Steph Neatby (Princeton – 35) made 29 saves for the shutout, as Princeton forced a third and final game in their first round playoff series against Quinnipiac. (Shelley M. Szwast)
In a field absolutely full of spectacular, shut-down goalies, Princeton’s Stephanie Neatby carved out a space and proved she — and the Tigers — will be a threat for years to come.
Regularly honored as both the top goaltender and top goalie in the ECAC and Ivy Leagues, Neatby back-stopped the Tigers to the ECAC semifinals. She helped the Tigers finish the season ranked 11th in team defense, allowing just 1.91 goals as a team over the course of the season.
Neatby finished the season with a 12-5-1 record and was 6-3 against ranked opponents with four shutouts. She set the Princeton program record for saves when she stopped 60 shots in a triple-overtime game against Quinnipiac in the ECAC quarterfinals. She finished just one shy of a school record in saves — men or women.
At 6-feet, Neatby provides an imposing presence in back for the Tigers. Her teammates refer to her as “Sneatby,” and she has given Princeton the confidence to be more offensive-minded.
She finished second only to Patty Kazmaier Award winner Ann-Renée Desbiens in save percentage and fourth overall with a 1.52 goals-against average. A first-team All-ECAC and first-team All-Ivy League choice, as well as a member of the all-rookie teams, Neatby was also a finalist for ECAC player of the year and rookie of the year. She led the ECAC in save percentage and was second in goals-against.
She led Princeton on an 11-game unbeaten streak that started with just her second-ever career start. She received ECAC goalie of the week honors six times and was ECAC goalie of the month in both December and January. She was named the first-ever Hockey Commissioners Association national rookie of the month.
A member of the silver-medal-winning Canada team at the last U-18 Women’s World Championships, Neatby has also been invited to be a part of Hockey Canada’s Development team. She is also slated to be a two-sport athlete at Princeton, competing for the Tigers’ lacrosse squad. She was a finalist for the Canada’s U-19 lacrosse squad, was a four-year member of Team Ontario, and a 2016 Canadian National champion.
Congratulations to Steph Neatby, the USCHO rookie of the year.
Four teams from four different conferences will converge on the Dunkin’ Donuts Center this weekend in Providence, R.I.
Atlantic Hockey champion Air Force joins ECAC Hockey champion Harvard, along with at-large teams Western Michigan and Providence as the foursome vying for a Frozen Four spot in two weeks in Chicago.
Here’s the schedule for the East Regional, followed by a look at the four teams:
• Harvard vs. Providence, 4 p.m. EDT Friday, ESPNU
• Western Michigan vs. Air Force, 7:30 p.m. EDT Friday, ESPN3
• Regional championship, 8:30 p.m. EDT Saturday, ESPNU
Harvard Crimson
Sophomore defenseman Viktor Dombrovskiy posted a steady plus-15 on the Harvard back end this season (photo: John DiGiacomo).
Coach: Ted Donato, 13th season at Harvard and overall
Record: 26-5-2 (16-4-2 ECAC, tied for first)
How they got in: ECAC playoff champion
Regional seed: First
Last NCAA tournament appearance: 2016
Best NCAA finish: Champion, 1989
Why they’ll get to the Frozen Four: Harvard is one of the hottest teams in the country going into the NCAA tournament as the Crimson is 15-0-1 in its past 16 games. Their last loss was to Dartmouth was on Jan. 17
Why they won’t get to the Frozen Four: The pressure of keeping the winning streak going as we enter the “win or go home” phase of the season.
The Crimson ended the first half of the season 8-2-1. The second half of the season started strong with wins over Rensselaer, Quinnipiac and Princeton. Things were looking good, but the Crimson got comfortable.
In a five-day period from Jan. 13-17, they dropped three games.
Since the 8-4 loss to Dartmouth on Jan.17, Yale has been the only team to salvage a tie, which happened five days after the loss to the Big Green.
“We had an extended Christmas break and we were off for quite a long time,” Harvard coach Ted Donato said. “We came back and we played RPI, I believe, and we didn’t play as well as we would have liked. The three games where we lost, we played well in the loss to Union and think we had to recapture what our focus was and what we needed to have an identity as a team. We wanted the results, but we didn’t want to put the effort in – the effort and commitment playing both ends of the ice that we found success before the break. We were able to look at some video and talk as a group. I think we were able to build some momentum after that.”
The 16-game unbeaten streak includes Harvard winning its first Beanpot title since 1993.
On defense, Harvard has given up 28 goals in the 16 games for a 1.75 goals-against average. The first 17 games of the season, the Crimson had a 2.64 GAA.
Since the loss to Dartmouth, Harvard has only have scored three goals or less three times and all three of those games came in January. The Crimson has scored 70 goals in their current 16-game unbeaten streak for a 4.37 goal per game average, which is slightly above the 4.05 goals per game prior to the unbeaten streak.
“I think our offense comes from playing the right way,” Donato said. “We wanted to have the results, but we weren’t doing the things that we were having success with. I think as a group, we decided playing both sides of the puck was going to be more beneficial to our success and even to our offense. We have been fortunate to have different guys step up. We have had number of guys that have gone on hot streaks, a power play that has been very productive all year. We have gotten good and timely goaltending that has helped us to have success.”
The scoring has been spread out as five forwards have 30 or more points this season. Sean Malone and Tyler Moy lead the way as the only three players with 40-plus points. Each have 18 goals, while Malone has 24 assists for 42 points. Moy has 23 assists. Alexander Kerfoot also has 41 points as he has potted 16 goals and 25 assists.
Ryan Donato has 38 points this season on 20 goals and 18 assists. He has three four-point games during the streak. Luke Esposito lit the lamp 16 times while adding 20 helpers.
On defense, Adam Fox, as a freshman, has been a playmaker, scoring five times and adding 31 assists.
As the No. 3 overall seed, the Crimson heads down the road to Providence to face the hometown Friars at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center.
Donato said his team is ready.
“It’s a great challenge for us,” Donato said. “We are playing a team in Providence that was one of the best teams in the country in the second half year. [Providence is] a team that has had a level of success in the NCAA tournament, a team playing near their campus, a team that’s very well coached, disciplined and it will be a really great challenge for us.”
— Nathan Fournier
Western Michigan Broncos
Andy Murray (left) is taking Western Michigan to its second NCAA tournament since taking over prior to the 2011-12 season (photo: Bradley K. Olson).
Coach: Andy Murray, sixth season at WMU, sixth overall
Record: 22-12-5 (15-12-2 NCHC, third)
How they got in: At-large bid
Regional seed: Second
Last NCAA tournament appearance: 2012
Best NCAA finish: First round, 1986, 1994, 1996, 2011, 2012
Why they’ll get to the Frozen Four: Consistency has been a theme for a Western team this season that only lost back-to-back games once in the regular season. Two more losses last weekend came against the top two seeds in this year’s NCAA tournament.
Why they won’t get to the Frozen Four: The Broncos are part of a very tough regional field and could face in the final either a strong Harvard team or Providence, which advanced to the Frozen Four when the Friars last hosted a regional.
Five years after Western Michigan qualified for the NCAA tournament in coach Andy Murray’s first season at the helm, the Broncos are back.
Western enters this year’s tournament with the highest win total of any team Murray has had during his six seasons in Kalamazoo, Mich. This season’s Broncos team compares well to the 21-win squad from Murray’s first year at the school.
“We were a lot younger this year than we were then, and particularly on the blue line,” Murray said. “Four of the six guys that played on defense for us back then are playing in the NHL right now, so that’s fairly good.
“We were an older team and our defense was certainly the main part of our team, but I think certainly we’re more balanced in terms of skill and speed on our team this year than we were at that time.”
A year after WMU went 8-25-3, the Broncos are now 22-15-5 and flirted with potentially earning a No. 1 regional seed until they lost twice last week during the final weekend of the NCHC playoffs.
Those two losses came against the Nos. 1 and 2 seeds in this year’s NCAA tournament. After a NCHC semifinal defeat against Minnesota Duluth that was closer than the final score suggested, WMU fell 3-1 last Saturday in the conference’s third-place game against top-ranked Denver.
“When you watch the tape back, you’re never as good as you thought you were and you’re never as bad as you thought you were,” Murray said. “That game on Friday night with Duluth, we lost it 5-2 but it was 3-2 in the third period and we hadn’t given up one scoring chance the whole period up until four minutes to go when they got the 4-2 goal.
“We were a lot closer to tying the game and had one goal called back, so we ended up playing the team that won our league title and we were right with them all the way through, and then I give Denver credit because on Saturday they played a gritty, determined lineup, but if you go back and count the scoring chances, we didn’t play very well and the number of chances we didn’t finish on.
“Obviously, we’ve shown this year that we can play with anybody and we’re disappointed in not faring better, but we can play better.”
On Friday, Western will try to make history against Air Force, the No. 3 seed at this year’s East Regional. WMU is still looking for it’s first-ever win in a NCAA tournament game after six previous unsuccessful attempts.
That isn’t, however, of much concern to Murray.
“The bottom line is that we are one of the 16 remaining teams in the country that’s still playing hockey, and that’s a pretty good feeling,” he said. “We’re just so darned focused on preparing for Air Force and doing what we can to beat them.
“I haven’t even given that equation (of a first tournament win) any thought. We’re just trying to win on Friday night, and then if we do that, that will eliminate that problem.”
Should Western defeat the Falcons, another stern test would be waiting in the regional final against either Harvard or host school Providence. It’s a difficult field from top to bottom, and WMU will be reminded of that right away.
“I think the main thing is that I don’t think there’s one matchup in these final 16 teams, the eight games that are going to be played, where you can say for sure who’s going to win,” Murray said. “I don’t think there’s one of them.
“We’re forewarned about Air Force. Air Force beat Boston College this year, they beat Ohio State and they’ve lost one game in their last 14, so they won some big games. They lost 4-3 to Denver on a late goal, they beat Colorado College pretty handily.
“They’ve got some players and they play hard,” Murray concluded. “There’s three things: you can’t outwork Air Force, you can’t out-compete them, and you’re certainly not going to out-condition them with what they got through in their cadet lives. You’ve got to match all those things and then hope that you execute. It’s a real tough matchup for us.”
— Matthew Semisch
Air Force Falcons
Shane Starrett had a breakout 2016-17 season for Air Force and was in net for 25 of the Falcons’ 26 wins on the year (photo: Omar Phillips).
Coach: Frank Serratore, 20th season at Air Force and 24th overall
Record: 26-9-5 (19-6-3 Atlantic Hockey, second)
How they got in: Atlantic Hockey playoff champions
Regional seed: Third
Last NCAA tournament appearance: 2012
Best NCAA finish: National quarterfinal, 2009
Why they’ll get to the Frozen Four: Air Force is 12-5-2 on the road so far this season, 3-0-1 at neutral sites. The Falcons have played a tough nonconference schedule, including a win over Boston College, a tie (and a loss) to first-round opponent Western Michigan and an overtime loss at Denver.
Why they won’t get to the Frozen Four: No player on the Air Force roster has any NCAA experience, and if the Falcons do survive against Western Michigan, they are looking at either a virtual road game against Providence or a tough matchup against No. 3 overall seed Harvard, which should also have considerable fan support.
For more than half a decade, Air Force’s presence in the NCAA tournament was almost a given. The Falcons joined Atlantic Hockey before the 2006-2007 season and immediately began a string of conference titles and NCAA appearances, five in six seasons from 2007-2012.
But since 2012, Frank Serratore’s teams haven’t been to the big dance, despite averaging 19 wins a season over that four year stretch.
“We had a good run for a while,” said Serratore. “We won five of six. But after a couple years when you’re not (in the NCAA tournament), you think, ‘Oh my God, the league keeps getting better and better, am I ever going to get another chance?'”
That chance has come for the Falcons, who claimed their sixth AHC title after defeating Robert Morris 2-1 in Rochester, N.Y., on Saturday. Air Force goaltender Shane Starrett was the MVP of the tournament, allowing just two goals in four postseason games.
Starrett (25-5-4), a sophomore, has five shutouts this season, posting a 1.89 GAA and a .928 save percentage to date.
“We only scored five goals in (the final) three games but we went 3-0,” said Serratore. “We’ve got a good team, I’ll even say we have a very good team. (Starrett) is our best player. He makes us a great team. He gives us a chance to win every night.”
Junior forward Jordan Himley leads the offense with 20 goals, including the game-winner in the Atlantic Hockey title game. Himley was named to the AHC all-conference second team. Joining him were Starrett (third team goalie) and junior defenseman Phil Boje (first team defenseman).
Serratore likes to say that special teams and goaltending are magnified in the postseason, and while the Falcons’ power play has been struggling, their penalty kill has been outstanding, currently first in the nation at 89.9 percent. Air Force hasn’t allowed a power-play goal since Feb. 18, a stretch of 24 chances over its final six games.
The Falcons, who were an overtime goal away from reaching the Atlantic Hockey title game last season, are young, and continue to be ahead of schedule.
“To be honest, we have a business plan, and we knew this (championship) was going to happen,” said Serratore. “But it was going to happen next year. We only had three seniors last year and we only have three seniors again this year, so we’re thin in our upper classes. College hockey is a men’s league, and it’s hard to win with young teams. We did it a year ahead of schedule.”
Air Force is just 1-5 all-time in NCAA tournament appearances, but all but one of those losses were by a single goal. The exception, a 2-0 decision to Boston College in 2012, was a 1-0 game until the final two minutes. Two of the losses were in overtime.
Serratore expects nothing different in terms of the challenge his team will face, but says an aggressive on-conference schedule helps.
“Our guys look forward to those (nonconference) games,” he said. “We circle those games.
“We’ve beaten some good teams this year,” he added. “Denver, a pretty good team, a No. 1 team, we took to overtime. There’s nobody that we play that’s going to intimidate us. We play those (nonconference) games for a reason, to prepare for this moment.”
— Chris Lerch
Providence Friars
Junior forward Brian Pinho led Providence in scoring during the 2016-17 season with 40 points in 38 games (photo: Melissa Wade).
Coach: Nate Leaman, sixth season at Providence, 14th overall
Record: 22-11-5 (11-7-3 Hockey East, fifth)
How they got in: At-large bid
Regional seed: Fourth
Last NCAA tournament appearance: 2016
Best NCAA finish: Champion, 2015
Why they’ll get to the Frozen Four: This is a team that can establish an aggressive forecheck and put teams on their heels. They need to do that to success. Also, playing in a venue that will be like home ice could produce the same result as 2015 when the Friars won the East Regional and the national title.
Why they won’t get to the Frozen Four: Let’s start with the fact that Providence is playing the hottest team in the nation, Harvard, to begin. Add in the fact this team struggled to score goals in its quarterfinal series against Notre Dame and that goaltender Hayden Hawkey hasn’t always been consistent and there are a number of variables in play.
It feels like déjà vu all over again.
Often times, that’s not an expression you like to hear in sports as it usually references bad things happening for a second (or third, etc.) time.
In the case of Providence, déjà vu would be welcome.
Two years ago, the Friars lost in the Hockey East quarterfinals and had to wait out championship weekend, glued to TVs and computer screens wondering if they would get a bid. That happened again this year.
Two years ago, the Friars, despite being a number-four seed were given the chance to play at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center in Providence despite not being the host of the regional. Last Sunday, that became the case again.
Two years ago, the Friars won that regional, upsetting Miami and Denver before heading to the TD Garden on the way to the school’s first-ever national title.
Can that happen again? That’s the million-dollar question.
On paper it feels familiar. But a closer look at this Friars team compared to the 2015 national champions shows a little less experience and a team that, for much of the year, struggled in many facets of the game.
Add to that the fact that Providence’s opening round opponent is Harvard, the nation’s hottest team, makes the mountain just more difficult to climb.
“They’ve had a great season and they’ve been on a roll,” said Providence coach Nate Leaman about the Crimson.
Leaman knows that this won’t be a cake-walk and certainly won’t be influenced solely by the home fans. Despite a growing fan base, there still won’t be a typical atmosphere that one can expect on-campus at Schneider Arena.
Additionally, Providence needs to harken back to its mid-February form when it was aggressive in puck pursuit and creating more problems than it faced.
“For us, it’s about getting back to a better attacking mentality offensively,” said Leaman. “Outside of that is having good discipline. They’re a very good power play team and they draw a lot of penalties.”
The one similarity from 2015 to this season that may benefit the Friars is the weekend off between being eliminated in the quarterfinals and playing in the regional. It was good for both the team and netminder Hayden Hawkey.
“We had to make a big push in the second half of the season,” said Leaman. “I’m proud that we’ve played every weekend in the second half and having one weekend off can help us. If the team attacks it the right way it can help us.
“I think every goaltender this time of year has to be good. It’s helping our team to have this little break. That’s going to kind of reenergize us but it also allows ‘Hawk’ (Hayden Hawkey) to get a little time to work with [the goaltending] coach.”
After 15 seasons as the head coach of the St. Anselm men’s team, Ed Seney announced recently that he will be resigning from his position.
“Thirty-six years is a long time to do something,” Seney said in a news release. “I’m thinking it’s time to try something different. It’s almost like being a kid graduating college, but I’m graduating older. I’ll need something to fill that teaching and coaching void, but it’s kind of exciting, too.”
Assistant coach Larry Rocha will assume the head coaching duties on an interim basis.
In 1988, Seney landed his first head coaching job at Potsdam, where he stayed for 14 seasons and became the winningest coach in school history with 169 victories. At Potsdam, he was a three-time SUNYAC Coach of the Year, led the Bears to a SUNYAC championship and NCAA tournament berth in 1996 and was later inducted into the athletic hall of fame in 2002.
After 14 seasons at Potsdam, Seney made the move to St. Anselm, becoming the sixth head coach in program history prior to the 2002-03 season.
“On behalf of our entire athletic staff, I want to thank Coach Seney for his loyal contributions to the men’s ice hockey program,” said St. Anselm director of athletics Daron Montgomery in a statement. “Ed has been both an advocate and role model for our student-athletes, and he has run a first-class program that impacted so many lives during his tenure. The values he instilled in young people and lessons taught on and off the ice are vast in number.
“We are grateful for Ed’s leadership, passion and dedication over the past 15 years, which to me, is even more important than the 200-plus wins he posted as the Hawks head coach.”
“As an alum who is passionate about hockey and Saint Anselm College, I am honored to take over the program on an interim basis,” added Rocha. “I shared with Daron that I will do whatever is needed to ensure a seamless transition.”
Seney played at Plattsburgh and New England College and following his collegiate career, wanted to stay involved with hockey, so he stayed on as the head coach of the JV team and a varsity assistant at NEC.
“I started in 1981 as a 21-year old, getting a room, a meal card and driving the bus,” Seney said of getting into coaching. “I knew I wasn’t good enough to make a living playing, but I wanted to stay in the game somehow because I had a passion for it.”
He stayed at NEC for three years before spending three seasons as an assistant coach at Norwich. After that, he got a taste of Division I hockey for one season at Clarkson.
The athletic department plans to honor Seney in conjunction with the team’s postseason banquet on March 31.
Chad McDonald compiled 38 goals and 84 points over his four seasons at Ferris State (photo: Ryan Coleman/d3photography.com).
Ferris State senior forward Chad McDonald, who helped lead the Bulldogs to a pair of NCAA tournament appearances in four years while also holding a 3.94 GPA, has been named the 2017 WCHA Student-Athlete of the Year.
The honor is voted upon by the faculty athletics representatives of the league’s 10 schools.
McDonald was a four-year contributor for the Bulldogs, helping Ferris State to a MacNaughton Cup as league regular-season champions, a Broadmoor Trophy as postseason champs and a pair of appearances in an NCAA tournament regional final.
The Battle Creek, Mich., native scored 38 goals with 46 assists for 84 points in 145 games, reaching the 20-point mark in three of his four seasons. After suffering a season-ending elbow injury in the 2016 WCHA Final Five, McDonald went through surgery and rehabilitation in time to return to the ice for Ferris State’s 2016-17 season opener. A leader in all facets, he was selected by his peers to serve as one of the Bulldogs’ assistant captains for his senior campaign.
In May, McDonald will graduate with a B.S. in Business Administration, an A.S. in Legal Studies and a Certificate in data mining. Often found tutoring teammates, he has helped inspire a Ferris State team that ranked among the nation’s top 10 teams in the annual NCAA Academic Progress Report (APR) in each of his four years. A three-time WCHA Scholar-Athlete Award recipient and All-Academic Team member, McDonald was named to the 2016 CoSIDA Academic All-District Team and is once again a candidate for national honors in 2017.
Away from campus, McDonald has volunteered for a variety of different organizations that help those with disabilities, both in Big Rapids (playing floor hockey with Big Rapids Special Olympians) and his native Battle Creek (serving as a mentor for Community Inclusive Recreation). In addition, he has spent time speaking to fifth grade students from low-income households about the importance of education, and what it takes academically to pursue their dream of becoming a collegiate student-athlete.
A finalist for the 2017 Senior CLASS Award, McDonald has plans to attend law school. He aims to pursue a career in the NHL, with aspirations of one day becoming a general manager.
Joe Gambardella led UMass Lowell with 18 goals and 51 points during the 2016-17 season (photo: Melissa Wade).
The Gridiron Club of Greater Boston announced Wednesday that UMass Lowell senior forward Joe Gambardella is the winner of the 65th Walter Brown Award, presented annually to the best American-born college hockey player in New England.
Gambardella, from Staten Island, N.Y., is the first Lowell player to win the Walter Brown Award, the nation’s oldest nationally-recognized college hockey honor.
The award was established in 1953 by the members of the 1933 Massachusetts Rangers, the first American team ever to win the World Championship tournament. Brown coached the Rangers to the title in Prague, Czechoslovakia, that year as the team defeated Canada 2-1 in overtime in the championship game.
Gambardella led the River Hawks to a first seed in the 2017 Hockey East playoffs and a 4-3 win over Boston College in the league championship game. During his career, UML played four times in the championship game and won the title twice.
Gambardella finished the season as the team’s scoring leader with 18 goals and 33 assists for 51 points. In his 148 career games, prior to the 2017 NCAA tournament, he has scored 47 goals and added 81 assist for 128 points. In 2016-2017, his seven game-winning goals tied him for first place in the nation in that category.
He also received the Len Ceglarski Sportsmanship Award from Hockey East for the second consecutive year.
“Joe Gambardella has developed greatly as a man and a student athlete throughout his four years,” said River Hawks coach Norm Bazin in a news release. “He has become one of the elite offensive threats in Hockey East due to his work ethic and persistence. He is a true example of what a student-athlete should stand for on and off the ice. He is very deserving of this award.”
In the final voting, Gambardella won by a slight margin over Northeastern senior forward Zach Aston-Reese, also of Staten Island, and New Hampshire senior forward Tyler Kelleher of Longmeadow, Mass.
“Once again we had a large contingent – 23 in all – of semifinalists for the Walter Brown Award,” noted Gridiron Club Hockey Awards Committee chairman Tim Costello. “By the end of the season, Joe, Zach and Tyler had separated themselves from the pack and had become the clear front-runners. The final vote was very close, and any of them would have been a worthy recipient. The Gridiron Club extends its congratulations to all three – all of them seniors – for their superb seasons and outstanding college careers.”
Harvard’s Jimmy Vesey won the award in 2016 and 2015.
The award will be formally presented at the New England College Hockey Writers’ Dinner on April 11 at the Prince Restaurant in Saugus, Mass.
Coach Mike Carroll of Gustavus Adolphus (Gustavus Adolphus Athletics)
Gustavus Adolphus coach Mike Carroll is no stranger to success. When he was named MIAC Coach of the Year this year, it was the seventh time he’d earned the honor in his 18-year career. The Gusties have made 12 NCAA appearances over their 20-year history, and he has coached them to 12 MIAC regular-season titles.
However, entering this season, it had been a few years since the Gusties earned an NCAA berth; their last was the 2012-13 season.
After finishing 9-11-5 overall and 8-6-4 in the MIAC and not earning a berth in the conference tournament last season, this season’s run in the NCAA tournament is all the more impressive. With a team featuring 17 underclassmen, Carroll engineered a dream postseason run after capturing the MIAC regular-season title. The Gusties finished the season 19-7-3 overall and 13-2-3 in the MIAC.
In the NCAA quarterfinal, Gustavus traveled to nearby Wisconsin-River Falls and upset a team that had been ranked first or second in the nation for nearly the entire season, earning a berth in the final weekend. They lost in overtime to host Adrian in the Frozen Four semifinal, but rallied for a win in the third-place game against Norwich. It was the third time the Gusties finished the season in third place.
Sophomore goalie Amanda DiNella was named a first-team All-American, becoming the 15th player, fifth sophomore, and first-ever goalie from Gustavus to earn the honor.
Carroll is 378-101-35 in his 18 seasons at Gustavus and has the most coaching victories in the history of the program. He is the second-winningest coach all-time in NCAA Division III women’s hockey.
Prior to heading up the Gustavus women’s program, Carroll was the head boys’ hockey coach at Mankato West High school. He was the head coach of the Gustavus baseball team for 19 years before retiring from that post in 2015. He competed in hockey and baseball at Minnesota State and played two years of professional baseball in the Montreal Expos organization. He is in the Edina High School Athletics Hall of fame and the Minnesota State-Mankato Athletics Hall of Fame.
Congratulations to Mike Carroll, our Division III women’s hockey coach of the year.
Maura Crowell of Minnesota Duluth (Brett Groehler/University Minnesota Duluth)
In just her second year at the helm of the Minnesota Duluth women’s program, Maura Crowell saw a huge turnaround in results. The Bulldogs were 15-21-1 in 2015-16 and improved massively to finish the 2016-17 season 25-7-5. It was the biggest single-season turnaround in program history. Crowell’s two-year record in Duluth is 40-28-6.
The Bulldogs entered the season unranked and gave notice early on, earning a tie and a win over Boston College on Sept. 30 and Oct. 1. The wins were a wakeup call for any opponent who thought this season’s UMD team was anything like last season’s.
In 2016, the Bulldogs upset Bemidji State to advance to the WCHA Final Faceoff and had an attitude of “just happy to be here.” In 2017, they were there to win. They outlasted Minnesota in two overtimes to advance to the championship round, earning their first win at Ridder in nearly a decade.
Last season, the Bulldogs’ biggest wins were over North Dakota and Bemidji State. This year, they had wins over Boston College and Wisconsin and they swept Minnesota at home, something UMD hadn’t done since October 2010. The first win in that series ended a five-year, 21-game winless streak against the Gophers.
UMD fell just short in the WCHA Final Faceoff, earned a four seed in the NCAA tournament and home-ice advantage, and just narrowly lost to rival Minnesota in the NCAA quarterfinals. It was the Bulldogs’ first time in the NCAA tournament since 2011 and first time hosting a game since 2010.
Nearly every player on the roster increased production in 2016-17, and senior forward Lara Stalder was named a Patty Kazmaier top-three finalist and CCM All-American.
Crowell became the second Bulldogs coach to be named ACHA Coach of the Year; Shannon Miller won the award in 2013.
Prior to being named head coach in Duluth, Crowell spent five seasons at Harvard, where she filled both interim head coach and associate head coach roles in her final two years there. She was at the helm of UMass.-Boston in Division III before that and spent two years as an assistant coach with Connecticut College from 2003-05.
Mark Friedman was a steady force on the BGSU blue line for three seasons (photo: Omar Phillips).
Bowling Green junior defenseman Mark Friedman has signed an entry-level contract with the Philadelphia Flyers and will begin with their AHL affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, beginning this Thursday.
“I definitely had the best three years of my life here at Bowling Green and I’d like to thank my teachers, the coaches and especially my teammates and my parents for all of the things they had to go through to get me to where I am today,” Friedman said in a statement. “The hard work is just continuing, but I feel like my overall game is good and has evolved as this season’s gone on.”
In his three years with the Falcons, Friedman tallied 16 goals and 52 assists for 68 points through 112 career games.
This season, Friedman was recognized with All-WCHA Third Team honors after posting eight goals and 18 assists, while leading the Falcons’ defensemen with 26 points. The accolade follows a WCHA All-Rookie Team honor in his freshman season, as well as an All-WCHA First Team selection in his sophomore campaign.
“For him, defending is just a decision,” BGSU coach Chris Bergeron added. “When he decides to take away time and space, he is really hard to play against because he skates and he competes. He’ll fight you for it. When it comes to the offensive perspective, he has instincts that you can’t teach so it’s a pretty good package.”
Friedman was selected by the Flyers in the third round (86th overall) in the 2014 NHL Draft.
“There’s a lot to Mark Friedman,” continued Bergeron. “He brings a bunch of different layers and he’s a guy [the Flyers] have invested in, in terms of watching him for three years real close. He’s a prospect, for sure. It’ll be interesting to see how he does and how his career progresses.”
Michigan State coach Tom Anastos went 78-122-24 in his tenure as Spartans head coach (photo: Matthew Mitchell).
Michigan State announced Tuesday that Tom Anastos will step down from his position as head coach of the Spartan hockey program, effective immediately.
Assistant coach Tom Newton will serve as interim head coach while a national search is conducted to replace Anastos.
“I want to thank Tom Anastos for the guidance he’s provided Spartan hockey over the last six seasons,” said MSU athletic director Mark Hollis in a statement. “He would be the first to admit that he wished there were more on-ice victories, but he built a program that was a great value to our community. His student-athletes were successful in the classroom and were great representatives of the athletic department and the university as a whole with their commitment to community outreach.
“A loyal Spartan for more than three decades, Tom Anastos has given so much to Michigan State. He’s had a positive impact on our entire department, well beyond the ice rink. Tom’s an amazing individual whose passion for Michigan State is unsurpassed. He and his wife Lisa and their five children will continue to be valued members of our Spartan family.”
“When I first became head coach I established my own timeline for the program’s development,” added Anastos. “After a review of our season, and in spite of the progress we have made in so many areas, we have not met my expectations. As a leader, I believe that you must always make every decision based on what’s in the overall best interests of the program, and never put personal interests first. After lengthy conversations with Mark Hollis, I am stepping down from my role to help facilitate a change in leadership and direction for Spartan hockey.
“I’m truly grateful for the opportunity and support provided by our administration, especially that of Mark Hollis and President Simon. Michigan State is a special place to me and my family, and what makes it so special are its people. I appreciate the support and relationships that I’ve developed with the fans, boosters, alumni and media. I have loved working with our incredible group of coaches throughout the department, the most passionate and hardest working group of athletic administrators in all of college athletics, and most of all, the hockey coaches, support staff and student-athletes.”
Anastos’ dedication to MSU began when he competed as a player from 1981 to 1985. He later served as an assistant coach under Ron Mason from 1990 to 1992 and was appointed just the sixth head coach in program history in 2011 after serving as CCHA commissioner for 13 years.
Anastos was 78-122-24 in six seasons at Michigan State. He guided the Spartans to a berth in the 2012 NCAA tournament after going 19-16-4 in his first season behind the bench. In 2014-15, the Spartans posted a 17-16-1 record and finished second in the Big Ten regular-season standings.
In memory of Larry Heiskanen, the Comley Hockey Scholarship at Northern Michigan has been renamed the Comley-Heiskanen Hockey Scholarship.
The scholarship is awarded annually to a member of the NMU hockey team and was originally established in 2001 in honor of former NMU coach Rick Comley’s historic career and 26 years of service to Northern Michigan.
The renaming recognizes Heiskanen, who passed away suddenly on Oct. 13, 2016. Heiskanen worked for many years at Northern Michigan as the director of development for athletics and as an equipment manager for the hockey team. He was also a close friend of Comley.
In addition to his work in the Wildcats athletics department, Heiskanen was known as an avid golfer, walker, poker player and fan of the Green Bay Packers, Chicago Blackhawks and Chicago Cubs.
On March 21, it’s a special two-hour edition of USCHO Live! lookingahead to this weekend’s four NCAA regionals with broadcasters from ESPN who will be covering the tournament. Our scheduled guests are:
Sean Ritchlin
o 8:20 p.m. EDT
o West Regional analyst with Clay Matvick
Allen Bestwick
o 8:40 p.m. EDT
o Northeast Regional play by play with Billy Jaffe
Colby Cohen:
o 9:20 p.m. EDT
o Midwest Regional analyst with Kevin Brown
Dave Starman:
o 9:40 p.m. EDT
o In-studio analyst for ESPN; will talk about the East Region
Join us for the conversation and information, Tuesday, March 21, at 8 p.m. EDT using the player below or listen using the Spreaker Radio app for iOS, Android or Windows phone.
Be part of the conversation! Send your tweets to @USCHO or your emails to [email protected]. Each episode of USCHO Live! features a look at news around NCAA hockey, a look ahead at upcoming games and events, and conversation with people who coach, administer and play college hockey, and journalists who cover the sport.
About the hosts
Jim Connelly is a senior writer at USCHO.com and has been with the site since 1999. He is based in Boston and regularly covers Hockey East. He began with USCHO.com as the correspondent covering the MAAC, which nowadays is known as Atlantic Hockey. Each week during the season, he co-writes “Tuesday Morning Quarterback.” Jim is the winner of the 2012 Joe Concannon award. He is the color analyst for UMass-Lowell hockey’s radio network, and is a studio analyst for NESN.
Ed Trefzger has been part of USCHO since 1999 and now serves as a senior writer and director of technology. He has been a part of the radio broadcasts of Rochester Institute of Technology hockey since their inception — serving as a producer, studio host, color commentator and as RIT’s play-by-play voice for 10 seasons. Ed is vice president and general manager of CBS Sports Radio affiliate 105.5 The Team in Rochester, N.Y., and COO of its parent company, Genesee Media Corporation.
Adrian’s Kristin Lewicki has had spectacular seasons every year of her college career, yet managed to out-do herself in her senior season. The Bulldogs powerhouse tallied points in all but three of her team’s games, helping them to a perfect 18-0 conference record and their first-ever berth to the NCAA Division III semifinals.
She then scored the overtime winner against Gustavus Adolphus in the semifinal game to give the Bulldogs a berth in the national championship game at home. She was named to the all-tournament team.
Her 66 points lead the country and her 32 goals and 34 assists are each good for second in the nation. Her 12 power-play goals were best in the nation and her nine game-winning goals were second. The 66 points obliterates her own program single-season record and her 32 goals matches the record she set last season.
After leading the NCHA in points her junior season, she set a new standard this year. She was the NCHA player of the year, recording 44 points in 18 league games. The 44 points — as well as her 2.44 points per game — were the best in the league and set new NCHA single-season records. She scored 23 points against NCHA teams that made the conference playoffs, averaging 2.56 points against the top teams in the league. She was named to the All-NCHA teams every year of her career and was named a first-team All-American her junior and senior seasons.
Playing the best in the league seemed to bring out another level for Lewicki, who tallied points against rival Lake Forest, including four goals and two assists in the final regular-season series between the two that clinched the top seed for Adrian. In the final eight games of the season — the two against Lake Forest and six playoff games — she scored 11 goals and added four assists.
She is the Bulldogs’ all-time leader in goals (90), assists (89), and total points (179). She will enter the D-III record books with the sixth-best career point total, tied for 10th in total goals scored and 12th in total assists.
Adrian had an unprecedented year, completing the first undefeated and untied season in NCHA history, hosting the championship weekend, and advancing to the title game. Lewicki’s total numbers and numbers in the clutch make it impossible to consider any other player for the honor.
Congratulations Kristin Lewicki, our Division III player of the year.
Cayley Mercer led Clarkson to a national title this past Sunday over Wisconsin (photo: Shelley M. Szwast).
Clarkson senior forward Cayley Mercer may not have walked away with the Patty Kazmaier Award this past weekend, but leaving St. Charles with the second national championship win in her four-year career at Clarkson was probably pretty good balm for any lingering wounds.
Having suffered a severe leg injury prior to starting her career at Clarkson, Mercer is no stranger to adversity or overcoming odds. Though most of the Golden Knights players and staff didn’t want to compare 2017 to 2014, Mercer pointed out after the title game that Clarkson hadn’t had any difficulty winning a title as the supposed underdog in years past and they weren’t going to let it stop them.
“People thought we were underdogs (in 2014) and we came out with the win,” said Mercer. “At no point did we ever feel like underdogs; we knew how strong we were, we knew we had the potential in that locker room to win this tournament. At no point were we ever scared. We had nothing but confidence.”
The Golden Knight set a new standard at Clarkson, surpassing Jamie Lee Rattray as the all-time leading goal scorer in program history with 80 goals. She finishes just three points shy of Rattray for career scoring with 188 points from those 80 goals and an additional 98 assists.
With two goals in the national championship game, she moved into a tie for first place with Kelly Pannek for the overall scoring lead. Her 28 goals paced the nation and she added 34 assists for a total of 62 points in 41 games.
Mercer was named a First-Team All American as well as best forward and player of the year in the ECAC. She earned the ECAC Hockey scoring title with 42 points on 20 goals and 22 assists through 22 league games. She recorded at least one point in 35 games and had 21 multiple-point outings. She was the league-leader in power-play points (12) and goals (6).
In addition to excelling on the ice, Mercer, who red-shirted her freshman year, graduated last year and is on track to complete a two-year MBA program in one year’s time.
After a great regular season, Mercer backed it up by leading the Golden Knights to their second title in four years — they’re still the only team outside of the WCHA to win a national championship. Her goal with 3:04 to go in the title game iced the win and she added an empty-netter to seal it up. She won the matchup of Patty Kazmaier top-three finalists against Ann-Renée Desbiens, and the title. For that, it was impossible not to believe Mercer had the best season in the country this year.
Congratulations to Clarkson’s Cayley Mercer, USCHO’s player of the year.
Michigan Tech celebrates its dramatic double-overtime victory over Bowling Green for the 2017 WCHA championship on March 18 (photo: David Archambeau).
Each week during the season, we look at the big events and big games around Division I men’s college hockey in Tuesday Morning Quarterback.
Jim: Well, conference championship weekend is in the books and the NCAA field is set.
Before we get to that, though, I want to offer congratulations to the six champions: Air Force, Harvard, UMass Lowell, Michigan Tech, Minnesota Duluth and Penn State. Each team for one reason or another has a great storyline to both their season and their tournament wins.
Two, though, stand out. Both Michigan Tech in the WCHA and Penn State in the Big Ten needed double overtime before they finally broke through for the game-winner.
Talk about drama.
The fact that Michigan Tech was able to earn their victory on home ice after what became a very successful experience to move the WCHA tournament back onto campus added to the drama. Watching video from the game, you can see fans almost hanging from the rafters. Nate Ewell from College Hockey Inc. told me on Saturday night that fans were lining up 29 hours before the game. So to say that the experiment of playing the entire WCHA tournament on campus certainly worked well.
Which brings me to the Big Ten. Another tournament filled with the dramatic, the crowd at Joe Louis Arena was hardly one to write home about. Three nights and five game barely drew 10,000 fans. You know that league intimately, Paula, so I’m guessing that the thought of moving next year’s tournament to campus sites, at least right now, seems appealing.
Paula: First, I also congratulate all six champions. It was a great weekend for college hockey wherever it was played, and the storylines – as you suggested – should make for a lot of interest in the regionals and the Frozen Four.
As for the Big Ten, the thought of moving the tournament to campus sites has always been appealing to me, not just now. I know that the tournament drew well in St. Paul for the two years it was played there, but it was abysmal in Detroit in 2015 and this year. The crowd size was insulting. Thank goodness the hockey itself was a very fitting sendoff for the college game in Joe Louis Arena.
Beyond the poor attendance at JLA, I am eager for campus sites for other reasons. There are areas of the country where it’s been difficult to draw fans to arenas for all kinds of reasons, ranging from economic to geographic. The campus sites will insure, at least, a good showing from the home crowd. And I know from talking to players and coaches that even when a team is the visitor, an electric, hostile crowd is still an electric crowd.
I covered the WCHA Final Five in Grand Rapids, Mich., in 2016 and there were very few people in Van Andel Arena then, too. I’m so glad the WCHA made the smart move it did after that tournament. I’m really looking forward to next year’s Big Ten playoff format. There’s nothing worse than an empty building to counteract outstanding hockey.
Jim: Well, unfortunately, when you talk about an empty building counteracting good hockey, we’re at NCAA regional weekend which often produces disappointing crowds. This year, I think three of the four regionals will have decent atmospheres for some of the games. Obviously, Fargo, N.D., has been sold out for a while and, if history repeats, North Dakota fans will pack that venue for both semifinals (and possibly the final, too, even if the Fighting Hawks lose in the semifinals).
UMass Lowell’s fans have been scooping up tickets in Manchester, N.H., quickly, though the atmosphere when Minnesota faces Notre Dame could be pretty quiet (and if Lowell loses to Cornell, Sunday’s final will be somewhat empty).
Providence should be good for a few thousand fans at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center, just a few miles from the PC campus. And the fact that either Harvard or Providence are guaranteed a spot in the final should make for a decent atmosphere for Saturday’s final.
But that leaves Cincinnati. Our bracketologist, Jayson Moy, has been raising concerns for this venue for quite some time. We’re going to learn quickly how well Penn State fans travel given that the venue is still nearly seven hours away from State College, Penn., but (and this isn’t a knock on any of the four teams’ fans) I’d be surprised if there were more than 2,000 fans on either day.
Paula: The arena in Cincinnati will be nearly empty – and not just because there isn’t a local team to help fill it.
Cincinnati is a terrible choice for a regional.
In college hockey terms, it’s pretty remote. Miami is just up the road, but the RedHawks haven’t yet flourished in the NCHC. Ohio State is a hundred miles away, but Buckeye hockey fans don’t travel en masse. In terms of college hockey, it’s off the beaten path. It’s the closest regional to where I live and it’s a horrible, construction-filled, five-hour drive down I-75 from my corner of mid-Michigan. The venue is only so-so and there isn’t a lot to draw fans to Cincinnati beyond the hockey.
I do not understand why Cincinnati was awarded not one, but three regionals: 2014, 2016 and this year. You’re not alone, Jim, in wondering if the event will draw 2,000 fans on either day.
Jim: My guess – and this is what makes the regional setup a difficult one for the NCAA – is that Cincinnati was likely one of the only venues in the what is considered “the west” that bid for the Midwest regional. That’s the challenge that goes along with using a regional site structure for this tournament. Personally, I’m hoping that the success of the WCHA using campus sites this year and, hopefully, the Big Ten next season might show more coaches that resorting to a campus site structure would be great for the NCAA tournament. That’s a conversation for another day, though, as I’m sure people want to hear some thoughts on the NCAA field.
So I’ll pose the question: which is the most challenging of the four regions?
My answer is Fargo. You have host North Dakota to contend with and the team with the unenviable test of facing the Fighting Hawks in round one is Boston University. The Terriers themselves have tons of depth and talent, but also have struggled of late to play with the lead. If BU falls behind, I’m sure they’ll have the chance to come back as they’ve proven all postseason. But falling behind against the host in a raucous atmosphere might be difficult.
On the other side of that draw you have Minnesota Duluth, the NCHC champs, and Ohio State, which has a good power play, but I’m not sure is in the same class as the Bulldogs.’
There’s also the possibility that Duluth and North Dakota meet in the finals for the second time in a week. The NCHC final had a chippy undertone to it. I can only imagine what a game with a Frozen Four berth on the line could bring out in these two.
Which region do you think is toughest?
Paula: Without question the West regional. While I think that Duluth is the best team in that regional – and may be the best team in the country – you have North Dakota at home and a talented, tenacious BU team. I do not see Ohio State as a problem for Duluth, in spite of the Buckeyes’ potentially explosive offense.
Once upon a time, there was a great debate about East versus West hockey, about the alleged finesse play of Eastern teams versus the alleged grittiness of Western teams. The debate about that dynamic has lessened in the last decade because of how the approach to the game has played. Everyone has video of everyone else. Nothing’s much of a surprise anymore in terms of on-ice systems or physicality of play. There are differences in recruitment pools, for sure, but even in that there is significant overlap once you go down below what are considered some of the more elite programs in the game.
All of that having been said, I think the NCHC is as chippy as you say, Jim – and gritty and super physical and harkening back, perhaps, to the old WCHA. I think that regional in Fargo is going to produce some amazing hockey.
I will say, though, that the Northeast regional promises some very good hockey, but for a different reason. That field seems to have the most parity. I think Lowell is the best team in that field in spite of Minnesota’s top seeding, but I look at the four teams in that regional and can see any one of them emerging, depending on the consistency of their play in a given game.
Do you see any chance of a dark horse emerging from any of the regionals?
Jim: I think the best chance of a major upset might come from the East regional in Providence. The Friars are playing an incredible team in Harvard and would then have to face either Air Force or Western Michigan in Saturday’s final, but the fact that the games are played so close to campus (remember, this happened two years ago and the fourth-seeded Friars won a national title) I think could be the edge that Providence needs.
How about you? Who’s your biggest dark horse?
Paula: Penn State – but only if the Nittany Lions play the way they did in the Big Ten tournament rather than with the inconsistency they displayed during the regular season. Their defense was extraordinary in Detroit. If the Nittany Lions play in Cincinnati like they did in Detroit, they will prove incredibly difficult to defeat.
Besides, after last weekend in Joe Louis Arena, Penn State knows how to play big games in front of small crowds.
Castleton announced Monday that DJ Fimiani has submitted his resignation as the head coach of the Spartan women’s hockey program.
The Spartans posted an 8-14-4 record during the 2016-17 season, including a 7-8-2 in the NEHC, qualifying for the conference tournament in Fimiani’s only season behind the bench.
According to a school-issued press release, a search for a new head coach “will commence immediately.”
The Anaheim Ducks have signed Lake Superior State sophomore forward and leading scorer Mitch Hults to a two-year entry-level contract.
Hults collected 34 points on 11 goals and 23 assists for the Lakers in 2016-17 and was named to the All-WCHA Second Team after leading the conference in assists (23) and ranking third in points (34). He was also named WCHA Player of the Month for October after earning 11 points in six games.
In two years at LSSU, Hults registered 54 points (20 goals, 34 assists) in 76 games.
Hults is the second Lake Superior State to leave early for a pro contract this month as freshman Kristofers Bindulis signed with Washington back on March 7.
The Big Ten announced Monday that Ohio State senior defenseman Josh Healey has been suspended as a result of an incident that occurred in the game against Wisconsin on March 17 at the Big Ten tournament.
The action was taken by the conference after a review of an incident that occurred near the 17:32 mark of the third period and resulted in the player receiving a major penalty for contact to the head and a game misconduct.
Healey, who received an automatic one-game suspension for his third game misconduct of the season, has been suspended for one additional game under the conference’s supplemental discipline process.
He is ineligible to play in the NCAA West regional this coming weekend.
Freshman Goalie Kevin Aldridge of Endicott (Tim Brule)
The Memorial Auditorium in Utica was every D-III team’s ultimate destination for the end of March, and only now do we know the Frozen Four participants following Saturday night’s thrilling quarterfinals. There will be a new national champion, as there is only one repeat team, St. Norbert, among the four participants who will begin next weekend’s final pursuit for a national championship.
The two participants from the East are both storied and experienced programs that had to earn their way to Utica against two newcomers who showed they belong playing on a national stage. Here is the recap for two very exciting games in the East.
Cadets cash in on Continental mistakes
The biggest item missing on the resume for the Norwich seniors has been a trip to the Frozen Four. Following Saturday’s 6-2 win over Hamilton, they can check that box and get ready for their semifinal match-up with Adrian College on Friday.
Christian Thompson got the host Cadets on the board midway through the first period with a power-play goal that was the only real difference in an evenly played period where the shots favored Norwich slightly at 10-8.
Brian Rowland scored an unassisted goal at 12:16 for a 2-0 lead, but Conor Lamberti, with assists from Robbie Murden and Neil Conway, cut the deficit in half with a power-play goal for Hamilton at 14:49 and it was a 2-1 hockey game — until the final minute of the period.
They say that in hockey you never want to give up a goal in the first minute or final minute of a period, and on Saturday, Hamilton got stung twice in a 13-second span as the Cadets stunned the Continentals and Evan Buitenhuis with two quick goals to take a 4-1 lead into the locker room. At 19:03, Kevin Salvucci scored what proved to be the game-winning goal with an assist from Cody Smith, and just after the crowd quieted down a bit, Ian Williams took advantage of a turnover off a setup from William Pelletier and the Cadets had an insurmountable lead entering the third period.
Salvucci wasn’t done, as he scored his 20th goal of the season at the 14:34 mark with assists going to Williams and Pelletier to give the Cadets a 5-1 lead and all that was left was the icing on the cake of Anthony Flaherty’s empty-net goal that answered Jon Carkeek’s tally for Hamilton with just over three minutes remaining in the game.
Ty Reichenbach earned his 10th win of the season by recording 23 saves and the top-ranked Cadets advanced to the Frozen Four for the first time since 2012, when they lost to Oswego in the semifinals.
Bantams need two overtimes to overcome Aldridge and Gulls
It may be small consolation following a 2-1 double-overtime loss, but Endicott goalie Kevin Aldridge did everything he could to keep his team in their quarterfinal battle with Trinity on Saturday night. The Gulls netminder stopped 67 of 69 shots in the game, including 21 in the first period alone where it was obvious that both teams were going to get pucks on goal looking for a bounce, deflection, or rebound to get one past two of the best in the business at the D-III level.
The first period was scoreless, but both Aldridge and Trinity’s Alex Morin were very busy in a period that featured 36 total shots on goal. Early in the second period while playing short-handed, Endicott’s Josh Bowes gave the visitors a 1-0 lead that lasted until the 15:38 mark when Sean Orlando finally got one past Aldridge on a power play to tie the game 1-1.
The third period saw the hosts throw everything at Aldridge in a period where they held a 20-8 shot advantage, but could not score the decisive goal, leading to overtime. In the first overtime period, it was Morin’s turn to shine as Trinity had to kill off two minor penalties in the bonus hockey session. Morin had been sharp all night, matching Aldridge’s performance and was Trinity’s best penalty killer as they held the Gulls to 0-for-4 on the man advantage for the game.
In the second overtime period, Endicott came out with some energy, putting six shots on Morin early, but it was Trinity’s Anthony Sabitsky with an assist from Ryan Cole who finally put one past Aldridge to end the contest at the 4:15 mark after almost 85 minutes of action.
Trinity picked up its 20th win of the season and advances to the Frozen Four and a semifinal matchup with St. Norbert on Friday evening in Utica.
Three Biscuits Kevin Salvucci, Norwich: Scored a pair of goals, including his 20th of the season in leading the offense in Norwich’s 6-2 win over Hamilton in the NCAA quarterfinals on Saturday.
Kevin Aldridge, Endicott: Stopped 67 of 69 shots in a Herculean effort for Endicott, which fell at Trinity by a 2-1 score in double overtime. Aldridge made 21 saves on 21 shots in the first period and 20 of 20 in the third period to force the game into overtime.
Alex Morin, Trinity: The goalie who often benchmarks himself against the guy down the other end was nothing less than spectacular in making 49 of 50 saves for Trinity in the 2-1 double-OT victory. Morin was especially good when the Bantams were a man down early in the first overtime and made a game-saving stop with just 19 seconds remaining in regulation.
Shea Tiley stopped all 41 shots in the national championship game March 19 against Wisconsin (photo: Shelley M. Szwast 2016).
ST. CHARLES, Mo. — Heading into the women’s Frozen Four, much of the focus around the country centered around the season-long excellence of Wisconsin goalie and 2017 Patty Kazmaier award winner Ann-Renée Desbiens.
In the championship game, however, it was the play of another goaltender that stole all the headlines: Clarkson’s Shea Tiley.
In front of a crowd that heavily favored the Badgers, Tiley stood on her head all game long, stopping all 41 shots that came her way en route to a shutout victory to earn her team a national championship.
“In a setting and atmosphere like this, in a national championship game, to have a performance like that is just phenomenal,” Clarkson coach Matt Derosiers said.
Tiley was under fire from the opening faceoff until the end of the game. In the first period, she stopped multiple odd-man rushes, and was forced to deal with extended possessions from the Badgers.
After Clarkson scored the game’s first goal, the Badgers picked things up a notch, recording 17 shots in the second period and 18 more in the third.
For the final 40 minutes, Tiley saw red throughout, as the ice appeared tilted in Wisconsin’s favor all afternoon long.
“I was just trying to think of it as a 0-0 hockey game,” Tiley said. “The girls did a great job of getting that lead and I was trying to do everything in my power to make sure we maintained that lead.”
The 41 saves Tiley made in the championship game were the most she had made in a game all season, and was one shy of her career high, set in Feb. 2015 against St. Lawrence.
Tiley said that facing a barrage of shots helped her to build personal momentum and kept her engaged throughout the afternoon.
“It’s nice to get those first few shots in a game like that,” Tiley said. “As the game went on, I was doing everything possible to make sure the puck was staying out of the back of the net.”
As soon as the final horn sounded, the entire Clarkson bench stormed onto the ice and dogpiled on top of Tiley, who said she could not even describe how exciting it was to put on such an extraordinary performance on the largest stage.
“Honestly, there are no words to describe it,” Tiley said. “I was just really tired.”
Evan Ritt and Denver defeated Western Michigan in the NCHC third-place game (photo: Bradley K. Olson).
Of the four regionals in the 2017 Division I men’s NCAA tournament, only the Midwest Regional can say it has three teams entering on the heels of a victory.
For top overall seed Denver, it was in a third-place game of the NCHC Frozen Faceoff in which it rested a number of regular players.
Midwest Regional, Cincinnati
• Denver vs. Michigan Tech, 1 p.m. EDT Saturday, ESPNews
• Union vs. Penn State, 4:30 p.m. EDT Saturday, ESPN3
• Regional championship, 6 p.m. EDT Sunday, ESPNU
For tournament newcomer Penn State, it was in a double-overtime marathon in the Big Ten title game. The Nittany Lions, however, had already clinched a spot in the NCAA field.
For WCHA champion Michigan Tech, a victory Saturday was what launched the Huskies into the tournament.
Union joins the group playing at U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati on Saturday and Sunday. Denver faces off against Michigan Tech in the first round, reprising a matchup that used to be common when both were in the WCHA.
Penn State plays Union in Saturday’s second regional semifinal. The teams have played four times, with the Dutchmen winning them all.
The Nittany Lions, however, are one of the top stories of the 2017 tournament. Playing in just their fifth season as a varsity program, they sealed their spot with a double-overtime victory over Big Ten regular season champion Minnesota on Friday.
Another double overtime later — and in its third game in three days — Penn State won its first league title on Saturday with a victory over Wisconsin.
“I know how hard it is to get there and how you have to be really good and you have to be really fortunate,” Nittany Lions coach Guy Gadowsky said after Saturday’s game, “and we’re going to enjoy every minute of it because it’s really hard to do.”
Union lost to Cornell 4-1 in the ECAC Hockey semifinals on Friday, ending a seven-game unbeaten streak.
The Dutchmen are back in the NCAA field for the first time since winning the championship in 2014.
Hobey Baker Award finalist Mike Vecchione is one of six players from that team on this year’s Union roster. He leads the team and is second in the country with 29 goals this season.
Denver rebounded from a 1-0 loss to North Dakota in the NCHC semifinals to down Western Michigan 3-1 in the consolation game on Saturday.
Friday’s loss is the only one the Pioneers have suffered since Jan. 20.
Senior defenseman Will Butcher is also one of the 10 Hobey finalists.
Michigan Tech hosted the WCHA championship game in front of a sold-out crowd of 4,466 on Saturday and outlasted Bowling Green 3-2 in two overtimes.
Senior defenseman Shane Hanna scored the winner for the Huskies, who made the tournament for the second time in three seasons.
