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CHA Honors Award Winners at Final Five

USCHO Staff Report
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The second annual College Hockey America postseason tournament kicked off with an awards ceremony honoring the five qualifying teams and conference award winners.

Kielkucki

Kielkucki

Air Force senior goaltender Marc Kielkucki earned College Hockey America Player of the Year honors after leading the Air Force Academy to their second straight CHA Final Five appearance. Kielkucki posted a 6-9-1 record in the CHA this season and a 2.95 goals-against average with a .910 save percentage.

Findlay goaltender Kevin Fines, a freshman from Sarnia, Ont., earned Rookie of the Year honors after leading the CHA in save percentage (.924). Fines posted a 4-6-1 record in the CHA and a 2.97 goals-against average. He was also named to the All-CHA Second Team.

Air Force’s Scott Bradley, a senior from Colorado Springs, Colo., got the nod as the Student-Athlete of the Year. Bradley recorded one goal and 14 assists for 15 points in 19 games in league play during the regular season.

Findlay head coach Craig Barnett was named the CHA Coach of the Year after guiding the Oilers to a second straight CHA Final Five appearance. Barnett’s Oilers posted a 10-14-2 record overall and a 8-10-2 record in league play. The record in league play was good for a fourth-place tie with Air Force. Barnett’s team was picked to finish sixth in the CHA Preseason Coaches Poll.

All-CHA First Team

F Brian Gornick, Air Force, Jr. (St. Paul, Minn.)
F Dwayne Blais, Alabama-Huntsville, Sr. (Sudbury, Ont.)
F Jason Durbin, Wayne State, So. (Trenton, Mich.)
D Brant Somerville, Findlay, Jr. (Scarborough, Ont.)
D Darren Curry, Ala.-Huntsville, Sr. (Manotick, Ont.)
G Marc Kielkucki, Air Force, Sr. (Brooklyn Park, Minn.)

All-CHA Second Team

F Karlis Zirnis, Alabama-Huntsville, So. (Riga, Latvia)
F Bernie Sigrist, Niagara, So. (Toronto, Ont.)
F Andy Berg, Air Force, So. (Stillwater, Minn.)
D Clay Simmons, Bemidji State, So. (Princeton, B.C.)
D Tyler Kindle, Wayne State (Portage, Mich.)
G Kevin Fines, Findlay, Fr. (Sarnia, Ont.)

All-CHA Rookie Team

F Aaron Weegar, Findlay, Fr. (Potsdam, N.Y.)
F Christian Olson, Findlay, Fr. (Edina, Minn.)
F Chris Vail, Wayne State, Fr. (Grosse Pointe Shores, Mich.)
D Joe Locallo, Air Force, Fr. (Chicago, Ill.)
D Bryce Methven, Bemidji State, Fr. (Mora, Minn.)
G Kevin Fines, Findlay, Fr. (Sarnia, Ont.)

Player of the Year: Marc Kielkucki, Air Force, Sr. (Brooklyn Park, Minn.)
Rookie of the Year: Kevin Fines, Findlay, Fr. (Sarnia, Ont.)
Coach of the Year: Craig Barnett, Findlay
Student-Athlete of the Year: Scott Bradley, Air Force, Sr. (Colorado Springs, Colo.)

Changing the Rules

By Adam Wodon
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The issue of amateurism deregulation and its impact on college hockey, followed by USCHO for the last 18 months, is about to come to a head. The subcommittee in charge of creating the legislation’s language is meeting one last time to work on tweaks based upon concerns heard at the NCAA’s January meetings.

To summarize: the series of legislative initiatives, known as the Deregulation of Amateurism, would allow players to sign a contract, accept prize money and enter a professional draft before entering college without jeopardizing their future NCAA eligibility. The idea is that the aforementioned things do not present an unfair advantage, in and of themselves, and should not be grounds for ineligibility.

This, the NCAA hoped, would benefit the student-athlete that often got lost in the association’s bureaucracy. The only basis for ineligibilty under the new legislation would be the number of years past your high school graduation year (18 years old), in which you participated competitively in your sport. This would prevent, for example, a 22-year old European enrolling as a freshman basketball player, something the NCAA determined provides a much more direct competitive advantage than the concept of entering a draft.

While this seems like a winning situation for most American student-athletes, it drastically changes the recruiting playing field, especially in the big-time sports. There was a rather outspoken contingent that came out against the legislation during the January meetings, particularly basketball coaches who believe its passing could open a can of worms.

But the subcommittee put in charge of creating the legislation is standing behind it.

“The subcommittee still believes firmly in the legislation,” says Lisa Dehon, staff liaison to the subcommittee on Amateurism and Agents, “mostly that it would be best for prospective student-athletes.”

The implications of the initial legislation were particularly negative for hockey, however. That’s because many, if not most, hockey players don’t enter college until after having played junior and prep school hockey, well after their 18th birthday. All of those players would have been required to sit a year in residence, and lose a year of NCAA eligibility.

The outcry from the hockey world was immediate, but it prompted a rarely seen cooperation between the hockey community and the NCAA to rectify the situation. Hockey administrators were quickly invited to speak to the subcommittee and explain their issues, and an amendment was made that exempted those players.

“We do not have an ice hockey expert on the committee, and once we made the decision to try and understand as much as we could, we relied on the commissioners and others in hockey to tell us how hockey as a sport operates,” said Christine Grant, subcommittee chair and women’s athletic director at Iowa. “I received a great education on ice hockey.”

Harvard coach Mark Mazzoleni says, “Our association lobbied the right people. The coaches on this thing were ready.”

There was still one remaining major implication, however; the opening of doors to Canadian major junior players to enter college without penalty. Currently, the NCAA considers those players to be semi-professional, and once playing major junior, you can’t enroll and play at a U.S. college without severe penalties. Under the new legislation, what you did before age 18 wouldn’t have mattered.

This newfound freedom for previous major junior players was hailed by many insiders and fans as a major victory for college hockey. Now, players once stuck in the major junior system, could leave for U.S. colleges at will, opening up a new source of recruits.

This is what everyone wanted, right? The ability to recapture players that get sucked away to the major junior system, sometimes at 15 years old, before college recruiters could even contact them?

However, there is a sizable contingent of college coaches, perhaps half or more, who believe this is a very bad idea for college hockey.

“There are leagues — Hockey East was one — that were split,” says Joe Bertagna, commissioner of Hockey East and director of the American Hockey Coaches Association (AHCA). “Some like it, others are saying it’s bad. Without a penalty to pay [for going to major junior to begin with], you may never get them back.”

With these concerns in mind, Dehon and fellow NCAA staff liaison Bill Saum went to the annual coaches’ convention in Naples, Fla., last April to listen to the concerns of all sides.

“It was a pretty lively session as people started to realize the implications of everything,” says Bertagna.

“[The commissioners] went out to lunch with them after the formal session with the coaches. They came away from the trip on their own thinking there’s one more thing they have to do.”

What the subcommittee did, then, was put in another amendment, that players in major junior at age 16 and 17 could still leave for college, but would still have to sit a year in residence and lose a year of NCAA eligibility for each year of juniors played.

This caught many hockey people by surprise. They say Dehon and Saum left the meetings without any indication of what they would do, then suddenly, last summer, the change was made.

“We never came to a single position [at the meetings],” says Bertagna. “So when we heard about [the amendment], we thought, ‘Where did that come from?'”

Nonetheless, Dehon and the subcommittee believed this was a compromise position.

“We heard from both camps,” Dehon says. “It appeared to us that there was still a significant concern with the U.S. hockey community that major juniors can recruit at such a young age, and kids make decisions, and they were fearful of kids going into the major junior system before they were interested in college. The new proposal is still a significant proposal, but it allows for an individual that has made a mistake to still have college eligibility. It served both purposes.”

Ironically, the factions for and against allowing major junior players to join the collegiate ranks point to the same reasons.

  • Those against major junior players leaving to come to college say that players make the choice at a young age, when they are easily persuaded by the major junior coaches. And, they believe, once they go to major junior, they won’t come back.
  • The other side says, players are forced to make a choice at a young age, and there are many kids who do so now and choose major junior, and then are stuck there.

    • The latter seems to be protecting the interests of the players, while the former seems bent on protecting college hockey’s interests. But that’s not an entirely fair assessment.

    Sure, the rules would allow a player sucked into the major junior system to leave after a couple of years. But, say those against opening the doors, there are real concerns that major junior teams would restrict NCAA teams’ access to those players, causing them to be stuck there anyway.

    “The problem is, you let a kid go, they are not going to accomodate his academic needs. And they’re going to taint him,” says Mazzoleni, who believes college programs are gaining ground on major juniors. “They are going to have morning practices, which is going to hurt him academically. They’re not going to let you visit the kid — how are you even going to recruit the kid? And they’re going to get him in their environment and you’re never going to get him back.

    Does Mazzoleni still feel bad about a kid who gets stuck early, after having to make a decision at 15 years old?

    “They know the rules,” he says.

    “The biggest problem is the Grade 12 year, because kids are ready. They’re maybe better than what Tier II hockey is, so they don’t want to play Tier II because they want to continue to accelerate their game. So instead of being patient [they jump]. That’s the one things that kills college.”

    Despite the major junior debate, there’s been a distinct feel-good atmosphere created between the NCAA and college hockey. The amount of cooperation between the two sides has been unprecedented. What started out as ignorance of college hockey by the committee, and a fear by the hockey people of the NCAA’s heavy hand, quickly became a love-fest.

    “What I heard before I was a commissioner was that the NCAA would do whatever it wanted to do,” CCHA commissioner Tom Anastos said to the NCAA News. “But our voice was definitely requested. I learned in this process that you could be heard. I applaud the NCAA’s willingness to take the time to learn what our differences were and help us come to a solution.”

    NCAA President Cedric Dempsey said, “While some in the hockey community may have a certain level of discomfort about the amateurism deregulation, they have never refused to make their own recommendations or consider alternatives. I believe that as a result of this invaluable partnership, the amateurism proposals address the unique aspects and concerns of ice hockey and show what can be accomplished.”

    With these changes, however, we are left with legislation that, at this point, has been largely gutted as it pertains to hockey. Still, there are some aspects that will have positive effects for prospective student athletes.

    For example, being able to sign a contract or enter a draft, and still enroll in college will let kids feel out their chances, and then go to college if it appears there is not enough money or opportunity to be had in the pros. This is good, because a player should not be dissuaded from attending college just because they put out feelers on their career. Why would you want to prevent kids from going to college?

    But as we near a final vote of the Management Council at the April NCAA convention, the legislation’s future is uncertain. While the issue of major junior eligibilty was clearly the biggest point of contention in college hockey, other concerns are casting into doubt whether the legislation will pass at all.

    The part about accepting prize money is still the biggest hangup. Basketball coaches are afraid, but haven’t been specific. In general, they are simply afraid that the new legislation will cause more problems than it solves.

    “We’ve tried to ask them on numerous occasions to pinpoint their concerns, and to date we only get, ‘We hate all of it,'” says Dehon. “It’s difficult to find a compromise that way.”

    A far cry from the hockey community.

    “Tell me about it. They are the poster child for cooperation. It’s two groups coming together and educating each other,” Dehon says.

    The question, at this point, is whether the basketball coaches have enough influence on their athletic directors and conference commissioners that make up the Management Council.

    “That’s the $64,000 question. I’m still optimistic,” says Dehon.

    “There are some concerns and issues that are still out there. Hopefully we can consider and address those issues in such a way that will make people more comfortable with the proposals. Even without that, the subcommittee will say it’s a good package. We’ll deal with the concerns that are quantifiable, rather than worst-case senarios. You can always come up with one [of those], but they’re hard to address.”

    Bertagna adds, “We’re battling decades of comfort level over thinking what’s bad.”

    With all the hockey-specific amendments, whatever happens, there probably won’t be the kind of monumental change that was originally anticipated, and/or feared.

    “At this point, people really want to know what is going to happen,” said ECAC commissioner Phil Buttafuoco to the NCAA News. “Major junior leagues are using the amateurism proposals against us in the recruiting wars. It needs to be voted on.”

    If, after years of work, the legislation is shot down in April, how will the subcommittee react?

    “The subcommittee will feel victory in knowing they did the job that was to be done,” says Dehon. “But there will be a sense of loss that we had a chance to help student-athletes and it didn’t work out.”

    Five Sophomores Featured on All-CCHA First Team

    USCHO Staff Report
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    Two-time first-team honoree Jeff Jillson, a junior defenseman from Michigan, is the oldest player on a CCHA’s First-Team all-Conference squad that includes five sophomores.

    Miller

    Miller

    Jillson is making his second consecutive appearance on the First Team. Michigan State sophomore goaltender Ryan Miller and Western Michigan forward David Gove, second-team selections last year, are the only other repeat performers on either team.

    Sophomore forward David Brisson and sophomore defenseman Greg Zanon are the first players ever selected all-Conference from Nebraska-Omaha. They are the fastest players on an expansion team to be selected first-team all-CCHA since Ted Speers earned all-league honors for Michigan in 1982-83, one year after the Wolverines joined the CCHA.

    Michigan teammates, sophomore forwards Mike Cammalleri and Andy Hilbert, round out the first-team’s forward line, both earning their first all-CCHA honors. It is the fourth time in the last eight years a pair of Wolverine frontliners have been first-team forward selections.

    Michigan State goaltender Ryan Miller’s First-Team all-Conference Selection continues a streak of four straight years that a Spartan goaltender has been named either First- or Second-Team all-CCHA. Miller, who was a Second Team honoree last season, follows in the footsteps of Chad Alban (First — 1997-98) and Joe Blackburn (Second — 1998-99).

    Second Team selections Mike Bisahi and David Gove, a junior and senior, respectively, from Western Michigan, mark the first time since 1995-96 (Marc Magliarditi — First Team and Jeremy Brown — Second Team) that two Broncos have earned all-Conference honors in the same year. They are joined up front by Miami University’s Jason Deskins. Deskins, who missed all of last season with a knee injury, earned honorable mention all-CCHA in 1998-99.

    On defense for the Second Team are junior Andrew Hutchinson and sophomore John-Michael Liles from Michigan State. They complete the Spartans’ sweep of the position, becoming the first defensive tandem to do it on either team since MSU’s Gary Haight and Don McSween both collected First-Team accolades in 1984-85.

    The teams were selected by a vote of the league’s head coaches and are based on performances in league games. Coaches were not allowed to vote for their own players.

    2000-01 CCHA all-Conference Teams

    FIRST TEAM
    F Andy Hilbert, SO, Michigan
    F Mike Cammalleri, SO, Michigan
    F David Brisson, SO, Nebraska-Omaha
    D Jeff Jillson, JR, Michigan
    D Greg Zanon, SO, Nebraska-Omaha
    G Ryan Miller, SO, Michigan State

    SECOND TEAM
    F Mike Bishai, JR, Western Michigan
    F Jason Deskins, JR, Miami
    F David Gove, SR, Western Michigan
    D Andrew Hutchinson, JR, Michigan State
    D John-Michael Liles, SO, Michigan State
    G Josh Blackburn, JR, Michigan
    G Phil Osaer, JR, Ferris State

    2000-01 All-Academic Team

    F Dan Carlson, Sr., Notre Dame
    F Jim Lawrence, Sr., Alaska-Fairbanks
    F Dave Noel-Bernier, Sr., Nebraska-Omaha
    F Curtis Valentine, Sr., Bowling Green
    F David Gove, Sr., Western Michigan
    D Jim Dube, Sr., Ferris State
    D Jeff Jillson, Jr., Michigan
    D Daniel Samuelsson, Jr., Nebraska-Omaha

    2000-01 Bauer/CCHA All-Rookie Team

    F Jeff Campbell, Western Michigan (Hensall, Ont.)
    F Dave Steckel, Ohio State (Westbend, Wis.)
    F R.J. Umberger, Ohio State (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
    D Mike Komisarek, Michigan (Islip Terrace, N.Y.)
    D Brett Lebda, Notre Dame (Buffalo Grove, Ill.)
    G Dan Ellis, Nebraska-Omaha (Orangeville, Ont.)

    ECAC West Newsletter: March 7, 2001

    By
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    RIT Sweeps To ECAC West Title

    RIT swept through the ECAC West playoffs, downing Hobart in the semifinals and Manhattanville in the finals to take its third straight ECAC West crown. The Manhattanville Valiants reached the finals with an upset win over the Elmira Soaring Eagles in the semis.

    Playoff Overview

    No. 2 ELMIRA (16-10-0) 5 vs. No. 3 MANHATTANVILLE (14-10-2) 6 (3/2): Manhattanvile scored just 17 seconds in to the first period, and rode that momentum throughout the game. Elmira kept battling back from deficits all night long, but couldn’t manage to tally a go-ahead goal.

    “We’re still a young team … To have this kind of a win in only our second year is just monstrous,” said Manhattanville coach Keith Levinthal.

    The Soaring Eagles answered the opening goal by the Valiants, 32 seconds later, to tie the game, the first of three ties during the contest. Manhattanville kept up relentless pressure, peppering the Elmira net with 23 shots in the first period alone. The work paid off for the Valiants, who notched the next two goals midway through the period to take a 3-1 lead. Elmira chipped away at the lead in the waning seconds of the period, but found itself on the short side of a 3-2 scoreboard at the end of the first period.

    Elmira tied it up early in the second period, 3-3, but the Valiants repeated the pattern as they scored the next two goals, only to watch as Elmira tied it up with two quick goals midway through the third period. The Soaring Eagles used an unlikely hero to climb back in to the game. Freshman Matt Howarth, who had scored a single goal all season, scored twice in this game, both times to tie the score.

    “He is a hard-working kid who we moved to center a couple of weeks ago. He had a career game,” said Elmira coach Glenn Thomaris.

    But the pattern held, and the next goal went to Manhattanville just 1:10 after Elmira tied it up. That was the end of the scoring, and the Valiants celebrated advancing to the ECAC West final in only their second season.

    No. 1 RIT (23-0-1) 9 vs. No. 4 HOBART (6-15-4) 1 (3/2): The No. 1 seed Tigers held serve in the second semifinal game, and trounced No. 4 seed Hobart. The Tigers held a distinct territorial advantage most of the game, and outshot the Statesmen 48-17 in the contest.

    RIT scored twice in the opening 6:22 of the game, and it looked like they were off to the races. But the Hobart defense solidified and netminder Chris Connolly made some key saves to stem the Tiger tide.

    RIT managed its third goal midway through the second period. Hobart got on the board very late in the period, and going in to the second intermission it looked like Hobart might be able to pull the second upset of the night.

    Hobart, loaded with seniors, came out in the third period with a will. The Statesmen played RIT tough early in the period, but couldn’t get anything past RIT netminder Tyler Euverman.

    Three goals in quick succession midway through the third period by RIT deflated Hobart, and that was the game. RIT’s third line of Sam Hill, Errol McDonald, and Mike Tarantino had a stellar game, notching two goals and five assists in the contest.

    No. 3 MANHATTANVILLE (14-11-2) 2 vs. No. 1 RIT (24-0-1) 8 (3/3): When the teams were skating at even strength, play in this game was even, with entertaining end-to-end action. Unfortunately for Manhattanville, the two teams didn’t skate even strength very much, as there was a steady parade of players from both sides to the sin bin. The longest stretch of even-strength play was only eight minutes, early in the second period.

    Special teams were the difference, as RIT scored four goals on nine power plays while Manhattanville didn’t manage any tallies on six of its own.

    “We thought coming in to this game that discipline might win or lose it for either team,” said RIT coach Wayne Wilson.

    He was right.

    RIT was up 2-0 after the first period. With the early parts of the second period played at even strength, the Valiants made a game of it, putting pressure on the RIT net and keeping the Tigers’ offense towards the outside.

    But the Manhattanville bus must have been equipped by Firestone, because the wheels exploded midway through the second period to send the Valiants crashing. RIT scored two goals separated by only 26 seconds, starting at the 10:33 mark, and it was all over for Manhattanville after that.

    The Valiants didn’t give up, but the Tiger feeding frenzy never gave them any breathing room. RIT went on to score four more goals before the end of the contest, while Manhattanville chipped in two goals in the closing moments.

    The win gave RIT its third straight ECAC West championship, and eighth overall. Tiger Sam Hill was named the tournament MVP, notching four goals and three assists on the weekend.

    Into The NCAAs

    Undefeated RIT (24-0-1), ranked No. 1 in the USCHO.com poll for the ninth straight week, was awarded the No. 1 East seed for the NCAA tournament, and will host the No. 5 East seed Lebanon Valley Flying Dutchmen (18-7-2) — the ECAC Northeast champions — in quarterfinal action this weekend at RIT’s Ritter Arena.

    RIT and Lebanon Valley have never met before, but looking at four common opponents this season (Manhattanville, Elmira, Hobart and Geneseo), LVC was 1-3-1 against those teams with a win over Hobart and a tie with Manhattanville. RIT was 10-0 against those four teams.

    Conclusion

    As the NCAA playoffs begin, this is the final weekly installment of the ECAC West column. But it’s not over yet. Look for an “ECAC West Year in Review” issue to come out in a couple of weeks. Each of the four teams’ seasons will be covered, including the high and low points, the stars and the duds — and I will see if I can get the coaches to give some insight into next year’s schedule and recruits.

    So stay tuned…

    This Week In Women’s Hockey: March 7, 2001

    By Zevi Gutfreund
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    The Postseason, Week One: The WCHA

    The regular season is finally over (with only one upset in the final weekend — No. 6 Brown losing at Maine, 3-2). While the ECAC tournament begins with four quarterfinal matchups, it’s now or never in the WCHA. The three-round tournament begins Thursday in Rochester, Minn., and a champion will be crowned on Saturday.

    Two teams — No. 2 Minnesota-Duluth and No. 3 Minnesota — have an inside track at the NCAA tournament, but the Bulldogs and Gophers must avoid upsets and perhaps reach the championship game to solidify their respective bids to the inaugural Frozen Four. Here’s how the teams shape up heading into the playoffs:

    1. Minnesota (23-7-2, 18-4-2)

    As regular-season champions the Gophers have a bye in the first round of the tournament, and will play the winner of the St. Cloud – Ohio State matchup. While this should give the defending national champs a relatively safe road to the conference title game, Minnesota has lost to both the Huskies and the Buckeyes in the last month.

    “This is an experienced team and we know what it will take to get to the NCAAs,” said Minnesota coach Laura Halldorson, who carries nine seniors on her roster. “St. Cloud and Ohio State are both capable of beating us, and we will have to show up to play or our season could be over.”

    Should Minnesota survive St. Cloud or Ohio State in the WCHA semifinal, they would likely face archrival UMD in the final. In a two-game series in Duluth last weekend, the Gophers tied and lost to the Bulldogs, 2-2 and 3-1. While losing to UMD would not eliminate Minnesota from playoff consideration, it would influence the seedings in the NCAA tournament.

    To beat UMD’s high-flying offense, Minnesota will have to rely on the strong goaltending of senior Erica Killewald, who leads the conference in GAA (2.02) and save percentage (.919), and senior defenseman Courtney Kennedy. The Gophers will also need some timely goals from scorers like La Toya Clarke (19g, 32a), Ambria Thomas (25g, 22a) and Nadine Muzerall (27g, 18a).

    2. Minnesota-Duluth (23-5-4, 15-5-4)

    The Bulldogs managed to turn things around against Minnesota last Saturday, winning 3-2 after tying the Gophers the night before and losing at St. Cloud a week earlier. But UMD is certainly capable of sweeping through the three-game tournament and winning the conference title, as it did during last year’s inaugural WCHA playoffs.

    The Duluth offense has the most depth in the country. Three players (Maria Rooth, Hanne Sikio and Erika Holst) have at least 45 points, and an additional three (Satu Kiipeli, Sanna Peura and Joanne Eustace) have more than 30 each. UMD, which averages 5.34 goals a game, managed to score seven goals in three consecutive games in late February, and if the Bulldogs can match those figures this weekend they should be unstoppable.

    Defensively, sophomore netminder Tuula Puputti will be expected to make some big stops. That’s what she did last Saturday against Minnesota, holding the Gophers scoreless over the final 1:46 of regulation, when Halldorson pulled Killewald and sent six skaters at Puputti in a seemingly endless flurry.

    3. Wisconsin (19-8-5, 13-6-5)

    Wisconsin has the best shot to unseat Minnesota or UMD, the team it will likely face in the semifinals. The Badgers tied the Bulldogs twice last month at home, and they tied Minnesota once in their own building as well. Unfortunately for Wisconsin, the WCHA tournament is not in Madison, but the Badgers should still be competitive at a neutral site like Rochester.

    Wisconsin is led by freshman Meghan Hunter, who leads the conference in both goals (38) and points (71). Along with forward Kendra Antony (17g, 29a) and defenseman Kerry Weiland (12g, 31a), Hunter will have to score if the Badgers hope to reach the conference championship game on Saturday.

    Weiland and Sis Paulsen will have to get the dirty work done at the blueline for goaltender Jackie MacMillan (2.57 GAA, .899 save percentage), who must use her big-game experience to keep Wisconsin competitive in the tournament semifinal.

    4. St. Cloud State (17-5-2, 12-10-2)

    The Huskies are probably the most improved team in the WCHA this season. St. Cloud has pulled off the upset before, with wins over Minnesota and Minnesota-Duluth in recent weeks.

    St. Cloud’s strong freshman class is improving with each game. Ricki-Lee Doyle (26g, 36a) is one of the league’s most consistent scorers, Roxanne Stang (26g, 13a) has already had several hat tricks in her young career, and Kobi Kawamoto (17g, 22a) is turning into a premier scorer from the blueline. Junior Fiona McLeod (12g, 35a), who switched from forward to defense this season, will have to provide experience and leadership to this rookie corps if the Huskies are to make a run for the conference championship this weekend.

    5. Ohio State (16-15-3, 11-10-3)

    The Buckeyes could be the X-factor in the tournament. Ohio State might be the team best-suited to stop a high-scoring team like St. Cloud, thanks to a defense that allows just 2.74 goals a game.

    “The key to playing well at this time of the year is confidence and playing together as a team,” said Ohio State coach Jackie Barto. “We emphasize playing outstanding team defense and we have improved greatly in this area over the course of our season. We take a lot of pride in playing very well at the defensive end of the ice.”

    Indeed, the Buckeyes recently shut out the Huskies in a pair of games at St. Cloud, 4-0 and 2-0. Goaltender April Stojak recorded 34 saves on the weekend, but the key to the Ohio State defense is the quality of play at the blue line, particularly from standout rookie defensemen Kelli Halcisak (13g, 25a) and Emma Laaksonen (17g, 19a), who also happen to lead the Buckeyes in scoring. Sophomore Emily Hudak (3g, 22a) provides experience to the defensive zone.

    The key to Ohio State’s success in the postseason, however, will be the production it can get offensively. Forward Shana Frost (20g, 14a) is the team’s most explosive scorer, but she will need help from her supporting cast, particularly senior Corinne Rosen (14g, 17a) and rookie Jeanne Chapple (8g, 15a) to penetrate the St. Cloud net.

    6. Bemidji State (9-23-1, 6-17-1)

    The Beavers will have a tough time advancing past the first round. Wisconsin, Bemidji’s first-round opponent, beat the Beavers twice last weekend in Madison, 4-2 and 7-1. Sophomore Amber Fryklund (26g, 22a) is the team’s most reliable scorer, but she will have her work cut out for her against the likes of MacMillan, Paulsen and Weiland.

    7. Minnesota State-Mankato (0-23-1, 2-30-2)

    This is almost an unfair matchup for Minnesota-Duluth, against a team that was winless in conference play. The Bulldogs shut out the Mavericks in all four contests during the regular season. Expect another goose-egg from Mankato on Thursday.

    Kennedy Earns WCHA Women’s Player of the Year Award

    USCHO Staff Report
    -

    Minnesota senior Courtney Kennedy took home Player of the Year honors, at the second annual WCHA Women’s Championship Banquet today. The Woburn, Mass., native led all defenseman in league scoring with 35 points on 10 goals and 25 assists. Kennedy was the heart of a defense that averaged 2.09 goals against to lead the conference. She was also chosen as the WCHA Defensive Player of the Year.

    This season’s winner of the WCHA Student-Athlete of the Year Award went to Bemidji State’s Bre Dedrickson. The sophomore goaltender has a 3.6 cumulative grade point average after recording a 4.0 for the fall semester with a 21-credit course load in sport psychology.

    Wisconsin’s Meghan Hunter was named 2000-01 WCHA Rookie of the Year after finishing the season as the nation’s leading scorer. Honored twice during the season as player of the week, and once as rookie of the week, the Oil Springs, Ont., native recorded 38 goals, 33 assists and 71 points. The freshman also led the country with 29 power-play points and five hat tricks.

    Selected as co-coaches of the year were Laura Halldorson of Minnesota and Kerry Wethington of St. Cloud State. Halldorson led the Gophers to their first WCHA regular-season title with an 18-4-2 conference mark and 23-7-2 overall record. The Plymouth, Minn., native led Minnesota to the 1999-2000 AWCHA national championship.

    Wethington led the Huskies to a fourth-place league finish with a 12-10-2 league rcord. Hailing from Roseville, Minn., Wethington directed St. Cloud State to its first above-.500 finish with an overall mark of 17-15-2, and made the Huskies one of three league teams to beat each other team at least once.

    Voting for the WCHA awards was done by the conference head coaches and sports information directors. The Defensive Player of the Year Award was chosen solely by the head coaches, while the Student-Athlete of the Year was chosen by institutional representatives.

    Player of the Year: Courtney Kennedy, Minnesota
    Student-Athlete of the Year: Bre Dedrickson, Bemidji State
    Defensive Player of the Year: Courtney Kennedy, Minnesota
    Rookie of the Year: Meghan Hunter, Wisconsin
    Coach of the Year: Laura Halldorson, Minnesota; Kerry Wethington, St. Cloud State

    2000-01 All-WCHA First Team

    F Meghan Hunter, Wisconsin (Fr., Oil Springs, Ont.)
    F Maria Rooth, Minnesota-Duluth (So., Angelholm, Sweden)
    F Hanne Sikio, Minnesota-Duluth (So., Lempaala, Finland)
    D Courtney Kennedy, Minnesota (Sr., Woburn, Mass.)
    D Kerry Weiland, Wisconsin (So., Palmer, Alaska)
    G Erica Killewald, Minnesota (Sr., Troy, Mich.)

    2000-01 All-WCHA Second Team

    F La Toya Clarke, Minnesota (Fr., Pickering, Ont.)
    F Ricki-Lee Doyle, St. Cloud State (Fr., Calgary, Alberta)
    F Ambria Thomas, Minnesota (Sr., Fairbanks, Alaska)
    D Kobi Kawamoto, St. Cloud State (Fr., Surrey, B.C.)
    D Fiona McLeod, St. Cloud State (Jr., Toronto, Ont.)
    G Tuula Puputti, Minnesota-Duluth (So., Kuopio, Finland)

    SUNYAC Newsletter: March 7, 2001

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    Plattsburgh Makes It Five In A Row, Will Play Middlebury In NCAA Quarters

    It’s becoming almost routine, but don’t tell that to Plattsburgh. The Cardinals won another SUNYAC championship, their fifth in a row and 15th overall last weekend. However, this one took Plattsburgh the longest to win as Potsdam stretched the series out to three games before the Cardinals finally put the Bears away in a rare Sunday-afternoon contest, two game to one.

    Plattsburgh will once again represent the SUNYAC in the NCAA playoffs as it squares off against the Middlebury Panthers. These two teams met last year in the quarterfinals when the Cardinals ended Middlebury’s five-year reign as national champions. Then, the series was played in Plattsburgh. This time, Plattsburgh will have to cross Lake Champlain to pay a visit to Middlebury.

    Championship Series Report

    PLATTSBURGH DEFEATS POTSDAM, 2-1 — The series started and ended as most expected, with Plattsburgh controlling games one and three, 6-3 and 5-1. In between, Potsdam put a scare into Plattsburgh’s quest by winning game two, 6-2.

    The first game saw the potent Plattsburgh power play turn the contest around. The Cardinals only had two power-play opportunities, but they made the most of them, scoring both times, turning a 2-1 deficit into a lead they would not relinquish.

    After a scoreless first period, Brendon Hodge put Plattsburgh up. Joe Wlodarczyk and Nick Eagan scored within 25 seconds to put the Bears in front. Then, Plattsburgh scored their two power-play goals by Rob Retter and Hodge to end the second period ahead 3-2. Paul Dowe gave Plattsburgh a two-goal margin, but Wlodarczyk’s second goal would bring it back to one. Ryan Wilson scored an insurance goal, and Hodge’s empty-netter for a hat trick completed the scoring. Niklas Sundberg made 33 saves for the win.

    Back to the wall, Potsdam responded with a convincing win. After Ryan Venturelli kept the Cardinals off the board early on, Potsdam’s offense took over, opening a 3-0 lead on goals by Mike Snow, Erick Curtis, and Jeff Milroy. Plattsburgh’s Jeff Hopkins got one back midway through the second. However, Sean Darke quickly responded with a breakaway goal, followed 57 seconds later by another breakaway goal by Brendon Knight.

    The third period was a formality as the teams traded goals: Hodge scored, followed by Wlodarczyk. Venturelli made 25 saves in Potsdam’s first win in Stafford Arena since 1985.

    Potsdam came out strong in the third game, but Sundberg kept them at bay. Plattsburgh was not to be denied, and they slowly took control of the game, eventually smothering the Bears. Wilson scored a late first-period goal to give Plattsburgh the lead. Shawn Banks scored a power-play goal in the second — then, the killer was tallied by Shaw, shorthanded.

    Sean Darke would get one back for the Bears while on the power play, but by then Potsdam had come unraveled, committing a string of penalties. The third period saw Kilcan (power play) and Shaw (shorthanded empty-netter) score ceremonial goals. Sundberg made 30 saves.

    Potsdam’s season came to an end, but not before a school record for most wins (20-8-3) and best winning percentage (.694). Plattsburgh takes its 25-5-0 record to Middlebury hoping to extend the season by four more games.

    Previous SUNYAC Champions

    1978 -- Plattsburgh      1985 -- Plattsburgh      1993 -- Plattsburgh
    1979 -- Plattsburgh      1986 -- Geneseo          1994 -- Fredonia
    1980 -- Oswego           1987 -- Plattsburgh      1995 -- Fredonia
    1981 -- Oswego           1988 -- Plattsburgh      1996 -- Potsdam
    1982 -- Oswego           1989 -- Oswego           1997 -- Plattsburgh
           Plattsburgh      1990 -- Plattsburgh      1998 -- Plattsburgh
    1983 -- Plattsburgh      1991 -- Oswego           1999 -- Plattsburgh
    1984 -- Oswego           1992 -- Plattsburgh      2000 -- Plattsburgh

    1978-1984: Championship determined by conference record
    1985: Tournament play begins, top four teams qualify
    1993: Two-game format with mini-game begins
    1997: Three-game format for finals only begins
    1998: Top six teams qualify, with byes to first two teams

    2000-01 All-SUNYAC Team And Awards

    FIRST TEAM                     Pos   SECOND TEAM
    Aaron Coleman    Geneseo        F    Sean Darke           Potsdam
    Brendon Hodge    Plattsburgh    F    Derek Kern           Oswego
    Jason Kilcan     Plattsburgh    F    John Sullivan        Oswego
    Bryan Murray     Plattsburgh    D    B.J. Bouschor        Fredonia
    Dave Weagle      Potsdam        D    Kyle Langdon         Geneseo
    Will Hamele      Fredonia       G    Niklas Sundberg      Plattsburgh

    Player Of The Year: Will Hamele, Fredonia
    Rookie Of The Year: Mike Lukajic, Oswego
    Coach Of The Year: Tim Vanini, Cortland

    ECAC Announces Women’s Division III Award Winners

    USCHO Staff Report
    -

    Middlebury’s Michelle Labbe led the way in the ECAC Women’s Division III awards presentations, earning Player of the Year honors. Labbe, who was also the conference’s tournament Most Valuable Player, finished with 44 points (17-27) in the league and helped lead the Panthers to their sixth straight ECAC championship.

    Head coach Bill Mandigo was named the Coach of the Year; he has guided the Panthers to a 112-0-1 record in ECAC play over the last six seasons — the only six seasons of ECAC Women’s Division III play.

    The ECAC Women’s Division III Rookie of the Year, Molly Wasserman, came from the runners-up in the tournament, Williams. Wasserman led the league in scoring (30-22-52) and also placed herself on the First Team of ECAC All-Stars.

    The First Team featured another Panther, Amber Neil on defense. Sacred Heart’s Sarah Bergin was the other defensive pick, while Colgate’s Heather Murphy was the other forward pick.

    Vermont’s Tiffany Hayes picked up the Goaltender of the Year honors with a 0.78 GAA and a .963 save percentage. She also nailed down the goaltender spot on the First Team.

    ECAC Women’s Division III Player of the Year

    Michelle Labbe, F, Middlebury

    ECAC Women’s Division III Rookie of the Year

    Molly Wasserman, F, Williams

    ECAC Women’s Division III Goaltender of the Year

    Tiffany Hayes, Vermont

    ECAC Women’s Division III Coach of the Year

    Bill Mandigo, Middlebury

    ECAC Women’s Division III First Team All-Stars

    F Michelle Labbe, Middlebury
    F Heather Murphy, Colgate
    F Molly Wasserman, Williams
    D Amber Neil, Middlebury
    D Sarah Bergin, Sacred Heart
    G Tiffany Hayes, Vermont

    ECAC Women’s Division III Second Team All-Stars

    F Shelly Chessie, Bowdoin
    F Paula Dady, Hamilton
    F Victoria Scott, Williams
    D Genna Allegrezza, Manhattanville
    D Catherine Elkins, Middlebury
    G Emma DeSimmone, Wesleyan

    ECAC Women’s Division III All-Rookie Team

    F Molly Wasserman, Williams
    F Victoria Scott, Williams
    F Caitlin Hornyak, Colgate
    D Rhiannon Amor, Sacred Heart
    D Lindsey Neilson, Vermont
    G Karen Jamnik, Southern Maine

    Boudrow: ECAC Northeast Division III Player of the Year

    USCHO Staff Report
    -

    Tufts forward Jason Boudrow has been selected as the ECAC/CCM Player of the Year, in voting announced today. The junior helped the Jumbos capture the Division III Northeast regular season title (15-1-1) while leading the nation in points per game (2.83) and goals per game (1.33) through the February 25 rankings. Boudrow compiled 51 points, 24 goals and 27 assists in league play for an average of 3.00 points per game.

    Scott Jacob of Johnson & Wales was named the Goaltender of the Year. In 16 league appearances, the senior netminder recorded a 13-2-1 conference mark while registering a .931 save percentage and 2.09 goals against average en route to the team’s second place finish in the regular season. Jacob was ranked 11th among Division III goaltenders for his .921 save percentage.

    Worcester State’s Justin Vallas garnered the Rookie of the Year award. In his first collegiate season, Vallas led the team in scoring recording 31 points, 15 goals and 16 assists for the regular season. He also ranked third among all of the Northeast rookies in league scoring recording 13 goals and 12 assists in 17 games.

    Tufts’ Brian Murphy and Johnson & Wales’ Lou Izzi were chosen as co-Coaches of the Year after posting impressive marks. Murphy, in his third year with the Jumbos, guided Tufts to a 15-1-1 league record and a regular season championship. Wildcats coach Lou Izzi joined Murphy in the Coach of the Year accolades after leading Johnson & Wales, picked to finish sixth in the preseason poll, to a second-place regular season league finish (14-2-1) as well as an 18-7-2 overall mark.

    ALL LEAGUE FIRST TEAM

    F Jason Boudrow, JR, Tufts (Somerville, Mass.)
    F Brian Yingling, SO, Lebanon Valley (Steelton, Pa.)
    F Brian Hannafin, SR, Salve Regina (Medford, Mass.)
    D Tim Rink, SO, Lebanon Valley (Ivyland, Pa.)
    D Dan Mahoney, SR, Tufts (Tewksbury, Mass.)
    G Scott Jacob, SR, Johnson & Wales (Milford, Conn.)

    ALL LEAGUE SECOND TEAM

    F Tory Jacob, SR, Johnson & Wales (Milford, Conn.)
    F Ivan Filippov, SR, Wentworth (Delta, B.C.)
    F Tim Yakimowsky, JR, Wentworth (Walpole, Mass.)
    D Ben Kwon, SO, Lebanon Valley (McClean, Va.)
    D John Hourihan, SR, Wentworth (Walpole, Mass.)
    G Jamie Vanek, SO, Wentworth (Brampton, Ont.)

    ALL ROOKIE TEAM

    F Chris Thunman, Johnson & Wales (Stockholm, Sweden)
    F Justin Vallas, Worcester State (Wilmington, Mass.)
    F Pat Byrne, Tufts (Burlington, Mass.)
    D Chris Hartly, Wentworth (Portland, Ore.)
    D John Gambale, Fitchburg (Billerica, Mass.)
    G Raj Bhangoo, Wentworth (Caladon East, Ont.)

    ECAC/CCM PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Jason Boudrow, Tufts
    ECAC/CCM ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Justin Vallas, Worcester State
    ECAC/HEATON GOALTENDER OF THE YEAR: Scott Jacob, Johnson & Wales
    ECAC/KOHO CO-COACHES OF THE YEAR: Brian Murphy, Tufts; Lou Izzi, Johnson & Wales

    D-III Quarterfinal Hosts Announce Ticket Plans

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    The four host schools for the 2001 NCAA Division III quarterfinal round have announced ticket pricing and availability.

    Tickets are available now for the St. John’s at Wis.-Superior series. Tickets for each game are $5 for general admission and $6 for reserved seating, with reserved sections set aside for both Superior and St. John’s. Tickets can be reserved by calling the Superior Athletic Office at (715) 394-8193 or the St. John’s Athletic Office at (320) 363-2757.

    Reservations at Superior will be taken from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. through Thursday. Wessman Arena will open for cash sales and reserved ticket pickup on Friday at noon and Saturday at 2 p.m.

    Tickets go on sale Tuesday for the New England at Wis.-River Falls quarterfinals at $5 for each game. Tickets may be reserved at (715) 425-4289 and picked up and paid for at the door. W. H. Hunt Arena opens at 5:45 p.m. both days and any remaining tickets will be available at the arena.

    Tickets for Lebanon Valley at RIT will be available starting Tuesday at the Athletic Department business office in the Clark Gymnasium lobby on the RIT campus. Tickets for each night are $5 for adults and $3 for students and children. Hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. through Thursday, and from 8:30 a.m to 12:30 p.m. Friday. Tickets will be available at the Frank Ritter Memorial Arena starting at 6:30 p.m. before each game.

    No telephone reservations will be accepted, but with students on spring break, RIT expects walk-up tickets to be available for both games.

    Tickets for the Plattsburgh at Middlebury quarterfinals will go on sale at the Center of Arts Box Office on the Middlebury campus from 5-8 p.m. on Wednesday and Thursday, or until sold out. Series tickets are priced at $10 for adults and $6 for students. Individual game tickets also may be purchased at $6 for adults and $4 for students. If tickets remain on game day, they will be available one hour before game time at the Kenyon Arena. There is a limit of four tickets per person, and ticket reservations for this series will not be accepted by telephone.

    A block of 400 tickets will be available Wednesday at Plattsburgh’s Angell College Center. Tickets for holders of reserved season tickets only will go on sale from 6-8 p.m. Tickets will be available from 8-9 p.m. for members of the Cardinal Booster Club and for Plattsburgh faculty, students, and the college foundation. Any remaining tickets will be available to the general public from 9 p.m. until midnight, and on Thursday from 8 a.m. until noon. Tickets are $10 for adults and $6 for students and children for the two-game series and are limited to four per person.

    AWCHA Announces 4-team D-III Women’s Field

    USCHO Staff Report
    -

    Middlebury, St. Mary’s, Gustavus Adolphus and Williams have been selected by USA Hockey to participate in the American Women’s College Hockey Alliance Division III National Championship, to be held March 9-10 in Rochester, N.Y.

    This tournament marks the fourth year of the AWCHA National Championship, and the second-ever for Division III. This year, the NCAA will host its first official Women’s Ice Hockey Division I National Championship, with plans to add the Division III National Championship to its docket in 2002.

    Middlebury earned the first seed in the championship as the ECAC-III regular-season and playoff champion, finishing with an overall record of 21-1-1. The No. 1-ranked Panthers claimed the first-ever AWCHA Division III title last year in Boston by sweeping Augsburg, 5-1 and 8-1.

    Gustavus Adolphus will enter the tournament as the second seed after claiming both the regular-season and playoff crowns in the MIAC, and posting an overall record of 22-5-1.

    Williams, which defeated Manhattanville, 3-2, in overtime before dropping a 3-0 decision to Middlebury in the ECAC-III playoffs, was selected as the No. 3 seed. The Williams Ephs enter the championship holding a 20-4-1 overall record.

    St. Mary’s University rounds out the competition, coming into the postseason 21-6-1 after losing, 4-2, and tying, 1-1, against Gustavus in the MIAC playoffs.

    The championship will take place at the ESL Sports Centre in Rochester, N.Y. Tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for students for a single-day pass, $12/$8 for an all-events pass. Children five and under are admitted free. For ticket information, please contact the ESL Sports Centre at (716) 424-4625.

    The New York State Amateur Hockey Association and the Rochester Girls’ Hockey Association will provide event support and volunteers to staff the championship.

    The AWCHA is a program of USA Hockey funded through the United States Olympic Committee/NCAA Grant Program. The purpose of the AWCHA is to organize and develop activities with women’s intercollegiate varsity ice hockey teams to nationally promote the development and sponsorship of women’s ice hockey at all NCAA levels throughout the United States.

    Tournament Bracket

    Division III NCAA Brackets Announced

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    Undefeated RIT and NCHA-champion Wis.-Superior were named top seeds as the NCAA Division III men’s tournament brackets were announced today. With six automatic bids and RIT garnering a surefire spot, the drama came down to the final at-large bid, which went to Wis.-River Falls over NESCAC runner-up Amherst.

    Quarterfinal action takes place at the home arena of the higher seed Friday and Saturday March 9 and 10. Teams will play a two-game series, with a mini-game following Game 2 if necessary.

    In one bracket, RIT will host ECAC Northeast winner Lebanon Valley while Wis.-River Falls will host the winner of the ECAC East, New England College. In the other bracket, Superior will host MIAC champion St. John’s, while SUNYAC champion Plattsburgh visits NESCAC winner Middlebury.

    RIT is making its sixth consecutive visit to the NCAA tournament, and its eleventh since the Division III championship was started in 1984. RIT received the tournament’s Pool B berth, as the top team not a member of a conference eligible for an automatic qualifier. The Tigers (24-0-1) have Division III’s most potent offense, averaging 7.40 goals per game and the nation’s most effective power play, scoring better than 44 percent of the time with the man advantage.

    Facing that daunting opponent is Lebanon Valley (18-7-2), a hockey program in just its third season, making its first trip to the NCAA tournament. The Flying Dutchmen, fourth-seeded in the conference tournament, beat the fifth and third seeds before downing No. 2-seed Wentworth, 4-3, for the league crown.

    River Falls (21-8-2) returns to the tournament for the first time since 1998. The Falcons received the Pool C at-large bid as the highest-ranked team not winning its league title among the six conferences with an automatic qualifier. River Falls finished second in both the regular season and in the NCHA playoffs to Wis.-Superior.

    River Falls’ opponent, New England College (20-8-0), returns to the NCAA tournament for the first time since the Division III championship’s inception in 1984. The Pilgrims, seeded third in their conference tournament, beat second-seeded Salem State in the league semifinals, and then earned the automatic bid with a 2-1 win over the defending-national-champion Norwich Cadets for the ECAC East title.

    Superior (27-3-1) gained the automatic bid from the NCHA with a win and a tie against Wis.-River Falls in the conference championship series. The Yellowjackets are making their third straight NCAA appearance, having finished second to Middlebury in 1999, and losing a semifinal overtime game to last year’s champ Norwich.

    The Yellowjackets will take on St. John’s (15-10-4), the third seed in the MIAC playoffs. The Johnnies outlasted fourth-seeded Bethel with an overtime mini-game win after two ties in the conference final series to gain the MIAC automatic bid.

    Middlebury (23-2-1) makes its seventh consecutive trip to the NCAA’s. The Panthers outlasted Amherst in an overtime thriller, 4-3, in the NESCAC conference final for an automatic bid. Middlebury was the national champion in its first five NCAA tournaments, but saw that streak end when the defending champs were ousted last year in the quarterfinals at Plattsburgh.

    The Panthers will host Plattsburgh (25-5-0), which won its fifteenth SUNYAC championship by defeating Potsdam in a three-game series to earn an automatic bid. The Cardinals return to the NCAA tournament for the fifth consecutive season.

    Keith Aucoin Named ECAC East Player of the Year

    USCHO Staff Report
    -

    Norwich’s Keith Aucoin has been named ECAC/CCM All-East Player of the Year for the second consecutive season, as the conference announced its major award winners for 2000-2001. The senior helped the Cadets claim the East regular-season title (13-3-1) while becoming the league’s top scorer with 45 points in just 17 games.

    Aucoin also ranks fourth among the Division III’s top scorers in points per game (2.00) and first in shorthanded goals (7) through Feb. 25. His efforts enabled Norwich to claim the top seed and home ice throughout the East playoffs.

    Salem State’s Kaleb Christenson received ECAC/Heaton Goaltender of the Year honors. In 16 league appearances Christenson recorded a 10-4-2 mark and .931 save percentage. The sophomore’s netminder consistency was the key to Salem State’s second place league finish.

    Aucoin’s teammate, Chris Petracco was selected as the ECAC/CCM Rookie of the Year. Petracco made a smooth transition into college hockey during which he led all rookies in scoring both in league action, recording 15 goals and 13 assists in 17 games, and overall with 18 goals and 14 assists. The rookie’s stellar first-year performance enabled Norwich to capture their second consecutive league title.

    Babson’s Paul Donato was named ECAC/KOHO Coach of the Year. In his seventh season behind the Beaver’s bench, Donato guided Babson to an 8-6-3 regular season league record (15-7-4 overall).

    ALL EAST FIRST TEAM

    F Keith Aucoin, Sr, Norwich
    F Eric Bookbinder, SR, Babson
    F Ralph Aiello, SR, New England College
    D Mark Fontas, SR, UMass Boston
    D Toza Crnilovic, SO, Norwich
    G Kaleb Christenson, SO, Salem State

    ALL EAST SECOND TEAM

    F Bobby Weston, SR, Babson
    F Keith Wallace, SR, New England College
    F Chris Petracco, FR, Norwich
    D Derek Trainor, SR, UMass Boston
    D Rob Miller, SR, Salem State
    G Greg Berard, JR, Babson

    ALL EAST ROOKIE TEAM

    F Derek Nisula, Babson
    F Eric Tkacz, Babson
    F Greg LeColst, Salem State
    F Chris Petracco, Norwich
    D Johan Alderin, New England College
    D Lou DiMasi, Norwich

    ECAC/CCM PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Keith Aucoin, Norwich
    ECAC/CCM ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Chris Petracco, Norwich
    ECAC/HEATON GOALTENDER OF THE YEAR: Kaleb Christenson, Salem State
    ECAC/KOHO COACH OF THE YEAR: Paul Donato, Babson

    New Hampshire College Leads Award Winners

    USCHO Staff Report
    -

    New Hampshire College, regular-season champions of the ECAC Northeast Division II, earned was the big winner as the conference handed out its yearly awards. NHC garnered an all-league selection, two all-rookie team choices, Player of the Year, and Goalie of the Year honors. Following closely behind was Stonehill with two all-league selections, Rookie of the Year, and Coach of the Year accolades.

    New Hampshire College’s Chuck Croteau earned top honors as the ECAC/CCM Player of the Year. The senior forward was among the top points scorers in the ECAC as well as the team leader in points. Croteau tallied 12 goals and 19 assists in league action, and 15 goals and 28 assists overall, en route to the team’s top finish in the Northeast Division II league.

    Teammate Brian Holland received the ECAC/Heaton Goaltender of the Year award. The freshman posted a 10-2-0 overall record for a .833 winning percentage and a .884 save percentage in his first year of college hockey. Holland’s performance behind the net resulted in New Hampshire College garnering a 13-4-0 Northeast and a 17-7-1 overall record.

    Assumption’s Andrew Senesi and Stonehill’s Rob Pascale joined the All Star accolades as ECAC/CCM Co-Rookies of the Year. Pascale made a smooth transition into college hockey during which he led all rookie scorers in the Northeast with 15 goals and 12 assists in league action. The freshman was also among Stonehill’s top scorers. Assumption’s Senesi also recorded a stellar first year. The rookie recorded nine goals and ten assists to rank among the top rookie’s in the league.

    Stonehill’s Scott Harlow garnered the ECAC/KOHO coach of the year honor for his efforts behind the Chieftain’s bench. In his first year, Harlow led a team that was selected in the preseason poll to finish fourth to a second place finish and a 9-8-0 league record.

    ALL-LEAGUE TEAM

    F Chuck Croteau, SR, New Hampshire Coll. (Wellington, Fla.)
    F Jason Harrington, SR, Saint Michael’s (Gloucester, Mass.)
    F Jeff Rowe, SR, Stonehill (Yarmouthport, Mass.)
    D Mike Griffin, SR, Saint Michael’s (Wethersfield, Conn.)
    D Ethan Andreas, SR, Stonehill (Rockville, Md.)
    G Simon Theberge, JR, Saint Michael’s (Ste. Therese, Que.)

    HONORABLE MENTION

    F Dan Roy, SR, New Hampshire College
    D Jim Walsh, JR, Saint Michael’s
    D Tom Fielding, SR, New Hampshire College

    ALL ROOKIE TEAM

    F Rob Pascale, Stonehill (South Portland, Maine)
    F Andrew Senesi, Assumption (Arlington, Mass.)
    F Justin Quenneville, Saint Michael’s (Montreal, Ont.)
    D Brent Hill, Saint Michael’s (Alberta)
    D Chris Wingren, New Hampshire Coll. (East Greenwich, R.I.)
    G Brian Holland, New Hampshire Coll. (Bordentown, N.J.)

    ECAC/CCM PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Chuck Croteau, New Hampshire College
    ECAC/CCM CO-ROOKIES OF THE YEAR: Andrew Senesi, Assumption; Rob Pascale, Stonehill
    ECAC/HEATON GOALTENDER OF THE YEAR: Brian Holland, New Hampshire College
    ECAC/KOHO COACH OF THE YEAR: Scott Harlow, Stonehill

    This Week In Hockey East: March 1, 2001

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    Volatility

    Hockey East enters the final weekend of the season without a single position set in the playoffs. The regular season crown could go to either Boston College or Providence, the latter of which could finish anywhere from first to fourth. New Hampshire and Maine could finish as high as second or could fall out of playoff home ice. Boston University’s place in the standings potentially ranges from third place down to seventh, two spots out of the cellar. Whether it will be Merrimack or UMass-Amherst that takes the final playoff berth may not be known until late Saturday night.

    All of which prompted BU coach Jack Parker to observe a couple weeks ago, “One of the reasons why we’ve had all the struggles we’ve had and are also still in the hunt for home ice is because the league is so balanced. No one has a 2-17 record so everyone has a hard time every night. But if you win a couple games, you can jump into it.”

    Not even the individual statistical races are set. Brian Gionta (32 points) holds a slim lead over Devin Rask (30 points) in the scoring race. Ty Conklin (1.92 GAA) has a slightly more comfortable lead over Scott Clemmensen (2.15 GAA), but goals-against can be a volatile statistic. The ITECH Three-Stars Contest shows Conklin (24 points) with only the slimmest of margins over Gionta (23 points).

    The NCAA Picture

    If the NCAA field had been selected after Friday night’s games, Hockey East would have placed four teams in the tourney. Boston College, UNH and Providence have been in the Pairwise Ranking Top 10 for the entire stretch run. Maine joined them at number 10, nestled right behind Providence and UNH, after Friday night’s overtime win over Merrimack. Contributing to the rise were key losses by Western Michigan and Wisconsin.

    However, the volatility of the last few slots became abundantly clear one night later when Maine slid all the way back to number 15. The Black Bears could manage only a tie with Merrimack, but might have expected their Record in the Last 16 Games category to actually improve since the tie was replacing a loss. (Their Dec. 10 loss to Boston College had been the oldest game of their last 16; after Saturday’s game it was no longer included in the 16.)

    Instead, the Black Bears fell to 15 due to the tie’s negative impact on the other categories and even more so because of wins by the five teams that bypassed them: Clarkson, Nebraska-Omaha, Denver, Wisconsin and Western Michigan. The first three finished off weekend sweeps, while the latter two recovered to split.

    In fact, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see almost the same level of uncertainty two weeks from now as we look to the league semifinals. There will likely be a razor-thin margin between making and missing the tournament this year.

    Tickets Going Fast

    Tickets for the Hockey East championship weekend at the FleetCenter on Mar. 16-17 are selling at an unprecedented rate. Sales recently passed the 20,000 ticket barrier, the earliest that threshold has ever been passed. While it isn’t known whether that represents an even 10,000 – 10,000 split between the semifinal and final dates, it still points to the likelihood of a packed house on both nights.

    “Up until two or three years ago, we didn’t sell 20,000 tickets for the whole event,” says Hockey East Commissioner Joe Bertagna. “So this is terrific given that we don’t even know who is going to be there.

    “I don’t want people to think it’s sold out already and not buy tickets, but certainly the interest has been great and we’re on schedule to maybe sell the thing out again.”

    No FleetCenter In 2003?

    Hockey East is facing a tough decision regarding its 2003 tournament. The FleetCenter will not be available during the weekend that the championship round is now scheduled to occur.

    Since 1990, Hockey East’s sixth year, it has played its semifinal and championship games at the Boston Garden or its successor, the FleetCenter. Add in 1987 and 1988 as two more Garden years and the league has established a tradition on Causeway Street. Ticket sales for this year certainly show that it’s a successful one.

    However, two circumstances have conspired to force Hockey East to either adjust its schedule or look elsewhere in 2003.

    “BC and the FleetCenter bid for the NCAA basketball tournament round [in 2003,]” explains Bertagna. “They checked with all the schedules. They thought they did everything the right way. And they got the bid.

    “So on the weekend of March 21st and 22nd of 2003, the FleetCenter will have basketball. [There was] the expectation that our tournament would be the previous weekend, the 15th and 16th.”

    Unfortunately, after the basketball deal was signed, the NCAA moved the Frozen Four to one week later than originally expected, from April 5 to April 12. Working back from that point, the league championships now fall on Mar. 21-22, when the FleetCenter will be hosting NCAA basketball.

    “So right now we don’t have access to the FleetCenter on that date,” says Bertagna. “We have to make a decision of whether to go to a different building or stay in the FleetCenter a week earlier.

    “If we go a week earlier, the teams will have a week off before they go to the regionals and then they’ll have another week off [before the Frozen Four]. At that point in the year, that doesn’t affect that many teams. You’re only talking about those teams that advance to the [NCAA] Tournament and those teams that make it through the regionals that will have that double-week off.

    “But it’ll be [a question of] is it a good time to have a week off? You can go scout a team you might face in the nationals. You might be able to rest some tired players. Or if you are a team that catches fire late in the year, is it going to slow your momentum?”

    The week off didn’t hurt UNH in 1998 after Maine upset the Wildcats in the league quarterfinals. They advanced to the Frozen Four. On the other hand, one year earlier in similar circumstances Vermont looked a step slow in the early going and dug itself a hole against Denver and lost.

    Furthermore, many Eastern fans still view the one-week layoff in 1992 between the Hockey East and ECAC tournaments and the NCAAs as a primary reason why every single Eastern team lost its first game, even those with byes facing presumably tired opponents.

    It’ll be a tough decision, but it’s also hard to envision the league walking away from the great success it’s had at the FleetCenter.

    NCAA Byes, Take Two

    Here’s an update on last week’s column and its coverage of the NCAA Tournament byes issue.

    “I know the coaches are confused, but they shouldn’t have been if they were at the meeting in Florida,” said selection committee chair Bill Wilkinson. “The minutes were probably out in August or September. They had all the information about the change that was going to take place.”

    As it turns out, that isn’t the case, which makes the confusion described last week all the more understandable. The topic of byes was never discussed with the coaches in the spring at their convention, and therefore was not in the minutes of those meetings. The change was made in July by the selection committee without the input of the coaches. Which has many of them upset.

    “The coaches want to be heard,” says Bertagna. “The two committees, the hockey committee that Billy [Wilkinson] chairs and the rules committee that I chair, do have an obligation to listen to and get input from the coaches.

    “Sometimes the coaches feel that they can decide the issues, [but that isn’t the case]. For example, if they say that they want to vote unanimously to get rid of the facemask, well, the rules committee can recommend that, but it’s not going to happen because we’ll get overruled by the NCAA.

    “[However], at least procedurally, the membership should be heard before an issue of great import gets voted on by either committee. If we came back from the rules committee and said that we were going to a two-ref, two-linesmen system and never discussed it, that would be somewhat irresponsible on our part.

    “This change about the byes is so significant that for it to have emanated from [the selection committee’s] July discussion in Idaho and not have been discussed in April [at the Coaches’ Convention] has a lot of coaches upset.

    “We found the minutes of that meeting and it was not discussed. There were five pages of very detailed minutes kept by [the NCAA’s] John Painter. He had emailed me in June and I saved them. There is no discussion at all about that.”

    So while the bye change was announced on the NCAA website and on USCHO in July, it was never discussed at the coaches’ meeting in April. The fact that so many missed the July announcement can be traced not only to the more momentous decisions of dropping the number of each conference’s automatic bids from two to one and the awarding of an automatic bid to the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, but also to the absence of discussion on the topic in April, as would have been the norm.

    “It’s going to be a fairly cantankerous session this April [at the Coaches’ Convention,]” says Bertagna. “I hope for Billy Wilkinson’s sake that he gets some help because last year he was the only committee member at that meeting.

    “There are four people on that committee, but he’s the only coach. The others [Ron Grahame (Denver assistant athletic director), Ian McCaw (Northeastern athletic director) and Jack McDonald (Quinnipiac athletic director)] are all administrators. They’re not normally at that part of the convention.

    “The athletic directors either don’t go down there or they go down early in the week. Our ADs meet Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and then they go home as the Coaches’ Convention starts on Thursday.

    “It makes it tough for one guy [Wilkinson] to stand up there and answer all the questions because he’s not the committee. It was a group decision, a group vote. Unfortunately, he’s probably going to have to face the fire.

    “It’s not fair to him to leave him and the NCAA liaison to face the hostile crowd. So hopefully the whole committee will be there and will get a good airing of it. I’m sure it’s going to be pretty vocal.”

    Double-Dipping?

    It may have already happened by the time you read this, but Hockey East will be bringing the first place trophy to Boston College on Thursday for its game against Northeastern. A tie will clinch the Eagles’ first regular season title since 1991 and the trophy will be presented after the game.

    It will also give the school a sweet back-to-back achievement since its basketball team was presented with the Big East trophy one night earlier for its last-to-first turnaround season.

    Revenge Is Sweet

    Providence’s Drew Omicioli scored three goals in a sweep over UMass-Lowell last weekend, a delicious irony for the junior who fractured his elbow against the River Hawks on Jan. 27. He missed the next four games before playing in a limited role against BU two weeks ago. Last weekend, he was penciled in on the Friars’ fourth line until Cody Loughlean suffered an ankle injury and Omicioli stepped in next to Devin Rask and Peter Fregoe on the top unit. He responded with a shorthanded goal in the first period and the game-winner in the third. One night later, he got another game-winner in a 2-1 contest.

    “Coach asked me to step up,” Omicioli said after the Thursday game. “Just prior to that I think he sensed that I had a little bit of fire in me.

    “[After that,] I wanted to stay up there [on the first line.] You have to give it 100 percent every time, but especially when you’re fighting for position.

    “When I came back from the broken elbow and played at BU, I was still a little bit sore, but with the rehab now I’m 100 percent.”

    So was it extra sweet to do it against Lowell?

    “Definitely!” he said. “These guys — one guy — put me out for about two weeks, put me in the hospital for surgery, so, yeah, definitely that put a little fire in me. That put a lot of fire in there. I definitely wanted to get them back, especially on the scoreboard.”

    The World Junior Effect

    Historically, players have returned from the World Junior Tournament with an extra jump in their step. Providence’s Jon DiSalvatore, however, has struggled. After scoring a goal in his first game back, he’s been shut out with only three assists to show for his efforts.

    Providence coach Paul Pooley, however, isn’t overly concerned.

    “I think Jon has gotten to the point where he’s probably fighting it a little bit,” he says. “But you know what? As long as he keeps going out there, playing good defensively and making smart puck decisions and shooting the puck, things will happen for him.

    “It’s not easy to score in college. It’s a situation where he still has some hockey left in him this year and we’re excited about getting him going. Right now, he’s doing a good job for us.

    “I don’t care who scores. I just care about if we win or not and how we play. I know the kids want to score goals, but you know what? That’s not what it’s all about. We just have to learn to play good defense and put the team first. That’s all I’m happy with.

    “The year we won the Hockey East championship [1996], our leading scorer had 35 points, but we found a way to win. That’s all we’re trying to do, win hockey games.”

    The Weekend’s Biggest Series

    The games with the most at stake in terms of the postseason are Providence’s trip for two this weekend in Orono.

    Maine coach Shawn Walsh likes the way his team is rounding into postseason form.

    “We went through the month of February with just one loss,” he says. “We’re playing awfully well right now.”

    The Black Bears have become Cardiac Kids of sorts, winning three of their last seven in overtime.

    “Our confidence is really high,” says Walsh. “It’s a much different feeling than we had in January and December. I think we’re also really starting to click as a team. We’ve got some components. We’re healthy.

    “We know who our checkers are now. We know who our offensive players are now. The components that make me comfortable about my team are falling in to place the way I want them to.

    “I thought [goaltender Matt] Yeats played well [on Saturday.] He needed to get a good game back [after a rough one on Friday.]”

    Walsh hasn’t just been focused on each weekend’s games and the Hockey East standings, but also where the Black Bears fit on the national scene.

    “We’re looking at the NCAA picture,” he says. “I told our guys that there were four or five teams on the bubble, which we certainly are and we’ve got to do better than those teams. [This] weekend will have a lot to say [about that] and then the playoff performance.

    “We certainly are in position to play our way in. If we don’t get it done, some points early in the year that we lost that we shouldn’t have lost will come back to haunt us.

    “But we’re in position. That’s what we have to do now.”

    Walsh acknowledges that it won’t be easy against Providence even at home.

    “Goaltending will be a major key,” he says. “Certainly their top line is their key. This weekend, they got five out of their six goals. But Providence is a very well-rounded, thorough team. I liked watching them. Their freshmen defensemen have really improved, which is natural because every day they go against the Fregoes and DiSalvatores and guys like that.

    “They’re just a thorough team. Paul [Pooley] has done a wonderful job. I think we’re a pretty thorough team, too. It should be a great series. It’s a classic way to end the season.”

    Like Maine, Providence also enters the series flying high. The Friars have posted a 6-1-1 record since the start of February including a sweep of UMass-Lowell last weekend.

    “We’re learning how to play the game smartly,” says Pooley. “We’ve concentrated on our hits, our faceoffs and limiting turnovers all year.

    “It doesn’t have to be pretty. It just has to be effective. We’re not putting on a show. We’re just trying to win a hockey game. That’s what we’re trying to get our kids to understand. …

    “Against Maine we just have to play a simple game. Rather than turning the puck over, we have to go up there and be physical and play good with the puck and without the puck. Those are the things we’ve tried to stress.”

    No one knows who will join Fregoe and Rask on the top line. Loughlean could return to the tandem after suffering an ankle injury last weekend. He’s day-to-day. Or Omicioli could stay with the twosome who helped him score three goals last weekend.

    “Cody has added a lot of jump to the hockey team the last few weeks,” says Pooley. “If he’s healthy, he gives us some flexibility to move some people around. Drew has obviously done well with that line when he’s played there. We’re just looking for some consistency. Cody would certainly add to the front of the power play when he’s out there.”

    Who Gets In? Who’s Left Out?

    Will it be UMass-Amherst, which plays New Hampshire twice this weekend, or Merrimack, which has only one game and that coming against BU at Walter Brown Arena? The status quo puts Merrimack in, but with a game in hand the Minutemen could get the one additional point more than the Warriors that is needed.

    UMass took a surprising point from Boston College last Friday. One might have suspected that the Minutemen would have a confidence crisis against the high-flying Eagles, but not so.

    “I tried to scare the hell out of them,” says UMass coach Don “Toot” Cahoon with a grin. He then turns serious. “One of the most important issues in trying to grow this program is to try to get these guys to feel good about what they’re doing and to enjoy the process regardless of what the outcome of the games are. That’s sensitive, fragile territory and we’re working real hard in that area.”

    Team captain Jeff Turner has been a real leader despite not putting up the points he did last year.

    “He’s grown as a player in a lot of ways,” says Cahoon. “Everyone is looking to Jeff to be productive offensively and score points. What he’s learned over the course of the year is that with the type of team that we have, we need to do a lot of other things away from the puck. He’s been much stronger away from the puck the second half of the year.

    “As a result of that, he’s so much more dependable, so much more important in situations. As a team, we’ve improved a little bit in that area. It doesn’t show up so much in Ws yet, but it gives us the opportunity to play in games like [the tie with BC] that maybe at the beginning of the year we wouldn’t have been able to play.”

    Merrimack coach Chris Serino may not have used his usual quips about a “suicide watch” after Friday’s surrendering of a third-period lead and loss in overtime. The loss was likely too painful, both on its effect on the standings and on how it happened. The Warriors played much better one night later in gaining an important point in a 1-1 tie.

    “I put up on the bulletin board [before Saturday] that the next two games are our playoffs,” said Serino after the tie. “If we don’t play them like playoff games, we’ll be home. We’ve got to get some points next week at BU.

    “We wanted to win [on Saturday.] You get close to two points at this time of the year and it’s huge. Any points you get are huge, but two would have really, really helped us. To give one away last [Friday] like we did, I don’t know…

    “I was so disappointed in the way we played the third [period that] night and the fact that we didn’t pay attention to detail on the winning goal.

    “I thought that playing not to lose was gone from here, but it came back for a period and I didn’t like that.

    “I was pleased with the [tie] in the way that we played to the [tie]. [In the loss,] we came out in the third period and sat on the lead and just waited and waited and waited. [In the tie,] the only thing we talked about at the end of the second period was that we weren’t going to play just to play. We wanted to win the game. We were going to play to win. And that’s how we played the third period. It was quite a reversal.”

    Savastano Gets The Last Word

    Merrimack scoreboard operator and audio guru John Savastano was at his best last Saturday when visiting Maine fans began to chant, “Let’s Go Maine!”

    Savastano flashed a message on the scoreboard that prompted many a chuckle: “SHUT UP”

    The long-time Merrimack supporter, whose brother Rick performs the public address duties, has been known to play the sound of jets taking off when the Warriors face Air Force.

    His funniest addition to the Volpe Complex ambience hasn’t been heard in recent years, perhaps the sign of Merrimack’s improving teams. In the past when a game has just gone down the tubes, Savastano played the sound of a flushing toilet.

    They Did A Brain Scan And Couldn’t Find A Thing

    Maybe it was the adrenaline rush of having made a school-record 60 saves to tie Boston College, but goaltender Mike Johnson uttered a sentiment that may have been as rare as his performance.

    “I wouldn’t mind running into these guys again,” he said, causing a few blinks of surprise and perhaps mental note that he needed some oxygen. “I think we can beat them if we play our style and they play theirs. We match up decently.

    “We know they’re a talented team and everybody knows that we’re not as talented as they are overall. We just got to beat them with hard work. That’s the only way you can beat a talented team, by outworking them on the offensive and defensive end.”

    That confidence may well come in handy. If the Minutemen make the playoffs, they’ll almost certainly be facing Boston College.

    Selected Notes

  • BC has not lost two games in a row this season. Each of BC’s losses have been followed by a victory with a total goal differential of 43-20.
  • Going into last weekend, BC freshmen had a total scoring line of 42-64-106, far and away best in the league. Back in November, Chuck Kobasew and Tony Voce combined to earn Rookie of the Week four straight times. The last time once conference team achieved the feat was in 1992-93 when Maine had some guy, Paul Whatshisname, on the way to 100 points and the Hobey Baker Award as a freshman.
  • Maine has outshot opponents, 1097-765, this year but holds only a 90-76 margin in scoring. The Black Bears are 12-1-2 when scoring more than two goals.
  • What went through UMass-Amherst goaltender Mike Johnson’s head as he made diving, acrobatic saves? “I’m thinking I’m getting really lucky tonight,” he answered with a grin.
  • Merrimack is undefeated when defenseman Stephen Moon scores a goal (5-0-0). Clearly, the big guy’s lack of scoring in the other 30 games is why the Warriors haven’t sewn up a playoff berth yet.
  • And if you think I’m serious about the last one, you haven’t seen the Warriors play much this year. Moon has been among the best blueliners in the league while logging major minutes.
  • It was a great story to see Merrimack’s Mark Ferullo finally crack the lineup last Saturday. “The kid waited two years to play and at three different schools,” said Serino. “He never says a word.”
  • Lawrence-Eagle Tribune writer Kevin Conway notes that unless Merrimack defeats BU this weekend the Warriors will have failed to win a season series with a single Hockey East team. That’s the bad news. The good news is that they’ve taken points from every single team. Had they held on for an overtime tie last Friday against Maine, they’d have taken at least two points from each team: two ties with Maine and UNH with single wins against the other six opponents. The Warriors aren’t far away from making a real move in the standings.
  • The usual danger for the person opening the penalty box door is catching a flying puck in the head. The unfortunate fellow at Merrimack on Saturday, however, suffered a different injury. When Ryan Kiley was checked over the boards into the penalty box, his skate came down on kid’s foot. Apparently it cut him pretty badly since the game stopped and he had to be helped from the ice. Here’s hoping for a quick recovery.
  • Merrimack senior John Pyliotis proved to be the master of using defensemen to score last weekend. Other teams’ defensemen, that is. Friday night he attempted a pass, but it went off a Maine defenseman’s leg and right back to him, where he shot past Matt Yeats, who had slid over to play the pass. One night later he again attempted to pass and this time it deflected off A.J. Begg’s skate through Yeats’ five-hole. One time is a fluke, folks. Two times is talent.
  • Merrimack may need to get a point at Walter Brown Arena this weekend to make the playoffs, but the Warriors haven’t been “Road” Warriors this year with a 3-9-1 record away from Volpe. (Thanks to Sports Information Director Tom O’Brien for that twist on the team nickname.)
  • On the other hand, the River Hawks have been masters of the road, compiling an 8-6-1 mark away from the Tsongas Arena, where they are 8-7-2. Which leads coach Tim Whitehead to say, “It’s always good to have home ice [in the playoffs] … but of equal importance is who you end up playing. Sometimes that’s a bigger factor than home and away. But it’s too early to find out. We’ve had our success on the road, so we’ll just have to wait and see.”
  • Northeastern defenseman Arik Engbrecht will miss Thursday’s contest against Boston College with a shoulder injury and is also likely to be out of the lineup on Friday against Lowell.
  • So are the Providence Friars just focusing on second place or are they taking a little peek at the NCAAs? “The first thing we wanted to do was get home ice, which we clinched [on Thursday,]” said Omicioli. “[But now] that’s what we’re striving for, the national tournament. We haven’t been there since ’96. Now we know we’re only a few games away from being there.”
  • The Friars are 11 games over .500 for the first time since the 1990-91 season.

    • Trivia Contest

    Last week’s question asked, who is the youngest player in Hockey East this year?

    The answer is sophomore sensation Anthony Aquino of Merrimack, who despite his youth ranks third in Hockey East scoring. If he doesn’t rack up some postseason honors, something is rotten in the state of Denmark.

    Jeff Cox was the first with the correct answer and his cheer is:

    “Lets Go Merrimack! Go Warriors!”

    This week’s question asks: what Boston-area school does UMass-Amherst hold the best all-time record against? (Cambridge, Brookline and Chestnut Hill are considered to be in the Boston area. North Andover and Lowell are not.)

    Hint: You may need to think beyond the usual boundaries.

    Send your answers or wild guesses to Dave Hendrickson.

    Thanks to Michael Kobylanski for his assistance.

    This Week In The MAAC: March 1, 2001

    By
    -

    This is it — the final week of the regular season. We know now who the regular season champion is, so a hearty congratulations to Mercyhurst. The Lakers grabbed their first regular season title, ending the two-year streak of Quinnipiac, by virtue of wins over Iona and Army at home last weekend.

    But that’s pretty much all that is decided. Quinnipiac and Iona will look this weekend to decide their battle for second and third seeds in the Easton/MAAC Hockey League Championships. Canisius needs just a tie this weekend against Sacred Heart or Fairfield to wrap up the final home playoff spot over Sacred Heart and Connecticut. And Army, AIC and Fairfield will fight for their playoff lives, with two of those three teams moving on and one heading home.

    As the non-stop excitement continues, it’s time for me to give a bit of a review session here, and award my choices for the top players in the MAAC league.

    I will say, first off, that this is easily the toughest it has been in three years to decide who the creme de la creme among MAAC players is. The talent pool continues to improve every year, particularly between the pipes, making goaltender selections even tougher.

    But, alas, here are those who I believe deserve a tip of the fedora. Fan mail and hate mail, as always, are still welcome.

    First-Team MAAC All Stars

    Forwards

    Chris Cerrella, Quinnipiac Cerrella has had the pressure of being one of the most hunted players in the MAAC all three seasons of its existence. But with that pressure has still been able to perform night-in and night-out. With 42 points (18 goals, 24 assists) Cerrella leads the league this season in points and points per game and is second only to Iona defenseman Nathan Lutz (30) in assists. If Quinnipiac is to make a run for the MAAC Championship and the NCAA auto-bid, Cerrella will be the shoulders that will carry the load.

    Ryan Manitowich, Iona In last year’s MAAC Championship tournament, the Iona Gaels showed that they were a contender — upsetting Canisius and Quinnipiac before losing to Connecticut for the championship. Ryan Manitowich scored only a goal and two assists in the tournament for Iona and was held off the scoreboard in the championship game. But anyone that watched the tournament knew that this was a top-prospect player. This year, as a sophomore, Manitowich netted 21 goals with 17 assists and is currently second in MAAC scoring, four points behind Cerrella. Iona has to be happy that they have two more years of the phenom — especially if he produces as he has this season.

    Shawn Mansoff, Quinnipiac When Shawn Mansoff came to Quinnipiac in 1998 after spending two season with the University of Maine, a college powerhouse, it was evident that he had one thing in mind — to be an impact player. That he did immediately, leading the MAAC is scoring last year winning him the Chase Manhattan Bank Offensive Player of the Year award a season ago. Though point production has fallen off, Mansoff’s impact has not. When on his game, he is the best player in the league. This year, he ranked fifth in scoring with 35 points (18 goals, 17 assists), and will be another top player to watch in this year’s playoffs.

    Defense

    Jody Robinson, Mercyhurst Mercyhurst proved one thing this season to the entire college hockey world — they don’t make it easy to score goals. With a 2.17 overall goals against average and a stingy 1.88 GAA in league play, Mercyhurst is one of the NCAA’s best defensive clubs. And leading that defensive corps all year has been senior Jody Robinson. Listed a 6-foot-2, Robinson has been on of the best impact defensemen in the league. He is a key part of Mercyhurst’s league-best penalty killing unit, working at 90.6 percent efficiency in league games. Robinson has only scored 14 points (two goals, 12 assists), but when you play defense like he and his Lakers do, who needs offense?

    Nathan Lutz, Iona Iona entered the season known for its offensive potency. With marquee names like Ryan Cater, Manitowich and Adam Bouchard all returning, its no surprise that Iona’s offense is averaging 4.71 goals per game in MAAC play. What is surprising, though, is that Iona’s defense has lowered its goals against per game by nearly half a goal from a year ago, and for much of the season was ranked among the top three defenses in the league (currently stands tied for fifth in MAAC games). Nathan Lutz has been a key to Iona’s defensive improvement. At the same time, he’s chipped in 35 points (five goals, 30 assists) and is the only defensemen among the top ten in overall scoring in the league. Best part for Iona, he’s only a junior.

    Goaltender

    Peter Aubry, Mercyhurst

    With all the great goaltenders in the MAAC, it still isn’t that hard to choose the goaltender of the year. Mercyhurst’s Peter Aubry has been not only a brick wall for the Lakers, but a work horse and has guided his club to the MAAC regular season title. Standing at what the roster says is 6-foot-3, Aubry takes up plenty of net, but is still fast to recover for rebound saves. With a 2.10 goals against average, Aubry ranks fourth in the NCAA, and his .924 save percentage ranks him fifth in the country. As a junior, Aubry has recorded the decision in all but four of the Lakers games this year, posting a 16-8-2 overall record (16-4-1 record in the MAAC), top in the league.

    Offensive Player of the Year: Cerrella, Quinnipiac

    Defensive Player of the Year: Lutz, Iona

    Goaltender of the Year: Aubry, Mercyhurst

    Second-Team MAAC All-Stars

    F Ryan Carter, Iona
    F Louis Goulet, Mercyhurst
    F Chris Duggan, Canisius
    D Matt Erhart, Quinnipiac
    D Aaron Arnett AIC
    G Eddy Ferhi, Sacred Heart

    Honorable Mentions —

    Forwards: Eric Ellis, Mercyhurst; Rae Metz, Fairfield; Adam Tackaberry, Mercyhurst; Defense: Les Hrapchak, Sacred Heart; Mike Boylan, UConn; Steve Tobio, Bentley; Goaltender: Chance Thede, AIC; Justin Eddy, Quinnipiac

    MAAC All-Rookie Team

    Forwards

    Adam Tackaberry, Mercyhurst When Adam Tackaberry arrived at Mercyhurst College from Neapan, Ont., head coach Rick Gotkin knew that he could make a bit of an impact in his first season. Gotkin noted his ability to handle the puck long before the season ever started. What Gotkin didn’t know was that this 21-year-old center would be the top rookie scorer in the MAAC. With 13 goals and 22 assists, Tackaberry has helped pace the Lakers offense that captured its first regular-season title, grabbing the top seed in the all-important MAAC Championship tournament. Tackaberry is the only rookie in the top ten in scoring in the league, tied for third with Mansoff and Lutz.

    Greg Kealey, Holy Cross Holy Cross will probably not write in its hockey archives that the 2000-2001 season was one of the most memorable. The MAAC tournament champion just two years removed, the Crusaders struggled from day one, and missed the MAAC tournament for the first time in the young history of the league. But to find a silver lining for Holy Cross’ future, you have to look no further than rookie Greg Kealey. With 29 points, Kealey is tied for the team lead in scoring with junior Pat Rismiller heading into the final weekend. He is one of only sic Crusaders to appear in all 30 games entering this weekend. In addition, Kealey has led the Holy Cross power play charge with 10 power play goals on a unit that is second overall in the league with a 23.2 percent efficiency.

    Guillaume Caron, American International Gary Wright’s AIC Yellow Jackets have been the surprise of the league this season. Picked to finish ninth by MAAC coaches in the preseason poll, the Yellow Jackets can finish as high as sixth place entering the final weekend. But that’s not the only surprise at AIC this year. Rookie forward Guillaume Caron has been a bright light for the Yellow Jacket offense, scoring 28 points (10 goals, 18 assists) to lead the AIC offense entering the final weekend of play. He was named MAAC Rookie of the Week in November for his hat-trick in a 7-4 win over Canisius.

    Defense

    Eric Nelson, Connecticut After winning the MAAC tournament championship a year ago, there were very few people who thought that UConn could be an impact team in the league this year. Having lost eight of 26 letterman to graduation, most felt the only way UConn would compete for a top playoff spot would be for their rookie class to have an immediate impact. Defenseman Eric Nelson is certainly one rookie who has. Offensively, Nelson has contributed 17 points (nine goals, eight assists), while defensively, Nelson has helped the Huskies keep things respectable. Their 3.42 goals against average in league play tied them for fifth with improved Iona — not bad considering between the pipes UConn had little to no experience after graduating workhorse Marc Senerchia.

    Daryl Pierce, Canisius In one of the closest voting one could imagine, the Canisius College Ice Griffs were picked by the MAAC coaches to finish seventh in the league this season. But remembering back to MAAC Media Day in early October, I remember the look on head coach Brian Cavanaugh’s face when asked what he thought of the pick. Though his response to the question was diplomatic, his face registered an expression of, “You’ve gotta be kidding me.” Maybe he knew that his rookie class was excellent. And also that rookie defenseman Daryl Pierce could be the top scoring defensemen on his club? Maybe? Well, that’s exactly what has happened, and with two games left, the Griffs are but a point away from capturing the home ice with a fourth place finish. That’s a far cry from seventh!

    Goaltender

    Justin Eddy, Quinnipiac Quinnipiac has enjoyed more riches in the MAAC league than any other club. But with two regular-season titles and a top three finish guaranteed, the Braves still feel a little empty from two playoffs losses in the past two years. Entering the year, many eyes were on J.C. Wells, the goaltender who carried Quinnipiac for the last two years. His numbers have been pretty good once again — a 6-2-1 record with a save percentage just below .900. But what few knew, was a second goaltender, Justin Eddy, would compliment Wells perfectly. Eddy has stepped into the Braves lineup and proved himself on of the top goalies in the league. His 2.74 goals against average ranks third behind Aubry and Ferhi. As the season has drawn on, Eddy’s play has led coach Rand Pecknold to give him a more permanent nod, with the chance to possibly bring home the first MAAC title for QU and a trip to the NCAA Championships.

    Honorable Mentions —

    Forwards: Trent Ulmer, AIC; Tim Krueckl, Iona; Jeff Dams, Holy Cross; Defense: R.J. Irving, Holy Cross; Wade Winkler, Quinnipiac; Goaltender: Jason Carey, Connecticut

    Offensive Rookie of the Year: Tackaberry, Mercyhurst

    Defensive Rookie of the Year: Eddy, Quinnipiac

    MAAC Coach of the Year

    Rick Gotkin, Mercyhurst With so many teams performing above expectations this season, it’s difficult to pick a coach whose team finished second last year as coach of the year — unless that coach is Mercyhurst’s Rick Gotkin. Sure, maybe the Lakers did what everybody expected them to do — dominate the league for much, if not all, of the season, and be crowned regular season champion. But the fact of the matter is that no team had even come close to knocking off Quinnipiac in the first two seasons. So for a second-year MAAC member from Erie, Penn., the ability to win the MAAC regular season title makes Gotkin an easy selection.

    The Lakers, similar to Canisius, are faced with a challenge that few teams in the MAAC face. Pretty much every other week, both Mercyhurst and Canisius are forced to travel 400 to 500 miles to play road games. Mercyhurst, under Gotkin, has funded the team to fly to many of its road games, allowing the students to gain an extra day of classes on Thursday, to skate on their home ice Thursday afternoons and the fly out Thursday evening.

    Gotkin is in his 13th season at Mercyhurst. Over that time, the Lakers have gone from a Division III program, to Division II and eventually to Division I last season upon entering the MAAC. The Lakers three times qualified for the NCAA Tournament at the Division II and Division III level, and are three wins away in the MAAC playoffs from adding a Division I appearance to that repertoire.

    UNH Lands 2002 Women’s Frozen Four

    USCHO Staff Report
    -

    The NCAA Women’s Ice Hockey Committee has picked the University of New Hampshire to host the second NCAA Women’s Frozen Four, in 2002, on campus at the 6,501-seat Whittemore Center.

    The semifinal games will be played March 22, and the championship game is scheduled for March 24.

    “We are delighted to have been chosen as the 2002 site for the NCAA Women’s Hockey Frozen Four,” said UNH athletic director Marty Scarano. “UNH is one of the nation’s ‘charter institutions’ in sponsoring women’s ice hockey and has a great tradition. We are justly proud of our hockey teams and the Whittemore Center. This will allow UNH to showcase its fine programs. We are sure the NCAA will find the ‘Whitt’ a fine venue to host this prestigious event.”

    This year’s inaugural Women’s Frozen Four will be hosted by Minnesota at Mariucci Arena, March 23 & 25.

    UNH reportedly beat out a bid by Yale.

    “The awarding of the 2002 NCAA National Championship to UNH is a very proud moment for our women’s ice hockey program,” said UNH coach Karen Kay. “The tradition we’ve established, along with the outpouring of support we’ve received from the Seacoast community, has been instrumental to the success of UNH hockey and has made the Whittemore Center a special place to play for our student-athletes. I know that UNH hockey and the enitre state of New Hampshire will pull together to make this championship one that the NCAA will be very proud of.”

    The Whittemore Center played host to the ECAC women’s hockey Championships in 1996 — the building’s opening season — when the Wildcats defeated Providence in the longest game in NCAA history. Brandy Fisher, who was named the winner of the 1998 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, scored in the fifth overtime to end the game with a win for the Wildcats.

    New Hampshire owns the fourth-highest women’s hockey attendance in in the nation for the 2000-01 season. That number, however, does not include the 1,871 fans — the largest crowd ever for a women’s hockey game at the Whittemore Center — who witnessed the Feb. 10 exhibition game against the U.S. National Team.

    Prior to the NCAA’s sponsorship of a national championship, the American Women’s College Hockey Alliance (AWCHA) crowned titleists in the 1998, 1999 and 2000 seasons. New Hampshire won the inaugural national championship in 1998 and advanced to the title game in 1999.

    Tickets for the 2002 Women’s Frozen Four will become available on March 12 and can be obtained by calling TicketMaster at (603) 868-7300. Ticket prices for both sessions are $40 for adults, children and seniors and $20 for UNH students. Prices for single sessions are $20 for adults, children and seniors and $10 for UNH students.

    1949 Revisited?

    By
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    They’re eight players with one number separating them from receiving the acclaim they probably deserve.

    That number: 1949.

    The Boston College senior class is close to making school history — but a few weeks from what could be their fourth straight appearance in the NCAA Frozen Four. That alone is plenty an accomplishment, as only one other BC senior class, the class of 1951, ever had the chance. But without a national championship this season, that number, 1949, the year marking the Eagles’ last national title, will loom large.

    Thursday night, the BC seniors skated their final regular-season game in Conte Forum. The 6-3 win over Northeastern clinched for BC, and more importantly the BC seniors, the Hockey East regular-season championship, the first for a heralded senior class that has captured two postseason titles (1998 and 1999).

    Moreover, it’s the first regular-season title for Boston College since 1990-91 and the first under head coach Jerry York.

    “This is such a significant victory for us,” said York. “It only took two nights to win the Beanpot, but the regular-season championship shows that we played well from October right to tonight.”

    Winning the Hockey East regular-season title brings the Eagles halfway to the college hockey grand slam for Boston schools. BC captured the Beanpot tournament on February 12 with a 5-3 win over Boston University, a title that had eluded the seniors in three tries prior.

    The Eagles now need to capture the Hockey East tournament title and, of course, the elusive NCAA Championship to complete the slam.

    The Boston College senior class — defensemen Bobby Allen and Rob Scuderi, forwards Marty Hughes, Brian Gionta, Mark McLennan, Mike Lephart, and Dan Sullivan and goaltender Scott Clemmensen — have accounted for nearly 37 percent of the club’s offense this season entering Thursday’s game, with captain and Hobey Baker hopeful Gionta leading the way.

    Gionta, over his four-year career, has rewritten the BC record book. Gionta’s 119 goals make him the all-time leading goalscorer in Boston College history, and with 226 career points, he stands 13 behind all-time leader David Emma. Counting the Hockey East playoffs and a likely NCAA appearance, Gionta stands to play a maximum of 10 more career games — though likely less — which means roughly a reasonable point and a half per game needed to climb to the top.

    Gionta has a school-record nine career hat tricks, including a modern-day Division I record of five goals in the first period against Maine this season. He currently leads Hockey East scoring with 48 points.

    “We’ve got two more [championships] that we want to get done,” said Gionta, referring to the Hockey East and NCAA tournament titles. “We got two along the way so far. The next one is obviously Hockey East, but we can’t look ahead too far.”

    Between the pipes, Clemmensen is responsible for 23 of BC’s 25 wins this year, and on his career has recorded 92 of the 137 wins for his senior class, a school record. Clemmensen also holds the BC mark for career shutouts with 12, and is third on the BC all-time saves list. He is undefeated (5-0) in NCAA regional games and has a 2-1 record in NCAA semifinals.

    “Personal accomplishments are nice, but I’d rather collect a championship,” said Clemmensen after Thursday’s win. “I’d much rather have a Hockey East championship like we did [Thursday] and go back and celebrate it with everyone else because we all had a part in it.

    “It’s so much better to share it with your teammates.”

    And what about a national title?

    “For our senior class, this is our last shot. We’d really like to get that one before we leave,” Clemmensen said. “We’ve been more consistent this year and that’s helped us get the regular-season title and the Beanpot. I’d don’t know what it is about [BC’s success] this season, but the [national championship] is the big goal of ours.”

    This Week In The CCHA: March 1, 2001

    By
    -

    The Envelope, Please

    That’s right, CCHA fans. As many surprises as the Academy Awards but lacking the pageantry of the Tonys, it’s the annual Girl Reporter League Awards.

    Ballots? We don’t need no stinkin’ ballots.

    Team of the Year: Michigan State. The Spartans take this award from last year’s winner, the Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks. A gripping performance by a gutsy team that scores by committee. A major-league goaltender backed by an All-American. A defensive mentality that turns the trap into art. Four losses on the season, and a squad that will be very tough to beat in post-season play.

    Surprise of the Year: Western Michigan. Picked 11th in both the coaches and media polls (and dead-last by this chagrined Girl Reporter), the Broncos breathed life into an offense-hungry league, lighting the lamp so often in the early season that stock in General Electric jumped 20%. Gove, Bishai, and Rymsha became household names — finally.

    Surprise of the Year, Take Two: Alaska Fairbanks. This season, it wasn’t a question of if the Nanooks would make the playoffs, but where they’d travel — and for a while there, it looked like they might vie for home ice. Took points from every league opponent except Michigan State. Darned nice guys, too.

    Tank of the Year: Lake Superior State: It’s cruel to give the Lakers this award, but they unfortunately meet the criteria: biggest finish differential the wrong way. More on the Lakers in a moment.

    Defenders of the Realm: Michigan State. An award established last year in honor of the Ferris State Bulldogs, who compiled the best record in the CCHA against nonconference opponents in 1999-2000. This season, Michigan State is 7-0-1 out of conference. Honorable mention: Western Michigan (7-1-0).

    Team Most Likely to Surprise Folks in the Post-season: Alaska-Fairbanks. The Nanooks have a knack for earning at least a point on the weekend.

    Perseverance Award: Lake Superior State Lakers. How many man-games have the Lakers lost this season to illness or injury? And through it all, head coach Scott Borek has said that this has been his most rewarding season of coaching, given the gracious way his team has persevered.

    Attaboy Award: Jason Deskins and Gregor Krajnc Like fellow RedHawk Dustin Whitecotton before them, these two Miami players have bounced back from year-long injuries to lead their team.

    The Chris Richards Man-Most-Likely-To-Be-Overlooked Memorial Award: Dan Carlson. This Notre Dame player is having a career season while no one is looking. Eighth in league scoring with 17 goals and 14 assists, and a plus-minus rating of +10, Carlson will likely be overlooked in favor of one or two Western Michigan players (namely Steve Rymsha and Mike Bishai) whose plus-minus is at zero and who both have more penalty minutes. And in the greater scheme of things, Carlson was much more important to his team than was either of these Western players, who were surrounded by much more scoring help.

    Most Likely to Leave Early Award: Andy Hilbert. Will Hilbert follow in the footsteps of fellow Wolverine Mike Comrie, last year’s award winner (and early departure?). Honorable mention: Dave Steckel.

    The Aniket Dhadphale Garbage Man Memorial Award: Steve Rymsha. No one picks up the trash like Rymsha, who’s impossible to move from the front of the net, especially on the power play.

    Wow Award: Ryan Miller. This repeat winner needs no explanation.

    Best Offensive Goalie Award: Josh Blackburn. The Michigan netminder has five assists this season, the most points for any goaltender in the CCHA.

    2000-2001 Goon Squad: The Western Michigan Broncos. Why pick individual players when an entire team stands out head and shoulders above the rest? The Broncos have amassed 850 minutes in the box this season.

    “We’ve talked about it,” says Western head coach Jim Culhane. “We want to play a physical game, the way we forecheck and pursue the puck. At times, it’s cost us. We have to become more disciplined as a team. Again, that’s a learning experience for us.”

    The biggest offender is Brian Pasko, who has a staggering 187 minutes in 31 games played, and whom Culhane says is “a super young man.”

    “He brings a lot of energy and a lot of enthusiasm to the game, which is something we knew coming in. His competitiveness … is something you can’t instill in somebody. He’s a super young man.”

    With two games remaining in regular season and at least a couple playoff games, there’s still time for Steve Rymsha to hit the century mark in minutes this season. The Bronco has 97 in 33 games.

    Honorable mention: Nanook and genuine nice guy Ryan Reinheller (73); Falcon Kevin Bieska (82); Bulldog Phil Lewandowski (79); Laker Chris Thompson (114!); Spartan Brian Maloney (80); Mavericks Jeff Hoggan (70) and James Chalmers (88); Wildcat Brent Robertson (74).

    And three Notre Dame players give new meaning to the school’s mascot. Brett Lebda (105), Neil Komadoski (98), and Ryan Clark (77) have combined for roughly a third of Notre Dame’s penalties.

    My boyfriend, UAF’s Chad Hamilton, is no longer a goon, earning just 28 minutes in lockdown this season.

    Quote of the Year: “There was a fan right next to us telling us Michigan sucks, and we agreed with him.” That’s Michigan State head coach Ron Mason on the atmosphere during the Spartans’ first-ever game at Value City Arena in Columbus, Ohio.

    League’s Best Fans: The Good Folks of Omaha. For the second year in a row, fans of the Mavericks continue to amaze the rest of the league with how many people they can pack into a weekly luncheon, let alone the Civic Center. Honorable mention: the Puckheads, who know sexy when they see it … and who will travel anywhere.

    League’s Most Juvenile Fans: Bowling Green, Michigan, and Western Michigan This shameful award goes to the most obscene. It’s easy to argue that repeat offender, the Wolverine student section, has also grown boring.

    League’s Most Proficient Emailers: Nebraska Omaha. The bulk of my weekly email comes from UNO fans, most of whom think I don’t give their team or fans enough credit. They are, of course, correct.

    League’s Stupidest Fans: Ohio State. Once again, I saw an Ohio State fan fling an object onto the ice this season, this time an orange that could easily have injured a player. Save it for the ^ÑShoe, will ya?

    Best Small Barn: Western Michigan and Northern Michigan. Lawson Arena is the kind of place you’re happy you’re a Western fan, and scared if you’re wearing opponent colors. No, there’s no violence involved, but you’re going to take grief just the same.

    The Berry Events Center is the most gorgeous building in the league, hands down. A beautiful venue. Makes me want to move to Marquette.

    Best Large Barn: The Bullpen. Jury duty prevented my trip to Omaha this year, but the stories I heard about the place have me convinced.

    Best Rink Food: Michigan State. For the second year in a row. It’s the ice cream sandwich. Yum.

    Worst Rink Food: Michigan. Hot dogs. Bad. Very bad.

    Best Uniforms: None. Once again, no one gets my nod. There are elements of some uniforms that stand out, but there’s nothing original. Even the traditional lacks tradition, in most places. I do like Michigan State’s away sweaters, but they don’t blow me away.

    Games of the Week

    Fresh from the not-quite-dead-yet files, each of these teams has so much at stake that this series is arguably the most important of the weekend.

    Notre Dame (9-21-7, 6-14-6 CCHA) vs. No. 15 Western Michigan (18-10-6, 11-9-6 CCHA)
    Friday, 7:05 p.m., Joyce Center, South Bend, Ind.
    Saturday, 7:05 p.m., Lawson Arena, Kalamazoo, Mich.

    The setting couldn’t be more dramatic. Seven seniors will be honored in South Bend Friday night, five (including the graduating J.J. Weaks) in Kalamazoo Saturday.

    Notre Dame, the team that anchored the CCHA for so much of the season, currently holds onto the last playoff spot by one slim point. Western Michigan, who for so much of the season flirted with first place, is tied for fifth and battling both Ohio State and Northern Michigan for a first-round, home-ice advantage.

    Notre Dame has 18 points, Bowling Green 17. The teams have the same number of league wins, the first tie-breaker. Notre Dame owns the second tie-breaker, head-to-head competition. Should the Broncos sweep the Irish, Bowling Green would have to do more than tie once — get more than one point — this weekend against Ferris State to knock out Notre Dame. Bowling Green is playing at home.

    Notre Dame has two more points than last-place Lake Superior State, who plays a home-and-home series with Northern Michigan this weekend. The Lakers, however, have both the first and second tie-breakers over the Irish, with two more league wins and two victories against Notre Dame this season.

    Should the Lakers win one game and Notre Dame take no points, the Lakers could leap-frog from last place to the last playoff spot, depending on what happens about 30 miles south of Toledo.

    Additionally, in a perfect Irish world, Notre Dame could catch Alaska Fairbanks. The Irish are three points behind the Nanooks, who play inter-conference rival Alaska Anchorage twice this weekend. Should Notre Dame sweep Western Michigan, the Irish will finish ninth, period.

    Should the Irish tie with the Nanooks in points, the Irish would also be tied with UAF in wins. Notre Dame holds the next tie-breaker, having defeated and tied the Nanooks earlier this season.

    Bear in mind that Notre Dame took three of four possible points from Western Michigan Jan. 12- 13, and the Irish were 3-2-2 in February.

    With 28 points, Western Michigan is tied with Ohio State for fifth place. As it stands right now, even though the Broncos beat the Buckeyes three of four games this season, OSU has the first tie- breaker in league wins.

    Should the Broncos be swept by the Irish, Ohio State wouldn’t have to lift a finger to take fifth, providing that Northern Michigan doesn’t surpass OSU in points. Both the Broncos and the Buckeyes currently have the first tie-breaker on Northern Michigan, but the Wildcats can catch the Broncos in both points and wins. (They cannot, however, catch Ohio State in wins.)

    Northern Michigan owns both the second and third tie-breakers against Western Michigan.

    So this series affects nearly every team in the league, the entire CCHA playoff picture, and the natural universe as we know it.

    “The good thing is that we’ve been playing playoff hockey for the past three week,” says Notre Dame head coach Dave Poulin. “That’s exactly what it’s felt like.

    “I feel good about my team. We’re playing pretty well right now. The team is pretty loose. I think there’s a tremendous respect for how difficult it’s been to get here.”

    It has been a struggle for the Irish this season, a team that lost four key defensemen and a stand-out forward to graduation at the end of last season. In November and December, the Irish earned six points in 10 league games, going 2-6-1 in those two months. Since Jan. 1, Notre Dame is 4-6-4 in conference, hardly a hot streak but enough to give the Irish some hope of making the playoffs.

    In contrast, the Broncos came out of the gate with guns a-blazin’, taking the CCHA and college hockey world completely by surprise. Western’s first league loss was to Miami on Dec. 1. In the first half of the season, the Broncos were 7-2-2 in league play, and had outscored opponents 51-39 in those games.

    Since Jan. 1, however, Western Michigan and Notre Dame have nearly identical records, and identical league points. The Broncos are 4-7-4 in games this calendar year.

    “During that stretch of games when we couldn’t find a win, at times we played pretty well and at times we didn’t,” says Jim Culhane, Western Michigan head coach. “It’s frustrating at times, but you continue to try to make improvements in areas of weaknesses in your team.”

    The Broncos returned to form in a game described as “electric” by Michigan State head coach Ron Mason, when Western beat the top-ranked Spartans 4-2 on Jan. 16 in Lawson Arena, snapping a 10-game winless streak.

    “It was a very special moment for our program,” says Culhane. “Hockey is the only sport in which we as an institution play Big Ten and other larger schools consistently, and those games are very exciting for us.

    “It was a special moment for us to beat the number-one team in our league and the country. The whole student section stood the whole time.”

    Home crowds in each barn will rise to the occasion this weekend. The Irish have hired a new promotions director, Brian Kegler, a man whom Poulin says has made an immediate and positive impact on the home atmosphere. “We’ve been totally sold out the last few games. He’s [Kegler] made some road trips and he’s seen some things around the league, done his homework. The only drawback is that he wasn’t with us from the end of last season.”

    As you might expect the last weekend of the season, neither coach is looking beyond these games to the playoffs; there’s too much at stake. Each says he’s focusing on his own team as much as the competition.

    “Our focus right now is to play our immediate opponent. That’s a team that’s playing well,” says Culhane. “To get three out of four points against a Fairbanks club that’s much improved, in Fairbanks, is quite an accomplishment.”

    Culhane also says that the Broncos are “obviously concerned” about the number of points the Irish took from Western this season as well.

    Western Michigan leads this all-time series 26-16-3, and is 15-5-2 against Notre Dame in Lawson Arena, 12-1-1 since 1992-93. The Irish are 11-10-1 against the Broncos at the Joyce Center, and are 9-3-1 there against WMU since rejoining the CCHA.

    What else can be said at this point? Drive to South Bend and Kalamazoo and find the scalpers!

    Picks: Notre Dame 4-3, Western Michigan 4-3

    This Week In The ECAC: March 1, 2001

    By Becky Blaeser & Jayson Moy
    -

    Here it is, the final weekend, and as usual, there is a jumble in the ECAC. Take a look at the standings.

     1 SLU  29
     2 Clk  28
     3 Cor  23
       Har  23
     5 Dar  22
     6 RPI  20
       Yal  20
     8 Pri  19
     9 Uni  18
    10 Ver  16
    11 Col  15
    12 Brn   7

    Here are the definites:

  • St. Lawrence, Clarkson, Cornell, Harvard, Dartmouth, Rensselaer and Yale have clinched playoff berths.
  • St. Lawrence and Clarkson will finish 1-2 in some order and are the only teams to have clinched home ice.
  • Vermont and Colgate cannot gain home ice.
  • Brown has been eliminated.
  • You need to be crazy to figure out all the possibilities.

    • Now, let’s list the tiebreakers.

  • 1. Head-to-head
  • 2. Record versus Top 5
  • 3. Record versus Top 10
  • 4. Head-to-head goal differential
  • 5. Goal differential versus Top 5
  • 6. Goal differential versus Top 10

    • Our advice to figure this all out? Just wait until 10:30 on Saturday night.

    How High Can You Go, How Low Can You Go?

    Let’s keep it brief once again. What we’ll do is give you a best case scenario, a worst-case scenario, and a little handicapping from our point of view (take that with a grain of salt, as Normand Chouinard will tell you).

    Remember, all scenarios that we paint are just one way of getting to the result. There are different combinations. We just give you one or two examples.

    St. Lawrence

    Best Case — 1st
    How? — Two wins and the Saints are the champs. Or, two Clarkson losses.
    Worst Case — 2nd
    How? — Two losses and one Clarkson win. Or, only one win and two Clarkson wins.
    Handicapping — The Saints have to travel to two tough places to play, the Gut and Thompson. It won’t be easy for the Saints to pull off two wins.

    Clarkson

    Best Case — 1st
    How? — Two wins and one St. Lawrence loss. Or, one win and two St. Lawrence losses.
    Worst Case — 2nd
    How? — Two St. Lawrence wins, or two losses by the Knights.
    Handicapping — See above in reference to St. Lawrence. The Knights are in the same boat.

    Cornell

    Best Case — 3rd
    How? — Two wins. The Big Red win the tiebreaker over Harvard by virtue of a win and a tie. Or, one win and a loss, plus at least one loss by Rensselaer and Yale, one loss and a win by Harvard, and no more than two points by Dartmouth.
    Worst Case — 8th
    How? — The Big Red lose two, Rensselaer sweeps, Dartmouth wins one game, Yale and Harvard tie their game, Yale defeats Brown, Harvard loses to Princeton and Princeton defeats Brown. Cornell loses a three-way tiebreaker to Yale and Princeton.
    Handicapping — The Big Red face two teams in the lower half of the league right now, but that doesn’t really matter. At home, and after losing two on the road, the Big Red should come away with at least one win.

    Harvard

    Best Case — 3rd
    How? — The Crimson win two and Cornell takes less than four points.
    Worst Case — 8th
    How? — The key is that Rensselaer is not in the top five, so Harvard loses two, Cornell takes at least one point, Princeton sweeps, Dartmouth sweeps, Yale sweeps and Rensselaer sweeps. The Crimson then lose a top five tiebreaker to Princeton.
    Handicapping — The Crimson should be able to knock of Yale on Friday night, but finishing the sweep against Princeton may be tough. The Crimson has only completed a weekend sweep once this year, and that was against RPI and Union back in early January.

    Dartmouth

    Best Case — 3rd
    How? — Dartmouth sweeps and Cornell and Harvard do not take more than three points each. A three way tie between Dartmouth, Cornell and Harvard goes to Dartmouth.
    Worst Case — 9th
    How? — Dartmouth loses two, Rensselaer sweeps, Yale sweeps, Princeton sweeps, Union sweeps. The Big Green then lose a top five tiebreaker to Union.
    Handicapping — The good news is that Dartmouth plays much better in front of its home crowd (9–4–0 at home versus a 3–7–4 away record). The bad news is that Big Green will be taking on the North Country duo — St. Lawrence and Clarkson — vying for the league crown.

    Rensselaer

    Best Case — 3rd
    How? — Yale takes no more than three points, Dartmouth, Harvard and Cornell are swept and the Engineers sweep.
    Worst Case — 9th
    How? — Rensselaer is swept, Union wins one game and Princeton takes two points. Rensselaer loses a head-to-head tiebreaker to Union.
    Handicapping — On the road at Cornell will be tough. A game at Colgate is winnable for the Engineers, but a sweep may be too much to ask.

    Yale

    Best Case — 3rd
    How? — The Bulldogs sweep and Harvard, Cornell and Dartmouth get swept. Even if Rensselaer sweeps, the Bulldogs win a top ten tiebreaker.
    Worst Case — 10th
    How? — Yale loses twice, Rensselaer, Union, Vermont, Princeton sweep. The Bulldogs then lose a top five tiebreaker to Vermont.
    Handicapping — Yale picked a good time to go on a three-game winning streak, scoring 19 goals in its last three games. The Bulldogs offense should have no troubles against Brown’s defense, but the team has notoriously struggled at Bright.

    Princeton

    Best Case — 3rd
    How? — Princeton sweeps, Harvard is swept, Yale and Rensselaer each loses one game, Cornell is swept, Dartmouth gets only one point. The Tigers then win a head-to-head tiebreaker over Dartmouth, Cornell and Harvard.
    Worst Case — 11th
    How? — Princeton is swept, Vermont gets three points, Colgate sweeps, Union beats Cornell. The Tigers lose a three-way head to head tiebreaker with Colgate and Vermont to Colgate, then lose a top five tiebreaker to Vermont.
    Handicapping — The Tigers shouldn’t have a problem splitting this weekend’s series — they’ve done that plenty of times this year — but a sweep may be too much to ask for.

    Union

    Best Case — 5th
    How? — Union sweeps, Rensselaer, Dartmouth and Yale are swept, and Princeton only takes two points. Union then wins a top five tiebreaker over Dartmouth.
    Worst Case — 11th
    How? — Union is swept. Colgate sweeps and Vermont takes at least three points. Union is then alone in eleventh.
    Handicapping — The Skating Dutchmen played one of their best games of the year last weekend against Harvard. Union beat both Colgate and Cornell athome earlier this year, but taking on these two teams on the road may prove to be a tougher challenge. A split is possible, a sweep unlikely.

    Vermont

    Best Case — 7th
    How? — Vermont sweeps, Rensselaer sweeps, Yale is swept, Union is swept, Princeton is swept and Dartmouth is swept. Vermont then wins a top five tiebreaker over Yale.
    Worst Case — 11th
    How? — Vermont is swept and Colgate gets one point. Colgate wins the head-to-head tiebreaker.
    Handicapping — The prognosis for the Cats doesn’t look very good. With its very playoff life at stake this weekend, the team must host the two best teams in the league. The only sliver of hope is the fact that the home crowd will be on Vermont’s side. This will be a test to see just how powerful the Catamount faithful really is.

    Colgate

    Best Case — 8th
    How? — Colgate sweeps, Vermont takes three points exactly and Princeton is swept. Colgate wins a three-way head-to-head tiebreaker for eighth.
    Worst Case — 11th
    How? — Colgate loses two.
    Handicapping — The Red Raiders are in the midst of a three–game slide and will need to keep the score down in both contests to have a chance. With its playoff life at stake, Colgate should manage at least one win this weekend.

    Brown

    Best Case — 12th
    How? — Doesn’t matter what happens.
    Worst Case — 12th
    How? — Doesn’t matter what happens.
    Handicapping — Play spoiler, that’s the plan. The Bears are looking to the future and hoping to mess up Princeton and Yale’s chances of home ice and positioning.

    Let’s Have Some Fun

    Say this happens:

    Rensselaer d. Cornell
    Yale d. Harvard
    Princeton d. Brown
    Clarkson d. Vermont
    St. Lawrence d. Dartmouth
    Colgate d. Union
    Rensselaer t. Colgate
    Yale t. Brown
    Union d. Cornell
    Princeton d. Harvard
    Clarkson t. Dartmouth
    St. Lawrence d. Vermont

    Your standings become:

     1 SLU  33
     2 Clk  31
     3 Cor  23
       Dar  23
       Har  23
       Pri  23
       RPI  23
       Yal  23
     9 Uni  20
    10 Col  18
    11 Ver  16
    12 Brn   7

    That’s a six–way tie for third place. What happens?

  • Yale takes third due to head-to-head among the six teams.
  • Harvard takes fourth via head-to-head among the remaining five teams.
  • Rensselaer takes fifth by virtue of head-to-head among the remaining four teams.
  • Princeton takes sixth after head-to-head among the remaining three teams.
  • Dartmouth takes seventh because of defeating Cornell head-to-head this season.

    • Your playoff matchups:

  • Colgate at St. Lawrence
  • Union at Clarkson
  • Cornell at Yale
  • Dartmouth at Harvard
  • Princeton at Rensselaer

    • How about a five–way tie for fifth place?

    For that to happen:

    Cornell d. Rensselaer
    Harvard d. Yale
    Union d. Colgate
    Princeton d. Brown
    Clarkson d. Vermont
    St. Lawrence d. Dartmouth
    Rensselaer d. Colgate
    Yale d. Brown
    Union d. Cornell
    Princeton t. Harvard
    Clarkson d. Dartmouth
    Vermont d. St. Lawrence

    Your standings:

     1 Clk  32
     2 SLU  31
     3 Har  26
     4 Cor  25
     5 Dar  22
       Pri  22
       RPI  22
       Uni  22
       Yal  22
    10 Ver  16
    11 Col  15
    12 Brn   7

    So what happens?

  • Yale takes fifth, looking at head-to-head among the five teams.
  • Princeton and Rensselaer are tied for sixth by virtue of head-to-head among the remaining four teams.
  • Rensselaer takes sixth thanks to head-to-head over Princeton.
  • Princeton would be seventh.
  • Union and Dartmouth are then tied for eighth place by virtue of the head-to-head among the four teams.
  • Union takes eighth with a better record against the top five teams.
  • Dartmouth would be ninth.

    • Your playoff pairings:

  • Vermont at Clarkson
  • Dartmouth at St. Lawrence
  • Union at Harvard
  • Princeton at Cornell
  • Rensselaer at Yale

    • How about a four–way tie for eighth place? Which team loses out in the tiebreaker and stays home?

    For that to happen:

    Cornell d. Rensselaer
    Harvard d. Yale
    Colgate d. Union
    Brown d. Princeton
    Clarkson t. Vermont
    St. Lawrence d. Dartmouth
    Colgate d. Rensselaer
    Yale d. Brown
    Union t. Cornell
    Harvard d. Princeton
    Clarkson d. Dartmouth
    Vermont d. St. Lawrence

    The standings then become:

     1 Clk  31
       SLU  31
     3 Har  27
     4 Cor  26
     5 Dar  22
       Yal  22
     7 RPI  20
     8 Col  19
       Pri  19
       Uni  19
       Ver  19
    12 Brn   9

    How does that break down?

    To decide, we have to break the tie for fifth place first.

  • Yale is fifth by virtue of a 2–0 record against Dartmouth this season.
  • Dartmouth is sixth.

    • Now we can break the four–way tie.

  • Colgate and Princeton are tied for eighth place because of head-to-head records against the four teams.
  • Princeton is eighth due to a better record versus the top five teams.
  • Colgate is ninth.
  • Union and Vermont are now tied for tenth place after the head-to-head tiebreaker against the four teams.
  • Union is tenth by virtue of a better record against the top ten teams.
  • Vermont is eleventh and stays home.

    • One more tiebreaker to apply before we give you the playoff scenarios.

  • St. Lawrence is first by virtue of a better record versus the top five teams.
  • Clarkson is second

    • Now, the playoff matchups:

  • Union at St. Lawrence
  • Colgate at Clarkson
  • Princeton at Harvard
  • Rensselaer at Cornell
  • Dartmouth at Yale

    • One more for you, folks. We know this would shock people, but what if there were no need for tiebreakers?

    Here’s what has to happen.

    Rensselaer d. Cornell
    Harvard d. Yale
    Colgate d. Union
    Princeton d. Brown
    Clarkson d. Vermont
    St. Lawrence d. Dartmouth
    Rensselaer d. Colgate
    Brown d. Yale
    Cornell d. Union
    Harvard d. Princeton
    Clarkson d. Dartmouth
    St. Lawrence d. Vermont

    Our new standings:

     1 SLU  33
     2 Clk  32
     3 Har  27
     4 Cor  25
     5 RPI  24
     6 Dar  22
     7 Pri  21
     8 Yal  20
     9 Uni  18
    10 Col  17
    11 Ver  16
    12 Brn   9

    Wow, no ties to break!

    The playoff matchups:

  • Colgate at St. Lawrence
  • Union at Clarkson
  • Yale at Harvard
  • Princeton at Cornell
  • Dartmouth at Rensselaer

    • Yeah, we know, no tiebreakers in the ECAC, there’s a better chance of someone beating the Iron Columnists four weeks in a row.

    There is one thing that cannot happen. We cannot get the same five matchups as last season’s playoffs. That is impossible no matter how you slice it. The main reason — it’s impossible to match up Yale and Colgate.

    Play along with all the possibilities. Just head to Joe Schlobotnik’s ECAC Playoff Possibilities Script.

    If It’s So Easy, You Try It

    It may be time to commit hara-kiri. Three in a row. The Iron Columnists have lost three in a row to Normand Chouinard. Congratulations to Normand! Chairman Brule is ready to supply us with the necessary tools.

    The contest thus far:

    Becky and Jayson d. Vic Brzozowski — (10–2–2) — (8–5–1)
    Becky and Jayson d. Tayt Brooks — (7–7–1) — (5–9–1)
    Becky and Jayson d. Michele Kelley — (5–4–3) — (2–7–3)
    Becky and Jayson d. C.J. Poux — (9– 4–2) — (6–7–2)
    Becky and Jayson d. Shawn Natole — (5–8–0) — (3–10–0)
    Becky and Jayson t. Julian Saltman — (7–4–2) — (7–4–2)
    Becky and Jayson d. Julian Saltman — (9–2–0) — (6–5–0)
    Becky and Jayson d. Steve Lombardo — (8–4–1) — (6–6–1)
    Normand Chouinard d. Becky and Jayson — (8–4–0) — (4–8–0)
    Normand Chouinard d. Becky and Jayson — (7–4–1) — (6–5–1)
    Normand Chouinard d. Becky and Jayson — (9–1–2) — (5–5–2)

    If memory serves us right, Normand Chouinard took the Iron Columnists down for the third week in a row. This week, he goes for four in a row. Chairman Brule has prepared a very extra special theme ingredient this week, so, Norman Chouinard, bring your skills into USCHO Stadium and try to take down the Iron Columnists once again. Whose picks will reign supreme?

    The Picks

    Friday, March 2

    St. Lawrence at Dartmouth
    Normand’s Pick — If Anderson plays, this probably reverses. Dartmouth 4, St. Lawrence 3
    Becky and Jayson — Dartmouth 4, Vermont 1

    Clarkson at Vermont
    Normand’s Pick — Clarkson 3, Vermont 1
    Becky and Jayson — Clarkson 4, Vermont 2

    Rensselaer at Cornell
    Normand’s Pick — Cornell 3, Rensselaer 1
    Becky and Jayson — Cornell 2, Rensselaer 0

    Union at Colgate
    Normand’s Pick — Colgate 4, Union 2
    Becky and Jayson — Colgate 4, Union 3

    Yale at Harvard
    Normand’s Pick — Yale 3, Harvard 2
    Becky and Jayson — Harvard 3, Yale 2

    Princeton at Brown
    Normand’s Pick — Princeton 4, Brown 2
    Becky and Jayson — Princeton 6, Brown 2

    Saturday, March 3

    St. Lawrence at Vermont
    Normand’s Pick — St. Lawrence 3, Vermont 2
    Becky and Jayson — St. Lawrence 2, Vermont 1

    Clarkson at Dartmouth
    Normand’s Pick — Clarkson 4, Dartmouth 3
    Becky and Jayson — Dartmouth 3, Clarkson 2

    Rensselaer at Colgate
    Normand’s Pick — Colgate 4, Rensselaer 2
    Becky and Jayson — Colgate 3, Rensselaer 2

    Union at Cornell
    Normand’s Pick — Cornell 3, Union 1
    Becky and Jayson — Cornell 3, Union 2

    Yale at Brown
    Normand’s Pick — Yale 3, Brown 2
    Becky and Jayson — Yale 4, Brown 1

    Princeton at Harvard
    Normand’s Pick — Harvard 4, Princeton 3
    Becky and Jayson — Harvard 5, Princeton 4

    This is it — the final installment of the Iron Columnists. Thanks to everyone who put their name in the hat and next year, we’ll be back to give everyone another shot.

    Some More Fun

    Since Normand has thrice bested the Iron Columnists, let’s take a look at how both think the standings will go and what the playoffs will look like.

    Normand’s Picks

     1 Clk  32
     2 SLU  31
     3 Cor  27
     4 Har  25
     5 Dar  24
       Yal  24
     7 Pri  21
     8 RPI  20
     9 Col  19
    10 Uni  18
    11 Ver  16
    12 Brn   7
  • Yale wins a head-to-head tiebreaker with Dartmouth, taking fifth place

    • Normand’s Playoffs:

  • Union at Clarkson
  • Colgate at St. Lawrence
  • Rensselaer at Cornell
  • Princeton at Harvard
  • Dartmouth at Yale

    • The Iron Columnists’ Picks

    With our predictions, this is how we believe the ECAC will finish. Which means it won’t be this way.

     1 SLU  31
     2 Clk  30
     3 Cor  27
       Har  27
     5 Dar  26
     6 Yal  22
     7 Pri  21
     8 RPI  20
     9 Col  19
    10 Uni  18
    11 Ver  16
    12 Brn   7
  • Cornell wins a head-to-head tiebreaker with Harvard, taking third place

    • Our playoffs:

  • Union at St. Lawrence
  • Colgate at Clarkson
  • Rensselaer at Cornell
  • Princeton at Harvard
  • Yale at Dartmouth

    • See you somewhere next weekend!

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