Nazareth senior captain Jordan Ciccarello is helping to shape the Golden Flyers’ defense this season. Ciccarello transferred from D-I Sacred Heart prior to the 2012-13 season (photo: Dan Hickling).
The roster says that defenseman Jordan Ciccarello is a senior, that forward Tom Seravalli is a junior and that winger Ben Blasko is a wet-behind-the-ears freshman.
Truth is, they, and the rest of their Nazareth mates, are sophomores.
Well, the second-year program itself is a sophomore.
A year ago, the Golden Flyers put both feet in the Division III waters, joined up with the ECAC West and brought in an accomplished coach in George Roll.
There were high points – such as winning their first-ever outing – and low points – like losing eight straight to finish their freshman year.
All told, Nazareth took its lumps, savored its lone conference win (against Manhattanville) and began salivating for Year Two.
So far, all that chops-licking has been warranted.
“This year over last year is like night and day,” said Ciccarello, who transferred a year ago from D-I Sacred Heart. “Our team chemistry is unbelievable compared to last year.”
Even though they still have that new program smell, the Flyers have established their own identity – and an entertaining one it is.
“We see Flyer hockey as being run and gun,” Ciccarello said. “We play a gritty kind of game. We have skill players, but at the same time, we want to be hard to play against. That’s Golden Flyer hockey.”
They showed as much in last Friday’s tilt against No. 9 Hobart.
Although it wound up as a 4-4 tie, Nazareth came just short of doubling its all-time conference win total while notching a program-first victory over a ranked opponent.
Both milestones will have to wait, at least a little while.
But perhaps, not for too long.
“We’re past that stage of moral victories,” said Roll, who helped shape Oswego into a D-III powerhouse before serving at D-I Clarkson for eight years. “We think we’ve made some big strides in our program in a year’s time. We need to start winning those games, but we’ll take what we can and move forward.”
That encounter with the Statesmen was made up of equal parts tennis tilt and steel cage wrestling match.
The Flyers led 2-0 in the second period (with Ciccarello supplying the second goal), trailed 3-2 late in that stanza, then nursed a 4-3 edge into the final seconds of regulation, thanks in part to a pair of goals from Chris Murray [who really is a sophomore].
The Golden Flyers might have pulled off the upset win, too, but for Mac Olson’s game-tying goal for Hobart with just 24 seconds left.
“Coming out with a tie is okay,” said Ciccarello, a business administration major. “We gave it quite an effort. I know they outshot us by quite a bit (44-21), but in the long run, this should help us out when it comes to big games against highly-ranked teams.”
Roll said the deadlock with Hobart served as something of a measuring stick and helped to confirm his gut feel for his club in season’s early going.
“If anything,” said Roll, “we’re ahead of where I thought we’d be. I really started this season not knowing what to expect. The guys came back in unbelievable condition and with the new guys in our program, it’s an unbelievable group of guys. They do things right, [both] in the classroom and the community. It’s pretty well exceeded my expectations.”
Providence announced Wednesday that freshman forward Niko Rufo will miss the remainder of the season after sustaining a lower-body injury in the Friars’ 1-0 win at Merrimack on Nov. 8.
Rufo played in the first eight games of the season for the Friars, scoring two goals and adding an assist for three points.
Katey Stone, a 1989 graduate of New Hampshire and current coach of the 2014 U.S. women’s Olympic team, is one of six individuals to earn the NCAA’s 2014 Silver Anniversary Award.
The Silver Anniversary Award annually recognizes distinguished individuals on the 25th anniversary of the conclusion of their college athletics careers. The Honors Committee, comprised of representatives of NCAA member schools and nationally prominent former student-athletes, selects each year’s recipients.
The other 2014 recipients are Troy Aikman, Rodney Peete, Earl Martin Phalen, George Pyne and Dara Torres. The NCAA will recognize the honorees at the Honors Celebration during the 2014 NCAA Convention in San Diego, Calif.
Stone has coached Harvard since the 1994-95 season and is the winningest coach in the history of Division I women’s hockey. She took a one-year hiatus this year to coach in the Olympics.
Miami’s Ben Paulides (28), Sean Kuraly (9), Alex Wideman and Matt Joyaux celebrate a goal in last Friday’s win at St. Cloud State (photo: Bradley K. Olson).
While a road split against the No. 3 team in the country would make most teams happy, for No. 8 Miami, it’s all about the process rather than the results.
Miami (6-3-1) has a lot of positives that it can take from its most recent series, including a stronger defense (goalie Ryan McKay was named NCHC co-goaltender of the week for the NCHC for his play against St. Cloud State.)
“It was a big game for us,” said Miami coach Enrico Blasi. “I thought we did a lot of good things defensively, blocking shots, and positioning and keeping them to the outside, and those are things you need to do against good teams.
“Unfortunately, we didn’t make one play on Saturday, and they did and they were able to win the game. That’s the way it goes. That’s kind of been the trademark of our team, to play good team defense and do the little things that translate to good outcomes.”
Miami has, to date, played one of the tougher schedules in the country (ranked eighth), so that focus on defense and the staying in the moment has helped it tremendously.
“Again, I think it is part of what we try to create in our locker room, and that’s staying in the moment and not worrying about the past or the future and just focusing on the task at hand,” said Blasi. “We have a pretty good, resilient group that has been through a lot as a young team, and we just go out and take the game as it is and play our game and make plays and see what happens.”
One of the biggest bright spots for the RedHawks has been the play of their first line, headed up by Riley Barber and Austin Czarnik. The two have posted 15 points each, placing them third nationally in scoring. Barber was named NCHC offensive player of the month for October.
“Riley has played extremely well in the first month, and I think he and Czarnik have a pretty good chemistry together,” said Blasi. “He logs a lot of minutes for our team, so he is a key component to our offense.”
This weekend, the RedHawks have another stout test, as No. 12 Wisconsin comes to town for a pair of games. After that, the RedHawks travel to Omaha to face conference co-leader Nebraska-Omaha.
Blasi said that his players have enthusiastically embraced the challenge of the team’s new conference.
“If you consider playing North Dakota and St. Cloud pretty good tests, we know what to expect from our conference,” Blasi laughed. “I think everybody is excited about the games and the excitement around it. The buildings have been electric when the games have been played, so it’s been a lot of fun.”
Nebraska-Omaha’s Brock Montpetit collides with North Dakota’s Mark MacMillan in last Sunday’s game (photo: Michelle Bishop).
Sitting on top
It was just a couple of weeks ago that Nebraska-Omaha looked like it was in for a long and possibly dreadful season.
The Mavericks had lost three in a row, including getting swept at home by Cornell, and their penalty killing was horrible. In that Cornell series, the Mavericks gave up seven power-play goals in two games, including two five-on-three goals.
Things have changed, however, as the Mavericks sit in a tie for first place in the NCHC after a road sweep of Denver (two overtime wins) and a split at home with North Dakota. They have climbed back to .500 overall at 5-5.
Part of the reason for the Mavericks’ recent success is a balanced offense, spearheaded by Josh Archibald and Ryan Walters, who each have 12 points. Right behind them are Dominic Zombo and Jake Guentzel with eight points each. Zombo was named the NCHC offensive player of the week most recently, one week after Archibald nabbed the honor.
“We broke up Dominic Zombo, Archibald and Walters, just because on the road, the other teams got to put their best defensive line out there, and top two defensemen, and then all your scoring is nullified,” said Mavericks coach Dean Blais. “We put Walters with [Brock] Montpetit, two seniors, and we’ve been changing the right wingers, but certainly that gives us Zombo, Archibald and Guentzel together. Secondary scoring from a guy like James Polk or some of the other guys is just a bonus.”
Even more than the offense has been the recent play of goaltenders Ryan Massa and Kirk Thompson and the team’s defense. After giving up four or more goals four times in their first six games, the Mavericks have clamped down, and had given up two goals in three successive games before giving up three to North Dakota on Sunday.
Most important has been the improved penalty kill, which has given up only four power-play goals in its last 18 penalties in the last four games. That’s still not world-beating stats, but it’s moving in the right direction after a three-game stretch during their losing streak where the Mavericks gave up 11 goals on 25 power-play opportunities.
“We were trying to be aggressive when we played Cornell and Northern Michigan,” said Blais. “Your best penalty killer is your goaltender, and quite frankly, they weren’t playing very well, and we weren’t doing a very good job of taking good penalties.
“We were taking the undisciplined penalties, we were taking penalties that put us down five-on-three, we were taking slashing, cross-checking, undisciplined penalties. It finally got to the point where we quit taking them, and since then, we’ve obviously done better because of it.”
This weekend, the Mavericks will face another tough test when they host No. 2 Michigan. Overall, the Mavericks are 7-26-3 against the Wolverines. Friday’s game will be on national TV (CBS Sports Network), Nebraska-Omaha’s only such appearance this year during the regular season.
“It’s big for us, for exposure, recruiting and our program,” Blais said of being on national TV. “We feel that we have a pretty good hockey team, and usually are up there in the top 10 in shots taken. With our offense, we are playing exciting, fast hockey and defensively we are not as structured as some teams, as we are giving 25-30 shots a game and generating 35-40 ourselves. So we are a good up-and-down-the-ice hockey team, and it’s exciting.”
Shootout question
When the Denver Pioneers and Colorado College Tigers played to a tie on Friday night and ended the game with a shootout, it raised a question about how the game would count toward the awarding of the Gold Pan, which is the trophy given to the winner of the annual rivalry series between the schools.
The rivalry dates back to the 1949-50 season, making it the longest running rivalry in college hockey. Denver leads the all-time series 162-114-16.
However, the Gold Pan wasn’t established until the 1993-94 season, and since then the two teams have virtually deadlocked on it, with Colorado College capturing 11 and Denver capturing nine. To capture the Gold Pan, the team that doesn’t hold it must outright win it. If the four games during the season are split, the current holder of the Gold Pan retains it.
In 2012-13, Denver captured it back from Colorado College. After the first two games, one of which Denver won outright and one of which Denver won in a shootout, is the Gold Pan still in play? Both coaches seem to think so, though there hasn’t yet been a formal decision.
“It’s a good question,” said Tigers coach Scott Owens. “Jim and I had a little discussion. … I don’t think we got to the official what we are going to do. My understanding was that we were going to leave it just the way it has been over the years, you know what I am saying, a tie, out of tradition to how it was established originally. Points are 3-1 for them right now. That’s my interpretation. I haven’t talked to them since then.”
Montgomery seemed to indicate he agreed with Owens’ interpretation.
“I actually have to go back,” said Montgomery. “Coach Owens and I talked about it on Thursday. We were talking about whether we would keep the tradition. I think we are leaning toward keeping the tradition, but we haven’t confirmed it yet.”
If the Gold Pan is still in play, the Tigers would need to win both games on Feb. 21-22, 2014, to bring the Gold Pan back to Colorado Springs.
NCHC players of the week
Offensive player of the week — Dominic Zombo, Nebraska-Omaha: Zombo scored three points in two games against No. 11 North Dakota on two assists and a goal. He scored the second goal in Saturday’s series-opening win and assisted on the empty-net tally that sealed the 4-2 win. He then assisted on the goal that pulled Nebraska-Omaha to within a goal in Sunday’s 3-2 loss. Zombo is third on the team in scoring with four goals and four assists. It was the second consecutive week that the Mavericks had the offensive player of the week, as Josh Archibald earned the nod for the week of Oct. 28-Nov. 3.
Defensive player of the week — Joey LaLeggia, Denver: LaLeggia continued to pace the Pioneers’ offense last week, scoring the game-tying goal with 82 seconds left and then a goal in the shootout against archrival Colorado College on Friday. He posted a plus-1 on the weekend while logging heavy minutes on the penalty kill and helping the Pioneers kill nine of 10 penalties. LaLeggia leads the Pioneers in goals scored with six, and is second on the team in points with eight.
Rookie of the week — Sam Rothstein, Colorado College: Rothstein notched two assists for the Tigers in their series with Denver. He assisted on Alexander Krushelnyski’s goal on Friday, the Tigers’ only goal in a 1-1 tie that preceded a shootout loss, and again assisted on the Tigers’ only goal in Saturday’s game, which came on a power play late in the third period. Rothstein won nine faceoffs in the two games and finished plus-1 on the weekend.
Co-goaltender of the week — Sam Brittain, Denver: Denver goalie Sam Brittain earned his second goaltender of the week nod for posting a .970 save percentage and 0.96 GAA in two games against Colorado College, making 65 saves and giving up one power-play goal in 10 chances. In the shootout Friday, Brittain stopped both CC chances (from Charlie Taft and Krushelnyski) after making 26 saves through 65 minutes. On Saturday, he stopped 39 shots while giving up only a late third-period goal. Brittain is fifth nationally among goaltenders with a .945 save percentage and 1.63 GAA.
Co-goaltender of the week — Ryan McKay, Miami: McKay helped Miami earn a road split with No. 3 St. Cloud State while giving up only two goals on the weekend, stopping 64 of 66 shots. On Friday, he stopped 31 shots in earning a shutout, while he stopped 33 on Saturday. He posted a 1.01 GAA on the weekend and stopped all 10 St. Cloud power plays. McKay is 11th nationally among goaltenders, with a .942 save percentage and 1.81 GAA.
Minnesota State goalie Stephon Williams has posted a 3.40 GAA and a .867 save percentage (photo: Jim Rosvold).
Controversy? That’s probably too strong a word.
Surprising might be a better description of Minnesota State’s goaltending situation at the moment.
Last season’s WCHA rookie of the year and first-team goaltender Stephon Williams is struggling right now. And, fortunately for the Mavericks, freshman Cole Huggins has been rock-solid the last two Saturday nights, including an overtime shutout over Bowling Green last weekend in Mankato.
But it’s hardly a controversy when you go with the hot guy, right?
“All players ask for is an opportunity,” Mavericks coach Mike Hastings said. “Both have had that to this point. … Both have worked hard. Huggy’s had a little better results up to this point.”
Before the season began, Hastings talked about how Williams needed to be pushed by the other goalies on the roster. That included Huggins, a Centennial, Colo., native who spent the last two seasons in the British Columbia Hockey League.
Well, there’s definitely some pushing going on.
Huggins has played in four games, starting two and relieving Williams twice, and has a .964 save percentage and a 1.11 GAA.
Hastings showed in his first season that sentiment has no place between the pipes. Once Williams won the job over senior Phil Cook — who got an ample chance, even beating Minnesota in Mankato early in the year — he didn’t let it go. Hastings rode Williams for 37 games in a row from Thanksgiving weekend into the postseason and through Nov. 2 of this season when Huggins started and won at Bemidji State.
Williams, who was drafted by the New York Islanders over the summer, was back in the net Friday against Bowling Green. He allowed four goals on just 16 shots, including a pair of short-handed scores, before Huggins relieved him.
Williams has started six games and has a .867 save percentage and a 3.40 GAA.
“I still have confidence in Willy,” Hastings said.
The now-unranked Mavericks are 4-4 and play a series at No. 1 Minnesota this weekend.
“I’m a big believer in not an opportunity but multiple opportunities,” Hastings said. “I’ve tried to stay consistent with how I handle the business of who plays Friday. That opportunity is earned Monday through Thursday. Then they’ve got to get out there and play.”
Bowling Green celebrates its victory at Minnesota State last Friday (photo: Jim Rosvold).
Bowling Green, Ferris State battle for first in Big Rapids
Bowling Green finds itself in the middle of what could be considered one of the toughest stretches for any team in the WCHA this season. The Falcons traveled to Minnesota State last weekend and head to Ferris State this week before hosting MSU again Nov. 22-23 to cap a six-game stretch against the league’s two preseason favorites.
That’s followed by a trip to Lake Superior State over Thanksgiving.
Meanwhile, Ferris State is in the midst of a six-game home stretch that began last week with a sweep of Bemidji State. Two wins and four points vaulted the Bulldogs past the Beavers and into first place in the league standings.
Ferris hosts Alaska next week before traveling to Northern Michigan over the holiday.
The Bulldogs, who host the Falcons on Friday and Saturday, sit two points ahead of Bowling Green in the standings. If not for Minnesota State’s Johnny McInnis scoring an overtime goal on Saturday, the Falcons would be a point back — or maybe even tied had they got the OT goal — with Ferris heading into this weekend.
Ferris State has won five straight games, all with junior CJ Motte in goal. Despite posting a 2.56 GAA and .901 save percentage — both well below his collegiate averages from the previous two seasons — Motte is 7-0 this season in part because the Bulldogs offense has averaged 4.71 goals per game in Motte’s seven starts.
The Falcons enter the series having not scored a power-play goal in three straight games. The Bowling Green power play went 0-for-8 in Mankato and last scored on the man advantage on Nov. 1 against Alaska-Anchorage. In WCHA games, the Falcons are 3-for-23 on the power play.
Timing not on the side of the Michigan Tech-Lake Superior State rivalry
Upper Peninsula teams Michigan Tech and Lake Superior State will meet as league rivals for the first time since 1984 on Friday and Saturday in Houghton. Both were members of the CCHA from 1982 to 1984.
The series should excite the fan bases for both teams, but there is something going on this weekend in the U.P. that is considered by many to be much more important than even hockey — deer hunting.
Michigan’s firearm deer season begins every year on Nov. 15 — also known as Yooper Christmas — leaving schools deserted, businesses short staffed and seats empty at sporting events.
While on a favorable weekend in February this season, the Lakers’ rivalry with Northern Michigan has been hindered by poor scheduling in previous years.
In 2012-13, the Lakers and Wildcats played in the Sault over the winter semester break and again in Marquette over spring break, resulting in half-empty rinks minus the students for all four games.
The Lakers and Huskies have been dealt a similar hand in their first season as WCHA rivals. The rematch between Tech and LSSU is scheduled during the winter break Jan. 3-4 at LSSU.
Around the WCHA
• The opening weekend of deer hunting isn’t just big in the U.P., but in downstate Michigan as well. Even with the Falcons and Bulldogs battling for first place, Ferris State is offering a limited number of $6 Ladies Appreciation Night tickets to Friday’s game and a buy-one-get-one-free offer for Saturday to lure in extra fans.
• Northern Michigan snapped a six-game losing streak to Western Michigan last weekend with a win and tie in Kalamazoo. All six losses had come at WMU’s Lawson Ice Arena. The Wildcats now get the weekend off, with a number of players and coaches expected to trade in their green and gold for camouflage and blaze orange to harvest some venison before Alabama-Huntsville visits Marquette Nov. 22-23.
• With a pair of wins over Alabama-Huntsville last weekend, Alaska-Anchorage is 5-3 overall, already surpassing last season’s win total of four. The Seawolves scored five power-play goals on Saturday night, including four in the third period. The school record for power-play goals in a game is six, which was set in a 15-4 win over Huntsville in 1991.
• Alaska made its first trip out of state last weekend and apparently had quite an experience getting home. After splitting a series at LSSU, the Nanooks had a bus break down and missed flights, according to some team tweets. They returned to Fairbanks on Monday evening.
Fortunately for the Nanooks, they are idle this week. They will hit the road again, however, and play at Ferris State Nov. 22-23.
• Alabama-Huntsville remains winless and has been outscored 36-8 so far. A couple of bright spots have been the play of senior forward Alex Allan and sophomore forward Chad Brears. Each has three goals so far. Freshman goaltender Carmine Guerriero has a .914 save percentage and a 2.94 GAA in five games.
• Bemidji State sophomore Markus Gerbrandt is off to a good start with nine points, including eight on the road. His seven points in league play ranks first. In overall games, his seven goals rank second behind Northern Michigan’s Stephan Vigier.
• This week’s WCHA players of the week are Michigan Tech forward Alex Petan (offensive), Ferris State defenseman Jason Binkley (defensive) and Minnesota State goalie Cole Huggins (rookie).
Britt Hergesheimer (BU – 2), Melissa Bizzari (BC – 4) – The visiting Boston College Eagles defeated the Boston University Terriers 3-1 on Saturday, November 5, 2011, at Walter Brown Arena in Boston, Massachusetts. (Melissa Wade)
Arlan: We don’t see many fracases in the women’s game that get out of hand and result in a slew of penalties being handed out, but two such incidents took place this weekend. Both the Friday Bemidji State at Ohio State game and the Saturday contest between Mercyhurst and Robert Morris had a major brouhaha that resulted in many penalties, including disqualifications. Perhaps this is a freak occurrence, but it seems like we are starting to see these brawls a bit more often.
Maybe individual players are getting more feisty, or some of these rivalries are heating up. Sportsmanship could be on the wane in the women’s game, or perhaps players think they can get away with more once the game is over. It could be that are officials clamping down and more quickly handing out harsher penalties for actions that aren’t radically different from the past. What’s the female perspective on these recent confrontations, and such rumbles in general?
Candace: It’s not just colleges; the brawl between Team Canada and Team U.S.A. after Monique Lamoureux ran into Canadian goalie Shannon Szabados was all over the news last month. Having played in rec leagues with former D-I players, I think that a lot of things could be at play. I think that in general, not allowing checking can result in more problems. It’s not because it disallows an avenue to vent, but because players have to get much more creative at slowing down the best opposition, and in the event, that can lead to a lot of stick work behind the play, and there’s often a sense of unease as to what you can and can’t get away with, and tempers start to flare. The women’s game used to have checking, until Canada and the U.S. started to crush every team in international competition. Perhaps more competition, as evidenced by Finland’s upset of the U.S. squad at the Four Nations Cup last week, will eventually lead to the no-checking rules being revisited.
There were a lot of interesting results over the weekend. Let’s start in Hockey East. That league continues to plague me in our picks contest. Aside from Boston College and Boston University, no team seems willing to establish itself. UNH beats Providence and ties Vermont, Connecticut gets crushed by Vermont last week and then beats Providence this week, etc. What is your take on what is going on with HE this season?
Arlan: Adding checking to the women’s game is always being proposed as the fix to some perceived evil, but I see it as a slippery slope. Both the NHL and NCAA men’s hockey have full checking, and those contests still have plenty of stick work behind the play and tempers flaring — more than the women’s game does. I don’t agree that defenses can’t function without checking; anyone who thinks that has never watched a Mark Johnson coached team in action. Wisconsin is not alone; Quinnipiac just played its second scoreless tie of the young season. Among the things that need fixing in women’s hockey, I don’t see lack of defense being high on the list. The problems I see teams having with their defensive games are not moving their feet, too much puck watching, and systems breaking down. Adding checking won’t fix any of those issues. My biggest concern is that checking will be added as well at the NCAA level and then also the prep level, and injuries will increase. In high school girls hockey, I see a lot of seventh and eighth-grade girls playing in varsity games, and I think there is too much of a size and strength difference between them and the top juniors and seniors. That disparity in size is much less common in boys’ hockey. If injuries increase, then I see a corresponding decrease in participation numbers at a time when the sport needs to be growing, not shrinking. I respect your opinion, but I do not share it.
Okay, enough stalling, back to your question about Providence and the rest of the zany bunch in Hockey East. I picked the Friars to finish second behind BC, and right now they are dead last, with two points in six games and allowing over four goals per game in league play. Maybe PC should be allowed to check? Seriously, there are some defensive issues going on there. We usually blame goaltending, and that is likely part of the issue, but I’d guess that the problem goes beyond only that. Maine is dealing with a coaching change in the course of the season. Connecticut has a new coach as well, and we’ve seen with other teams that it can take a few months before everyone is on the same page every time out. New Hampshire started with a relatively short roster and has been beset by injuries. Vermont … come to think of it, I have no idea what specifically is wrong with Vermont, but it has been inconsistent and is a long way behind the Eagles and Terriers.
BU is much farther along than I expected it to be. Perhaps it has gotten a bigger impact from its rookies; Maddie Elia and Samantha Sutherland have 20 points combined, and Sarah Steele has five assists from the blue line. It is likely that other returnees are taking advantage of an increased role as well. We’ll learn more about the Terriers and whether they are still a national-championship threat or are just taking advantage of struggling teams when they meet Wisconsin in Colorado.
BC righted the ship at about this point last year, and it looks like that may be happening again. We saw the good version of the Eagles over the weekend in two convincing wins. That’s good timing, because their schedule now toughens for the remainder of 2013, starting with Quinnipiac on Friday. The Bobcats should be able to slow down BC’s high-flying offense to some degree, but can they mount enough offense to find holes in Corrine Boyles and her defense?
Candace: Which Quinnipiac team shows up? The one that crushed Maine and Penn State, or the one that played Yale and St. Cloud to scoreless draws, could only muster two goals against Harvard, and scored one against Cornell? Come to think of it, there seems to be a trend there. Against better teams, the Bobcats play tight defensive battles and have trouble scoring. Quinnipiac is a good team, ever-improving, and I’d place the Bobcats third or fourth in the ECAC right now, behind Cornell and Harvard and perhaps tied with Clarkson. Looking at Quinnipiac’s scoring, despite the good play and offense of Emma Woods and Nicole Connery, the Bobcats’ fortunes seem to depend on Kelly Babstock. Babstock is a great player obviously, and leads the Bobcats in scoring and is third nationally in scoring behind BC’s Haley Skarupa and Cornell’s Emily Fulton. However, in all those aforementioned games, which were either losses or ties, Babstock was held without a point, It seems that as Babstock goes, so goes Quinnipiac.
Speaking of Clarkson, the Golden Knights, a preseason favorite in the ECAC, continue to struggle. After blanking a very middling-looking Dartmouth team on Friday, the Golden Knights were blanked by Harvard on Saturday. Jamie Lee Rattray is an offensive force for the Golden Knights, and is tied with Babstock for third in scoring nationally. The team has some people who can score, but as we pointed out last week, a lot of the numbers are inflated by the first three games against RIT and St. Lawrence, where the Golden Knights pounced on less-experienced teams. Clarkson is currently sitting tied for third in the ECAC with Quinnipiac and St. Lawrence, although the team’s three wins and two losses place them behind the other two in tiebreak situations. Is this just a mid-season malaise, or signs of bigger trouble?
Arlan: If it is a mid-season malaise, then it sure arrived awfully early. The Golden Knights have been sputtering since their mid-October series with Mercyhurst. The only time they’ve managed more than three goals during that stretch was versus Yale, and while I thought little of that at the time, seven goals looks more impressive given Quinnipiac couldn’t score even once on the Bulldogs. It was another weekend without offensive production from Carley Mercer and Erin Ambrose, and I don’t think Clarkson is deep enough to win consistently if offensive stars beyond Jamie Lee Rattray go silent.
Harvard has won steadily outside of the Rensselaer game, but the Crimson are accomplishing that with very little in the way of offensive pop. A couple of Mary Parker goals were enough against Clarkson, but Harvard was outshot nearly two to one in that contest. It is tied with Quinnipiac for stingiest defense, but it is outside the top 10 in scoring, including lagging behind the offenses for Clarkson and Quinnipiac that we’ve maligned. If Quinnipiac goes as Kelly Babstock does, who on the offensive side can lead Harvard? For one of the few years in memory, it doesn’t seem to have that big offensive catalyst. Junior defenseman Sarah Edney is likely the Crimson’s highest-profile skater, and she isn’t really an offensive force. For the time being, it looks like Harvard will go as Emerance Maschmeyer does. That doesn’t leave many possible avenues to success heading into a showdown with a Cornell team whose offense has manifested itself every weekend. Do you expect Harvard’s offense to heat up, and will the match with the Crimson tell us anything definitive about a Big Red team that seemingly just started playing, but has only five games left in 2013?
Candace: I think if you look at it from a points-per-game perspective, Harvard has some legitimate threats. Samantha Reber is averaging 1.2 points a game, Hilary Crowe is averaging 1.5 points a game, and Dylanne Crugnale is averaging a point a game. Plus, honestly, with Maschmeyer in net, I don’t think the Crimson actually need to score that much; 2-3 goals a game should put them in a position to win most of their contests.
Regarding Cornell, I do look at this game as one that can reveal a lot. Aside from the Quinnipiac game that ended in 1-1 tie, Cornell hasn’t had any difficulty scoring, but really aside from Quinnipiac and the one game against Clarkson, I don’t think Cornell has faced any teams that I would expect them to have difficulty scoring on. Between the Harvard game and the pair at Boston College at the end of the month, the next two weeks should show a lot about Cornell.
How about Mercyhurst? I thought after Friday that the Lakers had finally demonstrated they had overcome the Robert Morris jinx, as it was their third win in a row against the Colonials dating back to last year, but Robert Morris came back out on Saturday and shut the Lakers down, winning 3-2. I know the PairWise is flawed at this time of year, but right now, Robert Morris is ninth in the PairWise and Mercyhurst is 11. Is this the year the Lakers finally miss the NCAA tournament, after nine straight appearances?
Arlan: It seems that it would be too early to count Mercyhurst out. There have been other seasons where I wasn’t liking the Lakers’ chances headed into games with the likes of BC and Cornell, and then, lo and behold, they got at least a split when it was needed. So far this year, Mercyhurst wins or ties when it limits the opponent to two goals or less, but it loses if it allows three tallies or more. That puts a lot pressure on the defense and goaltender Amanda Makela to keep a lid on things. Once the Colonials went up 3-0 on Saturday, the Lakers didn’t have a precedent to climb out of that sort of hole. It would be easy to point the finger at Makela for the loss, given she was replaced after the first intermission, but being outshot 13-2 over the first 20 minutes is a fairly good indication that Mercyhurst wasn’t the better team out of the blocks. I think that it still has a good shot at an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. The series with St. Lawrence at the end of the month and Cornell in January will be huge. In league play, Syracuse struggled on Sunday at Penn State before winning in overtime, so the odds favor the Lakers in that series that they have owned head-to-head that resumes Friday and Saturday. A lot will depend on future games with the Colonials.
Of course, RMU is very much alive as well. It has now split with its only two ranked opponents, Mercyhurst and BU. The early split with RPI is more easily forgiven in light of Harvard’s loss to the Engineers. Out of conference, the Colonials’ big tests will be series with St. Lawrence and Quinnipiac in January and a single game at Ohio State in a couple of weeks. It would seem that they would need a winning record from those five games to remain seriously in the national picture.
Syracuse likely still has hope, sitting just behind Mercyhurst in the Ratings Percentage Index, but with single games versus Cornell and St. Lawrence, it has fewer opportunities to make up ground. I doubt that the math will favor more than one of those three teams reaching the top eight come season’s end.
If the Lakers’ NCAA streak does end, do you think that the CHA still advances a team?
Candace: I’ll give a qualified maybe; how’s that for an answer? The problem is that I see a lot of places where teams other than a CHA squad could advance. I expect when the dust settles that the WCHA will send three in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and North Dakota. I’d think 2-3 from the ECAC and 1-2 from Hockey East after that, with Cornell and/or Harvard and Clarkson, and possibly both Boston College and Boston University from Hockey East. Both of the latter have plenty of PairWise wriggle room, with the former playing Quinnipiac Friday, then a pair with Cornell, a game against Harvard, and four games against Boston University in the second half, plus another possible clash with Harvard. The Terriers have Wisconsin this weekend, then Harvard, and the games against St. Cloud and Minnesota-Duluth loom large with the way the WCHA powers are playing too.
Mercyhurst is hurt badly right now by the losses to Ohio State and Providence. Outside of the Cornell games at home, the Lakers don’t really have any places to make up PairWise ground, except for the series with Robert Morris. The Colonials are bettered by the split with Boston University, and have some out-of-conference opportunities in the second half with series vs. St. Lawrence and Quinnipiac. If RMU can win the game against Ohio State on Nov. 26, that puts them up big on the Lakers. Robert Morris should also hope that Boston University continues to do well.
Speaking of the WCHA powers that be, Minnesota was really pushed on Saturday night against St. Cloud. It might be the closest Minnesota’s win streak has come to ending, outside of the Gophers’ OT games against North Dakota, Bemidji State, and Boston College last season. This weekend, Minnesota faces North Dakota at home; does the streak end, or is Minnesota going to pull it back together?
Arlan: As my editor would say, maybe. One factor will be Minnesota’s health. It was down to 15 skaters versus the Huskies, and all three of the forward lines were impacted by absences. Three forwards were out last weekend: Maryanne Menefee, Meghan Lorence, and Kate Schipper. If a couple of them are back for UND, then the Gophers can look very much like they did versus Minnesota State, and they looked very good in that series. If all of the lines are piecemeal, as they were in St. Cloud, then I don’t see a sweep of North Dakota in the future. For the final minutes on Saturday, Brad Frost put together two lines out of his best remaining offensive forwards and Megan Wolfe, who was a forward in high school but has only played defense at Minnesota. That short-term fix resulted in a couple of goals, but won’t work for an entire weekend against a team as strong as North Dakota.
Minnesota will be the first opponent North Dakota has faced out of the current top 10, and it has been a few weeks since the Gophers met Wisconsin. The team that can adjust to the pace of the game quicker figures to have the inside track on the weekend.
The bottom line is how can anyone really know? The WCHA has been the most predictable of the leagues, but there are still results like Minnesota-Duluth failing to get a win from St. Cloud State at home and Bemidji State presenting a similar thorn at Ohio State. There isn’t much separation between Minnesota and North Dakota in either direction, so either team can sweep or get swept or anything in between.
If events unfold just right, could we be talking about Wisconsin as the new No. 1 team in our next column?
Candace: Theoretically I guess, but I’d tend to doubt it. For things to unfold just right, as you say, North Dakota would have to sweep Minnesota in Minneapolis, and I just don’t see that happening. Wisconsin has a potential thorn in Boston University too, a team that could beat the Badgers. Besides, it’s be just like the voters to put Cornell at number one if the Big Red sweep Dartmouth and Harvard this weekend, just to spite the western hegemony. If North Dakota were to sweep Minnesota in Minneapolis, I’d actually be tempted to vote for them in the top spot. Even if Minnesota splits with North Dakota and Wisconsin sweeps Northeastern and Boston University, it wouldn’t be enough to get me to vote for Wisconsin as the top team, since Wisconsin lost a pair to Minnesota.
The big problem I see with North Dakota is defense. Shelby Amsley-Benzie has a .895 save percentage, and Minnesota has a potent offense, even when the forwards are struggling. As a matter of fact, three of the top 10 in scoring nationally are from the Gophers: Hannah Brandt, Kelly Terry, and Rachel Bona. I’m expecting two tight games for sure, but I’d currently favor Minnesota, which has the second-ranked offense and fifth-ranked defense nationally. I don’t count my alma mater, Holy Cross, which is tops in both offense and defense, because aside from Sacred Heart, the Crusaders play D-III teams, although I would love to see them step into the CHA, as on the men’s side, several of those CHA teams are in Atlantic Hockey with Holy Cross.
Speaking of Holy Cross, I sometimes wonder if we might see some schools with D-I men’s teams start women’s programs. With the Big Ten in motion on the men’s side, and four of those teams sporting women’s squads, all it would take is Michigan and Michigan State to start up women’s programs for that to be a possibility on the women’s side. I talked to Michigan coach Red Berenson a few years ago about a women’s program at Michigan, and he indicated that contrary to rumor, he didn’t oppose it. I am the NCHC columnist for USCHO, and at Denver and Colorado College a lot, but I don’t see either of those schools starting up women’s D-I programs. With Notre Dame joining Hockey East on the men’s side, it would be nice to see a Fighting Irish women’s team in Hockey East, although travel might make that daunting.
Are there any schools that in your dream world you would like to see start women’s D-I programs, and are there any that you think might do so?
Arlan: I don’t know that I’d go so far as to dream about it, but I think that there are some where it would make sense, in addition to those where it is being planned or at least rumored. The Michigan schools definitely, but not with the objective of having a Women’s Big Ten Hockey Conference. I realize that would be inevitable eventually, but as currently configured, it would leave the remaining five WCHA schools stuck. Maybe they could join with Lindenwood and then have a western league of at least six teams. Realignment plans would probably depend on if other Michigan schools like Northern Michigan and Western Michigan were considering adding women’s teams once Michigan and Michigan State did. I hope that it wouldn’t be a case of say six Michigan teams forming at once, because too much too soon is bound to leave some program in a partial vacuum.
The other Big Ten school that would be a good fit in my opinion is Northwestern. Interest in hockey in the Chicago area should be very high because of the recent success of the Blackhawks. Because life seldom makes sense, we’ll probably see Nebraska or Purdue adding the sport instead.
I had to chuckle at “daunting” travel prospects for Notre Dame. You cover Colorado schools! I expect that Notre Dame would rack up far fewer miles, no matter what conference it joined. It would do those sheltered Hockey East schools good to get out of New England and see the rest of the world once in a while. As for the Irish, at least they wouldn’t be bussing it all over the map like poor Lindenwood.
Other “dream” additions that wouldn’t be too far-fetched would be those with a nearby NHL team in a region with a solid hockey tradition. Maybe one of the Big 5 schools in Philadelphia? Overall, I’d hope that any school that does add the sport or transitions to D-I is in it for the long haul, not to throw in the towel in a few years.
Am I forgetting someone, or is Merrimack the only new D-I program that is certain, not someday down the road?
Candace: I don’t think you are forgetting anyone. I’d love it if the service academies would add women’s programs. I think Syracuse and Lindenwood are anomalies in terms of starting a women’s program with no concurrent men’s program. Northwestern has long been rumored to be interested in adding men’s and women’s hockey, and I’d imagine they are waiting to see how the BTHC does before committing. Nebraska-Omaha would be a good fit for a women’s team; its men’s team is very successful. I’d also like to see schools like Miami and Mass.-Lowell add women’s teams, Lowell especially, as the River Hawks have moved all their D-II programs to D-I. Hopefully, the sport can continue to grow and be successful.
Norwich is banking on senior forward Travis Janke to be a leader this year for the Cadets (photo: Jennifer Langille).
Four years, four straight Frozen Four appearances and one national championship is quite a legacy left behind from the departed senior class at Norwich.
Players like Pier-Olivier Cotnoir, Colin Mulvey and Kyle Thomas, among others, all helped to bring great distinction to the Norwich program along with a number of significant individual honors for their great performances on the ice as Cadets.
So how does one replace All-American caliber players?
“I am not sure you can replace them,” said a frank Norwich coach Mike McShane. “We have a lot of new guys here this year and I am not sure that we did really replace those guys. We have a lot of new faces and younger players this year who may not be at the level of the guys we lost, but they all have great attitudes and have come here to work hard and get better every day.”
The Cadets have started out well, posting wins in their first two games of the season and outscoring their opponents by a collective 15-4 margin. Leading the way has been the re-tooled first line of Travis Janke centering for Shane Gorman and Chris Duszynski. Each player has six points in their first two games with Duszynski posting five goals, including his first collegiate hat trick in the season opener against Plymouth State.
Janke has six assists in the first two games and the admiration of his new linemates to start the season.
“Travis has great hands and great vision when he is on the ice,” noted McShane. “He has been a great front-line center for us and really does make good things happen offensively for himself, but more his teammates. Shane and Chris both enjoy playing with him and I think both have come back this year a little leaner and a little quicker, which further plays into Travis’ game and our overall desire for team speed.”
If there was one area of concern coming into the season for the Norwich coaching staff, it was about the need for team speed based on the key losses to graduation and their ability to fly around the ice. It is only two games into the season, but so far, McShane likes what he sees from his team in their skating and intensity from the first line to the fourth line.
“Last year, there were times when the fourth line just didn’t play or get a regular shift,” McShane said. “From what I have seen this year so far, I am not afraid to play any line based on our depth, talent and speed. I think we recouped a little bit on the team speed with the new guys and they continue to work hard to improve their game. Nick Pichette is looking pretty good with Gerard McEleney with Nevin Lawler at center. These guys hard work hard every day and earn their ice time. It is great to see that work ethic every time they step on the ice.”
Another young player who seems to be catching onto the college game is sophomore defenseman Ryan Whitell. Through two games, Whitell has five points on a goal and four assists and seems at times to be quarterbacking the offense from the blue line, even in five-on-five situations. The mobile defender has already more than doubled his point total from last season where he joined the team after the semester break and played the second half.
“Like a lot of kids coming out of juniors and prep hockey, it can take awhile to get used to the speed of the game at the college level,” said McShane. “We tell all of the players, and especially Ryan as he came here, that you have to be in it every shift and can’t just be watching what is happening on the ice around you. The adjustment to the speed of the game at this level can take some time and what we are seeing from Whitell early on is the confidence that he has adjusted to that speed.”
While things are sorting out amongst the newcomers, one area that Norwich has both experience and depth is in goal with the return of three goaltenders who all saw significant playing time last season for the Cadets.
Junior Matic Marinsek joins seniors Chris Czarnota and Parker Carroll to give the Cadets the opportunity to always go with the hot hand. And just how does one establish who has the hot hand? It comes down to practice and competition there to get game time.
“The great thing about all of these kids is that they come here with a great attitude and work hard every day at practice and have fun doing it – it has been fun to watch so far,” McShane said. “You never know what it may be like when you bring in a lot of new faces like we did, but so far, it has been great. It is not different with the goalies. They work hard every day and support each other, but every day is a competition and a chance to get real game time on the weekends. They all played some in the opener, but I liked the way Matic played and he got the start in game two at St. Michael’s and stopped everything that came his way. There weren’t a lot of shots, but he had to be ready and focused and the puck was around more than the shot total indicated.”
With all of the positive happenings for the Cadets early on, McShane must be very confident for the season, right?
“I like what I have seen so far, but it is very early,” cautioned McShane. “The season has just started and we have answered some questions about our team in terms of speed and depth, but there is a long way to go, starting this weekend in Maine. It will be a good test against Southern Maine, who got a real quality win at Skidmore last weekend and played well in their opening game as well.
“The league is better and what I have seen of Babson and Massachusetts-Boston show me they are better teams than last year, so we are going to have to work hard and stay focused to keep pace with all the teams in the conference.”
The names and numbers have changed, but the attitude and results for the Cadets have not so far this season. How consistent the young players can be will certainly be a factor in any success Norwich achieves this season, but expect the traditions and levels of excellence obtained in the past to be both motivational and aspirational for the Cadets as they mature along the way.
Nick Sorkin (right) has five goals this season for New Hampshire (photo: Jim Rosvold).
When leaving New Hampshire’s 5-3 loss to Massachusetts-Lowell on Nov. 1, I heard lots of preliminary death notices.
“They’d better win back home on Saturday [against Lowell] or the season is over,” I heard. “This is looking a lot like two years ago.”
That year, the Wildcats got off to a dreadful start, losing their first four games and needing their sixth game to earn their first win. They never fully recovered and finished 15-19-3 overall and 11-14-2 in Hockey East. Their playoffs lasted only as long as the Hockey East quarterfinals.
Well, this year’s Wildcats did indeed suffer the feared loss to the River Hawks back at the Whittemore Center (in overtime, no less) to fall to 1-5-1 (and 0-2 in Hockey East).
“It was disappointing because overall we thought we played good hockey over that weekend, especially Saturday night,” UNH coach Dick Umile says. “We thought we should not have even been in the position of being in overtime.
“So we had no points to show for the weekend. With the tough start that we had and then add that to the mix, it was a long week.”
A long week with questions of if it was two years ago all over again.
“Our senior leadership went through that,” Umile says. “They were on that team.
“So we talked about that year, we talked about last season — [one in which UNH came within a game of the Frozen Four] — and we combined both of them. They were two opposite starts and yet we felt that we played better this year than last season and the year before.
“It just tells you how the game goes. Some times you don’t get the bounces. There’s a small line between winning and losing, especially in this league.
“But we all decided, you know what, let’s just focus on what’s ahead of us and ahead of us was UMass.”
“Ahead of us” translated into “in the path of a Mack truck” for the Massachusetts Minutemen. UNH defeated them 4-1 at the Whittemore Center on Friday and then took advantage of starting UMass goaltender Steve Mastalerz being sidelined to shellac the Minutemen 9-0 on their own home ice.
The Wildcats had been struggling offensively, averaging exactly two goals a game since their season-opening win over Clarkson. A measly two goals won’t win you many games. So the 13-goal outburst had to feel like manna from Heaven, especially the 9-0 win.
“It was how we played,” Umile says. “We stayed with it, we got off to a good start on some good transition plays. They had some chances against us, but we countered and scored some goals.
“The team just played solid. No one got selfish. We kept moving the puck. I thought we moved the puck as well as we’ve moved it [this year], and that generated some good scoring opportunities and we took advantage of it.”
With the Wildcats lacking a classic go-to goal scorer — a sniper, if you will — they’ve looked to Kevin Goumas and Nick Sorkin, both natural playmakers, to complement those skills with a finishing touch of their own. They have scored five goals each along with linemate Grayson Downing.
“We’re looking for them to do the same kinds of things as Austin Block and John Henrion did last year,” Umile says. “We’ve got them playing together, and they’re starting to really feed off of each other.”
UNH also enjoys the luxury of getting considerable scoring from their blueliners, most notably Trevor van Riemsdyk, Eric Knodel and, to a greater extent this year, Justin Agosta.
“Friday night we won 4-1 and three of our goals came from our defense,” Umile says. “Justin Agosta had an exceptional game on Friday night, really got into the rush, and scored two goals.
“van Riemsdyk is as good as there is. He’s just terrific. He sets up goals, he scores goals.
“So our defense has really brought a lot of offense for us as well.”
Freshman Tyler Kelleher has separated himself from the underclassmen pack, scoring two goals and assisting on five others.
“He had a terrific game on Saturday night out at UMass,” Umile says. “Coming from the Springfield area, he had a bunch of people there. He scored a goal and set up a couple others.”
Of course, there were moments two years ago when it looked like the Wildcats had turned around their season. UNH still stands at 4-5-1 after a 4-2 home win over Brown on Tuesday and has to make up ground.
And there’s one glaring weakness: the penalty kill. To date, the Wildcats are killing only 76 percent of opponents’ power plays; in Hockey East games, it’s even worse, 69.2 percent. Both numbers are easily the worst in the league.
“In Hockey East, our percentage is terrible,” Umile says. “Friday night, the very first power play they got, they scored on it. We changed some things around a little bit, but probably the best thing to do is not to get too many penalties, especially when you’re giving them up like we have.
“Our shorthand hasn’t been great, but it improved on Saturday night. Hopefully it will continue to improve. We’re just going to take it from our next game on and make sure our penalty kill is solid.”
To date, the schedule has been brutal. UMass and Brown are the only foes that aren’t currently in the top 20. UNH has played Minnesota (No. 1), Michigan twice (No. 2), Rensselaer (No. 10), Clarkson (No. 11), and Lowell twice (No. 16).
And guess who’s up for a two-game series the next two weekends? Eighteenth-ranked Northeastern and fifth-ranked Providence.
“We’ve had a good schedule and it’s only getting more difficult,” Umile says. “Northeastern is playing extremely well and Providence might be one of the top teams out there right now. We knew going in that the league was going to be, from top to bottom, as good as it’s been.
“We’re playing seven less league games this year so that makes it even more difficult. It’s going to tighten up the league. But the good thing is that we’re coming off a good weekend. Now we just have to continue to get better.”
Merrimack’s Mike Collins leads the team with nine points (photo: Candace Horgan).
See you in March
Merrimack may stand at 3-5 overall and 0-2 in Hockey East, but Warriors coach Mark Dennehy likes what he’s seen, especially in Friday night’s 1-0 loss to fifth-ranked Providence. The Warriors rank as one of Hockey East’s top defensive clubs.
“That’s a nationally ranked team and [it came down to] a bounce of the puck,” Dennehy said. “They came in averaging 39 shots a game and [we held them] to seven on the power play and 12 five-on-five.
“That’s a benchmark of where we are.”
The Warriors are, for now, in the cellar of Hockey East, with every other team counting at least one game in the win column, but Dennehy isn’t worried.
“We’re in the playoffs!” he said last Friday, generating laughter among writers but also speaking the truth. “The way it is right now, you just have to be ready for the playoffs in March.
“We talk about getting better. We were better tonight than we were last Friday. If we play that well often enough, we’ll be rewarded quite a bit. We just need to make sure we’re playing even better in March.”
Quick hits
• When Boston University and Maine face off on Friday, it’ll be the first time since Feb. 16, 2008, that the two teams have met without one of them being nationally ranked.
• Notre Dame played its first Hockey East games two weeks ago at Vermont. This weekend, the Irish will host their first Hockey East games, welcoming Merrimack.
• Providence’s sweep of Merrimack gave the Friars the second-best winning percentage in the country (7-1-1, .833). They got started taking care of business out of conference and are now continuing that inside the league.
• It’s not exactly headline material to note that Boston College is at the top of the standings. Or that Johnny Gaudreau, who just scored his 50th goal, was named league player of the week. Or that he leads scoring in Hockey East games.
• Neither is it shocking news that Northeastern’s Kevin Roy, a joy to watch, ranks in the top three of overall scoring and has earned at least one point in all but one game. But you might not have expected his freshman teammate, Mike Szmatula, to be leading Roy by a point.
• You might have guessed that Jon Gillies would be leading the league in GAA (1.73). But who’s second and third?
No peeking.
Notre Dame’s Steven Summerhays (1.81) and BC freshman Thatcher Demko (1.96).
• Five players in the league have scored two points while short-handed. Four of them play for Boston College: Patrick Brown with two goals and Bill Arnold, Quinn Smith, and Michael Matheson with two assists each. Providence’s Ross Mauermann is the lone non-BC player, having scored a goal and an assist.
Vermont sophomore forward Robert Polesello has left Vermont to play major junior hockey with the Kingston Frontenacs of the Ontario Hockey League.
“I really don’t have anything else to say except to wish Robert and his family all the best in his quest to play for Kingston and we thank him for his time here at the University of Vermont,” Catamounts’ coach Kevin Sneddon told the Burlington Free Press. “You never like to see a player leave your program, especially at the halfway point of a term. It can be a little disruptive, but we’ve said all along the strength of this team right now is in its depth and what it means is that when one door closes, another door opens for somebody else to step up.”
Polesello was third in team scoring for UVM with two goals and two assists in five games this season. In his career, Polesello recorded seven goals and 17 points in 40 games.
St. John’s forward Neal Smith (left, in red) has the Johnnies in good early-season position (photo: Caleb Williams/d3photography.com).
St. John’s coach Doug Schueller has seen his hockey team face its share of challenges in the early going of the season, including a battle with defending national champion Wisconsin-Eau Claire this past Saturday.
The Johnnies, who played Eau Claire in the NCAA tournament a year ago and lost 4-2, lost by a 3-1 score this time around.
But they have earned wins over Wisconsin-Superior (3-1) and Hamline (4-2) and find themselves at 2-2 through four games.
Not bad, all things considered.
“We’ve had a challenging schedule, but for the most part, we have played pretty well,” Schueller said. “We played hard and have made improvements. I’m excited about the potential of this team.”
The Johnnies are the favorites in the MIAC a year after winning the conference tournament and earning a bid to the NCAA tourney. They are certainly in a position to follow up with that performance if they continue to get the balance they have in scoring up to this point.
Fifteen players have scored at least one point, including eight who have tallied at least one goal. John Carroll, Zach Knight and Neal Smith have each racked up a goal and two assists.
“We feel like we have a pretty deep team and we have been very good offensively,” Schueller said. “We can always improve, though, especially on the power play, and we will continue to work at that as the season goes along.”
Yet, it is the defense that is the strength of the Johnnies, especially with rising star Saxton Soley back in goal. The 2012-13 MIAC co-player of the year has picked up where he left off during his sensational freshman season, racking up 61 saves and allowing just six goals.
“He has been very good and is playing with a lot of confidence,” Schueller said. “I’m expecting him to have another good season. Our defense is definitely going to be our strength. We have a strong group of defensemen who play hard and they will play a big part in our success this year.”
The Johnnies, who received 15 points in the latest USCHO.com Division III Men’s Poll, begin league play this weekend, playing a home-and-home with St. Olaf on Friday and Saturday and Schueller knows his team has to be ready to be at its best if it is to repeat as conference champions. St. John’s earned a share of the regular-season title last year in a competitive league race.
“Our most important part of the regular season is conference play,” Schueller said. “Our league is very good and we need to be focused for every game. There are no easy nights, but if we can play up to our potential, we will have an opportunity to win the title again.”
Fielding Shines: St. Thomas goalie Drew Fielding stopped 25 shots and earned his seventh career shutout as the No. 13 Tommies knocked off St. Mary’s 3-0 on Saturday night.
Fielding racked up a total of 47 saves in two games against the Cardinals as the Tommies improved to 4-0 overall and to 2-0 in the MIAC.
Fielding has started all four games and has made 92 saves. He has given up six goals.
In the 3-0 win on Saturday, Connor McBride, Tyler Richter and Alex Niestrom all scored goals for the Tommies, who have tallied 14 goals on the season, including three by McBride.
Making History: Augsburg and Bethel played the first regular-season shootout in NCAA Division III history on Friday night and the Auggies prevailed 2-1 in a five-round shootout.
The game does officially count as a tie since Augsburg and Bethel were knotted up at 3-3 at the end of regulation, but the new shootout rule provides the winner an extra point in the standings.
Carl Krieger and Ben McClellan both scored for Augsburg in the shootout. Krieger also scored a goal in regulation, as did Rory Vesel and Nicholas Widing, who also tallied an assist. Colin Mayer scored two of Bethel’s goals and Mitch Hughes punched in the other goal for the Royals.
Augsburg is 2-0-1 overall and 0-0-1 in the MIAC, while Bethel is still winless at 0-2-1 overall and 0-0-1 in the conference.
Penalty Killers: Concordia turned in a stellar performance in penalty kill situations on Saturday night against Wisconsin-Superior, limiting the Yellowjackets to a 1-of-8 showing in man-advantage situations.
Goalie Chris Neamonitis did his part to help the defensive cause as he racked up 37 saves. He has stopped 96 percent of the shots he has faced this season for the Cobbers (3-1).
Jordan Christianson and Caleb Suderman continue their stellar start offensively as each player punched in their fourth goals of the season in the win over Superior. Jeremy Johnson also scored a goal for Concordia, which has tallied 13 goals in all while holding opponents to six goals.
Wisconsin-Stevens Point junior Garrett Ladd is tearing it up offensively for the Pointers (photo: Jack McLaughlin).
Wisconsin-Stevens Point has been very good at seizing opportunities early in the season.
The Pointers, ranked sixth in the nation in the latest USCHO.com Division III Men’s Poll and one of the contenders for the WIAC championship, are unbeaten through four games.
Pointers’ coach Chris Brooks said part of that success has to do with how hard his team plays on the ice.
“Our guys are very hungry to be successful and they play with a lot of passion,” Brooks said. “We also pay a lot of attention to detail and focus a lot on execution.”
The fact that there is a lot of competition among the players certainly helps. A total of 29 players are on the roster for the Pointers, which makes the battles for playing time quite intense on a daily basis in practice. That intensity and competition translates into success in game situations.
“Our practices are very competitive,” Brooks said. “It’s a battle to get into the lineup and those guys work hard to get their playing time. It’s good to have the competition because we are going to need all 29 of those players if we want to be successful.”
Stevens Point has racked up 33 goals on the year and nine players have scored at least two goals. Leading the way is Garrett Ladd, who has come through with five goals to go along with six assists.
Lawrence Cornellier has punched in four goals, while Josh Daley and Evan Dixon have tallied three goals apiece. Kyle Brodie is second on the team in assists with five. Daley and Kevin Gibson have dished out four helpers apiece.
What is worth noting about the offensive strength of the Pointers through four games is that Kyle Heck and Scott Henegar have scored just one goal each. Heck and Henegar finished first and second on the team in goals scored last season with 12 and 10, respectively.
“Our scoring has been very balanced and it shows when your top goal-scorer from last year only has one goal,” Brooks said. “It’s been good seeing different players step up and that needs to continue all season.”
The Pointers have been strong on defense as well, with goalie Brandon Jaeger tallying 45 saves in three starts. He has allowed just six goals on the season.
What has helped the Pointers’ cause is that they have been able to dominate possession time. Stevens Point has taken a total of 189 shots. Opponents have been limited to just 60.
“Our defense has been very strong and they have done a good job of limiting scoring chances,” Brooks said. “We’ve also had the puck a lot and have taken advantage of opportunities, which has been key for us.”
If Stevens Point is to win a league title, though, and play its way into the NCAA tournament, it will need to continue to make strides rather than become complacent with its early success.
Brooks is confident his team will march forward as it looks to live up to its high expectations.
“The focus has to be on getting better each day,” Brooks said. “We know what we need to work on to be a better team and we will continue to improve as we prepare for conference play. We can’t look ahead to possibilities down the road. We have to stay focused on the present. If we do that, we’ll be in good shape at the end of the year.”
On A Roll: Wisconsin Eau-Claire has yet to miss a beat coming off its national championship in March. The Blugolds swept their two games on opening weekend and have won their last six games dating back to last season. It is the third longest streak in program history.
The latest win in the streak was against then No. 15 St. John’s. Eau Claire earned a 3-1 win. It defeated the Johnnies in the opening round of the NCAA tourney last year, coming through with a 4-2 victory.
David Donnellan, Daniel Olszewski and Ross Andersen all scored goals for the Blugolds, who were outshot 35-28, but still came through with the win. Tyler Green was rock-solid in goal as he racked up 34 saves.
The Blugolds opened the season with a 5-2 win over St. Olaf and are currently ranked No. 1 in the nation.
Stellar Performance: Wisconsin-River Falls goalie Scott Lewan was on top of his game between the pipes in the season opener against Concordia (Minn.) on Friday night, racking up 24 saves to help the Falcons earn a 3-2 victory.
River Falls did enough offensively as well in the win despite a 42-save performance by Concorida’s Chris Neamonitis. Ryan Doner, Jeff Burke and Zach Schrotenboer all scored goals for the Falcons, who led 2-1 after the first period and added their final goal the third.
River Falls’ ability to stop the power play was key as well. The Falcons forced the Cobbers to go just 1-of-5 in power-play situations. However, River Falls struggled as well with the power play as it came up empty on all five opportunities.
River Falls is 11-0 lifetime against the Cobbers.
The Falcons tied Hamline 2-2 on Saturday and is 1-0-1 on the season. It was the first time in 21 games against the Pipers that the game ended in a tie. The Falcons have 17 wins in the all-time series.
Our scheduled guests on the Nov. 12 edition of USCHO Live are Nebraska-Omaha head coach Dean Blais, whose Mavericks stand at 3-1 in conference in the first year of NCHC competition, and USCHO.com veteran Hockey East columnist David H. Hendrickson.
Join us for the conversation and information, Tuesday, Nov. 12, from 8 to 9 p.m. EDT at blogtalkradio.com/uscholive. If you can’t listen live, check out the podcast of USCHO Live! available on the player at the right (click through if you’re reading this via RSS.)
Be part of the conversation! Send your tweets to @USCHO, and 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, 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 seven seasons. Ed is VP and general manager CBS Sports Radio affiliates 1310 and 1590 The Team in Rochester, N.Y.
The CHA has suspended Robert Morris senior Kylie St. Louis and Mercyhurst senior Kaleigh Chippy for one game each under the league’s supplemental discipline policy.
The suspensions are a result of two altercations that took place at the end of the game between the two schools last Saturday (Nov. 9).
St. Louis was issued a two-minute minor for boarding, a major penalty for face-masking and a game misconduct at the 20:00 mark of the third period. St. Louis also aimed punches toward the head of a Mercyhurst player. She will sit out this Friday’s game (Nov. 15) against Lindenwood and will be eligible to return to the lineup on Saturday against Lindenwood.
Chippy was assessed a major penalty and a game misconduct for a hit to the head at the 20:00 mark of the third period. She also aimed punches toward the head of an RMU player. Chippy is out for Friday’s game versus Syracuse and is eligible to play again on Saturday against Syracuse.
Atlantic Hockey has suspended Rochester Institute of Technology junior forward Brandon Thompson for one game.
Thompson was given a major penalty for a check from behind and a game misconduct at the 5:39 mark of
the third period last Saturday (Nov. 9) against Robert Morris.
Upon further review by AHA commissioner Bob DeGregorio and supervisor of officials Gene Binda, it was determined that Thompson’s actions during the play warranted a one-game suspension.
Thompson will sit out the Tigers’ next game on Tuesday, Nov. 19, against Canisius.
St. Cloud State and Miami split in one of the spotlight series last weekend (photo: Jim Rosvold).
Here’s our weekly look at big events and big issues around Division I men’s college hockey.
Todd: I have to say I was hoping for some more decisive results from the big-time matchups we saw last weekend. No. 1 Minnesota split with No. 4 Notre Dame. No. 3 St. Cloud State split with No. 7 Miami. No. 5 Quinnipiac tied with No. 9 Yale.
I guess what it tells us is that there isn’t a truly dominant team in college hockey this season. At least not yet. Am I reading that wrong?
Jim: No, I think you’re dead on. Looking at the top five in this week’s poll, I had a difficult time ranking each. And because of that, I think there was little change. The top four stayed the same, five and six swapped and no new teams entered the top 10. I, personally, have seen a couple of teams in Boston College and Quinnipiac that I believe have the talent, if they’re each able to stay healthy, to be there come the end of the season.
The other thing that stands out to me is how far down you have to go in the poll to find a WCHA team. I think we all knew the conference would become a shell of itself, but I still thought that WCHA teams like Ferris State or Lake Superior would have a little bit of respect from the voters, but maybe I’m expecting a lot.
Todd: I think maybe it’s because the teams people expected to be up there when making picks before the season haven’t started very well. Minnesota State is 4-4 and dropped out of the rankings this week ahead of a series at No. 1 Minnesota. Ferris State has put together five straight wins but started 2-2. Lake Superior State has one win in its last four games after starting 4-0.
Teams are going to be judged not only on their record but on the company they keep. This season, ECAC Hockey schools are getting a boost while the WCHA and Atlantic Hockey are in a bit of a funk.
Quinnipiac, which you mentioned before, gained a couple of the first-place votes that Minnesota lost this week but actually moved down a spot because, as I like to say, no team exists in a vacuum in the rankings. Some voters apparently viewed Providence’s sweep of Merrimack as better than the Bobcats’ win over Brown and tie with Yale. Should they?
Jim: I think the question you raise is a very good one. There is no doubt that Providence is a very good team. So what do the Friars have to do to move up in the polls? They need to win games. Quinnipiac wants to hold its position or move up? It, too, needs to win games. Providence won twice last weekend against a mediocre Merrimack team. Quinnipiac beat a good Brown squad and tied the defending national champs. Obviously, two voters think Quinnipiac is good enough to be No. 1. But it seems there are probably also a few that feel the Bobcats could be ranked below sixth, which to me is just silly.
Again, these are just polls. But a part of me wonders what the ECAC needs to do to gain the respect it deserves?
Todd: I guess you could say it’s doing all it can right now. It’s putting a solid product on the ice and has become much more of a balanced league than was the case not too long ago. I’m not naive enough to think that winning last year’s national championship is going to change everyone’s perception of the ECAC, but it gave the naysayers less ammunition.
Six ECAC schools are among the top 20 in the rankings, and I think that says a lot about where the league is at.
Jim: Good point. I’ll let my stomping for ECAC rest, for now.
I know we don’t usually talk about women’s hockey in this space, but it was hard to ignore the ugly end to the Ohio State-Bemidji State women’s game last Friday. The game broke the all-time NCAA penalty minute record for men or women with 318 and absolutely destroyed the old women’s record of 83. I know I was somewhat taken aback by Ohio State coach Nate Handrahan, who said he was proud of his players for showing some fight because the opposition celebrated on OSU’s ice surface and was going off the ice “yipping and hooting and hollering.” So what are players supposed to do after a win? Skate off quietly?
I know it’s not that simple and there is likely a lot more to it. But I also wonder what kind of an example these players set. This may come off as biased, but I feel that in women’s collegiate athletics, more so than men’s, many of the fans are families with young girls who look up to these female student-athletes. And while things can boil over at times, the coach saying he is “proud” of his players just seems like misdirected enthusiasm. Your thoughts?
Todd: I did a double-take when I was transcribing the video of Handrahan’s news conference. It was not what I was expecting to hear. And I have to admit that when I later saw the video, the actions didn’t match what I was expecting, either, from the lengthy list of disqualifications. But a lot of players left the bench and became involved in the fracas, which didn’t leave the officials much choice. You could argue that they were leaving the bench like they always do after the horn sounds, but they willingly joined in what was going on along the boards.
I think I understand what Handrahan was getting at: You want your players to stand up for each other. But equating that with being upset that the other team was celebrating doesn’t seem to fit. The next day’s rematch was an interesting game, too, in that each team only had enough eligible players to field two forward lines and two defensive pairs. That could have been a dangerous situation with that few players.
Jim: Honestly, and this may sound extreme, if I were a commissioner in charge of this series, I would have had both teams forfeit the rematch for the inability to field anywhere near a full squad. As you said, that’s just dangerous.
Anyway, back to men’s hockey. What matchups are intriguing for you this week?
Todd: A couple of series between ranked teams stand out here in the west. No. 8 Miami returns home after splitting at St. Cloud State to host No. 12 Wisconsin, which has played in only one of the last three weekends. It’s the Badgers’ last road nonconference games of the season, and a big chance to make an impression nationally after the last one — blowout losses at Boston College and Boston University — didn’t go well.
And No. 13 North Dakota hosts No. 20 Minnesota-Duluth in an NCHC series that matches teams looking to get on more solid footing as we transition out of what’s considered the early part of the season. What’s up out east?
Jim: In Hockey East, New Hampshire and Northeastern are both coming off of good weekends but still each have a lot of question marks. Maybe some will get answered when they square off. Upstart Clarkson should get tested on Friday by Cornell, while the Capital District’s rivalry of Union and Rensselaer will get renewed, both teams with higher expectations than in recent years.
And Sacred Heart has already knocked off one Frozen Four team from a year ago and it’ll get the chance to beat the defending national champions when it takes on Yale on Saturday.
With 38 first-place votes, Minnesota maintains the No. 1 spot in this week’s USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll.
The Gophers suffered their first loss of the season in a split with Notre Dame last weekend.
Idle Michigan received nine first-place votes and remains No. 2 in the poll.
St. Cloud State split with Miami and stays third, earning one first-place nod in the process, Notre Dame stays fourth and Providence moves up one to No. 5 after sweeping Merrimack.
Quinnipiac garnered two first-place votes after beating Brown and tying Yale, but moved down one spot to No. 6, Boston College downed both Boston University and Army and rises one to No. 7, Miami falls one to No. 8, Yale stays ninth after beating Princeton and playing to the tie with QU and Rensselaer is again tenth after tying Cornell and defeating Colgate.
Clarkson moves five spots to No. 11 with wins over Dartmouth and Harvard, while idle Wisconsin jumped one place to No. 12 and North Dakota’s split with Nebraska-Omaha pushed UND down two to No. 13.
Ferris State is up five to No. 14 with a sweep over Bemidji State, Lake Superior State split with Alaska and drops one to No. 15 and Massachusetts-Lowell’s loss to Northeastern sees UML down four to No. 16.
At No. 17, St. Lawrence enters the rankings after victories over Harvard and Dartmouth, while Northeastern also enters the poll at No. 18 after beating Mass.-Lowell.
A tie against Renssealer and a loss to Union sees Cornell fall four spots to No. 19 and idle Minnesota-Duluth maintains the grip on No. 20.
The USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll consists of 50 voters, including 28 coaches from the Division I conferences and 22 beat writers and sports professionals from across the country.
With an unblemished 12-0-0 record so far, Minnesota is again the top-ranked team in the USCHO.com Division I Women’s Poll.
The Gophers received all 15 first-places again this week and have accomplished that feat in every poll this year.
Wisconsin, Cornell, North Dakota and Boston College remain in spots two through five, respectively.
Harvard jumps two spots to No. 6 and Quinnipiac holds firm at No. 7.
At No. 8, Boston University moves up two places, Clarkson tumbles three spots to No. 9 and Mercyhurst fills out the poll at No. 10, down one notch from the Nov. 4 poll.
The USCHO.com Division I Women’s Poll is compiled weekly and consists of 15 voters, including 14 coaches of Division I programs and one women’s hockey writer.
Waidacher’s wicked weekend
High scoring sisters Isabel and Nina Waidacher rendered the St. Scholastica record book in need of serious revision after an abundant display of offense in the Saints’ initial look at NCHA action. Isabel finished with 15 (six goals, nine assists) points in the two-game home set with Finlandia at Mars Lakeview Arena, while Nina, who led the conference with 40 points a year ago, finished with 13 on eighth goals and five helpers in 10-0, and 10-2 victories past the Lions. The Arosa Switzerland, pair, two-thirds of the Waidecher trio that includes senior Monika, had a hand in 16 of 20 goals for the weekend. St. Scholastica improved to 3-0-1 overall
Isabel, a freshman and a member of the Swiss National U-18 squad and a much-heralded addition to coach Jackie MacMillan’s rapidly rising program, gave an early indication of what was to transpire in regard to the record-setting weekend by scoring the first three goals of Friday’s action. Her three even-strength scores transpired within a window of 8:50. Isabel put a pair of power-play goals on the score sheet in the latter two periods for the Saints, who were able to get 20 of their 54 bids on the Lions goaltending duo of Breanna Hynes and Casey Schwartz while skating with an advantage. Nina followed up her eight-point afternoon on Friday with her own take on a five-score performance. Her final three goals of the day were of the power play variety, and were assisted by Isabel and St. Paul, Minn., native Michelle Fischer. Fischer also added a five point effort to her statistical profile.
The Saints have outscored the Lions (0-3-0, 0-3-0) 44-2 over their last five matchups.
Cougars youth infuse sweep
Chatham, 1-15-0 a year ago in ECAC West, delivered a major hit on Buffalo State with a pair of solid road wins. The Cougars prevailed 3-0 in the opener and 5-4 in overtime in securing the sweep. Brianna Rice, a freshman from Newmarket, Ont., collected both game-winning goals for Chatham. Rice has five goals thus far, eclipsing the four compiled by 2012-13 team leader, senior Casey Morfield. Freshman Tara Treloar turned aside 23 shots in the win on Friday.
Rice put forth a fou- point afternoon in the overtime win, the decisive goal arriving 4:22 into extra time with the aid of freshman blue liner McKenzie Haskins. Chatham compiled a 2-1-1 overall record on the four-game swing that kicked off the season. Six straight home games are in store for the Cougars, starting with two against nonconference foe Canton on Nov. 15 and 16.
Elmira regaining form?
After a trying East-West Showcase to commence the season, Elmira was back in the win column after taking two of a home-and-home set with Utica. The Soaring Eagles conceded the first goal before leveling the result with a power-play goal late in the first off the stick of Brooke Wilgosh. After a scoreless second period, Tanis Lamoureux provided the game-winner 2:23 into the third. Lamoureux later notched a pair of helpers later in the third in sealing Elmira’s win. On Sunday at Utica’s Memorial Stadium, coach Dean Jackson’s crew forged a 2-0 first period lead on goals by Erin Weston and Cassidy Delainey before turning it over to goalie Lisa Marshall, who stopped 25 shots. Marshall has a .930 save percentage in hand after this week’s action, and has started all four games.
St. Norbert, Lake Forest settle in closing moments
St. Norbert was outshot, 8-1, in the overtime period and 48-34 in the game, but held on, settling for a 3-3 result with Lake Forest at the Cornerstone Community Center. The Green Knights forced extra play with 60 seconds in regulation on a six-on-five goal by Rachel Koppang. Lake Forest’s power-play unit was 3-for-7 on the afternoon, while the hosts managed just a lone goal in six chances. In what was a near mirror image, particularly from a statistical view, St. Norbert prevailed, snapping a three-all tie with five ticks remaining in the third on a Taylor Giaci score. Green Knights goalie Kaley Gibson collected 40 saves in the triumph after a 45-save effort the previous afternoon.
Yellow Jackets take steps to ascend in USCHO poll
No. 9 Wisconsin-Superior took a win and a tie in a pair of tight nonconference road games with No. 3 Gustavus Adolphus. The Golden Gusties join Manhattanville, Elmira, Wisconsin-River Falls, and Norwich in the group of top 10 teams who have undergone some puzzling losses in the opening two weeks of the season.
With all but Michigan Tech and Northern Michigan involved in WCHA play this weekend, here are the three things I think I learned from around the league.
Saturday was a must win for Minnesota State, no matter what the Mavericks say
No goal this season may have been more important for the Mavericks up until this point than the one scored by senior captain Johnny McInnis in overtime on Saturday to give the Mavs a 1-0 overtime victory over Bowling Green in Mankato.
MSU currently sits two points back of second-place BGSU and four points back of first-place Ferris State with the Bulldogs hosting the Falcons this weekend in Big Rapids, Mich.
Even a tie for the Mavericks with BGSU on Saturday would have left the WCHA’s preseason favorites in a giant hole — anywhere from seven to nine points back of first place — once they return to league play Nov. 22-23 at Bowling Green.
If anything, Saturday’s win was a huge moral boost for MSU, which would have had just one win in four home games to start league play if not for McInnis’ goal.
“We needed something to go right for us,” McInnis said to Free Press. “We needed to get some of our swagger back, maybe.”
The Mavs are at the University of Minnesota this weekend.
To beat Ferris State or Bemidji State, you’ll have to light the lamp … a lot
The only offense that has been hotter than Bemidji State up to this point in WCHA play has been Ferris State and the Bulldogs unloaded on the Beavers this weekend, scoring 10 goals to take over first place in the league with a sweep.
Bemidji was held to just a modest seven.
The Bulldogs are averaging 3.89 goals per game this season and 4.50 goals per league game. The Beavers average 2.90 goals per game overall, but have scored an average of 3.50 in their six WCHA contests.
Both teams meet potent offenses again this weekend with Ferris hosting BGSU (third in the league, averaging 3.10 goals per game overall) and Bemidji hosting Alaska-Anchorage (sixth in the league, averaging 2.75 goals per game overall).
Northern Michigan has its go-to goal scorer
Northern Michigan University lacked a go-to goal scorer last season and there was a big question mark whether or not the Wildcats had one on the roster this season.
That question mark has been erased by senior forward Stephan Vigier in the first 10 games, who now leads the WCHA in not just goals, but points with 10 goals and two assists.
Vigier scored twice on Saturday in NMU’s come-from-behind win at Western Michigan and he notched the game-tying goal with 2:47 to play at WMU on Sunday.
He’s scored goals in nine of the Wildcats’ 10 games thus far, including the last eight in a row.
With four of the Big Ten’s six teams playing in seven games, there were a few things that we learned during the weekend … although I’m wondering if we didn’t know them already going in.
1. Minnesota isn’t infallible.
No team is perfect — which we knew going into the weekend — and when the Gophers faced their toughest opposition yet so far this season, they showed that they were on equal footing. As I suspected would happen with the series against Notre Dame, the team that was able to dictate the pace and style of the play in a given game won that game. In Friday’s contest, the Fighting Irish held the Gophers off the board, patiently waited for opportunities, and made it look easy — although it assuredly was not — when they took advantage of Minnesota’s mistakes. It was a heck of a hockey game.
In Saturday’s game, the Gophers got the first two goals in the first period, which is undoubtedly the key to their 5-4 win that night. That battle went back and forth and was tied by the end of two, with freshman defenseman Jake Bischoff scoring the game winner midway through the third. As Don Lucia himself would undoubtedly tell you, the Gophers were a fortunate to escape South Bend with a win.
Two notes of interest: All five goals in Saturday’s win were scored by freshman and the Gophers haven’t given up eight goals to a single opponent in two games since they did so against Denver, Feb. 10-11, 2012.
2. Ohio State is about to learn a lot about itself.
I know that has nothing to do with the Big Ten, but come on.
Across campus, the men pounded Niagara, 10-2, in two games. The 6-1 Saturday win, though, proved very costly for OSU. Freshman Matt Tomkins left the game early with a lower body injury that may keep him out of the net for a significant part of the season. This is one week after sophomore Collin Olson left the team because he wasn’t getting enough playing time. The Buckeyes turned to walk-on freshman goalie Logan Davis, a local kid from the Columbus suburb of Upper Arlington, who played for the Ohio AAA Blue Jackets before walking on at OSU.
Davis made 14 saves and allowed the only goal in the second period. There is no word yet on how the Buckeyes are going to handle being down to one goaltender, and a walk-on at that.
Given that Big Ten play begins in a few weeks, it’s safe to say that Ohio State may be in for a learning experience through the remainder of the first half of the season.
3. Shoot the puck already.
The Nittany Lions managed to eek out a 2-1 win over Sacred Heart in spite of outshooting the Pioneers 39-21.
The Spartans, however, were not so lucky. Michigan State returns from the Upper Peninsula without a win, having dropped two games to Michigan Tech, 3-0 and 3-2, and the second in overtime. MSU had 19 shots in each contest, outshot by 11 the first night 19 the second. The inconsistency of Michigan State’s offense is probably a concern for the Spartans, but it is early in the season.
