Tim Costello
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 … Read more
What a difference a week makes, at least on the scoreboard, as Norwich made up for a 2-1 loss in the conference championship game with Babson by posting a 4-0 win in last weekend’s NCAA quarterfinal that earned the Cadets a fourth-straight trip to the Frozen Four. The win over a game Babson squad was … Read more
First Round – Wednesday, March 6 (Campus sites) Wentworth at Babson Shaun Jameson has been great for the Leopards all season but Zeke Testa is on one of those magical runs as a goaltender and that’s enough for the Beavers at home. Babson 4-2 Massachusetts-Dartmouth at Bowdoin Bowdoin has too much speed … Read more
First Round – Wednesday, March 6 (Campus sites) Wentworth at Babson Shaun Jameson has been great for the Leopards all season but Zeke Testa is on one of those magical runs as a goaltender and that’s enough for the Beavers at home. Babson 4-2 Massachusetts-Dartmouth at Bowdoin Bowdoin has too much speed … Read more
Playing in their third conference championship game in the past four seasons was the charm for coach Jamie Rice and his Babson men’s ice hockey team. A hard-fought, 2-1 win, backstopped by resurgent senior goaltender Zeke Testa, earned the Beavers the automatic bid into the NCAA tournament and a first-round game at home against the … Read more
Norwich’s four-for-four conference tournament bid went awry when Babson and goaltender Zeke Testa eked out a 2-1 victory in Northfield in a game where the Cadets outshot their opponents by a 40-13 margin. Sometimes having the better of the play isn’t enough against a hot goaltender and a team that has had Norwich’s number this … Read more
The smiles that one sees on the faces of Bowdoin hockey players, even after the most grueling of workouts, really aren’t much different than those of elation seen after Sunday’s 2-1 win over Williams College for the NESCAC Conference championship. If it involves playing hockey, this Bowdoin team knows how to have fun playing the … Read more
The quarterfinal picks finished at 3-1-0 (.750) last weekend, and the dreaded 4/5 game did me in. Admittedly, I should never rule out Middlebury come tournament time as the Panthers have been in the title game 11 of 12 times in the NESCAC tournament’s history. My overall record is at 51-20-8 (.696), so I have … Read more
A 3-1-0 (.750) weekend was only spoiled by my inability to pick the travel partner game between Skidmore and Castleton. The overall season numbers are really good at 59-20-9 (.722). All will be for nothing if I don’t close the deal this week on the picks that really mean everything to teams looking for hardware … Read more
The quarterfinal picks finished at 3-1-0 (.750) last weekend, and the dreaded 4/5 game did me in. Admittedly, I should never rule out Middlebury come tournament time as the Panthers have been in the title game 11 of 12 times in the NESCAC tournament’s history. My overall record is at 51-20-8 (.696), so I have … Read more
A 3-1-0 (.750) weekend was only spoiled by my inability to pick the travel partner game between Skidmore and Castleton. The overall season numbers are really good at 59-20-9 (.722). All will be for nothing if I don’t close the deal this week on the picks that really mean everything to teams looking for hardware … Read more
A different team will be celebrating this year’s NESCAC championship and automatic NCAA bid, following the elimination of last season’s title holder Amherst in its quarterfinal with Middlebury. The number one seed and host Bowdoin Polar Bears are hoping to repeat the magic from just two years ago, but will have their work cut out … Read more
Wow! What a surprise! The ECAC East championship once again goes through Northfield, Vt., and Kreitzburg Arena, the home of the top seed and number one team in the country, the Norwich Cadets. That said, the top four assembled in Vermont for Friday and Saturday all have visions of claiming the league crown, and their … Read more
So, my final regular season picks finished at 4-2-0 (.667). Admittedly I would have never predicted the outcome of the 10-5 Trinity win over Bowdoin in Monday’s make-up game, so I am hoping to really get it right for the playoffs. My overall record finished at 48-19-8 (.693), so I missed the 70 percent target … Read more
So, my final regular season picks finished at 4-2-0 (.667). Admittedly I would have never predicted the outcome of the 10-5 Trinity win over Bowdoin in Monday’s make-up game, so I am hoping to really get it right for the playoffs. My overall record finished at 48-19-8 (.693), so I missed the 70 percent target … Read more
A 3-1-2 (.583) weekend wrapped up the regular season and showcased some of the challenges in picking games right with so much riding on the outcome. The overall season numbers finish at a very respectable 56-19-9 (.720). A pretty solid performance for the regular season is nice, but let’s see if there is any correlation … Read more
A 3-1-2 (.583) weekend wrapped up the regular season and showcased some of the challenges in picking games right with so much riding on the outcome. The overall season numbers finish at a very respectable 56-19-9 (.720). A pretty solid performance for the regular season is nice, but let’s see if there is any correlation … Read more
On paper, the semifinals one could imagine bring a lot of drama to the playoffs for the ECAC East. Just hold on a minute there though. Let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves, because there could be some giant killers along the way to upset any purists hope for the top four convening in … Read more
With the final playoff seedings only being determined after Monday’s make-up game between Trinity and Bowdoin, the quarterfinals are now set for the NESCAC tournament. While not every team qualified for postseason play, the final games went a long way in determining who was in and out, and who stayed home vs. getting on a … Read more
It may have been used a lot over the past week, but Nemo found New England and really altered the playing schedule. That is no excuse for my picks, which finished at 3-1-1 (.700), but trying to keep things normal and consistent is one thing coaches are determined to do at this point of the … Read more