Chris Lerch

Chris Lerch has been writing for USCHO since 1999, first as D-III columnist, then covering Atlantic Hockey for the past 24 seasons.

This Week in Atlantic Hockey: With RIT soon to be able to offer athletic scholarships, Wilson says ‘it was common sense’ for resolution to pass

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Rochester Institute of Technology coach Wayne Wilson got some good news on Saturday, when the NCAA Division III membership passed a resolution to allow multi-divisional institutions, including RIT and Union, to offer scholarships for their men’s and women’s hockey programs. The schools had been competing in Division I without the benefit of scholarships since 2005 … Read more

This Week in Atlantic Hockey: Discussing which conference teams are playoff contenders, pretenders as second half in full swing

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With just over 50 percent (54.6 percent to be exact) of the Atlantic Hockey schedule in the books, and nonconference play completed (with the exception of Sacred Heart defending its Connecticut Ice title on Jan. 29-30), it’s now a sprint to the finish. How’s the race shaping up? If you aren’t a subscriber to the … Read more

This Week in Atlantic Hockey: With just five wins in ’21-22, Mercyhurst ‘might have deserved better in some of those games’

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There’s a saying in sports (and life): “You get what you deserve”. In hockey, that means points in the standings after a hard-fought victory, as well as a loss resulting from a disappointing effort. But there’s another saying: “Life isn’t fair.” Sometimes, you have the effort and the correct game plan, but the puck doesn’t … Read more

This Week in Atlantic Hockey: Army West Point reloads in goal as Abric giving Black Knights ‘a boatload of confidence’

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If there’s a downside of having an All-American goaltender, it’s that your other goalies might not get many chances to develop their in-game skills. That was the case last season for Army West Point, which rode Trevin Kozlowski to a second-place finish in Atlantic Hockey. The senior played 20 out of 23 games last season … Read more

This Week in Atlantic Hockey: Taking stock of the conference at the 2021-22 midseason break

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It hasn’t quite been a return to normal in college hockey this season, because “normal” has been difficult to define. But Atlantic Hockey has managed to play every league game scheduled, in front of fans, so that’s something to be grateful for. Let’s take a look at where things stand at roughly the halfway point … Read more

This Week in Atlantic Hockey: Air Force ‘feeling good about ourselves,’ ends fall semester on high note

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Air Force coach Frank Serratore knows his team is a work in progress. He pointed out at the beginning of his season that the Falcons were one of, if not the youngest team in Division I, with 17 underclassmen on the roster and just one senior. And that’s in a year where most teams are … Read more

This Week in Atlantic Hockey: Half-dozen conference newcomers making their mark during early part of ’21-22 season

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Thanksgiving marks the unofficial end of the “early” part of the college hockey season, and it’s at this point that we usually look at freshmen who have made a big impact for their teams and the league in general. But this year is unique, at least in terms of rookies. About a dozen players in … Read more

Monday 10: RIT’s Wilson gets win No. 400, Long Island nets first D-I victory of ’21-22, top-ranked Minnesota State falters against Lake Superior State

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Each week, USCHO.com will pick the top 10 moments from the past weekend in our Monday 10 feature. 1. No. 1 goes down … again Four the third consecutive week, the team atop the USCHO Division I poll suffered a loss. On Friday, Lake Superior State outlasted top-ranked Minnesota State 1-0. The Mavericks’ All-American goaltender … Read more

This Week in Atlantic Hockey: Niagara steps out of conference play, faces tough challenge this weekend at Michigan

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Niagara is not shying away from stiff competition. The Purple Eagles’ nonconference schedule is shaping up to be the most difficult in Atlantic Hockey: Two games at North Dakota Two games at Penn State Two games at Michigan Two games at Notre Dame American International’s non-league schedule comes close (Quinnipiac, UMass, Providence), but at least … Read more

This Week in Atlantic Hockey: With 13 of first 15 games away from home, Sacred Heart squad proving to be early-season road warriors

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Sacred Heart opened the 2021-22 season with five straight road games before the Pioneers played their first homestand of the season Oct. 29-30 at Webster Bank Arena, a split with Niagara. Then it was back on the road for C.J. Marottolo’s team, which won’t play another home game until 2022 – January 1 to be … Read more

This Week in Atlantic Hockey: American International benefiting from tough early schedule at start of ’21-22 season

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When discussing American International, his opponent last weekend, Rochester Institute of Technology coach Wayne Wilson referred to the Yellow Jackets as “battle tested.” AIC is just nine games into the 2021-22 campaign but has already squared off with No. 12 Providence, No. 9 Massachusetts (twice), No. 5 Quinnipiac (twice) as well as series against Army … Read more

This Week in Atlantic Hockey: RIT seeing marked improvement early in 2021-22 season, but ‘still evolving’

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At 4-2-2, Rochester Institute of Technology is off to a strong start. The only Atlantic Hockey team currently over .500 overall, the Tigers sit atop the Atlantic Hockey standings, three points ahead of Mercyhurst. RIT took five of six points from the Lakers at home last weekend. While head coach Wayne Wilson isn’t completely satisfied … Read more

This Week in Atlantic Hockey: Holy Cross notches first win of the season, first for new coach Riga

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New Holy Cross coach Bill Riga is a rookie in a league known for coaching longevity. The average tenure for an Atlantic Hockey coach is currently 15 seasons, and the last change was the addition of Canisius’ Trevor Large and Niagara’s Jason Lammers five years ago. It’s the first collegiate head coaching stint for Riga, … Read more

This Week in Atlantic Hockey: Transfers already making a difference for conference teams in early going of ’21-22 season

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The new NCAA rule allowing transferring players a one-time exemption from having to sit out a year has had a sweeping impact on college hockey this season. When combined with an extra year of eligibility due to COVID-19, we saw an unprecedented number of players changing teams this past offseason. At one time, there were … Read more

This Week in Atlantic Hockey: The almighty transfer portal and rise of the super-senior

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Depending on who you talk to, the new NCAA rules around player movement, the ability to transfer and play immediately plus the extra year of eligibility players have been given due to the pandemic, are making things better…or in some cases, worse for college hockey. Players now have more choice and control over their college … Read more

Atlantic Hockey 2021-22 Season Preview: Conference parity a strong suit as teams look to get back to normal in ’21-22

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At the Atlantic Hockey media day last week, the word “normal” kept coming up in conversations with the league’s coaches. We’re not there yet, but hopefully moving in the right direction as the 2021-22 season gets underway. Teams are back to most of their pre-pandemic routines, but this offseason, while not as bizarre as the … Read more

Atlantic Hockey Picks: March 19-20

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At A Glance: Last week’s record: 3-6 Overall Record: 73-41-2   This Week’s Picks*: *All games are subject to change. Atlantic Hockey Tournament Semifinal Round Friday, March 19 Canisius vs. Army West Point Dan: It would take a crazy person to pick against the Black Knights given how they’ve played over the past couple of … Read more