Damien Carfagna spent two seasons on the Buckeyes’ blue line (photo: Ohio State Athletics).
The NHL’s Edmonton Oilers have signed Ohio State junior defenseman Damien Carfagna to a two-year, entry-level contract beginning with the 2025-26 season.
Carfagna played in 72 games with OSU, recording nine goals with 25 assists. His seven goals over 38 games in 2024-25 were a team-high among Buckeyes defensemen, while his 21 assists and 28 points ranked second.
A native of Wood-Ridge, N.J., Carfagna began his NCAA career at New Hampshire in 2022-23, making 35 appearances as a freshman and tallying six goals with 10 assists.
BC’s Ryan Leonard did this celebration 61 times the past two seasons (photo: Brody Hannon).
The NHL’s Washington Capitals have signed Boston College sophomore forward Ryan Leonard to a three-year, entry-level contract.
The Capitals selected Leonard with the eighth overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft.
Leonard recorded 49 points (30 goals, 19 assists) in 37 games with Boston College this season, leading the nation in goals and becomimg the first NCAA player with back-to-back 30-goal seasons since Boston College’s Cam Atkinson in 2009-10 and 2010-11.
In addition, Leonard led the NCAA in game-winning goals (9) and ranked 10th in the country in points.
Leonard is one of 10 finalists for this year’s Hobey Baker Memorial Award, given to the top NCAA men’s hockey player in the nation. The Amherst, Mass., native was also named Hockey East player of the year and a Hockey East first team all-star after leading the conference in scoring.
During his freshman season at Boston College in 2023-24, Leonard registered 60 points (31 goals, 29 assists) in 41 games. Leonard led the team in plus-minus (+35) and ranked second on the Eagles in goals (29) and third in points (58) during the regular season before adding six points (four goals, two assists) in four NCAA tournament games to help Boston College reach the national championship game. Leonard’s 31 goals as a freshman set a program record for first-year players and he became just the fourth Boston College freshman to record 60 points.
Leonard finished the 2023-24 season ranked third in the NCAA in goals and tied for fourth in points and was named a Second Team East All-American.
Leonard finishes his collegiate career with 109 points (61 goals, 48 assists) in 78 games.
In January, Leonard led Team USA to its second straight gold medal at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship, the United States’ first back-to-back World Junior gold medals in the history of the tournament. Leonard, the U.S. captain, was named tournament MVP and best forward after recording 10 points (five goals, five assists) in seven games. Leonard recorded two primary assists in the gold medal game against Finland to help the Americans overcome a 3-1 deficit en route to a 4-3 overtime win.
Leonard, a two-time World Junior gold medalist, has recorded 16 points (eight goals, eight assists) in 14 career World Junior games, including eight points (four goals, four assists) in six elimination games.
Hosts Jim Connelly, Derek Schooley, and Ed Trefzger review the weekend’s NCAA men’s D-I regionals and news of the week.
They begin with recapping the regionals, looking especially at the winners: Boston University, Denver, Western Michigan, and Penn State. They also consider controversial penalties and look at ice issues and attendance statistics. They discuss coaching changes at North Dakota with Dane Jackson’s promotion and Brett Riley filling the vacant position at Ferris State. The impact of the transfer portal and its implications for teams and players is explored. The episode concludes with a look ahead to the Frozen Four matchups and a new approach to USCHO’s coverage in St. Louis.
This episode is sponsored by the NCAA Men’s Division I Frozen Four, April 10 and 12 in St. Louis. Get your tickets now at ncaa.com/frozenfour
Times are approximate:
00:00 Introduction and Sponsorship
01:07 Frozen Four field set
01:30 Regionals drama and controversies
03:46 Attendance and atmosphere
05:53 Boston University and Toledo regional highlights
10:44 Western Michigan’s historic win in Fargo
22:37 Penn State’s journey to Frozen Four via Allentown
26:25 Cornell band’s trolling and UConn’s Brass Bonanza
28:30 Denver’s dominance and BC’s struggles in Manchester
33:52 North Dakota’s new head coach: Dane Jackson
34:39 Brett Riley takes over at Ferris State
38:56 The transfer portal and roster challenges
47:05 Previewing the Frozen Four in St. Louis
49:39 Conclusion and upcoming coverage
Raice Szott and her Merrimack teammates participated last October in a walk to raise Alzheimer’s disease awareness (photos: provided by Raice Szott).
As Merrimack defenseman and captain Raice Szott’s collegiate career draws to a close, it’s becoming clearer all the time that her legacy at the North Andover, Mass., college will last far beyond her playing days there.
A native of Daysland, Alta., Szott is a finalist for the Hockey Humanitarian Award for the second year running. This is also the third consecutive season in which Szott has been nominated, and throughout that span, Merrimack coach Erin Hamlen has marveled at the impact Szott has had on her Warriors teammates.
“They always watch each other and always want to emulate each other in a lot of ways, and they recognize how strong a sense of community our institution has and just how much we want to give back,” Hamlen said.
“People definitely watch what Raice does in the community and how impactful it has been, and it has really helped our team to value being in the community a little bit more and spend some time really putting effort into it.”
When interviewed for this feature, Szott asked to take a moment to pull out a list of all of her community work. That in itself might not separate her from the other four finalists for this year’s award, but the breadth of her involvement in the community is certainly something her teammates have taken on board.
Szott enjoys being on the ice with young girls learning the game of hockey.
Szott launched the Merrimack College Women’s Hockey Community Service Committee, opening up many local fundraising and volunteer opportunities. She has also coordinated fundraisers to help local nonprofits, like those for first responders as well as the Ellie Fund, a local foundation assisting people suffering from breast cancer.
Also among Szott’s commitments is volunteer work coordination for Merrimack’s Relay For Life as well as working with local girls hockey and after-school programs, plus Special Olympics Massachusetts. Additionally, she and her Merrimack teammates participated last October in a walk to raise Alzheimer’s disease awareness, and on Halloween, she and other Warriors student-athletes participated in a festive event benefiting Team IMPACT, a Massachusetts-based organization which matches college sports teams with children facing serious illness and disability.
Much of the volunteer work Szott has done during Merrimack’s 2024-25 season is a continuation of what she had already started. Among these are Skating Strides nights for Merrimack home games, raising breast cancer awareness in partnership with the Ellie Fund. Szott has also created a program designed to help young girls build confidence through ice skating and the sport of hockey.
As for the future of many of these initiatives, this is where Szott’s meticulous documentation of her work comes in handy.
“We have a lot of really good underclassmen who have expressed to me that, ‘Hey, after this season, we need to sit down and you need to show me all your spreadsheets with your contacts or whatever, because we want to continue this thing on,’” Szott said.
Szott takes part in a ceremonial puck drop prior to a breast cancer awareness game recently.
“That means a lot to me, knowing that others have seen this impact and gained that motivation to also give back to the community and keep these things going. A lot of our underclassmen are looking to carry this stuff on, and I’m hoping to come back and visit in a few years and hear about things I was a part of and enjoyed doing, and for girls I haven’t even really met yet to continue that on, that would mean a lot.”
To her, and to her Merrimack coach, as well.
“Raice is creating her own impact with what she’s doing, between linking our program with the community in both North Andover and across the country and internationally,” Hamlen said. “I just want her to be known as the selfless person she already is, who has been more than generous with her time and commitment to both our institution, and to young girls, young boys, hockey players, young people in all areas that she has had the ability to connect with, and with the individuals on our team that have a mentorship-type side of things.
“In the end, she has been somebody who has really connected people, she’s been somebody has given up so much of her time and energy to bring people from outside of the college into it to connect with our players and people around them, and just donating time for all sorts of things that, from a charity standpoint and a standpoint of giving time and effort to something that doesn’t necessarily directly benefit her. It’s just something selfless that she does. It’s her way of being really selfless and generous, and she’s the type of person you hope to have in your life, because they don’t think about themselves. They think about others.”
Joey Larson skated two seasons for Michigan State (photo: TakeYourShotPhotography).
The NHL’s New York Islanders have signed Michigan State junior forward Joey Larson to a one-year, entry-level contract beginning in the 2025-26 season.
Larson recorded 24 points (10 goals, 14 assists) in 37 games last season with the Spartans.
The native of Brighton, Mich., skated in 75 games over two seasons with the Spartans, totaling 56 points (26 goals, 30 assists).
Prior to transferring to Michigan State, Larson scored 27 points (13 goals, 14 assists) in 36 games as a freshman at Northern Michigan in 2022-23 and was named to the CCHA all-rookie team.
Hobart needed overtime to capture its third consecutive national championship with a 2-1 victory over Utica (photo: @NCAADIII/x.com)
UTICA, N.Y. — Hobart College Statesmen, welcome to the history books.
Hobart became the third team, and fourth time, to win three consecutive NCAA Division III Men’s Ice Hockey national championships. Two of those, including Sunday’s, came in overtime.
“I’m really happy for this group,” Hobart coach Mark Taylor said.“They did it with the right type of attitude, the right type of selfishness.”
“Obviously, gut wrenching for us,” Utica coach Gary Heenan said.“Super proud of our guys.I was worried we would be in awe of that team.It’s disappointing we couldn’t end that streak and get our own.”
At 18:22 of the extra period, Kahlil Fontana out hustled a defender and swept the puck past Ryan Piros to win 2-1, the same score as both semifinal games.
“It took a weird bounce off the back wall,” Fontana describes.“Then it popped off in front of the net.I saw the D trying to jump, and it was a bit of a race to the puck.I knew I had to get the puck on the other side and around him, otherwise he would be able to poke it off me.Then, I just tried to make sure I got it on net.
“I missed a couple high and wide that I was pretty rattled about earlier in the game.I just wanted to put that one around him and low.Thankfully it went in.Then I was just trying to chase down (Damon) Beaver and give that man a hug.”
The entire 78-plus minutes were played at a high intensity, hard checking, bodies flying, great save after great save, leaving the capacity arena breathless nearly the entire time.Posts were hit.Shots at open portions of the net whistled barely wide.Goalies out of position, or without sticks, scrambling to get back in the net or making diving saves.
Hobart came out flying, just missing some primo tip-ins.Utica reversedthe pressure with good shots.Hobart came back, just missing a deflection.That was just the first period, which ended scoreless and had only one power play for Utica.
The high intensity action continued in the second period.Finally, at 9:39, Utica scored.Eric Vitale, the overtime hero from two nights ago, scooped a loose puck up high from the left slot.The opportunity came because Utica outworked Hobart, keeping the Statesmen from being able to clear the area.
“Getting that first goal gives you confidence,” Heenan said.“We had several chances to extend the lead.I think that’s a huge difference in the game.”
More close calls followed.Hobart hit the post.Hobart failed on their solitary power play, so the second period ended 1-0.
As the Statesmen tend to do in the playoffs the past three years, they scored a game tying third period goal.
The play started when Utica turned the puck over just as they exited their zone.Hobart took it back in, the initial shot saved, before Easton Ryan from the slot, poked it through the five-hole at 8:35.
Off to overtime once again, a seemingly common occurrence in Hobart’s three-peat journey.
Utica had a breakaway to try to win the game and hit the post.Not just any hit.It went off the inside of the post.Soon after, Beaver lost his stick, but despite prolonged, heavy pressure from the Pioneers, the score stayed deadlocked.
During a timeout in overtime, when the goalies crossed paths, Beaver fist pumped Piros.
Beaver said, ”Friendly competition.He was having a great game.I thought I had to match that.Skating by, just a thing goalies do sometimes.Respect.He played great, so respect for him.”
Piros made 44 saves; Beaver stopped 43.
Just at it appeared this might be another Hobart marathon, Fontana ended it.
“(Fontana) had a chance earlier and he passed it off,” Taylor explains.“He came back to the bench and maybe with some adjectives said he was going to score.Thank God he was selfish the last time.”
“I feel every year is different,” Hobart captain Luke Aquaro said.“You never know what’s going to happen, but somehow we find a way.We got a group of guys who never give up, no matter what the score is.”
Hobart (29-1-1), and their women counterparts, William Smith, get to celebrate yet another championship in Geneva, N.Y. on the northern shore of Seneca Lake.
The Hobart Statesmen celebrate their third straight national championship (photo: Eric Gulseth)
UTICA, N.Y. — Hobart doesn’t have a campus rink.They play at the downtown Geneva Recreation Center, aka, The Cooler.And that facility is not suitable for hosting a national championship tournament.Thus, despite being very highly rated the past three seasons, high enough to be able to host when it’s on a campus site, they’ve had to travel every time.And face the host team every time.It has never slowed them down.
In 2023, Endicott got selected.The Statesmen had to go through the home team in the semifinals, beating the Gulls, 3-1.Hobart finished the job, defeating Adrian, 3-2, in overtime.
2024 saw Trinity host it as predetermined site.Thus, everyone was heading there no matter, but wouldn’t you know it, the host team made the tournament.Hobart once again took the semifinal game with a 3-1 score, against Utica.As luck would have it, this meant the Statesmen once again had to face the home team, winning the title, 2-0.
For the trifecta this year, Hobart had to yet again go through the home team.This time Utica in the final again in overtime, after Hobart disposed of Geneseo by the same 2-1 score.
Previous Streaks
The first time a team posted a three-peat was Wisc.-Stevens Point (1989-1991), which then lost the final in 1992 before winning it again in 1993.Then Middlebury did it twice, but the first time was a five-peat (1995-1999).That was followed by championships in 2004-2006.They also made the final in 2007, but lost in overtime.The only other team to at least go back-to-back was St. Norbert in 2011-2012 after losing the final in 2010 in overtime.
Intrastate Battles
This is the third time the championship game was an intra-New York battle.The first was also an intra-conference matchup when Plattsburgh defeated Oswego, 8-5, in 1987.A few years later, the Cardinals were stripped of that title and the previous year’s runner-up finish due to NCAA infractions.In 2001, Plattsburgh defeated RIT, 6-2.Wisconsin schools met in the finals four times in the only other intra-state contests.
Neighbors
The closest distance between school campuses in the finals was in 2014 and 2016 between St. Norbert and UW-Stevens Point at about 85 driving miles.This year’s matchup was the second closest at approximately 100 driving miles.(Though Vermont schools, Middlebury and Norwich, 46 miles apart, had powerhouse teams at the same time, they never met in the finals.They did meet often in earlier rounds.)
Broken Bus
The Curry student fan base bus broke down on I-90 en route to Utica.They sat on the side of the road for three hours before a replacement bus came to their rescue.They arrived at the Nexus Center at the start of the third period.They were rewarded witnessing their team scoring the tying goal and some extra hockey.But in the end, they had to return to Boston in defeat.
Sports Mecca
Utica is becoming a bit of a sports Mecca.
Next year, the NCAA Division III national championship will be at a predetermined site.It just so happens, that site is back in Utica.This time, next door at the larger Adirondack Bank Center at the Utica Memorial Auditorium which seats almost 4,000.It is the proper home of the Utica Pioneers along with the AHL Utica Comets.
This upcoming week, these facilities host the Chipotle USA Hockey Nationals Youth Tier II 18U.Last year, the IIHF Women’s World Championship was here.And this past September, the World Lacrosse Box Championships for both men and women were hosted by Utica.
All Tournament Team
Hobart: Damon Beaver (G)
Hobart: Calum Chau (D)
Hobart: Matthew Iasenza (F)
Hobart: Easton Ryan (F)
Utica: Ryan Piros (G)
Utica: Eric Vitale (F)
Wisconsin-River Falls celebrates its 2025 NCAA championship after beating Amherst (photo: UW-River Falls Athletics).
Wisconsin-River Falls has a second straight NCAA championship, won on home ice again.
MaKenna Aure, Madison Kadrlik and Bailey Olson scored second-period goals for the Falcons, who defeated Amherst 3-1 on Sunday at Hunt Arena.
River Falls became the first back-to-back champion since Plattsburgh completed a string of four straight titles from 2014 to 2017. Both of the Falcons’ championships were won at Hunt Arena; it was a predetermined site this year after they hosted here in 2024 as the top seed.
Jordan O’Kane stopped 16 shots for River Falls (26-3-2).
Amherst’s Kailey Niccum scored to cut the Falcons lead to 2-1 in the second period but Olson restored the two-goal advantage before the end of the frame.
Natalie Stott made 25 saves for the Mammoths (22-6-1).
Denver’s Eric Pohlkamp celebrates his first-period goal against Boston College on Sunday (photo: Denver Athletics).
MANCHESTER, N.H. — Fly east. Get off the plane. Beat a couple of East Coast teams. Repeat.
That’s been the winning formula for Denver the last two NCAA hockey tournament regionals, and now the program is heading to the Frozen Four for the 19th time after a 3-1 win over Boston College to win the Manchester Regional before a crowd of 6,802 on Sunday night at SNHU Arena.
“Our goalie found a way to make a lot of critical saves, and we found a way to make one more play than they did,” Denver coach David Carle said. “That’s a lot of times what these games are and we feel really fortunate to be on the right side of it.”
Defending national champion Denver (31-11-1) is in the Frozen Four for the fourth time in the last six tournaments. Denver won last year’s NCAA championship by sending three Hockey East tournament participants home.
Denver goalie Matt Davis had 35 saves, including a number of big ones in the final minutes of regulation as BC pulled goalie Jacob Fowler for an extra skater.
“I think we feed off that kind of energy,” Davis said. “It was definitely a great atmosphere to play in front of.”
Hockey East regular season champ BC, which lost to Denver in last year’s NCAA championship game, saw its season end at 27-8-2.
“It feels like déjà vu a little bit,” BC coach Greg Brown said. “They play a strong, strong game. They really do a nice job both defensively and offensively. (I) thought we started really well, on our toes. Generated a lot of pressure in their zone in the first period that they were able to withstand — make saves, get blocks, whatever it took.”
Denver has beaten a Hockey East opponent in five of its last six NCAA tournament games.
Denver broke a scoreless deadlock at 18:19 of the first period on Eric Pohlkamp’s 11th goal of the season (assisted by Jack Devine and Aidan Thompson). Skating hard into the slot, Pohlkamp slammed a backhand pass from Hobey Baker finalist Devine and into the net for the 1-0 lead, which the Pioneers took into the break.
“They were definitely trying to play physical in the first, definitely trying to get under our skin,” said Denver forward and captain Carter King. “We were able to regroup. We’ve played teams like that before. I think that’s what’s so great about playing in the NCHC — you play (teams) that test you during the regular season.”
It took a lot less time for Denver to get going in the second period, when James Reeder gave the Pioneers a 2-0 lead just under three minutes in. Reeder fired a hard wrister from the far point through a crowd and into the net. Hobey finalist Zeev Buium and Samu Salminen assisted.
Buium appeared to score at 8:14 of the middle frame to give Denver a commanding 3-0 lead, but BC challenged for offside and the call on the ice was reversed. It remained 2-0.
BC finally got some momentum in the final minute of the second period. Teddy Stiga, alone at mid-ice, scooped up a feed from Will Vote and beat Denver goalie Matt Davis one-on-one to cut the Pioneers’ lead in half, making it 2-1 with just 57 seconds remaining. That’s where it stood at the end of two.
“Any loss at this stage of the year is tough,” said BC defenseman and captain Ryan Leonard. “Obviously, both years (losing to Denver) is brutal.”
Fowler had 22 saves. Buium added an empty-net goal with 4.4 seconds left to account for the final score.
“We were just trying to stay connected (through) the final buzzer,” Buium said. “(Davis) bailed us out a couple of times and made some big-time saves. Everyone was connected and stayed connected.”
The Pioneers head to St. Louis in search of national title No. 11, their third in four years and sixth this century and will face NCHC rival Western Michigan on April 10. They join Penn State (Big Ten) and Boston University (Hockey East) in this year’s Frozen Four.
Boston University celebrates its Frozen Four berth after beating Cornell in Toledo (photo: Megan Milewski).
Two of the teams in the 2025 NCAA Men’s Frozen Four are veterans of the experience. Two will be making their first appearance in the event.
Boston University and defending national champion Denver represent the old guard, with a combined 46 trips to the national semifinals between them.
Western Michigan and Penn State will go to St. Louis for their debut in college hockey’s final weekend.
That’s the next stop for the final four teams left competing for the 2025 NCAA championship. Western Michigan will play Denver at 4 p.m. CT in the April 10 semifinals at Enterprise Center, with Boston University playing Penn State at 7:30 p.m. CT.
The season wraps up with the April 12 championship game at 6:30 p.m. CT. All three games of the Frozen Four are on ESPN2 and ESPN+.
The NCHC has two teams in the Frozen Four for the first time since 2021. The Big Ten is represented for the fourth straight season and Hockey East has a team playing in its third straight Frozen Four.
The Denver-Western Michigan semifinal is a rematch of the NCHC Frozen Faceoff championship game March 22. The Pioneers led 3-0 after two periods before the Broncos rallied to force overtime and won it in the second extra session. The teams split their other two games this season in Kalamazoo, with Western Michigan winning 3-2 and Denver rebounding with a 3-2 overtime victory.
The game between Penn State and Boston University will be the first meeting between the teams.
Boston University (23-13-2) was the first to qualify for the Frozen Four but it needed overtime against Cornell to win the Toledo Regional. Quinn Hutson’s goal delivered the Terriers their 25th trip to the semifinals and third in as many seasons under coach Jay Pandolfo.
They finished third in Hockey East behind Boston College and Maine and fell to UConn in the league semifinals. BU overcame three one-goal deficits in the regional opener against Ohio State before it scored five times on eight shots in the third period for an 8-3 victory on Thursday.
The Terriers, who are looking for their sixth NCAA title, fell behind again against Cornell in the regional final but took the lead on a Cole Hutson power-play goal early in the third. Jack O’Leary’s goal for the Big Red with 5:30 remaining forced overtime but BU advanced with a 3-2 decision on Quinn Hutson’s shot from the right point.
Western Michigan (32-7-1) needed overtime to get past Minnesota State in Thursday’s opening round and got past UMass by the same 2-1 score on Saturday to clinch its first Frozen Four berth.
The Broncos won both NCHC championships this season, with the playoff title being their first since they won the CCHA in 2012. They’ve made the NCAA tournament in all four seasons under coach Pat Ferschweiler, and their 32 victories this season has tied a program record set in 1985-86.
They fell behind UMass on Saturday but scored twice on a five-minute power play, by Liam Valente and Tim Washe, to go ahead. Western Michigan carries the nation’s best scoring margin (1.90) into the Frozen Four.
Penn State (22-13-4) won a thriller Sunday, outlasting UConn 3-2 in overtime in the Allentown Regional. It continued an impressive resurgence by the Nittany Lions this season.
They started 4-7 overall and lost their first eight Big Ten games. But they’ve lost only three times since Jan. 10, including an overtime defeat against Ohio State in the Big Ten semifinals. They had to sweat out results on the conference championship weekend and made the NCAA tournament as the last at-large team.
The Nittany Lions survived a number of UConn pushes in the third period and overtime Sunday before Matt DiMarsico sent them to the Frozen Four in front of their home-state fans. It’s also the first Frozen Four appearance for Guy Gadowsky in 25 seasons as a head coach.
Denver (31-11-1) is in the Frozen Four for the fourth time in the last six tournaments and for the 19th time officially; the Pioneers had their 1973 trip vacated by the NCAA. They’re looking to add to their NCAA-record 10 national championships and go back to back for the first time since 2004 and 2005.
The Pioneers started the season 12-0 but then lost four of their next five games. They went through the second half of the season without losing consecutive contests.
Denver held off No. 1 overall seed Boston College 3-1 on Sunday to win the Manchester Regional in a rematch of the 2024 national championship game. Coach David Carle has led the Pioneers to four straight 30-win seasons and two of the last three NCAA titles.
Penn State is heading to the program’s first ever Frozen Four after a 3-2 overtime victory over Connecticut in the Allentown Region (photo: @PennStateMHKY/x.com)
ALLENTOWN, Pa. — No matter who won Sunday’s regional final at the PPL Center, a brand-new school would be heading to the Frozen Four.
That school will be fourth-seeded regional host Penn State, which edged second seed Connecticut 3-2 in overtime in a tight back-and-forth contest before 6,933 on-lookers, the majority of them again adorned in Penn State colors.
“This win is historical for our program,” said Penn State coach Guy Gadowsky. ”It couldn’t have been a better atmosphere, it couldn’t have been a better game.”
“There’s so much excitement,” said Penn State captain Simon Mack. “I’m so proud of the guys in our locker room.”
Matt DiMarsico scored from the high slot with 2:04 left in the extra session off a pass from Charlie Cerrato to send the Big Ten’s Nittany Lions to St. Louis in two weeks’ time against Boston University.
“We’re all high IQ hockey players, but we’re also unselfish,” DiMarsico said of himself and linemates Cerrato and JJ Wiebusch. “Charlie could have shot, but he made a great pass, and I was lucky enough to bury that one.”
UConn, the nation’s seventh-ranked squad, took the lead just over three minutes into the game when Jake Richard passed from along the right wing boards to Joey Muldowney standing alone in the high slot. Muldowney then whipped the puck low to the stick side of Penn State’s Arsenii Sergeev for his 29th goal of the season and second of the regional. Penn State, the 12th-ranked team in the nation, came close to knotting matters with 11 minutes left in the first period, but Reese Laubach‘s shot from the right side clipped the crossbar.
Huskies goaltender Callum Tung made 12 saves to start the afternoon in a game that featured dozens of blocked shots on both sides, before Penn State’s Dane Dowiak broke through on a shot from the slot at 13:27 off a feed from behind the goal line by Tyler Paquette. It was the third goal in two regional games for Dowiak, who also earned regional MVP accolades. Wiebusch then had a chance in close in the waning seconds of the period, but his attempt off a rebound went wide.
Penn State raced up ice on a rare 4-on-2 early in the second stanza, only to see Hobey Baker Award top 10 finalist Aiden Fink hit the near post from along the goal line to Tung’s right after Jarod Crespo had originally misfired in front. UConn counterattacked but Penn State defenders blocked two tries by Muldowney at the left post. Fink later led another charge for the Nittany Lions that saw Tung make several saves in close while losing his stick, before his teammates finally cleared the puck.
”Callum‘s a stud,” said UConn assistant captain John Spetz. “He’s a great goaltender, and he’s got a great future ahead of him.”
Penn State had outshot UConn by a 2-to-1 margin midway through regulation, but it was the Huskies who broke back on top as alternate captain Tabor Heaslip flipped a puck from the left side past a screened Sergeev and in at 11:27.
“I thought we did a great job of making adjustments the first period and slowing them down,” said UConn captain Hudson Schandor. “We tried to suck the speed and the life out of them, and I think we did that.”
UConn’s second lead lasted exactly 30 seconds. Wiebusch accepted a short pass from Cerrato in the right circle of the UConn zone and then wristed the puck over Tung’s right shoulder.
The game tightened up some over the final 20 minutes. UConn managed just one shot on goal through the middle of the third period compared to three for Penn State in the same span.
Just under six minutes into the third period, DiMarsico shook loose from three defenders to get off a backhand that went over the net. A UConn shot from the left point with just under seven minutes left snuck through Sergeev, who had previously suited up for UConn before transferring to Penn State, but he managed to lie back atop the loose puck and force a faceoff. Three minutes later, he stopped Tristan Fraser on a try from the left circle.
“I try to do my best to help the guys,” Sergeev said. “Both teams deserved to go to the Frozen Four.”
The Huskies stepped it up in the second half of the third stanza, generating a dozen additional shots on net, but neither team could score a go-ahead goal, sending the Allentown Regional final to overtime for the second time in three years.
Less than five minutes into the extra session, Muldowney fired a shot from the right circle that clanked off the far post, but Sergeev saved a subsequent shot by Kai Janviriya and also the rebound. Six minutes later, Muldowney slipped through for a partial breakaway but Sergeev rejected his backhand attempt.
Shortly after, Fraser appeared ready to try a high wraparound behind the Penn State net to Sergeev’s left but he was knocked down by defender Nick Fascia before he could lift the puck. Three minutes later, Sergeev got his right pad on Hugh Larkin’s shot from the slot and a minute afterwards stopped Muldowney’s shot directly in front.
Two years ago, it was Michigan scoring early in OT in Allentown to break Penn State’s hearts. This time it was the Nittany Lions making a rush late in sudden death, which was rewarded when Cerrato found DiMarsico, who subsequently ripped a high shot past Tung. It was Cerrato’s fifth assist of the regional and the third goal of the weekend for DiMarsico, who tossed his stick into the stands as the long-awaited blue-and-white celebration began.
“I figured it would look pretty cool,” he quipped.
Sergeev finished with 42 saves, while Tung made 38 stops for the Huskies. UConn outshot the Nittany Lions overall 44-41, including 28-13 after the second period and 14-7 in OT.
“Arsenii played great,” said UConn head coach Mike Cavanaugh, Sergeev’s former college coach, “and our guy was equally as good.”
He also thanked graduate players Schandor and Spetz for their leadership.
“They single-handedly changed and set expectations for this program,” said Cavanaugh. “They mentored a big freshman class and everyone else new in our program, and they showed what it means to be a UConn hockey player.”
Neither team scored on its only power play of the game, both occurring in regulation, or on a 4-on-4 that took place shortly after Penn State’s first goal. UConn challenged a play midway through overtime for a possible major penalty, but to no avail.
Just over nine minutes later, DiMarsico ended it in front of a de facto Penn State crowd, which waited decades for NCAA hockey after years as a national club-level powerhouse.
“They deserve it,” Gadowsky said of the Nittany Lions fans. “They give us strength, that’s for sure.
“We did this here before, and it didn’t turn out as well as this,” he added of Penn State’s previous Allentown forays. “To come out on top in this atmosphere is just awesome.”
Connor Kurth has been an offensive bright spot this season for the Gophers (photo: Kelly Hagenson).
The NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning have signed Minnesota junior forward Connor Kurth to a two-year, entry-level contract beginning with the 2025-26 season.
Kurth will report to the Syracuse Crunch and play the remainder of the 2024-25 season on an AHL tryout.
Kurth skated in 40 games with Minnesota this season, recording 18 goals and 39 points with a team-leading four game-winning tallies. The Lindstrom, Minn., native finished the campaign with a plus-31 rating, the highest among all Gopher skaters and tied for third in the NCAA. Among all Minnesota skaters, Kurth ranked first for plus/minus, second for goals and tied for second for points.
He appeared in 115 career games with the Gophers, logging 32 goals and 71 points with six game winners.
Kurth was originally drafted by Tampa Bay in the sixth round (192nd overall) of the 2022 NHL Draft.
Mike Schafer’s coaching career came to an end Saturday, and he acknowledged another longtime coach as he processed things (File photo)
TOLEDO, Ohio — Mike Schafer was going through the emotions.
He was angry after an overtime loss to Boston University on Saturday brought down the curtain on his 30-season head coaching tenure at Cornell.
He was contemplative about the state of college sports and his Big Red players’ spot in it as what he called “the truest student-athletes.”
He was self-deprecating in the admission of being “the best friggin’ coach going in the first round of the NCAA” who “just couldn’t get it done in the second round.”
And Schafer looked out into the group of people sitting in front of him in a news conference at Huntington Center, where the Big Red fell 3-2 to the Terriers, and spotted someone who knows all about the journey.
Bob Daniels, the coach at Ferris State for the last 33 years, also was on a retirement tour this season. Schafer announced this would be his last campaign at Cornell last June; Daniels made it public in January.
Daniels was on site at the regional as a member of the NCAA Division I men’s hockey committee.
“Good friend. Coached 33 years,” Schafer said from the dais. “We have a saying in our locker room and I put it on our T-shirt: ‘Only we know.’ Only we know as coaches what our wives go through, what our family goes through.
“And fans think they know; they have no idea. It’s everybody’s job, right? No one knows what an AD does or vice president or president. No one knows. So I’m grateful for our fans but I’m really grateful for the camaraderie of Bobby.”
Schafer’s career ended with a 561-300-117 record, putting him 22nd on the NCAA men’s hockey all-time coaching wins list. This year’s Big Red made an impressive run through the postseason to add to the total.
They finished sixth in ECAC Hockey after being decimated by injuries but had a lot of the pieces back in place by the postseason. Goalie Ian Shane was back in form as Cornell dumped Yale in the opening round, then went on the road to sweep Colgate.
A late rally led to an overtime win over Quinnipiac in the ECAC semifinals in Lake Placid, N.Y., and the Big Red capped off Schafer’s seventh playoff title by beating Clarkson.
Another frantic finish Thursday with a 4-3 win over Michigan State got them to the regional final, where it was heartbreak again. Cornell has lost its last eight times reaching the game before the Frozen Four since Schafer’s only trip to the NCAA semifinals in 2003.
Amid the appreciation Schafer expressed about a half-hour after the Quinn Hutson overtime goal went in, the competitor in Schafer also came through.
“I’d be lying if I didn’t say there wasn’t a lot of anger there for losing tonight,” he said.
Schafer played defense for four years at Cornell from 1982 to 1986. Then-Big Red coach Lou Reycroft gave him “the chance of a lifetime” with an assistant coaching position paying $14,000 right out of college. He stayed in that role for four seasons before going to a similar position at Western Michigan for five.
When he returned to his alma mater as head coach in 1995, the Ithaca Journal recalled a 1983 game against Harvard in which Schafer skated out after his name was called in pregame introductions and broke his stick over his head.
“The Lynah Rink crowd went berserk and Cornell ended up winning the game,” the newspaper reported.
It seems that Schafer has always been emotional in one way or another.
On Saturday, the last note was of appreciation.
“It’s given me everything,” Schafer said of coaching at Cornell. “It’s given my family everything. It’s given me joy. It’s given me security, a great place in Ithaca to raise my kids. It has done everything in life that I think any person would want. So it’s not bad: Good career and an unbelievable wife and family. That’s all you can ask for.”
Dane Jackson takes in the action during a recent UND hockey game (photo: Russell Hons).
North Dakota announced on Saturday night that Dane Jackson has been named the 17th head coach of the hockey program.
Jackson was chosen from a finalist field that included Matt Smaby, Jason Herter and Nick Fohr.
“Tonight, I could not be happier to announce Dane Jackson as our next head coach,” said UND director of athletics Bill Chaves in a statement. “Dane articulated a very clear plan in the modern landscape of Division I athletics and we look forward to supporting him in achieving the goals that he has set out for the program. Finally, I want to thank everyone who assisted and provided invaluable feedback along the way. Our candidate pool was tremendous as indicated by the four finalists but I believe this is Dane’s time to lead UND hockey.”
Jackson has spent the last 19 years on the bench for North Dakota, serving as an assistant coach before being elevated to associate head coach prior to the 2015-16 season. He has primarily coached the team’s forwards and penalty kill, while also working directly with UND’s forwards and defense on individual skill development throughout the year.
“I am very humbled and appreciative of the opportunity to become the next leader of the North Dakota hockey program,” said Jackson. “I feel fortunate of all the things that I have learned from the UND culture, and it is this special place that has shaped my playing and coaching career. I am looking forward to getting right to hard work with our staff to make our program and great University proud. I want to thank Dr. Andy Armacost, Bill Chaves and Erik Martinson for having the trust in me to lead this program.”
During his time at UND, Jackson’s penalty-killing units have annually ranked among the best in the nation and have led their conference in PK percentage seven times. UND has also ranked among the top three in its conference in 12 of the last 15 years under Jackson.
Jackson joined UND in 2006 after serving as head coach and player personnel director for the Adirondack Frostbite of the United Hockey League. Prior to coaching at Adirondack, Jackson spent two seasons as an assistant coach for the American Hockey League’s Manchester Monarchs. The Monarchs posted 102- and 109-point seasons during Jackson’s two seasons there.
A native of Castlegar, B.C., Jackson played for UND from 1988 to 1992 and registered 59 goals and 103 points in 150 career games, serving as an alternate captain as a senior. He was drafted in the third round (44th overall) by Vancouver in the 1988 NHL Draft.
After finishing his collegiate playing career, Jackson went on to enjoy an 11-year professional playing career that included stints in the NHL with the Vancouver Canucks, Buffalo Sabres and New York Islanders.
He was a captain five times during his professional playing career and won community service awards in two separate cities (Syracuse, N.Y. and Hamilton, Ontario). He was also honored with the Rochester Americans’ (AHL) Leadership and Dedication Award in 2000-01.
Western Michigan struck twice during a major power play and held on for a 2-1 victory over UMass to advance to the program’s first Frozen Four (photo: Tim Brule)
FARGO, N.D. – You can now add “Frozen Four Participant” among the achievements of the most successful season in Western Michigan hockey history.
Two goals scored on a late second-period five-minute power play got the Broncos going after a slow start, and they were able to hold on for a 2-1 victory Saturday night at Scheels Arena in the West Regional final, sending the NCHC regular season and tournament champs to both their school-record 32nd victory and their first-ever Frozen Four.
“I could not be more proud of this group or happy for them, the way they care about each other, the way they came together and the way they succeeded all season,” said fourth-year Broncos head coach Pat Ferschweiler.
Dans Locmelis scored a goal for Massachusetts to help earn himself all-region honors and Michael Hrabal made 25 saves, but a late-season run for the Minutemen ended just short of a third Frozen Four berth; they won the national championship in their previous appearance in 2021.
“I’m so proud of what we have here at UMass,” said defenseman Linden Alger, a graduate player who had been the last remaining player on the roster from the 2021 championship team. “I couldn’t thank the program enough for what they’ve given me, stuff that’ll stick with me for the rest of my life.”
“Always tough when your season ends,” said UMass head coach Greg Carvel. “Very proud of our kids.”
As the teams played each other tough throughout most of the first ten minutes, it was UMass breaking through first to go up 1-0 just over halfway through the first period. Locmelis, whose second of two assists Thursday came on Aydar Suniev’s overtime winner, continued his good play in the West Regional by scoring his eighth goal of the season. It was also the lone goal scored Saturday by either team at even strength, something that proved key at the end as Carvel noted.
“They were the better team, especially better special teams,” he said. “To me, that was the whole game.”
The Broncos looked lost offensively from that point on and when they badly needed a spark, it was Suniev who gave momentum back to the Broncos with two critical boarding penalties in the second period, the latter of which was successfully challenged by WMU into a checking-from-behind major and game misconduct at 18:14. Twenty-one seconds later, Liam Valente tied the game with a one-time blast from the top of the right circle. Then early in the third while still on the power play, Tim Washe camped in front of the net to tip home a shot from the top of the right circle by Brian Kramer to give the Broncos the lead.
“Power play this year has got to be able to decide the game,” Washe said. “And it did that for us tonight. We were able to score two. It was big.”
“Any goal lifts your team, you know, and you got to get that first goal. And then we really started to believe and come out,” Ferschweiler said. “The next one was big for us as well.”
Then came another big test in the quest for the first Frozen Four spot for WMU – killing a major themselves. Shortly after the Washe goal, Iiro Hakkarainen was penalized for contact to the head. But they were able to get the kill and keep momentum on their side.
“We want to help [Hampton Slukynsky] out and just kind of kill that clock down as much as we could,” Washe said.
The Broncos later held on with UMass pushing with the extra attacker for the final 1:49, sending the mostly WMU-pro crowd of 4,329 into a frenzy after the clock hit triple zeroes.
The Broncos will face Sunday’s Denver-Boston College winner in two weeks in St. Louis.
Hobart takes aim at a 3-peat on Sunday. (Photo Credit: Kevin Colton/Hobart)
Here we go. One final game left in what has been a sensational D3 hockey season.
Hobart and Utica will play for the title on Sunday night.
Hobart is looking to compete the 3-peat and join elite company. The Statesmen can end the year as the first team to win three in a row since Middlebury in 2006.
Utica, of course, is looking for its first title in program history.
Without further delay, here are the championship game picks from Tim and I.
Utica v. Hobart
TC – It only makes sense that the host team and defending champions should battle for the title after Friday’s dramatic semifinal round where a pair of 2-1 games determined the championship participants.
One can only hope we have a game like last year’s NCAA semifinal involving great flow and exciting hockey to cap off an amazing year of D-III hockey.
Damon Beaver will make it difficult to score for the Pioneers and the newly found defensive system in front of Ryan Piros has made it equally challenging for Utica’s opponents in the NCAA tournament so don’t think there will be offensive fireworks in this low-scoring affair.
Usually, it is a surprise player that scores the biggest goal and in this case, it might be a Shane Shell or an Austin Mourar who nets the game-winner for the three-peat for the Statesmen.
To be the champ you need to beat the champ but not on Sunday as the home team shows why they have been nationally ranked No. 1 all season and take the hardware again. – Hobart, 3-2
BL – I predicted Utica’s win over Curry in the national semifinal. Can the Pioneers pull off another surprise win? Perhaps. But it’s hard to bet against the reigning champions.
Ryan Piros has been impressive in goal and he’s going to give Utica a real shot to win this game.
Offensively, Utica has a lot of options and has scored 131 goals on the year.
Hobart has scored 125 goals and has a pretty good goalie of its own in Damon Beaver. I don’t expect a ton of goals getting scored and I can see this one being decided in overtime. In the end, Hobart wins and continues its impressive run at the top. Hobart, 2-1
That’s a wrap for picks for the season. And as Tim always says, Drop the Puck!
Boston University celebrates Quinn Hutson’s overtime goal against Cornell in the Toledo Regional final Saturday (photo: Megan Milewski).
TOLEDO, Ohio — Quinn Hutson’s shot from the right point got the job done in overtime for Boston University.
Make it three Frozen Fours in as many seasons for the Terriers after Hutson delivered 6 minutes, 25 seconds into the extra session for a 3-2 victory over Cornell on Saturday.
Now the Terriers are looking to take the next step and get past the national semifinals.
Hutson got a pass back from Ryan Greene along the right boards and teed up a slap shot that eluded the block attempt of Cornell’s Tyler Catalano at the top of the crease and goalie Ian Shane.
“I just froze,” Hutson said. “I figured it went when everyone was celebrating. It was a great feeling.”
Boston University (23-13-2) is 3-for-3 in making the Frozen Four under coach Jay Pandolfo, who also appeared there four times in four seasons as a Terriers player in the 1990s.
BU will make its 25th Frozen Four appearance with a semifinal against the winner of the Allentown Regional, either UConn or Penn State, on April 10 in St. Louis.
“We have a special group of players, guys that have a lot of talent,” Pandolfo said. “Our young guys have played in big moments coming into Boston University, so that’s helped them. It’s fun to coach these guys. It’s a challenge sometimes but at the end of the day these guys are great players and they want to win and they want to do what’s right for the team. And you saw that tonight.”
Cornell (19-11-6) has lost eight straight regional finals since its last Frozen Four appearance in 2003, and this defeat ended the coaching career of Mike Schafer after 30 seasons. He announced last June that he was retiring after this campaign; Casey Jones is set to take over.
“I asked these guys are you willing to commit yourself fully … without knowing the end result,” Schafer said. “I think that’s the key to success and happiness as an athlete, as a person. Man, these guys did that.
“They got knocked out their sophomore year, knocked out last year, knocked out again this year. They didn’t get what they wanted, which is a national championship. Everybody wants it. But to absolutely do everything in your will — eat, train, compete — that’s an ideal team. And I have the ideal team.”
Jack O’Leary tied it at 2-2 with 5:30 remaining for the Big Red after Cole Hutson put BU ahead with a power-play goal in the opening minute of the third period.
Cole Hutson looped around the top of the zone to the left side and fired just before he got to the goal line. The puck snuck in the small window of space up high on the near side, next to Shane’s head.
“He called his number on that play, I’m just going to tell you right now,” Pandolfo said.
Cornell got a power play with 8:52 remaining after BU’s Matt Copponi was called for tripping. The Big Red’s Ondrej Psenicka set up for a deflection in the slot but it went just wide right.
O’Leary helped start the play that tied it a few minutes later, however, poking the puck free along the boards. He got it back from Tim Rego on the left side and spun into the slot for a shot that kissed the left post on its way in.
“I thought we played with some pretty good pace throughout a lot of our pushes,” Cornell defenseman Hank Kempf said. “Even in overtime, we had some good looks. Their goalie came up big a few times and sometimes the bounces just didn’t go our way.”
The Terriers regrouped after O’Leary’s tying goal, and Quinn Hutson said the team’s experience of pulling itself together goes back to November, when it rallied from a 3-1 deficit after two periods to beat Notre Dame for the Friendship Four title.
“We’ve been coming from behind in games all year,” he said. “We don’t get nervous when we go down. We’re always playing to the very end, and we did that tonight.”
Video replay had an impact on two calls in the opening period.
BU got a five-minute power play with two minutes left before the intermission after officials reviewed a post-whistle scrum during a TV timeout and ruled Ryan Walsh guilty of a face mask penalty. Under the wording of Rule 47, a major penalty without a game misconduct meant the referees saw Walsh’s open hand move back and forth against a BU player’s face mask; any grabbing or twisting is supposed to be a major and a game misconduct or disqualification.
The Big Red killed the first two minutes of the penalty before the intermission with six saves from Shane, one with his glove on Greene in front of the net. Cornell got a two-minute reprieve when BU’s Devin Kaplan was called for slashing at the end of the period. The Terriers attempted only one shot in the final minute after the power play resumed.
A Cornell challenge prompted a video review that gave the Big Red a brief first-period lead. BU goalie Mikhail Yegorov got his blocker on a Dalton Bancroft shot from the left side on a rush but the rebound popped into the slot.
Walsh, driving to the crease, had the puck bounce off his body and into the net. The goal was immediately waved off by the referee, who indicated a hand pass to score.
But the referees overturned the call after a lengthy review. Rule 83.6.2 allows goals off the body or hand to stand if they’re not directed in deliberately.
The Terriers had a quick response. Matt Copponi drove up the middle of the ice past Kempf and got off a shot that Shane turned away with his left pad. The puck rebounded in off Kempf’s skate, completing the pair of unusual goals in the opening frame.
Shane (40 saves) and Yegorov (37) were strong throughout a scoreless second period. Shane turned away Jack Hughes’ shot from close range just over six minutes into the frame and stayed with Jack Harvey on a final-minute breakaway to stop the shot with his right pad.
Cornell’s Jake Kraft got off a shot and a rebound try before he collided with Yegorov.
Boston University’s top line of Shane Lachance, Ryan Greene and Quinn Hutson was on the ice when Cornell equalized in the third period. It was no coincidence to Pandolfo that the same trio was responsible for the winner.
“That’s when you learn about our players and our team,” he said. “I knew they wanted to get that goal back, and they did.”
