Chris Lerch

Well, it wouldn’t be the NCAA selection process without some controversy, and there was plenty this time around, albeit the same complaints that have surfaced the past few seasons. Once again the events of last weekend produced a 6-3 East-West split, forcing the three Western teams, St. Norbert, Wisconsin-River Falls and St. Thomas, to play … Read more

Down to the wire in Division III, and Chris Lerch might have the selections all figured out as we await the official word.

Championship Week It comes down to this. Twenty-two Division III teams left; there will be just nine standing on Sunday. Seven conference championships to be decided. Does it get any better than this? Let’s take a look at each of the weekend’s tournaments. ECAC East Where: Northfield, VT When: Semifinals are Saturday, March 6, 1 … Read more

While there are some huge games this weekend, including the SUNYAC semifinals, the ECAC East, ECAC Northeast and NESCAC quarterfinals and the MCHA tournament, this is also somewhat of a slow week. Twenty teams have completed their seasons, and playoff-bound squads from the NCHA and ECAC West have a bye week before their final showdowns. … Read more

A Letter from Bill Bowes This past weekend, I got a call from Bill Bowes, the former Wentworth head coach who was dismissed on January 30. He requested that USCHO.com publish a statement from him to the college hockey community concerning his situation. Here it is, unedited and in its entirety: Dear Chris, As you … Read more

The Tie’s the Limit Watching the scores come in over the past few weeks in Division III, I’ve been noticing what I thought was an inordinate number of ties. Asking around, other fans and coaches agreed. Time to get out the ol’ slide rule. 1998-99: 53 ties 1999-00: 60 2000-01: 56 2001-02: 64 2002-03: 71 … Read more

Learning How to Win Nearing the home stretch of the season, some Cinderellas have heard the stroke of midnight and have fallen by the wayside. A few are still partying. At Geneseo, the Knights are unbeaten in their last nine games, good enough for a No. 14 ranking in the latest USCHO.com Division III poll. … Read more

Change Is Good In my last two columns, I outlined proposed changes that would negatively affect Division III hockey. But not all change is bad, of course. Case in point — the NCAA has modified its tournament selection process for this and future seasons, and the changes should eliminate some of the issues that have … Read more

Scoreboard It was mostly good news from the NCAA convention — the Division III membership saw through many of the Division III reform proposals and shot them down. In summary: The grandfathered Division III schools playing at the Division I level that offer scholarships will continue to do so. This is a major victory for … Read more

Here It Comes On January 12, delegates from Division III institutions will vote, and are expected to pass, a sweeping reform package know as “The Future of Division III.” From a D-III hockey standpoint, the future looks bleak if this plan is adopted. Unfortunately, it looks like it will pass. This issue is so important … Read more

Tournament Time So did you miss it? The holidays were a nice distraction, but did you miss college hockey? Sure, if you’ve got satellite, there were some great D-I tournaments to check out, but D-III was on break from December 14 to December 27. Now it’s tournament time for D-III, and some good ones were … Read more

Crazy? I’ll Show Ya Crazy! In last week’s column, I opened by saying that in the opinion of many coaches and fans, this Division III season has been “crazy.” Well, we’re now bordering on “insane.” Cases in point: 1. Four of the top five teams in the USCHO poll lost last weekend. Combined record of … Read more

“It’s Crazy” That’s what I’ve been hearing from coaches and fans throughout the first third of the 2003-2004 season. Surprises are everywhere: Crowded poll — A whopping 25 teams received votes in this week’s USCHO.com Division III Poll, over a third of the programs out there. The lack of a consensus on the top teams … Read more

Finally, the Gang’s All Here For some patient fans, the Division III hockey season starts this weekend, a full six weeks after teams from other conferences began play. The last 20 of the 74 Division II and Division III teams kick things off as the NESCAC, ECAC East and St. John’s from the MIAC finally … Read more

Is It February Already? It just seems that way. One of the major grudge matches in Division III hockey, traditionally reserved for the final showdown of the regular season, happens Friday night when Elmira invades RIT’s Ritter Arena for the 65th meeting between the two schools. The Tigers lead the series 31-29-4. Elmira is coming … Read more

Starting on a High Note The D-III season got off to a lively start last weekend with a pair of marquee matchups. Elmira, ranked 10th in the USCHO.com preseason poll, played a home and away series with second ranked Oswego. Number three St. Norbert traveled to RIT for a pair of games. In each case, … Read more