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Mason Shocker: MSU Coach to Step Down

By Keith Dunlap
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Michigan State defeated Ohio State 5-1 at Munn Ice Arena tonight, but that’s not what everyone was talking about afterwards.

MASON

MASON

In a shocking development, all indications are that Ron Mason, college hockey’s all-time winningest coach, will step down after 23 years behind the bench at Michigan State to become the school’s 16th athletic director.

A news conference will be held Monday at 10:30 a.m. in East Lansing, where, according to a school press release, MSU president Peter McPherson will recommend to the school’s Board of Trustees that Mason become the new athletic director. The current AD, Clarence Underwood, retires on June 30.

Assuming the recommendation goes through, Mason would step down to concentrate on his AD duties.

After the game on Saturday, Mason said he’ll wait until Monday’s press conference to go into further details of his impending promotion, but the mood around Munn Ice Arena seemed to indicate this will be Mason’s final year behind the MSU bench.

“At this point, that’s the way it looks,” Mason told a throng of reporters in his office.

It’s believed Mason delivered the news to his team in the dressing room after the game, which left Spartan players in a state of disbelief.

“Obviously I’m shocked, but I kind of don’t want to think about it right now,” junior winger Brian Maloney said. “I just want to play the year out. I don’t want to think about too much tonight. I’m not too happy about it.”

MSU junior center Troy Ferguson said the news was hard to swallow.

“I’ve got so much on my mind, I’m sure everybody does,” he said. “We’re just going to let it digest and let our thoughts sink in.”

Mason, 63, currently has 916 wins, the most all-time of any coach in collegiate history.

Mason led Michigan State to the 1986 NCAA title and won his 900th career game last October against Ferris State.

Mason said the objective now is to concentrate on this year and a possible second NCAA title for the Spartans.

“Any time that there is a change, certainly it’s not what you consider to be hard,” said Mason. “It’s more of, ‘We’re in this thing together, our team and myself, and we’re going to be in this thing together until the end of the year.’

“I think that’s what I tried to convey to all these guys. We’re going to be here, we’re going to try and win a championship, we’re going to try and be the best hockey team in the country. That’s our goal and nothing else.”

This Week in the ECAC: Jan. 24, 2002

By Becky Blaeser and Jayson Moy
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Bears, Oh My

Last week, we wrote about Brown’s top two moments of the 2001-02 season, and as if on cue, the Bears came up with yet another huge win. With the odds firmly stacked against them, the players turned in a gritty, performance to upend the second-ranked team in the nation, St. Cloud. And they did it in their own barn. Go figure.

“It certainly was a big win for us on the national scope,” said Brown head coach Roger Grillo. “To knock off a team that has had a year like they have is a real feather in our cap, something that we are very proud of.”

If you think that it’s an aberration, remember that Brown has now beaten Wisconsin, St. Cloud and Harvard (two of the three were ranked teams at the time) and pushed Maine and Providence to overtime. Not bad for a team that finished last year with a record of 4-21-4, 2-16-4 in league play.

That illustrates the Bears’ dramatic turnaround from last season. What was the cause? Some point to specifics:

  • Yann Danis establishing himself as a reliable netminder and snatching the starting position from Brian Eklund.
  • Maturation of the sophomore and junior classes. Eight of top nine scorers come from those two classes and have accounted for 90 of the team’s 123 points (73 percent).

    The Brown coaching staff, however, feels that this season is more representative of what they are all about. With a few critical wins behind them, the Bears have begun to accept the system. The positive reinforcement has given them confidence heading into every game — ECAC or nonconference.

    “The people who saw us play last year saw that we were a good hockey team that struggled to find ways to win,” explains Grillo. “We were young and made mistakes at key times. That adversity has made us a stronger team. The [Harvard] win early in the year gave us confidence and reestablished the standards and values that we are trying to get across.

    “Wisconsin was a nationally-recognized program and has had great success at their own tournament [the Badger Showdown]. For us to go out there and do what we did, that was a real positive for us.”

    The Bears have one more nonconference game coming up next Tuesday against another ranked team — UMass-Lowell. For the first time in years, you can bet that no one is overlooking Brown in this contest.

    That is a fact that ECAC teams will have to take to heart more than anything else. Over the past two years, teams have had somewhat of a luxury when Harvard and Brown came to town. With the Crimson program a step ahead of Brown in terms of its rebuilding process, they could overlook the Bears and focus on Harvard’s young talent. Not anymore. Now opposing coaches have to prepare for two teams that a) have the potential to pull out victories and b) play very different styles of hockey.

    “I think that the league games and playoff games are as big if not bigger now,” said Grillo, whose team sits in a two-way tie with 10 points. “It’s such a tight race in the ECAC that every game is like a playoff game. We feel good about what we are doing, but we also need to get better in some areas. We need to play with more consistency, but we are excited about where we are headed.”

    And they have every right to be.

    North Country Tests

    Three of the favorites in the ECAC get together in the North Country this weekend as Cornell travels to take on Clarkson and St. Lawrence. With Harvard ensconced in first place, whoever comes out of this weekend with two wins may have the best shot at catching the Crimson come February.

    Clarkson was undefeated heading into a huge grudge match game against Vermont last Saturday, but the Cats dropped Clarkson, 2-0, sending Clarkson to its first ECAC loss and helping out the idle Crimson.

    “I never would have guessed that in our first matchup against Vermont this season we would have such a lackluster effort,” said Clarkson head coach Mark Morris. “Give Vermont credit for a gutsy performance. They were more physically and emotionally prepared. We had several opportunities to win, but we were not able to produce offensively.

    “Cornell is hitting on all cylinders. Their record reflects consistency all year. Their top lines have produced all season and they have gotten great goaltending. As we have seen throughout the years, Cornell is big and physical. We will have to match their intensity if we want to beat them at Cheel.

    The Saints, meanwhile, got right back into ECAC contention with their first ECAC sweep of the season, and with four games in hand on Harvard, can move back into the standings with a big weekend.

    “Now the big thing is to sustain it through the home series we’ve got coming up,” said Saint head coach Joe Marsh. “We need to stay on an even keel emotionally and keep doing what we’ve done the last few games to continue our climb.”

    Cornell swept travel partner Colgate last weekend and with three games in hand on the Crimson, has the best shot at overtaking the Raiders. But the Big Red will need wins this weekend in the tough North Country.

    “We limped up there last year hurt,” said head coach Mike Schafer. “They always have a good hockey team; it will be a great team and they’ve had a lot of success there. They play well at home.

    “The control of momentum is what’s important (against Clarkson). The longer the game goes where it’s an even game, the more uptight they get as a hockey team, whereas our guys will be comfortable with that. And we need to be disciplined and get ourselves on the power play.

    “(SLU) is a young team and now you look for them to be much stronger in this half.”

    Beanpot Teaser

    With Harvard about to emerge from exam break (the team takes on the Under-18s on Saturday night at Bright Hockey Center), that means one thing — the Beanpot is nearing.

    There will be one big change to this year’s 50th annual championship that many fans will never have a chance to see with their own eyes. Every player from each of the four schools will be outfitted with some of the most advanced technology that will provide real-time tracking of their movements. Trakus, Inc., a Boston-based company, has been working with the National Hockey League for the past two seasons and is now bringing its system to the college ranks.

    Each player will have a “player patch” installed between the shell and the padding of his helmet. Through something called “Digital Sports Information” (DSI) applications, this device will measure the impact of body checks, speed, power and even endurance. For the fans watching on television or the web, Trakus will be introducing interactive graphics. The most exciting feature will probably be the Hit Gauge, which is a quantified index of checking intensity. In other words, you will now be able to see who lands the biggest hit in each game.

    Fans will also be able to watch a real-time animated recreation of the game by clicking on the individual schools’ web sites. The most interesting aspect of this web cast is that you will be able to click on a specific player at any point during the game and be able to pull up various statistics such as maximum or average skating speed, average shift length, total distance skated and even the time spent in each zone. For a preview of this technology, check out the Boston Bruins home page. The Bruins have been faithful Trakus partners for the past two years.

    Aside from the obvious viewer benefits, this technology has the potential to improve the performance of teams and also prevent injuries. And in the age of multiple concussions and career-ending injuries, the ability to measure the impact of the game on players could prove to be invaluable.

    Well-Deserved Congratulations

    Whether either of them wins the award or not, it’s always nice and refreshing to hear about student-athletes’ contributions to their communities.

    Last week Jeff Wilson of Union and Dan Casella of Dartmouth were named two of the four finalists for the Hockey Humanitarian Award, to be doled out at the Frozen Four in Minneapolis.

    Wilson has been an integral member of the Schenectady, N.Y., community, having been involved in causes such as the “Dutchmen Skate for Cancer,” with the proceeds going to the American Cancer Society. He’s also been involved in Big Brothers and Big Sisters Night, the Walk for Juvenile Diabetes, and visits to children’s hospitals.

    He also created “A Skating Dutchmen Christmas,” during which the team sponsored a family via social services and purchased gifts for the family. Plus, he established “Pennies for Points,” in which sponsors donated one dollar for every point a Union player earned during a game. The proceeds were then given to underprivileged youth hockey players in Schenectady.

    Finally, in the aftermath of the September 11 terrorist attacks, he created “Dutchmen Skate for 9/11.” The proceeds from that fundraiser on February 11 will go to the NYPD and NYFD fund, and to two local families affected by the attack.

    Casella became involved in community service while attending Lawrence Academy. While there, he volunteered at a soup kitchen, a senior citizens home, and shoveled sidewalks in the neighborhood.

    His work in the community continued after he matriculated at Dartmouth. Among his activities, Casella has visited the Hanover, N.H., area schools where he taught students about the dangers of drugs. He has also coached local youth hockey programs from mites to peewees and has been a key factor in the Big Green’s Holiday Toy Drive.

    Casella plans to enlist in the Peace Corps, and will be working to rebuild a community in the Caribbean after graduation.

    Great as it is to see the impact of caring student-athletes in this world, we are even prouder that two of the finalists are from the ECAC.

    If It’s So Easy, You Try It

    John Beaber and Lisa McGill tied us once, but not again! They went down this week, though they put up a valiant effort.

    The competition thus far:

    Vic Brzozowksi t. The Iron Columnists — 7-2-1
    The Iron Columnists d. Vic Brzozowksi — 8-3-1 to 7-4-1
    Ben Flickinger d. The Iron Columnists — 11-4-2 to 10-5-2
    The Iron Columnists d. Ben Flickinger — 5-1-4 to 4-2-4
    John Beaber and Lisa McGill t. The Iron Columnists — 6-7-0
    The Iron Columnists d. John Beaber and Lisa McGill — 7-5-3 to 6-6-3

    The Iron Columnists have taken this week off to lick our wounds. But we will be back next week!

    And remember that if you are interested in putting your money where your mouth is, drop us an email to be eligible.

    • By Example

    By Matthew F. Sacco
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    It’s less than an hour before faceoff. Tim Turner is not pacing the maroon carpet of the UMass locker room, barking encouragement to his teammates.

    He’s lacing up, preparing.

    Just seconds before the Minutemen take to the 200×95 Mullins Center ice surface, Turner is not standing at the entrance, uttering motivational catch phrases. He is in line with his teammates, eyes fixed on the task. Make no mistake, Tim Turner is a leader. But he leads in the corners, on the boards and in the slot, not in the locker room.

    “I went to Timmy at the beginning of the year and told him to lead by example,” says UMass coach Don “Toot” Cahoon. “He’s not a ‘rah-rah’ guy and we don’t need him to be that type of guy.”

    "I went to Timmy at the beginning of the year and told him to lead by example … He’s not a ‘rah-rah’ guy and we don’t need him to be that type of guy."

    — Don Cahoon, on Tim Turner

    On a team notable for its youthful talent, Turner is the glue. He doesn’t wear a letter as a captain or assistant captain, but the badge of honor he brings into each practice, and every physical and mental challenge he faces is enough to garner the respect of seven rookies who skate alongside him up front.

    “There is no question [the freshmen] respect the effort he puts in on a daily basis,” Cahoon explains. “They see how he competes and how he earns his ice time.”

    Turner’s determination and will have rubbed off on a particular pair of talented newcomers.

    Tim Turner quiety is leading the Minutemen in scoring this season.

    Tim Turner quiety is leading the Minutemen in scoring this season.

    Six games into the season talent-laden rookie Greg Mauldin was struggling to find the net, despite his firm place on one of the top two scoring units.

    Instant cure: Cahoon drops Mauldin on a line with Turner and the junior ends up assisting on his understudy’s first collegiate goal in a 4-2 win over Northeastern.

    “[Tim] has been a good example for us,” says Craig MacDonald, who completes the line with Mauldin and Turner. “He has really relaxed me and Greg. We know we can feed him the puck and he’ll get it back to us. It’s just made us more comfortable.”

    Mauldin and MacDonald have been the junior forward’s most consistent linemates this year, if for no other reason than the trio’s collective thirst for success and willingness to work for it.

    “He never takes a second off, he’s never taking a break. The guy just wants to win,” MacDonald explains. “I know all the younger guys want to have a work ethic like that.”

    He isn’t used to the role of mentor, but Turner is certainly familiar with the teacher-student relationship. For his first two years in the Pioneer Valley, he thrived (52 points in two seasons) on a line with his older brother Jeff, who showed him around the rink and around campus.

    Now Tim hopes to do the same for his own pair of pupils.

    “Having my brother here was a big advantage for me,” Turner recalls. “He taught me a lot and I feel like I am [Mauldin and MacDonald’s] big brother. I want to teach them some stuff and hopefully leave a lasting impression on them.”

    Turner didn’t wait long to make an impression on the incoming class. He made his statement from day one — without saying a word.

    “Since the day we got here you could tell he was one of the leaders, just how he carries himself on the ice,” MacDonald recalls. “It’s not what he says, its how he takes care of his business.”

    Day in and day out he sports the efficiency of a stockbroker. From analyzing game tape with his linemates to in-practice drills to pre-game warmups to his regular game shifts, Turner wears the same face of competitiveness.

    “He’s got a great will to compete,” Cahoon says. “Timmy is a well-conditioned and highly-motivated kid.”

    Turner’s ethic is the high-water mark for the rest of the UMass frontline. His leadership among the forwards is silent yet unchallenged, but “role model” is not the only post he occupies for the Minutemen.

    “We expect Timmy to score some big-time goals for us this year,” said Cahoon before game one of this, Turner’s junior season. “He’s one of our leaders, our veteran guys. But we need him to put the puck in the net as well.”

    With the shadow of brother Jeff stripped off the Pioneer Valley map, the younger Turner has stepped to the forefront for a growing program.

    “I absolutely want to be around the puck when it matters the most,” Turner says. “I like putting the pressure on myself to put the puck in the net. I know I can come through in the clutch.”

    Turner has been a poster boy for the timely in the early goings of his third year in college hockey. In UMass’ six wins this year, he has two game-winning goals, one game-tying tally and an assist on Mauldin’s clincher against Northeastern.

    “I pride myself on being out there in important situations,” Turner says. “It’s exciting knowing that coach has faith in me to get the job done.”

    Late in the second period of the season opener, with his inexperienced team clinging to a one-goal lead in what was supposed to be a cakewalk against Niagara, Turner personally took the UMass faithful off the edge of their seats.

    The junior fearlessly rushed the crease and stuffed home a rebound in the face of two opposing defensemen and sprawled Eagle goaltender Ryan McNeil. Just three games later, Turner found himself on a game-hinging power play, down one and on the road against heavily favored Providence. The Minutemen’s silent leader rose to the challenge again with a brilliant tip-in off a Toni Soderholm pass that knotted the game at two and gave UMass the momentum to take a 4-3 decision.

    “Me and coach sat down before the season and he told me I was going to be an integral part of the team and the offense,” Turner remembers. What Cahoon neglected to mention was that in Amherst, integral means irreplaceable.

    Forget that Turner is the top scorer on the team’s best and most consistent line. Note that his three power-play goals lead a team that has made a cellar-exiting jump in man-up efficiency (12.8 percent in ’00 to 22 percent in ’01), while his plus-1 rating makes him one of only six players with a plus/minus in the white.

    Now factor in that his line, with two freshmen at his side, has combined for 12 goals (four GWGs) and 21 points, as UMass has moved to a steady 6-6 record.

    Most impressive is Turner’s ascension to success, when doubters were plentiful and expectations were absent.

    “Timmy is an overachiever,” Cahoon says. “He skates faster than he should and plays bigger than he is. It’s all of product of his will and character.”

    Nobody ever expected him to be the big-time goal-scorer that he is. And now that he has become the go-to guy, the player who lights the lamp under pressure, so what? Anyone can score goals, but it takes a player of a different cut to lead.

    Tim Turner fits the mold of leader — and that goal-scoring thing?

    He can do that too.

    This Week in Division III: Jan. 24, 2002

    By
    -

    Jinxed Again

    Well, I guess I jinxed Norwich and River Falls last week when I predicted that there wouldn’t be any changes in the USCHO.com Division III Men’s Poll.

    The Cadets were shocked by Trinity 4-1 last Saturday, and UWRF could manage only a 1-2, 5-0 split with Wisconsin-Stout last weekend.

    The setbacks dropped Norwich into a tie with Middlebury for second, while River Falls fell from fifth to seventh in the rankings.

    Norwich’s home-ice loss was especially surprising as the Cadets came into the game 16-0 after dominating Wesleyan 8-0 the night before.

    One coach who wasn’t all that surprised by Trinity’s win is MSOE’s Mark Ostapina, who coached at New England College for six seasons.

    “Trinity can play,” he said. “They’re big and physical and aren’t usually out of many games. They’re well coached (by John Dunham) and are opportunistic.

    “If they pop in a couple on you early, like they did against Norwich, they’re very tenacious and tough to beat.

    “In a way, they remind me of an NCHA team with their physical style and game plan,” Ostapina added.

    Watch out for the Bantams in the NESCAC playoffs. They’ve been under the radar until this win, but are only a point behind Colby in the standings, and just four points out of first place.

    Bigger and Better

    The main topic of my conversation with Ostapina was the new, on-campus athletic facility that the Raiders will move into sometime in the 2003-2004 season.

    The $29 million Kearn Center will include a 2,400 seat hockey arena and a 1,200 seat basketball court, as well a fitness center and cafe.

    “We break ground in June,” Ostapina said. “The best part is that it’s all being done with outside funding, thanks mostly to Dr. Kearn.”

    The new facility will give MSOE one of the nicest rinks in the West, or in all of Division III for that matter. Could a future D-III Frozen Four be held there?

    “It would be a great location,” said Ostapina. “We would be interested in hosting it even as a neutral site.”

    The idea of a neutral Western location had been discussed by the NCAA Division III Hockey Committee last summer. St. Norbert’s new facility would also be a favorite to bid on the championships. If the Green Knights make the D-III Frozen Four this season, there’s a strong chance the finals will be held at the Cornerstone Community Center.

    MCHA Happenings

    Ostapina’s MSOE Raiders are currently in second place in the MCHA, four points behind Marian, which has two games in hand as well.

    “Marian is definitely the frontrunner,” said Ostapina. “The rest of the teams are all bunched together. It’s going to be a battle.”

    Northland College is on the outside looking in right now in terms of playoff position, but the Lumberjacks can get back into things if they can sweep Minnesota-Crookston again, as Northland did back in early November.

    But Crookston, the defending MCHA regular-season champion, is playing better now, according to Ostapina.

    “They had a killer schedule at the beginning of the season,” Ostapina said. “They played a lot of road games early and now they’ll be facing most league opponents at home. You saw this last weekend when they swept Lawrence.”

    In the first half of the season, the Golden Eagles have played just three home games (1-2) and a whopping 12 road games (1-11). Throw in a side trip to Colorado Springs to play in the Air Force tournament, and there’s no doubt that UMC is glad to be home for six of its final eight games. This was evident in a pair of convincing 6-1 wins over Lawrence, a team that beat UMC 7-2 back in December.

    But there’s no way anyone’s going to catch defending champion Marian, which is 8-0, having already swept the other four MCHA teams once, outscoring them 45-11 in the process. That’s a league GAA of 1.38.

    Showdowns

    Unlike last weekend, this week’s schedule has several key games with league and national implications. The top three:

    1. RIT (16-1) at Elmira (11-6). I’ve broadcasted the last five of these games at the Domes, and I don’t think that any have been decided by more than a single goal. I don’t expect this one will, either. RIT can open a large lead with a win, not in the ECAC West standings, but in the quest for the NCAA Pool “B” bid. Elmira can keep its NCAA hopes alive by holding serve and winning on home ice.

    2. Oswego (12-6) at Plattsburgh (12-6). Plattsburgh is the only team to beat Oswego in league play this season, and the Lakers must return the favor, or drop four points plus the tiebreaker behind the Cardinals.

    3. St. Norbert (16-3) at Wisconsin-Superior (14-4-1). The Green Knights are 2-1 against the YellowJackets so far this season, including a win in their only other conference game. SNC leads UWS by four points in the standings, and can all but lock things up with a victory.

    His and Hers

    The same schools occupy a whopping six of the 10 positions in the USCHO Men’s and Women’s polls.

    Here’s the breakdown:

    Middlebury: first in the women’s poll; tied for second in the men’s poll
    Bowdoin: second in the women’s poll; sixth in the men’s poll
    Elmira: sixth in the women’s poll; tenth in the men’s poll
    Wisconsin-Superior: seventh in the women’s poll; fifth in the men’s poll
    RIT: ninth in the women’s poll; first in the men’s poll
    Wisconsin-River Falls: tied for tenth in the women’s poll; seventh in the men’s poll

    And, if you include teams that received votes:

    Manhattanville: third in the women’s poll; got votes in the men’s poll
    Colby: eighth in the women’s poll; got votes in the men’s poll
    Plattsburgh: got votes in the women’s poll; ninth in the men’s poll
    St. Thomas: got votes in the women’s poll; eighth in the men’s poll.

    Every school with a men’s team in the Top 10, with the exception of St. Norbert, also has a women’s team that got at least one vote in the women’s poll.

    Goalie or Goon?

    In the time-honored tradition of Billy Smith, I give you Geneseo’s Brett Walker. The freshman netminder from Regina, Saskatchewan, is fourth in the SUNYAC in penalty minutes. Here’s his rap sheet to date:

    10/20 vs. Manhattanville — slashing minor
    11/9 vs. Oswego — roughing minor, tripping minor
    11/10 vs. Cortland — fighting major, game disqualification
    11/30 vs. Potsdam — slashing major
    12/8 vs. Manhattanville — delay of game minor, slashing minor, 10-minute misconduct
    1/19 vs. Utica — fighting major, game disqualification

    That’s a total so far of 55 minutes for Walker, who’s become a folk hero on the USCHO Fan Forum.

    Keep out of his crease, boys.

    This Week in the CCHA: Jan. 24, 2002

    By
    -

    Four Teams Looking For Some Mo, One Falling Off, And One Whose Coach Has Already Conceded

    With just five points separating fourth-place Ohio State (facing a brutal schedule) and tenth-place Western Michigan — and Mercury still in retrograde through Feb. 8 — it’s too early to tell who will be haves and who will be have nots in the opening round of the CCHA playoffs.

    In this year of parity (yes, much of the league has achieved it, but what parity means is anyone’s guess) two teams appear to be battling for first place, four teams are playing fairly consistent hockey, four more teams are looking for something to bump them up a few notches, and two seem out of the running altogether.

    Ferris State

    What will it take to secure home ice for the first round of the CCHA playoffs? “You’ve got to finish above .500, but not much above .500,” says Ferris State head coach Bob Daniels. “Knowing our league, though, and what it’s like, it could be a bounce of a puck here or there.”

    The Bulldogs — just a game under .500 in both overall and league play — are the quintessential middle-pack CCHA team this season. With a developing offense fronted by two powerhouse players, two good, developing goaltenders, and a good work ethic, this team could as easily find itself hosting a first-round series as traveling to play.

    “I guess I even have a hard time figuring out exactly where we’re at,” says Daniels. “I like our team.”

    What’s not to like about Ferris State? Fifth in both goals scored per game (3.09) and goals allowed (2.68) in overall CCHA play, the Bulldogs have lost six one-goal games this season, including games to Michigan and Michigan State, and they swept the nationally ranked Buckeyes. Rob Collins leads league scoring (8-19–27) and is second among CCHA players in overall scoring (10-23–33). Rookie goaltenders Mike Brown (2.48 GAA, .919 SV%) and John DeCaro (2.98 GAA, .900 SV%) are solid, and Brown keeps company with guys named Miller, Betz, Kowalski, and Blackburn in the stats department.

    Still, says Daniels, “If you’re not quite on as a team, you’re going to get beat. If you’re off — and it doesn’t have to be by a lot — it’s going to cost you.”

    Daniels, an upbeat man, says that this year’s parity has definite pluses, even if it creates headaches for some teams in the middle. “The positive is that the way the league is now, you’re going to see some really great first-round series.”

    And maybe one of them will be in Big Rapids.

    Miami

    The RedHawks are experiencing difficulties in every aspect of play: offense, goaltending, and team defense.

    Scoring has been declining for Miami since the beginning of the season. In October, the ‘Hawks averaged 3.5 goals per game. In November, it was 2.7. In December, it was 2.4, and Miami went just 1-4-0 in the final month of the first half of the season.

    Now in January, Miami is scoring 2.0 goals per game, even after scoring six on Lake State last weekend. The RedHawks have been shut out four times so far this year, the sum total of shutouts Miami suffered during its entire 2000-01 season.

    “Up and down,” says head coach Enrico Blasi. “Still searching for that consistency. We’re struggling scoring, and when that happens guys start squeezing the stick a little bit. A couple of bad shifts and guys getting down.”

    Finding the net isn’t the only problem the RedHawks face. Through 24 games, David Burleigh (2.98 GAA, .898 SV%) has yet to set the world on fire. (If he only played every team like he plays Ohio State…) But while his save percentage doesn’t put him among the leaders in the CCHA, neither does his goals against average, and that stat reflects on his defenders more than on him.

    Add to all of this Miami’s home woes, and you’ve got a formula for a first-round road trip. The RedHawks have just three wins at home, but join UAF, Michigan, and UNO for the only CCHA teams with road records above .500.

    Blasi says that Miami’s overall trouble is “probably a mind issue more than anything at this point. We’ve been in every game, for the most part. You either find a way to win, or find a way to lose.”

    And how to counter this? “Stay positive,” says the coach.

    Notre Dame

    Most official proclamations from the Irish camp are pretty rosy, so it has always been difficult to get a true read on this team. This season, however, Notre Dame is playing hard, tough hockey, and that gives these Irish a fighting chance for home ice.

    Freshman goaltender Morgan Cey (2.94 GAA, .902 SV%) has been steady in net for the Irish, and in this league, perhaps steady is all you need for home ice. Cey is 5-5-1 in his last 11 games, compiling a 2.25 goals against average and .924 save percentage in that span.

    The Irish are sort of a good-news-bad-news team. Averaging 3.04 goals per game in overall play (sixth), Notre Dame is also allowing 3.04 goals per game overall (eighth).

    Senior David Inman is having a career season, with 13 goals and 13 assists to lead the Irish with 26 points.

    What can the ever-enigmatic Irish do? Step it up a notch. This is the hardest-working Notre Dame squad I’ve seen, and they are capable of moving up in the standings.

    Western Michigan

    The big news for the Broncos is the absence of Mike Bishai, who is having a problem with his esophagus. In fact, Bishai is in Edmonton, not Kalamazoo.

    “He’s one tough kid,” says Western head coach Jim Culhane. Apparently, Bishai concealed his condition — which, in essence, prevents him from eating — from his coaches and teammates for fear that he’d be letting the team down.

    Culhane is by no means upset with the senior, and everyone simply wants Bishai to get better. There’s some good news, though, says Culhane. “It’s not cancer, nothing like that.”

    Whether Bishai returns for any part of his senior season is still up in the air, says Culhane.

    The rest of the Broncos, says the coach, just need to “play with some consistency.”

    “I’m really pleased with the wins we’ve had against good teams. We had shutouts against Nebraska-Omaha and Michigan State, we beat Michigan, and tied and beat Maine early on.”

    The Broncos are averaging 3.00 goals per game overall (seventh) but are giving up 3.15 (ninth), a recipe for disaster if Western can’t turn it around.

    With eight goals and 18 assists through 22 games, Bishai still leads WMU in overall scoring, but Jeff Campbell (7-18–25) and Dave Cousineau (8-15–23) will overtake him soon enough should Bishai remain out. Cousineau leads all CCHA defenders in points so far this season.

    On the other end of the puck, the Broncos are -59 overall, -67 in league play, evidence that Western’s defensive woes from last season have carried.

    Culhane remains optimistic, and he should be. “What we’ve talked about as a team, as a program, is that there’s plenty of hockey to be played.”

    Bowling Green

    Head coach Buddy Powers knows what’s wrong with the Falcons this season. “We’re not scoring goals.”

    With just 10 league points, Bowling Green has a mathematical chance of gaining home ice in the first round of the playoffs, but it’s highly unlikely.

    Scoring 2.50 goals on average per game overall and allowing 3.54 won’t help the Falcons claw their way up in the standings. “It’s mighty hard to win when you can’t score goals,” says Powers. “We went through a spell when just all the things involved in the game weren’t going; our PK was struggling, and we were giving up goals on the power play as well.

    “Greg Day isn’t the only guy on the team. Other guys need to step up.”

    Day (13-11–24) is the Falcon to have scored more than six goals this season. Six.

    “Our forwards have to do things better,” says Powers, “make better reads, pass better, shoot more. We keep working with them. We’ve gone back to basics: get the puck, move the puck, shoot the puck.”

    The Falcons face the Wolverines this weekend.

    Get the puck. Move the puck. Shoot the puck.

    Lake Superior State

    In Sault Ste. Marie, where the Walleye Festival opens on Munuscong Bay Friday, things don’t look good for the Lakers. If you have any doubt that the Lakers are a last-place team, just ask their coach.

    After Lake Superior State went home with one point from the nationally ranked Buckeyes two weeks ago, Anzalone said, “There’s a reason we’re in twelfth place.”

    Before the Lakers took on the visiting RedHawks last weekend, Anzalone said, “We’re just not at their level yet.”

    The Lakers split with Miami, losing 3-0 Friday night and winning 6-3 (could the win have anything to do with Anzalone’s back-thumping “pep” talk on the bench Friday night?), bolstering their season league point total to nine.

    In spite of the head coach’s frequent — and public — insistence that his team lacks talent, seniors Tyson Turgeon, Will Magnuson, and Chris McNamara have shown league fans for years that they possess talent. Other players on the team — Jeremy Bachusz, Aaron Davis, anyone named “Nightingale” — also belie the notion that no one on this squad can play hockey. And don’t forget rookie goalie Matt Violin.

    When the Lakers played the Buckeyes, LSSU played with character and heart, and they played 125 minutes that weekend. But when your coach seems more interested in denigrating his current players and reciting a resume-like list of his former collegiate accomplishments during postgame interviews, it might be difficult for a player to keep his head up.

    That’s just a guess on my part.

    If It’s Friday, We’re Probably Trying To Catch You

    How would you like to play four consecutive games against Michigan State? How about following that up with a trip to Fairbanks, followed by two games with Ferris State, then two with Michigan State?

    In other words, how would you like to be playing eight of your next ten games against the three teams ahead of you in the standings?

    Well, if you’re Ohio State head coach John Markell, it’s a glass-half-full, glass-full-of-scary-stuff kind of scenario.

    “We’re at a point in the season that’s going to reveal a lot about the character of this hockey team,” says Markell.

    The Buckeyes are playing solid team defense, have good-to-excellent goaltending from Mike Betz (2.17 GAA, .918 SV%), but haven’t been scoring any goals. R.J. Umberger leads the team with just 21 points (10-11), and the only other Buckeye to have reached the 20-point plateau this season is Scott May (9-11–20). Averaging 2.79 goals per game (2.62 CCHA), now would be a really good time for OSU to find the back of the net.

    “If they [OSU players] were comfortable coming here to compete for third, fourth, fifth place, then they’re in the wrong place,” says Markell. “We wanted to be in this position, to compete for the top spot in the league in the end, and we are.

    “The competition is stiff in this league every night. The thing that worries you as coaches is whether [the team] is going to be complacent on a given night.”

    Markell is especially unhappy with the game-to-game inconsistency of the Buckeyes, who seem to have just one good contest in them during any two-game set. Earlier in the year, OSU came out on fire Friday nights, then took part or all of Saturday night off. Against Lake Superior State two weeks ago, OSU was lackluster Friday before putting away the Lakers Saturday.

    Last weekend, with an odd Friday-Sunday two-game set against Yale and that Saturday off in between, the Buckeyes gave two relatively uninspired performances, losing Sunday’s game 6-2.

    Going into Michigan State, Markell says that he shouldn’t be “worried about” his players “getting up” for the series. “I should be holding them back from the door. If they’re not up for this place, they’re in the wrong league.”

    This is a first trip to Munn Arena for many on this young squad; Markell says just four Buckeyes have played Michigan State in Munn prior to this weekend.

    The team mood of the Buckeyes is quiet, calm, not too cocky — very unlike OSU teams of years past. The one thing this team lacks (aside from goal scoring) is any sense that the players are enjoying themselves.

    “I think that’s the case,” says senior Yan Des Gagne. “We know what’s at stake. Maybe we’re gripping the stick a little too tight.”

    “We’re going through the maturing process with a bunch of young kids,” says Markell, whose team is more than half sophomores and freshmen. “They’ve got themselves in this position, and they have to assume the responsibility for what’s happened the last couple of weekends, and they do. They’re teaching themselves how to win. If we had four more seniors, three more seniors…it’s tough.”

    Four consecutive games against Michigan State? Yeah. That’s tough. But as Markell stresses, “Our fate is in our own hands. We control our own destiny.”

    Again, The Game Is The Grudge

    Two of the hardest-working teams in college hockey, and the only two teams in the CCHA that play on Olympic sheets. Expect a fast, open game, fans in Fairbanks!

    No. 10 Northern Michigan (15-7-2, 8-6-2 CCHA) at No. 13 Alaska-Fairbanks (14-8-2, 10-8-2 CCHA)
    Friday and Saturday, 7:05 p.m. AK, Carlson Center, Fairbanks, Alas.

    It seems that the Nanooks have a score to settle with several CCHA teams. Last year, UAF broke Michigan’s all-time undefeated streak against the Nanooks; now Fairbanks has a chance to do the same against the Wildcats.

    Northern Michigan has never lost to Alaska-Fairbanks, holding a 10-0-2 record all-time against UAF, and a 3-0-1 record in Fairbanks. This is the first Wildcat visit to Nanook land since 1999, when NMU beat UAF 4-3 and 7-3, Nov. 26-27. Last season, Northern beat Fairbanks 3-0 in Marquette before tying the Nanooks 4-4 in their annual two-game set.

    The Nanooks score by committee, with just one player, Aaron Voros (10-6–16), breaking the double-digit goal mark so far this season. Everyone, however, seems to contribute to the UAF offensive effort. Ryan Campbell (7-15–22) and Cam Keith (7-15–22) lead the team in scoring; the only player who’s logged at least 20 games who has yet to score a goal is Cramer Hickey (0-3–3).

    Both Nanook goaltenders are solid, but UAF relies too much on its offense to compensate for a defense that could be tighter. Lance Mayes (2.77 GAA,.902 SV%) and Preston McKay (2.66 GAA, .910 SV%) have each played 14 games this season.

    By contrast, the Wildcats pack an effective one-two punch in Chad Theuer (10-25–35) and Bryce Cockburn (14-16–30), with significant offensive contributions from Chris Gobert (8-17–25) and Mike Stutzel (10-11–21). Team defense is a way of life for the Wildcats, who are +134 overall, +71 CCHA.

    And Northern has one of the best netminders in the league pacing it through this season. Craig Kowalski (2.39 GAA, .912 SV%) has the third-best goals against average in the league, sixth-best save percentage in overall play, and is capable of spectacular play.

    The Wildcats have the advantage over the Nanooks in nearly every statistical category except for conference points, and that may be because NMU has played four fewer games than has UAF. Here’s the drop on how these two squads match up:

  • Overall goals per game: NMU 3.42 (second); UAF 3.49 (fourth)
  • Overall goals allowed: NMU 2.33 (second); UAF 2.79 (seventh)
  • Overall power play: NMU .174 (fifth); UAF .133 (eleventh)
  • Overall penalty kill: NMU .847 (fifth); UAF .791 (twelfth)
  • Overall PIMs per game: UAF 11.75 (fewest); NMU 20.04 (third most)
  • Streaks: NMU three-game win streak; UAF three-games undefeated.

    Pick: The Nanooks break the Wildcat curse, and Hickey gets his first goal. UAF 4-3, NMU 4- 3.

    A Dead Horse, Resurrected

    News flash! Many people find student “spirit” in Yost Arena offensive!

    A Jan. 22 article in the Detroit Free Press reported that Michigan athletic director Bill Martin asked student fans at Yost to stop targeting specific visiting fans and families of visiting players for personal insults and taunts.

    Martin also said that some of the current chants used by Michigan student fans border on an X rating.

    Border? Am I the only one who can discern words that would make a trucker blush in the latter part of the “C-Ya!” penalty-box chant? Didn’t chanting any form of the F-bomb in unison lose its vogue for most people after, say, sixth grade?

    The university’s intervention is long overdue. The chants that include mild vulgarity — your garden-variety, PG-13 vocabulary — are not at issue here (although, Yost fans, they are old and stale); what’s disturbing is the way in which visiting players’ families, friends, and girlfriends are often singled out by people sitting in the student section.

    Over the years, I’ve had many parents write — off the record — that they’d been verbally abused in very personal ways during games at Yost, but that they were hesitant to say anything for fear of making it worst the next time they went to see their kids play there.

    If the Wolverine student hockey fans are as bright as students should be at an institution with Michigan’s reputation of academic excellence, they should be insulted to be thought of as nothing but uncreative, unoriginal, and childish, but perhaps that is the standard they have set for themselves, and they’re happy to have met it.

    • This Week in the SUNYAC: Jan. 24, 2002

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    For All The Marbles

    SUNYAC conference action resumes this weekend, and as we noted last week, the only likely path to the NCAAs for the eight state squads is by way of the league championship.

    “There are five automatic bids from the east, so at best, maybe one team is going to make it [at large],” said Plattsburgh coach Bob Emery. “So for all intents and purposes, the league is primo.

    The second half of the season is crammed into the next three-and-a-half weeks — so as Buffalo Bills play-by-play veteran Van Miller is so fond of saying, “Fasten your seat belts.”

    Showdowns in the North Country

    The top three teams in the SUNYAC will be in action up north this weekend as Oswego and Cortland visit Plattsburgh and Potsdam.

    For the 2-5 Bears, it’s a chance to gain some ground as Ed Seney’s young squad fights for a playoff berth.

    For the Cardinals, a weekend sweep would give them the upper hand for home ice throughout the playoffs.

    “A win this Friday against Oswego would put us up by two [games], which would be pretty good,” said Emery, whose team hosts the Lakers on Friday.

    Oswego dropped a pair of nonleague games to RIT last weekend in a home-and-home series. The Lakers played RIT fairly evenly in 5-on-5 situations — even dominating play at times. Oswego outshot the Tigers both nights, but allowed four power-play goals and a 4-on-4 tally.

    Coach George Roll gave goaltenders Joe Lofberg and Tyson Gajda each a start against RIT, and each played well.

    Plattsburgh has beaten Oswego twice this season: a 6-4 road win on SUNYAC opening night and a 4-1 win in the championship of Plattsburgh’s Cardinal Classic tournament.

    “Oswego’s a good team,” said Emery. “They’re a national contender. At this point, depending on how they do, they’re a dark horse for the national tournament. They’re coming in here with every intention on winning.”

    Cortland, at 5-2 in conference, has a chance to grab a share of the lead, or move into second place on the weekend. A win over Plattsburgh by both visitors, and an Oswego loss at Potsdam would create a three-way tie for first, while at least one Oswego loss and a Red Dragon sweep would move Cortland into second place.

    The progress made by Cortland under former coach Tim Vanini — whose club made the SUNYAC playoffs last season — and continued under rookie head coach Tom Cranfield, makes the Red Dragons a foe not to be taken too lightly, Emery observed.

    “Cortland’s the type of team that in the past few years, you could have an off night and still beat them. Now, if you have an off night, they have a chance to beat you.” Emery added, “The SUNYAC’s getting better and better every year. And that’s good for us. We want to play the toughest schedule we can possibly play.”

    Plattsburgh’s nonleague schedule is arguably the toughest in Division III, with six opponents ranked for at least part of the season in the USCHO poll. While the Cardinals are 7-0 in the SUNYAC, the defending national champs are just 5-6 outside the league.

    “We knew coming into this season we had a target on our back, and everyone’s big game this year was going to be Plattsburgh,” said Emery.

    How does he appraise his team’s performance?

    “I have mixed feelings about my team. I think that we could play better. We could play smarter, and with more emotion.”

    Emery added, “I think it’s sad to say that some of our players were looking forward to the playoffs before we even started because of what we accomplished last year.”

    At the Other End of the Empire State

    Brockport and Geneseo head west to Buffalo State and Fredonia this weekend.

    Fredonia, just 1-6 in conference, is in seventh place in the SUNYAC, and a game behind Potsdam for the last playoff spot.

    As coach Jeff Meredith has noted, Fredonia’s biggest problem has been finishing its scoring chances. The Blue Devils, who have managed just nine goals in league play, may have gotten off the schneid in recent nonconference games, becoming only the third team to score four goals on RIT in a 5-4 overtime loss, and beating Utica, 6-3, and Hobart, 5-4.

    Brockport, winless in the league, has gone 3-3 since the holidays, and has been the beneficiary of three mid-semester transfers. Twins Peter and Paul Stasko each have a goal in the five games they’ve played since transferring from Geneseo, while another freshman transfer by way of New England College, linemate Ron Lien, has four goals and seven points in the same stretch. This road trip is the best opportunity for the remainder of the season for Brian Dickinson’s Soaring Eagles to get back into the hunt.

    Geneseo, at 3-4, and Buffalo State, at 4-3, have a chance to solidify their standings. They’ll match up on Friday night. The Bengals won the first meeting at Geneseo, 5-4, scoring three straight in the third period.

    The Knights added a player to the roster during the semester break, 6-5, 230 lb. sophomore defenseman Paul Weismann, who saw limited action in a season-and-a-half at Bowling Green, where coach Brian Hills was an assistant before taking the Geneseo post this season.

    However, Geneseo will be without Weismann and goalie Brett Walker for Friday’s match against the Bengals. Both were given majors and game disqualifications late in the first period for fighting in the Knights’ 5-4 loss to Utica.

    That was Walker’s second ejection this season. He leads all goaltenders in the country with 11 infractions and 55 penalty minutes.

    Rocky II

    Congratulations to Buffalo State’s Rocky Reeves, a finalist for the Hockey Humanitarian Award for the second year in a row. The winner will be named on Friday, April 5 in St. Paul, Minn. as part of the activities surrounding the NCAA Division I Frozen Four.

    Reeves has been a four-year captain for coach Jim Fowler.

    Only one non-Division I player has ever won the award, RIT’s Kristine Pierce, in 1999.

    A Milestone

    Tuesday’s 5-3 win against Colby marked the 300th victory behind the Plattsburgh bench for Bob Emery and associate head coach Kevin Houle.

    Emery is taking the milestone in stride.

    “To be honest with you — and I’m not just trying to say the right thing — it doesn’t really make me feel any different,” said Emery. “But if you look at it, I’m really impressed on how fast we got there.”

    In 13 seasons at Plattsburgh, their record stands at 300-86-26.

    The two are sort of the yin and yang of coaching: Emery can be fiery and volatile on the bench, while in the same situation, Houle will appear calm and studious.

    “We’re definitely a coaching tandem, Houle and I. He’s equally important, if not more important to the program, in my eyes.

    “When I got the job here years ago, I knew how I was. Kevin and I were classmates and roommates [at Boston College]. I knew he was a lot the opposite of me and I think that’s real important in coaching. One coach needs to complement the other one in teaching and in coaching techniques.”

    Cardinals Return to the Ritter?

    After years of home-and-home series, Plattsburgh has decided not to play at Elmira next season. Replacing that contest will likely be a game at RIT.

    “We’re working on getting RIT back on the schedule,” said Emery, who had disclosed the possibility on WIRY’s pregame show Tuesday. “I think [RIT coach] Wayne [Wilson] is doing a really good job, and they play with class, whether they win or lose, and that’s the type of team we want to play. It’s not solidified, but it is penciled in that we will play RIT next year.”

    The Tigers would visit Plattsburgh in 2003-04.

    Don’t look for a two-game series between the two teams that battled for the title last year, though. “Too many teams want to play us,” said Emery.

    Two who will get the chance next year are Manhattanville and nearby Skidmore. Both will be in the Plattsburgh Cardinal Classic in December.

    Why the schedule change?

    Perhaps this comment from Emery sums it up: “We win with class at Plattsburgh and we’re going to lose with class. Every team we play we hope can do the same.”

    Reunion, of Sorts

    Cortland has a late addition to its schedule, a contest next Tuesday against Lebanon Valley.

    It marks the first meeting between former Red Dragon and current Flying Dutchmen coach Al MacCormack, and Cortland coach Tom Cranfield. Cranfield played for MacCormack at Cortland in the late ’80s and early ’90s, and was also a MacCormack assistant.

    Until last season, Cortland’s last visit to the SUNYAC playoffs was under MacCormack in 1991, Cranfield’s senior year.

    Trivia

    Last Week’s Question

    In school history, which team has beaten Plattsburgh more times than any other?

    Elmira. Through this season, Elmira leads the series 34-33-1. Only Potsdam and Oswego have faced Plattsburgh more times than the Soaring Eagles, and neither comes close to Elmira in wins.

    This Week’s Question

    Two teams in SUNYAC history have no wins against Plattsburgh. One of them is Buffalo State. Can you name the other one?

    Game of the Week

    Friday’s game between Oswego and Plattsburgh gets the nod. A win by the Lakers gives them a tie with the Cardinals atop the SUNYAC. A Plattsburgh victory would just about guarantee the top seed for the defending champs.

    This Week in the MAAC: Jan. 24, 2002

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    Gaels Flying High Again

    Iona had strong expectations coming into the season. Rightfully the Gaels should have after a solid run last year that stopped a game short of the MAAC final. Combine that with the fact that the Gaels lost only three players — and excluding goaltender Ben Brady, none were key contributors — and the expectations seem justified.

    But just two weeks ago, the Gaels weren’t impressing many. A six-game winless streak included being swept at Canisius and a tie against last-place Bentley. At one stretch, Iona was 1-4-1 in six league games, and over that same stretch, 2-8-1 overall.

    Next, though, for Iona were three consecutive offensive explosions. A 5-2 win over Bentley a night after a 4-4 tie, coupled with 5-2 and 7-2 victories over AIC last weekend have propelled Iona back into the world of the living.

    For Iona coach Frank Bretti, he kept his message to his team simple going into last Friday’s win over AIC. A sign that read, “We need this one,” was the extent of his entire pregame motivational speech.

    Obviously, it worked.

    The Gaels sit tied for fourth place with Canisius holding an all-important two games in hand. Those two play out this weekend while Canisius is playing nonleague games against Findlay.

    That is the good news for Iona.

    The bad news, though, is that Iona will travel to Mercyhurst to play a Laker team that hasn’t lost a league game this year. Moreover, Mercyhurst has only given up three or more goals twice, which could put Iona’s suddenly revitalized offense back in its place.

    Mercyhurst coach Rick Gotkin would like to see that defensive pattern continue.

    “We know Iona is an excellent team,” said Gotkin. “They are starting to play very well and they’re confident again.

    “Iona’s style is to like to fly guys. Everything they do is predicated on their offensive ability. So we’re going to have to counter on some of those and take advantage of some of those opportunities.

    “We’re not keying on [any one player] specifically. We just have to be solid in our end of the ice and contain them off the rush.”

    Bretti and Iona, though, are hoping that it’s not just one player that a team like Mercyhurst would need to key on. Though senior Ryan Carter has been on a torrid scoring pace of late, contributions from all four lines have been the Gaels’ key to success.

    “Any team that is going to be successful is going to get the most out of everybody,” Bretti said. “It’s important for some of our guys who traditionally are not goal scorers to step up and take care of business.”

    One good example of that is Mike LoCicero. The senior who scored only one goal in his first ten games has notched three in his last four.

    “I have been working hard all four years,” said LoCicero, who has played in 14 of Iona’s 20 games this season. “I have just been in the right place at the right time and I have been able to bury the puck.”

    Said Bretti: “Mike LoCicero is a good example of a guy that has been getting some points lately and has been rewarded for it by jumping up the depth chart.”

    In addition to offensive contributions, Bretti and his squad also have been able to rely on goaltending in the last four outings. Rookie Scott Galenza, who started the season on a great pace, and junior Mike Fraser, were each given the chance to show their mettle the last two weekends. With seven out of eight points taken, they’ve done just that.

    Still, Bretti is unsure if tandem goaltending is the solution for his club down the stretch.

    If we don’t we’re not going to win the game — flat out. “We’ve been going with a split [goaltending] situation over the last few years,” said Bretti. “I’m not sure if that will happen down the stretch. I’m kind of leaning towards giving one goaltender the games in the end of the season. Goaltending is going to be a key to us down the stretch to make the run.”

    As for what his team needs to do to get that stretch run off to a good start against Mercyhurst, Bretti says, “The number-one key for us is not to go in and be someone who we’re not. We need to go in and finish opportunities.

    Weekly Awards

    ITECH MAAC Hockey League Player of the Week Ryan Carter, Iona Sr., Forward, Ft. Nelson, B.C.

    Carter continued his hot streak, helping the Gaels to two wins versus AIC. The senior forward notched two goals (including the game winner in Friday’s match) and three assists on the weekend. Over the past four games Carter has tallied 13 points, the highest four-game scoring output of his career.

    ITECH MAAC Hockey League Goalie of the Week: Peter Aubry, Mercyhurst Sr., Goalie, Windsor, ONT

    Aubry stopped 49 of 51 shots (.961) in a 3-1 win at Canisius on Tuesday and a 3-1 win against Fairfield at Mercyhurst Saturday. Aubry is now 10-0-1 in the MAAC with a save percentage of .950 and a goals against average of 1.43.

    ITECH MAAC Hockey League Rookie of the Week: Chris Casey, Army Fr., Forward, Framingham, MA

    The freshman forward had a three-point night (1g, 2a) against fourth-place Quinnipiac in Saturday’s 4-2 win. He won a faceoff back to the point that led to the game’s equalizer in the first period, and then gave Army the lead for good with a goal of his own at the 17:38 mark of the opening frame. He also assisted on the eventual game winner five minutes into the second period. Casey was on the ice for three of Army’s four goals Saturday. He finished the weekend at +2 overall.

    Back To The Good Ol’ Days

    It’s been three years, but it’s hard to forget the rookie performance put forward by Iona’s Ryan Carter. During the inaugural MAAC campaign Carter scored 33 goals in 33 games coupled with 30 assists, which still stands as the best offensive season in league history.

    In recent years, though, Carter’s statistics have dropped off. His sophomore season saw 40 points in 37 games, and last year, Carter netted only 32 points in 35 games. The beginning of this season looked similar. Entering a series with Bentley two weeks ago, Carter had just 15 points. Four games, though, saw him nearly double that, posting five points last weekend against AIC and eight the weekend before against Bentley.

    “I don’t know why [I have been scoring] — probably just because I am shooting the puck more,” said Carter. “I think getting back into the conference has been a help and our confidence is really high.”

    Connecticut In Rhode Island

    Connecticut might want to consider to Providence, R.I., after the solid display of hockey the Huskies put on last weekend. Sitting dangerously close to missing the playoffs, UConn packed its bags and made the nonleague jaunt to take on Providence and Brown.

    Playing back-to-back games against established D-I programs was probably not the ideal situation coach Bruce Marshall was looking to cure a reeling team. And though there’s no sure way yet to know if the Huskies’ league woes are cured, their performance in the Ocean State lent positive signs.

    Backboned by a 54-save performance by goaltender Artie Imbriano on Friday night, the Huskies shocked Providence by stealing a 2-2 tie. Despite a lopsided advantage in shots (56-22), the Huskies hung tough and tied the game midway through the third period. It was the second time this season that UConn has tied a member of the “Big Four,” after a similar 2-2 tie at Vermont in December.

    Equally as impressive, though, was Connecticut’s ability to hang with Brown on the second night of the two-game Rhode Island series. A night after Brown manhandled then-number two St. Cloud, UConn skated to a tough 2-0 loss. Unlike Friday’s game, though, the Huskies’ scoring opportunities were plentiful.

    “Last weekend was the first time in a long time that we’ve played established teams back-to-back nights,” said Marshall. “It was encouraging to play very well the second night.

    “We had a lot of good opportunities that we just didn’t capitalize on. If we do, it might be a different game.”

    Now, though, the pending question is, why can’t UConn’s success in nonleague games better translate in MAAC games? Sporting only a 4-6-4 record in league games, UConn stands just two points from missing the eighth and final playoff spot. Though they were able to limit Providence and Brown to only two goals each night, teams like Mercyhurst, Quinnipiac and Sacred Heart have exploded on the Huskies for five or more goals.

    “We need to find a way to carry [good play in nonleague games] back to our league,” said Marshall. “We get four goals in the third against UMass one night and then get shut out by Sacred Heart another.”

    No time is more desperate for UConn than over the next four games. Beginning with a home-and-home series with Fairfield, the Huskies play four games total against the Stags and co-cellar dweller Bentley. Four wins could catapult the Huskies into a race for home ice. Four losses could push them out of the playoffs.

    “There’s not doubt that the next four games are extremely critical to us,” said Marshall. “Starting Friday night in Bridgeport we have to be ready to play our best hockey. We can’t worry about [teams] in front of us [in the standings]. We need to worry about who’s coming up from behind.”

    Key, of course, to UConn’s tie at Providence last weekend was Imbriano’s play. Still, though, the Huskies are not resting goaltending duties solely on his shoulders.

    “We’ve been trying to think as a staff if one [of the two goaltenders] can run the table,” said Marshall, referring also to netminder Jason Carey, who made 41 stops in defeat against Brown on Saturday. “But we tell them they’re going to split a weekend and they both play well.”

    In addition to both goaltenders playing well right now, their mental attitude has helped ease the coaches’ decision.

    “They get along really well and pull for the other guy,” said Marshall. “We might have the right two guys who can feed off one another down the stretch.”

    Anthony Mastantuoni contributed to this report.

    This Week in Hockey East: Jan. 24, 2002

    By
    -

    Pay Up Or You’re Next

    You want your team to do well? Then pay up or shut up.

    It all started with the Nov. 15 column. In it, I wrote about BU’s Cardiac Kids, who had been winning the close ones while compiling a 6-0-1 record. Following that praise, the Terriers stumbled to a 6-5-1 mark going into last weekend.

    Such was the beginning of a hex that yours truly now casts on the lead subject of every column (save those missives featuring the midyear report card and individual honors, which had no lead subject).

    Witness:

    Nov. 29: I asked and half-answered whether New Hampshire was “The Best Team in Hockey East?” Result: Clarkson upsets UNH.

    Dec. 6: I drooled over Cam McCormick’s amazing 0.60 goals against average and .970 save percentage. Result: Since then he’s “slumped” to marks of 1.10 and .952.

    Jan. 10: “Eagles Risin'” highlighted Boston College’s 10-2-1 hot streak. Result: BC hasn’t won since and is now on a four-game losing streak.

    Jan. 17: “How ‘Bout Them Hawks!” applauded UMass-Lowell’s rise to No. 1 in Hockey East, No. 2 in the Pairwise Rankings and No. 3 in the polls. Result: The River Hawks get swept by Northeastern.

    With my anti-King-Midas powers growing harder to conceal the last few weeks, several UNH fans have written to me in concern. They are worried that I might sabotage their league-leading Wildcats.

    They should be worried.

    Heh, heh, heh.

    How much are your Wildcats worth to you, UNH fans? I sense a lead story on Darren Haydar.

    Heh, heh, heh.

    Or maybe Haydar and his fellow Hobey Baker Award candidate, Colin Hemingway.

    Heh, heh, heh.

    You, too, BU fans. I stuck a fork in the Terriers months ago and they’re only now recovering. It happened then. It can happen again.

    Heh, heh, heh.

    How much is it worth to you?

    Go get your credit cards and pick up the phone. Call 1-900-IMATWIT and tell them that you are making a voluntary donation to the Dave Hendrickson Retirement Fund.

    Heh, heh, heh.

    Man, I just love the spirit of college hockey fans.

    Fifth With A Bullet

    Without a doubt, the team making the biggest leap forward in the standings of late has been the Northeastern Huskies. Not too long ago they were a point out of the cellar. Now they are fifth in Hockey East and narrowly missed making the nation’s Top 15.

    They are 9-3-1 in their last 13 games, but what really catches the eye is that they’re 4-0-1 in their last five, all games against Top 15 teams. Their most recent pair of triumphs came at the expense of UMass-Lowell, which had entered the weekend ranked third in the country only to be swept.

    “We’re getting some balance,” says coach Bruce Crowder. “We’re getting some good play out of a lot of people. That’s what you need in this league. When you look at the line of Brian Tudrick, Leon Hayward and Trevor Reschny, they’ve scored some important goals — [Tudrick with one on Friday and Hayward with one each night against Lowell] — and they’ve done a good job of checking the better lines on the other teams.

    “We had two freshmen — [Jason Guerriero and Jared Mudryk] — who scored big goals for us on Friday and [another one, Jaron Herriman on] Sunday. Jim Fahey continues to play well, as does Mike Ryan, and Keni Gibson has given us some pretty solid goaltending right now.”

    Not coincidentally, the 9-3-1 streak began when Gibson took over between the pipes on Nov. 23. Back problems had limited the freshman to only one previous game, but he’s started every one since, allowing more than two goals only three times and more than three goals only once.

    Of course, those kind of defensive results are also a credit to the defensemen as well as the overall team dedication to playing well in its own end. Holding opponents to only two goals or less most of the time will win a lot of games.

    “That’s a great surprise,” says Crowder, “considering that we’re playing four freshmen D, of which two are pure freshmen: Bryan Nathe and Donny Grover. I look at a kid like Timmy Judy and he’s playing fantastic, [even strength], power play and penalty killing. Pairing him up with Fahey, he’s had a good start to his college career. And Jon Awe has been the big surprise in that element.”

    The offense, which hadn’t been great, but rather good enough during the early part of the 9-3-1 streak, posted nine goals plus an empty-netter on the weekend against a Lowell team whose strength has been its defense.

    “I just think that we’re doing some things and the kids are making plays,” says Crowder. “Even Sunday night’s game, I think we hit three goalposts in the second period. The kids are going pretty good right now.”

    Having taken on the league’s iron in recent weeks, Northeastern will now play four league games against teams with losing records. Unfortunately, this part of the schedule has often been the Waterloo for previous Husky squads that seemed equally capable of knocking off the top in Hockey East one week and then losing to the cellar-dweller the next.

    How will they avoid getting full of themselves and stumbling during this stretch that begins with a home-and-home series this weekend against UMass-Amherst?

    “It’s a new cliche we’ve come up with as a staff: one game at a time,” deadpans Crowder. “Amherst, hey we lost to them, [4-2 on Nov. 3]. As far as I’m concerned, we haven’t shown that we beat Amherst and they’ve obviously shown that they can beat us.

    “We’re going to have our hands full with them. They’re coming off a couple tough weekends and they’re trying to turn things around themselves.

    “[But] I like the mental makeup of this team and the camaraderie. It’s something that I haven’t seen in a while and we’re hoping that that can carry us a ways.”

    The Stars In The Spotlight And The Not Ready For Prime Time Players

    Fox Sports New England (and its predecessor Sports Channel New England) have broadcast Hockey East games for the past four-and-a-half years dating back to the 1997-98 season.

    In that time only two league teams have compiled a winning record in front of the FSNE cameras.

    Take a minute and make your guesses as to the two schools. One answer won’t surprise you, but the other certainly should.

    (Fine print: This includes only the league’s TV package with FSNE. It does not include this year’s BU package nor NCAA games the cable outlet has picked up.)

    Made your guesses? No peeking unless you have.

    The first column includes all games on Sports Channel New England. The second has the FSNE regular season games, the third the FSNE broadcasts of the quarterfinal playoff games and the fourth the semifinal and championship games at the FleetCenter.

    Seasons 1997-98 to 2001-02 (through Jan. 22, 2002)

           SCNE     FSNE     FSNE     FSNE   Overall
         RegSeas  Quarter   Fleet
     
     BC   0-1-1   10-3-1    4-0-0    7-1-0   21- 5-2
     BU   1-1-0    4-9-2    1-3-0    0-1-0    6-14-2
     ME   0-1-1    2-5-1    0-0-0    3-3-0    5- 9-2
     UMA  0-0-0    0-2-0    0-0-0    0-0-0    0- 2-0
     UML  0-0-0    3-1-1    1-2-0    0-2-0    4- 5-1
     MC   0-0-0    0-0-1    1-2-0    0-1-0    1- 3-1
     UNH  1-0-0    3-8-1    1-1-0    1-2-0    6-11-1
     NU   1-0-0    7-1-0    0-1-0    0-0-0    8- 2-0
     PC   0-0-0    2-2-1    2-1-0    1-2-0    5- 5-1

    Given Boston College’s dominance during the period in question, the Eagles’ exceptional record is no surprise. What is stunning, however, is that the other top performer hasn’t been BU or UNH or Maine. It’s Northeastern! Apparently, when the spotlight is on, the Huskies shine.

    Who’da thunk it?

    Ironically, this Sunday night’s broadcast — part of a rare FSNE Hockey East doubleheader — pits BU (6-14-2) against UNH (6-11-1).

    McCormick vs. Miller, Redux

    My erudite CCHA colleague, Paula C. Weston, included in her column last week a comparison of UMass-Lowell’s Cam McCormick and Michigan State’s Ryan Miller. The statistics came from Spartan Sports Information Director Mike Eidelbes, who clearly is angling for early entry into the Get-A-Life Hall of Fame.

    A summary of his argument is as follows:

    McCormick is a big guy, 6-2 and 237 pounds. MSU goaltender Ryan Miller is also 6-2, but weighs only 160 pounds.

    Miller had totaled 572 saves this season (as of last week) to McCormick’s 279.

    As a result, Miller’s saves per pound (SPP) are 3.58, to McCormick’s 1.18 SPP.

    Eidelbes therefore concludes that, “The numbers indicate Miller easily leads McCormick in the saves per pound category. Therefore, Ryan Miller is — pound-for-pound — the best goaltender in college hockey today.”

    This wonderful piece of whimsy begs for a rebuttal. As a charter member of the Get-A-Life Hall of Fame, yours truly happily volunteers. Those who might be humor-impaired can please skip to the next segment.

    At 160 pounds, Miller barely weighs more than his goalie pads. In fact, the conversation in one press box recently turned to the idea of organizing a food drive for the no-meat-on-them-bones kid. As for McCormick, nobody will be organizing a food drive for the 237-pound Camster.

    Food Drives: Advantage McCormick.

    In fact, if Ryan Miller were to volunteer to help at a homeless shelter’s soup kitchen, he might instead be hustled to the head of the serving line.

    Soup Kitchens: Advantage McCormick.

    With anorexia a prime concern these days, our athletic role models need not be 6-2, 160-pound twigs. Give us a wide body who looks a little more like us.

    Anorexia and Wide Bodies: Advantage McCormick.

    Of course, Miller could actually gain some noticeable weight if he ever starts growing some facial hair. Is this guy a collegiate goaltender, staring down the toughest of snipers, or Baby Face Nelson? It’s hard to tell. Compared to the hirsute McCormick, Miller looks like a 12-year-old Cub Scout.

    Manliness: Advantage McCormick.

    To be fair, though, Miller did earn a Hobey Baker Award last year.

    Hobeys: Advantage Miller.

    Miller Time

    Enough of Ryan Miller. Time to talk about Bryan Miller, BU’s erstwhile defenseman turned forward, at least for a few games.

    When BU coach Jack Parker decided to send Justin Maiser to the stands for a game because of taking a bad penalty, Miller was the surprising replacement. A lifelong defenseman playing in only his third game as a forward, Miller joined Mike Pandolfo and Brian McConnell on the first line. Yes, you read that correctly. The first line.

    The results showed that Parker just might know a little something about coaching and hockey, because Miller assisted on both of the Terrier goals. The first was a thing of beauty to send McConnell in all alone.

    “That was a fabulous pass he made to McConnell,” said Parker after the win. “I didn’t think he even saw him and he put it the only place he could have put it. He laid it out easy for him to go in and pick it up. If he’d tried to pass it directly to him, it would have been intercepted.”

    Miller’s success was no surprise to Parker.

    “He’s a real smart player,” he said. “I had no qualms whatsoever that he’d be able to handle that position and play well.”

    Miller had been willing to do whatever would help the team, but may have had a few qualms himself.

    “He’d been asking us questions all week about what forwards are supposed to do,” said McConnell. “Just about forechecking and what to do off faceoffs. He knows what to do in the defensive zone, but not in the offensive zone really. He did a great job, though.”

    Without question, despite playing outside his comfort zone.

    “I was pretty surprised,” said Miller of Parker’s decision. “Coach called me inside and asked me how I’d feel if I played right wing this weekend. I said, ‘To be honest, that’s your call. It’s not my call.’ So he said, ‘All right. I’ll go put you with McConnell and Pandolfo.’

    “That was the biggest surprise. I wasn’t expecting to jump right in with those guys. We practiced together this week and I tried to do my part to fill in for Maiser.

    “I’ve always played D my whole life. This year is the most I’ve played the position in my whole life. It’s worked so far, [but] I’m still trying to learn the position. It’s pretty tough at this level.”

    Not bad for on the job training.

    Rush It or Dump It

    BU’s Pat Aufiero’s end-to-end rush against BC last Sunday put the Terriers on the scoreboard, but also prompted the question of when a blueliner should carry the puck into the zone and when it’s better to play it safe.

    “Coach likes us to dump it in as defensemen,” said Aufiero. “He doesn’t like us to get caught in the zone, so I usually dump it in. I just had a lot of momentum going and I wanted to break the game [open]. I just saw an opening and went for it.”

    Parker soon after clarified his approach.

    “It’s a matter of decisions,” he said. “Do I have a chance to get by these guys or am I just turning it over at the blue line and getting everyone caught flat-footed? [Aufiero] had his head up and there were a lot of holes.”

    Boston Herald legend John “Jocko” Connolly asked the question of the year after Aufiero described his goal.

    “What are you going to tell Jack the next time he tells you to dump it in?” asked Connolly with a grin.

    Aufiero’s response drew universal laughter.

    “I’m going to listen to him.”

    Quote of the Week

    Although greatly impressed by Northeastern, UMass-Lowell coach Blaise MacDonald didn’t mince words about his own team’s performances while losing two to the Huskies last weekend.

    “We lost our ability to work and our ability to prepare,” he said. “If you had been inside and seen our team meetings, seen our practices and seen our focus for the week and then see us go out and play each first period as we did, you’d probably throw up all over yourself. That’s what disappoints me.”

    Hard To The Net

    This perhaps could also be filed under the category of “All’s Well That Ends Well,” but Providence forward Peter Zingoni perhaps took the dictum of going hard to the net a little too far on Jan. 11 prior to the Friars’ game against BU. Reportedly, Zingoni crashed the net so hard during warm-ups, he injured himself and had to be replaced in the lineup with Chris Chaput.

    The silver lining to the injury was twofold: Chaput scored in that evening’s 5-5 tie with the Terriers and Zingoni returned to active play this week, scoring a goal in PC’s overtime 4-3 win over Brown.

    UNH-Lowell Clarification

    In last week’s segment on UMass-Lowell, I related a UNH fan’s unflattering comments about the River Hawks to make the point that Lowell was much more than just a one-man team.

    That prompted a few letters from the Wildcat faithful, of which the following is typical.

    Do you really need to quote an idiotic fan from UNH, stating that without McCormick Lowell would be just another “unheard” of D-I team? Seems to me this just continues to fuel the flame fests that much too often take place on the USCHO message board. Most New Hampshire fans admire what Lowell has accomplished this season and give them their due respect. This coming from a long time UNH fan who knows what it is like to try and earn respect. Kudos to UMass-Lowell for their great season to date. Let’s hope for Hockey East’s sake they continue to play well.

    Well put. I did feel that I needed to quote the fan, but I should have pointed out that the sentiments were miles away from that of the average UNH supporter.

    Selected Quick Notes

    Boston College’s position in the Pairwise Rankings on Jan. 10 was 13th in the country. One week later, after getting swept by UMass-Lowell, the Eagles had risen to 11th. Go figure…. Before you start railing about the system not working, keep in mind the volatility of PWR at this time of the year, not to mention the almost universal upsets of ranked teams that weekend. At least the Eagles lost to a top team.

    BC was so short of bodies last Sunday, it could only dress 11 forwards and five defensemen.

    Boston University is getting a lesson in discipline from coach Jack Parker. Justin Maiser watched the Jan. 18 game against BC in street clothes as punishment for taking a bad penalty. One game later, John Sabo followed suit in the back end of that home-and-home series for his 10-minute misconduct. If you don’t think it doesn’t hurt a Terrier to sit out a game against BC, you haven’t paid attention to that series.

    Sean Fields is now 6-0-1 in his last seven games.

    After only one Hockey East team sweeping the week before, four of them swept last weekend.

    When It Rains, It Pours

    Fox Sports New England will be broadcasting not one, but two, Hockey East games on Sunday. At 3 p.m., Boston College hosts Providence and then at 7 p.m., UNH visits BU’s Walter Brown Arena. New Hampshire Public TV makes it a hat trick with Friday night’s BU at UNH matchup.

    Trivia Contest

    Last week’s question asked which Hockey East player earlier this year scored goals on his team’s first shot on net in back-to-back games?

    A popular response was Darren Haydar, who did so in two out of three games, but not consecutive ones. The correct answer was Merrimack’s Anthony Aquino, who performed the feat on Oct. 13 and 18 against Miami and UNH. Against Miami it took only 1:31 into the game, but the oft-dominating Wildcats held Merrimack without a shot until the 13:25 mark, at which point Aquino gave the Warriors a bizarre 1-0 lead.

    Todd Cioffi was one of only two readers to answer that obscure one correctly. His cheer is:

    “The BU Express… leaving Chestnut Hill… next stops: Durham, North Andover and Downtown Boston… BU Hockey: There’s more where that came from!”

    This week’s question asks which player led Hockey East in scoring (league games only) the last time the New England Patriots made it to the Super Bowl? Email Dave Hendrickson with your carefully researched answer.

    And Finally, Not That It Has Anything To Do With Anything, But…

  • Here are a couple words for upper management at the Enron and Arthur Anderson corporations. If you somehow avoid jail, perhaps you can find something you are ethically well-suited for. Something like being a WWF referee.
  • Ben Dreith earned his position in infamy 25 years ago with his outrageous call in the Pats-Raiders playoff game that gift-wrapped a trip to the Super Bowl for Oakland. Most of us in New England have assumed he was either incompetent or just had a momentary lapse of judgement, rather than an actual bias.

    His interview earlier this week on WEEI, however, made you wonder if he dressed up for Saturday’s game in his silver-and-black lingerie. In perhaps the most embarrassing interview of all time, Dreith essentially said that he had never blown a call, would have called the Tom Brady non-fumble a fumble regardless of what the rule says and when asked about a potential roughing-the-passer call on the non-fumble play fulminated about the Patriots’ rough treatment of Jerry Rice.

    I’m on the radio every now and then myself, typically with mixed results. There’s a reason I’m a writer, not a broadcaster. But, folks, if I ever sound that moronic, not to mention biased, on the airwaves, please shoot me.

  • It says here that the Patriots will not expose Drew Bledsoe in expansion draft. Yes, that would save them a big chunk off the salary cap, but that advantage would be for one year only as compared to trading him. Trade him for a number one pick (and then some) and you’ve helped yourself for 10 years, not just one. Of course, you still have to draft well…
  • I’m hoping for a Super Bowl involving defensive coordinators Lovie Smith (Rams) and Romeo Crennell (Pats). You think years ago both of their daddies lost a bet?
  • Perhaps she was just fishing for a large tip — she got one — but bless the young lady who waited on my table over the weekend. Seeing me polish off a breakfast of Eggs Benedict, two orders of toast, hash browns and oatmeal, she wondered how I stayed in such great shape. Hey, she either needed glasses or some drug testing, but she put a smile on my face.
  • Shoulder surgery has certainly had its negatives. Physical therapy. Non-stop home exercises. Cutting myself shaving because I’m incompetent with my left hand. However, I recently had a privilege of saying some words that made it almost worth all the aggravation: “Hey, honey, the snow is piling up. Better go out there and shovel the driveway! The shovel is by the door!”

    You think I’ll catch that shovel on the side of my noggin one of these days?

    • This Week in the ECAC Northeast: Jan. 24, 2002

    By Ed Seero
    -

    The (High-)Flying Dutchmen

    Lebanon Valley continues to function on all cylinders. The Flying Dutchmen are living up to their nickname as they are the current holder of the nation’s longest active winning streak in all divisions. LVC has won 14 in a row. Some of its most recent have been the toughest tests.

    Saturday’s game against Salve Regina was a potential trap game. Nope. The Dutchmen took care of any doubts with a 6-1 win over the Seahawks. Next up was Sunday’s premier matchup with Johnson and Wales. LVC stormed back from an early 1-0 deficit with three unanswered goals, including two in the third period to take the 3-1 win. The Dutchmen then followed that up with a 9-0 whitewashing of Neumann.

    Leading the way for the Dutchmen has been Brian Yingling. He has eight points in the last three games and currently leads the conference with a 15-19–34 line. His offensive output earned him ECAC Northeast POTW last week as well as USCHO Offensive POTW considerations.

    Lincoln Matlock and Kevin Block sit atop the goaltending statistics in virtually every category, so it isn’t just LVC’s offense that is supercharged.

    I’m not sure if people fully understand what is happening down there in the Amish country. Do fans realize that LVC has not lost a game since November? A very long time ago?

    And LVC isn’t just winning, it’s doing so convincingly, to the tune of 92-26, for a goal differential of +67 on the season. In wins, the differential is 88-18. LVC has the number-one scoring offense and the number-one scoring defense in the ECAC Northeast. All of those statistics combined are almost unfathomable. What it amounts to is virtually total domination. Hats off to LVC.

    LVC will try and continue that dominance this weekend, hosting Utica Saturday afternoon and Assumption Sunday afternoon.

    Ebb and Flow Revisited

    Hockey is a unique sport, as all of us fans know. Anything can change the course of a game and/or a season for a team. Maybe a bout of mono or a fluke injury keeps some of your better players out of the lineup for a while.

    One night, your fourth line may pop a few unexpected goals. Another, your goaltender is seeing the puck like it’s a beach ball and making saves that he would never be expected to make. Maybe your team is playing the systems so perfectly that the opposition has no answer, no matter what adjustments they make. And for whatever reason, one night a team can get upended by an inferior team and come out and blow that same team out by five goals the next night. This kind of thing seems to happen more in hockey than in any other team sport.

    In an earlier column I wrote about the ebb and flow of a hockey season — a theory told to me by a coach who is a veteran of decades of pro hockey. In a lot of ways we are seeing that theory play itself out in the past few weeks.

    If you found yourself checking the scores from last week and this week and muttering things like “jeez” and “whoah” and “insert one-word exclamation of surprise here,” then you’re not alone.

    These scores made me think back to that theory. What is happening in the Northeast is very much validating what that coach said. Mainly, the old cliche “that’s why they play the games” is playing itself out.

    For instance, 3-8-2 Salve Regina traveled to Boston on Wednesday night to take on a 14-2 Wentworth buzzsaw that was also undefeated in the conference. By most people’s estimation, the game would be a one-sided affair, with Wentworth taking it to the eighth-place Seahawks just like it did to practically every other Northeast opponent thus far. Salve was 1-3-1 in the second half of the season heading into the tilt with Wentworth and fresh off a 6-1 rout at the hands of Lebanon Valley and a 2-2 tie against Plymouth that saw the Seahawks score two games in 22 seconds to steal a point. Again, like the saying goes, that’s why they play the games.

    In the early going Wentworth took a 2-0 lead and the game appeared to be playing the aforementioned scenario out. Then the third period started and Salve rattled off four unanswered goals to take home the 4-2 victory and immediately re-establish themselves as a team not to be taken lightly. Ask Curry about the Seahawks and you’ll hear the same thing.

    Speaking of Curry, it is one of the teams that may be in the midst of the ebb portion of its season. After starting the season 7-3 and earning an A+ for their turnaround-type start, the Colonels find themselves in a five-game slide, 0-4-1, in the second half. Suddenly, what looked like it was just one of those games against Salve, a 6-2 loss, seems like it could have been the start of something. An opportunity to right the ship and regain some of that first half magic against Wentworth went by the boards as the Leopards came into Milton and won handily to the tune of 5-2.

    And then comes Wednesday night against Southern New Hampshire. Although they outshot the Penmen 42-37, the Colonels gave up three first-period goals and scored their fifth goal on the power play with eight seconds in the game. The final 8-5 score, a loss for the Colonels, was not even that close.

    It may be making a mountain out of a molehill but it may be something very real, momentum works in funny ways like that, especially in hockey.

    What’s With the Blowouts?

    A disturbing trend seemed to develop in the Northeast over the last week. That is, a number of the teams at the top seem to be distancing themselves from the teams at the bottom, not only in the standings, but dramatically in the scores and the particulars of those scores.

    Case in point: Saturday saw the Fitchburg State Falcons dismantle WNEC 5-1. Then, on Tuesday night, the Falcons thumped Nichols, outshooting the Bison 61-25. Nichols took only three penalties and two of them resulted in Falcon goals.

    On the very same night, UMass-Dartmouth, undefeated in the second half, handed Suffolk a 9-0 defeat and embarrassed the Rams, holding them to only nine shots. That’s right, UMD held its opponents to as many shots as it had goals, an astounding feat.

    On the Bright Side

    Let’s not focus entirely on the uneven affairs of the past week. Some of the best games of the season were also played over the last seven days We already talked about the Wentworth versus Salve game. That was a good one. We also touched a little bit on the game that saw Salve travel to Plymouth. But let’s not gloss over that remarkable contest.

    The Seahawks pulled Chris Burns with 1:30 on the clock. Then Billy Baker took over, scoring at 19:38 to pull within one. Then, just 16 seconds later, he potted his second extra attacker goal to tie the game at two. Talk about a clutch 1:30 of hockey. Mega-Kudos to the Seahawks for their play over the last week. You just can’t count these guys out, obviously.

    Another great game saw UMass-Dartmouth take on an up and coming, flowing if you will, SNHU team. The Penmen gave the Corsairs all they could handle, climbing back into the game from a first period 4-0 deficit to pull the game within reach. Four third-period goals, including one with just ten seconds on the clock had SNHU within one and with a chance to tie it in the waning seconds of the game. Chris Dussault’s empty-net goal with three seconds left iced it for the Corsairs. Great game though.

    And how about the marquee matchup of the weekend, between Lebanon Valley and Johnson and Wales? It didn’t quite live up to the hype, but at least it was a good one. LVC pulled out a 3-1 victory, maintaining its stronghold on the conference and not disrupting the standings.

    This Weekend

    UMass-Dartmouth and Fitchburg State will face off on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. in Dartmouth. Do yourself a favor and go to this game, featuring one of the league’s most heated rivalries as both squads are traditional powerhouses.

    UMD has won eight in a row and may be the league’s best team right now. Fitchburg has also been hot as its only setback of the second half came against Wentworth. Fitchburg is pounding the opposition lately and Jeff Brodeur, who may be the league’s most dangerous offensive weapon, is leading the way.

    If you are a fan of Division III hockey and the ECAC Northeast, and you plan on doing at least one hockey-related thing this weekend, go to this game.

    I beg of you.

    This Week In The WCHA: Jan. 24, 2002

    By
    -

    The Waiting Game

    “Is there any news to report in the T.J. Caig case?” was the question.

    Scott Sandelin sighed.

    “Not really.”

    The Minnesota-Duluth coach is frustrated. He’s frustrated that he has a player who could be a star with his team and unable to suit up for a game.

    He’s frustrated that things are taking so long.

    Sure, he’s frustrated about the 1-14-1 WCHA record of his Bulldogs, but that’s another issue.

    The Courtship of T.J. Caig has hit a roadblock. Caig, a star in Canadian Tier II juniors and a UMD recruit, expected to go to Duluth after Christmas and start playing college hockey. Sandelin expected it, too.

    But Caig is presently on the shelf, grounded by the inquiry flag thrown up by two WCHA schools. Those schools say Caig, a forward, played in exhibition games in the Canadian Tier I system, which would cost him one year of eligibility under NCAA rules.

    Minnesota-Duluth officials checked into Caig’s background and provided the NCAA with a report. Now, they wait. Caig started school at UMD on Tuesday.

    While the issue would seem to be as simple as making one phone call to determine if Caig played in the Canadian Major Junior system, it apparently isn’t.

    “It’s not an easy thing,” one WCHA coach said.

    The Bulldogs might be getting to the point, Sandelin said, where even if Caig is cleared to play, it might be more beneficial to the program not to have him play this season and start next year with (they hope) four full years of eligibility.

    They have 12 games left in the regular season.

    “The way things are going, it might be a good chance that it might not be until next year,” Sandelin said. “But that’s all right. I’m glad he’s here.

    “Whether it happens this year or next year, it’s certainly a bright spot in our future.”

    More Classics?

    Minnesota and Denver provided a pair of classic college hockey games when they got together earlier this season in Denver.

    Given the talent on each team, chances are good it’ll happen again this weekend at Mariucci Arena.

    Here’s what the coaches said this week about the opponent:

    Denver’s George Gwozdecky: “Our perception of them going into that series was accurate. They’ve developed a great amount of respect, especially from our team because they’ve got a great team. There is no team that has a better defensive corps in the country than Minnesota, led by Jordan Leopold. And I say this with all due respect and a little bit of chuckle, there’s no way he should be playing in the WCHA. He should be playing in the National Hockey League.”

    Minnesota’s Don Lucia: “I am very impressed with Denver. I think they have an outstanding team. I love their balance, they have great goaltending. They are really playing their systems extremely well.”

    Gwozdecky also mentioned his respect for the Gophers’ scorers, and with good reason. While they may have struggled without Jeff Taffe last Friday, they were on the mark with him last Saturday.

    “Their offensive attack is as good as anybody’s in the country,” Gwozdecky said. “When they attack, it’s not with two or three guys, it’s usually with four or five. It’s tough to defend against, that’s for sure.”

    Last-Second Heroes

    Alaska-Anchorage has shown a penchant for beating the buzzer this season.

    The Seawolves have played six overtime games this season — nothing special, unless you consider the circumstances that have caused half of those extra periods.

    In three of those games, the Seawolves scored in the last 10 seconds of regulation to force OT. Two of the equalizers have come with one second on the clock, including last Friday’s Steve Cygan goal to force a 3-3 tie with Minnesota.

    Lee Green scored with one second left on Oct. 13 to force a 4-4 tie with Boston College and Corey Hessler scored with 10 seconds left on Nov. 3 in a game UAA won 5-4 in overtime.

    Critically Speaking

    Jeff Sauer calls this a “critical” part of Wisconsin’s schedule.

    With the four teams directly above them in the WCHA standings on the slate over the next five weekends, the Badgers’ condition is what could be critical if they don’t manage some big victories.

    It starts with St. Cloud State this weekend at the Kohl Center, where the Badgers play eight of their last 12 games. They’re just 6-4 at the home rink this season, though, so Sauer’s message to his team this week is to try to build something at home.

    “Not only this weekend but the rest of our season right now, we have to turn it up a notch,” Sauer said.

    Improving consistency on offense is a big part of that.

    This is a team that beat Minnesota 8-3 one night, then lost 6-2 the next. This is a team that lost to Minnesota State-Mankato 3-1 one night, then beat the Mavericks 5-4 the next.

    “It’s a bit frustrating from that standpoint,” Sauer said, “but the consistency is all wrapped into being able to put the puck away when we get the opportunities.”

    For the Badgers, if that doesn’t happen soon, it might not happen at all.

    Cure For The Ills

    Scott Owens was a little sick last week, and he admitted — at least jokingly — that some of it had to do with Colorado College’s series with Minnesota State-Mankato the weekend before.

    As has become the norm, however, the Tigers righted the ship. It’s become a trend that CC follows poor showings with strong efforts, and that’s the reason the team is still in good shape and fighting for a high spot in the WCHA standings.

    They topped a three-game losing streak earlier this season with a five-game winning streak immediately thereafter. After a loss and tie at the Badger Hockey Showdown in Milwaukee, they’ve ripped off five wins in the six games since. The only loss was against Mankato two weekends ago, 2-1 at home.

    “We’re just trying to keep things going,” Owens said, “because we’ve had a decent month so far.”

    Memories of Wally

    No Denver-Minnesota series at Mariucci Arena would be complete without mention of Sinuhe Wallenheimo.

    You know, the Denver goalie who would actually feed off the crowd’s taunts and go along with them?

    “I can remember the west end of the building was packed during warmups because they knew Wallenheimo was going to be playing,” Gwozdecky said. “Everything else was vacant, but the west end was just packed.”

    Where have you gone, Wally? Drop us an e-mail and check in.

    Pointing Back

    The Bulldogs may have never had anything going in this WCHA season, but you can point to the weekend when the wheels really came off.

    It was Nov. 2 and 3 at Alaska-Anchorage, the team it hosts this weekend at the DECC. A week after sweeping Rensselaer at home and with a 4-2 overall record, Duluth tied Anchorage 2-2 on Friday night.

    The crushing blow was that Saturday. Up 4-2 late in the third period, it all collapsed on UMD. Three goals later, Anchorage had a 5-4 overtime victory.

    Over two months later, Duluth is 4-14 since that point, 1-12 in the WCHA.

    “We played them earlier in the year and probably should have had three or four points,” Sandelin said this week. “We played two of six periods, we blew the lead and it’s sent us on the downfall. It seems like [the Seawolves have] played better since then.”

    Who knows if things would have been different for Duluth if it would have been able to hold onto that lead. Nonetheless, it’s been a downward spiral since.

    Even when Duluth has been able to put together highlights in the second half — wins over Yale and then-No. 1 St. Cloud State — the Bulldogs have been followed by more despair: three straight losses after each win.

    “We have a tough time putting two, three, four wins together,” Sandelin said. “We’re a team that’s going to win one or two and probably lose a couple. Those are things that happen when you haven’t won a lot.”

    The Bulldogs are finding that it’s awfully difficult to break that cycle.

    Line ‘Em Up

    When you find a combination that works, stick with it. When you find one in the middle of the season, getting some more players into the mix and rewarding others, even better.

    That’s why the Denver line of David Neale, Matt Weber and Kevin Ulanski will stay together for this weekend’s series at Minnesota. They were put together for the first time last weekend, and came away with four goals and eight assists.

    Inauspicious Debuts

    Lucia chalks up his team’s recent difficulties in the first game of series to mental errors.

    The Gophers are perfect in the second game of the last three series, but they’re just 0-2-1 in the openers.

    “I think it’s more mental than physical,” Lucia said. “The North Dakota game, we had the game in hand and a couple defensemen got caught in when they shouldn’t have been in, and that cost us.

    “The Wisconsin game Friday night, [goaltender] Adam [Hauser] certainly wasn’t on, that contributed. And up at Anchorage, we didn’t have Jeff [Taffe] and were a little shorthanded. We got up 3-1 and we made a couple mental mistakes that ultimately cost us.”

    North Dakota rallied in the third period for a 4-3 victory on Jan. 5; Wisconsin blitzed the Gophers 8-3 on Jan. 11; and Anchorage rallied from two goals down in the third last Friday to force a 3-3 tie.

    “It’s not that we’re not ready to play or we’re not playing well,” Lucia said, “it’s more that those mental breakdowns, it seems like, end up in our net.”

    Net Debate

    Wisconsin’s troubles at putting together a consistently good weekend may start with offense, but defense and goaltending are playing supporting roles.

    Sauer said he’s debating whether to play starting goaltender Scott Kabotoff on consecutive nights. This year in the WCHA, the best goaltenders have been the ones that play once a weekend. Those that are counted on to be in goal for every minute may be at a disadvantage, and Kabotoff falls in the latter class.

    “I’m going to think long and hard about going back to back with Scott here down the stretch,” Sauer said. “But he’ll be our goaltender Friday night.”

    Kabatoff’s status as the Badgers’ No. 1 goaltender is in little doubt. But in Bernd Bruckler, they have someone who can fill in, no matter the opponent, to give Kabotoff a breather.

    Not that Kabotoff will tell you he needs a breather, though.

    “He’ll be the first to tell you that he doesn’t think he’s physically tired or mentally tired,” Sauer said.

    Ah, Graham Melanson’s influence still is strong at Wisconsin.

    No Alarm

    Five of Colorado College’s six periods against North Dakota last weekend wouldn’t have given any cause for alarm about the Tigers’ defense.

    But there was that third period last Friday night. Five North Dakota goals. Owens called it an abherration. The Tigers won, albeit much less comfortably than was expected after 40 minutes.

    “If we wouldn’t have rebounded with a good defensive effort on Saturday — we limited them to 22 shots — then I’d be concerned,” Owens said. “But I’m not.”

    Owens admits his team is missing some of the defensive leadership provided by senior Mike Stuart, who has been out with a knee injury since the start of the month.

    The Tigers hope to have Stuart back by the Feb. 1-2 series with Denver or the next weekend’s meeting with Wisconsin. In the meantime, they’re playing three freshmen on defense.

    “I don’t think we’re quite as strong defensively as we were before Christmas,” Owens said, “but I think a lot of it has to do with Mike Stuart.”

    Coincidence?

    Michigan Tech defenseman Justin Brown, his team mired in an 0-for-41 power-play slump, took one for the team last Saturday night, then gave two back.

    Brown was the on the receiving end of a check from behind by Minnesota-Duluth’s Tom Nelson in the third period, netting Nelson a major penalty and Tech a five-minute power play.

    Brown, unfazed, stepped back onto the ice and scored twice in that five-minute span.

    Milestones

    Sauer, who has already announced this will be his last year as Wisconsin’s coach, is one away from his 650th collegiate victory.

    The Badgers coach is in his 31st overall year and 20th in Madison.

    Chuckle Of The Week

    I’m sure it was a serious matter when it happened, but looking back on it, St. Cloud State defenseman Jeff Finger getting trapped in a Minneapolis-St. Paul airport bathroom stall last week was getting its share of chuckles.

    It seems the door to the handicapped-accessible stall Finger was using after the Huskies landed in Minneapolis locked behind him. We won’t bother you with the details, but let’s just say the fire department was involved with the rescue.

    Brett’s Best

    The seven points Michigan Tech’s Brett Engelhardt racked up last weekend was probably the product of a year’s worth of effort.

    Engelhardt scored the game-winning goal last Friday and added two more goals on Saturday. He was named the WCHA’s offensive player of the week.

    “Hard work pays dividends, and hard work is pretty characteristic of Brett Engelhardt,” Michigan Tech coach Mike Sertich told USCHO’s Eric J. Habermas. “He keeps his game simple. He’s a power forward and he plays like it. And when he needs a big play, he makes it.”

    He Said It

    “They’re just young. They’re not as bad as their record.”

    — Colorado College coach Scott Owens, on North Dakota.

    This Week in the ECAC West: Jan. 24, 2002

    By
    -

    In the USCHO.com poll this week, RIT took advantage of a Norwich stumble and moved into the No. 1 spot, and Elmira solidified its No. 10 ranking by defeating Potsdam convincingly. All eyes are looking forward now, to the clash at the Thunderdomes on Saturday between these two teams.

    I Wanna Be Like Mike!

    If your name was Mike, and you played for RIT, it was a good weekend to rack up the goals against Oswego. If you name wasn’t Mike, the best you could hope to muster was a supporting role with some assists.

    That is the way it went over the weekend as RIT swept Oswego in a home-and-home series. The Tigers scored ten goals in the 5-0 and 5-1 wins to sweep the Great Lakers for the first time since this series began five years ago. And in the weird, planetary-alignment category, all ten Tiger goals were scored by players with the first name of Mike.

    Junior Mike Bournazakis (15-24-39) led the way for RIT, with a hat trick on Friday and two more goals on Saturday. Bournazakis now leads the Tigers in points, and is tied for the lead in both power-play goals (eight) and game winning goals (four).

    Sophomore Mike Tarantino (16-12-28) tallied one goal on Friday, and knocked in two more on Saturday, all on the power play. Tarantino is tied with Bournazakis for the team lead in power-play goals and is third in points.

    And freshman Michael Tucciarone (6-3-9) completed the “All Mike” weekend for RIT, notching one goal each in Friday and Saturday’s contests.

    Michael Jordan had better watch out, as Nike may be looking to the Mikes of RIT for its next “I Wanna Be Like Mike” commercial.

    A Little Consistency for Elmira

    The biggest challenge for Elmira this season has been emotional consistency. The Soaring Eagles would fly high against tough, nationally ranked opponents, and then flutter helplessly against weaker teams.

    It appears that the Soaring Eagles may have put those days behind themselves.

    Elmira is on a three-game winning streak, with a convincing win over a ranked Plattsburgh team, but also with strong victories against unranked Geneseo and Potsdam.

    Potsdam was the latest to fall to Elmira’s resurgence last Saturday. Elmira outshot the Bears 41-26, and outscored them 7-3 in the victory.

    “We were fortunate enough to get some big goals at the end of the first period, and again at the end of the second,” said coach Tim Ceglarski.

    Jason Silverthorn (10-11-21) scored with 33 seconds remaining in the first period to give Elmira the 2-1 lead. And then, after Elmira scored two more unanswered goals during the second period, Geoff O’Leary (1-3-4) scored a four-on-four goal with only two seconds remaining in the second for the 5-1 lead.

    That lead proved insurmountable for Potsdam, and Elmira cruised to the win.

    Utica Battles It Out, Literally

    Utica split its weekend against SUNYAC opponents. The Pioneers opened on Friday at Fredonia, losing 6-3. Utica was in the game, tied 2-2 midway through the second, when the wheels came off the bus. Fredonia reeled off three consecutive goals to take control of the scoreboard on the way to the win.

    “I really thought that we outplayed them,” said Utica coach Gary Heenan. “They capitalized on four big mistakes, and we didn’t make many more than that in the game.”

    Saturday’s matchup with Geneseo was a different story. The Pioneers won the contest 5-4, but controversy continues to surround Geneseo’s hotheaded goaltender Brett Walker. Late in the first period, Geneseo’s Andy Ford was sent off the ice for a major hitting from behind. Utica’s Derek Ward (6-2-8) scored about a minute into the ensuing power play to tie the game 1-1.

    Right after that goal, one of the Utica players went into the net, and as Heenan related it, “their goalie just went nuts.”

    Both Walker and Paul Weismann from Geneseo dropped the gloves with Utica’s Ron Mexico, and the haymakers were flying. It wasn’t much of a fight, but enough to get all three players fighting majors and game DQs.

    Utica poured it on in the seven-minute 5-on-3 power play that followed, scoring two goals to take a 3-1 lead. Geneseo came back with three straight goals of its own to retake the lead briefly. But Geneseo’s backup goaltender wasn’t enough to stop the Utica offense, and the Pioneers scored two late in the third period to win.

    “We ended up on the right side of a penalty-filled shootout,” said Heenan. “It really wasn’t a chippy game by any means. Most of it was foul mouths at the referee.”

    But looking at the scorecard, it is hard to image four game disqualifications, one game misconduct, four majors, and one ten minute misconduct all due to potty mouths.

    The Valiants Sweep

    Manhattanville traveled upstate for its third weekend in a row, this time for a two-game series with remarkably snowless Buffalo State. The Valiants played solid hockey, perhaps the best they have played since the break, and went home smiling with two wins.

    In Friday’s contest, Manhattanville dominated play through the first two periods, outshooting Buffalo State 27-14 and building a 4-1 lead.

    “We came out flying, got a nice lead, then struggled playing with the lead,” said coach Keith Levinthal.

    Buffalo State evened up the shots in the third period, and outscored Manhattanville 3-1 in the period. But the Valiants had enough to hold on.

    Saturday’s game was more of the same. Manhattanville held a strong advantage in the shots department, but Buffalo State stayed with the Valiants through half the game, keeping it tied 2-2 midway through the second period. Then the Valiants pulled away on goals from Lee Stubbs (6-12-18) and Dave Schmalenberg (11-12-23) to take the 4-2 win.

    “I thought this was as well as we have played,” said Levinthal. “I thought we were solid all night long.”

    Manhattanville has now built a four-game winning streak, matching its longest of the season.

    “The first two games last week [Curry and Buffalo State], we showed how good we can be, and then hold on for the win,” said Levinthal. “Saturday was much more of a complete game. For the first time this year, our defense was real solid.”

    The Valiants still have nine games to play in the regular season, the most among any of the ECAC West teams. With six of those games at home, Manhattanville will be looking to build some momentum as it runs up to the playoffs. Next up for the Valiants is hosting two ECAC West opponents in important league play as Utica and Hobart come to town. Both will be looking to take points away from Manhattanville as they compete for a playoff berth.

    “We have to be careful with these two big games,” said Levinthal. “These will be two hard-fought games, and we need to win them to solidify our playoff hopes.”

    Game of the Week

    Could there be any doubt? Maybe if you have been spending too much time in the sun drinking froo-froo juice. But for anyone who follows college hockey, the Elmira-RIT matchup at the Thunderdomes is the game to see. This event has been marked on the calendars of Soaring Eagles’ and Tigers’ fans for months.

    “Any time we play RIT, there is a lot of excitement on both clubs, that is for sure,” said Ceglarski. “And the current rankings in the poll make it that much more exciting.”

    As usual, everything is on the line. A victory by No. 1 RIT would solidify the Tigers in the driver’s seat for the NCAA Pool B bid. A No. 10 Elmira victory would keep its hopes alive for the NCAA bid, and continue the perfect Soaring Eagles’ record against ranked opponents.

    “It’s always been a great series,” said RIT coach Wayne Wilson. “I expect nothing less this time around.”

    Over the 18 seasons that I have been following college hockey, this matchup has never been a disappointment, both for excitement and for great hockey. I expect nothing less this time around either.

    This Week in the CHA: Jan. 24, 2002

    By Geof F. Morris
    -

    Brother v. Brother

    Last weekend saw the hotbed of College Hockey America action take place in lovely Colorado, where Bemidji State and Air Force tiffed with each other and with USCHO No. 1 Denver. While some would consider the big story to be that neither team laid down and died while facing the top-ranked Pioneers, the big story for the CHA Beat was the brotherly brouhaha between Tom and Frank Serratore.

    In NCAA Division I history, families have only faced each other twice. The first meeting saw Florida State football coach Bobby Bowden face his son, Clemson coach Tommy Bowden, in Atlantic Coast Conference play. Now College Hockey America brings D-I its second such matchup with the Serratores.

    As with the Bowden pairing, this looks like one that should be hard-fought for years to come.

    Bemidji State, led by Tom, led his Beavers into hostile territory and skated away with a 4-2 decision over Frank’s Falcons. The game, one of two four-point conference matches this season, vaulted BSU to a first-place tie in the CHA standings with Wayne State. Air Force falls to 4-2 all time in four-point games.

    Tight Standings

    The CHA race remains tight: BSU and Wayne State are tops with 14 points apiece, and Alabama-Huntsville (11), Niagara (10), and Findlay (nine) don’t lag far behind. Unlike the past two seasons, the CHA race will likely go down to the wire as teams jockey for seedings in the March tournament at Niagara.

    However, nonconference play hasn’t been kind to CHA teams this year: only one team (Niagara) is above .500 overall. The relatively limited CHA schedule allows teams to play more nonconference teams, and it’s a good way for the CHA teams to get themselves up to speed. With some very young programs, the learning experience will be invaluable for the growth of the league.

    Weekend Matchups

    The lone matchup on the CHA slate this weekend is the other four-point game of the year, as the Niagara Purple Eagles travel to Air Force. These four-point games can make wild changes in the standings, as last weekend showed. With a win, Niagara could make it a three-way tie atop the CHA.

    CHA teams have a stout nonconference schedule for the weekend. In a similar setup as last weekend, Air Force and its visitor play a local team, this time Colorado College. Bemidji State travels to Ferris State, while Findlay hosts Canisius.

    NCAA to Televise Regional Games Again

    USCHO Staff Report
    -

    The NCAA says it will televise all eight Division I tournament regional games once again this season, after not doing so last year because of budgetary reasons.

    The West Regional is scheduled for March 22-23 in Ann Arbor, Mich., with game times of 4 and 7:30 p.m. ET. The East Regional will be in Worcester, Mass. on March 23-24, with game times of noon and 3:30 p.m. ET.

    Games will be produced by the NCAA, and available to be picked up by whatever local station and/or regional sports network that wants it. No word yet on whether the games will be available on mini-dish satellite systems, such as DirecTV, as has been done in the past on a pay-per-view basis.

    Once again, the Frozen Four will be televised by ESPN and ESPN2 on April 4 and 6 from St. Paul, Minn.

    Richter on Sauer

    By Adam Wodon
    -

    It’s been nearly 15 years since Mike Richter left the University of Wisconsin, but he’ll never forget what Jeff Sauer meant to him.

    “My father died when I first came to campus, and [Sauer] flew to Philadelphia,” Richter said. “He spent time mourning with two or three hundred people that he didn’t know. He showed his appreciation.”

    Jeff Sauer will retire as head coach of Wisconsin after this season.

    Jeff Sauer will retire as head coach of Wisconsin after this season.

    Less than two weeks ago, Sauer announced this would be his last season behind the Wisconsin bench, after 20 seasons and two national championships. Richter was one of many future NHL players that Sauer coached; if Canada and the United States should meet in this year’s Winter Olympics, a pair of former Badger goalies are likely to square off against each other — in Richter and Curtis Joseph — just as they did in the epic best-of-three World Cup finals in 1996.

    Though 15 years removed from the program, Richter regularly stays in touch with Sauer, and finds it hard to believe he won’t be coaching next year.

    “I was surprised,” Richter said. “He was there for a long time and he’s done a fabulous job. It’s amazing how many years have gone by.

    “He’s got that many wins under his belt and passed Bob Johnson. And he coached with a lot of class.”

    Johnson, of course, was the legendary previous Badgers coach — revered not just in Madison, but throughout hockey. He built the Wisconsin program, won three national championships, and went on to win two Stanley Cups after jumping to the NHL.

    Sauer coached nine Olympians and won plenty of games himself, but there were tough shoes for him to fill. He had been an assistant under Johnson, but was still an outsider — a Colorado College graduate who was coaching there at the time of his return to Wisconsin.

    Sauer won a national championship in his first season, 1983, and again in 1990, and there are still those who give him no credit for it … saying he won with “Bob Johnson’s players,” or some such thing.

    “That may be so,” said Richter, “but he hung in there, he kept going through good years and bad, and he put his own signature on the program. He was winning with his own team in his own way. You have to give him credit for the amount of success he’s had.

    “It’s been phenomenal. It’s an end of an era, and hopefully they’ll have as much success when the new guy comes in.”

    For Richter, it will always come back to that week when he arrived on campus as a wide-eyed freshman, straight from a place — Philadelphia — that wasn’t exactly a hockey hotbed.

    “The thing I remember the most about him was how much interest he took in the personal side of the game,” said Richter. “Each player meant a lot ot him.

    “I could remember aunts and uncles coming up to me [at the funeral] saying, ‘Boy, you picked the right place. That’s a really good person.’

    “That to me was the most important thing he could’ve given me in terms of support.

    “But he’ll hopefully be able to relax and enjoy the rest of his life … and have as much success off the ice as he had on it.”

    Four Named Hockey Humanitarian Finalists

    USCHO Staff Report
    -

    Four players from varied backgrounds have been named finalists for the 2002 Hockey Humanitarian Award, presented anually to the player who exhibits a strong commitment to their communities, their teams, and their studies.

    This year’s finalists are Daniel Casella, Dartmouth senior; Thomas Conti, a three-year captain at Division III Lawrence; Rocky Reeves, a four-year captain at Buffalo State and a two-time finalist; and Jeff Wilson, captain at Union.

    The announcement of this year’s recipient will be made on Friday, April 5 in St. Paul, Minn. as part of the festivities surrounding NCAA Division I Frozen Four.

    Daniel Casella, Dartmouth

    A native of Verona, New Jersey, Casella became involved in community service while attending Lawrence Academy. While there, he volunteered at a soup kitchen, a senior citizens home, and shoveled sidewalks in the neighborhood.

    His work in the community continued after he matriculated at Dartmouth. Among his activities, Casella has visited the Hanover, N.H.,-area schools where he taught students about the dangers of drugs. He has also coached local youth hockey programs from mites to peewees and has been a key factor in the Big Green’s Holiday Toy Drive.

    “Despite the huge time and energy commitments that playing hockey at a Division I school like Dartmouth College entails, Dan Casella somehow manages to take a full course load of classes and gives back to the community almost every day,” said Dartmouth coach Bob Gaudet. “I have had the pleasure of working with Casella for four seasons at Dartmouth, and I can honestly say that his love for children is greater than anyone else’s that I have ever seen.”

    Casella plans has enlisted in the Peace Corps, and will be working to rebuild a community in the Caribbean after graduation. He has a 3.03 grade point average as a government major, and has been a solid role player for the Big Green.

    “Dan is regularly the first player on the ice for practice and the last to leave the rink,” said Gaudet. “His combination of work ethic, skill, selflessness, and courage has inspired his teammates and endeared him to our fans.”

    Thomas Conti, Lawrence

    Born in Summit, New Jersey and now a resident of Atlanta, Conti is a two-sport athlete, is in Phi Beta Kappa, has been nominated for a Rhodes Scholarship, and works with the youth in Appleton, Wis.

    One of seven children, Conti began his community involvement in 1996 when he started tutoring Vietnamese children. He continued doing so until 1998. Other activities include helping to construct a Habitat for Humanity home during the spring of 1999, volunteering at the Boys and Girls Club, and participating in the Adopt-A-School tutoring program.

    In soccer, Conti has been a four-year standout and team captain for two seasons. As a sophomore, he was a Second Team All-Midwest Conference selection, while he was a First Team pick his junior and senior seasons.

    On the ice, he has been a four-year regular, as well. His freshman year, he had 10 goals and 19 assists for 29 points in 15 games, and was named Lawrence University’s Freshman Athlete of the Year.

    After his hockey statistics dropped off his sophomore year, he bounced back as a junior with 14 goals and 9 assists for 23 points in 25 games. The team’s MVP last year, he already holds the school records for assists in a season and in a career, goals in a season and in a career and points in a career.

    Academically, he has a 3.857 grade point average while majoring in math and computer science. He has received a number of academic scholarships and is a Lawrence Presidential Scholar. Ranked in the top six percent of his class, he has been nominated for the prestigious Rhodes Scholarship.

    “He will never say ‘No’ to anyone in need of assistance and literally jumps at the opportunity to be of benefit to someone else,” Lawrence coach David Ruhly said. “I feel proud that Tom is a member of my team because he demonstrates that one can be an incredible athletic leader, a formidable academic presence, and one of the strongest and most influential members of the Lawrence University community.”

    Rocky Reeves, Buffalo State

    A native of Anchorage, Alaska, Reeves is currently serving as team captain for an unprecedented fourth year, and was also a finalist last year.

    His involvement in the Buffalo community began because of a broken leg he sustained as a freshman in his first game with the varsity. Rather than leave school and return to his hometown, he chose to stay at Buffalo State. Not only did he earn a 3.41 grade point average that year, but he also quickly got involved with both the campus and the local community.

    The activities have included the Concerned Ecumenical Ministry Soup Kitchen; the National Condom Safe Sex Week promotion; “Take Back the Night,” celebrating the survival of sexual abuse; the Carlysclub Cancer Fundraiser; and the Buffalo State Health Fair. He has also organized and implemented the Holiday Rummage Sale for the Homeless and helped distribute books to the Western New York needy organizations through the Project FLIGHT Book Drive.

    Academically, he has maintained a 3.30 GPA while majoring in health and wellness. He received his Bachelor’s degree this past December and is currently working on his Masters.

    He has been named to the SUNYAC All-Academic Team two years, was on the SUNYAC Commissioner’s List twice, and on the Dean’s List for three years.

    Reeves has also been nominated for four other awards: the Buffalo State President’s Medal, the Chancellor’s Award for Academic Excellence, the Outstanding Senior Award in his major of health and wellness, and the Outstanding Community Service Award also in his major. The announcements of the winners of these awards are still pending.

    “Rocky defines what this award exemplifies both on and off the ice,” said Buffalo State coach Jim Fowler. “Rocky does not do all these great things to receive the recognition, but does so because he knows he is making a difference.”

    Jeff Wilson, Union College

    A native of London, Ontario, Wilson has been one of the offensive standouts for Union the past three years. Among the team’s top three scorers each year, he was his team’s leading scorer last season.

    During his athletic career, he has been named the team’s Rookie of the Year, the team’s Most Improved Player, and its Unsung Hero. Statistically, his best season was a year ago when he had 12 goals and 10 assists for 22 points in 34 games.

    Respected by his teammates, Wilson, who has a 2.8 GPA in English, was the unanimous choice to serve as team captain this year.

    He has also been an integral member of the Schenectady, N.Y. community, having been involved in causes such as the “Dutchmen Skate for Cancer,” with the proceeds going to the American Cancer Society. He’s also been involved in Big Brothers and Big Sisters Night, the Walk for Juvenile Diabetes, and visits to children’s hospitals.

    He also created “A Skating Dutchmen Christmas,” during which the team sponsored a family via social services and purchased gifts for the family. Plus, he established “Pennies for Points,” during which sponsors donated one dollar for every point a Union player earned during a game. The proceeds were then given to underprivileged youth hockey players in Schenectady.

    Finally, in the aftermath of the September 11th terrorist attacks, he created “Dutchmen Skate for 9/11.” The proceeds from that fund-raiser went to the NYPD and NYFD fund, and to two local families that were affected by the attack.

    “Once in awhile, if you are a fortunate coach, you come across certain individuals who personify what college athletics is all about; someone who is more concerned with others than himself,” said Union coach Kevin Sneddon. “I have experienced this in our program for the past couple of years with one individual in particular, Jeff Wilson.

    “Jeff has not only created and designed several projects, he has literally volunteered for all of our community services projects during the last four years. As well, he has encouraged his fellow teammates to become more involved in volunteer work around the Capital District. His actions appear to be quite contagious.

    “Whether he is organizing a team event within the community or merely greeting children after games, he clearly represents our college with class and depicts what college athletics is all about.”

    Hockey’s Coldest Hotbed

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    Things are heating up in Fairbanks — and we’re not just talking about global warming.

    Sure, the average daily temperature in central Alaska this time of year is a brisk 10 below zero, and dawn breaks around 8:30 a.m. But the University of Alaska-Fairbanks Nanooks hockey team is enjoying one of the warmest climates for college hockey, thanks to getting off to a hot start and enjoying their status as a top husky dog in a small sports market.

    Forced to accept mostly second-division status since becoming a full member of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association in 1995-1996, the Nanooks are approaching the last third of their schedule with a national ranking and a good chance of enjoying home ice in the first round of the CCHA playoffs.

    gadowsky

    gadowsky

    After leading the team to just six victories in his first season behind the bench, and nine wins the second time around, third-year coach Guy Gadowsky can relish the fact that the team’s commitment to improve is bearing fruit in the form of a 13-8-1 record as of Jan. 17, one that includes wins against perennial powerhouses Michigan and Michigan State.

    This is pretty heady territory for a team that regularly plays five freshmen and eight sophomores, including the team’s top two scorers — second-year forwards Cam Keith and Ryan Campbell.

    But Gadowsky is the first to emphasize that recruiting has not been the number-one reason for the team’s success.

    “I think it’s a number of things that have made a difference,” Gadowsky says. “One thing that’s really overlooked is when I got here — even though [we had just] the six wins — there were a lot of guys who were seniors then who are very important to what’s happening now.

    “I think the players who aren’t here anymore deserve a lot of credit for what’s going on right now,” Gadowsky says. “The Darren Tiemstras and the Dwayne Zingers and the Ryan Reinhellers and the Chad Hamiltons and the Nathan Rocheleaus.”

    These high-character players were invaluable role models for this year’s seniors. Although their class is a mere triumvirate, Gadowsky won’t let you forget how critical they are to the program’s deceptively sudden success.

    “Now we’ve got seniors like Bobby Andrews, Aaron Grosul, and Daniel Carriere who are excellent hockey players with that work ethic,” Gadowsky says. “There’s a newfound commitment to the program by the players who are here.

    “A lot of that has to do with the coaching staff, but more importantly I think it’s what the players themselves in the dressing room are going to accept,” Gadowsky notes. “And that started two years ago — that takes a little bit to change.”

    But when the seniors themselves are asked about the team’s reversal of fortune, they are quick to point to the man behind the bench.

    “Before Coach was here, it was a good program that gave guys an opportunity to play in a great league,” Nanook captain Andrews says. “When Coach Gadowsky came, he brought along standards and goals that he wanted to reach.

    "When Coach Gadowsky came, he brought along standards and goals that he wanted to reach. … We’re starting to see the results that he wanted when he first came."

    — Nanook captain Bobby Andrews

    “Now after two years of a lot of work and bringing in players that he wants and the continued work ethic, we’re starting to see the results that he wanted when he first came.”

    According to defenseman Grosul, Gadowsky and his staff also have used recruiting as a tool to implement change.

    “I noticed that they’re bringing in a lot of quick, skilled forwards — not so much the big guys,” Grosul says. “When I came in as a freshman, I was one of the smaller guys at 180 pounds, six-foot. This last class came in was all small, skilled players.”

    The program has been able to attract a healthy mix of speed, smarts, and grit to go along with some of the big players they’ve traditionally brought in. Next year’s recruits already feature Doug Auchenberg, a 5-8, 190-pound forward known for both a scoring touch and for a harder-hitting style than his size might indicate.

    Without question, one of the biggest attractions for recruits has to be the celebrity status that the players enjoy in the small sports market of Fairbanks.

    “They’re front-page news,” Gadowsky says. “They’re the number-one story in sports and on TV. Anywhere they go, people know who they are. It’s really nice now that we’re getting wins; the community is even more excited.”

    “It’s great; the community here is awesome,” Andrews says. “They really cherish the team — it’s amazing getting to know all the people. Everyone wants to be a part of the Nanooks.”

    “Last weekend we had 20 people, boosters, come down to Michigan,” Andrews adds. “It’s just nice to see them on the road. They really do care about how we’re doing and as people too.”

    “I know whenever we come home from a road trip, there’ll be a large group of people waiting for us as soon as we get off the plane,” says Grosul, who said that about 20 or 30 regularly come out to greet the team at the airport.

    Speaking of which, this team easily logs the most miles in college hockey. Playing in a conference dominated by teams from Michigan and Ohio, their closest conference foe is in Omaha, Nebraska. The distance between Fairbanks and Omaha is far greater than that between any two teams in Hockey East or the ECAC.

    Yet travel is perceived as a benefit of Nanook life — especially given their high visibility as local heroes.

    “With the travel, we’ve actually turned it into a positive,” Gadowsky asserts. “These guys can’t really go into dinner or a movie without people knowing who they are, and there are a lot of demands on their time.

    “A lot of people want them to come to their son’s hockey practices and a lot of things like that,” Gadowsky says. “On the road, there are no distractions — There’s no hockey rinks or gyms, so they have a lot of time to catch up on sleep and studies.”

    “I actually enjoy it,” Grosul says, noting that the team flies to all of its games. “It makes you feel real high class, real professional.”

    Bobby Andrews proves to be the master of understatement on the subject.

    “We do travel a little bit, but it doesn’t bother me at all,” Andrews says. “It didn’t bother me when I was choosing to come here. I thought it was kind of cool — you get to fly everywhere. It was kind of first class as far as I was concerned.”

    There have been no signs of jet lag this season. Statistically, the team’s success is intriguing — the Nanooks are the epitome of a balanced team on the scoresheet. Going into their series with Western Michigan, no Nanook had more than eight goals, but 10 players had scored at least five times.

    In fact, no individual player ranks in the top 15 in any significant offensive category. Even in terms of team stats, the Nanooks are conspicuously absent on all but one category — tied for 15th in shorthanded goals.

    Yet these odd phenomena also point to a reason for their success — what or who do you key on when playing a team like this?

    Netminder Lance Mayes makes a stop against FSU (photo: Christopher Brian Dudek)

    Netminder Lance Mayes makes a stop against FSU (photo: Christopher Brian Dudek)

    “All four lines are scoring,” Gadowsky says. “We don’t have one or two guys who are way out front of everybody else. We have a pretty balanced team, so if you ask how opponents go after us, I think it would be difficult to say, ‘We have to shut down this guy or this line.'”

    “Compared to the last three years I’ve played here, we’ve never had four solid lines,” Grosul says. “This year we don’t really lose much from line to line.”

    Perhaps the most encouraging aspect of the team’s success is the offensive firepower of the younger players, though Gadowsky shrugs it off as inevitable given the abundance of underclassmen.

    “If we’re going to be successful, we have to get that production out of the younger players and so far it’s been excellent,” says Gadowsky, a former player at Colorado College. “It is exciting for the future, but I can’t stress enough our seniors and the attitude they bring — that’s extremely important.”

    Freshman Aaron Voros has been an excellent new ingredient to this year’s mix. In addition to leading the team with eight goals, he is second only to Grosul — a defensive defenseman who concedes that he’s “no offensive threat” — with a plus-minus rating of +12.

    “He’s a gritty forward,” Grosul says of Voros, a 6-4 forward who packs just 190 pounds. “He likes messing things up in the corners and crashing the net like no one I’ve ever played with. When he gets the puck around the net, he usually can bury it pretty easily.

    “He’s a big guy, and he’s young still — he has a great future in front of him.”

    The program is also thankful for both the present play and future worth of their two goaltenders — two contrasting personalities who share one similarity: excellent save percentages. Sophomore Preston McKay has enjoyed the lion’s share of the play while reeling off a .910 percentage, but junior Lance Mayes picked up a huge win at Michigan last Saturday and now is creeping up on his teammate with a .904 mark.

    “Preston McKay — he’s a calm and relaxed goalie,” Grosul says. “He’s very calm. When he’s in net, he knows he’s in position and he’s relaxed. He’s not trying to make any extra movements.

    “Mayes is real intense and real focused. Before a game with Lance, you know to kind of leave him alone — he likes to get ready and needs to zero in.”

    “It’s awesome having two goaltenders challenging each other for the starting position,” Andrews says.

    In just another chapter to this storybook season in Fairbanks, Gadowsky actually missed the team’s games at Michigan to be present for the birth of his first son.

    MacDonald Orson Gadowsky joined the hockey community on Thursday, January 10, while the team prepped for its two-game series in Ann Arbor, Mich. So dad and coach had to tune in to KSUA 91.5 FM in Fairbanks, like many other Nanook fans in the Great White North.

    “We’ve got a radio guy: Bruce Cech is unbelievable,” Gadowsky says. “I tell you what: I couldn’t hold the baby while listening to him. I tell you, I’m more stressed listening to him than I am on the bench, so I’m looking forward to getting back on the bench.”

    Gadowsky will have ample opportunity to do so while making the adjustment to parenthood: the Nanooks will play eight of their last ten games at home, giving them an excellent shot at their first-ever home ice for a CCHA playoff game.

    The conference is tight this year, and Alaska-Fairbanks could conceivably finish as high as third or as low as 10th. However, they already have finished their games against the two top teams in the conference, the Wolverines and the Spartans.

    They were ninth in the standings their first year as a full member, then went on to finish eighth, tenth, 11th, 12th, and tenth over the next five seasons. Success has been a long time coming for the Nanooks and their fans, so it’s a plus for college hockey to see this program finally start to enjoy its day in the sun.

    In Fairbanks, Alaska, there are many short days of sun. But if you hang in there through the dark times, you’re sure to savor long periods of bright light, perhaps before you know it.

    Just ask the Nanooks and their hardcore fans.

    This Week in Division III: Jan. 17, 2002

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    Status Quo?

    There’s a good chance that next week’s USCHO.com Division III Men’s Poll will look a lot like this week’s poll. For the first time that I can remember, no ranked teams play each other this week. That means if there are no upsets, the Top 10 shouldn’t change.

    Who has a chance to stumble? Second-ranked RIT probably has the toughest matchup — a pair of games against Oswego, which got a single tenth-place vote in this week’s poll balloting. Since the teams began playing this weekend home-and-home series five years ago, no team has come away with more than three points.

    Don’t count out the underdogs in the other games either. In Division I last week, 14 the 15 teams in the poll had some kind of blemish, either a loss or a tie.

    And in Division III, the first and second ranked teams, Norwich and RIT, a combined 29-1 so far, were taken into overtime by UMass-Boston and Fredonia, respectively, a combined 7-20-2.

    When Do They Stop Being Upsets?

    Speaking of “upsets,” the ECAC Northeast continues to pull them off. So far this season, Wentworth has beaten RIT, Lebanon Valley defeated Elmira, and Johnson & Wales topped Oswego.

    Wentworth has cracked the Top 10 this season, and J&W and Lebanon Valley have gotten a few votes, but not enough to put or keep them among the elite.

    What will it take to be taken seriously? Probably an NCAA tournament win for the ECAC Northeast champion. With the wins already racked up, that doesn’t seem farfetched.

    At the Turn

    Most leagues get back into conference play this week, and while there aren’t any games among ranked teams, there are some that will have a significant effect on the standings. Let’s take a quick pass around the leagues:

    In the MIAC, the first- and second-place teams will battle this weekend when St. Thomas and St. Mary’s square off for a pair of conference games. The Cardinals, dormant the past few seasons, are making a run at the MIAC title, 5-0-1 so far. They trail the Tommies by three points with two games in hand.

    Top-ranked Norwich is well out in front in the ECAC East, leading Salem State by four points with nine games left to play. The Cadets still face some challenges ahead, including Bowdoin, Colby, Middlebury and Williams. All are in the NESCAC, but the results count in the ECAC East standings. Still, even if Norwich loses all four of those games and Salem State wins out, the Cadets would still win the regular-season title, since they hold the tiebreaker against the Vikings, a 4-0 win two weeks ago.

    In the SUNYAC, Plattsburgh is a perfect 7-0 in league play, leading Oswego by two points with another seven games to play. Since the Cardinals are 0-5 against ranked teams so far, it looks like they’ll need to win the SUNYAC title to get a chance to defend their national championship.

    St. Norbert has opened a four-point lead in the NCHA, huge by the standards of what is usually one of the most closely contested conferences. Still, each team has played just six of 14 conference games so far.

    The ECAC Northeast is a four-horse race at this point, with Johnson & Wales, Wentworth, Lebanon Valley and UMass-Dartmouth beginning to pull away. J&W carries the most momentum at this point, having won 11 games in a row. Still, the Flying Dutchmen trail J&W by two points. The Wildcats are just 8-9 overall, but are a perfect 7-0 in league play.

    Speaking of perfect league records, Marian is 6-0 in the MCHA, leading upstart MSOE by two points as well as having a pair of games in hand. Defending regular-season champion Minnesota-Crookston is fighting to make the playoffs this season. The Eagles lead Northland by two points for the final postseason spot, but the Lumberjacks have four games in hand.

    More undefeated league records can be found in the ECAC West and NESCAC. In the ECAC West, RIT (4-0 in conference) and Elmira (3-0) are expected to battle down to the wire, while in the NESCAC, Middlebury (7-0-1) and Bowdoin (6-0-3) settled nothing with a 1-1 tie last Saturday.

    There’s still a lot of hockey to play, but in two weeks or so, the “P” word will be on everyone’s mind as teams jockey for playoff position.

    I Was Wrong

    I blew the call in my column last week when I said that the officiating miscues that I witnessed in the RIT-Cortland game should have resulted in automatic goals.

    With the Cortland net empty, a Red Dragon player threw his stick at the puck while play continued, and a few seconds later another Cortland player dislodged the net before the puck could cross the goal line.

    USA Hockey rules 609-c and 636-a award a goal in those instances. I assumed that applied to all levels of hockey in the U.S.

    However, NCAA rules are different. In each case, a penalty shot should have been awarded, not a goal, according to rules 50-a and 9-d.

    To quote the official who pointed this out to me, “In NCAA hockey, no goals are ever awarded.”

    I stand corrected. Or should I be sitting in the box?

    This Week in the MAAC: Jan. 17, 2002

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    Holy Cross Will Crusade To Finish

    Exactly one year ago, the Holy Cross Crusaders were in a battle. Two years removed from winning the inaugural MAAC championship, the Crusaders had an overall record of 5-13-1 and had piled up only 11 points in league play — but were still in the playoff race.

    Their destiny rested in their own hands. Two games against Fairfield, one versus AIC and one with Bentley: win these games and pick up a couple more along the way, and Holy Cross would make the playoffs.

    Simple formula, poor execution. Holy Cross went 3-8-1 in its final 12 league games and finished four points behind Fairfield and Army for the final playoff spots.

    A year later, though, life in Worcester, Mass., is different. This year, Holy Cross isn’t fighting for the final playoff spot, but for a league title. With 12 games left on their slate, the Crusaders stand alone in second place, three points behind Mercyhurst and three points ahead of Canisius. They’ve lost just three league games — to Iona, AIC and Fairfield, the latter two by one goal each.

    As they enter this weekend’s series with Canisius, the focus in the Crusader locker room is different. Championships can once again be thought of, instead of simply making the playoffs. Home ice is now a more than legitimate goal.

    Not too far ahead, though, lies the chance for more than the Pot o’Gold at the end of the Holy Cross rainbow. Holy Cross’ hometown will play the role of ambassador to college hockey for the month of March.

    Begin with the MAAC playoffs. Should the Crusaders gain home ice, which seems likely, they would host a first-round game in the MAAC playoffs. Success in that venue would result in Holy Cross as not only host, but participant, in the MAAC Final Four. Remembering back three years, the only title that Holy Cross won came as host. That year, Holy Cross defeated Connecticut in overtime and won a battle with Canisius to capture the title. Holy Cross began that tournament as the number-two seed.

    A victory at the MAAC championships carries a little more weight now than in 1999. At stake, of course, is an automatic qualifier to the NCAA Tournament.

    And coincidentally, Worcester happens to be a host in the first round of this year’s NCAA Tournament — specifically the East Regional. Though generally the MAAC qualifier would be sent to the West Region, Holy Cross’ proximity to Worcester, along with the NCAA’s desire to cut down on travel in this year’s tournament, might result in Holy Cross playing in front of a home crowd.

    But without a doubt, that’s getting ahead of ourselves. Staring Holy Cross in the face is the statistically toughest remaining schedule in the league. Crusader opponents possess a .600 winning percentage, which, benchmarked against the rest of the league, is certainly a competitive schedule. Six other schools have schedules with better-than-.500 winning percentages renaining. Bentley is earmarked with the statistically easiest remaining schedule at .469.

    Regardless, right now the Crusaders can focus their attention toward Canisius. Since beating the Griffs in the 1999 MAAC championship, Holy Cross is 1-4-1 against Canisius, including five straight without a victory. Their only meeting this year was a 3-3 tie in Buffalo.

    The ability to solve the Griffs would give Holy Cross the leverage to think about much bigger and much better things.

    Weekly Awards

    ITECH MAAC Hockey League Player of the Week: Ryan Carter, Iona Sr., Forward, Ft. Nelson, B.C.

    The MAAC Hockey League’s all-time leading scorer, Carter tied his most prolific two-game point-scoring effort of his career by tallying eight points on nine Gael goals this weekend in the two-game series with Bentley. Carter notched three goals and five assists on the weekend, earning the Gaels a win and a tie versus the Falcons.

    ITECH MAAC Hockey League Goalie of the Week: Jamie Holden, Quinnipiac Fr., Goalie, Telkwa, B.C.

    Holden stopped 67 of 69 shots over the weekend, including a 42-save effort in the shutout of AIC on Friday. It was the second time this year that he stopped 40 or more shots in a game, the other coming in a loss at Providence. The 42 saves tied a career high.

    ITECH MAAC Hockey League Rookie of the Week: David Wrigley, Mercyhurst Fr., Forward, Orillia, ONT

    Wrigley ended a scoreless game with his fifth goal of the season, and first career game-winner, at 3:14 of OT to beat Canisius Saturday night.

    Can The Falcons Be The Spoilers?

    Last Friday night opened the eyes of many around the league when Bentley rallied from two-goals down on the road to tie Iona. Goaltender Kevin Williams posted 45 saves, recording his first non-loss in three decisions this season. The win moved the Falcons out of the lone room of the MAAC cellar and into a tie with Fairfield for the bottom spot.

    Obviously, the tie sent a bit of a rumble through the league as Bentley, a team that has been the league doormat for two years now, showed signs of promise — particularly between the pipes.

    “The biggest difference is [Bentley] now has goaltending,” said Quinnipiac head coach Rand Pecknold recently. The win-loss results, for the most part, haven’t changed a lot for Bentley, but the struggling situation for the club’s duffel bags certainly has.

    Rookie Simon St. Pierre has shown his quality and impressed the coaches of the MAAC. And now as Williams steps up with a big performance, one has to ask — can Bentley be a spoiler? Certainly, it will have its chance.

    The Falcons only have five opponents left of their schedule, accounting for their final 12 games. Quinnipiac and Connecticut still face Bentley three times, while the Falcons have two apiece with Sacred Heart, Fairfield and AIC. Quinnipiac and Sacred Heart are fighting for home ice as the season winds down.

    A couple of wins here and there, and either of those teams could actually be challenging Mercyhurst and Holy Cross for the top spot in the tournament.

    AIC, Connecticut and Fairfield, on the other hand, will join Bentley in a fight for playoff life. Current standings show Bentley tied with the Stags, though Fairfield holds two games in hand. AIC is only four points ahead of the two clubs, and UConn six points from the cellar. A win here and a tie there for the Falcons might even relegate the term “spoiler” to the obsolete.

    I’ll admit, it’s hard to believe that a team with a 2-16-2 record should be mentioned in the same breath as the word “playoffs.” But the key that good goaltending can add to a lineup is indescribable.

    Lakers Move Closer To Repeat

    Two classic games last week brought the Mercyhurst Lakers a step closer to back-to-back MAAC championships. A 1-0 overtime victory over Canisius on Saturday night combined with a 3-1 road win in Tuesday night’s rematch pull the Lakers three full games ahead of Canisius while holding two games-in-hand.

    The Lakers, who have not lost a league game, sit three points ahead of Holy Cross, which leapfrogged over Canisius with a win and tie against Army. Head coach Rick Gotkin acknowledged that a league title is once again within reach, but that the road won’t be easy.

    “It’s been a real good start for us,” said Gotkin. “If we’re not successful this weekend [hosting Fairfield for two games], it takes away everything we did against Canisius. Fairfield, to us now, is the biggest series of the year.”

    Gotkin believes that the Lakers’ remaining schedule is difficult. The Lakers haven’t faced preseason favorite Iona, a team that has struggled to this point in the season. A road series at Holy Cross and two games against Sacred Heart also don’t promise much in terms of victories.

    But actually looking at the math (which, I realize, doesn’t mean all that much in college hockey), Mercyhurst isn’t bad off. Based on current winning percentages, Mercyhurst has the eighth most-difficult league schedule remaining. The average winning percentage of its remaining opponents is .496, considerably behind Holy Cross, who boasts the toughest remaining schedule at .600. Quinnipiac has the easiest remaining schedule at .450, and that includes one game against Mercyhurst, whose .916 winning percentage tends to tip the scales a bit in this comparison.

    MAAC’s Tourney Hopes Not So (At-)Large

    For the last three seasons, come February, there’s been plenty of talk about the controversy surrounding MAAC teams in the NCAA tournament. Four years ago, as Quinnipiac sat in the top ten of the PairWise Rankings, trouble brewed with the thought that, based on the NCAA criteria at the time, Quinnipiac might qualify for the NCAA tournament. The issue became a moot point when Quinnipiac bowed out of the MAAC tournament in the semifinals that year and fell out of the top 12.

    Even last year, when the MAAC had a guaranteed bid to the dance, the pot stirred as Mercyhurst remained high in the PWR, meaning its loss in the conference tournament would give the selection committee something to think about — the Lakers could have qualified for an at-large bid.

    This season, though, that controversy has quieted. A look at the current PWR sees only two MAAC teams even in consideration — Mercyhurst and Holy Cross. The Lakers sit 22 out of 27; Holy Cross is ranked last among 27 teams under consideration. So college hockey purists can quiet their collective roar — the MAAC will not be considered for an at-large bid.

    The reason for this drastic change has been an increase in nonleague play for the MAAC, combined with little success in those games. The MAAC is 7-46-2 outside the league with only a spattering of nonleague games remaining. The record against the “Big Four” conferences is 1-23-2.

    Ironically, though, even the CHA, a league that placed member Niagara into the NCAA Tournament two years ago, is unable to stir the tournament waters. One better than the MAAC, three members qualify to be ranked — Niagara (21st), Wayne State (23rd), and Air Force (26th).

    The CHA’s nonleague record, though, is 35-35-2. The problem? Most of its nonleague wins have come against MAAC schools. The CHA is a mere 12-29-2 against Big Four foes.

    This Week in the ECAC Northeast: Jan. 17, 2002

    By Ed Seero
    -

    Chieftains Have Fun In the Sun

    Stonehill won its second tournament title of the season by capturing the California AHA Tournament held in Lakewood. They defeated Salve Regina on Friday 5-3 and edged the Chicago-area entry in the tournament, Lake Forest, to the tune of 3-1 on Sunday.

    Congrats to the Chieftains and goaltender Billy Whitfield, who earned ECAC Honor Roll honors for the week for his championship game performance in which he made 39 saves. Rob Pascale was 1-4–5 on the weekend and figured in four of the five Stonehill goals against Salve. Kudos to him as well. Speaking of Salve, that was another of the three ECAC Northeast teams which accepted the invitation to play in the tournament, becoming Stonehill’s first victim of the weekend but following that up with a statement-making 6-2 win over Curry.

    Leading Seahawk scorers Matt Hillberg (6-11–17) and Adam Asselin (6-9–15) did their part. Hillberg, in particular, exploded with a 1-2–3 line against Curry. Asselin, a freshman, had a goal and an assist against Curry, as did junior Eddie Maurer.

    Is this a sign of things to come? Anyone who remembers last year’s run and considers the fact that the Seahawk roster is dotted with underclassmen has to be encouraged. Couple the continued seasoning youth with the strong leadership provided by the experienced juniors and solid d-man Jack Wallace, the team’s lone senior, and you have to think of the Seahawks as potential competitors come playoff time.

    Curry was the third Northeast entry in the “California Gold Rush,” but didn’t live up to last week’s ‘A’ grade over the weekend. Curry took its lumps, losing a close one against Lake Forest 6-5 and, as mentioned, got beat pretty good by Salve. Any lingering questions about Curry’s validity as a contender will most likely be answered by Saturday’s must-see matchup with Wentworth.

    Woe is Wentworth

    Just kidding. Who could be dissatisfied with the best start in school history, a 12-2 record? Wentworth did suffer only its second blemish of the season on Sunday against a tough Oswego squad, but there is no shame in that, especially when you consider it came the day after Saturday night’s rousing 6-5 victory over a visiting SUNY Cortland team that is anything but a slouch.

    It is worth mentioning that Tim Yakimowsky recorded his second hat trick of the season against Cortland on Saturday. He also scored the Leopards’ lone goal against Oswego.

    Again, get to Saturday’s 4 p.m. matchup at Curry if you can. It should be a game worth taking in.

    UMass-Dartmouth

    Is there any doubt in anyone’s mind about UMass-Dartmouth these days? There shouldn’t be. The Corsairs are winners of their last six and they are only getting better.

    Eric Frank, in his first two games of the season is already 1-3–4. Improved health and added depth along with the very solid goaltending of Kevin McGowan (11-1-0, 2.19 GAA, .912) are elevating the Corsairs amongst the cream of the crop.

    How ‘Bout Them Lancers?

    Worcester State had won three in a row heading into Thursday night’s matchup with Framingham by a combined score of 19-2. Wow. Another team rounding into shape? Possibly.

    Justin Vallas, last year’s ECAC Northeast Co-Rookie of the Year, has 10 points in the last three contests heading into Thursday night. He is heating up and Guiney has to be salivating at that thought.

    An Exciting Weekend

    This weekend will see a lot of teams beginning their second half. In addition, the schedule is heating up big time.

    Let’s see: there are Saturday’s matchups between Curry and Wentworth, Lebanon Valley at Salve Regina and Worcester State at Stonehill.

    Sunday will see number one, Johnson & Wales, face off against number two, Lebanon Valley, in Providence. This game could be a preview of the league championship. Again, get there if you can. A Saturday trip to Milton, Mass., followed by a Sunday drive to Providence wouldn’t be a bad idea for those eager to take in some playoff-caliber games.

    More Grades

    Before beginning, let me reiterate what was written last week: don’t take these grades too seriously. Given that they are the bottom teams in the league, they are not going to be glowing.

    That said, like I wrote last week, I’m an easy grader. I’ll try to look at the positives and not dwell on the negatives. You want venom? You’re in the wrong place — check out the Boston newspapers.

    Worcester State

    Even though WSU has won four games this season, its record is officially 3-8-3 because one of those victories came in an exhibition against Westfield State.

    The Lancer bright spots are mostly young guys. Justin Vallas, see above, comes to mind. Another guy having a good season is freshman John Coderre. He’s played in 13 games officially and has some good numbers, including a stingy .902 save percentage. No doubt he will solidify Worcester between the pipes in the next coming years as he will only get better.

    One older guy contributing a lot to the team is senior Rick Casavant. The defenseman out of Halifax, Mass. is contributing offensively as well as providing some steady play at the point. He is 2-8–10 on the season. Not to be overlooked are 6-4, 230 lb. senior Chris Susi (5-3–8) and junior transfer (UMass-Dartmouth) Matt Cruickshank, who has added a scoring punch to his repertoire. Cruickshank has already surpassed his season total of a year ago with a 3-6–9 line.

    The Lancers will host Curry on Saturday night for what should be an intriguing matchup.

    Overall, the Lancers get a C but look to be building some momentum.

    Nichols College

    The Bison are 3-9-0 on the season but have been struggling as of late, dropping a tough one to WSC in their last game heading into Thursday night.

    Take a look at the Nichols roster and statistics though and the future appears bright. Every player except for one who has recorded a point this year is either a freshman or a sophomore, an astonishing fact.

    Mike Loftus (5-7–12), Dan Torti (6-2–8) and Kris Ahern (5-2–7) are leading the way offensively. Defenseman Dave Abramo leads the blueliners with a 0-7–7 line.

    Nichols has a tough go the rest of the way as they will have played JWU Thursday night followed by upcoming matchups with the likes of Wentworth, Fitchburg and UMass-Dartmouth. Should they steal at least one of those games and win the games they should win against some of the bottom rung teams left on the schedule, they will be in decent shape for a playoff berth. It is mathematically possible anyway.

    Overall grade for the Bison? C+/B-. Don’t overlook the youth factor. Don’t discount their potential either.

    Suffolk University

    Suffolk is another young team taking its lumps. The Rams are 1-6-2 overall heading into Thursday night. On the bright side, they will have an opportunity to turn things around with 13 games left on their schedule.

    Like Nichols, if they can win a few they aren’t supposed to win and beat the teams that they are capable of beating, they can possibly put something together in the way of a playoff bid. Time will tell.

    Freshman Ricky Gigante is a legitimate weapon on the blue line for the Rams. He is tied for third on the team in scoring with three goals and five assists on the season including two power-play goals. Also contributing offensively are Scott Goodman (3-8–11), leading goal scorer Ryan Cikacs (6-3–9) and Ricky Morrell (5-3–8).

    All things considered, Suffolk gets a C/C-. Some more wins could improve that grade come the end of the season.

    Western New England College

    A commonality amongst the teams towards the bottom of the standings is youth. WNEC is another young team. Add to that the fact that Karl Enroth is in his first year as head coach and didn’t have the benefit of bringing in a recruiting class to call his own, and it can be surmised that it would be tough for the Golden Bears to do better than they have.

    That said, WNEC has got to find some offense. No player on the team has double figures in points and the power play is functioning at an abysmal 8.6%. No matter how strong your defense and goaltending, you cannot win hockey games without an offense.

    Encouraging signs for the Bears are very close losses against two of the best teams in the league, a 3-1 loss to Wentworth and a heartbreaking 5-4 loss to UMD that saw the Bears battle in the last few minutes to try and scratch out the win. Oh well. So goes the season of a youthful team. Again, if the Bears can pull something out of their hats against some of the better teams on the upcoming schedule, WNEC has some hope.

    WNEC gets a C.

    Framingham State

    In the season preview I wrote, “Hockey-wise, Framingham was hurt by graduation, losing a total of eight players. The graduating seniors contributed 85 of the total 197 points of offense, their top goaltender, and a couple of key defensemen. The Rams went 6-18-0 with these players and will try to improve on that record this year. It may be a tall order, though.”

    That is an apt summary of the predicament the Rams have found themselves in this season. It has been a tall order for Framingham.

    Like Enroth at WNEC, new coach Bob Lavin (formerly of Salve Regina) took the Framingham job during the summer and missed any opportunity to recruit his own class this year. Framingham has shown the effects of this as they have gone 1-10-1 on the season thus far. Ouch.

    One of the positives about this team has been the offensive production of guys like junior Billy Burke (11-4–15), junior Matt Anderson (9-5–14) and sophomore Roger Leblanc, whose 2-11–13 line is Adam Oates-like.

    What has killed the Rams this year is defense. Their goals per game situation is in the negative to the tune of 6.73 to 2.47 for a 4.27 differential. They are almost the antithesis of WNEC; you cannot win hockey games giving up almost seven goals a game. It just isn’t possible, no matter how strong your offense is.

    Like every team in this league, the Rams are not out of it and that has to be their way of thinking the rest of the way. If, as Coach Lavin said in the preseason, this year is one to build on, they will need to start playing a better all around game. Framingham gets a C on the year so far.

    Assumption

    Assumption has been led by Bob Reddish (6-9–15) and Josh Tierney (7-5–12) offensively. Tierney has been on fire as of late, with back-to-back hat tricks in the two games before the break. Impressive stuff from the talented sophomore.

    The Hounds have suffered from a lackluster power play. Assumption has only three (!) power-play goals on the season, and that is not a misprint. Obviously, the Greyhounds will have to rectify that situation should they hope to contend.

    The Hounds have some big ‘W’s under their belt: UMass-Dartmouth, Wesleyan and Salve come to mind. Their biggest upcoming games are against their D-II opponents SNHU and Stonehill. They need to beat up on those guys to mount some momentum for the D-II playoffs.

    Things aren’t all sunny in Worcester, though. Academic problems have hurt the Hounds. Assumption will go into the second half minus one of their top two goalies and their third-leading scorer. Gotta go to class and do your work, boys. Remember that, all you youngsters out there.

    For the season thus far, the 6-4-1 Hounds get a B-. If they can get some more big wins they could potentially inch their way towards the A category.

    Southern New Hampshire

    New school name, new uniforms and a new team. That is the theme for Southern New Hampshire this year. The Penmen had to replace no less than 70% of their offensive production lost through graduation this past year. Taking that into consideration, the Penmen have done pretty well.

    Their defense was supposed to be their strength, and it has been. Steve Acropolis, Dan Brown and Bryan Favreau are the main statistical contributors on the backline.

    On the forward corps, the Penmen have been remarkably strong. Senior Nick Nugent (5-10–15) and freshman Chris Russo (3-10–13) have done their part scoring-wise.

    A real key for SNHU has been the power play, which is averaging 25% on the year.

    The Penmen get a B on the year. Some might argue that the grade is a bit high for a team that is only .500 at 6-6, but the amount of departed talent SNHU has had to replace cannot be overstated.

    Stonehill

    The Chieftains have been an offensive juggernaut this year, except for that Norwich game which everyone should just file away into their selective memory section of their brain when judging this team.

    Eight players have double figures in points for Stonehill. Rob Pascale (8-16–24) and Brendan Flemming (11-10–21) have been fantastic this year. Flemming has six power-play goals, a stat that doubles some teams’ entire output on the man advantage. Pretty good.

    The Chieftain power play is functioning at an eye-popping 27.1%, something which Harlow places a great emphasis on, for obvious reasons. That has helped Stonehill immensely this year.

    Something else that has helped Stonehill is the emergence of their goaltenders. Junior Phil Graves (5-2, 4.64, .838), freshman Billy Whitfield (2-3, 4.15, .872) and Jared Waimon (1-1, 1.52, .938) have been strong between the pipes.

    On the backline, Derek McTomney has been providing steady defensive play. The senior has a mere four penalties on the season, a statistic that is unusual among defenseman who play regularly. That is refreshing to see.

    Overall, Stonehill earns a B. They have had their struggles but, for the most part, they are a very difficult team to beat — and if you don’t show up defensively, they will make you pay.

    This Week In The WCHA: Jan. 17, 2001

    By
    -

    Together Again

    How many times do you hear about a coach who’s about to host a weekend series inviting the opposing team’s coaching staff over to his house for dinner on Thursday?

    That’s John Hill’s relationship with Minnesota coach Don Lucia — personal before professional.

    That’s not to say that it won’t be all business for the first-year Alaska-Anchorage coach once the puck drops Friday and Saturday night for games against the Gophers at Sullivan Arena.

    It just may not be business as usual.

    “Don means an awful lot to me as a friend and as a former boss,” said Hill, who spent six years with Lucia — four at Colorado College and two at Minnesota.

    “I just have the utmost respect for Don as a person and as a coach. He was very instrumental in my growth as a hockey coach. Don has many qualities that one would do well to emulate.”

    But Hill also said he might have something to prove to Lucia in a larger sense than just this weekend’s series.

    “I hope down the road one day that Don is proud of me for the job I’m doing as a head coach,” he said.

    Said Lucia, “I think he’s already doing it.”

    Hill has his team on a roll as it enters the weekend. The Seawolves are 5-1-2 in their last eight games after taking three points from a weekend at North Dakota.

    They’re tied for fifth place going into the weekend, just three points behind third-place Minnesota, though UAA has played two more games. The coaches, in their historically moderate wisdom, picked Anchorage to finish 10th in the league this year.

    The better-than-anticipated season made the old boss take notice.

    “I think he’s gone in there and done what I would have done. He’s let the kids play,” Lucia said. “They’re smiling, they’re enjoying themselves, they’re enjoying the game.”

    Maybe that’s an extension of the coach.

    Tickets Out Of Town

    WCHA members voted last weekend to alter the agreement under which Alaska-Anchorage pays for airline tickets for conference opponents to get to Anchorage.

    It’s a move that will save the UAA athletics department $20,000 and up each year, but it is forcing the smaller league schools to take a look at their finances.

    Under the 1992 agreement by which Alaska-Anchorage was admitted to the league, the school would pay for 25 airplane tickets for WCHA opponents to fly to Alaska. Minnesota State-Mankato, which joined the league in 1999, is exempt.

    The 8-2 vote last weekend allows for a gradual scaling back of that system, so that by the 2005-06 season, UAA will foot the bill for only 12 tickets.

    “It’s something we’ve worked awfully hard on,” Anchorage athletics director Steve Cobb told the Anchorage Daily News. “It’s a good win.”

    Schools with limited budgets, however, will feel the pinch in the pocketbooks.

    “I had to cut $180,000 from my athletic budget this year. The timing is terrible, let’s put it that way,” Michigan Tech athletics director Rick Yeo said. “But we’ll work through it. It’s something we accept and we’ll move on. We’re glad to see that they [UAA] are doing that well, we just wish we were doing as well as they are.”

    The plan will cut the ticket allotment to 19 next season; to 16 in the 2003-04 season; and to 13 in the 2004-05 season before the final cut to 12.

    When UAA was accepted into the WCHA, then-Anchorage athletics director Ron Petro assured the league it wouldn’t sway from the 25-ticket deal.

    “It was made very clear at that time by their athletic director that, under no circumstances would they ever change their opinion as far as offering 25 tickets,” Yeo said. “So, no, we are not happy with that decision, but a lot of the schools want to help Alaska — they’re struggling themselves, so it’s a matter of trying to help them out.”

    The 25-ticket arrangement was orchestrated as a concession to get into the league in 1992, UAA associate athletics director Tim McDiffett told the Daily News.

    “We felt like it was worth it to get into the league.”

    Times change, though, and so did the financial workings of the WCHA. The league has prospered, but Anchorage has experienced cutbacks.

    “We’re very competive people, but at the same time have a sense of, we’re all in this thing together,” WCHA commissioner Bruce McLeod said. “It’s no good if we start to develop the haves and the have-nots. To a degree, we have to be concerned about one another, and I think that’s what came out in this thing.”

    The Barn Turns 30

    Ask Lucia about the MacInnes Student Ice Arena and he’ll give you the thought that keeps running through his mind about the venerable rink.

    Or should that be the thought about the part of the rink that almost went through his mind?

    Michigan Tech is celebrating MacInnes Arena’s 30th birthday this weekend. By a fate of scheduling, the Huskies host Minnesota-Duluth, the team they hosted in the building’s opening weekend, Jan. 14-15, 1972.

    A mere mention of the MacInnes Arena or Houghton, Mich., puts Lucia on a trip down memory lane. He recalls staying at the old Douglas House, where the floors always creaked, on trips to Houghton as a player with Notre Dame in the 1970s.

    He remembers the various connections on puddle jumpers the team had to make just to get to Houghton, and the time spent loading the gear into the bottom of the plane out on a dark, windy tarmac.

    But Lucia’s most vivid memory is shattering.

    “I can remember getting run through the Plexiglas up there as a player, the one year they had touch icing,” he said.

    That’ll leave an impression.

    “The guy was a stride behind me the whole way, and I was so slow I don’t know why the guy couldn’t catch me,” Lucia said. “He ended up hitting me and the glass shattered. I remember [Notre Dame coach] Lefty [Smith] was so mad he was ready to pull the team off the ice and not go back out because no penalty was called.”

    It’s just one of a countless number of memorable events in the building, which underwent a $2 million facelift two years ago. That renovation included a new locker room facility for the Huskies.

    For a 30-year-old building — “It doesn’t seem that long ago that we moved in there,” Yeo said — it still gets its fair share of compliments.

    “We have done some new things to it, but it’s really in good shape for 30 years,” Yeo said. “I’m very impressed with the custodial staff here. They’ve really kept it up well.

    “It’s still a really nice rink to watch hockey from.”

    Hill hasn’t spent a whole lot of time in Houghton, but when he does, he takes in the arena’s history.

    “I never met [legendary Tech coach] John MacInnes, but every time we go there I spend time looking at the pictures and the little monument they have in the corner of the rink for him,” Hill said.

    McLeod said he remembers how difficult it was to play in MacInnes Arena and its predecessor, Dee Stadium.

    “Going from Dee Stadium, they had such an aura in the building,” McLeod said. “Going over to the MacInnes ice center, they were worried about how that was going to work for them. Let me tell you, they hardly missed a beat because it was really a hard place to play, no matter what kind of team you had.”

    Hurt Huskies

    St. Cloud State captain Jon Cullen suffered another injury last Saturday to the medial collateral ligament that kept him out for six weeks earlier this season.

    He’s expected to be out for at least four weeks.

    Never Too Early

    Too early to hype next weekend’s Denver-Minnesota series? Nah.

    Gophers-Pioneers III and IV go down next weekend at Mariucci Arena in Minneapolis, and the Gophers might need both of those games to stay in the race for first place in the WCHA.

    The third-place Gophers are 12 points behind frontrunner Denver with two games at hand. They’ll pick up those games this weekend while Denver’s playing nonconference games against Bemidji State and Air Force.

    In other words, the best-case scenario for Minnesota is an eight-point deficit going into next weekend’s series.

    That’s not even throwing St. Cloud State into the equation. The Huskies are in second place at 29 points, one behind Denver but with two more games played than the Pioneers and four more than the Gophers. They’re also in nonconference play this weekend, at Brown and Providence.

    One For All

    Having played the part the whole season, meanwhile, the Pioneers are finally tops in everything.

    No. 1 in the PairWise Rankings, but we’ve known about that for a while.

    They’re also No. 1 in the WCHA and No. 1 in the USCHO.com poll this week, thanks to Minnesota-Duluth’s surprise victory over St. Cloud State last Friday.

    Three aces is a good hand for Denver, but its players aren’t expecting that to win the whole pot.

    “By no means are we content with how things are going,” Denver defenseman Jesse Cook told the Denver Post. “There are so many mature guys on this team. By no means are we overwhelmed about all this. We knew we had a good team. We expected this. But it is certainly exciting right now.”

    That might sound arrogant, but it’s the way the game has to be played. To say you’re thrilled with what you’ve accomplished by the middle of January is selling your season a bit short.

    And maybe a team that’s 20-2 deserves to be just a bit arrogant, anyway.

    Stirring the Pot

    Jeff Sauer might not be making many friends in his farewell tour.

    The Wisconsin coach, who has announced he’ll retire from coaching at the end of the season, has made it clear that he wasn’t impressed with Denver, though the Pioneers swept the Badgers in Denver two weekends ago.

    Now, Sauer’s thoughts on Minnesota, last weekend’s opponent:

    “I was not that impressed with Minnesota, they’re not a Denver or St. Cloud right now,” he told reporters at his Monday news conference.

    This week’s opponent is Minnesota State-Mankato. Next week’s comment? Who knows?

    Good Company

    T.J. Caig joined Minnesota-Duluth last weekend — should he take credit for the Bulldogs’ first WCHA victory? — to high expectations.

    When your name ranks above Paul Kariya, you get high expectations.

    Caig, a 5-11, 190-pound center, joined the Bulldogs after a record-setting stint with the Penticton Panthers of the British Columbia Hockey League. He is the Panthers’ all-time leading scorer, ranking 15 points ahead of Kariya, the former Maine superstar who’s doing pretty darn well right now in the NHL.

    In 36 junior games this season, Caig had 37 goals (he led the BCHL when he left) and 39 assists.

    Completing the Cycle

    After this weekend’s series with Minnesota, the Seawolves will have completed the tour of the WCHA. The Gophers are the only league team they haven’t played, so after Saturday’s game, they’ll have a pretty good idea what exactly the rest of this league is all about.

    “Now, it’s like the final piece of the puzzle because we’re going to start winding down,” Hill said. “You start to talk about the future and who you may have to play in the playoffs.”

    Make a note of that. It’s January, and a UAA coach is looking forward to the WCHA playoffs. That’s the same WCHA playoffs in which the Seawolves have not only never won a series, they’ve never won a game.

    Hill isn’t afraid to share with anyone that his team’s goal is to make it to the Final Five. This season. Right now.

    It was assumed the Seawolves were going to have to go on the road to do so, but even that’s not a given anymore.

    They’re one of five teams that are going to fight for the last two home-ice spots. With 15 points and a tie for fifth place, they’re in a good position but need to go to work to assure themselves another weekend at home.

    Hill’s still a bit leery about the prospects of a top-five finish.

    “Home ice is certainly everybody’s goal,” he said. “I didn’t know if it was realistic at the beginning of the year because I didn’t know that much about our team. And I still think because of our travel, it’s going to be a longshot. But the closer we can stay to that fifth seed, the better I think it’ll be for us when the playoffs do begin.”

    Can’t Bury ‘Em

    After this weekend’s series with Wisconsin, Mankato has two weeks of practice before it enters a 10-game run to the end of the regular season (the last two games being non-conference ones against Nebraska-Omaha, mind you).

    Mavericks coach Troy Jutting said he has no specific plans for those two weeks before a Feb. 1 and 2 series against Michigan Tech. He’d sure like it, though, if some scoring punch could materialize in that time.

    They’ve been shut out in two of their last four games and have scored more than two goals only once in their last eight games (a 5-1 victory at Alabama-Huntsville on Jan. 5).

    It doesn’t help that the three of the opponents in that time were Denver, St. Cloud State and Colorado College, but it highlights the Mavs’ need for someone to be a scorer.

    “We’ve struggled to score goals. I don’t know that there’s a whole bunch to do to teach goalscoring,” Jutting said. “We’ve been getting opportunities, we just haven’t been able to get it in the net.”

    B.J. Abel leads the team with 21 points, but 18 of those are on assists. Tim Jackman (13 goals), Shane Joseph (11) and Jerry Cunningham (nine) are the goalscorers, but they’re not getting a lot of help.

    Jackman, Joseph and Cunningham have 44 percent of the Mavericks’ goals this season.

    Still, they enter the series with the Badgers on a high note after a 2-1 victory last Saturday night at Colorado College.

    “With the schedule set the way it’s set up for us, we had a stretch there where we were playing against teams that are the top teams in the country every night,” Jutting said. “It was nice to get a win against a quality team like Colorado.”

    Doubling Up

    Lucia is going to have to carry two versions of his line chart with him to Anchorage this weekend.

    The game disqualification penalty to Gophers forward Jeff Taffe last Saturday will keep Minnesota’s second-leading scorer from Friday night’s game against the Seawolves. He’ll be back for Saturday’s game.

    There’s the thing. The Gophers have spent the whole week practicing two ways: the with-Taffe way and the without-Taffe way.

    “The hardest thing is it really makes for a disruptive week of practice,” Lucia said. “It would have been easier had it happened on Friday and he can’t play Saturday. Now you go the week, you know he can play Saturday, now what do you do with the lines all week? Now what do you do with specialties?”

    Taffe leads the Gophers with nine power-play goals, so his brief loss will probably be most obvious there.

    Sitting It Out

    Two notable absentees from North Dakota’s 4-4 tie with Alaska-Anchorage last Saturday night in Grand Forks were Brandon Bochenski and David Lundbohm, two of the team’s top five scorers.

    Sioux coach Dean Blais made it perfectly clear he’s looking for effort from his players in this season, which can certainly now be called a rebuilding one.

    “I’ll continue to play the players who work hard, win or lose,” Blais told reporters after Saturday’s game.

    No Return

    Instead of returning to Anchorage between consecutive trips to the Midwest, the Seawolves will stay in Duluth, Minn., after next weekend’s series with the Bulldogs. They play at Wisconsin in two weeks.

    Any break in travel should be a boost for UAA down the stretch. After the Wisconsin series, the Seawolves return home for a series with Mankato; head back to the Midwest for a series at St. Cloud State; and return home for series with Colorado College and Alaska-Fairbanks.

    “I think we’ll be well rested come March,” Hill said. “I don’t think we can use travel as an excuse if we fall short of our goals.”

    More Travels

    Speaking of traveling, McLeod said he’s leaving this weekend for a brief trip to Italy, to begin advance planning for the league all-star team’s trip there in August.

    He Said It

    “I think it’s a tremendous challenge for our program. We’re playing good hockey as of late, and Minnesota’s one of the top teams in the country. I think it’s going to be a good measuring stick for our players.”

    — Alaska-Anchorage coach John Hill, on this weekend’s series against Minnesota.

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