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Last Train out of Albany

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The NCAA hasn’t given up on Albany, but ECAC Hockey has.

This weekend marks the last time for the foreseeable future that the league will host its championship tournament in the Empire State’s capital city. Next year? Atlantic City … the city that’s “always turned on”. Multiple public-address announcements publicized the change-of-venue during the weekend’s games at Albany’s Times-Union Center, home of the last seven conference tournament finales; each announcement was met with vociferous disapproval from the crowd.

As distasteful as the town’s slogan may be for a family-oriented association like the ECAC Hockey league, the move was all but necessary for a league that is hungry for greater national attention. The championship weekend’s attendance hasn’t topped 16,500 since the spring of 1999, when both North Country teams (St. Lawrence and Clarkson) played for the crown in relatively local Lake Placid. Albany’s draw peaked at 16,217 for the weekend – and 8,637 for the title game – five years ago, when Cornell beat Harvard 3-1 to hoist the trophy.

Much of the problem rests in the championship quartet. Popular regional program Rensselaer didn’t qualify for a single ECAC Final Four in its eight years in the Capital District, and Union – in nearby Schenectady – only just made it this year. Since the conference has no control over the qualifiers, commissioner Steve Hagwell and the ECAC Hockey general committee are trying a different tack: go to the alumni, instead of the other way around.

Hagwell & Co. hope that Atlantic City will draw more successfully from the heavily populated alumni base in the greater New York City area, and Boardwalk Hall offered suitable facilities and the most attractive incentives package of those received by the league. ECAC Hockey approached practically every reasonable site in the Northeast, according to Hagwell, and A.C. was ultimately deemed the best option for not only attendance factors, but fiscal ones as well.

The commissioner remains tight-lipped about which venues a) responded to the league’s inquiries and b) what packages were offered, but he did mention that popular options such as Lake Placid; Manchester, N.H.; Bridgeport, Conn.; and Glens Falls, N.Y. were approached.

It obviously remains to be seen how well Atlantic City will host this tournament, but it should not be dismissed out-of-hand as an irresponsible or knee-jerk decision.

Eidsness Rebounds from Rough Start for North Dakota

By Tyler Buckentine
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Brad Eidsness doesn’t recall ever giving up two goals the way he did to open the WCHA Final Five championship game. One minute hadn’t gone by in the first period before the North Dakota goaltender let in two St. Cloud State goals.

“I kind of took a look around and looked at our bench,” Eidsness said. “It’s kind of been the story of our year. We battled through adversity and we were able to settle ourselves down.

The Fighting Sioux rallied around Eidsness, who stopped all but one of the shots he faced the rest of the night, leading the Sioux to the crown with a 4-3 win.

“It was something special for us seniors,” said UND assistant captain Darcy Zajac. “We had our chances in the past but it just seemed right this year. It was a special moment.”

Garrett Raboin and David Eddy scored goals at the 40- and 50-second marks of the first to give a 2-0 lead.

“We came out quick and we were able to put a couple in the net,” Raboin said.

Ryan Lasch danced around Andrew MacWilliam behind the UND goal and tripped over the side of the net as he made a pass to Raboin in the slot who snapshot the puck over Eidsness’ glove for the first goal.

And 15 seconds later, it was a two-goal game. Drew LeBlanc carried the puck across the red line into the UND zone and left a pass across the slot to David Eddy. The Huskies caught Eidsness out of position and Eddy fired on the open net.

“Our guys were ready to go,” said SCSU coach Bob Motzko. “We had a little step. Two goals in the first minute, you’ll always take that. Our game plan was to get on our toes and play.”

UND got on the board 15 seconds after the Huskies’ Aaron Marvin went to the box for hooking. The puck slid into the slot in front of SCSU goalie Mike Lee and Chris Hepp fanned on a chance to clear. Corban Knight shot the loose puck past Lee.

The Sioux tied the game at 17:06 of the first when Jason Gregoire passed the puck down low to Evan Trupp behind the net. Trupp skated the puck around the goal and got the puck out front to Brad Malone who put it past Lee.

The Sioux got a 5-on-3 opportunity 4:21 into the second period when Oliver Lauridsen decked Danny Kristo in the face after the whistle and went to the box for contact to the head. The penalty came 45 seconds after SCSU’s Sam Zabkowicz was called for hooking.

Danny Kristo took advantage 1:01 into the two-man advantage when his shot from the point trickled through Lee’s pads. Chris VandeVelde scored 43 seconds later while still on the power play to give UND a 4-2 lead.

The goal prompted Motzko to replace Lee with Dan Dunn after Lee allowed four goals on 27 shots. Dunn stopped all 11 shots he faced in the final 34 minutes of the game.

“Our two goalies have battled all year and made each other better,” Motzko said. “Once we hunkered down after the timeout and the made the change, I felt we got stronger in the hockey game.”

The Huskies pulled within a goal with 3:14 left in the second period Travis Mosey circled behind the Sioux net and centered for Eddy, who snapped a shot past Eidsness.

But SCSU was unable to get anything past Eidsness for the rest of the game. Eidsness faced 15 shots in the third period and saved them all.

“I looked at our bench and I had a feeling I probably shouldn’t let in another goal or the boys wouldn’t be too happy with me if we had to go to overtime,” said Eidsness, who was named the Final Five all-tournament team’s goalie. “Playing three games in three nights, we really laid our heart on the line.”

The Huskies continued to fire away at the UND goal the whole third period, but a turnover in the Sioux zone resulted in a Matt Frattin empty-net goal with 41 seconds left in the third.

“That was the first time I was able to take a breath until the buzzer,” Hakstol said.

It was the third time the teams met in the Final Five title game. SCSU beat UND 6-5 in 2001 and the Sioux defeated the Huskies 5-3 in 2006. It is UND’s ninth WCHA playoff title in team history.

Another Slow Starts Dooms Pioneers

By Tyler Buckentine
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George Gwozdecky talked about the importance of getting an early lead and the consequences of falling behind early Friday after his team lost to North Dakota in the WCHA Final Five semifinals.

The Denver coach could’ve applied those same thoughts after the top-ranked Pioneers found themselves stuck with an early three-goal deficit against No. 3 Wisconsin as the Badgers won the consolation game 6-3.

”I was certainly not anticipating coming here and going 0-2,” Gwozdecky said. “I’m disappointed in our performance, once again, but the five best teams in the WCHA are here and it’s going to be a challenge.”

Ben Street put the Badgers on the board when he banged in a rebound 2:21 into the game, Derek Stepan beat Denver goaltender Marc Cheverie high glove side 2:37 later and Blake Geoffrion tipped in a slap shot by Stepan midway through the first.

Adam Murray replaced Cheverie in net after the third goal.

“I don’t think our preparation was there,” Cheverie said. “Wisconsin showed up and we didn’t.”

The Pioneers dug themselves a hole the night before against the Sioux the night before, falling behind 2-0 early in the second period and were forced to play catch-up the rest of the game.

Denver’s sluggish start seemed to doom the Pioneers the same way Saturday afternoon.

“We didn’t give our goalie much help first period, partly because of us being out of position in front of the net,” Pioneers captain Rhett Rakhshani said. “I’m very disappointed in the start we had.”

Rakhshani made it 3-1 with 25 seconds into the second period. Unfortunately, the Pioneers failed to cut the deficit to one just like they failed to tie the game against North Dakota.

The Badgers scored a pair of quick goals later in the period and Denver answered with two goals in the third period but couldn’t get any closer. Seven of the Pioneers’ nine losses came after allowing the first goal.

It was the first time all season that Denver lost consecutive games. Coincidentally, Wisconsin remains undefeated in games following a loss this season.

The Badgers failed to capitalize on offensive opportunities in a 2-0 loss to St. Cloud State in the other semifinal game, so the fast start was key for the Wisconsin mindset.

“Keeping it simple was something we wanted to focus on in that great start,” Stepan said. “Just getting pucks on the goalie in traffic was key.”

Added Badgers coach Mike Eaves: “The start we had tonight was the exact opposite of the one we had yesterday. We got the jump, got some goals and it carried us through the game.”

Brown’s Volpatti Gets in Some Stats-‘Patt’ing

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Senior winger Aaron Volpatti led Brown Bears in goals this season, but don’t let the numbers mislead you: Volpatti is a brawler, no doubt about it.

That’s why he took special pride in breaking the school’s single-season penalty record with 14 minutes in his final collegiate game.

The sure-fire pro — he’s had numerous bites already, and will likely be practicing in a new jersey next week — is in the top five in numerous Brown penalty categories, but he cemented his spot at the top with a 10-minute misconduct late in the third period of Saturday’s consolation game.

Volpatti’s second minor of the game boosted him to 105 on the year — but didn’t lift him past anybody on the leader board. That’s when he decided to go the extra mile.

“Before the game, I was informed that I needed [a few] penalty minutes for the single-season record, so I saw (referee) Chip (McDonald) before the game, and I said, ‘Chip, don’t be afraid, ya know … ‘ and he said, ‘well I’ll give you a 10 at the end of the game, or something.’

“I try not to get too many misconducts, but I got that penalty, and I said to Chip, ‘is that a 10?’ And he said, ‘do you want a 10?’

“I can’t really repeat what was said, but … yeah.”

The contrived chatter put him at 115, seven minutes past Ryan Mulhern, class of ’96. There are many, many more sin-bin visits ahead for Volpatti, but for just a moment, a player was happy to be skating in the consolation game instead of the championship. The misconduct probably wouldn’t have sat as well with head coach Brendan Whittet otherwise.

“The guys that were ahead of him were guys that I played with,” said coach and Brown alumnus Whittet. “We had some real knuckleheads back then. I’m glad [Volpatti] is the king of the knuckleheads.”

Maine Gets Counted Out … Finally

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When Boston College forward Matt Lombardi scored at 5:25 of overtime in the Hockey East championship game, Maine’s season ended. What had been assumed so many times earlier this year finally became reality.

Time after time, people had counted the Black Bears out. Prematurely.

When they lost five of their first six games of the season, people counted them out.

Arguably, with good reason. Two years earlier, the Black Bears had finished ninth to miss the playoffs entirely. Last year, they squeaked into the playoffs, finishing eighth after going winless in their final eight regular season games. This year, they were picked in the preseason to again finish eighth.

Counted out in the preseason. Counted out after six games.

But Maine bounced back. The team caught fire, putting together streaks of 7-0-1 and 5-0-1. Suddenly, the Black Bears were back, returning to Hockey East and national prominence.

A stumble down the stretch, however, almost sent them on the road for the playoffs. Maine lost four of its last five and six of its last eight, holding onto a home ice berth only by the slimmest of margins, a tiebreaker with Massachusetts-Lowell. Arguably, the Black Bears had backed into home ice.

Count ’em out.

Then coach Tim Whitehead suspended starting goaltender Scott Darling. Here was the biggest of reasons to count out the Black Bears. With Darling in the nets, they were 15-6-3; backups Shawn Sirman and Dave Wilson had combined for a 1-9-0 mark.

Stick a fork in them. They’re done.

They lost the opener, 2-1, and after taking the second game, trailed in the deciding third game, 2-1, with five minutes left in regulation.

Count ’em out?

Not so fast.

Will O’Neill’s goal forced overtime and in the extra session Tanner House sent the Black Bears to the TD Garden. In the semifinals against Boston University, Maine seized an early lead with dominant play and held off a late charge by the Terriers to advance to the championship game.

Boston College remained between Maine and the title and an automatic berth to the NCAA tournament. Win and the Black Bears were in. Lose and go home.

The Eagles, already guaranteed a berth and ranked fourth in the country, would be a very tough hurdle to clear. Perhaps no team in the country was playing any better.

The ensuing battle captured Maine’s entire season in a microcosm.

BC scored at 11:44 of the first period. Gustav Nyquist retaliated 24 seconds later.

BC scored at 15:19. Joey Diamond came back with one of his own 36 seconds later.

In the second period, BC took a 4-2 lead and though House narrowed the gap to one, the Black Bears still entered the third period down by a goal.

Twice more, the Eagles reestablished two-goal leads. With barely more than five minutes remaining in regulation, BC led 6-4.

Time to finally count Maine out?

Nope.

Spencer Abbott made it 6-5 at 14:59 and with the goaltender pulled, Diamond sent the many fans dressed in blue into delirium with the tying goal at 19:33. The Garden rocked.

Counted out so many times, the Maine Black Bears were now but one goal away from a Hockey East title and a shot at the national championship. Bloodied but unbowed.

In overtime, Lombardi ended their season, but it would be hard to imagine a team that showed more heart, resiliency, and old-fashioned guts than this year’s Black Bears.

“We knew we had the makings of something special this year and we were very determined to get back up every time we got knocked down,” coach Tim Whitehead said. “I’m proud of the guys that they did. On and off the ice.

“We really felt if we were able to get by BC, we’d have as good a shot as anybody to win the national tournament. So that’s a frustrating situation for us right now.

“[But] we certainly didn’t hold anything back. The guys left it all out on the ice and played with a lot of poise and a lot of composure under pressure. Unfortunately for us tonight, it didn’t go our way, but we’re very proud of how our student-athletes competed.”

And for very good reason.

Hockey East Championship Live Blog: Saturday

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Join us for live coverage from the Hockey East Championship.

Atlantic Hockey Championship Live Blog: Saturday

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Join us for live coverage from the Atlantic Hockey Championship.

WCHA Suspends Wisconsin’s Goloubef for Contact to Head

USCHO Staff Report
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The WCHA has suspended Wisconsin defenseman Cody Goloubef for Saturday’s Final Five third-place game.

Goloubef was called for a five-minute major for contact to the head when he hit St. Cloud State’s Nick Oslund in open ice in Friday’s semifinal.

The WCHA announced that its Final Five tournament committee assessed the additional penalty, citing the league’s supplementary discipline policy and procedures.

WCHA Final Five Live Blog: Saturday

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Join us for live coverage from the WCHA Final Five.

Miami, Ferris State Find Little Consolation in CCHA Third-Place Game

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Three teams in this weekend’s CCHA championship tournament field are proof positive of how difficult it is to win a league playoff championship. Among them, the only team to have claimed the CCHA playoff championship was the only team to advance to this year’s title contest.

Yesterday, Walt Kyle finally broke the Curse of Consolation. Until Friday’s 5-4 semifinal win over Miami in OT, Northern Michigan had played in seven of the previous eight CCHA championship tournaments under Kyle, never advancing past its first semifinal contest. The joke around the league was that the CCHA third-place game should be called the “Walt Kyle Consolation Game.”

“They can name it after me,” quipped Kyle after the win. “I just don’t want to play in it.”

This year, the top two seeds entering CCHA championship tournament lost their semifinal contests, guaranteeing that the Mason Cup would be out of their reach, again. While their plight may not be as recently poignant as that of NMU, playing for third place has different, disappointing meanings for the Bulldogs and the RedHawks.

While some teams view the conference championship as a means to and end, an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, Ferris State coach Bob Daniels has always maintained that the CCHA playoff championship is a destination in itself.

“The only time I started focusing on the NCAA tournament was going into today’s game,” said Daniels. “To me, the big thing with coming here is to win the league. It’s the only thing. Once that’s not on the table, well here’s another avenue to have some fun. Let’s see if we can’t keep this fun going.

“During the course of the year, very rarely do we talk as a coaching staff about the NCAA. We figure if we do well here, we’ll get our bid.”

“For our team, obviously, we haven’t been to this championship weekend since 2003,” said Bulldogs senior forward Blair Riley. “You play 28 conference regular-season games, so that’s where the majority of the focus is, and then two playoff rounds just to get here.”

His classmate and linemate, Casey Haines, said that the Bulldogs come into every season focusing on three championships. “The Christmas tournament, the CCHA and then the national tournament,” he said. “We try to take down each three as they come. We don’t look forward. Didn’t do too well at Christmas, didn’t do too well now.”

Ferris State has made three previous trips to the CCHA championship in Joe Louis Arena, most recently in at the end of the 2002-03 season, when the Bulldogs lost their only title game appearance to Michigan, 5-3. That was the season in which Chris Kunitz scored 35 goals, propelling the Bulldogs to their only NCAA tournament berth. FSU beat North Dakota before bowing out with a 7-4 loss to eventual champion Minnesota.

“Getting into the tournament, that’s nice,” said Daniels, “but the CCHA championship is the main focus of our team.

“Myself, knowing how hard our league is and knowing how good our league is, the idea for me is that this is the end. Then beyond here, we’ll worry about that once this tournament’s over.”

While the Bulldogs will have to play a brief waiting game to find out if they’ll play in this year’s NCAA tournament, the RedHawks knew they’d be going to the NCAA tournament even before Friday’s game. A third-place win in Detroit and a Denver loss in the WCHA third-place game Saturday makes Miami the No. 1 seed nationally for the 2009-10 NCAA tournament.

It’s not a Mason Cup — and the RedHawks do want that hardware — but after what Miami has endured in the last 12 months, the seeding does provide some consolation. Miami began the season a few short months after a heartbreaking 4-3 loss to Boston University in the 2009 NCAA championship game. In that contest, Miami led 3-1 going into the final minute of regulation.

As difficult as that was for the RedHawks to endure, the entire Miami program learned a far more real lesson in heartache when the team’s student manager, Brendan Burke, died in a car crash in February.

“I’m extremely proud, as our staff is, as our university is,” said Miami coach Enrico Blasi after the RedHawks’ 2-1 win over the Bulldogs Saturday. “If we know the number right — and I think you know the numbers better than we do, playing the committee in the locker room after the game — if this team ends up being the No. 1 seed overall, it’s a pretty good season. You want to go into the tournament on a winning note.

“I’m just really proud of our guys. I know that yesterday was disappointing, but today was a new day. Right now we start our quest to get back here to Detroit.”

Miami entered the CCHA championship tournament as the No. 1 seed in this field for the third time in program history; in each of two previous attempts to capture the crown as the top team, the RedHawks fell in the title game. In 1993, No. 1 Miami lost to No. 3 Lake Superior State, 3-0. In 2006, the RedHawks fell to No. 2 Michigan State, 2-1.

ECAC Hockey Championship Live Blog: Saturday

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The Streak Survives: Michigan Passes its Toughest Test

By John Denny
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March 1991: The United States begins pulling troops out of the Persian Gulf; Latvia, Estonia and Georgia vote for independence from the Soviet Union; Someday by Mariah Carey is Billboard’s No. 1 hit; and the Michigan men’s ice hockey team starts an incredible streak that would last for at least another 20 years when they make NCAA men’s ice hockey tournament.

In the 20 years since, the Wolverines have won two national championships, but have never faced a road to the tournament as daunting as this year’s.

First, their starting goalie Bryan Hogan gets hurt on Feb. 25, leading to untested and unseasoned unknown Shawn Hunwick being thrust into the starting role. Then, captain and arguably top defenseman Chris Summers gets hurt against Lake Superior State in the opening round of the CCHA tournament on March 6.

They had to win a CCHA tournament quarterfinal series on the road against archrival Michigan State before playing the CCHA regular season champion Miami in the semifinal round. Finally, Michigan had to beat Northern Michigan in the CCHA Tournament final, a team that has been steadily increasing its momentum since the Christmas layoff.

Few teams would have the fortitude to paddle up that river and come back victorious, but the Wolverines found a way.

“It’s not about where we are, but how we got here. This was the most challenging way to get in the tournament Michigan’s had in a long time,” said Michigan coach Red Berenson. “But, that’s the thing about young athletes: They’re resilient; they have energy; they have enthusiasm.”

Berenson wasn’t alone in his appreciation of the mountain Michigan had to climb to earn their tournament spot.

“This one means the most to all of us with the road we had to take to here,” said senior defenseman Steve Kampfer.

No player on the team has risen to the occasion more so than Hunwick. The junior goalie was given little chance by anyone to ever start, let alone become MVP of the CCHA tournament while leading the Wolverines to the championship and their berth in the NCAA tournament.

“It’s pretty surreal,” said Hunwick. “I owe all the credit to my teammates. They’re playing incredible. I think we’re peaking at the right time.”

Also aiding Michigan in its quest for an NCAA tournament appearance were the maize and blue faithful. They turned East Lansing into a western version of Ann Arbor last week in the team’s quarterfinal series against Michigan State. This weekend Joe Louis Arena was a sea of maize and blue when the Wolverines were playing.

“Our fans were terrific in supporting our team, not just here at Joe Louis, but at East Lansing last week,” said Berenson. “We wouldn’t be here without our fans.”

But Michigan persevered through it all to earn a spot in the NCAA tournament, where they will undoubtably make life very difficult for a higher seed in the regional round next weekend.

Hunwick Big in Goal Again for Michigan

By John Denny
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Despite playing in just one game before this season, Shawn Hunwick has become the backbone of Michigan’s CCHA tournament run.

As a true walk-on, Hunwick has no scholarship and has been a backup and practice goalie for the last two-and-a-half years.

“I never gave him credit for being a starting goalie,” said Michigan coach Red Berenson. “He’s been a good practice goalie, a good team player. He’s been very good support, no complaining all along and he got his chance.”

Hunwick found himself thrust into the starting role at Michigan when Bryan Hogan was injured early in the first period against Notre Dame on Feb. 25. Hunwick won that game before taking over the starting job for the Wolverines. In the five games he has started, Hunwick has a 1.97 goals-against average and a .908 save percentage.

“He’s been as good at it gets,” said Berenson.

Shawn Hunwick has backstopped Michigan's run to the CCHA title game.

Shawn Hunwick has backstopped Michigan’s run to the CCHA title game.

Since becoming the starter, Hunwick has yet to give up a five-on-five goal, a fact that he attributes to the strong play of his teammates in front of him.

“I can’t say enough about the team,” said Hunwick. “Those guys are all over the ice blocking shots and doing an unbelievable job. I really appreciate it.”

Coaches have noticed how the Wolverines have responded with Hunwick between the pipes as well.

“The team’s playing hard for him,” said Berenson. “They know how hard he worked for them [in practice] before he got a chance to play.”

Throughout the past month Hunwick’s strong play has also helped get the Michigan offense on track. Against Miami in the second CCHA semifinal Friday, Hunwick made a sprawling save with the paddle of his stick and the Wolverines went back up the ice, where Lee Moffie scored his fourth goal of the season to put Michigan ahead 2-0.

“I thought that this season, since I’ve been in there, when I’ve made a save. we’ve gone on to score a lot of times — three or four times it’s happened,” said Hunwick. “I wasn’t really sure if I even got a piece of that. I thought he just missed the net until someone came up and said, ‘Great save.’ We answered back, and we’ve done it time and time again.”

When you have a team feeding off your energy like that, it’s very easy to get comfortable.

“Actually, early in the second period was probably the smoothest and most confident I’ve felt in net since I’ve been in,” Hunwick said. “I wasn’t really thinking; I was just reacting. I knew they were a good team. I knew they were going to come out strong.”

“I don’t think he’s overachieving,” said Berenson. “He’s in a big groove and he’s giving us a chance.”

Michigan likely will need Hunwick to work his magic one more time Saturday night against Northern Michigan in the CCHA championship game to secure a spot in the NCAA tournament for a 20th consecutive time.

Unfortunately for the Wolverines’ women’s softball team, Hunwick’s stellar play will likely prevent him from being the scoreboard operator at their home opener next week at Alumni Field in Ann Arbor. Hunwick has served the team in this capacity since his freshman year.

Tradition Set Aside: Northern Michigan Avoids CCHA Third-Place Game

By Emily Hack
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The Northern Michigan Wildcats are no strangers to the CCHA Championship.

Since coach Walt Kyle joined the squad eight years ago, they have made seven appearances in the tournament, but only managed to take it to the consolation game each Saturday night. With their highest CCHA ranking in recent years earning them a first-round playoff bye and a seemingly easy breeze past the Alaska Nanooks in round two, the Wildcats were eager to play for their much awaited spot in the championship game.

“It’s our third year here in a row,” senior goaltender Brian Stewart said. “I’ve been the starting goalie each time. … We had the lead going into the third two years ago against Michigan and lost. And then last year tied it up with one minute left against Notre Dame and lost that one.”

Friday’s game against Ferris State at Joe Louis Arena was just as turbulent as the previous years, the lead switching every period.

“When they tied it up there I was afraid weren’t going to make it again,” junior Greger Hanson said. “I’m really glad the team pulled it off this time around, for a minute this game looked too much like the last couple of years.”

The Wildcats broke away from that tradition and scored three consecutive goals within 1:02, a CCHA record. Senior Ray Kaunisto had two of the shots that put the Wildcats back in the game and not only reset CCHA history, but Wildcats history as well.

“Ray, Tyler Gron and I have been playing together for half the season and we’ve really developed a great chemistry between us,” Hanson said. “We were on fire tonight. It was great to be on the ice together and put up that many points.”

That same line produced the overtime game winner, a shot from Hanson that left everyone stunned.

“The game winner was a play that I don’t think Ferris expected,” Hanson said. “I think they expected me to go wide and down low. I caught them off guard up the middle and got the goal.”

With the 5-4 overtime win, the Wildcats will appear in the CCHA championship game for the first time since 1999, and the first time with Kyle as head coach.

“We get to play for a championship tomorrow and there aren’t many chances for coaches their team to do that,” Kyle said.

At previous tournament appearances, Kyle would joke that the consolation game should be called the “Walt Kyle Consolation Game” because his team had played in it so many times. This year, he gets to put all jokes aside and compete for the Mason Cup and an automatic bid into the NCAA tournament.

“We’re really happy,” Kyle said. “I was sick of playing in that game. … I’m happy to take the next step and whether we play Michigan or Miami, it’s going to be a huge challenge.

“We have it all in our own hands for tomorrow and we’re really excited,” Hanson said. “We think we can win this game and win the championship and hopefully we’ll be able to associate Northern Michigan with the Mason Cup and not the consolation game.”

The last time Northern Michigan won the CCHA playoff championship was in 1981, when Kyle himself captained the team. He’s hoping to have his name return to it again under the new banner of 2010.

BC’s Muse: Number One Again

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Two years ago, John Muse lived a charmed life. He started, and played every minute of, Boston College’s 44 games. He earned all-tournament honors in the Hockey East tournament and then again at the Frozen Four, leading his team to a national championship.

Last year, he once again started every game, but neither he nor the Eagles enjoyed the same success. They finished sixth during the regular season. A loss in the league semifinals ended their season. Muse’s goals-against average rose from 2.20 to 2.72; his save percentage fell from .921 to .904.

John Muse is back as Boston College's No. 1 goaltender (photo: Melissa Wade).

John Muse is back as Boston College’s No. 1 goaltender (photo: Melissa Wade).

He hadn’t suddenly become a sieve, but it wasn’t the old jersey No. 1 in the BC nets. Nagging groin pain, later identified as a torn labrum in his hip, was at least part of the problem.

In the offseason, Muse underwent hip surgery. Optimists assumed it would return the old No. 1 to the BC nets; pessimists watched Boston Red Sox third baseman Mike Lowell hobble around after hip labrum surgery and shuddered. The Eagles were doomed.

BC tried to scour up a potential replacement, difficult to obtain so long after the conventional recruiting period, and came up with Parker Milner.

Original projections for Muse’s return were possibly in November. Possibly. Instead, he was back between the pipes for BC’s opening game on Oct. 18.

But not all the way back.

“I hadn’t skated for about five months because of the surgery,” Muse says. “My hip wasn’t bothering me. I had a few aches and pains here and there because I hadn’t played in so long, but for the most part I felt good physically. It was just difficult getting my timing back, getting back into the swing of things.”

Game by game he got stronger. By January, he seemed to have hit his stride.

“Once we came back from Christmas break, I felt like I was playing where I wanted to be,” he says. “But obviously I can always get better. That’s what I work on in practice, trying to get better every time I’m on the ice.”

Muse, however, wasn’t the only one getting better. Milner, the insurance policy and heir apparent, wasn’t playing second fiddle to anyone. He earned the February Hockey East goaltender of the month award, going 4-0-0 with a 0.93 GAA and a .963 save percentage.

A 0.93 GAA and a .963 save percentage.

John Muse stops Chris McCarthy (photo: Melissa Wade).

John Muse stops Chris McCarthy (photo: Melissa Wade).

The same freshman who had allowed Muse to come back at the appropriate speed from the hip surgery was making a convincing case for the No. 1 job. Muse, the guy who had started every game for two years was potentially … the backup.

“Any goalie will tell you it’s difficult not playing every night,” Muse says. “You want to be in there playing and helping your team out. Parker is a great goalie. He pushes me and I push him. We get along great.”

But when the playoffs started, it wasn’t the old No. 1 in the BC crease. It was the new No. 35, Milner.

Muse says now, “He was playing well. You don’t change things when a goalie is playing well.” But the demotion had to sting.

BC coach Jerry York says, “He must have thought, ‘Hey when my chance comes I better play pretty well because I’ve got great competition here.'”

That chance came after the first playoff game against Massachusetts, a sub-par performance by Milner in a 6-5 win. Muse barged through the open door, allowing only two goals in closing out UMass, and returned to the BC crease for the Eagles’ semifinal game against Vermont.

Jersey No. 1 was again No. 1 on the BC depth chart.

The result? Muse stopped all 30 shots he faced, including a key second-period breakaway.

Jersey No. 1 was once again the old No. 1.

“I don’t know if it’s so much me as the entire team,” Muse says. “You saw tonight how well we play defensively. Not only our defense but our forwards, too, getting back-pressure when we turn over the puck, which isn’t too often, and breaking the puck out.

“All those things limit their chances. When they don’t get too many chances, it makes my job easier.”

An easier job.

After a year and a half that have been anything but easy for Muse, easy is nice and so is a job.

Now he just wants that easy job for five more games.

Denver’s Pride Stinging After WCHA Semifinal Loss

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As the best team in the WCHA for much of the season, with a Broadmoor Trophy on its to-do list, Denver found Friday’s WCHA Final Five semifinal loss to North Dakota hard to stomach.

As a result, the Pioneers are planning to play the last third-place game in Final Five history the same way as they would if they were playing for the title.

“It’s going to be a big game for us,” forward Tyler Ruegsegger said of Saturday’s afternoon contest against Wisconsin. “We’ve got to respond. To be honest, it was an embarrassing effort tonight and we’ve got to have more pride in the crest on the front of our jerseys tomorrow.”

“It’s all about pride tomorrow,” concurred Rhett Rakhshani. “You’re playing for third place but if you’re a competitor and, if like Tyler said, you have pride in the crest on the front of your jersey, you’re going to play as hard as you would if it were a first-place game, and that’s the mentality we have to have tomorrow.”

Chris VandeVelde scores in the first period to put North Dakota ahead for good (photo: Tim Brule).

Chris VandeVelde scores in the first period to put North Dakota ahead for good (photo: Tim Brule).

Amping it Up

Thursday night, Evan Trupp scored his first goal in 21 games.

It was wondered Friday if he changed his dietary habits since coming to St. Paul, as he potted another two goals in the 4-3 win over Denver.

For Trupp, however, it’s just due to seasonal reasons.

“It’s playoff time, that’s it,” he said. “[I’m] just starting to bear down on my chances.”

The Legs Feed the Wolf

Quite a bit has been made of the Sioux’s tough schedule this weekend, with Saturday night’s game marking UND’s sixth game in nine days. Many are wondering where the players get their energy, wondering if they have some hidden reserves.

According to coach Dave Hakstol, the energy his team has is just a product of good training.

“I don’t know that we needed a reserve,” he said. “I know we make a big deal out of three and three or five and eight, but you know what? Our guys work hard during the year to condition and take care of their bodies.

“I think you can talk yourself into making a big deal out of it, or you can take it for what it is,” he continued. “We’ve got 20 guys in the lineup that are going to show up and have energy tomorrow night.”

Injury Update

St. Cloud State’s Garrett Roe, who was taken off the ice on a stretcher in the earlier game, has been released from the hospital. His X-rays came back negative, and he is reportedly just very sore.

Denver’s Anthony Maiani suffered an upper body injury in the game and will not play Saturday night.

Quotable

“I’d rather have that superstar in the lineup.” — Dave Hakstol, when asked if not having a superstar in his lineup has forced his team to be more balanced as a whole.

Lee’s Confidence Building, and St. Cloud State is Benefitting

By Tyler Buckentine
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The day before his team got set to play No. 3 Wisconsin in the WCHA Final Five semifinals, St. Cloud State coach Bob Motzko decided to start freshman Mike Lee in goal for Friday’s game.

Never mind that Lee finished the regular season a dismal 6-7 with a 3.03 goals-against average, or that junior goaltender Dan Dunn was named to the All-WCHA third team Thursday with a 12-4-2 record.

“Mike’s had some freshman moments, and our league will do that to you,” Motzko said Thursday. “But he’s building confidence.”

The confidence has showed. In his last three games going into Friday, Lee’s save percentage was .934 — most recently, two WCHA first round wins against Minnesota State last weekend.

St. Cloud State goaltender Mike Lee made 37 saves Friday, but he also got help from the post late (photo: Tim Brule).

St. Cloud State goaltender Mike Lee made 37 saves Friday, but he also got help from the post late (photo: Tim Brule).

Lee was nothing short of spectacular in the Huskies’ 2-0 win against the Badgers Friday. He finished with 37 saves in his second career shutout.

“It was a hard fought playoff game,” Lee said. “They got their shots but so did we. I thought our kind of play was sound.”

Lee came up big for the Huskies in the first period when he faced 12 shots before the first intermission. None were bigger than his stops on Jordy Murray and Michael Davies midway through the first period.

Murray grabbed the puck to Lee’s left and walked in on the crease, but Lee was there for the stop and the rebound ended up on the tape of Blake Geoffrion’s stick. Geoffrion caught Lee out of position out of position and centered the puck to Murray, who wasn’t ready for it as the puck slid through the crease.

Minutes later, Lee had to move to his left to rob Davies with his right toe.

“We kind of made it easy for him because we didn’t really put pucks on net,” Davies said. “But he played well.”

Lee had to make only five saves in the second period but the Huskies needed his best efforts in the third. The freshman, who led Roseau to the Minnesota Class AA State title two years ago in the same building, stopped 20 Wisconsin shots Friday to cling to the shutout.

A Brendan Smith shot rang off the right pipe with around 90 seconds remaining.

“I think he played really well but sometimes being lucky is part of the game,” Smith said. “I think today, he had a little bit of Irish in him.”

Lee’s save percentage after the Wisconsin game: .921 with a 2.61 goals-against average as he continues his three-game winning streak. Lee stood tall in the third period Friday, despite losing his stick a few times in the waning minutes.

“I think we’re going to tape it to my blocker tomorrow,” Lee said.

Roe Injury

The Huskies were in the closing seconds of their fifth successful penalty kill when SCSU forward Garrett Roe lost his stick. The puck squirted to the halfboards as Roe tried to beat Smith to the puck.

He dove head-first into the boards with a swiping motion at the puck to clear the zone as his helmet cracked against the boards.

Roe was taken off the ice on a stretcher but no further updates were available.

“It was a big loss,” Huskies forward Tony Mosey said. “We had to get closer and play harder. Other guys had to step up.”

Final Five Follies

The Huskies broke a four-game Final Five losing streak in advancing to the finals, while the Badgers lost their fourth semifinals game since 2006. Wisconsin hasn’t taken better than third in the tournament since 2000, when it lost to North Dakota in the final.

The Huskies will play for their second Final Five title in school history. SCSU beat the Sioux in the 2001 championship game and lost when the two teams met again in the finals in 2006.

Transferring Title?

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At the end of last season, when it was fait accompli that the Salem State Vikings would be leaving their long and venerable association with the ECAC East and joining the new MASCAC conference, the challenge to keep some of their most talented players began in earnest.

Having played in one of the best conferences in D-III hockey, which also included the interlock with the NESCAC conference, the move to a new conference that would be largely made up of state schools departing the ECAC Northeast was not the road several of the Vikings’ players wanted to travel.

Forward Justin Fox and defenseman Kevin Huinink, who both hail from Whitby, Ontario had bigger aspirations for their college hockey careers and in the process, found an opportunity to play for a perennial D-III power with a chance for a national championship.

Justin Fox scores for Oswego (photo: Angelo Lisuzzo).

Justin Fox scores for Oswego (photo: Angelo Lisuzzo).

Trading in their Salem State colors for the green, yellow and white of the Oswego State Lakers was not a difficult decision to make.

“I really transferred for one reason,” stated Fox. “The goal was to come to a school that has a great program and Coach (Ed) Gosek has brought in players that all have the same goal. This is a great bunch of guys with great team chemistry. I am not even sure that I can describe the chemistry. These guys really gelled together and the season has been everything that I expected coming here.”

The combination has clearly benefited both the players and their new team, as Oswego has been ranked nationally at one or two all season. Moreover, both players have fit right in with a Lakers program looking to regain the national title they won last in 2007.

Fox, a former ECAC East league all-star, has been matched with junior Chris Laganiere and first team All-American Eric Selleck. The line has been very productive, with all three players having point totals greater than 40. The three are the top three point-getters for the Lakers and have combined for 17 power-play goals and nine game-winning goals this season.

For his career, Fox passed the 100 point plateau as a junior this season. In only 79 games played, he has already amassed 119 points, including 45 in his first season as a Laker.

When asked about his linemates and his move to Oswego, Fox noted, “It really has been a lot of fun this season and this weekend is something you dream about as a player — our goal is to win a national championship.”

For Kevin Huinink, the transfer has also been a good one, as the junior has been a fixture on the blue line for coach Ed Gosek’s team. Regularly paired with fellow Ontario native Tyler Lyon, the sturdy backliner has been a solid player for Oswego in the defensive end of the ice.

“All of the new guys have fit right in here,” stated Gosek. “The seniors have done a great job making everyone feel welcome and like a big part of the team. With as many new players and a goaltending change, if you told me we would be playing this weekend back at the beginning of year, I would have given you a hug.

“Everyone likes to talk about Foxie, Eric [Selleck] and Laganiere because they get the points and deserve a lot of the credit for our success. I am very proud of this team and all of the contributions they have made. While losing tonight to St. Norbert is not the outcome we had hoped for, it doesn’t take away from the terrific season they had.”

This weekend concluded a great season with the Frozen Four in Lake Placid, which is not that far away from Ontario. This is definitely a case of a change benefiting both the school and the student-athletes. Winning the SUNYAC championship was one big step for the Lakers, but their visions of more than one game this weekend were dashed by the Green Knights by a 4-3 score.

Justin Fox was a big part of the game with a goal and an assist for Oswego, and had several good chances in the third period to put the Lakers up on the scoreboard. It wasn’t to be for the Lakers this time around, but at least two of the new Lakers wouldn’t transfer this season for any other experience.

Trinity’s Iwachiw is Top Women’s D-III Player

USCHO Staff Report
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Trinity goaltender Isabel Iwachiw has been named the winner of the Laura Hurd Award, given annually to the nation’s Division III women’s player.

The player of the year in the NESCAC, Iwachiw is also a first-team All-American and led Trinity to its first NCAA tournament appearance.

She had a 21-5-2 record, a 1.22 goals-against average and a .957 save percentage.

“Isabel Iwachiw is the most talented student-athlete to have ever worn the Trinity hockey jersey,” Trinity coach Andrew McPhee said. “She has been instrumental in the success and development of our team over the last four years. Beyond her tremendous skill level, Isabel is driven, dedicated, and competitive. Her work ethic in practice is unparalleled and she is constantly seeking ways to make herself and teammates better.”

The runner-up was Stephanie Moberg, a senior forward from Plattsburgh State.

Here are the All-Americans:

East First Team

Forwards: Sarah Dagg, RIT; Stephanie Moberg, Plattsburgh State; Katie Stack, RIT
Defenders: Jamie Kivi, Elmira; Randi Zukas, Amherst
Goaltender: Isabel Iwachiw, Trinity

West First Team

Forwards: Kim Herring, Lake Forest; Melissa Mackley, Gustavus Adolphus; Michaela Michaelson, St. Catherine
Defenders: Courtney Bean, Lake Forest; Kirsten Peterson, Gustavus Adolphus

East Second Team

Forwards: Stacey Hotchkins, Holy Cross; Katie Little, Manhattanville; Anna McNally, Middlebury
Defenders: Kara Buehler, Plattsburgh State; Laura Komarek, Trinity
Goaltender: Mandy Mackrell, Plattsburgh State

ECAC Hockey Championship Live Blog: Friday

USCHO Staff Report
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Join us for live coverage from the ECAC Hockey Championship.

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