Neither of us were very good last weekend, which means I maintain an early two-game lead over the old man.
Jim last week: 6-4-1 Dave last week: 6-4-1 Jim to date: 41-18-5 Dave last week: 39-20-5
Friday, November 8
Boston College at Boston University
Jim’s pick: The renewal of college hockey’s best rivalry will be a bit different without Jack Parker on the BU bench. That, though, has no impact on why I’m picking against the Terriers. BC 4, BU 2
Dave’s pick: Both teams have had some rough moments in the early going. I’m confident BC has turned the corner, but I’m not as sure about BU. BC 4, BU 2
Providence at Merrimack
Jim’s pick: I love the way Providence is playing right now and though Merrimack can be tough at home, I’m going the way of the Friars. PC 3, MC 2
Dave’s pick: I’m also taking the Friars. They’re one blown lead away from being undefeated. PC 4, MC 2
Vermont at Maine
Jim’s pick: I’m impressed with the Catamounts right now and, even on the road, think they will win the opener of this series. UVM 5, Maine 2
Dave’s pick: We’re going to differ on this one. I’m sticking with the Black Bears at home. Maine 3, UVM 2
Massachusetts at New Hampshire
Jim’s pick: This is a home-and-home this year and I think the home teams will hold the advantage. UNH 3, UMass 2
Dave’s pick: This may well be as much of a must-win game for UNH as exists this early in the year. UNH 4, UMass 2
Minnesota at Notre Dame
Jim’s pick: Hard to pick against the number one team in the nation but I’m going to do exactly that on Friday. UND 4, Minn. 2
Dave’s pick: Not me. The Gophers aren’t the number one team for nothing. Minn. 3, UND 2
Saturday, November 9
Vermont at Maine
Jim’s pick: If this series were in Burlington, I’d pick a Cats sweep. But it’s not. Maine 3, UVM 2
Dave’s pick: I’m going with a Black Bears sweep as they stay undefeated at home. Maine 3, UVM 2
Merrimack at Providence
Jim’s pick: The Friars continue to roll early in the season. PC 4, MC 2
Dave’s pick: Agreed. Providence will go to 6-0-0 at home. PC 3, MC 1
New Hampshire at Massachusetts
Jim’s pick: Home teams dominate this series. UMass 4, UNH 3
Dave’s pick: The Wildcats have struggled mightily, but a sweep gets them to 3-5-1. UNH 3, UMass 2
Northeastern at Massachusetts-Lowell
Jim’s pick: I think this is a more difficult pick that it may appear on the surface as I think NU could pull the upset. Still, I can’t pick that one with Lowell at home. UML 4, NU 2
Dave’s pick: I’d pick Lowell in this one no matter if it’s played at the Tsongas, Matthews Arena, or on Mars. UML 4, NU 1
Minnesota at Notre Dame
Jim’s pick: Minnesota earns the spilt but will the Gophers remain number one? Minn. 3, UMD 2
Dave’s pick: I probably should go with a split here, but I’m believing in the Gophers until proven otherwise. Minn. 4, UND 3
Sunday, November 10
Army at Boston College
Jim’s pick: Army may be one of the hardest working teams in college hockey but still are no match for BC. BC 5, Army 2
Dave’s pick: Agreed. This one won’t be close. BC 4, Army 1
Tuesday, November 12
Massachusetts-Lowell at Princeton
Jim’s pick: Don’t think this will be an easy game but still should be a road win for the River Hawks. UML 3, PU 2
Dave’s pick: The River Hawks continue to roll. UML 4, PU 2
Brown at New Hampshire
Jim’s pick: This is a very good Brown team that I believe may frustrate the Wildcats. Brown 3, UNH 2
Dave’s pick: Call me crazy, but I’m picking a team that entered the weekend 1-5-1 to sweep its three games. UNH 2, Brown 1
Thursday, November 14
Boston College at Massachusetts
Jim’s pick: Though UMass always gives BC fits at the Mullins Center, I still can’t pick against the Eagles. BC 3, UMass 2
Dave’s pick: Agreed. Home or away, I’m going with the Eagles in this matchup. BC 3, UMass 2
Massachusetts-Lowell at Penn State
Jim’s pick: First of a two-game series is all River Hawks. UML 5, PSU 2
Dave’s pick: The River Hawks should dominate this one. UML 4, PSU 1
Jerry York has won five national championships, four with Boston College (photo: Melissa Wade).
Boston College coach Jerry York has agreed to a contract extension through the 2019-20 season, the school announced Thursday night.
York, 68, the all-time leading in coaching victories with 939, has four national championships in 19-plus seasons at his alma mater and five in his coaching career. He previously coached at Clarkson and Bowling Green.
He will be 74 when the extended contract runs out in 2020.
“I am very excited and proud to extend my contract here at Boston College,” York said in a news release. “As always, the focus of our program will be to graduate student-athletes and strive to add championships. The current state of Boston College hockey is strong and I envision it only getting stronger.”
He led Boston College to national championships in 2001, 2008, 2010 and 2012, and won the title with Bowling Green in 1984.
“Jerry York is the most successful coach in the history of college hockey,” Boston College athletic director Brad Bates said in a release. “We are extraordinarily fortunate to have a leader and representative of his caliber continue to serve this great institution and his alma mater.”
The 20 men’s hockey Division I seniors selected as candidates for the 2013-14 Senior CLASS Award were announced Thursday.
The individuals are those who excel both on and off the ice. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence – community, classroom, character and competition.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the Senior CLASS Award “focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities,” according to a news release
Of the 20 candidates, 12 have grade-point averages of 3.5 or higher.
According to the Denver Post, Denver freshman defenseman Will Butcher has been suspended for Friday’s game at Colorado College for breaking one of DU coach Jim Montgomery’s unofficial rules.
“For not doing the right thing,” Montgomery said to the Post. “It wasn’t a team rule, but more of one of my obvious unwritten rules.”
Butcher will be eligible to play Saturday against the Tigers in Denver.
Butcher has played in all eight games for the Pioneers this season and has recorded two goals and an assist.
Minnesota coach Don Lucia has seen his veteran defense allow just 1.67 goals per game (photo: Jim Rosvold).
The beginning of the 2013-14 season brought questions for Minnesota, which lost juniors Mark Alt, Nick Bjugstad, Zach Budish, Erik Haula and Nate Schmidt to the pros after last season. That’s two veteran defensemen and three forwards — Budish, Bjugstad and Haula — who scored 51 of Minnesota’s 139 goals.
As November begins, though, no one is questioning the Golden Gophers’ potential this season. For the second consecutive week, Minnesota received all 50 votes in the USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll, off to a 5-0-1 start after an impressive weekend against visiting Boston College two weeks ago.
“So far, so good,” Minnesota coach Don Lucia said, “but it is a long season.”
Lucia said that he and his assistants had an inkling that this year’s Gophers would perform well before the season began. “I’m watching practice and I’m thinking that they look pretty good,” said Lucia, “but you never know until you play.”
Even with the loss of five key players, Lucia said that there were a couple of reasons for the Gophers to be cautiously optimistic at the beginning of the current season.
“I think it’s a couple things,” he said. “One, Adam Wilcox returned from last year so we were set in net.”
As a freshman in 2012-13, Wilcox had a 1.88 GAA and .921 save percentage with a 25-8-5 record; Wilcox has played every game this season with 1.64 and .938 statistics.
“Second,” said Lucia, “is that we did have five veteran defensemen return, and Justin Holl, we knew we were going to return him back to D.”
While it is early in the season and Big Ten play hasn’t yet begun, it’s still significant to note that Minnesota is second nationally in scoring defense, allowing 1.67 goals per game.
Third, said Lucia, is that other players would have to emerge and realize a greater potential. “Michael Reilly and Brady Skjei had to take a step and they did this year,” he said.
Both sophomore defensemen are capable of scoring and each has already equaled his goal-scoring output of a season ago. Reilly has three, Skjei has one.
Offensively, several players have picked up where Budish, Bjugstad and Haula left off. “Kyle Rau has made a pretty seamless transition back to center, a position he played his whole life,” said Lucia. “We knew, too, that if our freshmen could score right away, it was going to go a long way toward replacing what we lost.”
Rau, a junior, has a goal, and seven rookies have accounted for a dozen of Minnesota’s 29 overall goals.
Rau plays on the same line with freshman Hudson Fasching and junior Sam Warning, whose season is off to a career start.
“At the beginning of the year, Kyle came up and said he wanted to play with Sam,” said Lucia. “They’re classmates and close off the ice. We wanted to play a big body with them and Hudson, we gave him the opportunity.”
The result is a powerful line. In six games, Warning — who played with an injured shoulder last season — has netted five goals and seven assists. Warning had eight goals in 29 games last year and six in 39 games in 2011-12. Fasching has three goals as well.
Lucia said that it’s always difficult for top programs to fill the void left by early departures, especially now that some programs — like Minnesota and Michigan — lose top talent on an annual basis. It’s something that’s changed the way the Gophers recruit.
“One of the things we’ve addressed is trying to recruit good college players,” said Lucia, who made the distinction between recruiting for professional potential and for solid college play. He also said that the Gophers have added smaller, quicker players. “It was a conscious effort on our part. As much as we can, we build a foundation of kids.”
That foundation of kids, it’s implied, are the kids who will stay.
Before taking last weekend off, the Gophers were impressive in different ways in a 3-3 tie with and a 6-1 win over Boston College. Minnesota led in the tie 2-0 until roughly midway through the first period, when the Eagles scored three goals in a span of 77 seconds. Freshman forward Taylor Cammarata’s second goal of the season tied it up in the second period.
After the first period, “The game kind of settled in,” said Lucia. “It was a heck of a game. There were people here that said it was the best game they’d seen here in a decade.”
In the 6-1 Sunday win, the Gophers led 4-0 after the first period but Lucia said that the score wasn’t indicative of the game. “Adam made some critical saves,” said Lucia.
This weekend, the No. 1 Gophers face No. 4 Notre Dame in a two-game series in South Bend.
“This will be our first real strong road test, a good gauge this weekend,” said Lucia. “We had a lot of Minnesota fans in the Bemidji crowd.”
Lucia said that contrast of playing styles between the Golden Gophers and Fighting Irish is pretty stark. Minnesota wants to fly, while Notre Dame can deliberately slow down a game.
“They’re a very structured team,” said Lucia. “They don’t beat themselves. They’re very content to play a game that’s tight. They’re a good team. They’re obviously well coached.”
Those games are Friday and Saturday, with Friday’s 8:05 p.m. EST start televised on NBC Sports Network.
Ohio State’s Nick Schilkey works around Robert Morris’ Evan Renwick in an Oct. 25 game (photo: Rachel Lewis).
Buckeyes recovering from a rocky start
After an 0-3 start to the season, Ohio State is 4-4 following a home split against No. 20 Minnesota-Duluth last weekend, and the Buckeyes are 4-1 in their last five, a quintet of games played in a nine-day span from Oct. 25 through Nov. 2.
“No one wants to start out 0-3,” said coach Steve Rohlik. “Our guys, we knew we had a good team. We’ve got a great group in the locker room, but we knew that nothing was going to be easy.”
The season began to look up for the Buckeyes with their home-and-home sweep of Robert Morris, followed by a Tuesday night (Oct. 29) 5-3 home win over Bowling Green, a team to whom they’d lost on Oct. 15.
“We kind of grinded out three wins there,” said Rohlik. “We found a way to win. We weren’t playing, I don’t think, great. And then the last few days here we kind of communicated that. It’s going to take all of us and it’s going to take hard work. We can’t just show up and turn on a switch.”
In the days between OSU’s Tuesday win over BGSU and the series against Minnesota-Duluth, Rohlik said he saw a difference in his team.
“They made a decision to do that,” he said. “It started in practice the other day and I think it carried it over this weekend. I think we’ve learned a lot about our team, especially in the last five days.”
Even though they lost 3-1 Friday to Minnesota-Duluth before taking Saturday’s 4-2 win, Rohlik said, “All in all, I think it was the best weekend that we put together.”
One key to overcoming a slow start, said senior Alex Szczechura, was the faith that the team had in itself.
“After those first three games,” said Szczechura, “we knew we had a great team. We knew we just had to stick with it in practice, keep working hard, doing the simple things that coach really preached to us.”
Junior Nick Oddo said that the Buckeyes will be fine as long as they stick to “the little things.”
“Some of the best seasons start off with rough patches,” said Oddo. “You just want to keep getting better throughout the year and peak at the right time. I think we’re on the right path. We’re just getting better every day and worrying about ourselves and toward the end, I think it’ll all come together and we’ll have a good season.”
The Buckeyes are struggling defensively, offering up 3.75 goals per game compared to the 2.40 per game they averaged last season, 13th best in the nation, in front of senior Brady Hjelle. To complicate matters, sophomore goaltender Collin Olson has left the team because he’s seeking more playing time. Freshman Matt Tomkins (3.03 GAA, .901 save percentage) has played seven of OSU’s nine games.
The Buckeyes seem to be moving the puck better this season. OSU is scoring on average 3.38 goals per game, compared to the 2.38 goals per game the Buckeyes averaged in 2012-13.
Favorite quote of the week
This comes from Mike Eaves, after Wisconsin thumped Lake Superior State 8-1 on Saturday. The Badgers and the Lakers had skated to a 3-3 tie the night before.
“It’s a nice way to end a weekend,” he said. “I think that’s what the doctor ordered for a lot of our guys.”
Players of the week
I like the three stars format of the Big Ten players of the week. I like it even more this week, as more than just forwards are honored.
First star — Wisconsin senior forward Tyler Barnes: Barnes had two goals and two assists in Wisconsin’s tie against and win over Lake Superior State, including two third-period goals in the tied game — and the game-tying goal itself. Barnes has three goals on the season.
Second star — Michigan freshman goaltender Zach Nagelvoort: This is the second time this season that Nagelvoort has been honored, and justifiably so. In Michigan’s home sweep of Michigan Tech, Nagelvoort posted a .949 save percentage; he made 34 saves in the Wolverines’ 3-2 overtime win Friday night. Nagelvoort is second in the country for GAA (1.47) and third for save percentage (.948).
Third star — Wisconsin senior defenseman Joe Faust: Faust was plus-5 in Wisconsin’s tie and win versus Lake Superior State last weekend. He had an assist in the third period of Friday’s 3-3 tie and recorded his first career multi-point game Saturday with three assists. In 42 games last season, Faust had one goal and no assists; through six games so far this year, he has six points, all assists.
My ballot
1. Minnesota
2. Miami
3. Michigan
4. Notre Dame
5. Boston College
6. St. Cloud State
7. Providence
8. North Dakota
9. Yale
10. Massachusetts-Lowell
11. Quinnipiac
12. Rensselaer
13. Wisconsin
14. Lake Superior State
15. New Hampshire
16. Clarkson
17. Boston University
18. St. Lawrence
19. Northeastern
20. Ferris State
I struggle with parts of the poll all season long, but especially with the bottom six or seven this early in the season.
And I’m not ashamed to admit that I still check for “my” teams — i.e., CCHA teams — when the poll is published on Mondays. Is it wrong of me to feel warm and fuzzy for Notre Dame, Michigan, Miami, Lake Superior and Ferris State this week?
Shameless self-promotion
Next week, my partner-in-writing, Drew Claussen, has the column while I’ve have the Monday blog. We’ll post picks on Friday.
Thanks to all of my new followers on Twitter, most of whom are Minnesota and Wisconsin fans. I look forward to interacting with you and — yes — I can take the heckling.
Was it only two weeks ago that I had a three-game lead on Matthew? After last weekend, Matthew is now up a game on me. Luckily, it’s a long season. Last week, I went 6-4 (.600) to move to 25-16-5 (.597) on the year, while Matthew went 8-2 (.800) to move to 26-15-5 (.619) on the year.
Friday-Saturday, Nov. 8-9
Denver vs. Colorado College home-and-home (at CC Fri., at DU Sat.) Candace: Both teams have been struggling, but that usually doesn’t matter when these two face each other. CC bounded Denver in the first round of the WCHA playoffs last year, so it should provide the Pioneers with some extra motivation, but I have to figure this is a home-ice weekend. Colorado College 3-2, Denver 3-2 Matthew: I can’t help but wonder if there are any games in college hockey going on this weekend featuring two teams in more dire need of a pick-me-up. Denver lost to Nebraska-Omaha at home for the first time ever last Friday before losing to the Mavericks again — both 3-2 overtime decisions — the following night, and CC is finally home again after getting swept at both Clarkson and Western Michigan. Neither Colorado team has made a lot of hay so far this season, and that might not happen this week either, but emotion will be running so high on both sides in this first Gold Pan rivalry weekend that I think DU and CC will cancel each other out. Colorado College 2-1, Denver 3-1
No. 7 Miami at No. 3 St. Cloud State Candace: After sweeping North Dakota on the road, for a reward, St. Cloud gets to play Miami, the other preseason conference favorite. This is likely a split, but I have no idea which team will win on which night, so I’ll buck the trend and pick a St. Cloud sweep. St. Cloud State 3-2, 3-1 Matthew: A strong defensive corps and great goaltending from Ryan Faragher have led SCSU to a 5-0-1 start to this season, and those pieces will have to come up big again this weekend. The offense Miami possesses (4.25 goals per game, good for fourth in the country) trumps the Huskies scoring (3.17, good for a tie for 18th) going into this series, but the RedHawks could be had here if St. Cloud’s attackers can heat up further. Miami’s only giving up two and a half goals per game so far this season but, on the road, the RedHawks have yet to hold any host team to fewer than two goals in a game. That target is manageable for the Huskies, but I don’t think they’ll hit it both nights. St. Cloud State 4-2, Miami 3-1
No. 11 North Dakota at Nebraska-Omaha Candace: Nebraska-Omaha rebounded from getting swept at home by Cornell to sweep Denver on the road. As a reward, they get a North Dakota team at home that should be pumped up to get a couple of wins, something I think they will accomplish. North Dakota 3-2, 4-2 Matthew: Here’s where UNO gets to show just how significant its sweep on the road at Denver might’ve been following a difficult October in which the Mavericks finished 2-4-0. North Dakota comes into this series down a full six spots from a week ago in USCHO’s Division I Men’s Poll after being swept at home for the first time in nearly four years by St. Cloud State, and UND is going to be keen to get back to winning ways this weekend. All games between UNO and UND — at least those taking place indoors, as North Dakota thumped UNO, 5-2, at Omaha’s TD Ameritrade Park this last Feb. 9 – have been entertaining affairs, and I think we’ll get that again this weekend in what I see ending in a split. Nebraska-Omaha 3-2, North Dakota 4-1
Northern Michigan at Western Michigan Candace: Western seems determined to make Matthew and I look silly for picking them last in the conference at the start of the year. I’ll go with a Broncos’ sweep. Western Michigan 3-2, 4-1 Matthew: Following the Broncos’ sweep of Colorado College last weekend, Western coach Andy Murray was quick earlier this week to point out that two games in October don’t make a season. That’s true, but Murray has had his team playing some really decent hockey since being swept by Notre Dame on opening weekend. This week, Western welcomes to Kalamazoo a Northern Michigan team that the Broncos swept at Lawson Arena last season. And the year before that. Oh, right, and also the year before that. Northern’s 1-4-0 on the road so far this season, so I’m going to tempt fate and say Western sweeps the Wildcats at Lawson yet again. Western Michigan 5-3, 3-1
Wis.-River Falls Falcons forward Katie Batters.Falcons shut out UW-Stevens Point 7-0 in the O’Brien Cup Championship semifinals held in W.H. Hunt Arena Friday March 1, 2013. Photo by Kathy M Helgeson (Kathy M Helgeson)
With all of the accolades afforded his club in the preseason, Wisconsin-River Falls coach Joe Cranston envisions a scenario where rookies and vets are moving at full bore.
The raw numbers state that Cranston, now in his 15th season with the Falcons, will be in good stead in carving out what would be his club’s sixth consecutive ride to the NCAAs.
As such, the Falcons began seeking positive results in the season opener last week.
With the city of Blaine, Minn., as a backdrop, Cranston witnessed an efficient smoothness surrounding his team that was worthy of the preseason tip of the hat from prognosticators.
However, after starting off with a strong 5-3 road win at Bethel to kick-start their season, the WIAC favorites were tripped up by Bethel on home ice the following afternoon.
The Royals, who achieved a historically team high 15 wins a year ago, got out quickly in the first period as a result of Kathryn Larson’s marker at 5:52. Bethel tacked on a pair at the outset of the second in building a 3-0 advantage before the Falcons’ offensive adeptness began to surface. In this case, the aforementioned offensive push was originated by freshman defenseman Kayla Sinna, who solved freshman goalie Erika Allen at 4:32.
Wis.-River Falls’ first power-play success arrived shortly after Sinna’s goal, as 2012-13 leading scorer Katie Batters notched one. Despite narrowing the edge to one, the Falcons’ attention to detail in regard to self-restraint in their own end scuttled the comeback.
“After being down 3-0, and then cutting it to 3-2 going into the third, I thought we were in good shape, but playing short-handed for 10 minutes in the third made it very difficult to come from behind; we need to be more disciplined in every aspect of the game,” said Cranston.
Allen, who finished with 27 stops, including 20 over the last two stanzas, got a hand up from Caroline Kivisto’s second power-play score of the game with nine minutes in regulation to damper the Falcons’ season debut at Hunt Arena.
“I thought we played really well,” said senior forward Brook Story, who had a goal and an assist in the road win. “Everyone was on top of their game. The second game however, we came out a little slow and were not able to get back on top. Overall, we played pretty well offensively, but we need to pick it up on our ‘D’ zone.”
“That was our first loss to Bethel in our program’s history,” said Cranston. “Brian Carlson is a very good coach who runs a class act program, and they deserved the win. I really like my team right now, and I think by this weekend against St. Thomas, we should be much improved. I think we have a good group of freshmen who can score.”
Cranston plans on the youngsters getting ahead of the learning curve sooner than later. Given the positive familiarity factor, (the Falcons welcomed back 14 core skaters, as well as all three goalies), the mixture can be potentially problematic to the opposition along the way.
“Karleigh Wolkerstorfer had two goals in her first game, Sibley and Sinna also scored in their first game, Paige Johnson, a freshman defensemen, also put up three assists in her first two games,” said Cranston, who entered the season with a 239-115-34 slate. “We have a very young team, and we struggled defensively at times, giving up too many scoring chances for a very good Bethel team. We will be working all week on tightening up our defense.”
Story echoed her coach’s sentiment in regard to the new parts meshing well.
“We have eight freshmen on the squad this year,” said Story, who has elevated her points-per-game average in a every successive campaign thus far. “They are all hard workers, and interested in learning new aspects of the game. They seem to be comfortable with the team, and have already made a positive impact toward the team. A good chunk are from northern Minnesota, and that’s my neck of the woods, so it’s fun to become teammates with people who I played against in high school.
“We have a lot of returnees, and that helps because we know what to expect going into each game,” added Story, peering forward. “We have some great leaders, and our freshmen can learn a lot from them. The chemistry we have off the ice helps to benefit the chemistry we have on the ice. We are all such good friends and easy-going people, and I think that is a huge positive about all of our returnees.”
WIAC teams worked up a 5-2-1 record against nonconference opposition in the first week of play. Following the upcoming trip to St. Thomas, it’ll be a two-game set with Wisconsin-Stevens Point for the Falcons.
“It’s a little early to be thinking about Stevens Point, but we will be playing each WIAC opponent four times, and that’s the way it used to be, and I’m looking forward to it,” said Story. “With no automatic qualifier, we know that we have to win a lot of games this year, and we have the toughest schedule we have ever had. There is not a lot of room for error, but we are looking forward to the challenges ahead.”
Story is among the group that will take on the task of getting Cranston’s frosh eager for the grind.
“This year, my role, along with the other captains, is to just be a leader out there,” Story said. “We have to show up to every game ready to play. We have to be willing to teach the freshmen about new aspects of the game, and help them to become the best athletes they can be. We have to keep a positive attitude, and have fun out there. If we do that, our team will be successful.”
Arlan is pulling away from me big time, and it’s only November. I doubt I’ll catch him, but stranger things have happened. Last week, I went 15-4-3 (.750), to move to 62-22-8 (.717) on the year. Arlan went 17-2-3 (.840) to move to 67-17-8 (.771) on the year.
Perhaps this week, I can make up a few games.
Thursday, Nov. 7
Providence at New Hampshire Candace: New Hampshire is one of the reasons I trail Arlan; then again, so is Providence. Hmmm. Providence 2-1 Arlan: I’m listening to The Civil Wars as I make these selections. I realize that statement is irrelevant, but it is more accurate than my picks. New Hampshire 2-1
Friday, Nov. 8
Dartmouth at Clarkson Candace: Dartmouth is looking horrible this year. Clarkson 3-1 Arlan: Was the win over RPI the start of something for Dartmouth or just a meeting of two teams that lose more often than they should? Clarkson 2-0
Rensselaer at Cornell Candace: Cornell had an off weekend; they should rebound, even if RPI tends to play to its level of competition. Cornell 4-1 Arlan: Even if the Engineers were playing well, I couldn’t pick them here, but I would’ve said the same about their Harvard game. Cornell 5-1
Harvard at St. Lawrence Candace: Which Harvard team shows up? Regardless, I have to go with the Crimson. Harvard 3-2 Arlan: St. Lawrence defeats Harvard about as often as Halley’s Comet appears. Harvard 3-2
Princeton at Yale Candace: This will be a tight game, but I expect the Tigers to come out on top. Princeton 3-2 Arlan: Yale has struggled defensively, but playing nothing but top-half teams will cause that. Princeton 3-2
Boston College at Vermont Candace: I’d like to think BC has learned from its few hiccups this year. Boston College 5-2 Arlan: If the Eagles need motivation they can look at that empty spot in their trophy case and think of Vermont. Boston College 6-1
Friday-Saturday, Nov. 8-9
Mercyhurst at Robert Morris Candace: This is likely a split, but since I don’t want to get the dates wrong, I’ll pick a sweep. Mercyhurst 2-1, 3-1 Arlan: I’d rather watch this series than pick it; it should be as entertaining as it is unpredictable. I sense a tie is imminent. Mercyhurst 2-1, 3-2
Bemidji State at Ohio State Candace: Home ice and an inconsistent opponent should equal a Buckeyes sweep. Ohio State 4-2, 4-1 Arlan: The Buckeyes do much better versus the Bemidji State when the games are not played at the Sanford Center. Ohio State 4-2, 4-1
Minnesota at St. Cloud State Candace: St. Cloud surprised Minnesota-Duluth last week; the Gophers are an entirely different kettle of fish. Minnesota 4-1, 4-1 Arlan: The large ice sheet in St. Cloud often causes problems for visitors, but Minnesota’s speed should help it adapt. Minnesota 2-1, 3-0
Saturday, Nov. 9
Harvard at Clarkson Candace: Clarkson rediscovered its offense against Yale, but had been having a tough time before that. Harvard 3-2 Arlan: The pattern thus far is that the Golden Knights play better on Saturdays. Clarkson 2-1
Union at Cornell Candace: the Dutchwomen are playing well, but Cornell is tops in the ECAC. Cornell 4-2 Arlan: Union has been doing surprisingly well, but I don’t see the Big Red being included in the surprise package. Cornell 4-1
Dartmouth at St. Lawrence Candace: I wonder if I’ll pick Dartmouth to win this year? Hmmm. St. Lawrence 3-1 Arlan: Have the Big Green ever started 1-6? It could happen. St. Lawrence 3-2
Quinnipiac at Yale Candace: In this all-Connecticut affair, the Bobcats should prevail. Quinnipiac 4-1 Arlan: I’d pick the Bobcats over most opponents at this point, Yale included. Quinnipiac 4-1
Saturday-Sunday, Nov. 9-10
Maine at Boston University Candace: Maine played well in its first weekend withoutT Maria Lewis, but the Terriers are looking awfully strong now. Boston University 3-1, 3-0 Arlan: The Terriers ride a five-game winning streak into this series. Marie-Philip who? Boston University 4-0, 3-2
Sunday, Nov. 10
Northeastern at Boston College Candace: The Eagles need to win this game to move up in the PairWise and position themselves in Hockey East. Boston College 4-2 Arlan: Remember that Kaboom! game where the timer would tick down and it would explode? Picking multiple BC games is like that. Boston College 6-5
Providence at Connecticut Candace: Can Providence make it two in a row on the road? Why not? Providence 3-1 Arlan: I liked this pick better before the Huskies lost 6-2 at BU. Connecticut 4-3
New Hampshire at Vermont Candace: Hockey East games are killing me right now. Both Vermont and New Hampshire cost me two more games against Arlan last week. Who to pick? New Hampshire 3-2 Arlan: My vision of hell is a place where one is forced to pick Hockey East games for all eternity. Vermont 3-2
In 10 years of Atlantic Hockey play, Mercyhurst has played 10 home nonconference games (photo: Jim Rosvold).
Rick Gotkin’s Mercyhurst Lakers have the reputation for going anywhere, any time, for a college hockey game. From Orono, Maine, to Anchorage, Alaska, Mercyhurst is ready to face off, most times without a reciprocal visit.
“I understand that,” said Gotkin. “We’re in Erie, Pa. It’s not an easy place to get to. So we’ll go to them.”
This season’s schedule is typical for Gotkin’s squad. The Lakers opened on Friday, Oct. 11 against host Minnesota in the Ice Breaker Tournament, then flew home from the Twin Cities that Sunday to face Ferris State the following Tuesday.
On Thursday of that same week, Mercyhurst boarded a bus for a nine-hour drive to Merrimack for a pair of games. A few days later it was a long plane trip to Fairbanks for a pair of games at Alaska, Mercyhurst’s fourth trip to the 49th State in six seasons.
Now Gotkin and his team can take a little breather, at least in terms of travel. The Lakers celebrated their homecoming last Saturday with an 8-2 win over Air Force. Mercyhurst is home for seven of its next 10 games.
When asked if he’s on every coach’s speed dial for scheduling games, Gotkin chuckled. “It’s not that bad,” he said. “But yes, we are a team with a reputation of being willing to play on the road. And we understand based on our location that it’s hard to get teams in here.”
Through 10 seasons of Atlantic Hockey play, Mercyhurst has hosted a total of 10 nonconference games. In five of those seasons, including the last two, the Mercyhurst Ice Center saw no nonleague contests. And one of those rare nonconference home games was against Robert Morris before it was a member of Atlantic Hockey.
“Obviously, we’d like to host more home games and bring different teams in,” said Gotkin. “But that’s just how the schedule has worked. Some of the time it’s just not having open weekends, but yeah, some of it is we don’t expect reciprocation. We want to play the best teams available, and if that’s on the road then we go on the road.
“There are some great learning experiences for the guys. We want to expose them to different things, not just hockey but to see Alaska, for example. I think it makes us better in a lot of ways.”
It also allows Gotkin’s team to play more games. Games in Alaska are not counted toward the 34-game limit imposed by the NCAA. The Ice Breaker tournament is also exempt. That means Mercyhurst will play 38 games this season.
“That’s a benefit of just getting some more games in, early in the season, and being ready for [Atlantic Hockey] play,” said Gotkin. “We’ve really faced some tough competition [No. 1 Minnesota, No. 16 Clarkson, No. 19 Ferris State] and that’s shown us where we would like to be.”
Mercyhurst was just 1-5-1 in those opening games but looked battle-tested against Air Force, knocking off the Falcons in a big way and snapping Air Force’s five-game winning streak, its longest in three seasons.
“Air Force is a great team and there’s no quit in them,” said Gotkin. “It wasn’t really an 8-2 game. We just had some pucks that went in that don’t always go in. It was 3-2 after the first period and we got on a bit of a roll.”
Eleven Lakers players had at least a point in the game, with senior Daniel O’Donoghue and junior Ryan Misiak each scoring a pair of goals.
The players expected to put up big numbers for Mercyhurst so far are doing so, with Matt Zay leading the team in points (10), while O’Donoghue (eight points including five goals), defenseman Nick Jones (seven points) and Misiak (six points) are all near the top of the scoring list.
Junior goaltender Jimmy Sarjeant has seen the majority of time in net recently, starting four of the Lakers’ last five games, including Saturday’s win. He earned AHA goaltender of the week honors with a 36-save performance.
“He’s the hot hand right now; he’s earned it,” said Gotkin. “But we also know [senior] Jordan Tibbett can get the job done. We were talking today about how we need to get him in on the action, but it’s tough when Jimmy is playing so well.”
Mercyhurst is hosting Rochester Institute of Technology on Friday before making a short trip to Buffalo to face Canisius. The Lakers still have four more nonconference games ahead: a pair at Ohio State and, in a pleasant change of pace, hosting No. 10 Rensselaer for a two-game series in a couple of weeks.
“We are always looking to get these games when we can,” said Gotkin. “I was appreciative of [Ferris State coach] Bob Daniels for coming here and playing us on a Tuesday night early in the season, and having RPI here is pretty exciting.”
Nonconference woes
I’m not going to dwell on the AHA’s nonconference record this season. But after an 0-6 weekend the league has its lowest out-of-conference winning percentage since the 2002-03 season, when the conference was still known as the MAAC.
With 49 nonconference games in the books, there are still 30 to go — 30 opportunities for the league to improve its standing. This weekend sees Sacred Heart at Penn State, Army at Boston College and Niagara at Ohio State for a pair of games.
Not included in the league’s nonconference record is last Saturday’s game between Connecticut and Sacred Heart. The Huskies and Pioneers meet four times this season, so this first meeting, a 4-2 UConn win, goes in the books as a nonleague contest.
Rochester Institute of Technology’s Brad Reid tries to beat Air Force’s Jason Torf (photo: Omar Phillips).
A tale of two cities
Rochester Institute of Technology, looking for its first win of the season, travels to Mercyhurst on Friday and Robert Morris on Saturday.
The Tigers are an incredible 9-1-1 in their last 11 games at the Mercyhurst Ice Center but only 1-5-1 all-time at RMU’s 84 Lumber Arena. RIT got its first win there in the team’s most recent meeting, on Feb. 9 of last season. The Colonials are also still looking for their first victory of the 2013-14 campaign. They host Canisius on Friday.
He’s got your number
RIT will be glad to see Air Force goaltender Jason Torf fly off into the wild blue yonder. The senior has stymied the Tigers since his rookie season.
On Friday, Torf stopped all 39 shots he faced in a 2-0 Falcons win. It was Torf’s 10th career shutout, with four coming against RIT. Those include back-to-back shutouts of the Tigers in the Atlantic Hockey championship games in 2011 and 2012.
His numbers against RIT are amazing: In nine meetings to date, Torf is 6-2 against the Tigers with a no-decision. His GAA is a paltry 1.42 with a save percentage of .955.
Torf looks to have at least two more meetings against RIT when the Tigers travel to the Academy on Feb. 21-22.
Starting off right
Last Friday, Holy Cross played its first conference game of the season, defeating Sacred Heart 4-3. That kept alive a near-perfect streak by the Crusaders in Atlantic Hockey season-opening games.
Holy Cross is 10-0-1 in their first league games of the season. The only blemish was a 1-1 tie at Canisius in 2007.
Players of the week
The AHA again did a good job selecting players with outstanding performances last week, but I’ll add a couple of guys that also deserved some recognition.
Co-players of the week — Robert Morris forward Cody Wydo and Connecticut forward Billy Latta: Wydo was the league’s choice and deservedly so. He scored all four RMU goals in a 5-4 loss to Penn State last Friday. Latta had three goals, albeit over two games, but his tallies were the difference in a pair of wins.
Co-goalies of the week — Mercyhurst’s Jimmy Sargeant and Air Force’s Jason Torf: We’ve already gone over Torf’s stellar performance on Friday, but Sargeant got the better of Torf and the Falcons the next night, stopping 36 of 38 shots to earn his second win of the season.
Rookie of the week — Jordan Minello from Sacred Heart: Minello had a goal and three assists in a pair of losing efforts last weekend. He’s part of the youth movement at Sacred Heart. Five of the Pioneers’ top seven scorers so far are freshmen.
Wisconsin and North Dakota are no longer WCHA rivals, but starting with the 2014-15 season, the two schools will play a two-game series in four of the next five seasons.
Wisconsin joined the Big Ten this year, while North Dakota is a founding member of the NCHC.
“We are excited to announce a long-term scheduling agreement with the University of Wisconsin,” said North Dakota coach Dave Hakstol in a statement. “Most importantly, we are excited about the opportunity to continue playing another of our most traditional rivals on a long-term basis.”
“Being able to schedule North Dakota keeps the rivalry alive that we have from the old WCHA days,” added Wisconsin coach Mike Eaves. “We look forward to playing one of the top programs and testing ourselves. Going back to my playing days, there has been great hockey games and great emotion over the years in the series and it is great to be able to continue that into the future.”
The two schools will resume their rivalry next season in Madison, Wis., before meeting during the 2015-16 season in Grand Forks, N.D. After a year off in 2016-17, UND returns to Madison during the 2017-18 campaign and UW revisits Grand Forks during the 2018-19 season.
Wisconsin leads the all-time series 86-65-12 in 163 games played dating back to the 1967-68 season.
Wisconsin-Eau Claire is at the top of the Division III mountain, but can it stay there as the Blugolds start the 2013-14 WIAC season? (photo: Wisconsin-Eau Claire Athletics).
Wisconsin-Eau Claire enters the season with the biggest target on its back.
The Blugolds are the defending national champions and not surprisingly, the favorite to win the WIAC title in the first season where the teams will play only under the WIAC banner.
The teams had previously competed in the NCHA as well.
The top four teams in the five-team league will play a conference tournament at the end of the year. However, no automatic bid to the NCAA tournament will be on the line.
On that note, the regular season carries even more importance than it has in the past.
“The biggest adjustment for all of us is that we are suddenly in a position where we don’t have that automatic qualifier,” said Wisconsin-Superior coach Dan Stauber. “Teams have to come to play every night because you don’t have that fallback of being able to win the conference tournament.”
Eau Claire, which defeated Oswego 5-3 in the national title game in March, comes in with 17 letterwinners back and its first WIAC title in program history. It will be guided by Mark Pustin and Daniel Olszewski, two of the top four scorers from last season. Pustin racked up nine goals and 17 assists, while Olszewski tallied seven goals and 16 assists.
Wisconsin-Stevens Point could be the team that knocks Eau Claire off its perch as it brings back 19 players. The roster includes four seniors and all five of its top scorers are back, including Garett Ladd, who racked up seven goals and dished out 15 assists. The Pointers will have an opportunity to gain momentum early as they play seven of their first 11 games at home.
Wisconsin-River Falls has 14 players back and is led by goalie Scott Lewan, who has racked up 38 wins over the last three years. He has a 2.58 goals-against average in that stretch and has recorded seven shuouts.
Wisconsin-Superior could be a surprise title contender as it has 14 players back, including Pat Dalbec, who needs only 32 points to hit the 100-point mark in his career. He was second in the league in points last season with 27.
Wisconsin-Stout should be an improved team this year as it brings back three of its top scorers. Kevin O’Donnell leads the way as he racked up 12 goals and 12 assists last season.
Pointers’ coach Chris Brooks expects the league to be as competitive as ever this season as the five teams battle it out for WIAC supremacy.
“The WIAC will be extremely competitive,” Brooks said. “I fully expect our conference to carry the momentum that has been built from Eau Claire winning the national championship last season in making the WIAC a great conference nationally moving forward.”
Wisconsin-Eau Claire
Nickname: Blugolds
2012-13 Record: 24-5-2 overall, 10-2 WIAC
2012-13 Postseason: Won the NCAA Division III national championship with a 5-3 victory over Oswego.
Head Coach: Matt Loen (84-72-12, 7th season)
Key Returning Players: F Mark Pustin (9-17–26); F Daniel Olszewski (7-16–23); D Jack Callahan (2-18–20); D David Donnellan (5-14–19)
Key Departures: F Jordan Singer (22-14–36); G Brandon Stevenson (2.12 GAA, .931 save percentage)
Key Newcomers: F Adam Knochenmus, D Preston Hodge, F Jason Eddy, F Chris Fischer, F Patrick Moore, F Chris Nuth, D Troy Paterson, G Jay Deo, G Cory Simons
Prediction and Thoughts: 1st – It will be hard to duplicate what the Blugolds accomplished last year as they won a national championship. But 17 letterwinners are back from a team that set a school record with 24 wins and expectations will be high once again. With Mark Pustin and Daniel Olszewski both back, the Blugolds will have two of their top scorers from last season in the lineup. Jack Callahan is coming off a year where he earned All-American honors as a defenseman and David Donnellan tallied 19 points as a defenseman and is a captain this season. Filling the void left by goalie Brandon Stephenson is going to be crucial to the success of Eau Claire. If the Blugolds can find somone capable of being consistent between the pipes night in and night out, they will have an opportunity to compete for a WIAC title and national title again. One of the keys to success for the Blugolds will be handling life on the road. Eau Claire plays four of its first six games away from home and ends the season playing five of its final eight on the road. If the Blugolds can survive those rugged stretches, they will be in in a position to live up to their expectations.
Wisconsin-River Falls
Nickname: Falcons
2012-13 Record: 13-11-4 overall, 4-5-3 WIAC
2012-13 Postseason: Lost 7-2 to Wisconsin-Eau Claire in semifinal round of NCHA tournament
Head Coach: Steve Freeman (305-156-37, 18th season)
Key Returning Players: G Scott Lewan (2.89 GAA, .906 save percentage); F Willie Hess (10-7–17); F Zach Schrotenboer (8-8–16); F Blake Huppert (5-11–16); D Jon Schreiner (1-8–9)
Key Departures: F Adam Cardwell (16-11–27); F Jack Calleja (3-12–15); F Geoff Shewmake (7-4-11)
Key Newcomers: D Andrew Paras, D Mike Parnell, D Jeff Bergh, F Mike Fazio, F Taylor Portner, F Taylor Burden, D Michael Lant, F Cory Lushanko, F Ryan Doner, D Matt Wurst, F Christian George, F Mitch Kontny, G David Heflin
Prediction and Thoughts: 3rd – River Falls will be tested early as it plays just one game home in the first two months of the season. The Falcons have been consistent over the years, winning at least 16 games in 18 of the last 21 seasons. Considering the experience they have back, the trend of success should continue for the Falcons this year.
Wisconsin-Superior
Nickname: Yellowjackets
2012-13 Record: 11-14-2 overall, 4-6-2 WIAC
2012-13 Postseason: Lost 2-1 to St. Scholastica in quarterfinal round of NCHA tournament
Head Coach: Dan Stauber (229-100-51, 14th season)
Key Returning Players: G Drew Strandberg (2.88 GAA, .869 save percentage); D Jeff Forsythe (6-12–18); F Pat Dalbec (15-12–27); F Joey Massingham (10-14–24); D Derek Stauber Did not play last year because of injury).
Key Departures: D Brett Wold (1-10–11); F Kyle Leahy (3-10–13); F Josh Kesler (4-4–8)
Key Newcomers: G Dayn Belfour (2.17 GAA, .911 save percentage with Nebraska-Omaha); F Jordan Shockey (20-39–59 with Minnesota Wilderness); F Jordan Neduzak (22-37–59 with Winkler Flyers/Swan Valley Stampede); D Matt Audette (4-14–18 with Minot Minotauros); D Connor Faupel (8-12–20 with Daupin Kings)
Prediction and Thoughts: 4th — The top three scorers are back for the Yellowjackets and they should be a contender for the league title despite being picked fourth. Pat Dalbec is a two-time All-WIAC selection and led Superior in scoring with 27 points, while Joey Massingham is coming off a solid year as well in which he tallied 24 points. Jeff Forsythe is one of the top defenseman in the league, earning All-WIAC honors three times. He was a second-team All-American last year as well. Derek Stauber should provide help on defense as well after missing last season with an injury and the Yellowjackets will have a veteran netminder to count on in three-year starter Drew Strandberg. Mix in those players with several talented newcomers, including Nebraska-Omaha transfer Dayn Belfour, a goalie who is the son of NHL great Ed Belfour, and there is no question the Yellowjackets are poised for a successful season.
Wisconsin-Stevens Point
Nickname: Pointers
2012-13 Record: 15-11-1, 7-4-1 WIAC
2012-13 Postseason: Lost 4-1 to Wisconsin-River Falls in quarterfinal round of NCHA tournament.
Head Coach: Chris Brooks (29-22-5, 3rd season)
Key Returning Players: D Alex Brooks (3-10–13); F Kyle Heck (12-9–21); F Joshua Daley (8-11–19); D Kevin Gibson (2-13–15); F Scott Henegar (10-6–16); F Andrew Kolb (9-12–21); F Garrett Ladd (7-15–22); G Brandon Jaeger (2.69 GAA, .881 save percentage);
Key Departures: F Johnny Meo (8-8–16); D Jerry Freismuth (4-12–16)
Key Newcomers: D Kyle Brodie (transfer from Bemidji State); F Joe Kalisz (transfer from Connecticut); F Kyle Sharkey (32-37–69 with Topeka Roadrunners); F Nick Shkreli (transfer from Lake Superior State); G Spencer Viele (Topeka Roadrunners)
Prediction and Thoughts: 2nd – Stevens Point has its eyes on a league title and the Pointers no doubt have the talent to make that championship a reality this season. Stevens Point will be aiming for its 10th title in program history and will make a run behind the strength of 19 letterwinners, including their top five scorers. Kyle Heck is back after earning all-conference honors for the second consecutive season and leading the team in goals (12). Scott Henegar also returns and was second on the team in goals scored (10). He was an honorable mention All-WIAC pick. Andrew Kolb and Garrett Ladd will also provide help offensively. Both players were honorable mention selections in the league. Stevens Point also welcomes back one of its top defenseman in Kevin Gibson, who tallied two goals and 13 assists last season. Defenseman Alex Brooks also returns after earning All-WIAC honors as a freshman. Goalie Brandon Jaeger is a two-time All-WIAC selection, earning honorable mention accolades last year as he went 11-6-1. Division I transfers Kyle Brodie, Joe Kalisz and Nick Shkreli should play key roles as well. Kalisz was the MVP of the NAHL two seasons ago.
Wisconsin-Stout
Nickname: Blue Devils
2012-13 Record: 10-15-2 overall, 5-13-1 WIAC
2012-13 Postseason: Lost 3-2 to St. Norbert in quarterfinal round of NCHA tournament
Head Coach: Terry Watkins (207-233-28, 18th season)
Key Returning Players: F Kevin O’Donnell (12-12–24); D Jordan Tredinnick (4-10–14); F Zach Vierling (8-8–16); D Logan Maly (0-6–6); F/D Casey Kirley (2-3-5); D Russell Whited (0-6–6); F Jake Useldinger (1-6–7); F Matt Millis (1-1–2); D Danny Ray (4-2–6); G Eric Wobschall (6.24 GAA, .667 save percentage)
Key Departures: F Garrett Grimstad (7-13-20); D Jason Cohen (5-13–18); F/D Joe Beaudette (4-13–17); F/D Sam Carr (6-10–16); G Nick Hopper (2.94 GAA, .906 save percentage)
Key Newcomers: F Riley Colvard, F Tyler Cayemberg, F Craig Lindegard, F Karl Anderson, F Nolan Kirley, F Joe Haydock, F Shane McLaughlin, F Justin Moody, D Derek Sand, D Isaac Hoagland, D Patrick Regan, G Corey Koop, G Chase Hollander
Prediction and Thoughts: 5th – Stout has plenty of players back to put itself in a position to be a much better team this season, including three of its top 10 scorers from a season ago. However, the Blue Devils will have to overcome the loss of four players who scored 16 or more points, in addition to replacing their top goalie. Senior Kevin O’Donnell will need to be on top of his game after earning honorable mention honors a year ago. He is a three-time All-WIAC selection. Jordan Tredinnick and Zach Vierling will also play key roles. Both players were honorable mention picks last sesaon. Eric Wobschall will be looked upon to fill the void in goal and does have experience from last season that he can lean on this year.
The Schenectady Daily Gazette reported Wednesday that Rensselaer sophomore goalie Jason Kasdorf will have shoulder surgery, likely ending his season.
Kasdorf dislocated his right shoulder during practice two weeks ago.
“I would say it’s a strong likelihood that he’s going to have surgery and be out for the year,” RPI coach Seth Appert said to the paper. “That’s what it’s looking like. We’ve taken our time on it and let him rehab a little bit and see how it feels.
“The dislocation is one concern, considering it’s come out twice with no contact in minimal situations, but the broken bone and the bone fragments in the shoulder are probably as or more problematic to a rehab situation.”
Kasdorf, who will get a medical redshirt, played in RPI’s first two games this season, going 1-1 with a 3.49 GAA, a .786 save percentage with one shutout.
It has been a few years, but Connecticut has enjoyed some good seasons.
The Huskies became a Division I program in 2000-01 with former Northeastern coach Heather Linstad in charge, and played exhibitions and nonconference games versus an assortment of club, D-III, and D-I programs. In its second season, Connecticut competed in the ECAC Eastern league and only played D-I opponents. That conference became Hockey East the next season, and Connecticut has been a member throughout.
In 2005, the Huskies upset New Hampshire in a conference semifinal and played in the Hockey East Championship game, losing to Providence, 3-1, on two goals in the last six minutes. Three seasons later, they posted their best record (22-8-5). In 2010, a season of 21 wins carried Connecticut back to the league title game, where it lost a heartbreaker to Boston University, 2-1, in overtime.
That contest supports the saying, “To the victor go the spoils.” The championship gave BU its first berth in the NCAA tournament, and it has returned every season since.
Connecticut seemingly never recovered. The Huskies won just once in nine games to start the next season and slumped to 13-19-3 for the campaign. From there it got worse, and Connecticut won only seven games in the past two seasons combined. A change was needed; Linstad resigned in March and Chris MacKenzie was named the second head coach in program history in May.
MacKenzie was an assistant to Nate Handrahan at Ohio State last year, and had two years of previous head coaching experience at Niagara, which has been an asset as he’s taken over his new post.
“I’m comfortable with it,” MacKenzie said. “I’ve done it before, and I’m comfortable with it. Getting to know the players has been a real pleasure.”
Whatever struggles his current players have been through during the down years in Storrs, it beats the situation his former players at Niagara encountered when the program folded beneath them.
“It was obviously disappointing that they decided to cut the program,” MacKenzie said. “The team at the time was second place in the CHA in back-to-back seasons, close to a winning record — just below .500, tops in the entire school in community service, and a rising GPA record. All of us were proud of the accomplishments. Seventeen of 20 players on that team ended up playing somewhere else, so I was kind of proud of that. They ended up going to other Division I schools or going to Canada to play college hockey there. We had a lot of passionate players, and they ended up finding a home.”
Under his tutelage, the Huskies (3-6-1) have already matched their win total from all of last season. It has hardly been easy. They have proven to be slow starters, surrendering the first goal in all but one of their 10 games.
“The last few games, we’ve actually had a really good start,” MacKenzie said. “As soon as the game turns into a special teams [battle], like a power play or PK, it becomes a little discombobulated for us. We might lack the depth on our special teams where we’re using a lot of the same players on both sides of the puck, so they may be getting a little tired, I think.”
The slow starts on the scoreboard have necessitated comeback efforts, and the Huskies have been better on that front, with two comeback wins to their credit.
“It shows that we’ll compete to the very end,” MacKenzie said. “It’s something that we want in our culture going forward. Any coach would be proud of the effort that we put forth. Every single game, our effort has been there. It’s more just our execution and confidence in creating offense has been our stickler right now. Sometimes, those things are hard to come by. It’s hard to play offense sometimes. The puck just isn’t bouncing right, but you can always defend well, and you can always just compete till the end, and that’s what we’ve done. I’m very happy.”
Down 2-0 to Rensselaer after 20 minutes, goals by freshman defenseman Jessica Stott and junior Emily Snodgrass drew Connecticut even, and Kayla Campero won it in overtime. The next day, the Huskies fell behind the Engineers once more with just over three minutes gone, but a burst of four goals in less than 11 minutes enabled Connecticut to go on to a 5-2 win.
Its most desperate rally came Sunday at Maine.
“Our first 10 minutes at Maine were absolutely perfect, the perfect road game we wanted to play,” MacKenzie said. “We had a power play, and then all of a sudden Maine got a bunch of momentum from that. Maybe we’ll just start declining penalties.”
Trailing 4-1 with under five minutes remaining, senior captain Erin Burns, sophomore Michela Cava, and Campero all found the net, the final two with an extra attacker on the ice. Although the five-minute overtime did not break the tie, salvaging a point out of a situation offering little hope has to be encouraging.
So is the variety of names on the score sheet, something that will need to continue.
“We’re going to have about four or five players that we’re really going to depend on, so committee would be the word,” MacKenzie said. “If it’s not Kayla Campero scoring in overtime, it’s going to be maybe Michela Cava scoring two goals in the third period [versus Maine]. It might be Sarah MacDonnell. In the RPI win where we scored five goals, Leah Buress got on the board for the first time. Emily Snodgrass had two goals that weekend. There’s really no Olympian, so to speak, on our team right now.”
Although the power play has at times disrupted the team’s rhythm, Connecticut has been fairly effective with the advantage, clicking on 17.9 percent of its opportunities, 14th in the country heading into its game at Boston University Wednesday night. The penalty kill has been even more dependable, killing 40 of 44 penalties, which ranks seventh nationally at 90.9 percent.
“Our penalty kill has been a source of pride for us all year, so it’s nice to see that,” MacKenzie said.
Goaltending is always crucial to the killing penalties. Senior Sarah Moses (3.47 goals-against average, .919 save percentage) and sophomore Elaine Chuli (3.29 GAA, .914 save percentage) have been nearly equivalent statistically.
“I think both goalies have earned the opportunity to play, and both have played well,” MacKenzie said. “Not one of them has seemed to struggle for an extended period of time. Both have been pretty solid for their playing time. I’m open to anything, but as of right now, it’s a strict rotation.”
A challenge for any new coach is meshing his preferred style with his inherited roster.
“Ideally, the style I’d like to play is uptempo, good forechecking, fast, quick, aggressive hockey,” MacKenzie said. “I think we can do that with what we have. Our team works really hard. Just generating offense off of turnovers, that would be my biggest area of improvement. We do a good job of getting the puck. Sometimes we don’t generate enough offense from it. Numbers wise, I’d like to give up fewer shots five-on-five. D-zone and in transition we need to work on, but a lot of teams would say that too.”
Those improvements throughout the season take on added importance this year, because one gets the feeling that the conference is there for the taking. The eventual champion will likely be the squad that can demonstrate the most growth over the next four months.
“Come March, any one of us will have a chance to win Hockey East in the playoffs,” MacKenzie said. “Being ready, being prepared to play your best hockey at that time of year, is something I think all the coaches are looking for. Definitely with some players out due to the Olympics, it does level the playing field a little bit. So we’re definitely hoping to be a part of that championship at the end of the year.”
If it doesn’t happen in 2014, MacKenzie will have Connecticut back in that title game before too long.
St. Lawrence’s Greg Carey has seen his younger brother Matt join his line (photo: Omar Phillips).
With All-American Kyle Flanagan graduating and turning pro at the conclusion of his collegiate career, St. Lawrence senior Greg Carey didn’t have to look very far for a new center: his younger brother Matt.
The younger Carey has centered his older brother’s line in all but one game this season, his first as a member of the Saints.
“They have one year to play together so I wanted to make it happen,” St. Lawrence coach Greg Carvel said after last Saturday’s game at Brown. “I started with them and then went away. Matt’s a young player — I needed him to learn a few lessons. They’re my two top offense guys, so they should be together but the fact they’re brothers, I wanted them to play together.”
Each brother’s style of play complements one another. Greg, who led the NCAA with 28 goals last season, is more of a pure scorer; Matt uses his speed and setup skills to create chances.
“It’s always something you think about but in the end it’s up to the coaches,” Greg said of playing with his brother. “I certainly wish I was as fast as he was but he moves the puck well and he’s been shooting the puck pretty good.”
Outside of summer leagues and shinny, it’s the first time the brothers have played together for an extended period of time. They played briefly on the Burlington Cougars in the OJHL during the 2009-10 season, but Matt was injured in training camp. He appeared in only five games before getting traded and playing against Greg for the rest of the season.
“I love the atmosphere at St. Lawrence,” said Matt, who was an NCAA non-qualifier last season, meaning he attended school but couldn’t have any contact with the team. “It was kind of a family thing for us to get together on the same team. As soon as I committed to St. Lawrence, my family was all for it, and it was kind of a happy family moment.”
Matt wears Flanagan’s old No. 16, something he describes as an “honor,” but he’s stuck to his own game so far.
“Flanny could draw five guys to him,” Greg said. “I was pretty fortunate to play with him for three years. But I think my brother is doing a good job of not being the same player, playing with speed and getting the puck out wide and trying to find seams.”
The pair are the top two scorers for the Saints, with Greg leading the way with four goals and nine assists, and Matt adding five goals and five assists to date.
Still, Greg might win out in the modesty category. When asked what advice he had for his younger brother, he said for Matt to not worry about getting him the puck too much and to make the right play.
And Matt?
“Give him the puck,” the younger Carey said about what his brother told him. “That, and use your speed. You’ll get a lot of chances if you do that.”
Daniel Carr has moved to center for Union (photo: Melissa Wade).
Union breaks through
It’s not uncommon to hear impatient fans yell “shoot” during a power play or in the closing seconds of a period. But in its three games before last weekend, there’s a good chance that Union didn’t hear any such demands coming from the crowd.
The Dutchmen outshot their opponents by an aggregate of 131-63 but were 0-2-1 over that stretch. That changed last weekend, as Union hammered Dartmouth 7-2 Friday and rallied for a 4-2 win at Harvard Saturday.
“We looked at it as a staff: We were outshooting teams and that’s great and all,” Union coach Rick Bennett said. “There was a lot of activity but not a lot of achievement. [We were] not really getting to the net. I thought our forwards made the commitment to get to the net and that led to some goals the past weekend. We had some puck luck as well.”
One of those forwards is senior left wing Daniel Carr, who’s been playing center after injuries to David Roy, Eli Lichtenwald and Max Novak. He’s remained in that spot, even after Novak’s return Friday, and scored his 60th collegiate goal against the Crimson. That’s the most by any Union player in the school’s Division I era.
“Could he have gone there his first couple of seasons? I don’t know that,” said Bennett, who added that he and his staff didn’t see Carr playing center during the recruiting process. “We talk about this a lot; guys pay the price. He went to Paul Vincent’s skating and skills camp over the summer with the rest of our forwards and there’s a noticeable difference in his step and stride that has allowed him to move to center.”
Carr’s solid transition to center could force the coaching staff to make some decisions once other players get healthy.
“We aren’t quite sure yet what to do when we get those guys back,” Bennett said.
One player who is back is junior goalie Colin Stevens, who was injured in Union’s season opener on Oct. 11 and hadn’t appeared in a game until last weekend. Freshman Alex Sakellaropoulos started in his place.
“He has some experience and he gives the coaching staff a calming influence back there,” Bennett said of Stevens. “Alex gave us a chance to win every game and that’s all we could ask from him. It’s a little bit different when a junior comes in, but by no means are we not willing to throw Alex in at any time.”
Around the league
• There will be a national title game rematch in Hamden this weekend as Quinnipiac hosts Yale, which beat the Bobcats 4-0 in Pittsburgh to claim the school’s first-ever championship last April. It’s also the 12th annual Heroes Hat game. The award was established in honor of those who risked or lost their lives during the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. Quinnipiac will be without freshman forward Peter Quenneville, who left the school Tuesday to play with his brother John with the Brandon Wheat Kings of the Western Hockey League. Quenneville was a seventh-round pick by Columbus in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, and had four assists in five games, but hadn’t played since Oct. 22 due to an injury. “It kind of came out of nowhere; we were blindsided by it,” Bobcats coach Rand Pecknold said on USCHO Live! Tuesday night. “A lot it had to do with his brother; he wanted to play with his brother. It was funny, Peter was committed to us for three years and then he played five games for us.”
• It doesn’t look good for Rensselaer goalie Jason Kasdorf, who has been out of action since dislocating his right shoulder in practice last month. “I would say it’s a strong likelihood that he’s going to have surgery and be out for the year,” Engineers coach Seth Appert told Kent Schott of The Daily Gazette of Schenectady, N.Y. “That’s what it’s looking like. We’ve taken our time on it and let him rehab a little bit and see how it feels.”
• A pair of ECAC Hockey alumni had big nights for Edmonton Tuesday. Former Yale forward Mark Arcobello (2006-10) scored his first two NHL goals, including the overtime winner, while former Princeton defender Taylor Fedun (2007-11) added his first goal as well in his first NHL game. Arcobello, a rookie, is among the league leaders in assists, while Fedun is back on the ice following a serious leg injury that sidelined him for the entire 2011-12 season.
• Quinnipiac announced its TV schedule for the season, and the Bobcats will have several games broadcast on Sportsnet New York as well as New England Sports Network. The complete schedule can be found here.
Weekly awards
As selected by the league. Quinnipiac swept the awards this week.
Player of the week — Connor Jones: Jones had three goals and an assist in a pair of wins last weekend. He also became the 34th player in Quinnipiac history, and 20th at the Division I level, to reach 100 career points, and is now one of 10 active players in the country with 100 career points.
Rookie of the week — Sam Anas: Anas’ five points were the most among all Division I skaters for the weekend while his four assists also led the country in last weekend’s games. He leads the Bobcats with 13 points this season.
Goalie of the week — Michael Garteig: The sophomore went 2-0 with a 1.00 GAA and .943 save percentage. Garteig was also the ECAC goalie of the month for October.
Nazareth captain Scott Dawson hopes his Golden Flyers are looking up at season’s end (photo: Dan Hickling).
Small, but strong.
Such is how the six-team ECAC West is shaping up in the early moments of the 2013-14 campaign.
Division III’s next-to-smallest conference (only the WIAC with its five teams is tinier) can be described as both cozy and feisty.
“I think as coaches, we all believe day in and day out that the ECAC West is the most competitive league in the country,” said Neumann’s Dominick Dawes. “You know that every night you will be in for a battle and have to consistently be at your best to compete.”
The sextet is certainly significant among its peers, if not competitive among themselves.
To wit: two teams – No. 5 Utica (fresh off its first-ever Frozen Four appearance) and No. 9 Hobart (regular-season ECAC West co-champs with the Pioneers last year) – are ranked highly in the latest USCHO.com Division III Men’s Poll.
Another, Manhattanville, is a strong bet to join them. Then there is Neumann, which is just four years removed from its Frozen Four championship campaign of 2009.
Elmira is barely a year removed from its run of five consecutive NCAA tourney showings.
Even second-year program Nazareth is apt to give any comer a good game. Just ask SUNYAC stalwart Geneseo, whose season opener last year was marred by a cross-conference overtime loss to Nazareth, which was playing its first-ever varsity game.
“Every coach feels their league is the toughest,” said Nazareth head man George Roll, who has also coached in the SUNYAC (Oswego) and in Division I (Clarkson). “But looking at the ECAC West non-league winning percentage the past couple years, it is clear it is one of, if not the toughest conference from top to bottom in the country.”
One reason for the conference’s uber-competitiveness may lie in its small size.
With just four playoff spots up for grabs, conference wins (or losses) during the season take on a whole lot of importance.
One good weekend can make the big picture a whole lot brighter.
Then again, a two-game Friday-Saturday slip can lead to a long week around campus.
“I still believe that our conference is the best top to bottom in Division III hockey,” said Manhattanville coach Arlen Marshall. “There is always so much riding on the line every night of conference play that it brings out the best with one another.”
And the ECAC West’s best will be on display week in and week out.
ELMIRA
About the Soaring Eagles
Coach: Aaron Saul, 7th season overall (81-67-14) and at 5th at Elmira (62-42-8) 2012-13 overall record: 10-16-0 2012-13 ECAC West record: 5-10-0 (5th) 2013-14 predicted finish: 5th Key departures: G Darren MacDonald (4.70, .872) Key returnees: F Jesper Strale (6-12-18), F Josh Burnell (8-16-24), F Michael Collins (8-14-22), F Tommy Sumi (5-6-11), F Carter Shinkaruk (9-4-13), F Jarryd ten Vaanholt (5-7-12), F Greg Whittle (8-11-19), F Brian Depp (6-8-14), D Eric David (3-6-9), D Liam Burtt (3-7-10), D Taylor Love (3-6-9), G Ryan deMelo (3.95, .881). Key newcomers: G Sal Magliocco (3.86, .911, New York EJHL), F Alexander Taulien (14-26-40, Soo NAHL), D Ed Nolan (2-9-11, South Shore EJHL). Outlook: Elmira enters the year with a collective chip on the shoulder after struggling through its first losing campaign since 2004-05, ending the year with four consecutive losses and seven losses in the last nine starts. “We were not happy with the way we finished our season last year,” said Saul. “Our players have worked hard in the offseason and returned to school with something to prove. Our focus is much improved and we are looking to compete for the top of the West this year.”
HOBART
About the Statesmen
Coach: Mark Taylor, 14th season (195-121-33) 2012-13 overall record: 19-5-2 2012-13 ECAC West record: 11-3-1 (t-1st) 2013-14 predicted finish: 4th Key departures: G Nick Broadwater (1.65, .939), F Frank Salituro (14-17-31), F Bobby Hannah (7-10-17), D Harry Radovich (1-15-16). Key returnees: F Tommy Fiorentino (7-9-16), F Robert Sovik (3-10-13), F Ben Gamache (8-6-14), G Lino Chimienti (3.26, .892), F Mac Olson (8-14-22). Key newcomers: F Nick Bingaman (19-17-36, New Hampshire EJHL), D Jon Neal (7-15-22, Rochester EJHL), F Tyler Hanzlik (6-21-27, Rochester EJHL), D Carl Belizario (9-28-37, Cornwall CCHL). Outlook: The ever-strong Statesmen lost stalwart goalie Broadwater and top scorer Salituro, but Taylor, with a string of 11 consecutive winning seasons behind him, always seems to find a way to reload.
MANHATTANVILLE
About the Valiants
Coach: Arlen Marshall, 2nd season (16-11-3) 2012-13 overall record: 15-10-3 2012-13 ECAC West record: 6-6-3 (4th) 2013-14 predicted finish: 2nd Key departures: F Scott Hudson (12-17-29), F Ron Smith (3-6-9), F Brett Skalski (7-5-12), F Brendan Turner (9-8-17), F Jason Bowles (7-11-18), D Marc Zanoni (0-3-3). Key returnees: F Luc Van Natter (10-14-24), F Mark Rivera (9-19-28), F Matt Coleman (9-17-26), D Anton Racklin (5-15-20), D Adam Young (5-6-11)
Key newcomer: Teagan Waugh (4-15-19, Powell River BCHL) Outlook: The Valiants are expected to contend (with Hobart and Utica) for the league title. “I expect our compete level as a team to be the highest it’s ever been,” said Marshall. “I think that we have a lot of guys that have been battle-tested in their playing careers, which is going to have an optimistic impact on our group as a whole.”
NAZARETH
About the Golden Flyers
Coach: George Roll, 16th season overall (242-224-48) and 2nd at Nazareth 2012-13 overall record: 6-19-1 2012-13 ECAC West record: 1-14-0 2013-14 predicted finish: 6th Key departures: F Ben Waldman (7-11-18) Key returnees: D Jordan Ciccarello (4-5-9), D Scott Dawson (9-8-17), F Mark Zavorin (12-14-26) Key newcomers: F Ben Blasko (33-67-100, Brockville CCHL), F CJ Murray (9-10-19, Washington & Jefferson ACHA), D Travis Hill (4-16-20, Toronto JC OJHL) Outlook: Progress will likely be measure in baby steps for the two-year old program. “We need to become a more consistent team game in and game out,” said Roll. “We felt we were in a lot of games [last season], but often faded in the third period. With added depth and better conditioning, we are hopeful we will change that tendency. We feel we have established a strong culture and we will continue to build our identity as a strong, hard-working team. It is hard to measure success as a second-year program. Obviously, we need to win more games, but more importantly, we need continue to lay the groundwork for future success.”
NEUMANN
About the Knights
Coach: Dominick Dawes, 6th season (84-42-17) 2012-13 overall record: 19-6-3 2012-13 ECAC West record: 8-6-1 (3rd) 2013-14 predicted finish: 3rd Key departures: D Scott Farrell (7-18-25), F Aaron Keaney (11-8-19), F Jordan Zalba (7-11-18), F Dave Gervais (6-12-18), F Steve Gervais (10-5-15) Key returnees: G Braely Torris (1.85, .942), F Chris Bournazos (13-8-21) Key newcomers: F Jory Mullin (27-44-71, Winkler MJHL), F Shayne Morrissey (20-16-36, Prince George BCHL), Outlook: The Knights’ dressing room was akin to a revolving door during the offseason as 10 seniors departed while 12 freshmen came in to replace them. Getting all the newbies to mesh with the holdovers will be a tall task. “We are looking at everyday as a new challenge,” said Dawes. “Success for us early in the year will be defined as how quickly we can come together as a team.”
UTICA
About the Pioneers
Coach: Gary Heenan, 13th season (167-119-29) 2012-13 overall record: 21-6-1 2012-13 ECAC West record: 11-3-1 (t-1st) 2013-14 predicted finish: 1st Key departures: F Evan Chlanda (4-15-19), D Cody Adams (0-4-4), D Roberts Etts (0-7-7) Key returnees: F Jon Gaffney (13-14-27), F Ridge Garbutt (10-17-27), F Louie Educate (18-18-36), F Trever Hertz (13-13-26), F Rob Morton (12-10-22), D Mike Slowikowski (7-8-15), G Nick Therrien (2.21, .921) Key newcomers: F Zac Lazzaro (18-17-35, Kenai River NAHL), F Easton Powers (12-24-36, Port Huron NAHL) Outlook: The Pioneers are coming off the most successful campaign in school history. Even so, said Heenan, the goal for his squad remains the same. “We want to get better each and every game,” he said. “We want to compete for a league championship.”
Danny Linell has moved to defense this season for Boston College (photo: Melissa Wade).
For his entire career, Boston College’s Danny Linell has been a forward. A standout at Choate Rosemary Hall, Linell earned the team’s MVP honors in his senior year, scoring 18 goals and 33 points for the Wild Boars as his team won the New England Prep School title.
An undrafted free agent, Linell attended the New York Islanders rookie camp before arriving at the Heights. For 40 games as a freshman and 38 more as a sophomore, Linell played almost nothing but forward (when BC was banged up on defense last season, Linell took a few turns on the blue line).
But as a forward at BC, Linell’s ice time had been somewhat limited. Designated to either the third or fourth lines for most of his first two seasons, BC’s coaching staff came up with an idea this year to make the most of his hockey skills.
The coaches approached Linell with the thought of switching him to defense. Standing only 5-foot-7 and 175 pounds, he doesn’t have the frame that many defensemen have, but Linell has the skating skills to make the move to the blue line.
“He’s made a nice adjustment [to defense],” Eagles coach Jerry York said. “We said, ‘Here’s where you’re going to play the most. Here’s where we need you.’
“At first, he was reluctant to try it. But I think he’s embraced the role. He’s played a ton of minutes. He could eventually go back to help us on forward, depending on needs and the injury situation.”
After posting 18 points at forward in 78 games, Linell has posted a pair of assists at defense — including one on what turned out to be the game-winning goal last Friday in a 4-2 win over Northeastern.
Linell’s new role is just one of many changes to this year’s Eagles team. Four freshman forwards all have seen significant time, led by Ryan Fitzgerald, who has five points in his first seven games at BC. In net, Brian Billett, a backup goaltender behind Parker Milner for his first two years at BC, and freshman Thatcher Demko have split the time thus far.
Platooning goaltenders hasn’t been the M.O. for York in his times at the Heights. It hasn’t been since senior Matti Kaltiainen and freshman Cory Schneider split time in the 2004-05 season that the Eagles have had any semblance of a rotation.
“If there is any point at which we think that one goaltender will give us a better chance to win a hockey game, then we’ll go with the one goaltender,” York said. “But I feel very good about the goaltenders. We’ll continue to have both goaltenders see action.”
Thus far, the new-look Eagles have had moderate success. Though a 6-1 loss to current No. 1 Minnesota is a blemish that sticks out, BC is 4-2-1 and coming off a weekend where the Eagles swept upstart Northeastern to earn two league victories.
Neither of those two wins came easy, both requiring the Eagles to come from behind. Combined with the two games at Minnesota, BC has fallen behind in four straight games.
That may be one area in which York wants his team to improve.
“The other team hasn’t been very accommodating,” laughed York. “But we expected that. They’re good opponents we’re playing. It’s 60 minutes you’ve got to play, sometimes 65. But we’ve got to get a better start, that’s for sure.”
Providence’s Ross Mauermann is tied for the Hockey East lead with 13 points (photo: Melissa Wade).
A look at the stats
Here are a few observations after looking at stats from across Hockey East:
• It’s easy to point to goaltender Jon Gillies as the reason Providence is 5-1-1 out of the gate. But you can’t overlook the contributions of Ross Mauermann, who is tied for the most points among Hockey East players with 13. As good as Gillies was last year and many believe he will be again, the Friars struggled at times to score last season. The Friars averaged 2.76 goals a game last year. This year, that mark currently stands at a league-best 4.43 goals per game.
• I’ve always been a believer that when teams get major contributions from their blueliners they gain a major advantage. Boston University has the top two offensive-producing defensemen in Ahti Oksanen (nine points) and Garrett Noonan (eight points).
• Everyone knew that Notre Dame would have an immediate impact in Hockey East, but I’m not sure that many people knew which players would be the biggest impact. Goaltender Steven Summerhays takes the early lead in that category as he leads Hockey East goaltenders in GAA with a stingy 1.49 mark in eight appearances, seven of those starts. Summerhays, a senior, has always been strong for the Irish but to this point never brought his GAA below the two-goal mark in a season.
• Boston University is thankful for the second period. The Terriers have scored 13 goals in the middle frame as opposed to just four goals in each of the first and third periods.
• New Hampshire has done a great job defensively in the final period, allowing just two goals in the final frame. Unfortunately for the Wildcats, UNH has allowed two goals in the three overtime periods it has played this season.
Quick hits
• After falling 5-3 and 3-2 in overtime last weekend against Massachusetts-Lowell, New Hampshire dropped to 1-5-1, one of the more shocking early season records among Hockey East clubs. But looking at the list of opponents UNH has faced, it’s clear that the Wildcats’ strength of schedule is extremely high. All of UNH’s opponents to date are ranked in the USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll, including the No. 1 (Minnesota) and No. 2 (Michigan) teams. That said, UNH’s offense is struggling mightily, having scored just 2.29 goals per game, worst in Hockey East. A contributing factor is a power play that has scored just six times in 37 opportunities. The UNH penalty kill isn’t much better, ranking 48th of 59 nationally. Last Saturday night, the lack of success for both sides of special teams was magnified as UNH couldn’t score on a power play in overtime and then allowed a power-play goal to Lowell for the game-winner.
• Tip of the cap to Northeastern’s Kevin Roy and Notre Dame’s Vince Hinostroza, each of whom were recognized with monthly awards by the Hockey Commissioners Association. Roy potted seven goals and added five assist to earn player of the month honors. Hinostroza earned the national award as rookie of the month after scoring eight points in his first six collegiate games.
• According to league sources, there are still good seats available for both days of this year’s Frozen Fenway. On Jan. 4, Providence will face Merrimack and Notre Dame will square off with Boston College. One week later, Massachusetts-Lowell will play Northeastern and Maine will take on Boston University. To order tickets, visit www.redsox.com/frozenfenway or call (877) RED-SOX9.
And finally, not that it has anything to do with anything, but …
Yes, Boston continues to earn its moniker of Title Town after the Red Sox World Series victory. Hats off to a team that I, as well as many others, wrote off before opening day.
It’s nice to hear the media continually point out that this is the eighth title for Boston since 2001. I can’t help but wish that the same media wouldn’t forget about Boston College’s four college hockey titles and Boston University’s one over that same span. (C’mon, a boy can dream.)
Captain Matt Prapavessis says Bemidji State will keep getting better (photo: Michelle Bishop).
A season ago, Bemidji State was an offensively challenged, six-win team that managed just five victories in WCHA play.
A month into this season, however, the Beavers have the look of a much-improved team. Sure, they still play their frustrate-your-opponent defensive style. But so far this season they’re getting a few goals, too.
Bemidji State sits atop the WCHA’s early season standings following a road sweep against Alabama-Huntsville and a home split against league preseason favorite and rival Minnesota State, and it scored seven goals in each series.
“I thought the guys really grew,” coach Tom Serratore said on Saturday, following a 4-3 loss to the Mavericks. “We grew this weekend, and [Minnesota State’s] a good hockey team, so very satisfied.”
Junior forward Danny Mattson and sophomore forward Cory Ward are the offensive leaders. Mattson has eight points, including seven assists, while Ward has five goals.
Seven different players scored goals against the Mavericks, and the fourth line provided a big spark with three goals, including the first two of the game on Friday. Fifth-year senior Matt Hartmann, who had played in just 25 college games, scored his first collegiate goal, and it ended up as the game-winner. Linemate and freshman Bob Kinne scored that game’s first goal, and the line’s center, junior Mitch Cain, scored on Saturday.
“It’s good to see we can compete with the top teams in the league or who is said to be the top teams,” Bemidji State captain and defenseman Matt Prapavessis said. “We fit right along with them, and we’re going to keep getting better.”
The Beavers will face another of the expected league favorites this weekend when they play at Ferris State.
“One weekend doesn’t make anything; the bottom line is it’s a long season,” Serratore said. “How are we going to be next weekend on the road and the next weekend and the next weekend after that? It’s a long season, but the guys got better this weekend.”
Bowling Green’s Bryce Williamson leads the WCHA with 11 points (photo: Erica Treais).
Falcons scoring just fine without Carpenter
Bowling Green has been without its leading scorer, Ryan Carpenter, for the first eight games of the regular season while he recovers from a surgically repaired broken finger, but the Falcons’ offense hasn’t skipped a beat.
Bowling Green, which will be without Carpenter again this weekend at Minnesota State, is tied with Alaska for second in the WCHA in scoring at 3.38 goals per game. The power play is also tied with the Nanooks for second, clicking at 22.2 percent.
Both teams trail Ferris State in both categories, but the 27 goals scored by the Nanooks and Falcons leads the league.
“Ryan’s health is the most important thing and if we were 0-8, would the pressure be higher to have him in the lineup? Yes,” Falcons coach Chris Bergeron said Tuesday during his weekly news conference. “I’d be lying if I said no, but right now, we’re happy where we are and we’re excited to add a pretty good player to our lineup.”
BGSU senior Bryce Williamson is alone atop the WCHA in scoring with six goals and five assists for 11 points in eight games. Williamson finished with 12 goals and seven assists last season in 41 games.
Williamson hasn’t been a one-man show making up for the absence of Carpenter, though. Eleven different Falcons players, including Williamson, have scored goals.
Falcons sophomore forward Ben Murphy, who had six goals and seven assists last year, is tied with Williams for second in the WCHA in goals scored at six.
Both players are also tied with the WCHA leader in goals — Northern Michigan senior forward Stephan Vigier (7) — atop the league in power-play goals at four.
Fueling those two goal scorers has been junior forward Dan DeSalvo with two goals and a WCHA-leading eight assists. Right behind him in assists is sophomore defenseman Ralfs Freibergs, who has seven assists in eight games.
“[DeSalvo] has been thrown into a situation where without Carpenter, he’s had to eat up some minutes,” Bergeron said.
“He might be developing into a pass-first assist guy, but we all know he’s a guy who can score goals as well.”
Around the WCHA
• Minnesota State started a goaltender not named Stephon Williams for the first time in nearly a calendar year when freshman Cole Huggins got the nod last Saturday night. Huggins, a Centennial, Colo., native who played for Coquitlam of the BCHL, stopped 28 of 31 shots to win in his debut start. Williams, last season’s first-team All-WCHA goalie, had started 37 games in a row, dating to Nov. 30, 2012.
• Alabama Huntsville is one of three teams in the nation that has no wins or ties. The 0-6 Chargers rank last in the country in offense with just six goals in as many games. They’re also allowing 4.5 goals per game. Only American International (5.0) and Dartmouth (5.5) are allowing more goals per game.
• Alaska will leave its home state for the first time this season when it plays at Lake Superior State. The Nanooks are perfect on Friday nights so far this season, going 4-0, but they’re winless on Saturdays with an 0-2-2 mark. Alaska’s loss to Northern Michigan last Saturday was its first home loss this season.
• Alaska-Anchorage was called for 44 minutes worth of penalties, including two majors/misconducts, in a 6-1 loss on Friday at Bowling Green. It was the most the Seawolves had been penalized in nearly two seasons.
• After playing five of its first seven games on the road and winning four of those five road games, Ferris State plays its next six games over the next three weekends at Ewigleben Ice Arena in Big Rapids, Mich., starting with Bemidji State on Friday and Saturday. The Bulldogs don’t leave the state of Michigan again until Jan. 3-4 at Minnesota’s Mariucci Classic in Minneapolis.
• Lake Superior State, which is the only WCHA team to not have played a league game yet, kicks off life in its new league in style with a number of events. The university doesn’t have a football program, so the school chose the start of WCHA play as its homecoming weekend, known as “Great Lake State Weekend.” In addition, the Lakers are holding the community-wide “Pink in the Rink” fundraiser and women’s health expo this weekend. According to LSSU, “Pink in the Rink” has raised close to $90,000.
• Michigan Tech welcomes Michigan State to John MacInnes Student Ice Arena in Houghton for the first time since 1984, when the Huskies swept the Spartans over the Winter Carnival weekend. The Huskies are coming off a pair of one-goal losses at Michigan. Four of the Huskies’ six losses — all on the road — this year are by one goal.
• NMU’s Vigier is doing more than lead the WCHA in goals and power-play goals. Vigier is tied for fourth in the WCHA in scoring with seven goals and two assists. His three game-winning goals leads the WCHA as well. As a junior in 2012-13, Vigier had seven goals all season with 14 assists. Vigier had 13 goals and 13 assists as a sophomore.
• WCHA players of the week: Bowling Green junior forward Dan DeSalvo (offensive), BGSU sophomore defenseman Ralfs Freibergs (defensive) and Ferris State freshman forward Kyle Schempp (rookie).
Michelle Karvinen-3 North Dakota. Photo by Bradley Olson.
Arlan: You usually start us off, but given that it was a rather strange weekend on the ice, maybe it would be fitting if we change our order around. One doesn’t need to look beyond the contests matching the Dartmouth and Harvard travel pairing on the road at Union and Rensselaer. All four teams won once and lost once. I doubt that has happened often. The last time Harvard lost to RPI was in January 2011, and on that occasion, both the Crimson and Big Green defeated Union but lost to the Engineers. That is more what one would expect, because Union has historically been the weakest of the four teams.
I think we have seen signs that the Dutchwomen are getting better. The surprise is that they handled Dartmouth with relative ease, wining 3-0. Yes, Dartmouth had an edge in shots, but 25 saves is a relative walk in the park for Shenae Lundberg after the amount of rubber she’s faced in some games in her career. Following that up with a 3-0 loss to Harvard is more what we would expect. Marissa Gedman put Harvard up early, and after Miye D’Oench scored twice right out of the first intermission, Union just isn’t built to dig out of that type of hole.
RPI continues to mystify me. A huge 2-1 win over Harvard despite being outshot is followed by a 3-1 loss to Dartmouth where the ratio of the shots was reversed. Maybe the goaltending in the ECAC just comes and goes, and it is hard to predict which team will get the better performance in the crease on any given day?
Candace: Nice of you to get us started this time. Maybe I should pick the games first and then I’ll have a better chance of catching you in our picks race! I’m not sure what to make of the Eastern leagues. Cornell, aside from that one blip against Princeton, has actually had good goaltending in all its games. I think Harvard has had good goaltending as well. The Crimson only gave up two goals against Rensselaer, a reasonable number; it was their offense that failed them.
Actually looking at the ECAC, it doesn’t seem like its the goaltending at all. Harvard is first in team defense, averaging a goal a game, and Quinnipiac is tied for second in team defense. Clarkson is fifth in team defense, and Brown, Cornell, and Rensselaer are 11-13, respectively. So, the ECAC is a league where defense is very strong. However, aside from Clarkson and Quinnipiac, the teams with strong offenses aren’t the ones with the absolute best defenses. That’s where Wisconsin and Minnesota rule. Wisconsin is second in team defense and sixth in team offense, and Minnesota is second in team offense and fourth in team defense.
Speaking of the Bobcats, I’m beginning to pencil them in as the team most likely to make its first NCAA tournament. Kelly Babstock is racking up points, tied for first nationally with three other players. Emma Woods is in the top 20 in scoring. At the other end, Chelsea Laden is second nationally among goaltenders. I don’t think either of us expected the Bobcats to push Cornell so hard. What’s your take?
Arlan: I don’t mean to imply that the goaltending in the ECAC is bad, but rather that the delta from a good game to a bad period is rather severe in some cases. For example, Harvard has Emerance Maschmeyer, a highly regarded goaltender, who piled up 40 plus saves in shutting out Princeton, something Cornell couldn’t come close to doing. She only allowed the two goals to RPI, but they came on 15 shots. That may be “reasonable,” as you called it, but for the Crimson to contend, she has to be very good to great. That’s likely an unfair expectation to place on a sophomore, but I believe that is what the state of the remainder of the Harvard roster requires.
Quinnipiac has been solid throughout the opening weeks. Rick Seeley’s philosophy seems built on his teams playing defense first, second, and third, and if his team does that well and the game ends and the score is still 0-0, he’s willing to live with that. That could play into why we see less of the wild ups and downs from the Bobcats. They had a bad second period in the loss to Harvard, but other than that, they’ve been very consistent. I did suspect that Quinnipiac would be able to limit Cornell’s offense to an extent and not allow the six-goal game that the Big Red had been achieving regularly. Seeley would know that was his team’s best chance to win, and it couldn’t afford to get into a run-and-gun affair. However, to play 65 minutes and not yield anything beyond a shootout goal is impressive, so hats off to the entire Bobcats squad for that effort.
I agree that the odds of Quinnipiac making the NCAA tournament right now look fairly good. It has to be in the top three of the ECAC for that to happen; I don’t see the league being strong enough to qualify four teams. The early PairWise Rankings like the Bobcats; they are fifth currently. We’ve had other teams like Ohio State, Robert Morris, and Northeastern that look to be in good shape to advance throughout the first semester, and then they have tailed off a bit in the second half. It doesn’t take much, because that opening to be one of the eight gets awfully narrow by March. Still, I wasn’t expecting teams like Boston University and Robert Morris to be ahead of the likes of Clarkson and Boston College at this stage. Harvard is also a ways down, but it figures that losing to a team with only one other win will hammer a team’s RPI — the rating, not team. Interestingly, the Engineers only other win was over the Colonials, so maybe they’ve started playing spoiler early on.
After four straight trips to the tourney, I didn’t know if Brian Durocher’s club could make it five. Are you as surprised as I that the Terriers are firmly in the mix despite their personnel losses?
Candace: I can’t say I am surprised. If you look at BU’s schedule, it’s not like the Terriers have played a lot of top teams. Realistically, only the Northeastern and New Hampshire games were potentially trap games, and the game against Northeastern went to OT. In fact, BU has played three OT games out of its first eight. That can help down the stretch, if the Terriers are in the mix. I think we will know a lot more about Boston University by the end of the first half. The Terriers face Wisconsin in Vail on Nov. 16, Harvard on Nov. 22, another pair with New Hampshire and Northeastern, then close with a pair at home against Minnesota-Duluth. And judging by this weekend’s results, the St. Cloud game on Nov. 15 could also be potentially tricky.
I think the second half will prove critical for both Boston University and Boston College, as the two faceoff four times in the second half. The Eagles are hovering just outside playoff position in the PairWise, but I’d expect that to change by the end of November, as the Eagles have some good chances to make up PairWise ground in facing Quinnipiac on Nov. 15 and then a pair with Cornell at the end of November before closing with a game against Harvard. I think right now is way too early to be using PairWise as an indicator. Where do you expect BC and BU to be in a month?
Arlan: In Boston. Beyond that, just about anything I predict will wind up being wrong. I get that BU hasn’t exactly played national powers, but I still expected more missteps, particularly early. In terms of blue-chip players, the Terriers lost as much as anyone in the league. I’ve been impressed by how Louise Warren has elevated her game, because she hasn’t had as much of a role as a scorer in her three previous seasons. Plus, Durocher has again managed to patch holes on the blue line. While I don’t have a lot of faith in the PairWise at any point in the season, BU is solidly in the top eight in Rutter’s Rankings as well, above BC and Clarkson. I expect that the Terriers will have their hands full with Wisconsin, but who knows. I expect that they’ll be more competitive than when the teams played in Madison in a rematch of the 2011 NCAA Championship. The Harvard game is likely a toss up, and BU should be a favorite in the rest, although getting a sweep over Minnesota-Duluth will be difficult. St. Cloud State is probably a better defensive team than the numbers show, as the Huskies allowed 18 goals to North Dakota and Wisconsin and a total of 11 in six games with Quinnipiac, Ohio State and Minnesota-Duluth. So heading into the break, I’d guess that BU will have about three additional losses.
The Eagles shouldn’t lose more than one game before Thanksgiving. If they come through that Cornell-Cornell-Harvard stretch in good shape, then they should be back on firm footing to battle for home ice in an NCAA quarterfinal. Will it be as easy as that? I have trouble separating the Boston College team I expected to see from how BC has actually performed over the first month or so. Given nobody else in Hockey East or the CHA has looked like a beast, the Eagles should at least control their own destiny to make the top four for quite a while. Even if a couple WCHA teams and someone like Cornell gets ahead of them, they can still reel in a Harvard or BU.
Beyond those two, it looks like the rest of the league will beat each other up. Two years ago, Northeastern separated from the pack and it was the three Boston teams at the top of Hockey East. Last year, it was essentially a two-team race for the Eagles and Terriers early on. I thought we may have the Eagles in a cakewalk, but maybe it will be a repeat of last season instead. I’ll change my mind at least a dozen times before anything is decided.
Clarkson is right up there with BC in terms of concepts I cannot grasp. So the Golden Knights struggled with Mercyhurst and Cornell; okay, that’s understandable. The inability to defeat Brown was reminiscent of the loss to Colgate last year. Is this just a temporary hangover from the earlier losses, or signs of a bigger problem?
Candace: I think it could be a sign of bigger problems. We discussed Clarkson last week, and I asked whether the loss to Cornell had you reconsidering the ECAC, and you said that you weren’t expecting a three-game winless streak at that point in the season. Clarkson finally got its offense untracked on Saturday against Yale, putting up seven goals, but Clarkson’s Achilles’ heel in the last two years has been a lack of timely goal scoring. The Golden Knights offense currently sits at fifth, averaging 3.73 goals a game, but their offense is feast or famine, seemingly far more so than some other teams. I think their offensive stats are skewed dramatically by the 12-spot they put up against an under-prepared RIT in the first game of the season, plus the nine goals they scored in two games against St. Lawrence on the second weekend of the year. Since then, until the Yale game, they were averaging less than two goals a game over a seven-game stretch. I remember that last year, offense was a concern for Clarkson, which ended up winning most of its games by 2-1 or 3-2 margins, with a few 1-0 games thrown in for good measure. Clarkson will always be in the mix because its defense and goaltending is outstanding, but unless the offense starts showing more consistency, I wonder about how they will do in a tight playoff game, especially against teams like Cornell and Boston College that tend to score a lot. What are your thoughts on where Clarkson is at?
Arlan: It is hard to sort out just what is normal offensive production for this year’s Golden Knights. Half of their goal production came in those three games in the two first weeks. Even the nine goals scored versus St. Lawrence were against Giulia Mazzocchi, not regular Saints goalie Carmen MacDonald. Given that, the most impressive wins are likely the two over Syracuse, and at least Clarkson averaged three goals there. But if it is going to be a case of just two or three goals in games against the best teams, then that usually stout defense can’t go away as it did when Cornell put up six. And the offense can slump further, as it did against Mercyhurst, scoring once in 125 minutes. Erin Ambrose was lighting up the scoreboard early, but the two assists she had Saturday versus Yale were her first points since Clarkson started its bumpy stretch three weeks ago. Jamie Lee Rattray can’t be left to do it all on her own, so Ambrose and Carly Mercer have to be on the score sheet the bulk of the time.
Princeton is the other team of interest in the ECAC. My assumption was that Kimberly Newell would be in net most of the time, but the Tigers would have to scramble to find enough offense. Instead, they’ve been able to score against everyone except Harvard, but Ashley Holt has had the better numbers in goal after Newell had a tough night versus Cornell. I don’t know that Princeton has enough pieces to think about a title, but they do look like one of those teams that nobody wants to face in the first round of a tournament, possessing speed, some impact seniors, and a national-team caliber goalie. Could the Tigers be this year’s SLU and prove to be an unwelcome playoff visitor as February rolls into March?
Candace: I’m not sure. I think beyond the quartet of Cornell, Clarkson, Harvard and Quinnipiac, the ECAC is a grab bag of teams, so there’s potential for a possible spoiler in the ECAC quarterfinals, but I can’t really see it going beyond that. Princeton has shown some competitiveness so far, and beat Dartmouth, but I’m not sure how much to read into the Cornell game, because it’s almost like the Big Red went to sleep after jumping out to a 5-0 lead. This coming weekend, when the Tigers face Yale and Brown, will give us a better indication of where Princeton is at. Those are teams the Tigers need to beat to really show that they are ready to jump up to that next level.
Speaking of teams moving to the next level, what do you make of St. Cloud? The Huskies followed up an impressive 4-1 win at Duluth against the Bulldogs with an overtime tie. Is St. Cloud ready to muscle into the WCHA middle tier, after a couple seasons of futility? And what about Minnesota-Duluth? Are they still on the downturn?
Arlan: St. Cloud State has a few things on its side. It has improved at staying out of the penalty box. The Huskies are a pretty good defensive team. Their blue line is much better than it has been for a while in terms of mobility and ability to handle the puck. Junior Julie Friend is a very good goaltender, and sophomore Katie Fitzgerald isn’t far behind. The difficulty in muscling into any tier is that St. Cloud lacks offensive muscle. Scoring 13 goals in 10 games isn’t going to intimidate anyone. The Huskies will try to scratch out a couple of goals and parlay that into a victory. That will earn them some points, but not enough to surge up the standings. They are still below Ohio State, but if they could somehow figure out a way to get up to fourth or fifth, that brings the benefit of avoiding the WCHA top three when the playoffs start.
I still believe that Minnesota-Duluth is better than it was last season. The problem is that last year was the Bulldogs’ worse season ever. They have young talent and are heading in the right direction, but having played four WCHA series, they failed to earn a win in three of them. Minnesota-Duluth just lacks the firepower it could once unleash. North Dakota can play without Michelle Karvinen and Susanna Tapani and still win easily at Bemidji State. Minnesota-Duluth loses defenseman Tea Villila to the same Finnish national team and can’t win at all on home ice. That’s the kind of talent gap they now face to the top of the league. In recent years in the WCHA, if a team skids in one season, it takes a while to climb back up.
The CHA also has a team that looks to have upgraded its talent in Robert Morris. We’ve talked about freshman goalie Jessica Dodds previously, and they’ve added both depth with their rookies plus impact in people like Brittany Howard and Maeve Garvey. Do you like the Colonials’ odds to take home CHA Rookie of the Year honors in the spring?
Candace: I’d say yes at the moment. Right now, Howard occupies that slot that Minnesota’s Hanna Brandt occupied for much of last season: a rookie contenting for the national scoring lead. Howard also currently leads the country in assists, a sign of poise, as often freshman coming into college hockey want to prove to their coaches their offensive prowess by scoring goals. That Howard is contending for the scoring lead by setting up her teammates is a good sign. As far as CHA Rookie of the Year, I don’t see anyone who is really a threat to Howard, especially if she keeps producing. Mercyhurst is mostly led by upperclassmen, including offensive powerhouse Christine Bestland. RIT has Lauren Klein playing well, but nowhere near Howard’s level, and I doubt Brooke Stoddart will get enough minutes in net to make that much of an impact. Sarah Neilsen is showing signs at Penn State of being an emerging player, and the Nittany Lions have a couple of others in Laura Bowman and Kelly Seward, but again, Howard is far outstripping their offensive output. Lindenwood had Nicole Hensley last year, but none of their freshmen are really making an impact yet. Syracuse has Jessica Sibley, who is playing well, but her points production isn’t in Howard’s league.
I’ll be intrigued to see how Howard does when the Colonials host Mercyhurst this weekend. Even last year, when the Colonials were in the doldrums, they were still a pest to Mercyhurst, taking three wins in four games. What do you think of that upcoming series? Is this the year that Robert Morris establishes itself as the favorite for the CHA?
Arlan: I don’t see the Colonials as the favorite. As well as they did against Mercyhurst, they had CHA-related problems of their own. One win combined versus Syracuse (1-3-0) and RIT (0-3-1) won’t get it done. Each will be a different team this year, so I expect that there will be some movement in those records. However, the returning players on each side remember what happened last season. If the Orange or Tigers fall behind in a game with Robert Morris, they will have players thinking, “We can beat this team.” Just as what we call momentum can be established within a game or a season, there may be a similar carryover from year to year. Mercyhurst will have players believing that the Lakers can win the league, because that’s all that they know. Robert Morris had a little more success out of conference than teams like Mercyhurst and Syracuse, but those two had schedules that were a bit tougher. I’ll stick with Mercyhurst as the favorite, but those three look to be very close, and RIT will have something to say by stealing points from the others, if not contending.
I expect the WCHA to wind up being a three-team race as well. A gap has opened between Minnesota, North Dakota, and Wisconsin and the rest of the league. North Dakota will be done playing Minnesota and Wisconsin by Feb. 1, so we will have an idea of its likely finish a little sooner, while the Gophers don’t head to Madison until the middle of February. North Dakota has its first shot at those teams head-to-head this month. After a bye week, North Dakota travels to Minneapolis and then hosts the Badgers.
Brian Idalski, who picked up his 100th win at North Dakota over the weekend, has a lot of offensive options on his roster. Assuming everyone returns from Four Nations in good health, can that depth find ways to exploit what looks to be better defenses in Minnesota and Wisconsin?
Candace: Hmmm, no offense to North Dakota’s offense, which outside of Minnesota, Cornell, and Boston College, is one of the more explosive, but I’m not too sure. After all, North Dakota couldn’t really do it last year, when they had the Lamoureux sisters. They came close a couple of times against Minnesota, particularly in that NCAA triple OT quarterfinal heartbreaker. And while North Dakota did get a measure of revenge by knocking off the Badgers in the WCHA semifinals, they still had a losing record against Wisconsin last year. Jocelyne and Monique Lamoureux were offensive talents that come along once in a blue moon. North Dakota has some excellent talent up front this year, including Joesfine Jakobsen, Karvinen, and Meghan Dufault, but last year, those three notched approximately half of Jocelyne’s offensive numbers and two thirds of Monique’s, and Monique was playing defense for much of the year. North Dakota has some freshmen putting up good numbers this year, including Tapani and Gracen Hirschy, but when you consider the difficulty North Dakota had beating Minnesota and Wisconsin with the Lamoureux sisters up front, I think they have a more difficult challenge this season.
Massachusetts-Boston senior forward Travis Daniel is primed for a run at the ECAC East title (photo: Tori Pizzuto Photography).
While some teams have already had a taste of regular-season action this past weekend with non-conference games, the real ECAC East conference play gets into full swing this Friday night.
As one might expect, the Norwich Cadets will be searching for their 16th consecutive regular-season title, but this year’s path may be the most challenging ever with solid contenders found in defending conference champion Babson and their travel partner, Massachusetts-Boston.
While those teams may likely battle it out for the top spot, there is no lack of tough competition top to bottom in the conference this year and a home playoff berth is virtually anybody’s to grab with a strong season and consistent play starting in week one.
Yes, it is a new season which brings new personnel, new chemistry and one new coach this year to build on the recent run of success for the Spartans of Castleton.
The coaches all rated the league this past week and for the most part, I agree with many of their predictions with a couple of exceptions. So here is a view from my crystal ball as we kick off the season and the short first half to the semester break where a good start and early points will mean a lot to the final standings in February where positions have often been determined by tiebreakers and head-to-head match-ups.
Expect no change in that occurrence this season.
Norwich Cadets
2012-13 Conference Record: 16-1-1 (First) 2012-13 Overall Record: 24-4-1 ECAC East Coaches’ Poll: First USCHO Predicted Finish: First
Overview: Captain and first-line center Travis Janke might have been concerned about his prolific linemates from last year’s Frozen Four team, but opening night with fellow seniors Shane Gorman and Chris Duszynski showed the same productivity in a 10-4 nonconference win over Plymouth State. The first line accounted for eight points and 12 Cadets recorded a point in the season opener, showing great balance across the four lines. Last year’s mid-season arrival Ryan Whitell had four assists on opening night and leads a solid returning group of defensemen that can play at both ends of the rink effectively. Goaltending is deep with three returning players that all saw significant time last season and gives coach Mike McShane options and the ability to keep the netminders fresh. A fresh face to watch may well be freshman forward Tyler Piacentini who, at 5-foot-4, plays very big around the net and has a knack for scoring goals like Friday night’s game-winner against Plymouth State. The Cadets always are the big target for the rest of the conference and this year is no different. Despite the graduation of several key players who played in four consecutive Frozen Fours, this group is not likely to lose focus on the here and now in conference play.
Babson Beavers
2012-13 Conference Record: 10-5-3 (Third) 2012-13 Overall Record: 18-7-5 ECAC East Coaches’ Poll: Third USCHO Predicted Finish: Second
Overview: Last year’s conference tournament champions, who also won their first NCAA tournament contest in 20 years, returns a solid nucleus to build on for success in the new season. Jamie Murray steps in for the graduated Zeke Testa between the pipes and looking to build on a solid freshman season behind what is probably the deepest group of experienced defense in the conference. Seniors Matt Furey and Ryan Heavey lead the defense that can shut down any opponent and transition to a balanced group of forwards led by Conner Berto, Andrew Bonazza and Nik Tasiopoulos. Newcomer Michael Phillips pivots a strong second line, while fellow freshman Joe Mleczko has found time on the first line to open the season. Babson finished 2-1-1 against Norwich last season including a victory in the conference championship game in Northfield, Vt. The teams play one of their two league games at Frozen Fenway next January in what should be a great matchup regardless of level during the first two weeks of the New Year. Lots of hockey between now and then, so expect coach Jamie Rice’s squad to focus on just getting better every time out – you know they will be there when it counts in March.
Massachusetts-Boston Beacons
2012-13 Conference Record: 11-5-2 (Second) 2012-13 Overall Record: 19-6-2 ECAC East Coaches’ Poll: Second USCHO Predicted Finish: Third
Overview: The Beacons had a goal of winning three championships last season. They won the PAL Cup tournament at Thanksgiving and then the Codfish Bowl, which they host over the holiday break. The final jewel in the crown was to be the ECAC East title, but a semifinal overtime loss to eventual champion Babson eliminated the Beacons from the title chase. Nonetheless, coach Peter Belisle’s team won 19 games overall last season and has many returning pieces of the puzzle, including senior forward Travis Daniel and a host of high-scoring forwards that will give matchup nightmares to most other coaches in the conference. Sophomore Zach Andrews returns in goal for the Beacons looking to improve on last year’s 3.12 GAA and .891 save percentage stats, but also to build on his 17 wins achieved as a freshman. The Beacons can beat you a lot of ways, but their aggressive style and strong transition to offense will put pressure on teams to avoid turnovers and time in the penalty box. Just ask the Massachusetts-Dartmouth Corsairs, who surrendered four power-play goals on six chances to the Beacons in an 8-2 loss last Saturday night. The Beacons can score in bunches and if the back end holds up, they will contend for that elusive third piece of hardware this season.
Overview: Skidmore returns its top three scorers from last season in Vlad Gavrik, Tony Giacin and Brad Schuler and the whole roster got a great tune-up for league play in their 11-1 win over Canton this past weekend. A total of 17 players recorded points in the nonconference matchup, which should help to build some confidence entering league play this weekend. It helps that the Thoroughbreds open at home where they were quite successful last season. In fact, improved play away from Saratoga Springs may be the key to success for coach Neil Sinclair’s team that will be looking for more consistency and strong play from the goaltending tandem of Ben Freiberg and Spencer Sodokoff. Look for big things from newcomer Anthony Bird, who recorded four points in his collegiate hockey debut against Canton. The Thoroughbreds scored just 89 goals last season, so a more balanced attack will definitely help this team battle for a home-ice playoff berth and who knows how far they can go from there.
Overview: The Steve Moffatt era has officially begun at Castleton with the long-time assistant coach at Plattsburgh taking over for Alex Todd, who departed to take an assistant position with Nebraska-Omaha in the NCHC at the Division I level. Moffatt inherits a solid roster that struggled with inconsistency last year and Moffatt had the opportunity first hand to see just how good his current team could be when the Spartans defeated Plattsburgh in Rutland last season by a score of 5-2 during a stretch where they went 7-0-1 to end January. Four straight losses found them reeling into the playoffs where they eventually lost in the semifinals to cross-state rival Norwich. Ten freshmen have been added to this year’s roster, which is led by seniors Ross Herzog, Ryan Delorme and Reid Lesswing. A new system, new team makeup and quick adjustment to overall team chemistry will be key to Castleton’s success this season. With four goaltenders on the roster, including three returning players, the battle for playing time should be intense and give Moffatt an opportunity to build some consistent play from the crease on out.
Overview: The month of November is likely to hold the key to how St. Anselm’s season will go as they open with six consecutive league contests against formidable opponents, including four of the six games on the road. Following the opening weekend at Babson and Massachusetts-Boston, the Hawks will then face Castleton, Skidmore, Norwich and St. Michaels to wrap-up the opening month. With four of last year’s top five scorers departed and six new freshmen forwards on the roster, the team is likely going to rely on an experienced defensive core led by seniors Greg Crovo, Greg Merrill and Alex Pascal, along with the veteran goaltending tandem of Robert Kang and Nick Dries. Both goaltenders had pretty good numbers last season including goals-against averages below three and save percentages hovering around the 90 percent mark. They will need to get off to a hot start to show they can compete with the elite of the conference from the drop of the opening puck. If they mature quickly and have a good November, anything could happen for the high-flying Hawks.
Overview: The Pilgrims again add a very European flavor to their roster that includes seven Swedes, two Finns and one player each from Japan and Croatia to go with four Canadians and 19 players from all over the United States on their 34-player roster. With the graduation of Shaun Sirman, the team has five goaltenders on the roster and only senior Sebastian Anderson bringing any experience having played in three games last season for the Pilgrims and 12 games overall in his time in Henniker, N.H. Junior James O’Reilly is the leading scorer returning to the squad this year that will be looking to find the magic combinations early from among the 12 freshmen and eight sophomores on the roster. Coach Tom Carroll and the Pilgrims traveled for a tune-up on Tuesday night against nonconference opponent Fitchburg State to see what they have against real competition and then face critical matchups with Massachusetts-Boston and Babson on the road to complete the opening week’s three-game road trip. Six of the team’s first eight games are on the road, where the Pilgrims struggled to a 4-10-1 record last season. They get to demonstrate the ability to play better away from home early and if all the pieces come together, they could contend for a home-ice berth.
Overview: Having played two games on the road against nonconference opponents to start the season, coach Brad Holt should be pleased with the team’s 1-0-1 start to the season. The road trip continues with contests to open league play against Skidmore and Castleton, but the Nor’easters have the pieces to show they can play with anyone on their schedule. Junior Colby Drost has become the starter in goal with able backups and depth in Ian Edwards and Craig Ryan. Zach Lokey and Zeth Zielinski lead the offense and had a great opening weekend, collecting a total of seven points between them. A newcomer to watch may be freshman forward Connor Bates, who picked up two points in his first two collegiate games for UNE. The key for the Nor’easters will be their special teams, which struggled last season and did not look crisp in the opening two games. They will want to improve on both the power play and penalty kill to continue their way up the conference standings in their fifth season in the league.
Overview: Coaches love when I pick them down in the standings, or so they tell me anyway, so as to not over inflate expectations entering the new season. If that is true, then coach Jeff Beaney should be happy with the room I am giving him to move the Huskies up the standings this season. Sophomore defenseman Alex Pompeo, who led the team in scoring, is back, as are the second- and third-leading scorers in junior Ryan Seward and senior Angelo Vrachnas. The team is going to need to build some offensive prowess over and above the 71 goals scored during the entire season last year. Josh Hillegas, Michael Gendreau and Sam Guimond return in goal for the Huskies and Beaney will be looking for much more consistent play from his netminders if the team is looking to contend for a higher playoff seed.
Overview: The Purple Knights enter their second season under coach Damien DiGiulian with a virtual turnover in the roster. Based on graduation of a large senior class, the ’13-14 edition finds 11 freshmen and six sophomores making up the core of the 28-player roster. Last year, St. Mike’s scored just 66 goals in their 25 games played so clearly, additional offense is needed for a successful season. Junior AJ Pieprzak and Kevin Altidor, who both tallied 10 goals apiece last season, will be looked to lead the offensive game for the Purple Knights. Look for newcomer Anthony Maiuri to contribute offensively. In goal, junior Dave Donzanti posted good numbers in his six games played last season and will be looking to build on those as the No. 1 goaltender. Much depends on how quickly this young team meshes and embraces the defense-to-offense style of play preferred by their coach. A first game at home against travel partner Norwich will quickly set the bar about how far this team has to go to compete with the league’s best.
This Friday, night the regular season gets underway – drop the puck!
Western Michigan’s Shane Berschbach (right) had four assists in the Broncos’ sweep of Colorado College (photo: Rachel Lewis).
For as rough as the opening weekend of the season was for Western Michigan, life has become increasingly enjoyable for the Broncos ever since.
The start of the 2013-14 season provided Western with a rude awakening in the form of a pair of losses to No. 4 Notre Dame in which WMU was outscored 7-0. Since then, though, the Broncos are 3-0-1 in their last four games and are coming off of a home sweep of new NCHC rival Colorado College.
Western had to climb out of an early 2-0 hole in Friday’s first period but then scored three goals of its own without reply en route to a 3-2 win before handing the Tigers arguably a more convincing 5-1 loss in the rematch.
Broncos coach Andy Murray said Monday at his weekly news conference in Kalamazoo that, overall, he was happy with his team’s ability to get the full six points from its first NCHC weekend series.
“For us to win two games on the weekend against a quality opponent like Colorado College, it’s a strong statement from our team, and we’re very pleased with the results,” Murray said. “Obviously, both games were very competitive, and Colorado College battled us both nights and certainly the first night had opportunities to go up on us 3-0 but failed to get that done, and we found a way to get up [into the lead] and win that particular hockey game.
“The second night, we started much stronger. We put a lot of pressure on [CC’s] net and were rewarded with the first goal and got up 3-0 in the hockey game and proceeded to play poorly for the majority of the second period. That’s something we have to address, but we got some big goals and found a way to get the points.”
Saturday’s second period was often dominated by the visitors as CC outshot Western 20-7 in the frame. However, solid goaltending from Frank Slubowski and three timely WMU goals in the second period saw the Broncos build up a 4-1 lead that they would only add to in the third.
Perhaps the biggest goal of Saturday’s game was the Broncos’ fourth of the night. Justin Kovacs buried the puck past CC goaltender Josh Thorimbert at 14:23 of the second period, just 21 seconds after the Tigers’ Scott Wamsganz had pulled a goal back for the visitors to cut into what had been a somewhat comfortable 3-0 lead for Western Michigan.
“I think we got a little bit arrogant with our game … in that second game when we got up 3-0,” Murray said. “We stopped doing the things we needed to do. We stopped getting pucks deep and started turning the puck over, and subsequently we were outshot a great deal in that second period while leading.
“Both nights, we got key goals. On Saturday night, [CC] scored to make it 3-1 and our ‘gold unit,’ as we call it, with Josh Pitt and Shane Berschbach and Justin Kovacs came back and got a very big goal right on the next shift to get us up 4-1.
“We need to learn from that series, and we’ve got to keep the foot on the gas pedal, so to speak, but we’ll take the wins.”
Murray also admitted there was some uncertainty coming into last weekend’s series against a CC team the Broncos had never faced in their coach’s time at Western. It’s something the Broncos are going to encounter a lot this season as they face six new league opponents they don’t have a ton of recent history with, but Murray felt his team passed the tests surrounding that the first time out.
“I think on Friday night there was a bit of an unknown factor in the hockey game: How do we fit in in the new league and what’s it going to be like?” Murray said.
“I think our players, once they saw that we can play at this level, we proceeded to play fairly well.”
Although Murray was quick to emphasize that two October games do not make a season, the two-game set with CC was undoubtedly an overall pleasant maiden NCHC voyage for Western (3-2-1, 2-0 NCHC), and he mostly liked what he saw from his Broncos.
“It’s two hockey games, [so] we don’t want to be passing out any bouquets at this particular point,” Murray said, “But we played hard, we battled, we played physical.”
Kevin Gravel has been key to St. Cloud State’s strong defensive play (photo: Jim Rosvold).
Surprising defensive strength leads St. Cloud State
North Dakota suffered its first sweep at home in nearly four years last weekend, but one of the masterminds behind that feat felt success came much more from the back than the front.
Third-ranked St. Cloud State (5-0-1, 2-0) scored three goals in 3-2 and 3-1 wins over UND in Grand Forks last weekend, but Huskies coach Bob Motzko gave most of the credit to a defensive corps that has showed itself stronger than he’d anticipated coming into this season.
“I don’t know if you ever go [into a series] expecting anything, but we’re off to a good start, no question,” Motzko said. “But it’s also very early and the thing for us is we’re playing very good defensive hockey right now. Our offense isn’t really clicking at a high level, but we’re getting ourselves a chance in our games, and that’s good because all of our games have been very tight.”
Motzko continued at length: “I am a little surprised at the strength of our defensive corps. We had great concern losing Nick Jensen because he was the anchor of our team a year ago and he played so many critical minutes where we couldn’t think in the summer we could replace all the minutes that he played.
“But we started the season with returning players like Kevin Gravel and Andrew Prochno, who have been outstanding. Ethan Prow has stepped right in and taken on more of a role in those minutes we lost. And then we have two freshmen that have been very solid.
“It’s not that they play with emotion so much; they’re just very steady back there and have been solid for us, and so we’re a little bit ahead defensively from where we thought we were going to be [six games into the season].”
The Huskies fell behind in both games against UND, but Motzko said the key to SCSU coming away with all six points from the weekend was the defense keeping its shape and not allowing the Huskies to fall behind any further while trying to find goals at the other end of the ice.
“I think that was what was critical, because both nights we fell down 1-0 but we were able to hunker down and stay strong defensively and get good penalty killing and Ryan Faragher was strong for us in our net,” Motzko said. “That gave us time to find some offense and get some momentum going, and that [attack] came in spurts in the third period on Friday and in the second period on Saturday.
“They were short spurts because it was a low-scoring weekend, but it was about not letting the games get away from us that weekend. It’s just a great environment [in Grand Forks], and [UND] feeds off that so well, so it was that strong defense that helped us give us a chance while we tried to find some offense.”
Each of the Huskies’ six games so far has been close; neither side in any of those matchups was able to open up and maintain a big lead over the other. The Huskies would like to heat up offensively, but Motzko is pleased so far with his team’s performances in its zone.
“All six games have been by one or two-goal [margins] and there hasn’t been much separation until right down to the wire,” he said. “We’ve got a strong corps on defense, a good goaltender back in Ryan Faragher, and we’ve given ourselves a chance and found a way in games in this short season so far, and that’s all it is.
“It’s a snapshot from 30,000 feet that’s pretty limited right now, but obviously we’re pleased with what we’re doing on the defensive side.”
Caggiula quick to recover and contribute
Finally this week, an injury update on North Dakota forward Drake Caggiula, who was stretchered off on Oct. 26 during an exhibition game against the U.S. Under-18 Team.
Yeah, he’s fine.
Although UND was swept last weekend by St. Cloud State, Friday’s first period provided a memorable goal from Caggiula, six days after a fluke play ended with him falling to the ice at an angle on his neck after trying to hurdle a fallen U-18 player.
He was taken off the ice on a stretcher and sent via ambulance to Grand Forks’s Altru Hospital. He was released two hours after admittance after having X-rays taken of his neck, shoulder and collarbone before being sent on his way under his own power with the help of a neck brace.
He was able to move his hands and talk inside the ambulance, and he didn’t lose feeling in his extremities.
Fast-forward to last Friday, where Caggiula got UND on the board first just 3:10 into its series opener against the Huskies. Barreling into the St. Cloud zone down the off-wing, he weaved the puck around and then through Gravel’s legs before capping a gorgeous individual effort by beating Faragher high glove-side just inside the near-side post.
Efforts from UND’s athletic department to advertise the play saw it become FOX Sports Live’s play of the day for Friday. It was also the top play of the week in the NCAA’s weekly highlights. Take a look at the highlight from North Dakota Athletics:
Caggiula had picked up an assist on a Rocco Grimaldi goal against Vermont on Oct. 12 with a similar move down that same side of the Ralph Engelstad Arena ice, and he said it’s something he’s grown up working on.
“Coming off the off-wing, as a forward you don’t have a lot of options,” Caggiula said. “And I just came into the neutral zone with a lot of speed and thought, ‘Hey, if I can make a move around [Gravel], I can get the puck on net quickly and maybe get a scoring chance or a rebound and hopefully [the puck] will go in.’
“That move’s something I try in practice every once in a while. It’s tough for a defenseman skating backward to have the puck go through his knees or under his stick [as he tries] to play the puck. That’s a move I’ve kind of grown up doing and worked on it during last week, but I got pretty lucky that it’s worked twice already this year.”
Although the results on the ice last weekend weren’t what Caggiula and his teammates were looking for, his wonder goal still proved a happy ending to what could’ve easily been an even scarier week than it was.
“I’d never experienced an injury like that before, and obviously Saturday I was pretty scared and didn’t know what the outcome was going to be and didn’t know how long I was going to be out for,” Caggiula said. “But luckily I started recovering pretty fast and took Sunday and Monday off of that week.
“I had a lot of people asking me questions, so it was a mentally straining and physically demanding week just because I was trying to do so much rehab, so it was definitely one of the tougher weeks I’ve had.”
Players of the week
Offensive player of the week — Josh Archibald, Nebraska-Omaha: Archibald is arguably the biggest reason Nebraska-Omaha picked up its first-ever win at Denver Friday night before he and his Mavericks compatriots did the business again the following night. The junior forward scored overtime winners both nights against the Pioneers in a pair of 3-2 decisions, and he had a four-point night Friday (two goals and two assists) and finished plus-3 on the weekend.
Defensive player of the week — Jordan Oesterle, Western Michigan: A junior defenseman, Oesterle was a rock for the Broncos on the blue line during their sweep last weekend of visiting Colorado College. He scored Western’s game-tying goal in Friday’s 3-2 overtime win, and he led the Broncos to a perfect 10-for-10 on the penalty kill over two games, in which the Tigers scored only three times.
Rookie of the week — Jake Guentzel, Nebraska-Omaha: Guentzel has quickly built up his case to be considered UNO’s best newcomer this season, and his performances last weekend at Denver will only help matters. The freshman forward scored the Mavericks’ opening goal Friday before picking up the primary assist on Archibald’s first overtime game-winner of the weekend, and Guentzel followed that up by doing it again — scoring the first goal and getting an assist on the game-winner — in the rematch.
Goalie of the week — Ryan Faragher, St. Cloud State: The junior Ontarian improved to 5-0 on the season after leading SCSU to its third and fourth wins in a row. Faragher made 45 saves and allowed only three goals all weekend against UND en route to the Huskies’ first sweep in Grand Forks since 2006 and the first time UND had been swept at home by anyone since 2010.
