Site AdministratorNine coaches who have enjoyed on-ice success in 2008-09 have been named finalists for the Spencer Penrose Award, given annually to the NCAA Division I men’s ice hockey coach of the year. Finalists were those either voted Coach of the Year in their conferences or who guided their teams to the NCAA Frozen Four. Noteworthy … Read more
More Than a Win Despite what had to be a crushing defeat, being so close to a Frozen Four berth and coming up empty-handed, Cornell head coach Mike Schafer saw more significance to Bemidji State’s triumph than just a ticket to Washington, D.C. “A big congratulations to Bemidji and Tom Serratore and their whole team,” … Read more
Setting the Alarm Timing is everything, especially in the playoff stretch, and teams — and for that matter, individual players — can’t always bring their A-games. Before Saturday, BU rookie Corey Trivino only had four goals, but in the NCAAs he’s potted two goals in two games, which includes one of two for the Terriers … Read more
Bemidji State struck for two first period goals, added another in the second period and never looked back, surprising No. 1 seed and nationally second-ranked Notre Dame, 5-1, in their NCAA Midwest Regional semifinal at Van Andel Arena Saturday night. It was a night of firsts for the Beavers — their first NCAA tournament victory … Read more
The play seemed innocent enough. A shot sailed from the point toward the goal before deflecting off the boards. Play continued, and, except for a few anxious cries from the Vermont bench, no one thought anything of it. The game didn’t stop for another five minutes, when a UVM player collapsed on top of Air … Read more
Faceoff Artist When asked how they can improve their faceoff draws in Sunday’s Midwest Regional final, Cornell head coach Mike Schafer didn’t hesitate. “It’s really easy. We’re not going to have to play against Joe Vitale. We heard he was good coming into the game. He was unbelievable. He must have been near 90 percent … Read more
Perhaps it was Chris Sarandon who said it best, as Prince Humperdink in “The Princess Bride.” “There was a mighty duel. They ranged all over. They were both masters.” With top seed Michigan and homestanding Yale both eliminated on the first day of the 2009 NCAA East Regional, it would have been understandable had Saturday’s … Read more
Cutting it close would be an understatement. Third seed New Hampshire rocketed into the Northeast Regional finals in a 6-5 overtime thriller against second-seeded North Dakota Saturday. Thomas Fortney’s goal with 0.1 seconds left in regulation and Peter LeBlanc’s game winner 45 seconds into OT roused the 6,838 in attendance at the Verizon Wireless Arena … Read more
The shot totals don’t seem that high, and the goal totals weren’t really all that low. Nonetheless, Brad Thiessen of Northeastern and Ben Scrivens of Cornell both were instrumental in dictating the outcome of their first round matchup in Grand Rapids, Mich. “I thought the billing the two goaltenders lived up to it. I thought … Read more
The four teams at the East Regional this year share plenty of history — some well-known, some less so. Elliot Olshansky is on site at Harbor Yard.
Following No. 4 Air Force’s 2-0 win over No. 1 Michigan, Falcons’ coach Frank Serratorre recalled seasons past when there was something lacking from his team. It was a large void, and, until Friday’s matchup with No. 1 Michigan in the opening game of the East Regional, it was impossible to know whether it was … Read more
If there’s one thing that defines the 2009 NCAA Tournament field, it’s new faces. With tournament regulars Boston College, Michigan State, Colorado College, Minnesota and Wisconsin all staying home this year, it opens the door for several teams whose players had never been to the NCAAs; Ohio State is back for the first time since … Read more
Jacques Lamoureux had been waiting for this game for two years. He’d seen Michigan before, of course. As a freshman at Northern Michigan, Lamoureux was on the ice for two games at Yost Arena in January 2007, helping the Wildcats earn a split against the Wolverines. However, it was after his season in Marquette was … Read more
If it wasn’t already abundantly clear from their shared histories how close Denver coach George Gwozdecky and Miami coach Enrico Blasi are, that story got another chapter in the makeshift media room at Mariucci Arena. First, Gwozdecky took his turn in emotionally describing his relationship with his former player and assistant coach. Then Blasi did … Read more
Much like its biblical predecessor, this David and Goliath matchup between fourth-seeded Air Force and top-seeded Michigan ended in monumental upset. The Falcons converted early on their limited chances and rode extraordinary goaltending from Andrew Volkening to a 2-0 victory over the heavily-favored Wolverines for their first ever NCAA Tournament victory. “Obviously this is a … Read more
Vermont’s opponent wasn’t at all a common one. The third-seeded Catamounts don’t play the East Regional’s No. 2 seed, Yale, regularly — not since UVM joined Hockey East prior to the 2005-06 season, anyway. Still, UVM coach Kevin Sneddon’s game plan strangled the Yale forecheckers, forcing them to play a game he knew his Catamounts … Read more
Boston University senior defenseman Matt Gilroy has been named the winner of the 57th annual Walter Brown Award, presented to the best American-born Division I player in New England, Gridiron Club of Greater Boston president Steve Grogan announced Friday. Gilroy, a native of North Bellmore, N.Y., is the Terriers’ co-captain and one of a talented … Read more
Defending national champion Boston College may have missed this year’s NCAA tournament, but 2008 runner-up Notre Dame is very much alive this time around. Unlike last season — when Notre Dame battled its way to the title game as a number-four seed — the Fighting Irish won’t be taking anyone by surprise this time around. … Read more
The puck drops on the first game of the NCAA tournament Friday afternoon in Connecticut when Michigan and Air Force hit the ice in the East Regional semifinals. Neither team is a stranger to this stage: the Wolverines are making their umpteenth consecutive national-tourney appearance while the Falcons have won the Atlantic Hockey autobid three … Read more
The No. 1 team in the nation and the NCAA tournament’s overall top seed goes for a perfect ending to a near-perfect season starting this weekend. Boston University, which already has titles in the Ice Breaker Invitational, the Denver Cup and the Beanpot as well as the Hockey East regular-season and playoff crowns to its … Read more