Cornell’s Mike Schafer shared the Spencer Penrose Award as national coach of the year in 2020 (photo: Eldon Lindsay).
For the past several games, Cornell head coach Mike Schafer has not been behind the Big Red bench.
Associate head coach Ben Syer has been running the bench of Cornell men’s hockey games since Jan. 8.
Related to his absence from games, Schafer released a statement Wednesday evening.
“Over the past several weeks, with the help of my doctors, I’ve battled through some medical issues that have kept me off the bench. After recovering from a tough bout with COVID-19, my doctors then discovered that I needed a cardiac stent that was successfully placed.
“I really appreciate the outpouring of support and the expressions of deep care and concern as I recover. I’m appreciative of the skilled medical personnel that helped diagnose and treat me, as well as the Cornell coaches and student-athletes who have continued to stay focused and improve as I do the same.
“I’m looking forward to getting back in front of the Lynah faithful in a few weeks.”
Canisius players mob Austin Alger after his overtime goal beat Bentley back on Jan. 22 (photo: Lindy Feider).
Looking at Canisius’ season to date, the word that comes to mind is “consistency.”
The Golden Griffins (12-10-3) have taken points in every Atlantic Hockey series they’ve played so far, which puts them in a tie for third place, trailing Bentley by a point and first-place American International by 11 with eight games to go.
That consistency has carried over to Canisius’ nonconference schedule as well this season, with splits against Penn State, Ferris State and Rensselaer.
But looks can be deceiving, according to coach Trevor Large.
“At surface level, it can seem that way, but I think that internally, to our players and staff, we’ve been inconsistent,” he said. “It’s very difficult to get points every weekend in this league, and we have done that, but night to night we’ve been inconsistent in terms of our energy and executing our game plan.”
Looking at it that way, the Golden Griffins have been able to string together consecutive victories only once, a four-game winning streak in late November.
“It’s about working on our culture and that can be tough sometimes to reach consistency, when you need a game plan to fit the different styles of your opponent,” said Large. “But we’re mostly focusing on us and what we need to do.”
Large has not been afraid to call his team out in postgame comments to the media when he felt something was lacking.
“It’s the same things I say to the team after the game, good or bad,” he said. “I’m calling a spade a spade. If we’re not at our standard, it would be counterproductive not to be honest about it. But there’s plenty to be positive about.”
A positive is goaltender Jacob Barczewski, who has been a mainstay in net, currently ranked fourth in Atlantic Hockey in GAA (2.53) and third in save percentage (.923).
A balanced offense has been powered by junior Keaton Mastrodonato (22 points), senior Lee Lapis (18) and graduate student Austin Alger (a team-leading 11 goals).
The remaining schedule looks friendly to the Griffs, who will host six of their remaining eight games, with short road trips to Mercyhurst and Niagara.
“We love playing at the HarborCenter,” said Large. “We had some long road trips earlier in the season, a trip to Air Force and back-to-back weekends out East. Now we’re in the home part of our schedule. We’ve got to be ready and build momentum in these games.”
Things kick off with a series against Air Force this weekend.
“We’re at that point in the season where everybody tends to watch the standings; it’s a natural thing to do,” said Large. “And the teams are so close, it’s the same thing every year.
“We’re seeing a lot of splits, as usual. Six points are available every weekend and that can make a big difference.”
Large says that if his team sticks to the culture it’s established, things will take care of themselves.
“We’re trying to be in the present,” he said. “We can’t worry about the past or worry about the future. If we have everyone on our team doing that, we’ll be successful.”
Union goalie Connor Murphy has taken the reins as the No. 1 netminder for the Dutchmen (photo: Michael Mason).
With a month left in the regular season, the top four teams in ECAC Hockey have started to pull away from the rest of the pack.
Quinnipiac, Clarkson, Harvard and Cornell are clearly the top dogs in what has been a mostly underwhelming year for the conference. It would be an upset if any of those four teams didn’t finish the regular season with a first-round bye for the conference tournament. But after those teams, the race is wide open for home ice in the first round of the playoffs.
Rivals Rensselaer and Union enter the stretch run narrowly leading the rest of the pack in the race for home ice. A big reason for that has been the production that both schools are getting from their respective goaltenders.
Junior Connor Murphy has started all 25 games for the Dutchmen this season after transferring from Northeastern in the offseason. It’s been a homecoming for Murphy, who grew up in in Hudson Falls, N.Y, just under an hour from Union’s campus in Schenectady.
“It was more of a decision based on the hockey side of things,” Murphy told the Schenectady Daily Gazette prior to the start of the season. “I just felt like things weren’t going to go my way at Northeastern this year. I just kind of felt I needed a fresh start to keep the ball rolling instead of having some setbacks that I thought I was going to have.”
It’s been a good match. Murphy has three shutouts and a .922 save percentage and has gotten playing time he likely wouldn’t have gotten with the Huskies, where freshman Devon Levi has been one of the best goalies in Division I men’s hockey.
“Murph’s been the backbone,” Union coach John Ronan told the Daily Gazette after Murphy had 33 saves in Saturday’s 2-0 Mayor’s Cup win over RPI. “He’s a guy that showed up every night.”
Murphy’s counterpart in net that game was RPI freshman Jack Watson, who has only recently taken over as the Engineers’ starting goalie after graduate student Linden Marshall missed time due to COVID-19 protocols. Watson has started RPI’s last six games and has three shutouts during that stretch, including a 39-save effort at Harvard and a 41-save game against St. Lawrence.
Watson was quick to credit his teammates for his success in net.
“The guys were just working so hard, keeping a lot of the shots coming from the perimeter,” Watson said of his shutouts against the Crimson and the Saints. “And they were clearing every rebound…the guys were great for me.”
RPI coach Dave Smith also likes the way his team is playing right now. After several COVID-19 related postponements last month, Smith thinks the Engineers are starting to hit their stride.
“This is a great stretch right now,” he said. “We’re fine tuning and we’re a hell of a lot better than we were a week ago. If we keep doing that, good things will happen.”
Both Watson and Murphy should have their hands full this weekend when RPI and Union head on the road to play against Quinnipiac and Princeton. The Bobcats have been one of the top teams in the country this season, while the Tigers have struggled overall, but are fifth in the conference in scoring during league play.
Forward Myles Abbate leads Plymouth State in points and pursuit of another MASCAC title (Photo by Kim Bownes – AD)
When the D-III season came to an abrupt ending back in 2020 just prior to the start of the NCAA tournament, Plymouth State won the MASCAC title and was set to face Endicott in the first round of the national tournament. That game and the rest of the tournament never happened, and the Panthers aren’t looking back on what could have been. They are clearly focused on what can be for 2022 with a talented roster still looking to play its best hockey.
“It was an immense disappointment not to be able to play in the national tournament in 2020,” said head coach Craig Russell. “We had a great matchup with Endicott scheduled and a team that played ten freshmen regularly that had really evolved from a .500 team at the semester break into a conference champion. We looked at that NCAA experience as a measuring stick for how we had developed our game over the course of the season. It was a fun group of players, but we can’t be looking backwards to what might have been. That is past history. We have kept the momentum going through an abbreviated eight game season in 2020-2021 and now have this really special group that is excited to make their own history this year despite the challenges of the pandemic.”
After a league-wide hiatus to start 2022 due to COVID protocols, MASCAC play has resumed, and the Panthers are battling where they expect to be near the top of the conference standings heading into February and the upcoming MASCAC tournament. After a 4-0 loss at Fitchburg State and a 3-3 tie with Worcester State to open the second half, Plymouth State has rebounded with back-to-back wins over Framingham State and Massachusetts-Dartmouth to jump-start some positive momentum that will see the Panthers playing eight games in the next three weeks to close out the regular season. In the overtime win over the Corsairs last Tuesday, it was the veteran leadership that delivered the victory after a bad bounce tied the game in the final 35 seconds of regulation.
“Like everyone else we have had a lineup in flux since we came back to campus,” noted Russell. “We are thrilled just to be playing as we have gone through periods with only eight forwards available or just one goalie. The manpower has made playing tough, but I really like this team and how they battle to the end. This may be the best group we have had here, and they certainly want to finish the season strong and have a chance to repeat as conference champions and return to the national tournament.”
Leading the Panthers in virtually every way is junior forward Myles Abbate. Abbate who scored the game-winning goal against the Corsairs, leads the team in points and with linemate JR Barone, causes immense challenges to opposing defenses regardless of the on-ice situation.
“Myles and JR together are a big challenge for any opponent,” stated Russell. “The bigger the moment, the bigger the compete level from both of those guys – they are hands-down our hardest working forwards. I’d compare Myles a little bit to Mark Stone from the Vegas Golden Knights. He plays in every situation and while he is not as big as a Mark Stone, he always has his feet moving which makes it very difficult to stay with him or position to take the puck away from him. The duo is a great foundation for their line, and we want to see some other scoring emerge from different players so the pressure isn’t always on them to produce the offense.”
Freshman Jeromey Rancourt has ten goals on the season and Graduate student Peter Laviolette has seven tallies with no other players, besides Abbate and Barone, having more than three goals. Newcomer Anton Jellvik who joined the team for the second half, scored a goal in his first game for the Panthers which has the coaching staff optimistic that more and better is to come.
“We finally had our full roster on the ice last week and back into game mode,” said Russell. “It is a tough time of the season to be starting over in some ways, but this team is determined to have fun and success on the ice as a group. Hopefully the last couple of games are good indication of where our team is trending so we can focus on improving the activity inside the glass instead of everything we have gone through outside of the rink.”
On Tuesday afternoon the Panthers knocked off their closest rivals from Fitchburg State with a 3-0 win that extended their win streak to four games and finds them standing alone atop the MASCAC standings entering the final weeks of the regular season.
UMass Lowell and UMass played an intense game Sunday at the Tsongas Center in Lowell, Mass., with the Minutemen winning 4-3 (photo: Rich Gagnon).
Some quick hits as the college hockey regular season enters its final full month…
One can forgive fans of the Boston University men’s hockey team for being a little flummoxed when they juxtapose the DCU/USCHO.com poll with the Hockey East standings.
Right behind the UMass Lowell and UMass in the league standings sit the Terriers at 9-6-3 (13-10-3 overall). However, BU sits at No. 19 in the national rankings — re-entering this week after being unranked — behind No. 16 Northeastern (16-8-1, 8-6-1 Hockey East, fourth) and No. 17 Providence (17-10-2, 8-8-1 Hockey East, fifth). Lowell (14-6-3, 11-5-1) is first in the league and No. 14 nationally, while defending NCAA champion UMass (13-8-2, 10-4-2) is one point behind the River Hawks and No. 10 in the national poll.
Of the five nationally ranked Hockey East clubs, BU has the weakest overall record, which is probably the main reason the Terriers have struggled to crack the top 20. But since the beginning of 2022, BU has been making a case that it belongs. The Terriers have gone 6-1-0 in January, beating Providence at home and UMass on the road last weekend. Also, the Terriers did not lose in regulation during in that stretch, its only setback a 2-1 overtime decision at home against Vermont on Jan. 21.
“We’re in a hard league,” BU coach Albie O’Connell said during a conference call last week. “If you look at the results around the league, any team can beat any team on any given night.”
*****
Lowell, which has lost three of its last four, will look to rebound Friday at Boston College and Saturday at home vs. Dartmouth.
“Sometimes you have to fail in certain situations in order to get better,” River Hawks coach Norm Bazin said after his team’s 4-3 loss to in-state rival UMass last Sunday. “We need to be hungrier.”
Lowell was without two key defensemen in the loss, junior Marek Korencik of and freshman Isac Jonsson. While Bazin stressed he does not use injuries as an excuse for a poor team performance, he said having those two players back could help righten the River Hawks’ ship.
“Those guys are big for us,” Bazin said. “When you talk about net-front battles, (that’s) an area those two guys can help out with. Hopefully they get back soon. We’re going to have to be, on the offensive side of things, perhaps better in that area, too.”
*****
Merrimack (12-11-1, 7-8-0) will face two opponents at home this weekend — New Hampshire (12-11-1, 6-8-1) on Friday and Maine (4-14-4, 2-10-2) on Saturday. Both games are scheduled for a 7 p.m. puck drop.
Warriors coach Scott Borek said he’s only focused on UNH this week and won’t worry about Maine until Friday night’s game is over.
“It’s just kind of a superstition I have,” Borek said. “The way we approach it is, we’re playing UNH on Friday, and that’s the only opponent we watch or break down or do any work on. (I) go get ready for Maine right after that game is over. That’s how we go about these kinds of weekends.”
It will be the first meeting of the season between the Warriors and the Wildcats, who were both riding five-game winning streaks before losing 3-2 at Connecticut — UNH’s loss was in overtime on Jan. 22, while Merrimack fell three nights later in regulation. Both teams were off last weekend.
“I’m impressed with UNH right now,” Borek said. “I feel like we’re probably running into one of the hottest teams in the league. We just have to make sure our energy level matches theirs.”
Merrimack has another contest at UConn on Feb. 8, making it three games in five nights for the Warriors.
*****
UMass coach Greg Carvel was blunt in his assessment of this weekend’s opponent, Long Island.
“Don’t know anything about them, and don’t care,” Carvel said. “I only care about my team at this point. If we don’t play the way that we’re supposed to, it doesn’t matter who we’re playing. There’s no easy wins, there’s no guaranteed losses. It’s all about your own team. To me, the challenge this week is to carry what we feel like we (saw) in that game (a 4-3 win at Lowell Jan. 30), carry it forward and see if we can keep pushing it forward.”
The Sharks are in only their second year of existence as a college hockey program. An independent, LIU is 7-14-3 so far this season, following a 3-10-0 COVID-abbreviated debut season.
Lake Superior State took a 6-1 win over Northern Michigan last Friday, clinching the Cappo Cup, a tradition between the two teams since the 1994-95 season. The winner is determined by the total goals scored over the four games played that season (photo: LSSU Athletics).
It’s already February, which I understand seems strange to everyone (if there’s anything the pandemic has taught us, it’s that time is essentially meaningless).
But it’s true.
It’s February, which means there’s just one month of CCHA regular season left until the playoffs.
And because it’s almost the postseason, it’s about time that we start talking about who looks like postseason contenders (and who looks vulnerable).
Now, I will admit that this idea is not original – I’m taking the basic concept from USCHO’s weekend review podcast of Jan. 17 with Jimmy Connelly, Derek Schooley, and Ed Trefzger. And it’s such a good idea that Chris Lerch did the same thing in his Atlantic Hockey column a few weeks ago.
But, hey, what’s that saying? “Good artists borrow, great artists steal?” When you see an idea as good as “buy, sell and hold,” you might as well take it.
In all seriousness: The CCHA, much like the WCHA before it, has a lot of teams that are very close-together quality-wise. There might be one frontrunner, but like most years the middle of the table is going to be fighting for home ice until the very last weekend. How will it play out?
Here’s what I think (and it’s just one columnist’s opinion, so take it with a slight pinch of salt).
Buying
Minnesota State – Starting with the obvious, the Mavericks (25-5-0) are on top of the league standings and No. 2 in the Pairwise. They’re a virtual lock for the NCAA tournament and at the moment it would be shocking if they weren’t the top seed in the CCHA tournament. However, they haven’t mathematically clinched the MacNaughton Cup yet, and the absence of CCHA leading scorer Nathan Smith and head coach Mike Hastings to the U.S. Olympic team could still be a factor. Additionally, they have to navigate a tough schedule – their last six games are against the teams in second, third and fourth place. Still, until someone actually beats them it’s going to be tough to prevent the Mavericks from winning the inaugural CCHA title (and their fifth straight MacNaughton).
Michigan Tech – A team that’s been a little sneaky. The Huskies (14-8-1) had been trailing Bemidji State in the standings virtually all season but were also in the top ten of the Pairwise virtually all season. They finally passed BSU for second place this past weekend then they swept the Beavers at home with a pair of 5-2 victories. It now looks as if the Huskies, and not the Beavers, will be the lone team who can prevent the Mavericks from winning another MacNaughton. The Huskies currently have 35 points from 16 games and have four games-in-hand (can you update this tonight after the NMU/Tech game happening now?) on both Mankato and Bemidji, meaning they will be able to both make things interesting with the Mavericks and put the Beavers away if they take care of their own business. And if they do that? Circle the weekend of Feb. 25-26, when the Huskies host the Mavericks in the regular-season finale for both teams. It could be the title-decider.
Ferris State – The standings say the Bulldogs (10-18-0) are currently in seventh place. But Ferris is currently playing much better than a seventh-place team. Bob Daniels’ squad has taken points from every series in December and January except one (against Minnesota State, which can be forgiven) and have found themselves in legitimate contention for home ice in the playoffs. That’s not something anybody would have predicted at the start of the season. But Ferris isn’t a team anybody is going to want to play down the stretch.
Selling
Bemidji State – It’s been a weird month for the Beavers (13-15-0). BSU came into January with a decent hold on second place in the conference and on the NCAA tournament bubble. But after starting the month with three straight wins, it’s been rough going. The Beavers have lost five straight and were recently swept on the road by Michigan Tech, who has managed to surpass them in the league table and still has three games-in-hand on them. They’ve also dropped way down to No. 26 in the Pairwise, meaning it’s going to be very hard for them to make it into the NCAA tournament unless they make a run in the CCHA tournament. They’re still looking good for home ice, and if they can continue to get production from the Sillinger brothers they’re always a dangerous offensive team. But at the moment the Beavers look like they’re struggling.
Lake Superior State – Last weekend’s split with Northern Michigan helped the Lakers (12-15-1) snap a four-game losing streak, but those losing streaks have occurred far too often this season in conference play for them to gain any sort of foothold in the standings. Right now, they’re holding on to fifth place with 24 points. Perhaps most worrying is that they’ve struggled to score in the calendar year – aside from a 5-1 win against NMU last week, they have been held to one goal or fewer in each of their games in January.
St. Thomas – I don’t think anyone expected the Tommies (2-24-0) to light the world on fire in their inaugural Division I season, and they haven’t, but they have at least managed to stay competitive with a number of top teams in the conference. For the most part, it’s been a good learning experience. They could well have a few more wins (and points), but as it stands it looks like they’re almost mathematically locked in to the No. 8 seed and a date with either Minnesota State or Michigan Tech in the first round.
Holding
Northern Michigan – The Wildcats (14-10-1) have got to be the most paradoxical team in the CCHA. They’ll go from sweeping the No. 1 team in the country one week to giving up 11 goals to Lake Superior State the next. They boast the league’s best nonconference record (6-1) but are just 8-9-1 in the league. They also have two of the league’s best scorers in Hank Crone and AJ Vanderbeck. They could still finish anywhere from second to seventh and it’s just as easy to see them going on an insane run and winning the conference tournament title as it is seeing them crash out of the first round early and missing out on an NCAA tournament berth because they can’t string together losses. I just can’t figure NMU out, which is why I’m holding.
Bowling Green – The Falcons (13-10-3) are mainly here because of how much they’ve played overtime in January. They went 4-2 this past month, with three of their games going to overtime (one each series). They won twice and lost once. Of their last 10 games going back to December, seven have been one-goal games (and an eighth was basically a one-goal game, a 4-2 win with an empty-netter). They’ve gone 5-5 in those games. So it seems like they’re in a holding pattern. Until then, we’ll hold off on buying or selling.
Boston University goalie Drew Commesso will represent Team USA at the Olympics, starting this week in Beijing (photo: Rich Gagnon).
Each week during the season, we look at the big events and big games around Division I men’s college hockey in Tuesday Morning Quarterback.
Ed: Dan, it was great to see you in person over a snowy weekend in Waltham, Mass., as we were in adjoining broadcast booths at Bentley Arena for two really hard-fought games.
And I wish we were only discussing things that happened on the ice in this week’s column. Sometimes the news outside the rink ends up intruding though.
I know you’ll join me in being saddened by the news of Rick Bennett’s resignation last week as head coach at Union. This came after nearly 17 years with the program, first as an assistant and then as associate head coach under Nate Leaman, and then as head coach since 2011.
Union’s 2014 Frozen Four win in Philadelphia surprised the college hockey world and was an even greater achievement without athletic scholarships.
Then the news came on January 20 that Bennett had been placed on administrative leave, and eight days later, he submitted his resignation.
My interactions with Bennett were few, mainly as a podcast host and reporter, but everyone I’ve talked to around the sport who knows him well has spoken highly of him while also acknowledging his intensity.
This ended up happening quickly, and unfortunately also happened as Union was given the opportunity to award D-I financial aid by NCAA D-III.
Were you as saddened by this as I was?
Dan: I’m with you, Ed, and I think I want to recap things as clearly as possible.
What I will say is that on the ice, I watched Union from a 30,000-foot level, and what the Dutchmen were able to do in turning around a moribund program is nothing short of remarkable. It genuinely dated back to the late 1990s when Kevin Sneddon took over a team that won three games in his first year and continued through a steady rise, first to .500, then to Nate Leaman’s teams that hosted a first round series and finally to the top-four finishes and Nate Leaman’s NCAA tournament appearance before leaving for Providence.
Bennett was an architect of that build as an assistant and associate head coach, and he was the beneficiary when he advanced to two Frozen Fours in his first three years. He was behind the bench for Union’s national championship, a title that shocked literally everyone in Philadelphia because, quite frankly, the Dutchmen were the team that punched well above their weight class when they knocked out Boston College and Minnesota as part of a foursome that included North Dakota.
More recently there’s been a bit of regression to the mean by Union, and it saw an eight-win season in 2019-20 before spending last year on the sidelines, but it doesn’t make this any less surprising. What we learned through Union’s investigation is that there was an allegation pertaining to Bennett’s coaching style and practices that was substantiated by the college’s investigation, and while this looks like it’s the best resolution for all parties involved, I’m still going to be saddened by what happened.
Sometimes we want to believe in our fairy tales in sports, but sometimes we aren’t allowed those fairy tale endings. In this case, Union’s only national championship-winning coach’s tenure ended in a manner that nobody wanted to see, but it does feel like this is the first step in the Dutchmen moving forward into a necessary new day.
Unfortunately, Union wasn’t the only team making headlines, and this weekend, a news report broke by the Ann Arbor News and MLive.com that the University of Michigan’s program is under investigation for a number of allegations.
This is obviously a much more fluid situation, and I still don’t really understand much of what I read. As a result, I don’t want to break it all down to line items. I think it’s more prudent for us, at this time, to admit that college hockey has a number of things that we should analyze introspectively until we can read and learn the full findings. It’s a difficult conversation, but I think it needs to be handled with some tact for everyone involved.
Ed: Now that the presence of an investigation has been revealed, I think it is incumbent upon the University of Michigan to be as transparent as possible. If the accusations about a toxic environment and sexual misconduct within the program and the athletic department prove to be true, they are devastating. If they prove to be false, then I hope the entire proceeding will have been conducted on the level and transparency will help that.
In addition to the allegations I mentioned, there is also a separate question about being truthful in COVID-19 reporting. That’s a different matter, but no less serious.
There is no place in college hockey for the sorts of things alleged. Maybe this can be a catalyst for all programs to take a look at how they conduct themselves and get to work on fixing issues that may exist.
Back to the ice.
Michigan is one of several NCAA D-I teams to lose players to the Olympics. I’m interested in seeing how teams will be affected – and who is the next man up – as well as cheering on Team USA and its roster of NCAA players, including 15 current and 10 former college players. Who do you think will be impacted the most by the departure of top players?
Dan: I hit Minnesota pretty hard a couple of weeks over its potential roster losses, and I’m going to hold firm on that. Michigan is in good enough shape to clinch a berth, and even if it loses every game the rest of the way, I don’t think it’s enough to drop it out of the tournament field.
Minnesota is currently 11th in the PairWise and is losing enough of its roster to be in a precarious and delicate position given its remaining schedule. Eight games are left, and two of them are at Ohio State, the team ranked directly ahead of the Gophers in tenth. The other remaining games are against Penn State and Michigan State, but while neither of those teams are in a position to seal up an at-large bid, losses to either of those teams – or both – would hurt the Gophers’ shot at the tournament.
On the flip side, the biggest thing for Minnesota happened this weekend when it beat Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish are right behind the Gophers in 12th in the Pairwise, and that means the collective strength of the Big Ten should be good enough to keep all of those teams afloat, even if they lose games along the way.
I will say this, I am beyond excited for the Olympics right now. It took a little while to really settle, but I think this is going to be one of the most intriguing fields in a long time. The USA roster is loaded with some top talent, and the Canadian roster is a wonderful cross-section of players who have both NHL and NCAA experience.
The thought of an NCAA all-star style team going up against the KHL all stars from the Russian Olympic Committee will have me waking up in the middle of the night or staying up late because this is the only time we’ll see something like this. It’s like if the World Juniors collided with an old school Olympics to take on the European professionals.
And that doesn’t include the women’s tournament, which I would argue is better than the men’s tournament. The number of players who starred in college before heading into the national programs is staggering, and there are a number of players who continue to shine for their respective homelands.
Throw in the national pride aspect to it all, and it’s going to be an absolutely awesome tournament, even if the circumstances surrounding it weren’t the most orthodox, considering that we thought the NHL would be involved as of a couple of months ago.
Ed: I am with you when it comes to the Olympics. I can’t wait to watch both the men’s and women’s teams from the U.S., and I’ll root for the Canadians when they aren’t playing Team USA.
I’m all for anything that can bind us together when so much seems to wedge people apart.
We were reminded over the weekend about how even fierce opponents can team up for what’s most important. I saw some great photos and a video clip from the end of Saturday’s Army-Air Force weekend, a tradition that I first saw at the Atlantic Hockey Championship on St. Patrick’s Day in 2007 when Air Force defeated Army for the league title.
After the game, the two teams stood together around the center ice faceoff circle and raise sticks to salute the fans. I’ll admit that it was a little emotional to watch, especially when you think about what careers lie ahead, and especially when you think of a player like Derek Hines who gave his life in service to his country.
Dan: Look, hockey is a sport, and we measure success in that sport through wins and losses. How teams look between the lines is exactly why we talk, analyze, ask questions and answer each other.
In that respect, Air Force and Army aren’t any different, but once the games are over, their lives have very different purposes that only they understand. I feel like I have this conversation more and more, but I’m reminded of their purpose when I see the teams on the ice. The way they carry themselves is just different, but it’s always striking.
I readily admit that I’m not one to run things up the flag, and I don’t come from a military family. But recognizing their service, in some cases the ultimate service offered by Derek Hines or Tom Kennedy, is a contrast against the typical discussion about wins and losses.
Seeing those images, especially how they honor their seniors, hits home in that respect, especially since my extended family has family members dotting the different branches of the military.
Army head coach Brian Riley likes to say that hockey is the ultimate team sport and that the Army is the ultimate team.
Taking that a step further, if hockey is the ultimate team sport, then I can’t think of anything better than watching those teams battle each other for two nights before they salute each other as brothers. Given everything we need to do at times to improve ourselves, we can look to their totems of honor and duty to guide us through the link between the purity of sport and the way we can stand together, as one, to do right by each other, even if we’re trying to compete on a nightly basis.
The CCHA announced Tuesday a one-game suspension for Bowling Green senior forward Evan Dougherty.
The suspension is a result of Dougherty’s five-minute major and game misconduct penalty for contact to the head, which occurred at 10:42 of the second period in Bowling Green’s game at Ferris State on Jan. 29, 2022.
After further league review, the CCHA has determined that the penalty will result in supplemental discipline.
The suspension will be effective for BGSU’s next game on Feb. 4, 2022 against Minnesota State.
Ondrej Pavel had a goal and an assist as Minnesota State claimed a 4-2 win over Arizona State last Friday night (photo: Jackson Forderer).
With 29 first-place votes this week, Minnesota State remains the top-ranked team in the DCU/USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll.
Quinnipiac is again No. 2 and earned 14 first-place votes in this week’s poll.
Michigan moves up one to No. 3, getting six first-place votes, while Denver jumps one spot to No. 4 and picks up the last first-place vote.
Western Michigan falls to No. 3, down from No. 5 in last week’s rankings.
Minnesota Duluth is No. 6, flip-flopping with St. Cloud State, Minnesota moves up two to No. 8, Ohio State is up three to No. 9, and Massachusetts drops one this week to sit tenth.
Two teams unranked a week ago enter the rankings this week as Boston University is No. 19 and Clarkson is No. 20.
In addition to the top 20 teams, 10 others received votes this week.
The DCU/USCHO.com Division I Men’s Ice Hockey Poll is compiled weekly and consists of 50 voters, including coaches and media professionals from across the country. Media outlets may republish this poll as long as USCHO.com is credited.
DCU (DCU.org), a not-for-profit financial cooperative owned by and operated for its members, is the sponsor of this poll. DCU serves more than 900,000 members and their families in all 50 states.
The Catamounts earned their first-ever win over a #1 team when they upset Northeastern on Friday. Vermont had a season-high 38 blocks, led by Sarah Levesque with eight. Kristina Shanahan scored 12 minutes into the game. Theresa Schafzahl blocked a shot on defense and then she, Shanahan and Alyssa Holmes broke out. Shanahan placed the puck just below the bar to beat Aerin Frankel and make it 1-0. In the second, Maddie Mills took a shot from distance and Maureen Murphy was able to redirect it into the net to tie the game 1-1. In the third, the Catamounts were finally able to capitalize on a power play – they had five in the game – when Bella Parento wristed in a shot to make it 2-1. Northeastern called timeout and looked to pull Frankel with a few minutes left on the clock, but the Huskies struggled to clear the zone. They played the final 90 seconds with an extra attacker. Jessie MacPherson made a stunning save with just about 30 seconds to go when she moved across the width of the goal to snag what had been a wide-open shot at the doorstep for Chloe Aurard.
(2) Minnesota at (3) Ohio State
Buckeye goalie Amanda Thiele made a career-high 36 saves to help lead her team to a 2-1 overtime win on Friday. After a scoreless first frame, Taylor Heise scored for Minnesota at just about the midway point of the game. Madison Bizal tied the game with a power play goal with about nine minutes left to play. In OT, Liz Schepers and Jenna Buglioni got an odd-player rush in on the Gopher net and Schepers beat Lauren Bench to give Ohio State the win. Sophie Jaques had two assists in the game. On Saturday, the Gophers used four second-period goals to power a 5-3 win. Paetyn Levis scored for Ohio State just three minutes into the game and the Buckeyes carried that 1-0 lead into the first intermission. But in the second, Heise scored twice and Maggie Nicholson and Madeline Wethington each lit the lamp to put Minnesota ahead 4-1. Jaques and Schepers helped spur a comeback in the third to make it a one-goal game, but Audrey Wethington added an empty-netter to secure the win and give Minnesota the 5-3 victory and weekend sweep.
(3) Wisconsin at St. Cloud State
Emma Polusny made 54 saves on Friday, stymying one of the best offenses in the country to earn her team a hard-fought tie. It was the first point SCSU has won off the Badgers since 2015. Olivia Cvar scored 26 seconds into the game to put the Huskies up 1-0. That tally held for another 50 minutes before Makenna Webster scored on the power play to tie the game for the Badgers. Nicole LaMantia’s slapshot won an extra conference point in the shootout. SCSU made 22 blocks in the game. In the second game, Wisconsin answered with a first-shift goal of their own as Makenna Webster tallied her 50th career point. She would go on to register a hat trick, scoring again in the second and third. Brette Pettet also scored in the second as Wisconsin took a 4-0 win.
Minnesota State at (5) Minnesota Duluth
Gabbie Hughes had three assists and Anna Klein added two helpers to lead the Bulldogs to a 4-2 win on Friday. Taylor Anderson scored in the opening few minutes to put Duluth up 1-0. Mankato responded with a goal from Kennedy Bobyck. Elizabeth Giguere scored on the power play to put UMd up 2-1 and Clara Van Wieren extended the lead to 3-1 with just 0.02 seconds to go before the end of the first. Brittyn Fleming cut the lead down to one in the second. But Taylor Stewart’s third-period goal secured the win for the Bulldogs. On Saturday, Giguere scored twice in less than a minute midway through the first to put UMD up 2-0. But Minnesota State responded with two quick goals of their own in the second. Alexis Paddington and Taylor Wemple scored exactly one minute apart to tie the game at 2. Hughes and Van Wieren scored early in the second to make it a 4-2 game. Charlotte Avervik brought it to 4-3, but Mankato couldn’t complete the comeback and Klein’s empty-netter ensured the 5-3 win and weekend sweep.
(10) Clarkson at (6) Harvard
The Crimson had not beaten Clarkson since 2013 and hadn’t defeated them at home since 2011, but they ended the 14-game winless streak on Friday with a definitive 6-2 win. Harvard had a 2-0 lead before four minutes had elapsed thanks to goals from Becca Gilmore and Kristi Della Rovere. Florence Lessard made it 2-1 for Clarkson, but the Crimson quickly extended the lead as Anne Bloomer scored twice before the end of the first to make it 4-1 Harvard. Dominique Petrie scored in the third to make it 5-1 before Kristina Schuler added another for Clarkson. Brooke Jovanovich scored on the power play to complete the game for Harvard.
(9) Colgate at (7) Quinnipiac
There two closely-matched teams played a back and forth contest on Friday that needed overtime to decide a winner. Dara Grieg scored her team-leading 16th goal in the opening minutes to put Colgate up 1-0. Quinnipiac responded with a pair of goals from Nina Steingauf and Kendall Cooper to make it 2-1 at the end of the opening period. In the second, Neena Brick tied it up for Colgate. Midway through the third, Kaitlyn O’Donohoe put the Raiders ahead again, but it was extremely short-lived, as Jess Schryver lit the lamp 13 seconds later. It took just 38 seconds of extra play for Allyson Simpson to win it for Colgate, earning a 4-3 victory.
Cornell at (7) Quinnipiac
Olivia Mobley, Kendall Cooper and Kate Reilly all scored to give Quinnipiac a 3-0 win and season sweep over Cornell. It was the first time the Bobcats had ever shut out the Big Red in both regular season meetings.
Brown vs. (8) Yale
Brown knocked off Yale on Friday to earn their fourth ECAC win this season, their most since 2016-17. Maya Mangiafico scored in the final minute of the first, crashing the net and taking a pass behind the net. The Bulldogs scored on the player advantage early in the second to tie the game on a goal from Vita Poniatovskaia. Freshman Cameron Sikich won a faceoff and wristed in a pretty shot for what would prove to be the game-winner. Shay Maloney’s power play goal in the third gave Brown their first multi-goal lead of the season. Madie Stockfish’s empty net goal iced the 4-1 win for the Bears. On Sunday, rookies Poniatovskaia and Anna Bargman each had a goal and an assist and five different Bulldogs scored to help Yale bounce back with a 5-1 win. Anna Gallagher was the goal-scorer for the Bears in the loss. Maya Kerfoot, Claire Dalton and Tess Dettling were the other goal-scorers for Yale.
(9) Colgate at Princeton
Princeton had a player advantage for the final three minutes of the game, but Colgate was able to hold off the Tigers and add an empty-net goal to get a 3-1 win on Saturday. Eleri MacKay scored exactly three minutes in and that goal held until the midway point of the game when Annie Kuehl tied the game. But Colgate didn’t let Princeton get any momentum and scored on the power play a short while later with a goal from Rosy Demers. Kalty Kaltounkova’s empty-net goal secured the 3-1 win.
(10) Clarkson at Dartmouth
Lotti Odnoga put Dartmouth on the board first with a power play goal six minutes into the game. Caitrin Lonergan tied it up shortly thereafter and the teams headed into the first intermission tied at 1. In the second, the Big Green took another lead as Gabby Billing lit the lamp. Anne Cherkowski responded just a few moments later to tie the teams once again at the horn. In the third, Clarkson pulled away thanks to goals from Brooke McQuigge and Gabrielle David to win 4-2.
Babson’s Ryan Black reached the 100-point plateau in a 5-1 win over Castleton (Photo by Babson Athletics)
Schedule adjustments abounded in New England but not due to COVID as Mother Nature sent a Nor’easter our way for the weekend. Still there were some big upsets across the CCC, important wins among conference leaders in the NEHC and SUNYAC and some overtime thrillers in the NE-10. Here’s this week’s wrap-up for all the great action:
CCC
Curry came into the weekend unbeaten on home ice, but Salve Regina had no regard for that stat as they knocked off the No. 10 ranked Colonels 3-2 on Friday. In a playoff style game, the teams stayed scoreless until George Sennott gave the Seahawks a 1-0 lead late in the second period. Sennott scored again to extend the lead to 2-0 and Nicholas Latinovich stopped all 36 shots he faced in the 2-0 road win for Salve Regina.
The upset bug also hit No. 12 Endicott as Suffolk surprised the Gulls with a 3-2 win on Friday. Goaltender Cal Wilcox stopped 29 of 31 shots and Nick Lachaine’s power play goal late in the third period was the difference maker for the Rams who moved to 4-6-3 in CCC play.
The University of New England also faced a stern challenge from Wentworth on Friday as the Nor’easters had to rally back from two one-goal deficits to earn a 6-4 win over the Leopards. Three unanswered goals in the final ten minutes of regulation turned a 4-3 deficit into the winning margin led by Jake Fuss’ goal and three assists.
Independents
On Tuesday night, Anna Maria won for the third time in four games downing Wesleyan 3-2. Brendan Boncore stopped 33 of 35 shots and Derek Raposo broke a 2-2 tie midway through the third period to help level the AmCats record at 7-7-2.
In another Independent v. NESCAC matchup, Albertus Magnus skated to a 3-3 tie with Connecticut College on Tuesday night. Cameron Weitzman opened the scoring for the Falcons, but the Camels answered back with a pair of goals before Dino Antoniadis tied it for visitors in the final minute of the second period. The Camels again took a one-goal lead early in the third period, but Weitzman tied the game just seven seconds later for what would be the final tally through overtime.
On Thursday and Friday, the Falcons faced Canton in a two-game series and opened with a convincing 5-2 win behind a quick 3-0 first period lead and goals from five different players. On Friday, the Falcons completed the series sweep with a 5-1 win. A four-goal third period broke open a 1-1 tie as the Falcons were led by Jonathan Stein’s two goals.
MASCAC
The Fitchburg State Falcons extended their win streak to five games with two MASCAC victories over Framingham State and Worcester State. On Tuesday, the Rams jumped out to an early two-goal lead as Zachary Bettmeng and Ethan Cervonayco scored at the eight second mark and 3:22 mark respectively. The Falcons got their game into high gear launching 64 shots at Ram netminder Trevor Stenberg and scored five unanswered goals including four with the man advantage in a 5-2 win. On Thursday, the Falcons’ Anthony Ceolin got his team off to the early 2-0 lead and teammate Rece Bergeman’s early second period tally proved to be the game-winner in a 3-2 win over Worcester State.
Keeping pace with the Falcons, Plymouth State also picked up a pair of wins in conference play this week. In a key matchup with Massachusetts-Dartmouth on Tuesday, the Panthers saw a 2-1 lead erased on a deflected shot from Sky Silverstein with just 35 seconds remaining in regulation that sent the game to overtime. In the extra session, Myles Abbate with an assist from JR Barone gave the Panthers the hard fought 3-2 win. On Thursday, Plymouth State found an easier time with Salem State scoring three goals in each of the first and third periods for a 6-2 win. Peter Laviolette picked up a goal and two assist for the Panthers.
Fitchburg State and Plymouth State were scheduled to play in a battle for first place on Saturday, January 29th but due to a pending blizzard the game has been re-scheduled for Tuesday, February 1 at PSU.
NE-10
Overtime winners were on display in NE-10 play as both St. Anselm and Assumption needed extra time to pick up wins on Friday. In a game that saw St. Michael’s rally from one-goal deficits two times, Case Kantgias’ power play goal just 24 seconds into the third period tied the game at 3-3 for the Purple Knights ultimately sending the game to overtime. With just 19 seconds remaining in the extra session, Matt Hayes with assists from Andrew Andary and Jack Murphy secured the 4-3 win for the Hawks. On Saturday, Andary added to his weekend point total with two goals and two assists in a 6-2 win for St. Anselm. The Hawks raced to a 5-0 lead before the Purple Knights broke Nick Howard’s shutout bid late in the third period.
Assumption continued their hot play of late with a 3-2 overtime win over Post on Friday. Patrick Murphy bookended a pair of Greyhound goals to tie the game for Post at 2-2. In overtime Robert Holyoke setup Dara Conneely for the game winner in the opening two minutes that extended the Greyhound win streak to four games. David Altman stopped 36 of 38 shots as Assumption was outshot 38-32.
NEHC
After a come-from-behind win over Amherst on Tuesday, Babson faced a pair of key NEHC contests against Skidmore and Castleton. On Friday, against the red-hot Thoroughbreds, the teams were even at 1-1 after two periods of play but Kaeden Patrick gave Skidmore a 2-1 lead less than two minutes into the third period. Babson responded with Thomas Kramer scoring twice in a four minute span for a 3-2 lead that Brad Arvanitis made stand up for the win. On Saturday, Ryan Black’s two goals help lead the Beavers to a 5-1 win over Castleton. Black’s second goal of the game was his 100th point at Babson.
Massachusetts-Boston was looking to show they are in the conference hunt and helped themselves on Friday with a win over No. 7 Elmira. After falling behind 2-0, the Beacons rallied on three goals in the second period. Ethan Nitkin scored a pair and Devin Moran picked up the game-winning goal in a 3-2 game. Sam Best made 31 saves for the Beacons who put the game on lockdown in the third period to support Best. After moving the scheduled Saturday date with Hobart to Sunday, the Beacons tied the Statesmen 2-2 for a strong conference weekend.
Norwich needed an overtime goal from Joe Nagle to subdue Alex LaPlante and the New England College Pilgrims on Sunday. The 3-2 final saw Spencer Kozlowski stop 53 of 56 Cadet shots keeping the game close throughout. The win moved the Cadets to 7-4-3 in the NEHC.
NESCAC
Middlebury broke through for their first conference win dramatic fashion earning a 3-2 overtime victory over Hamilton on Tuesday. The Continentals took a 2-1 lead over the Panthers on second period goals from William Neault and shorthanded from Jordi Jefferson. In the third period Chris Garbe tied the game for the Panthers and then scored the overtime winner with an unassisted gem.
Connor Blanchard and Henry Molson gave visiting Colby a 2-0 lead with first period goals just over a minute apart, but Andy Beran was the story for the Mules making 38 saves in a 3-1 win over Bowdoin in an always big rivalry game. Jake MacDonald sealed the win with his third period marker as the Mules were outshot 39-15 by the Polar Bears.
Trinity picked up a big road win against Amherst as Patrick Pugliese made 25 saves and Cole Poliziani scored two goals in a 3-1 win for the Bantams. Looking to reach a season high three-game win streak, the Bantams fell just short as Hamilton eked out a 4-3 overtime win on Saturday. After Devan Tongue tied the game at 3-3 in the third period, it took just 56 seconds for Grisha Gotovets to find the back of the net giving the Continentals a much needed win and breaking a four-game losing streak.
Fisher Shea scored a goal and added two assists to lead Tufts to a 4-0 win over Middlebury on Friday. Four different players scored in support for Josh Sarlo who picked up the shutout making 33 saves.
Wesleyan earned a winning weekend that started with a 3-1 win over Hamilton. Three first period goals from Emmet Powell, Uri Lurie and Owen Sweet were all Marc Smith needed in goal to pick up the 28-save win. The Cardinals fell behind Amherst on Sunday by a score of 2-0 in the first period but then reeled off three unanswered goals from Kyle Anderson, Powell and Danny Sorabella to take a 3-2 road win over the Mammoths.
SUNYAC
Geneseo and Plattsburgh renewed their rivalry on Friday with the Knights emerging with a 6-3 win that needed late scoring for some comfort over the Cardinals. Domenic Garozzo scored a hat trick for the Knights who also saw Peter Morgan chip in with a goal and three assists for Geneseo in the win. On Saturday the Knights beat Potsdam handily by a 12-2 score. Dan Bosio (six points) and Nicholas Elia (four points) both score hat tricks for the Knights.
Oswego headed to Cortland on Friday looking to extend their win streak against the tough Red Dragons. The first two periods saw the teams exchange goals and the lead with Nate Berke’s power play goal helping Cortland tie the game at 3-3 entering the third period. Oswego’s Mr. Clutch, Travis Broughman gave the Lakers the lead for good at 7:16 of the final period and scored in the final minute to ice the game and complete his hat trick in the 5-3 win. On Saturday against Fredonia, Broughman again led the offense with a goal and an assist as the Lakers raced out to a 3-0 lead and held on for a 3-2 win extending their current streak to six in a row.
After downing Morrisville 5-3 on Tuesday, Fredonia completed their season sweep of Buffalo State with a 4-2 win on Friday. Logan Dyck was especially strong in the first period for the Blue Devils as he stopped 15 of 16 shots. Fredonia took control later in the period scoring two times on the power play with goals from Kurri Woodford and Ethan Kirbis. Second period tallies from Johnny Malandruccolo and Chandler Judd extended the lead to 4-1 and Dyck held the Bengals to just one goal for the win that extended their SUNYAC win streak to three games.
UCHC
Wilkes put on an offensive show against King’s on Friday night in an 8-1 win for the Colonels. Nick Fea led the way with four goals and an assist but saw additional contributions from Michael Gurska who had four assists and Jimmy O’Kane who added a goal and two assists.
Arcadia stunned Manhattanville on Friday by taking a 3-2 road win over the Valiants. Goaltender Jeb Lindy was outstanding stopping 34 of 36 shots including 16 in the final period for the Knights. Goals from Dylan Florit, Kale Lone and Halen Cookston all in the second period provided all the scoring Lindy would need to earn the second conference win for Arcadia in their first season of UCHC play.
Utica scored five unanswered goals on their way to a 5-2 win over Stevenson on Saturday. Justin Allen led the Pioneers with a goal and two assists while Regen Cavanaugh and Brett Everson each chipped in with a goal and assist for the Pioneers. On Sunday, Utica continued their winning ways in a 3-0 win over Chatham that saw Bryan Landesberger earn the 14-save shutout supported by two goals from Brian Scoville and a tally from Dante Zapata.
Stevenson bounced back on Sunday with a last minute win over Nazareth on a goal off the stick of Alex Rivet with just 52 seconds remaining in the third period for a 3-2 win.
Three Biscuits
Nicholas Latinovich – Salve Regina – made 36 saves and picked up the shutout in a 2-0 road win over Curry on Friday night. The win was Latinovich’s tenth on the season for the Seahawks.
Nick Fea – Wilkes – scored four goals in the Colonels’ 8-1 win over King’s on Friday night. Fea also added an assist for a five-point night.
Thomas Kramer – Babson – scored the game-tying and game winning goals in the third period to lead Babson past Skidmore on Friday night, 3-2.
Bonus Biscuits
Josh Sarlo – Tufts – stopped all 33 shots he faced to backstop Tufts to a 4-0 win over Middlebury on Friday.
Travis Broughman – Oswego – scored a hat trick including the game-winning goal in Oswego’s 5-3 road win over Cortland on Friday. Broughman also added a goal and an assist in Saturday’s win over Fredonia.
Andrew Andary – St. Anselm – picked up three assists for the Hawks in a 4-3 overtime win over St. Michael’s on Friday and added two goals and two assists on Saturday in the 6-2 series sweeping win.
The calendar turns to February this week, so the race is on for those all important conference points. While the NEHC and NE-10 have already announced the inclusion of all teams in the conference tournament (others likely to do so soon), the battles for position are going to be crucial over the next couple of weeks.
Nate Horn scored with 52 seconds left in overtime as Air Force defeated Army 3-2 on Saturday at the Cadet Ice Arena in Colorado Springs (photo: Air Force Athletics).
Each week, USCHO.com will pick the top 10 moments from the past weekend in our Monday 10 feature.
1. Denver comes back on Friday, sweeps on Saturday
NCHC cellar dweller Miami found itself in a great position when Red Savage scored 23 second into the third period to give the RedHawks a 4-2 lead against No. 5 Denver, but an upset was not meant to be.
Cole Guttman cut Miami’s lead to one with 3:43 left in the game and then tied the contest with 11 seconds remaining. Mike Benning gave Denver the victory at the 3:43 mark in overtime.
Denver jumped out to a 2-0 lead on Saturday, thanks to goals from Sean Behrens and Cameron Wright. Then it was Miami’s turn to mount a comeback, using goals from Matthew Barbolini and Jack Olmstead to tie the game heading into the third period.
An upset, again, wasn’t meant to be as Ryan Barrow gave the Pioneers the lead in the third and McKade Webster added and empty-netter late in the third.
2. Minnesota takes four of six conference points at Notre Dame
In what was expected to be, and usually is, a close series between two teams at the top of the Big Ten standings, Minnesota flexed its offensive muscles on Friday at Notre Dame.
Grant Cruikshank, Tristan Broz and Blake McLaughlin scored first period goals on Friday and chased goalie Matthew Galajda from the net. Sammy Walker extended the lead to 4-0 in the second before Trevor Janicke scored a power-play goal to get Notre Dame on the board. McLaughlin scored again in the waning seconds of the middle period and neither team found the back of the net in the third.
Notre Dame jumped out to a 2-0 lead on Saturday with goals from Max Ellis and Janicke. The Gophers came back with a goal from Ben Meyers in the second period and Bryce Brodzinski in the third. After the game went to overtime Notre Dame secured the extra points with a goal by Landon Slaggert.
3. Michigan Tech stays hot, sweeps Bemidji State
Michigan Tech continued its undefeated 2022, and its march up the PairWise Rankings, by picking up a pair of 5-2 victories over Bemidji State at home this weekend.
Brian Halonen picked up two goals on Friday and was joined in the scoring department by Logan Ganie, Eric Gotz and Colin Swoyer.
Ganie notched another goal on Saturday, along with two from Alec Broetzman and scores from Tommy Parrottino and Tyrell Buckley.
The wins jumped the Huskies to second in the CCHA standings, they’ll play a singular game against Northern Michigan on Tuesday before traveling to St. Thomas next weekend.
4. McKay notches wins No. 99 and 100 as Minnesota State sweeps Arizona State
Arizona State gave No. 1 Minnesota State a challenge in both games this weekend, but the Sun Devils will head back South still without a victory and in a tough position to try and make the NCAA tournament.
Dryden McKay became the third goaltender in NCAA Division I men’s history to win 100 games on Saturday. He made 24 saves on Friday and stopped 21 shots on Saturday.
ASU took the lead against the Mavericks in both games, Matthew Kopperud scored on Friday and Jack Becker did the honors on Saturday, but MSU responded each night.
Andy Carroll tied the game in the first period on Friday before Reggie Lutz and Ondrej Pavel extended the lead in the second with a one-handed breakaway goal while being hauled down. Julian Napravnik gave the Mavericks a 4-1 lead in the third before Kopperud scored again to cut the lead back to two.
The Mavericks used second-period goals by Lutz, Akito Hirose and Cade Borchardt to counteract Becker’s goal on Saturday. Ryan Sandelin extended the lead in the third period and added an empty netter later in the period after Josh Doan scored twice to cut the lead to one.
5. North Dakota blows out St. Cloud State on Friday, wins in a shootout on Saturday
St. Cloud State was riding a four-game winning streak and was fresh off scoring 19 goals against Miami last weekend, but North Dakota proved once again that it is a tough opponent no matter how well you’re playing.
The Fighting Hawks hung seven goals on the Huskies on Friday night and came back to earn a 3-3 tie in Saturday’s game after falling behind 3-1 in the first period. North Dakota won the shootout for the extra conference points.
Connor Ford, Ethan Frisch and Riese Gaber gave UND a 3-0 lead after one period on Friday and Griffin Ness extended the lead to four in the second period. Jami Krannila got the Huskies on the board in the middle period but two goals from Ashton Calder and another from Gaber squashed any hope of a comeback.
Frisch opened the scoring on Saturday, but the Huskies responded with goals from Veeti Miettinen, Nick Perbix and Micah Miller. Chris Jandric cut SCSU’s lead to one in the second period and Jake Sanderson tied the game in the third with a nifty wrist shot from the faceoff circle.
6. Minnesota Duluth and Western Michigan split
In one of the more entertaining series of the weekend, Minnesota Duluth and Western Michigan each picked up a victory with the Bulldogs winning 5-4 on Friday and the Broncos rebounding with a 3-2 victory in overtime on Saturday.
Friday’s game was back-and-forth. Kobe Roth gave UMD a lead 14 seconds into the contest and Matt Anderson doubled it later in the first, but Ethen Frank and Max Sasson scored for Western Michigan before the period was over to tie the game. Blake Biondi and Jesse Jacques gave UMD another two-goal lead in the second period, but Drew Worrad and Jason Polin erased it yet again in the third. Hunter Lellig scored the eventual game-winner at the 8:43 mark of the final period.
Noah Cates gave UMD a 1-0 lead in the first on Saturday and WMU’s Josh Passolt and UMD’s Connor Kelley traded goals in the second period. Ronnie Attard scored early in the third period to tie the game and Passolt scored his second at the 1:51 mark of overtime.
7. Air Force and Army split battle of the armed forces
After an impressive 8-2 victory by Army on Friday, Air Force was able to rebound at home and pick up a 3-2 overtime victory on Saturday.
The Falcons jumped out to a 2-0 lead in Friday’s game, but it was all Army from there. Daniel Haider had a hat trick for the Black Nights in the contest, who scored five unanswered goals after Air Force doubled its lead and closed out the game with three goals in the third.
Air Force took the lead again on Saturday with a goal by Parker Brown, but Army scored two goals early in the second to take the lead. Nate Horn scored at the 4:00 mark of the third period and 4:08 mark of overtime to give the Falcons the victory.
8. Michigan cruises past Wisconsin
The Badgers weren’t expected to be much of a test for Michigan and, well, they weren’t.
The Wolverines picked up a 5-1 victory on Friday in Madison and completed the sweep with a 6-2 victory on Saturday.
Dylan Duke, Thomas Bordeleau, Luke Morgan, Mackie Samoskevich and Matty Beniers scored goals for the Wolverines on Friday.
Saturday’s game was slightly closer, for a bit. Ethan Edwards gave Michigan a 1-0 lead after one period before Jesper Peltonen and Dominick Mersch scored in quick succession early in the second period to give the Badgers a 2-1 lead. Philippe LaPointe, Jimmy Lambert and Brendan Brisson restored order with goals for Michigan before the second period expired. Luke Hughes and Nick Blankenburg added to the final score in the third.
9. Massachusetts downs UMass Lowell on Sunday
In one of the few Hockey East games this weekend, Massachusetts eked out a victory over rival UMass Lowell on Sunday afternoon.
The River Hawks took the lead three times in the game, but UMass came back each time. Andre Lee gave UML the lead early in the game before Lucas Mercuri leveled things at the 3:28 mark of the first period. Lucas Condotta gave Lowell another lead later in the first, but that was equaled by Bobby Trivigno in the second. Matt Crasa gave the River Hawks their final lead at the 10:29 mark of the third, which was canceled out by Taylor Makar three minutes later. Scott Morrow gave UMass the victory with 2:48 remaining in the final period.
10. Quinnipiac wins Connecticut Ice
After battling to down Sacred Heart in overtime on Saturday, Quinnipiac defeated Connecticut 2-0 on Sunday to capture the Connecticut Ice tournament played at Webster Bank Arena in Bridgeport, Conn.
Saturday’s game was a battle.
Joey Cipollone gave the Bobcats the lead in the first period and that was all the scoring there would be until Neil Shea and Dakota Raabe gave SHU the lead in the third. Cipollone scored again with 1:59 left in the third period and Zach Metsa scored at the 3:51 mark of overtime to send QU to the championship game.
On Sunday against Connecticut, who defeated Yale on Saturday to advance to the title game, goals were hard to come by.
Desi Burgart scored the first goal of the contest and gave Quinnipiac the lead with 12:47 left in the third period. Ethan De Jong added an empty-netter later in the period to ice the game. Yaniv Perets picked up a 29-save shutout in the game.
UMass captain Bobby Trivigno battles for position Friday night in front of the Providence net with Chase Yoder and goalie Jaxson Stauber (photo: Rich Gagnon).
Here is a rundown of how the top 20 teams in the USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll of Jan. 24 fared in games over the weekend of Jan. 28-30.
No. 1 Minnesota State (25-5-0)
01/28/2022 – RV Arizona State 2 at No. 1 Minnesota State 4
01/29/2022 – RV Arizona State 3 at No. 1 Minnesota State 5
No. 2 Quinnipiac (21-2-3)
01/26/2022 – No. 2 Quinnipiac 6 at Princeton 0
01/29/2022 – No. 2 Quinnipiac 3 at Sacred Heart 2 (OT) (Connecticut Ice at SHU)
01/30/2022 – Connecticut 0 vs No. 2 Quinnipiac 2 (Connecticut Ice championship at SHU)
No. 3 Western Michigan (17-6-0)
01/28/2022 – No. 3 Western Michigan 4 at No. 7 Minnesota Duluth 5
01/29/2022 – No. 3 Western Michigan 3 at No. 7 Minnesota Duluth 2 (OT)
No. 6 St. Cloud State (14-7-1)
01/28/2022 – No. 6 St. Cloud State 1 at No. 13 North Dakota 7
01/29/2022 – No. 6 St. Cloud State 3 at No. 13 North Dakota 3 (OT)
No. 7 Minnesota Duluth (14-10-2)
01/28/2022 – No. 3 Western Michigan 4 at No. 7 Minnesota Duluth 5
01/29/2022 – No. 3 Western Michigan 3 at No. 7 Minnesota Duluth 2 (OT)
No. 12 Ohio State (19-7-2)
01/28/2022 – No. 12 Ohio State 2 at RV Penn State 2 (OT)
01/29/2022 – No. 12 Ohio State 6 at RV Penn State 0
No. 13 North Dakota (14-10-1)
01/28/2022 – No. 6 St. Cloud State 1 at No. 13 North Dakota 7
01/29/2022 – No. 6 St. Cloud State 3 at No. 13 North Dakota 3 (OT)
No. 20 Northern Michigan (14-10-1)
01/28/2022 – Lake Superior State 6 at No. 20 Northern Michigan 1
01/29/2022 – Lake Superior State 1 at No. 20 Northern Michigan 2 (OT)
The Bethel Royals have 12 wins on the season, the most in more than a decade. Photo courtesy of Bethel Athletics.
Bethel continues to roll along this season, with the Royals sweeping Hamline over the weekend.
After a 3-2 win in overtime on Friday, Bethel dominated the Pipers in Saturday’s game, scoring five goals in the opening period for a 7-3 win. It’s the second time this season Bethel has scored seven goals in a game.
Luke Posner and Jarrett Cammarata both came through with three points, with Posner scoring twice to go along with an assist. Cammarata added a goal and two assists. Posner ranks second on the team in goals while Cammarata has dished out a career-best 15 assists.
Brandon Baker and Andrew Revering also tallied two assists apiece as the Royals won for the 12th time this season, the most wins for the team since the 2007-08 campaign. Bethel is 12-6-1 overall and 5-4-1 in the MIAC and has won its last three games.
Lund leads way for Auggies
Keenan Lund recorded a hat trick Saturday to help carry Augsburg to a 7-1 win over St Olaf. Ranked fourth in the DCU/USCHO NCAA Division III men’s poll, the Augges dominated the Oles one night after escaping with a 3-2 win in overtime. They have now outscored the opposition 68-29 and rank among the best nationally in scoring defense.
Lund, meanwhile, gave the offense a boost as he also tallied an assist. Mason Palmer came through with four assists to help the Auggies improve to 17-2 overall and 9-1 in the MIAC. They remain the top team in the conference.
Austin Dollimer scored a goal and dished out two assists and Nick Woodward scored a goal as well for Augsburg, which stretched its win streak to eight games.
Cobbers sweep Saints
Concordia remains one of the top teams in the MIAC after a series sweep of St. Scholastica. The Cobbers won 4-1 on Friday before closing out the weekend with a 4-2 win.
Saturdays win was their 10th of the season, marking their 11th consecutive year with 10 or more wins.
Concordia, which has won its last four games, is in second place in the MIAC standings. The Cobbers are 10-7-2 overall and 7-2-1 in the MIAC.
Cole O’Connell, Parker Simonson, Isaac Henkemeyer-Howe and Tanner Breidenbach all scored for the Cobbers, who held a 37-16 advantage in shots in the win and finished the two-game series with a 76-43 shot advantage.
Jackson Nelson racked up 14 saves for his eighth win of the year.
Green Knights win pivotal series
St. Norbert faced a key NCHA test over the weekend, taking on Trine, and the Green Knights came out on top, closing out the series with a thrilling 10-5 win on Saturday. The nation’s fifth-ranked team in the DCU/USCHO NCAA Division III men’s poll won the opener 5-3.
The Green Knights have now won 17 consecutive wins, the longest streak in program history, and the 15 goals they scored in the two wins over the Thunder are the most in program history.
St. Norbert improved to 18-3 overall and 14-0 in the NCHA thanks to hat tricks by Peter Pates and Ben Schmidling.
Bates also dished out two assists as he pushed his career totals to 60 goals and 83 assists.
He also recorded his third hat trick of the season and is one of only three players in program history to have at least three hat tricks in a season.
The Thunder and Green Knights were tied at 2-2 after one before the Green Knights scored five goals in the second period and went into the third with a 7-4 lead.
Frank Trazzera scored twice for the Thunder, which was just outside the top 15 nationally coming into the game.
Garrett Hallford, Drew Welsch and Hunter Payment all tallied two assists apiece for Trine, which is now 14-7 overall and 8-6 in the NCHA.
Trine seemed to be on its way to a win in the opener, jumping ahead 3-0 after one period of play.
Brett Tierney, Matt Bielinski and Welsch all scored for the Thunder as it took aim at the upset win.
But St. Norbert scored five goals over the next two periods to come away with the win. Bates and Peyton Frantti each scored twice in the comeback win.
Spartans stay on track
Aurora needed overtime to finish off a series win over Marian Saturday. The 15th-ranked Spartans notched a 2-1 win in overtime after winning the opener 7-3 on Friday.
Matt Weber scored the game winner for the Spartans, lifting them to their fourth consecutive victory. Aurora is now 14-5-1 overall and 9-3-0-1 in the NCHA.
Jack Jaunich also scored for Aurora and Josh Boyko made 43 saves.
Raiders roll past Lions
MSOE pushed its win streak to four games with a 6-3 win over Finlandia Saturday. The Raiders won the opener 3-1 on Friday.
MSOE improved to 9-10-6 overall and 6-5-1-1 in the conference after trailing 2-1 early.
The Raiders scored three goals off the power play in the win and six different players scored, including Jack Nickels, who also dished out three assists.
Marcus Gloss made 30 saves for MSOE, which has its first four-game win streak of the year. It’s the first time the Raiders have won at least four consecutive games since starting off the 2019-20 season with five wins in a row.
Bulldogs make it 20 in a row
Adrian dominated Concordia in a two-game series to stretch its win streak to 20 games. The top-ranked team in the DCU/USCHO NCAA Division III men’s poll outscored the Falcons 21-1 in the two games, finishing out the series with a 10-0 win.
The Bulldogs have scored five or more goals in each of their last 10 games. They are 20-1 overall and 14-0 in the conference
Blugolds keep streak going
UW-Eau Claire is in the midst of a late-season surge. The Blugolds stretched their win streak to three games Saturday with a 2-1 win over UW-Stout. The win comes on the heels of a 4-1 win over the Blue Devils on Friday.
Ty Readman scored the game winner on a breakaway goal in OT as the Blugolds improved to 9-11 overall and 5-6 in the WIAC.
Colin Stein gave the Blugolds a 1-0 lead late in the first before Peyton Hart tied the game with under two minutes to play in the opening period.
Ryan Ouellette made 19 saves for the Blugolds, who held a 26-20 edge in shots and end the month of January with five wins in eight games.
Falcons bounce back After a 2-1 loss to Northland Thursday, UW-River Falls bounced back with a 3-1 win over the Lumberjacks Saturday.
Jack Kilroy gave UW-River Falls an early 1-0 lead. Caleb Anderson and Cayden Cahill also scored for the Falcons, who held a 31-9 advantage in shots. Dean Buchholz made eight saves for his third win. UW-River Falls is 11-9-1 overall and 7-4 in the WIAC.
Michigan Tech players celebrate a goal during the Huskies’ 5-2 win over Bemidji State Saturday night (photo: Michigan Tech Athletics).
No. 11 Notre Dame posted an exciting 3-2 overtime victory over No. 10 Minnesota on Saturday night at Compton Family Ice Arena.
Landon Slaggert buried the game-winning goal just 32 seconds into the overtime with assists from Graham Slaggert and Spencer Stastney. Max Ellis and Trevor Janicke also scored for the Irish.
Minnesota native Ryan Bischel made 24 saves in the win, while Justen Close posted 20 saves for Minnesota.
The Gophers were 0 for 3 on the power play, while Notre Dame was 0 for 4. For the weekend series, Notre Dame held Minnesota to an 0 for 6 mark on the power play.
Just 32 seconds into the overtime period, Stastney got the puck across the ice to Graham Slaggert, who found his brother Landon, who broke into the offensive zone and slammed home his own rebound for the game-winning goal.
Ben Meyers and Bryce Brodzinski scored for the Gophers.
Michigan Tech 5, Bemidji State 2
No. 18 Michigan Tech earned its third straight CCHA sweep after defeating Bemidji State 5-2 Saturday at the MacInnes Student Ice Arena.
The Huskies scored three goals in the third to break a 2-2 tie.
“I feel that was our best all-around performance of the year,” Michigan Tech coach Joe Shawhan said. “These are huge conference points which could lead to an exciting February for us.”
Tech improved to 14-8-1 overall and 11-5-0 in the CCHA, taking over second place in the standings behind Minnesota State.
Western Michigan 3, Minnesota Duluth 2 (OT)
Josh Passolt’s second goal of the game won it for the third-ranked Broncos 1:51 into overtime.
Veeti Miettinen, Nick Perbix and Micah Miller gave the Huskies a 3-1 lead after the first period.
Ethan Frisch also scored for North Dakota, who won the shootout with Ashton Calder’s goal in the fourth round.
Minnesota State 5, Arizona State 3
Dryden McKay earned his 24th win of the season for Minnesota State, also the 100th of his NCAA career (photo: Minnesota State Athletics).
Mavericks netminder Dryden McKay hit the 100 career-win plateau as No. 1 Minnesota State downed Arizona State 5-3 in Mankato Saturday night.
McKay, who turned aside 21 shots, stands 25-4-0 on the year with tonight’s win. And with 100 career victories, McKay ranks third all-time in NCAA Division I men’s hockey in wins. Only Marty Turco (Michigan 1995-98, 127 wins) and Steve Shields (Michigan, 1991-94, 111 wins) rank ahead of McKay.
The Mavericks, who have won five games in a row and 14 of their last 15, got a goal and two assists from Cade Borchardt in downing the visiting Sun Devils.
Denver 4, Miami 2
The No. 5 Pioneers defeated Miami 4-2 on Saturday night at Goggin Ice Center to sweep the weekend set.
Ryan Barrow scored the game-winning goal off a rebound 5:42 into the third period, and senior Brett Stapley contributed three assists as DU extended its unbeaten streak to a season-best eight games (7-0-1).
Sean Behrens and Cameron Wright also scored, while McKade Webster sealed the game with an empty-net marker from center ice with 1:08 left.
Magnus Chrona made 19 saves in getting the win in goal.
Cornell 2, Harvard 2 (Harvard wins shootout)
Brenden Locke and Matt Stienburg scored goals and Ian Shane made a career-high 34 saves in Cornell’s 2-2 tie with Harvard on Saturday night at Lynah Rink.
Jake Wise led the Buckeyes with two goals and three points, while Joe Dunlap had a goal and an assist and Michael Gildon and Quinn Preston each had two assists to pace the Buckeye scorers.
Air Force 3, Army West Point 2 (OT)
Nate Horn’s second goal of the game at 4:07 of the extra session lifted the Falcons to the thrilling win at Cadet Ice Arena.
Parker Brown also scored for Air Force, while Eric Butte and Joey Baez tallied for the Black Knights.
“This series is so special and is so crucial to the growth of both teams,” Air Force coach Frank Serratore said. “We had to flush what happened on Friday. We were a completely different team tonight than we were last night. Even as well as we were playing, we blinked in the second period and all the sudden we went from up 1-0 to down 2-1. Sometimes in life, you have to take a step back to take two steps forward.
“As painful as Friday was, maybe we needed that to teach us a hard lesson. So proud of our guys for finding a way to get it done.”
College Hockey America announced Saturday a one-game suspension for Lindenwood defenseman Maddison Stitt, effective for the Lions’ next game.
The suspension is a result of Stitt’s spearing of an opponent at the 5:57 mark of the third period in Lindenwood’s road game of Friday, Jan. 28 against Syracuse.
Upon review, the infraction was deemed to warrant a suspension.
Lindenwood’s next scheduled Division I game is today, Saturday, Jan. 29 at Syracuse.
Stitt would be eligible to return for the Lions’ Friday, Feb. 11, 2022 contest at RIT.
Rick Bennett resigned his position as Union head coach on Jan. 28 (photo: Betsy Matthew).
Union men’s hockey coach Rick Bennett resigned his position Jan. 28, effective immediately.
Assistant coach John Ronan has been named interim head coach and will lead the team for the remainder of the current season.
Bennett’s resignation follows “an allegation about his coaching style and practices that was substantiated through an investigation by the college,” according to a news release.
Bennett had been on administrative leave from the school since Jan. 20, a day after the administration was made aware of the allegation.
“Coach Bennett has been synonymous with Union hockey over the past 17 years and has built a program of which we all can be proud,” Union athletic director Jim McLaughlin said in a statement. “This resolution is the best path forward for both Coach Bennett and our men’s hockey program. Our No. 1 priority is to fully support our student-athletes.”
“I arrived at this decision because I felt it is in the best interest of Union College hockey — that has always been at the forefront of my thoughts,” Bennett added. “I wish the program all the best this season and in the future.”
Riley Duran and Chase Yoder celebrate Duran’s goal that proved to be the game-winning tally for Providence as the Friars edged UMass 2-1 Friday night (photo: Rich Gagnon).
Top-ranked Minnesota State hosted Arizona State Friday night and knocked off the Sun Devils 4-2 behind goals from four different players and 34 saves in net from Dryden McKay.
McKay is now 24-4-0 on the year with tonight’s win. With 99 career victories, McKay stands tied for third all-time in NCAA Division I men’s hockey in wins. Marty Turco (Michigan 1994-98, 127 wins) ranks first, Steve Shields (Michigan, 1990-94, 111 wins) is second and McKay is tied with Scott Clemmensen (Boston College, 1997-01, 99 wins).
“Can’t let your guard down against good teams,” said UMD coach Scott Sandelin. “We were able to battle back, get some big kills at the end, got a big goal from ‘Lells,’ and got the win. It was a great play by Quinn (Olson) to pull up and find the late guy, also a nice shot from Hunter. Tomorrow’s going to be a similar game.”
Ryan Fanti made 24 saves for Minnesota Duluth, while Brandon Bussi finished with 30 for the Broncos.
Michigan, 5, Wisconsin 1
Nine players recorded points on Friday night as the offense clicked for the No. 4 Wolverines in a 5-1 road win over Wisconsin.
Erik Portillo turned in another outstanding performance with 26 saves on 27 shots faced to earn his 20th win of the season.
Mackie Samoskevich scored once and added two assists, Matty Beniers scored a goal and recorded two assists for his 12th multi-point game of the year, and Ethan Edwards collected two assists to secure his first career multi-point game.
Denver 5, Miami 4 (OT)
Cole Guttman led the fifth-ranked Pioneers to the thrilling OT win as the senior captain scored twice in the final 3:03 to help Denver to erase a two-goal deficit and then added the primary assist on Mike Benning’s tap-in game-winner during the 3-on-3 OT.
Cameron Wright also scored twice for the Pioneers, while Massimo Rizzo and Brett Stapley contributed a pair of assists each.
Cole Guttman feeds the puck over to Mike Benning and Denver picks up the comeback victory! pic.twitter.com/HWXFl9Q5ey
Denver goalie Magnus Chrona had not allowed a goal in over 198 minutes before the RedHawks scored three times against him in a five-minute span of the first period.
Chrona stopped 15 shots while at the other end, Ludvig Persson made 40 saves.
Michigan Tech 5, Bemidji State 2
The No. 18-ranked Huskies won their third straight game to begin 2022 with a 5-2 victory over the Beavers.
Four Huskies notched at least two points, and Blake Pietila stopped 32 shots in goal.
“I’m very proud of our players,” MTU coach Joe Shawhan said. “We shook the cobwebs off early and competed and battled hard. We got contributions from everybody who played.
“It was a big night for Justin Misiak. It’s been a thrill to watch every single one of his games, and the guys made it a special night for him.”
Misiak skated in his 166th career game in a Michigan Tech uniform to break a program record. Misiak was tied with Richard Novak (1984-89) entering the game.
Providence 2, UMass 1
Riley Duran scored twice in the third period, including the game-winning goal with 3:42 remaining in regulation as the No. 17 Friars outlasted No. 9 UMass 2-1.
Duran's second of the night and eighth of the year gives us the lead right back in 9 seconds! Monds earns the assist on the play, his second apple of the night. pic.twitter.com/cAQhLqqoX4
In goal, Jaxson Stauber made 31 saves for Providence and Matt Murray 26 for the Minutemen.
The Friars snapped an eight-game winless streak against the Minutemen (0-6-2).
UMass’ Bobby Trivigno scored at 16:09 of the third period to tie the game 1-1 before Duran scored the winner nine seconds later.
Minnesota 5, Notre Dame 1
Minnesota’s run of luck at Compton Family Ice Arena continued on Friday night as the No. 10 Gophers beat No. 11 Notre Dame 5-1 for their fifth straight win over the Irish.
Minnesota has also won seven straight games at Notre Dame’s venue and is unbeaten in the last eight games at the facility (three of those wins came against other Big Ten teams during last year’s conference playoffs).
Then-Northeastern coach Jim Madigan hoists the Beanpot trophy after the Huskies won the 2018 championship (photos: Northeastern Athletics).
Northeastern director of athletics and recreation Jim Madigan will be inducted to the Beanpot Hall of Fame at the 69th tournament next month.
He is the 15th representative from Northeastern to be inducted into the hall.
Madigan will be presented with the award during an on-ice ceremony prior to the Beanpot tournament championship game on Monday, Feb. 14 at TD Garden.
“The significance of this tournament to the four schools and the city of Boston is unmatched,” Madigan said in a statement. “When I think of the iconic names who have come before, to be included in the Beanpot Hall of Fame with incredibly gifted players, coaches and administrators is tremendously humbling.”
Madigan is among a rarefied group of Beanpot participants who have won the tournament as a player, assistant coach, and head coach. He’s just one of three people to achieve the feat, following Boston University’s Jack Parker and David Quinn.
Madigan also won the Beanpot as a player in 1984 and 1985.
“I have had the unique opportunity to participate in the Beanpot in a variety of roles at Northeastern University over the last 35 years,” said Madigan. “All the while, I have been fortunate to be surrounded by talented teammates, coaches, and support staff. This honor recognizes all of their accomplishments, as well.”
During his tenure behind the Northeastern bench, Madigan helped lead the Huskies to their first Beanpot championship in 30 years in 2018 and started a run of three straight titles for the Huskies. As a head coach, he was 11-7 (.611) in the Beanpot. As an assistant coach, Madigan’s Huskies also won a Beanpot title in 1988.
Madigan hoisted the Beanpot trophy twice as a player in 1984 and 1985 in the midst of his four-year playing career at Northeastern. In total, Madigan had a hand in six of Northeastern’s seven Beanpot titles.
“To be part of such an exclusive group is a privilege, and I would like to thank the Beanpot Committee for this recognition,” Madigan said. “I look forward to an exciting tournament in 2022 as we return to TD Garden for the first two Mondays in February.”
