Tim CostelloWith the weeks counting down to the all important conference playoffs at the end of February, some teams are starting to get on the roll that many predicted would carry them to the top of the league standings at the beginning of the year. Middlebury and Norwich are prime examples. Still others are finding their … Read more
This week brings us to the unofficial halfway point in the season. Based on what amounts to about an average of a 25 game schedule per team, this weekend puts most teams across the halfway mark and really turns the focus on making an impact in league play. As Colby coach Jim Tortorella puts it: … Read more
Happy New Year! Can’t you just see the confetti, the ball, er puck, dropping at the stroke of midnight over and over again in a scene reminiscent of Bill Murray in Groundhog Day? Over and over again in flashbacks, the league coaches have had various amounts of time during the holiday break to think about … Read more
As Yogi Berra once said, “90 percent of the game is mental.†For many of the teams starting out this season, they are learning that there is much more in play for their teams than just their physical capabilities and talent on the ice. In fact, both good and bad, the mental approach to how … Read more
The season is finally underway and after one weekend of conference play and some terrific tournaments over the Thanksgiving holiday, the ultra-competitive nature of the league is already showing through just the first handful of games. Quick: name the only team without a blemish (loss or a tie) on their record in the first couple … Read more
The other half of the interlocking leagues, NESCAC also starts this week with their ECAC East partners with the level of competition in this league no different top to bottom which is going to make for some very interesting results. Last season saw the top five teams separated by just three points and virtually all … Read more
FINALLY!!! Let’s play some hockey. Last season saw dramatic improvement from a number of programs that had every fan wondering what the scores would be from virtually every match up. The league was so tight that going into the last weekend of the regular season only three points separated the top five teams in the … Read more
It has become a rite of spring in the D-III hockey world when the Middlebury Panthers advance to the Frozen Four and a shot at winning another ice hockey national championship. This year the spring indicators took awhile to come to the forefront and while this team seems to be a late bloomer, they are … Read more
The defending three-time national champions find themselves in an interesting position this season as they start the tournament with a play-in game against the SUNYAC champions — the Fredonia Blue Devils. Having won their fourth consecutive NESCAC championship with wins over Colby and Bowdoin this past weekend, coach Bill Beaney likes what he is seeing … Read more
And then there were four … Per league that is … Each league can now focus on just two more games in search of a conference champion and automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. That said nobody is putting the cart before the horse and all of the coaches are only focused on one game … Read more
The Playoffs Are Here!! The Playoffs Are Here!! Yes after a hard fought regular season with more twists and turns than a roller coaster at Six Flags, the playoffs have arrived and lest anyone think that the outcomes are predictable, take a listen to what the coaches think this time around. Freshman Ryan Howarth looks … Read more
The Final Countdown How’s this for exciting on the last weekend of the season? The top five teams in NESCAC are separated by only two points entering the final two games of the regular season. Teams six through eight are separated by just one point and the ninth place team is still mathematically alive for … Read more
Things are really getting tight now in the East. When you look at both leagues, the separation from first to sixth is only three points in the East and just six points in the NESCAC conference. That means with just four games remaining in the regular season that everything is up for grabs in terms … Read more
Groundhog Day! Pretty sure that most teams are hoping to see their shadow today and extend winter for another six weeks! More winter should mean some more hockey and great hockey at that coming into the playoffs. Hard to believe there are only three weeks left in the regular season but if you are going … Read more
Groundhog Day! Pretty sure that most teams are hoping to see their shadow today and extend winter for another six weeks! More winter should mean some more hockey and great hockey at that coming into the playoffs. Hard to believe there are only three weeks left in the regular season but if you are going … Read more
“Boy is this great!” A line made famous by Flounder during the climactic homecoming parade scene in Animal House pretty much sums up how most coaches, players and fans feel about the level of play and moves in the standings seen in the two conferences this season. Hard to believe there is only a month’s … Read more
The formation of a ninth Division III men’s hockey league will take eight MASCAC and Little East programs from two ECAC leagues. ECAC Interim Commissioner Steve Bamford gives USCHO an exclusive take on what that will mean.
Shaken and Stirred I’ve toyed with the notion of a fancifully-written opening that would make the intro to any James Bond film pale in comparison but alas, my own words do fail in evoking any comparison that reflects appropriately on the level of competition seen this year in collegiate hockey in New England. The Bond-derived … Read more
Not quite halfway through this year’s schedule and the topsy-turvy, rollercoaster ride we call the 2006-07 season continues to boggle the minds of players, fans and coaches alike. What’s the biggest element missing among teams looking to play well on a more regular basis? Consistency! This isn’t just “coach speak.” If you look at the … Read more
HAPPY NEW YEAR! Well here we are in the first week of 2007 and several teams are already out on the ice having played in tournaments over the holidays before the competition of league play begins yet again this weekend. The break really hasn’t been long enough for too much rust to settle in on … Read more