads. As also mentioned in the notes of that series, two interesting things come into play – UW’s current unbeaten streak at home and the fact that the Badgers have never swept UM at home under coach Mike Eaves. Unless UW once again takes three points from the Gophers this season, one of those is going to change. Still, it’ll be interesting to see what happens … to see whether the Badgers and goalie Scott Gudmandson can rebound from last weekend’s sweep by UNO or whether the Gophers can keep the offense going like they did Saturday against Denver. It’s a hard call, but I think I’m going to go with a split – UM Friday, UW Saturday.
Tyler: Huge game for both teams trying to gain ground on home ice for the playoffs. The Gophers had a great game offensively last Saturday but Scott Gudmandson is one of the best goalies in the country and I see him bouncing back after a rough weekend in Omaha. The guy is unbeatable at the Kohl Center. UW sweep.
Hockey East Picks: Feb 18-19
Jim and I both had a tough time with last week’s picks, allowing him to maintain his gargantuan lead. I would have narrowed the gap by a game if not for a desperation pick, but that would have just been a snowflake off the top of a glacier.
Dave last week: 5-4-1
Jim last week: 5-4-1
Dave’s record-to-date: 82-33-23
Jim’s record-to-date: 94-27-21
Here are this week’s picks:
Friday, February 18
Merrimack at Massachusetts
Dave’s pick: You think I’m going to pick against the Warriors now?
Merrimack 4 UMass 2
Jim’s pick: Picking against the league’s hottest team? Yeah right.
Merrimack 5, UMass 1
Maine at Massachusetts-Lowell
Dave’s pick: It’s almost certainly too late for Lowell to make the playoffs and for Maine to get home ice.
Maine 4 Lowell 2
Jim’s pick: It all depends on who Maine plays in net. For some reason I think Lowell will get points this weekend, so I’ll pick them on in the first game.
Lowell 5, Maine 4
Northeastern at Boston College
Dave’s pick: Those at Kelley Rink can only hope this game matches Monday night’s Beanpot championship in excitement.
BC 7 NU 6 (OT)
Jim’s pick: Another series I think will be a split. Though the games will hardly be as exciting as Monday.
BC 5, NU 2
Providence at Boston University
Dave’s pick: BU’s loss in the Beanpot consolation game could mean the difference between making the NCAA tournament and not. A sweep this weekend is almost mandatory.
BU 4 PC 2
Jim’s pick: Likely that the Terriers will have a fire lit under their butts, courtesy of Jack Parker.
BU 4, PC 1
New Hampshire at Vermont
Dave’s pick: The wounded Wildcats lash out.
UNH 4 UVM 1
Jim’s pick: Vermont has been scoring lately but still not enough against the Wildcats.
UNH 5, UVM 3
Saturday, February 19
Boston University at Providence
Dave’s pick: The Terriers sweep, leaving the Friars still two points out of the last playoff berth.
BU 3 PC 2
Jim’s pick: I’m with Dave. This has BU sweep all over it.
BU 4, PC 2
Massachusetts at Merrimack
Dave’s pick: It won’t be another 11-2 shellacking, but it won’t be an overtime game either.
Merrimack 4 UMass 2
Jim’s pick: Remember the rule about picking against Merrimack at home.
Merrimack 6, UMass 3
New Hampshire at Vermont
Dave’s pick: The Wildcats sweep but likely will only remain in a tie with BC for first place.
UNH 5 UVM 2
Jim’s pick: It’s sweep time for UNH. And much needed at that.
UNH 6, UVM 2
Boston College at Northeastern
Dave’s pick: Normally I’d pick BC to win here. Heck, I’ll probably pick the Eagles to win every game from here on out through to the national championship. But I’ve got to go with some upsets to narrow the gap with my buddy.
NU 7 BC 6 (OT)*
Jim’s pick: Dave has a chance to gain some ground. Even though it is three games in one week, I see BC victories in all three.
BC 5, NU 3
Maine at Massachusetts-Lowell
Dave’s pick: The Black Bears sweep but remain five points out of home ice.
Maine 5 Lowell 4
Jim’s pick: Maine grabs the win in the rematch.
Maine 5, Lowell 1
