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D-III East Hockey Game Picks – January 18, 2023

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Matt Toporowski and the Mammoths look to stay atop the NESCAC standings with a key game against Hamilton on the schedule this weekend (Photo by Amherst Athletics)

The teams you expect to step up pretty much did so last week and while it was never easy or even pretty, the resulting wins continue to build confidence as the regular season and conference play heat up for the next month. Last week my picks came back down to earth from the prior week going 7-4-1 (.625) which brings my season total to  76-37-8 (.661). So just like the teams looking to get on a roll at the right time of the season, so too do I need to step up my game. Here are the picks as we hit the last month of the regular season:

Wednesday, January 18, 2023

Morrisville v. Brockport

The Golden Eagles found a lot of offense against Franklin Pierce and now need to turn it on in SUNYAC play starting with the Mustangs in a mid-week game. Home ice is the difference in this one and it may take extra time to decide a winner – Brockport, 4-3

Thursday, January 19, 2023

Plymouth State v. Worcester State  

The Panthers are unbeaten in MASCAC play but right behind them at 7-2-0 are the Lancers who have had this game circled on the schedule for a while. The Lancers have not surrendered a goal in three games or lost in their last five games but face the league’s best and deepest offensive team. An empty-net goal provides insurance in a close game – Plymouth State, 4-2

Friday, January 20, 2023

University of New England v. Nichols

The Nor’easters are coming off a sweep to league-leading Endicott and need a bounce back weekend against the Bison who also suffered at the hands of Curry last week. Look for the road team to settle their game back and earn a much-needed win –  UNE, 3-1

Albertus Magnus v. Neumann

The Falcons are 13-5-1 so far this season as they pursue a 20-win campaign. Neumann always plays tough at home and the visitors will need Logan Bateman to be at this best to earn the win –         Albertus Magnus, 3-2

Amherst v. Hamilton

The Mammoth sit atop the NESCAC standings right now but face a hot Continentals team in what is always an entertaining travel partner game. Special teams have been key for the Mammoth who need a fast-start to keep a pesky Hamilton squad in check – Amherst, 3-2

(5) Norwich v. Skidmore

The Cadets are winning all the close ones which usually means great goaltending and opportunistic scoring. No surprise here the goal total  is low in a typical Cadet win backstopped by Drennen Atherton between the pipes – Norwich, 2-1

Southern New Hampshire v. Post

This Penmen and the Eagles need to get going following last weekend’s sweeps at the hands of Assumption and St. Michael’s respectively. Both teams are still looking for some consistency in their game and get a streak started. Friday is a good start for the Penmen – SNHU, 3-2

(6) Oswego v. Plattsburgh

Can you say déjà vu? Yes, it was only a couple of weeks ago that these two SUNYAC rivals played for a tournament title. Stakes are conference points this time around and those may be more important than a trophy come playoff time. Same result as last time in a familiar locale out but overtime needed – Oswego, 3-2

Saturday, January 21, 2023

(1) Hobart v. Elmira

The Statesmen picked up a big road win at Babson to complete a weekend sweep in NEHC play last weekend. The travel partner home-and-home series is always a battle with Elmira who will not need much motivation to want to knock-off their rival on home ice. It’s close but these are the type of game the  visitors are built for – Hobart, 2-1

Chatham v. Stevenson

Both teams have rounded into good form recently and are certainly striving to move up in the UCHC standings. The Mustangs make things very difficult on opposing teams at home and that is the case for the Cougars who come close but not close enough – Stevenson, 4-3

Hamilton v. (8) Geneseo

The Knights really want to get their game going entering the final month of the season and Hamilton will challenge them in all three zones. Special teams and some home-ice advantage enough to help earn a one-goal win – Geneseo, 4-3

Salve Regina v. (4) Endicott

The Seahawks have been playing good hockey and will have a great chance to benchmark their status against the top team in the CCC. The Gulls seem to be dangerous in any on-ice situation and take advantage of some special teams excellence to take a close contest – Endicott, 4-3

It now gets to the time where we are counting remaining games in single digits approaching late January. Time to get it going men! – “Drop the Puck!”

This Week in CCHA Hockey: Postgame Diamond Cutter celebrations becoming more prevalent as Bowling Green gains more victories

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JESS

If you’ve ever followed Bowling Green’s hockey social media account, you’ll notice an odd tradition. They call it “The Diamond Cutter:”

Every time the Falcons complete a weekend series sweep, longtime BGSU equipment manager Scott “Scooter” Jess leaps off a cooler in the locker room and does a wrestling move inspired by former WWE and WCW superstar “Diamond” Dallas Page.

Scooter is always egged on by the entire Falcons team. Usually, he gets high fives and chest bumps.

Occasionally, he will invite other fans into the mix.

It’s a goofy, fun ritual – squarely in time-honored tradition of “Dudes Rock.”

“Everybody that follows social media can see right there how excited our players get when we win that second game on the weekend and they start the ‘Scoot’ chant, and he gets going, and then he just, I don’t know what happens, transforms or has some sort of out of body experience or something like that,” BGSU coach Ty Eigner said of the team’s post-sweep custom. “It’s been neat to give people the opportunity to see what our guys see and feel it.”

The Falcons have recently shown their fans a lot of the Diamond Cutter this past month. Their home sweep of Bemidji State this past weekend was their third in a row, and followed sweeps of RPI and Lake Superior State in the two previous weekends.

“You know how hard it is to sweep in college hockey, and we’ve been fortunate enough to string together three in a row here,” Eigner said. “So when you do that, winning fixes a lot of ailments, individually and collectively.”

It’s been a nice reversal of fortunes for Bowling Green (14-12-0, 11-7-0 CCHA), who ended the first half of the season on the other end of sweeps at the hands of Minnesota State and Ohio State. The Buckeyes outscored the Falcons 14-6 over the two legs of their home-and-home series, while BG managed to score just three goals against the Mavericks.

Coming back from the break, the Falcons seemed to have improved their scoring touch – they’ve averaged 4.5 goals per game during this six-game win streak. That could partly be due to the fact that RPI and LSSU are in the bottom third of the Pairwise rankings compared to Ohio State (No. 6) and Minnesota State (No. 15). But goals are still goals, and they build confidence. And besides, BG’s problem this season really hasn’t been scoring – their 3.4 goals per game are the most in the CCHA.

“We have players that are capable, and we’ve had different stretches over the course of the first half where we have scored goals,” Eigner said. And, case-in-point: Austen Swankler leads the league with 36 points while Ryan O’Hara is tied with three other players for second in scoring with 25 points. In all, five of the top 11 scorers in the CCHA so far are BG players.

“The thing we’ve been most focused on is giving up less goals, and they go hand-in-hand,” Eigner said about BGSU’s defensive record, which has been mediocre. They have given up 3.12 goals a game. “If we defend better, that means we spend less time in our own end and we can get to the offensive zone, which is a lot more fun and guys enjoy that part a lot better. [In the past six games] we’ve defended better, which leads to us playing in the offensive zone and scoring more.”

The consecutive wins against Lake Superior State and Bemidji State also allowed the Falcons to earn some valuable conference points and move into first place in the CCHA standings – if only temporarily. BG has 35 points through 18 games played and is five points ahead of second-place Minnesota State and seven ahead of third-place Michigan Tech. However, both the Mavericks and the Huskies have played just 16 games while Bemidji State and Ferris State (in fourth and fifth place) are also in striking distance and have played only 14 games each.

In other words, the Falcons do not control their own destiny when it comes to a possible CCHA championship.

“Everybody’s looking at the standings, let’s be honest. Everybody knows where we sit,” Eigner said. “What we’ve tried to talk about with our team is, we’re going to take it weekend by weekend, because there are two weekends where we won’t play, and we won’t have the opportunity to earn points on this weekend where other teams will.”

The Falcons travel to Minnesota this weekend when they will take on St. Thomas. They already swept the Tommies in their earlier season series in Ohio, but both games were hard-fought 3-2 wins. And St. Thomas is coming off a signature road victory against Michigan Tech.

“We’ve played as many league games as anybody, so teams are going to have an opportunity to catch us and we need to make sure that in the remaining CCHA series we have, we’ve got to do the best we can to get as many points as possible,” Eigner said. “It’s important to bank as many of those points as we can.”

This Week in NCHC Hockey: Despite losing two teeth against St. Cloud State, Colorado College netminder Mbereko ‘has arguably been our best player all year’

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Kaidan Mbereko makes a save earlier this season against Minnesota Duluth (photo: Casey B. Gibson).

It’s usually before Christmas, not after, when you hear about missing front teeth.

Don’t tell Colorado College freshman goaltender Kaidan Mbereko about that, though, or Tigers coach and former Union and professional goalie Kris Mayotte. They’ve now both lost teeth during games, after getting hit in just the right spots on their masks.

Mbereko and backup Matt Vernon combined for 42 saves Friday in CC’s 4-2 upset win at third-ranked St. Cloud State. Mbereko made 20 saves in the first period and had to leave the game late in the second after an SCSU shot broke his two front teeth.

“One completely broke off, and the other was cracked all the way through but still hanging there, so he had to get those taken care of first,” Mayotte said. “The puck hit where the top of the chin meets the bottom of the cage. If it hits you in the right spot, it pushes that part of the mask where your mouth is back into your teeth.

“St. Cloud’s team doctors came over, and we got an appointment where he went to the dentist at 9 a.m. Saturday. They put in two fillings on top, so he had two half teeth, and now that we’ve got back to Colorado Springs, he gets more extensive dental work done. He’s going to get a second opinion on Thursday in terms of how deep the crack on one of them goes to see if he needs a root canal or not, but as of right now, they just put crowns on them.”

The efforts of Mbereko and Vernon weren’t all that led to what Mayotte called the Tigers’ most gritty win from his year and a half to date at CC.

Co-captain and top-two defenseman Bryan Yoon missed most of the game after a blocked shot forced him to seek X-rays on what ended up being a bone bruise in his knee. Fourth-line winger Ray Christy also missed time, but in the end, two Tyler Coffey goals and strong performances in net and by CC’s remaining five defensemen gave the Tigers a fourth win from their last five games.

Mbereko was back between the pipes Saturday, and made 23 saves. CC lost 4-0, but Mayotte felt the final score was indicative of how most of the game went. Three St. Cloud goals in the final 10:04 put the hosts out of sight.

Mayotte heralded Mbereko’s resiliency in a time where, across the world of sports, treatment of head injuries has mainly changed for the better.

“I remember this happening to me, I think in my first year of pro, and I turned around to the ref and showed him my tooth and said, ‘Hey, I lost my tooth,’ and he said, ‘Well, there’s nothing I can do about it,’ so I put my mask back down and kept playing,” Mayotte said.

Hindsight helped him laugh as he finished the sentence.

“Fortunately, Vern has been really good this year when called upon,” Mayotte said. “Kaidan has arguably been our best player all year, so to lose him is a big blow, but we had ‘Vern’ ready to step up.”

And Vernon saw out a CC win Friday that snapped The Tigers’ 11-game skid against SCSU since Nov. 2019. Even better, at least for a day, the victory pulled CC level with the Huskies for second place in the NCHC standings.

“To beat a top-five team on the road, in and of itself, is something we hadn’t been able to do,” Mayotte said of a CC team that is on pace for its winningest season in a decade. “That was a big win, but to find a way to do it the way that we did and have a next-man-up mentality where we had the guys step up was really impressive.

“It was (junior defenseman Chase) Foleys’ first game back from an injury, and on St. Cloud’s (Olympic-sized) rink, our plan was to limit him to 15, 17 minutes, and when we went down to five ‘D’ right away, we had guys who we asked a lot of, but they all rose the occasion, and Vern came in cold but was great for us.

“It was one of those games where the team proved something to themselves that they weren’t sure they had in them,” Mayotte continued. “When you’re trying to build a program, confidence and belief are huge parts of what you can accomplish, and to that end, Friday was huge for us.”

St. Thomas announces record-breaking $75 million gift for multiuse arena, goal to break ground in 2024

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The Lee and Penny Anderson Arena will soon be home to the St. Thomas men’s and women’s hockey teams (rendering: St. Thomas Athletics).

The $75 million Lee and Penny Anderson Arena will soon be the new home for St. Thomas hockey and basketball.

The single largest monetary gift ever given to a Minnesota university will bring hockey onto campus for the first time at St. Thomas.

St. Thomas on Tuesday announced the $75 million lead naming gift from Lee and Penny Anderson of Naples, Fla. – two long-standing benefactors of Minnesota’s largest private university – to construct a multiuse, on-campus arena in St. Paul that will be home to its Division I men’s and women’s hockey and basketball programs. The donation is one of the 10 largest known collegiate athletics gifts ever received nationally.

Designs are still being finalized for the Lee and Penny Anderson Arena, but the historic gift officially kicks off fundraising to raise $131 million for the venue on the university’s south campus. Project costs are estimated to be $175 million. Partnering with design-build specialists Ryan Companies US, Inc. and Crawford Architects, St. Thomas aims to break ground on the new facility in 2024, with a target opening of fall 2025.

Aside from hockey and basketball games and hosting special events, the arena is being envisioned as the new home for St. Thomas commencement ceremonies, academic convocations, speakers, career fairs and other events for the university and broader community. The arena will also provide potential opportunities for St. Thomas to partner with local schools, youth sports organizations, nonprofits, businesses and other organizations.

“This is about more than just hockey and basketball games – this is a gift that will be transformative for our entire St. Paul campus, enhance the experience of our students, and raise visibility for the university as a whole,” said St. Thomas president Rob Vischer in a statement. “It also creates a new community and economic asset for the Twin Cities, the state of Minnesota, and the region.”

With their latest gift, the Andersons are officially the university’s largest donors, and the couple’s philanthropic efforts have played a major role in St. Thomas’ decades-long evolution from small, Catholic liberal arts college to comprehensive, national Catholic university with global impact. In 2010, for example, the university opened the Anderson Student Center as well as the Anderson Athletic and Recreation Complex (AARC), St. Paul campus centerpieces that have dramatically enhanced the student experience, and the Anderson Parking Facility (which will serve as the primary parking structure for guests of the new arena). The AARC’s Schoenecker Arena is the current home for Tommies basketball, which competes in the Summit League conference.

The basketball and hockey programs are among the university’s varsity sports portfolio that made history in 2021 as the first Division III institution in the modern NCAA era to transition directly to Division I athletics competition. Currently, both men’s and women’s hockey teams – which compete in the CCHA and WCHA, respectively – play at the St. Thomas Ice Arena (operated by Saint Thomas Academy) in Mendota Heights.

“For 138 years, St. Thomas has demonstrated commitment to excellence in all that it does, and this arena shows that same commitment to our Division I transition,” said Phil Esten, St. Thomas vice president for athletics. “Tommie hockey and basketball compete in some of the country’s best conferences, and this new arena will provide practice, competition and fan experiences expected of a Division I program. This gift helps St. Thomas to continue its upward trajectory in athletics and as an institution.”

The $75 million gift surpasses a previous $60 million donation made by the Andersons in 2007 for the construction of the Anderson Student Center, AARC and Anderson Parking Facility. At that time, the gift was the largest-ever single donation made to any university in Minnesota. In addition to being the largest gift in St. Thomas’ 138-year history, this latest donation is the ninth-largest known gift to college athletics nationally.

In total, the Andersons have donated nearly $140 million – including multiple gifts to scholarships and in support for veterans’ resources – to the mission-driven, Catholic university. In addition to St. Thomas, the couple is recognized as one of the largest benefactors at the United States Military Academy; Lee Anderson is a 1961 West Point graduate who served as a U.S. Army officer until 1964 when he returned to his native Twin Cities.

“Higher education is one of the world’s most important institutions because it truly has an ability to have a positive impact on the world, and the world needs St. Thomas’ students and graduates. For the first time ever, Minnesotans have a private university option for D-I caliber education and athletics and we’re proud to be part of making this vision a reality for young people in Minnesota and beyond,” Lee Anderson said.

“St. Thomas has a higher calling in that it develops graduates who are leaders with strong moral character who believe in the mission to serve the common good. These are the kinds of leaders the world needs now more than ever,” said Anderson. “Additionally, St. Thomas’ vision for this new arena is not only good for the university, but for all of St. Paul, the Twin Cities and Minnesota.”

In addition to contributing to nationwide initiatives supporting veterans, his legacy includes expanding St. Paul-based APi Group into a multibillion-dollar business with over 40 independently managed specialty construction companies in almost 300 locations worldwide.

Since officially transitioning from college to university in 1990, St. Thomas has opened new campuses in downtown Minneapolis and Rome, Italy, as well as several new facilities. But the evolution from liberal arts college to comprehensive university has encompassed more than buildings.

St. Thomas has also expanded its academic offerings by introducing engineering and law schools, as well as the nationally renowned Schulze School of Entrepreneurship, the Morrison Family College of Health and the Susan S. Morrison School of Nursing. It also founded its Racial Justice Initiative and its two-year Dougherty Family College serving underrepresented students with high financial need.

Shortly after its move to Division I athletics, St. Thomas also broke ground on what will be its largest academic building – the Schoenecker Center for science, technology, engineering, arts and math education. The new Lee and Penny Anderson Arena will be located just across the way from the Schoenecker Center, which is scheduled to open in 2024.

“Even though St. Thomas has been advancing knowledge, changing lives, and strengthening communities for 138 years, our culture of innovation and remarkable philanthropic support make clear: We’re just getting started,” Vischer said.

D-III Women’s West Week 11: Adrian shines with a pair of career milestones and St. Norbert makes a statement!

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Adrian Head Coach Shawn Skelly gets career win #100 in the team’s win over Lawrence University this past weekend (Photo by Carly Costello)

Another weekend of career and personal milestones for coaches and players in the western region of D-III Women’s hockey. We also saw a team establish themselves with a key weekend sweep that will play a vital role as we make the late season push now that the last half of play is underway.

Adrian’s Head Coach Shawn Skelly gets #100!

Entering this past weekend, Adrian Head Coach Shawn Skelly had a career record of 98-16-7, he finished the weekend 100-16-7 (.841). Skelly, who had an impressive career at Adrian as a player from 2007-2011, racking up 229 points (102 goals, 127 assists) in 113 games, also playing at various pro levels for six years, eventually returned to his alma mater as an assistant coach for the women’s program in ‘16-’17 and then the men’s team in ‘17-’18. After taking the head coaching job with the women’s program in 2018, he’s had nothing but success. Winning 20+ games in his first four seasons as HC and is well on his way to a fifth consecutive year of 20+ as his Bulldogs sit at 14-1-0 and ranked #5 in the USCHO poll.

Looking back at when I spoke with Coach Skelly before the season started, he was very confident in the group he has this year consisting of many veteran players and leaders that can help get Adrian to the next level after their season ended in disappointing fashion last year. With their 14-1-0 start and some very winnable games (on-paper) ahead, this team could do some special things. Their biggest remaining matchups are NCHA games which happen to be their last two weekends of play, where they visit Aurora for a pair of games (2/10-2/11) and then head to St. Norbert 2/17-2/18). Those games will be crucial to see how the NCHA league standings pan out to determine conference tournament seeding.

Congratulations to Head Coach Shawn Skelly of Adrian on this impressive milestone of 100 career wins with many more to add to the column!

Adrian’s Une Bjelland gets career point #100!

Another Adrian Bulldog personal milestone from this past weekend, this time it’s Senior Une Bjelland. Bjelland, from Stavanger, Norway, who’s played on Team Norway since 2013 (WJC-18 D1, Olympic Games Qualification, & WC-D1A) tallied her 100th career point in the two-game series vs Lawrence where she and her team dominated in all aspects. Adrian won by scores of 14-0 & 9-0, but Bjelland racked up 8 points in game one (5 goals, 3 assists) & 5 points in game two (1 goal, 4 assists) for a total of 13 on the weekend. Currently, she has 104 points after starting her weekend with 91.

Adrian’s Une Bjelland gets her 100th career point in her 13-point weekend vs Lawrence University (Photo by Carly Costello, via Adrian Women’s Hockey on Instagram “@adrianwhockey”)

Une just didn’t want to give her coach all of the spotlight, so she decided to tally 13 points in one weekend to share the limelight with Coach Skelly, however, her play solidified his two wins, so it all worked out in the end for the two of them.

Adrian returns to play this weekend with a two-game series at home versus Finlandia University (1/20-1/21 at 3:30pm and 12:00pm ET).

St. Norbert makes an NCHA statement

St. Norbert entered the weekend 10-3-2, coming off a series split with #10 UW-Eau Claire. They had #12 Aurora in their crosshairs in a battle between two of the top three NCHA teams. The Green Knights swept the series, winning 2-0 & 3-2 on the road in Aurora. For anyone who overlooked St. Norbert, it’s time to face reality that they could be an NCAA tournament team this year. 3rd year Head Coach A.J. Aitken, coming off the program’s first ever 20-win campaign and NCHA conference championship appearance, is now on pace to set the program record for wins as his team sits at 12-3-2, ranked #15, which I’d argue should be higher considering their body of work compared to some of their counterparts in the rankings, but that’s neither here nor there.

St. Norbert sweeps NCHA foe Aurora this past weekend, winning 2-0 & 3-2 (Photo by Patrick Ferron)

In the two games vs Aurora, the point leaders were Natalie Hogan with 3 points (1 goal, 2 assists), Kelsey Ross with 2 points (1 goal, 1 assist), and Jordan Moore with 2 points (1 goal, 1 assist). Goaltender Brynn Waisman also had another stellar weekend, getting a pair of wins, recording a 27-save shutout and a 32 save victory to improve her overall record to 8-2-2. Norbert now sits atop the NCHA with an 8-0-0 record, with Adrian the only other team perfect in league play, sitting with a record of 6-0-0. These two teams meet in mid-February for the last weekend of regular season play in St. Norbert.

#15 St. Norbert takes the ice next versus Lake Forest College at home this weekend 1/20-1/21 at 7pm and 3pm CT.

Other Notable Results

#1 Gustavus swept Saint Benedict, winning 5-2 & 5-1.

#2 UW-River Falls swept UW-Stevens Point, winning 4-2 & 3-1, and also defeated St. Scholastica 5-1 earlier in the week on Tuesday.

#10 UW-Eau Claire swept UW-Superior, winning 3-1 & 3-0.

Trine swept Finlandia, winning 4-1 both games.

Hamline defeated St. Catherine’s 4-3 and tied 3-3 (St. Kates won the shootout 2-0).

TMQ: Will building new college hockey arenas become new trend as teams try to keep pace with one another?

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Boston College and Sacred Heart opened SHU’s new Martire Family Arena last Saturday night (photo: Meg Stokes).

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

Jim: Well, Ed, this weekend felt like a statement weekend for a few teams around college hockey and probably none more than Denver. After the Pioneers fell to Alaska two Friday’s ago, dropping them from the No. 1 spot in the polls, they had an impressive bounce back weekend with a pair of 7-0 victories over Miami.

That included a hat trick from Carter King on Friday and a four-goal game from Tristan Broz on Saturday. And for good measure, let’s throw in a pair of shutouts for Magnus Chrona, his second and third of the season.

After last weekend, you had to expect this result for a Pioneers team that is further cementing its spot atop the highly-competitive NCHC.

I know there were a handful of sweeps across college hockey this weekend, but to me this was the most impressive.

What do you think?

Ed: Jim, I think right up there with the Denver sweep has to be Western Michigan’s pair of road wins at North Dakota, getting revenge for giving up five NCHC points in Kalamazoo at the end of last semester.

While it has been a bit of a down year for the Fighting Hawks – though the host team put up a good fight on Saturday – what’s really impressive is the goal-scoring machine that is WMU. The Broncos lead the nation in goals per game and have scored 27 in their last four. Hobey hopeful Jason Polin has 21 tallies so far this campaign, including five hat tricks. His linemates, freshman Ryan McAllister (10-29–39) and Max Sasson (8-22–30) have combined for 102 points and are arguably the most potent line in D-I men’s hockey this season.

Minnesota State also picked up a couple of strong road wins over the weekend and it seems as it has righted the ship with four straight wins on what has been an up-and-down season. But the Mavericks’ victories last weekend came at the expense of Arizona State and that has all but ended the Sun Devils’ hopes for an at-large NCAA bid.

While it wasn’t a sweep, Michigan State got four points at home with a 3-2 Friday overtime win and a shootout point after a 4-4 tie the next night. Where do you see the Spartans right now in a very competitive Big Ten?

Jim: I’ve liked Michigan State all season, so it was nice to see Sparty get back to normal with its four-points versus Penn State, both games feeling like a win.

I think it is difficult when a team comes out of break, and coaching players that return after a 15-plus day hiatus from normal training and practice can be difficult. You never know what the first game or two will look like. The more difficult coaching scenario is when that expands into game three, four and five.

We’ve seen that this season with a team like Merrimack, which probably wishes the break never happened. Everything seemed perfect before the break for the Warriors. Then they needed overtime to survive against Dartmouth in the Ledyard Bank, and then got smoked by Providence twice and Brown.

Saturday night, though, the Warriors found a road back to normalcy and a 3-0 victory over Providence. Part of be believes that could right the ship for Merrimack.

But as I lay out this scenario, I also wonder what your thoughts are on how a break – whether it be 15-20 days or even longer for some school – can impact a team?

Ed: If you’re rolling along and have some momentum, then I think you want to keep playing. If you lose, then you want to get back on the ice and erase the memory.

On the other hand, if you have injuries, then a break can often help. But I know teams also can suffer on the ice if there’s not a weekend off at exam time in December. I mean, it’s only fair to allow student-athletes to be completely free to concentrate on academics.

We saw a few teams have more than a month off during this past semester break because of scheduling or weather issues. That’s too long. When I think back to the COVID-19 season of 2020-21, I remember coaches talking about the difficulty of keeping things fresh when there were long stretches with no games.

Three weeks or so seems about right. This is where holiday tournaments and exhibitions at semester break can come in handy.

Speaking of “fresh,” two programs opened new arenas last weekend: UConn and its new Toscano Family Ice Forum (kudos for keeping the “Ice Forum” nomenclature that the Huskies used at Freitas) and Sacred Heart’s new Martire Family Arena. Add in Mullett Arena at Arizona State and Colorado College’s Ed Robson Arena last season, and you’ve got four beautiful new venues for college hockey.

This is great for the sport and for the fans. But how do you think these new homes will affect – or have affected – these clubs?

Jim: Modern buildings are critical for this sport. Certainly, the two that opened this weekend along with Colorado College and Arizona State bring four brand new venues, something that could ease recruiting challenges for all four of these schools.

The reality is that student-athletes want THE best facilities, not just in which to play, but most importantly to train. The best weight facilities mean a lot of these players, which, to me, also doesn’t always mean a new building.

Let’s think of the aforementioned Michigan State. Munn Arena was old and dingy. But a well thought out renovation that included new locker rooms and training areas for the players makes this building one of the best. Retrofits often don’t work – sometimes they look like lipstick on a pig – bit a well-done retrofit can make a classic arena compete on a national level.

You must have a few buildings in your head that could be retrofit?

Ed: You’re putting me a little on the spot in naming names here, so I think I’ll point to some success stories first.

Three facilities that have had upgrades in the past several years include Rensselaer’s Houston Field House, St. Lawrence’s Appleton Arena, and a still-in-progress retrofit of Air Force’s Cadet Ice Arena. I only had to climb up into the rafters and catwalks a couple of times at RPI, though our colleague Jayson Moy broadcast for a number of years on a vertigo-inducing open grating above the benches.

It’s tough with historic buildings, such as Princeton’s century-old Hobey Baker Rink (where they’ve done a lot over the years) or Yale’s Eero Saarinen-designed Ingalls Ice Arena. I could see doing something at each of those, but I’m not sure how, though Yost Ice Arena at Michigan has done a great job keeping current every so often, starting with its conversion from a 50-year-old field house to an ice arena in 1973.

Improving facilities for the student athletes needs to be reviewed at every arena just to stay competitive, whether we’re talking about weight training, lounges, or dressing rooms. And amenities for fans also need upgrades periodically, whether it’s a massive video scoreboard like the one at Northeastern’s Matthews Arena (which was part of a multi-million dollar renovation), or LED lighting, better concessions, or just refreshed rest rooms.

Sometimes it’s just not possible to upgrade sufficiently. Union, for example, is working on a new facility to replace an aging rink.

There’s really a bit of an arena and facilities arms race going on that programs will need to participate in to stay competitive. Let’s hope it doesn’t get so heated that schools find it impossible to keep pace.

D-III West Hockey Weekend Wrap-up: Pipers extend win streak

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Ryan Brandt helped lead Hamline to a victory over UW-Superior. (Photo by Carle Cheesebrough/Hamline Athletics)

Hamline highlighted its weekend with a pair of big non-conference wins, capping it off with a 2-1 overtime win over UW-Superior on Saturday. 

The Pipers have won their last five games and are now 8-6-1 on the season.

Ryan Brandt came through with the game-winning goal at the 1:05 mark of OT to lift the Pipers to their fifth win of the season over a WIAC opponent. Hamline finishes 5-1 against the WIAC this season.

Andrew Erwin scored in regulation for Hamline before C.J. Walker tied the game at 1-1.

Brandt then cashed in on a turnover by UW-Superior (10-6-1), going coast to coast with the puck before scoring from 10 feet away to give Hamline its third consecutive OT win over a WIAC opponent.

Keven Lake made 30 saves Hamine. Myles Hektor stopped 20 shots for the Yellowjackets.

One night earlier, the Pipers defeated UW-Eau Claire 3-2 in OT. 

Down 2-0 going into the third period, the Pipers struck for two goals in the final 20 minutes of regulation before Erik Dahl scored a little over three minutes into the extra session.

Brandt and Jackson Willie both scored in the third to force OT.

Cade Lemmer and Ian Carpenter had given the Blugolds (10-6)  a 2-0 lead in the second.

Johnnies stun Pointers

Bailey Huber was on top of his game Saturday night for Saint John’s. And that worked out well for the Johnnies.

The sophomore netminder made a career-best 41 saves and to help Saint John’s stun nationally ranked UW-Stevens Point, marking the first win for the program over the Pointers since November of 2007.

Peter Tabor, Spender Rudrud and Jack Johnson all scored goals for the Johnnies, with Johnson putting the Johnnies ahead for good at the 11:51 mark of the third period. It was the first goal of the season for Johnson and the 15th of his career.

The win is the ninth of the year for the Johnnies (9-6-2), who got a much-needed bounce-back win after losing 3-1 to UW-Stout the night before.

The Pointers (10-2-3), ranked 10th in the USCHO.com poll, got goals from Mick Heneghan and Fletcher Anderson. UW-Stevens Point defeated Concordia on Friday behind two goals from Andrew Poulias.

Royals earn split with Auggies

Bethel and Augsburg split a key MIAC series over the weekend, with the Royals winning the opener 4-1 before losing 3-2 to the Auggies in the finale on Saturday.

Friday’s victory for Bethel was its first over Augsburg since 2012. The Auggies came into the game ranked 12th in the nation.

Dylan Schneider gave Augsburg an early 1-0 lead before Dylan Giorgio tied it for Bethel.

Tyler Braccini put Bethel ahead for good late in the opening period.

Jack Bayless and Caydon Meyer added goals in the second and third periods, respectively, to seal the deal.

Bethel (9-7-1, 4-3-1) wasn’t as fortunate on Saturday as the Auggies (8-6-1, 4-2) scored twice in the third to secure the win.

Gavin Holland gave Augsburg the lead for good with 8:05 left in the game. 

Bethel is currently in fourth place in the MIAC standings. Augsburg is sixth. The teams are separated by three points.

Cardinals and Oles split series

St. Olaf salvaged its weekend MIAC series with Saint Mary’s, scoring five goals in the third period on their way to a 5-2 win on Saturday night.

The Cardinals (8-8-1, 4-4) had beaten the Oles (11-5-1, 5-3) 8-2 on Friday but couldn’t keep things rolling in their direction Saturday.

Matthew Pointer scored twice in the period, including the go-ahead goal while Sean Walsh, Troy Bowditch and Jonathan Panisa all scored as well in the third. Lukas Haugen made 32 saves, including 17 in the third, to help St. Olaf seal the deal.

In Friday’s game, the Cardinals jumped in front 4-0 after one period and never looked back. Brady Lindauer scored a pair of goals to pace the offense. The eight goals by Saint Mary’s were the most since the Cardinals scored eight against Hamline in February of 2014.

Saint Mary’s is in fifth place in the standings and St. Olaf is third.

Blugolds bounce back

After losing 3-2 to Hamline on Friday, UW-Eau Claire defeated St. Scholastica 6-3 on Saturday.

The Blugolds took control early with four goals in the first period.

Jordan Randall tallied a goal and two assist while Kyle Oleksiuk finished with a goal and an assist. Max Gutjahr won his 10th game of the season as he stopped 33 shots.

Carsen Richels led St. Scholastica with a goal and an assist.

The Blugolds improved to 10-5 while the Saints fell to 8-5-2.

Raiders split with Thunder

MSOE won its third consecutive game Friday night with a 2-1 overtime win over Trine in the first of two NCHA games against the Thunder. 

Kevin Paganini scored the game winner just under two minutes into the OT period. Jackson Hughes scored the other goal for the Raiders, won won despite being outshot 29-18.

On Saturday, Trine avenged the loss with a 5-2 win, scoring three goals in the second period. 

Five different players scored goals for the Thunder and Thad Marcola dished out three assists. Kyle Kozma made 22 saves.

MSOE is now 11-6 overall and 6-4 in the NCHA. Trine is 12-6-1 overall and 7-5 in conference play. 

Green Knights record sweep

St. Norbert finished off a sweep of Lake Forest on Saturday with a 5-2 win. The Green Knights improved to 11-5-1 overall and 8-2 in the conference.

The No. 9 Green Knights scored twice three times in the third to seal the deal after earning a 3-1 win in Friday’s opener.

Michael Spethmann scored twice and dished out an assist in Saturday’s victory. Ben Schmidling added a goal and two assists. Liam Fraser tallied three assists.

Bulldogs dominate Lions

Third-ranked Adrian cruised past Finlandia over the weekend by the scores of 6-0 and 7-1.

Hunter Wendt scored twice in Friday’s shutout win. Ryan Pitoscia also scored a pair of goals. Riley Murphy punched in two goals in Saturday’s game while Jackson Bernard made his collegiate debut and made five saves.

Adrian is 14-2-1 overall and 8-2 in the NCHA after the sweep.

 

Spartans sweep Falcons

Aurora scored four times in the opening period on Saturday and rolled to a 6-1 win. 

Adam Keyes scored a goal and dished out two assists while Gio Procopio came through with two assists in the win. 

The seventh-ranked Spartans are now 14-3-2 overall and remain unbeaten in NCHA play with a 10-0-2 record. Kolby Thornton made 35 saves in the victory, the fifth in a row for the Spartans.

The game was much closer on Friday as Concordia scored four times in the third to make things interesting late. Aurora held on for a 6-5 win.

Keyes record the 100th point of his Aurora career in the win off a power-play goal. Carson Riddle scored his first career goal for the Spartans. Keyes, meanwhile, is the first player in Aurora history to get to the 100-point mark.

The Falcons tied the game in the first 10 minutes of the third before Jacob Brockman scored the go-ahead goal.

Quinnipiac remains No. 1 team in USCHO.com Division I Poll as Bobcats pick up 39 first-place votes

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Quinnipiac players celebrate a recent goal against Harvard (photo: Rob Rasmussen).

With 39 first-place votes this week, Quinnipiac remains the top-ranked team in the USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll.

Minnesota is again No. 2, getting six first-place votes, while Denver moves up one to sit third, picking up four first-place votes, and St. Cloud State drops one spot to No. 4 and collects the last first-place vote.

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

Boston University rises two to No. 5, Penn State falls one to No. 6, Ohio State jumps up one to No. 7, Michigan falls two spots to No. 8, Harvard holds steady at No. 9, and Western Michigan moves up two slots to sit 10th this week.

Merrimack falls out of the top 10, dropping one spot to No. 11, and RIT is the lone unranked team of a week ago to be in the top 20 this week, coming in at No. 20.

In addition to the top 20 teams, 11 other teams received votes in this week’s rankings.

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

Debut of two new arenas, rebounds for Denver, Michigan State: Weekend Review Season 5 Episode 16

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Hosts Jim Connelly, Derek Schooley, and Ed Trefzger look at the games of the past weekend and the news of the week in this D-I college hockey podcast.

This podcast is sponsored by the NCAA Men’s Division I Frozen Four, April 6th and 8th, 2023 at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida. Secure your seats at NCAA.com/mfrozenfour

Topics include:

  • UConn opens Toscano Family Ice Forum, Sacred Heart debuts Martire Family Arena to great atmospheres
  • Denver dominates Miami with back-to-back 7-0 wins
  • Michigan State gets back on track with four points at home vs. Penn State
  • Western Michigan’s potent offense explodes again at North Dakota
  • Minnesota State makes a statement sweep at Arizona State
  • St. Thomas gets its first win over a nationally-ranked opponent
  • Where does Colorado College fit in the NCHC playoff race?

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

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

Continue

D-III East Hockey Weekend Wrap-Up – January 16, 2023

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At 13-1-0 overall and 11-0-0 in CCC action, the Endicott Gulls have lots to celebrate following their weekend sweep of the University of New England (Photo by Endicott Athletics)

It is mid-January and the good teams really start finding their game and getting results. Such was the case for Hobart, Norwich, Utica, Endicott and Plymouth State among others who realized weekend sweeps despite some close games. There were more than ten overtime games this past week and while not all were decided in the extra time, the tight nature of so many games points to some additional high drama coming at us over the remaining month of the regular season. Here are some of the major highlights from the weekend in the East:

CCC   

Endicott faced the University of New England in a home-and-home series and took two key wins in CCC play to remain unbeaten in the conference at 11-0-0. On Friday night, the Gulls took a win on the road by taking advantage of four special teams goals in a 6-3 win. Ryan Willett, Garrett Devine, and Cassidy Bowes all scored on the power play while Connor Amsley added a shorthanded tally to pace the offense while Atticus Kelly stopped 20 of 23 shots. On Saturday, the Gulls completed the sweep with a 3-0 win on home ice. The game was scoreless for the first two periods as Billy Girard and Ryan Wilson were terrific in goal for the Nor’easters and Gulls respectively. In the final period, Matt Giroux broke the ice early for a 1-0 Gull lead and Zach Mazur and Amsley added late insurance for the final score. Wilson earned the shutout making 32 saves.

Curry looked to keep the Gulls in sight in the standings and took a weekend sweep over Nichols where they outscored the Bison by a 20-4 margin. In Friday’s 11-3 win, forward Mark Zhukov recorded a seven-point night picking up a pair of goals and adding five assists in the comfortable win for the Colonels. Zhukov and the Curry offense continued to put up numbers on Saturday as the forward added one goal and four assists to his weekend total and Curry scored six power play goals in the third period to complete a 9-1 rout.

Salve Regina also completed a weekend sweep with two one-goal wins over Western New England to stay among the top teams in the conference standings. On Friday, the Seahawks rallied from a 1-0 deficit late in the third period with goals from Walter Baumann and Logan Calder to take a 2-1 road win over the Golden Bears. On Saturday, the game couldn’t be decided in regulation time as the game went back and forth in a 3-3 tie through sixty minutes of play. Seth Benson wasted no time in giving Salve Regina the home win just 21 seconds into overtime.

Independents

After a 4-2 win over Potsdam on Wednesday night, Canton played a weekend series with Fredonia earning a split of the two games. On Friday night, the Kangaroos yielded an early goal to Ryan Bailey before reeling off five unanswered goals from five different players for a 5-1 win. Scott Cremen scored a goal and added two assists to pace the offense for Canton. On Saturday, the Blue Devils flipped the script coming back from a 2-1 deficit with four third period goals in a 5-2 win.

After losing to Wesleyan 5-2 on Tuesday night, Anna Maria traveled to face Rivier on Saturday in a battle of Independents. The AmCats moved to a 4-0 lead on goals from Patrick Peltola, Michael Padgeon, Aryan Batra and Cam Tobey and held off the Raiders in a 4-1 win. Goaltender Aidan Richardson was terrific, making 33 saves on 34 shots to earn the win.

MASCAC

Plymouth State eked out a 2-1 win at Massachusetts-Dartmouth on Thursday behind 39 saves from goaltender Brendahn Brawley. Jake Maynard scored on the power play to give the Corsairs an early lead but goals from Connor Tait and Payton Schaly to close out the first period was all the scoring the game would see. Daniel Davidson stopped 49 shots for the Corsairs but the offense could not solve Brawley again after Maynard’s first period tally. The win moved the Panthers to 9-0-0 in MASCAC play.

Worcester State extended their shutout streak to three games with two conference wins over Westfield State and Framingham State to move to 7-2-0 in conference play. On Thursday, Brian Clougherty scored a pair of goals and Jakub Kulik stopped all 24 shots he faced in a 4-0 win. On Saturday, second period goals from Brendan Ronan, Martin Dlugolinski and Brigham Neuhold were enough for goaltender Wyatt Friedlander who made 22 saves in the 3-0 shutout win.

Fitchburg State kept pace with a pair of MASCAC wins by just one goal over Framingham State on Thursday and Massachusetts-Dartmouth on Saturday. Against Framingham State, Joshua Miller, and Gene Bouthiette each recorded a goal and an assist in a 4-3 win over the Rams in head coach Dean Fuller’s 1000th game behind the bench. On Saturday, the Falcons eked out another one-goal decision in extra time as the Corsairs rallied from a two-goal deficit before Miller scored the game-winning goal just 26 seconds into overtime. The win moved the Falcons to 6-2-2 in MASCAC play.

NE-10

St. Michael’s moved to 5-4-1 in conference play and produced their first two-game win streak of the season in a sweep of Post. On Friday night, three power play goals from Brennan McFarland, Case Kantgias and Zach Taylor helped pace the offense in a 6-3 win. On Saturday, Jeremy Routh and Taylor gave the Purple Knights an early lead and goaltender Marshall Murphy stopped 34 of 35 shots on the way to a 4-1 win.

Southern New Hampshire hosted Assumption in a pair of games this weekend and the visitors came away with a big sweep. On Friday, the Greyhounds rallied in dramatic fashion with a five-goal third period for a 6-3 win over the Penmen. Ronny Paragallo, Shane Sullivan, William Smith and Alexan Mavrogiannis all scored in the first three minutes of play in the final period to rally Assumption to the road win. On Saturday, the game was much tighter as Camron Roberts finally broke the ice in the second period for the Greyhounds. That one goal was all that goaltender Drew Benedict would need in a 1-0 shutout win. Benedict stopped 34 shots including 17 in the third period alone.

St. Anselm downed Franklin Pierce on Friday by an 8-2 score. Andrew Andary and Will Christensen scored a pair of goals each and defenseman John Myers added three assists in win that moved the Hawks to 7-3-1 in NE-10 play.

NEHC

Hobart traveled to Southern Maine and Babson this weekend and picked up a pair of critical NEHC wins. On Friday night, goals from Tanner Daniels, Brenden Howell and Matthew Iasenza along with 21 saves from Damon Beaver were enough to down the Huskies, 3-0. On Saturday in a battle of ranked teams, the Statesmen downed the Beavers 4-1. Two goals from Ignat Belov and tallies from Iasenza and Austin Mourar paced the offense and Mavrick Goyer made 22 saves in the win that moved Hobart to 9-1-0 in conference play.

Norwich needed a little more drama in earning their weekend sweep as Friday night’s game against Massachusetts-Boston was scoreless for sixty minutes before Joe Nagle ended the game just 56 seconds into the extra session for a 1-0 win. Goaltender Sam Best stopped 32 shots for the Beacons while Drennen Atherton made 24 saves to earn the shutout win. On Saturday, the Cadets created a little more breathing room early in a 7-1 win over Johnson & Wales. Seven different players scored for Norwich and Johnny Johnson scored one goal and added three assists to move Norwich to 9-1-1 in NEHC play.

NESCAC

League-leading Amherst picked up a pair of one-goal wins over Tufts and Connecticut College to keep their hold on the top spot in the highly competitive NESCAC standings. On Friday night, the Mammoths raced to a 1-0 lead on a goal by Ryan Corcoran but the Jumbos responded with goals from Sam Miller and Mason Kohn for a 2-1 lead entering the third period. Power play goals in the third period Zachary Murray and Corcoran just 36 seconds apart led to the 3-2 road win. On Saturday, the Mammoths again trailed by a goal entering the third period before Ryan Tucker and Michael Pitts scored on the power play. Pitts added his second goal of the game to pad the lead and Amherst held on for a 4-3 win to move to 7-1-0 in NESCAC play.

Trinity continued their hot play in the second half and extended their NESCAC win streak to four games with a weekend sweep of Colby and Bowdoin. On Friday, the Bantams took an early two goal lead only to see the Mules rally to tie the game at 2-2 early in the third period. With less than five minutes remaining in regulation Gerrard Marretta scored the game winner in a 3-2 win. On Saturday, the game mirrored Friday’s as a two-goal lead evaporated when Bowdoin’s Jimmy Duffy tied the game early in the third period. Teddy Griffen scored on the power play to give Trinity a 3-2 lead and a pair of shorthanded goals in the final minute from Paul Selleck and Andrew Troy iced the 5-2 win.

Wesleyan kept pace with a win and a tie in Maine extending their current streak without a regulation loss this season. A three-goal second period spurred a 5-3 win over Bowdoin on Friday night and Saturday saw two goals in 27 seconds off the sticks of Jake Lachance and Liam Donelson tie the game in the third period for the Cardinals who finished with a 3-3 OT tie against Colby.

SUNYAC

Plattsburgh took a 3-2 win over Middlebury and a 2-0 win over Williams to finish off their non-conference schedule. On Friday, the Cardinals took a 3-0 lead and held off the energetic Panthers. Luk Jirousek, Carson Gallagher, and Matt Araujo scored the goals and Jacob Hearne made 26 saves to earn the win. On Saturday, Bennett Stockdale provided all the scoring and Eli Shiller made 26 saves to earn the 2-0 shutout win.

After a 4-1 win over Manhattanville on Tuesday, Cortland continued their non-conference winning ways with a 4-2 win over King’s. Trailing midway through the second period, Geordan Buffoline tied the game at 2-2. In the third period, Nick Grupp and Trevor Veneklase scored to give the Red Dragons their tenth win of the season.

Following Tuesday’s non-conference game against SUNYAC opponent Fredonia (a 4-2 win), Brockport traveled to play Franklin Pierce on Saturday. Josh Grund, two goals and two assists, Chase Maxwell, two goals, and Andrew Hartley with two goals and one assist led the offense in an 8-4 win.

UCHC

Mic Curran scored two goals and added an assist in front of Bryan Landesberger’s 15 saves in route to a 5-0 win for Utica over Neumann on Friday night. On Saturday the Pioneers completed the weekend sweep with a 6-2 win that featured five unanswered goals to break a 1-1 tie with the Black Knights. John Moncovich scored two goals for the Pioneers in the win that moved them to 11-0-0 in UCHC play.

Nazareth hosted Manhattanville for a two-game series and Friday’s game was a seesaw affair that ended in a 4-4 OT tie (Nazareth won the shootout). Three times the Valiants held one-goal leads only to see the Golden Flyers rally to tie the score. Logan Tobias provided the tying goal in the third period as the hosts outshot the Valiants by a 41-22 margin. On Saturday, the teams exchanged special teams’ goals in the first period before Nazareth scored four straight goals, including a hat trick by Ethan Louisos, on the way to a 5-1 win.

On Friday night, Chatham needed three power play goals to rally for a 3-3 OT tie with Alvernia. The Golden Wolves won the shootout setting up an important re-match on Saturday. The Cougars again found themselves in a hole trailing 3-0 in the third period and rallied on goals by Andrew Warhoftig, Evan Mitchell and Matthew Doyle to send the game to overtime. This time the Cougars would find the golden goal off the stick of Zack Conner with an assist from Warhoftig for the 4-3 win.

Wilkes continued their win streak with a pair of wins over Arcadia this weekend. After a 4-1 win on Friday, the Colonels took advantage of four goals from Cam Lowe and five special team goals in a 6-2 win for the weekend sweep.

Three Biscuits

Ethan Louisos – Nazareth – scored a hat trick to pace Nazareth to a 5-1 win over Manhattanville on Saturday.

Mark Zhukov – Curry – recorded a seven-point game on Friday and a five-point game on Saturday in the Colonels’ two wins over Curry this weekend. Zhukov finished the weekend series with three goals and nine assists.

Joe Nagle – Norwich – scored the game-winning goal just 56 seconds into overtime to give the Cadets a 1-0 win over Massachusetts-Boston on Friday night.

The schedule now shifts to all conference play for virtually everyone over the next several weeks to close out the regular season. Expect the battles for points to heat up and scoreboard watching to start in earnest.

 

 

Monday 10: Pair of new arenas open Saturday night, Minnesota State not ready to throw in towel, Colorado College taking NCHC points

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Sacred Heart opened its new Martire Family Arena Saturday night (photo: Meg Stokes).

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

1. The Opening, Part I

We will start with Connecticut, which led the battle of Connecticut schools to open their brand-new arena by a single day as the Huskies hosted a women’s game at the brand new Toscano Family Ice Forum on Friday. A day later, it was a women’s/men’s doubleheader where more than 2,500 fans witness a heck of a game between Northeastern and UConn, the Boston-area Huskies coming away with a 4-3 victory.

Still, it’s a new era of having college hockey on campus for UConn, which still has the option to play select game in Hartford at the XL Center.

2. The Opening, Part II

On Saturday evening, the Martine Family Arena also hosted its first game, a men’s game between Sacred Heart and Boston College.

With a capacity of 3,600 listed online, the announced attendance that evening was 4,103, though the host Pioneers lost a heartbreaker to Boston College, 3-2 in overtime. Sacred Heart led and then fell behind only to rally on Kevin Lombardi’s goal midway through the third to tie it.

But Marshall Warren’s OT game winner game Boston College a road victory and improves the Eagles to 5-1-2 in their last eight games.

3. Joshua brings Michigan State out of a funk

It’s been a difficult few weeks for Michigan State, which entered a weekend series against No. 5 Penn State riding a five-game losing streak. Jagger Joshua, though, played a large part in changing the Spartans fate.

Joshua scored the tying goal in the third on Friday to help his team rally from 2-0 down before Cole Krygier won the game for Sparty in overtime. A night later, Jagger netted a hat trick, scoring each of the final three goals as Michigan State came back from 3-1 down to tie 4-4. The Spartans won the shootout for a five-point Big Ten weekend.

4. Gridlocked Big Ten standings

With this weekend’s results, the middle of the Big Ten standings is one big tie.

Penn State, Ohio State and Michigan State all have 24 points, though the Nittany Lions and Buckeyes have two games in had on the Spartans.

That trio trails Minnesota by 10 points, and also has a seven-point advantage over Notre Dame.

Still, it feels like absolute gridlock in what is currently the top conference in Division 1 men’s hockey.

5. Western Michigan might have the most fun offense to watch

If you haven’t checked in lately, Western Michigan’s offense is on fire.

The Broncos scored 11 goals against North Dakota this weekend in wins of 4-0 and 7-6. The 7-6 victory included rallying from three goals down against the Fighting Hawks.

Add in the 16 goals that the Broncos netted in winning the Great Lakes Invitational two weekend ago, this Western Michigan team is as hot as any when it comes to scoring goals.

With 4.33 goals per game, Western Michigan is now tops in Division I, ahead of the 4.14 output of No. 1 Quinnipiac.

6. Harvard’s weekend brings Crimson back on track

Last Saturday’s 4-1 road loss at Quinnipiac was a difficult one for Harvard to stomach, given that the Crimson is the team in closest pursuit of the Bobcats.

But things feel back to normal after a 4-1 win over Clarkson and a 5-0 victory over St. Lawrence at home this weekend.

Harvard is now nine points behind the still perfect Quinnipiac team in the ECAC standings. But the Crimson also has a five-point lead on third-place Cornell, though the Big Red have two games in hand.

More importantly, the Crimson have moved to ninth in the PairWise Rankings, ahead a decent margin over 10th Western Michigan in the RPI.

7. Even with split, Colorado College more than relevant in NCHC

It’s fair to say that Colorado College’s 4-2 win over St. Cloud State on Friday was eye opening across the college hockey landscape.

Even after the Huskies responded with a 4-0 win to split the series on Saturday, it’s clear that second-year coach Kris Mayotte’s team is ready to contend in the NCHC.

CC is currently in the top four of the league as every school has played 12 games. There’s still plenty of hockey to be played, but the Tigers have to be considered a serious threat to take a home ice spot in the NCHC quarterfinals.

8. RIT takes four points, continues to roll in Atlantic Hockey

RIT may have let slip a third-period lead on Friday night against Mercyhurst, finishing in a 4-4 tie and losing the shootout with the Lakers. But a 1-0 victory on Saturday gave the Tigers a four-point weekend in Atlantic Hockey and a nine-point lead over second place Sacred Heart in the conference standings.

The Tigers remain the top AHA team in the PairWise Rankings, currently in the 22nd slot. It’s hard to imagine an at-large bid for the Tigers, but a crazy stretch run, that could begin with road success at Arizona State that weekend, could make RIT a dark horse for an NCAA at-large bid.

9. Minnesota State says, “Don’t count us out”

The defending national runner up hasn’t had smooth sailing all season, but Minnesota State has made a statement the last two weekends with four straight road victories.

The Mavericks swept a league series against Northern Michigan a week ago and then won two key nonconference games at Arizona State, 3-1 and 5-0, this past weekend.

Those victories brought Minnesota State above the PairWise bubble in a tie for 14th.

The Mavs return home this weekend for a two-game slate vs. Lake Superior, though everyone has likely circled their final two series – two games at Bemijdi State and two at home vs. Michigan Tech.

10. What can Brown do for you?

This hasn’t been the best season to date for Brown, but the last nine days have felt amazing for the Bears.

Brown ended a four-game winless skid last Saturday with a 6-2 win over nationally-ranked Merrimack. Then, home wins this weekend over Union (6-2) and Rensselaer (3-0) gave the Bears their longest winning streak since Mar. 8-19, 2019. That, by the way, was a four-game winning streak in the ECAC playoffs that brought Brown to the conference semifinals.

Team USA drops 5-2 decision to Slovakia at World University Games

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Team USA dropped a 5-2 decision to Slovakia for their first loss in Pool B play at the World University Games (Photo by Peter Lynch)

With both teams entering the game at 2-0-0, the match-up between Team USA and Slovakia figured to be a highly competitive game. After two periods of play with the score tied at 1-1, the third period saw the Slovaks with a 4-1 goal advantage on the way to a 5-2 win in Pool B.

Matus Zemko gave the Slovaks a 1-0 lead midway through the first period and the tempo for what would be a fast-paced and physical game was established by both teams. The Slovaks carried the play and shot advantage 14-9 with goaltender Dysen Skinner (Wisconsin – River Falls) surrendering the first goal against the USA from Zemko.

In the second period, Steven Szmul (Wisconsin – Eau Claire) evened the score at 1-1 in a period that saw the USA forced to kill off a major penalty against Luke Aquaro (Hobart). Team USA held the shot advantage for the period but couldn’t get anything else past Slovakia’s Samuel Vyletelka in goal.

In the third period, Olivr Giertl gave the Slovaks a 2-1 lead and just three minutes later, with the man advantage, defenseman Jan Marcinko extended the lead to 3-1. Two late goals extended the lead for Slovakia before Jack Ring (Plattsburgh) closed out the scoring for Team USA. The USA held a 46-34 shot advantage with Dysen Skinner finishing with 29 saves for the USA and Vyletelka stopping 44 of 46.

Team USA now stands at 2-1-0 in Pool B play and will face Kazakhstan on Wednesday, January 18.

 

Rankings roundup: How the top 20 NCAA hockey teams fared, Jan. 13-15

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Providence’s Nick Poisson and Merrimack’s Adam Arvedson look for a play during Saturday night’s game (photo: Lydia Vigneau).

Here is a rundown of how the top 20 teams in the USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll of Jan. 9 fared in games over the weekend of Jan. 13-15.

No. 1 Quinnipiac (18-1-3)
01/14/2023 – No. 1 Quinnipiac 5 at LIU 2

No. 2 Minnesota (17-6-1)
01/13/2023 – No. 2 Minnesota 2 at RV Notre Dame 2 (OT)
01/14/2023 – No. 2 Minnesota 3 at RV Notre Dame 0

No. 3 St. Cloud State (16-6-0)
01/13/2023 – RV Colorado College 4 at No. 3 St. Cloud State 2
01/14/2023 – RV Colorado College 0 at No. 3 St. Cloud State 4

No. 4 Denver (19-5-0)
01/13/2023 – Miami 0 at No. 4 Denver 7
01/14/2023 – Miami 0 at No. 4 Denver 7

No. 5 Penn State (17-6-1)
01/13/2023 – No. 5 Penn State 2 at No. 17 Michigan State 3 (OT)
01/14/2023 – No. 5 Penn State 4 at No. 17 Michigan State 4 (OT)

No. 6 Michigan (13-8-1)
01/13/2023 – No. 8 Ohio State 7 at No. 6 Michigan 2
01/14/2023 – No. 8 Ohio State 2 at No. 6 Michigan 4

No. 7 Boston University (15-6-0)
01/11/2023 – No. 19 Massachusetts 2 at No. 7 Boston University 6
01/14/2023 – No. 15 Cornell 3 at No. 7 Boston University 4

No. 8 Ohio State (15-8-1)
01/13/2023 – No. 8 Ohio State 7 at No. 6 Michigan 2
01/14/2023 – No. 8 Ohio State 2 at No. 6 Michigan 4

No. 9 Harvard (12-4-1)
01/13/2023 – Clarkson 1 at No. 9 Harvard 4
01/14/2023 – St. Lawrence 0 at No. 9 Harvard 5

No. 10 Merrimack (15-7-1)
01/13/2023 – No. 14 Providence 8 at No. 10 Merrimack 3
01/14/2023 – No. 14 Providence 0 at No. 10 Merrimack 3

No. 11 Connecticut (13-7-3)
01/14/2023 – RV Northeastern 4 at No. 11 Connecticut 3

No. 12 Western Michigan (14-9-1)
01/13/2023 – No. 12 Western Michigan 4 at RV North Dakota 0
01/14/2023 – No. 12 Western Michigan 7 at RV North Dakota 6

No. 13 Michigan Tech (15-7-3)
01/13/2023 – St. Thomas 0 at No. 13 Michigan Tech 2
01/14/2023 – St. Thomas 3 at No. 13 Michigan Tech 2

No. 14 Providence (12-6-6)
01/13/2023 – No. 14 Providence 8 at No. 10 Merrimack 3
01/14/2023 – No. 14 Providence 0 at No. 10 Merrimack 3

No. 15 Cornell (10-6-1)
01/14/2023 – No. 15 Cornell 3 at No. 7 Boston University 4

No. 16 UMass Lowell (12-9-1)
01/13/2023 – No. 16 UMass Lowell 2 at Maine 1
01/14/2023 – No. 16 UMass Lowell 3 at Maine 5

No. 17 Michigan State (13-11-2)
01/13/2023 – No. 5 Penn State 2 at No. 17 Michigan State 3 (OT)
01/14/2023 – No. 5 Penn State 4 at No. 17 Michigan State 4 (OT)

No. 17 Minnesota State (14-9-1)
01/13/2023 – No. 17 Minnesota State 3 at RV Arizona State 1
01/14/2023 – No. 17 Minnesota State 5 at RV Arizona State 0

No. 19 Massachusetts (9-10-3)
01/11/2023 – No. 19 Massachusetts 2 at No. 7 Boston University 6
01/15/2023 – New Hampshire 3 at No. 19 Massachusetts 1

No. 20 Boston College (9-6-4)
01/14/2023 – No. 20 Boston College 3 at RV Sacred Heart 2 (OT)

RV = Received votes

Team USA downs Republic of Korea 8-0 at World University Games

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Team USA celebrates a goal by Peter Morgan (Geneseo) in an 8-0 win over the Republic of Korea on Saturday night (Photo by Peter Lynch – Team USA)

Team USA moved to 2-0 in Pool B play on Saturday night with an 8-0 win over the Republic of Korea. Ryan Kenny from Stevenson (14 saves) and Evan Ruschil from Williams (5 saves) combined for the shutout as the D-III-based US team has yet to surrender a goal through the first two games.

Offensively, Sam Ruffin (Adrian) again led the way with a three-point game on one goal and two assists while John Mulera (Salve Regina) chipped in with a pair of goals for the Americans.

A five-goal first period quickly put the game away for the Americans as Quinn Green gave the Americans a 1-0 lead less than a minute into the game. Peter Morgan (Geneseo) made it 2-0 just three minutes later and Jaden Shields (Adrian) added a power play goal just past five minutes into the game for a 3-0 lead. Mulera and Salve Regina teammate Mitch Walinski would close out the scoring for the 5-0 lead. Mulera added his second goal of the game in the second period along with a goal by Ruffin to extend the lead to 7-0 after two periods. Jack Jaunisch (Aurora) closed out the scoring in the third period. Team USA held a 61-19 shot advantage for the game.

“I really like the way the guys are playing selflessly and together at every position,” said head coach Mark Taylor. “I think our game today against Slovakia is set to be a good one.”

The Slovakia team is also 2-0 entering today’s game with shutout wins over Hungary (4-0) and Great Britain (14-0).

SATURDAY ROUNDUP: No. 12 Western Michigan rallies from three goals down to beat North Dakota; Sacred Heart, No. 11 UConn each fall while opening new buildings; St. Thomas upsets No. 13 Michigan Tech

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UConn was one of two Connecticut men’s programs to play their first game in a new building, though both the Huskies and Sacred Heart fell on Saturday night (photo: Hockey East).

In one of the craziest games of the year, No. 12 Western Michigan fell behind, 5-2, rallied to take the lead at 6-5 and then, after the Fighting Hawks evened the score, Carter Berger netted the game winning goal with 2:54 remaining to give the Broncos a 7-6 victory and a keep NCHC series sweep.

Luke Grainger put forth a massive effort for WMU, scoring twice and adding four assists for a six-point game.

North Dakota jumped to a 2-0 lead on goals by Connor Moore and Jackson Kunz. Western Michigan tied to the game on goals by Cole Gallant and Luke Grainger before Riese Gaber gave the Fighting Hawks the lead at 3-2 in the closing seconds of the first.

That lead was tripled in the middle frame before the Broncos began the comeback.

Grainger and Chad Hillebrand each tallied before the end of the second before Tim Washe and Hugh Larkin scored 17 seconds apart late in the third to give the Broncos a 6-5 lead.

Ethan Frische, though, had an equalizer with 4:09 left before Berger’s game-winner came with just 2:54 remaining.

SCOREBOARD  |  PAIRWISE RANKINGS  |  USCHO.com POLL

Northeastern 4, No. 11 Connecticut 3

In the opening men’s game at Toscano Family Ice Forum, Northeastern spoiled the party, rallying from 2-0 down with four straight goals, holding on for a 4-3 victory over No. 11 UConn.

It was one of two inaugural men’s games played at arenas on Saturday. Sacred Heart also opened the Martire Family Arena on Saturday, falling, 3-2, to Boston College.

UConn jumped to a 2-0 advantage on a first period goal by Chase Bradley and a goal at 8:42 of the second by Roman Kinal.

Jakov Novak closed the gap to 2-1 at 12:15 of the second, before Northeastern exploded for three goals in less than six minutes late in the third.

Aidan McDonough scored twice at 12:53 and 15:08 to give Northeastern the lead. Jack Hughes’ power play tally with 1:22 left appeared to be insurance.

UConn, though, continued to push and scored an extra-attacker power play goal late, but couldn’t find the equalizer as Devon Levi made 30 saves to earn the win.

No. 2 Minnesota 3, Notre Dame 0

Minnesota netminder Justen Close stopped all 38 shots he faced as the Gophers earned a 3-0 road victory over Notre Dame, taking four of six points in the Big Ten standings from the Irish.

Notre Dame was a shootout on Friday after the teams skated to a 2-2 tie.

Ryan Johnson, Logan Cooley and Matthew Knies all scored for the Gophers in the victory.

Minnesota maintains a 10 point lead over its closest contender in the Big Ten standings with six weekends remaining in regular-season play.

No. 17 Michigan State 4, No. Penn State 4 (MSU wins shootout)

Michigan State completed a five-point Big Ten weekend, rallying from 3-1 and 4-3 down behind a hat trick by Jagger Joshua. The Spartans scored three times in the shootout to earn the extra point in the standings.

Tyler Paquette broke a 1-1 tie at 4:45 of the second period on the power play for the Nittany Lions before Simon Mack doubled the lead at 7:58.

Joshua scored twice before the end of the period to tie the game before Danny Dzhaniyev regain the lead for Penn State at 3:43 of the third.

Joshua, though, needed just 11 seconds to score the equalizer before the Spartans won the shootout to take five-on-six points on the weekend.

St. Thomas 3, No. 13 Michigan Tech 2

Upstart St. Thomas ended Michigan Tech’s four-game winning streak, rallying form 2-1 down for a 3-2 victory on Saturday.

Luc Laylin scored the game-winning tally with 3:33 remaining, just 2:06 after Josh Eenisse evened the scored at 2.

Evan Orr gave Michigan Tech the lead heading to the third period after each club scored in the opening 20.

Aaron Trotter made 27 saves to earn the victory.

The win is the first for St. Thomas over a nationally-ranked program.

 

NCHC suspends North Dakota’s Kleven one game for cross checking/head contact penalty Jan. 13 against Western Michigan

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KLEVEN

The NCHC announced Saturday that it has issued a one-game suspension to North Dakota junior defenseman Tyler Kleven, in accordance with the conference’s supplemental discipline policy.

The suspension stems from an illegal hit during the Fighting Hawks game against Western Michigan last night at Ralph Engelstad Arena in Grand Forks, N.D.

During Friday night’s game, Kleven was assessed a major penalty for cross-checking/direct contact to the head and given a game misconduct penalty at 19:15 of the second period.

Kleven will be required to serve the one-game suspension during UND’s series finale with Western Michigan tonight. Kleven is eligible to return for North Dakota’s series opener against Minnesota Duluth on Friday, Jan. 20.

FRIDAY ROUNDUP: No. 14 Providence routs No. 10 Merrimack; No. 17 Michigan State ends losing skid in OT vs. No. 5 Penn State; Colorado College upsets No. 3 St. Cloud State

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No. 17 Michigan State got back to winning ways with a 3-2 overtime victory over No. 5 Penn State on Friday (Photo: Rey Del Rio/MSU Athletics)

No. 10 Merrimack’s slow start to the second half of the season continues to plague the Warriors as No. 14 Providence exploded offensively in an 8-3 road victory.

Merrimack is now winless in its last four games and twice in that span has allowed six or more goals to the Friars.

Parker Ford netted a goal and three assists while Taige Harding scored twice and added. helper to pace the Providence Offense. Philip Svedeback made 28 saves for the victory.

Since Merrimack won 3-2 in overtime over Dartmouth in the Ledyard Bank Classic, in its first game out of break, the Warriors have struggled. Merrimack’s defense has allowed 23 goals those last four games after surrendering 33 goals in the first 18 games.

SCOREBOARD  |  PAIRWISE RANKINGS  |  USCHO.com POLL

No. 17 Michigan State 3, No. 5 Penn State 2 (OT)

Cole Krygier’s goal at 3:36 of overtime gave host Michigan State a come-from-behind, 3-2 victory over Penn State.

The Spartans never led in the game, falling behind on goals by Penn State’s Jarod Crespo at 6:11 of the second and a third-period tally by Ture Linden. Both of those game when Penn State had two-man advantages.

Erik Middendorf gave Michigan State live with 11:22 remaining, cutting to lead to 2-1. Jagger Joshua then found the equalizer with 6:49 left, setting up Krygier’s heroics.

The win snapped a five-game winless skid for the Spartans that included a fourth-place finish in the annual Great Lakes Invitational.

Colorado College 4, No. 3 St. Cloud State 2

After falling behind in the opening period, Colorado College scored four straight goals to grab control on the contest in a 4-2 road upset of No. 3 St. Cloud State.

The victory avenges two earlier losses to the Huskies in Colorado Spring in November.

Tyler Coffey scored twice on Friday for the Tigers, who jump into a tie for second place in the NCHC standings with St. Cloud State.

The two teams play the final of four games against one another in St. Cloud on Saturday.

No. 8 Ohio State 7, No. 6 Michigan 2

The visiting Buckeyes mustered 52 shots on goal, scoring on seven of them, silencing the Ann Arbor crowd for much of the night in a dominating 7-2 victory over host Michigan.

Ohio State scored four times on the power play, opened up a 5-1 lead late in the second and never looked back. Travis Treloar scored twice and added an assist.

Dylan Duke netted both goals for Michigan.

The Wolverines, despite being ranked sixth in the country in the USCHO.com poll, fall to 4-6-1 in the Big Ten, just six points out of the basement. Ohio State, conversely, remains hot and moves past Penn State into second place, seven points behind first-place Minnesota.

 

 

USCHO Edge: North Dakota returns to role as the favorite against nationally-ranked Western Michigan

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Western Michigan and North Dakota played to a spirited 2-2 tie back on Dec. 9 in Kalamazoo, Mich. (photo: Ashley Huss).

I want to start this week by looking back at a prediction I made late in last week’s column. It was in regard to the college games being played at Fenway Park last weekend.

I was close to correct that no game would produce more than five goals. But what I failed to consider was the fact that as the day progressed, particularly for the men’s games on Saturday, the temperature got colder and the ice sped up. Because of that, the Boston College-UMass game ended up going over the 5.5 goals total, albeit on an empty-net goal.

Which is all proof that handicapping hockey games when factoring weather can be really difficult.

On to this week and we’re seeing something that hasn’t happened in this space in a while: North Dakota is a favorite against a nationally-ranked opponent, this time Western Michigan. At -125, the Fighting Hawks are still closer to a pick ’em with the Broncos (-105), but you can see North Dakota trending back in the right direction as we approach mid-January.

The underdogs this weekend aren’t very massive, though Ohio State at +135 at Michigan is pretty decent value. All that said, let’s try to break down a few of the key games.

All odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook:

Ohio State (+135) at Michigan (-165); o/u 6

It’s been a very long time – more than a month in fact – since Michigan played a game that counts (a 7-6 exhibition win on the USNTDP aside). So even with a game-night feel last weekend, you can still think that the Wolverines might feel some rust when they take the ice.

Ohio State, on the other hand, is playing solid hockey including a big sweep for the Buckeyes at home last weekend over Michigan State. OSU is riding a five-game win streak, but now must go on the road, which hasn’t been overly friendly this season (5-5-1 vs. 9-2-0 at home).

We should expect to see some goal scoring in this series, so the most attractive bet (particularly if you have any doubts about OSU) is likely over 6 goals.

Jim
Ed
John
Dan
Chris
Jack
Matt
Paula
Nat'l
Nat'l
HEA
ECAC
AHA
CCHA
NCHC
B1G

Providence (-110) at Merrimack (-120); o/u 6

These are two teams licking wounds after last weekend. Merrimack took a tie against Yale and was run out of its building by Brown. Providence handed New Hampshire its first league win of the year before tying Army West Point. Both are looking for some bounce back here.

These two have already faced one another twice, a 3-2 win for the Warriors before break and then a 6-1 victory for Providence in the championship game of the Ledyard Bank Classic in Hanover. That was one of just two games that Merrimack has allowed six goals. The other? Last Saturday’s 6-2 loss to Brown.

It does give some pause about betting Merrimack, but given how strong this team was before the break, you have to believe there will be redemption at some point.

Jim
Ed
John
Dan
Chris
Jack
Matt
Paula
Nat'l
Nat'l
HEA
ECAC
AHA
CCHA
NCHC
B1G

Minnesota (-150) at Notre Dame (+120); o/u 6

Minnesota is one of the heaviest favorites this weekend, and if you look at the USCHO staff picks, the books maybe don’t have the Gophers as a heavy enough pick.

All eight staffers like Minnesota, particularly after Notre Dame’s split a weekend ago with last-place Wisconsin. This is the second series for these two teams with Minnesota sweeping the first while allowing just a single goal in two games.

The over/under of 6 feels high given these two clubs only scored eight goals total (4-1, 3-0) in their first series.

Jim
Ed
John
Dan
Chris
Jack
Matt
Paula
Nat'l
Nat'l
HEA
ECAC
AHA
CCHA
NCHC
B1G

Western Michigan (-105) at North Dakota (-125); o/u 6.5

Welcome back to the land of the favorites, North Dakota. Though it’s difficult to tell why the sudden change in hearts of bookmakers.

Sure, the Fighting Hawks are coming off a weekend sweep of Lindenwood, but that’s a team that’s 55th in the PairWise. The Fighting Hawks did take five-of-six league points against Western Michigan the last time they played in December, which must be just enough to sway the books.

But this is the same North Dakota team that went through a 2-5-1 stretch prior to that Western Michigan series, including 7-2 and 6-3 losses at the hands of St. Cloud State the first weekend of December.

Jim
Ed
John
Dan
Chris
Jack
Matt
Paula
Nat'l
Nat'l
HEA
ECAC
AHA
CCHA
NCHC
B1G

Minnesota Duluth (-110) at Omaha (-120); o/u 5.5

This is another critical NCHC series with both teams battling for home ice in the postseason and a rematch of what was an exciting two-game series in Duluth back in early November.

Neither team enters this series on fire. Omaha split its last series at home with St. Lawrence after being swept by Colorado College to end the first half. And Minnesota Duluth is coming off a tie and win against Bemidji State but isn’t far removed by a sweep at the hands of Denver.

The over/under seems perfectly set at 5.5. Both games between these two clubs ended with final scores of 3-2.

Jim
Ed
John
Dan
Chris
Jack
Matt
Paula
Nat'l
Nat'l
HEA
ECAC
AHA
CCHA
NCHC
B1G

Cardinals contending in tight SUNYAC race

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First-year Eli Shiller, along with Kyle Alaveardy and Jacob Hearne is among a troika of strong goaltenders supporting each other and Plattsburgh’s success on the ice (Photo by Gabe Pickens)

A quick look at the standings in the SUNYAC finds Plattsburgh in second place behind Oswego heading into the remaining conference games on the schedule. At 5-2-1, the Cardinals are only looking up at Oswego and still have a game remaining with the Lakers in the battle for the top which also includes defending champion Geneseo and a resurgent Cortland squad in the mix. This year’s edition of the roster has a great mix and balance of youth and experience and coach Steve Moffat is hopeful that the team’s best hockey is still coming in the second half.

“It’s terrible coach-speak and cliché for sure,” said head coach Steve Moffat. “It is one day at a time and Middlebury in front of us on Friday that we only need to worry about today. We had a pretty good first semester and in general, I think we played hard. We need to get better defensively as a team and continue the positive trending of a lower goals-against average and better save percentage so far this season. Without question if we want to end up playing for something at the end of the year our power play needs to be better as well.”

The Cardinals, like several other D-III teams, are managing through roster reductions with players representing the USA in the World University Games in upstate New York. Defenseman Jack Ring (7-6-13), who is second on the team in scoring behind Bennett Stockdale (7-7-14), is representing the USA and his absence creates both a challenge and an opportunity for the Cardinals over the next week or two.

“Jack will be missed both on and off the ice,” noted Moffat. “He is a key performer for us on the ice and eats a lot of minutes in all situations, but he has a great personality off the ice and lightens the locker room. He never takes himself too seriously and has a calming influence on the rest of the players. Those things will be missed for sure. The opportunity with Jack out is for other guys to get more minutes to step up and contribute in different situations including the power play. I have liked our zone time and momentum on the man advantage but we look for the pretty goal too much vs. the rebound and tough goals right in front of the net. I’d like to see us simplify things by getting more pucks to the net and more bodies in front to take away the goalie’s eyes and give us chances for rebounds in close.”

The Cardinals came back from an extended break to host a tournament last weekend where they lost to SUNYAC rival Oswego in the final by a 2-1 score. This weekend, the team plays two long-time rivals from NESCAC before the stretch run to finish out the regular season in conference play which includes match-ups with other contenders including Oswego, Geneseo and Cortland among the eight remaining league contests.

“We had a long break and I think last weekend we worked the rust off. Now is the time we really need to hit our stride and we will have two games this weekend where we better be ready to play. The records don’t matter when we play Middlebury or Williams and as we all have seen across D-III you can’t get in a hole against anyone and expect to come back and win – teams are too good now everywhere. As Coach Emery used to say, “you get to play a game 25 nights of 365 days in a year.” That is a really small sample size, so you better be motivated to go each and every time you get the opportunity to play. We are looking for that and our best hockey heading into the second half of the season.”

After traveling to Middlebury on Friday to face a Panther team they defeated 5-0 back in November, the Cardinals return home to close out their non-conference schedule at home against Williams College.

“It’s important to build some momentum this weekend for the remaining SUNYAC schedule with a strong finish to our out of league schedule,” stated Moffat. “We want to end one chapter on a good note and carry that into the final month of the regular season.”

Watch list of 41 players unveiled for 2023 Mike Richter Award as nation’s top goaltender

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Northeastern’s Devon Levi is presented the 2022 Mike Richter Award by the award’s namesake during Frozen Four festivities (photo: Jim Rosvold)

The Hockey Commissioners Association has announced a watch list of 41 goalies who will compete for the Mike Richter Award, given annually to the top goalie in men’s NCAA Division I hockey since 2014.

The 41 goalies come from the United States (18), Canada (13), and Sweden (6), along with one each from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Latvia and Russia.

Of the U.S. goalies, Michigan and Pennsylvania lead the way with four each. Of the goalies from Canada, the leading provinces were Alberta and Quebec with three each. There are five freshmen, 10 sophomores, eight juniors, 14 seniors and four graduate students among those recognized.

A committee of voters — made up of a cross section of coaches, administrators, scouts and media — will pare this list down to approximately 15 names within the next three weeks and then ultimately choose the winner who will be announced in April during the NCAA Frozen Four. A similar award to recognize the top female goalie in the NCAA is also presented by the HCA.

Past Richter Award recipients: 2014 – Connor Hellebuyck, UMass Lowell; 2015 – Zane McIntyre, North Dakota; 2016 – Thatcher Demko, Boston College; 2017 – Tanner Jaillet, Denver; 2018 – Cale Morris, Notre Dame; 2019 – Cayden Primeau, Northeastern; 2020 – Jeremy Swayman, Maine; 2021 – Jack LaFontaine, Minnesota; 2022 – Devon Levi, Northeastern.

2022-23 Richter Award Watch List

Atlantic Hockey
Jarrett Fiske, AIC (SR – Erie, PA)
Tyler Harmon, Mercyhurst (GR – Ramsey, NJ)
Luke Lush, Sacred Heart (SR – Sherwood Park, AB)
Owen Say, Mercyhurst (FR – London, ON)
Tommy Scarfone, RIT (SO – Montreal, PQ)
Chad Veltri, Niagara (SR – Pittsburgh, PA)

Big Ten
Ryan Bischel, Notre Dame (SR — Medina, MN)
Justen Close, Minnesota (SR – Kindersley, SK)
Jakub Dobeš, Ohio State (SO- Ostrava, Czech Republic)
Jared Moe, Wisconsin (SR – New Prague, MN)
Erik Portillo, Michigan (SR — Gothenburg, Sweden)
Dylan St. Cyr, Michigan State (GR – Northville, MI)
Kiam Souliere, Penn State (JR – Brampton, ON)

CCHA
Noah Giesbrecht, Ferris State (SO – White Rock, BC)
Beni Halasz, Northern Michigan (FR – Budapest, Hungary)
Blake Pietila, Michigan Tech (SR – Howell, MI)
Mattias Sholl, Bemidji State (SO – Hermosa Beach, CA)
Christian Stoever, Bowling Green (SO – Northville, MI)

ECAC Hockey
Mitchell Gibson, Harvard (SR – Phoenixville, PA)
Carter Gylander, Colgate (JR – Beaumont, AB)
Yaniv Perets, Quinnipiac (SO – Dollard Des Ormeaux, PQ)
Ian Shane, Cornell (SO — Manhattan Beach, CA)

Hockey East
Zach Borgiel, Merrimack (JR — Fort Gratiot, MI)
Drew Commesso, Boston University (JR – Norwell, MA)
Gustavs Davis Gringals, UMass Lowell (GR – Riga, Latvia)
Devon Levi, Northeastern (JR — Dollard Des Ormeaux, PQ)
Hugo Ollas, Merrimack (SO – Linkoping, Sweden)
Victor Ostman, Maine (JR – Danderyd, Sweden)
Arsenii Sergeev, UConn (FR (Yaroslavl, Russia)
Philip Svedeback, Providence (FR – Stockholm, Sweden)
Logan Terness, UConn (SO – Burnaby, BC)

NCHC
Dominic Basse, St. Cloud State (JR — Alexandria, VA)
Jaxon Castor, St. Cloud State (SR – Phoenix, AZ)
Magnus Chrona, Denver (SR — Stockholm, Sweden)
Jake Kucharski, Omaha (SR – Erie, PA)
Kaidan Mbereko, Colorado College (FR – Aspen, CO)
Ludvig Persson, Miami (JR – Hindas, Sweden)
Matthew Thiessen, Minnesota Duluth (SR – Steinbach, MB)

Independents
Nolan Kent, Alaska Anchorage (GR – Chestermere, AB)
Matt Radomsky, Alaska (SR – Winnipeg, MB)
T.J. Semptimphelter, Arizona State (SO – Marlton, NJ)

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