Drew Claussen
For Minnesota fans, the next chapter of a popular rivalry is one thing to be thankful for this weekend. The No. 11 Gophers will travel to Ralph Engelstad Arena to play No. 6 North Dakota on Friday and Saturday. “This is probably one of the great rivalries in college hockey, North Dakota and Minnesota,” Gophers … Read more
A 6-4 victory over North Dakota in Nashville put a bow on the early portion of the Penn State’s nonconference schedule and gave the Nittany Lions a 6-1-0 record. The start of the Big Ten schedule hasn’t been as kind to the team from Hockey Valley. A trip to Minneapolis gives Penn State another chance … Read more
Each week, USCHO.com will pick the top 10 moments from the past weekend in our Monday 10 feature. 1. Second-ranked Michigan stays hot, sweeps No. 19 Penn State on road After splitting two series to end October, Michigan has now swept two to start November. The Wolverines downed Penn State 5-1 on Thursday and completed … Read more
There are numerous ways one can describe a hockey team. Jeff Jackson, though, would appreciate it if people stopped using one term to describe Notre Dame. “I really hate when people say we’re a defensive team,” Jackson said Monday night. “We’re a puck-possession team, in my opinion. We really focus on our ability to possess … Read more
Michigan State defeated Michigan in a – let’s just keep things simple and say entertaining – football game last weekend. Spartans’ head coach Danton Cole was asked if his team could possibly feed off that energy and keep things rolling when the two schools meet in a home-and-home series on the ice this weekend. “Well, … Read more
When the coaches poll came out in September, the Big Ten opener between the teams predicted to finish sixth and seventh probably didn’t cause many to bust out the Sharpie. That being said, both Ohio State and Michigan State have, at least to a point, navigated their early-season nonconference schedule successfully and will be looking … Read more
Minnesota hasn’t played an in-state rival for conference points since March of 2013, but in the middle of back-to-back series against St. Cloud State and Minnesota Duluth, it feels like we’ve been transported back a couple years. The Gophers and Bulldogs will face off in a home-and-home bout this weekend with Friday’s game being played … Read more
Their roster makeup is quite different, Mel Pearson hails from Canada and Scott Sandelin is from Minnesota’s Iron Range, and nobody is going to confuse Ann Arbor and the Twin Ports. Even if not much else is the same, Michigan would probably like to emulate Minnesota Duluth’s season-ending results from the last half-decade or so. … Read more
As the sudden cancelation of the 2019-20 season and the general, let’s say, quirkiness of last year gets put in the rearview, everyone is hoping for a more normal Big Ten season this year. Saying more normal instead of 100 percent normal is already necessary as during the process of writing this piece a nonconference … Read more
Minnesota has called itself the state of hockey for years now, but even someone who rolls their eyes at the saying would have to admit that it rang true in college hockey this season.
What else would you call a state that put all five Division I programs into the 16-team postseason tournament and will make up 75 percent of the Frozen Four?
Another sign of how much things have changed, as if one was needed, was evident in Sunday’s conversation with Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren.
When Warren took over at the helm of the conference in January 2020, a college hockey reporter opening an interview with a line of questions about an infectious disease wouldn’t have been normal.
Such is life for the Big Ten, and sports in general, these days.
It’s the final weekend of the Big Ten regular season and we’ve got ourselves a title race. In a year where it seems like a treat to have games actually played as schedules, it’s hard to ask for anything more. The Gophers and Badgers have a shot at the title and the other five teams … Read more
There’s no denying that Dylan St. Cyr has earned his opportunity in net.
Notre Dame’s senior netminder appeared in only 11 contests during his first three seasons on campus after being a mainstay for the USA Hockey National Team Development Program the two years prior.
Each week, USCHO.com will pick the top 10 moments from the past weekend in our Monday 10 feature.
With about a month to go before the Big Ten Tournament, and the growing possibility that there will be some sort of mathematic formula used to figure out the tournament seeds, the top teams in the Big Ten have an opportunity to gain some separation from the rest of the pack this weekend. Let’s look … Read more
With Wisconsin coming into town, Michigan didn’t exactly get to ease back into things after a COVID-19-related pause forced it to take 22 days off.
Notre Dame recently learned that it will be skating on home ice for the Big Ten tournament at the end of the season.
Now, the Fighting Irish have 10 games to put themselves in the best possible position for said tournament, starting with this weekend on the road against Ohio State.
Another week winding down and another weekend of hockey on the horizon. Sadly, the situation going on at the University of Michigan reminds us that the latter is still not a guarantee. The Wolverines were scheduled to have this weekend off, and Arizona State is spending some well-deserved time at home, so we have three … Read more
The lack of continuity for Penn State led to an 0-5 start, but the Nittany Lions have won seven of their last nine contests and are coming off their first conference sweep of the season after taking down Michigan State at home last weekend.
There is six inches of fresh snow here in Minnesota and it’s still falling, which is a great excuse to stay inside this weekend and enjoy the full slate of college hockey that’s on the schedule. And the NHL is back! Exciting times indeed. First let’s check on how Paula and I did last week. … Read more