Jack Hittinger

Jack Hittinger has been covering college hockey since 2012, when he started as the Bemidji State beat writer at the Bemidji Pioneer. Since then he has covered both incarnations of the men's and women's WCHA as well as the new edition of the CCHA. He is currently the CCHA columnist for USCHO, where he has been writing since 2014. He lives in the Twin Cities area with his wife and dog.

Monday 10: Long Island splits with Vermont, Minnesota shuts out Michigan on back-to-back nights, Minnesota State unbeaten in nine, Western Michigan-Denver series provides excitement

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Each week, USCHO.com will pick the top 10 moments from the past weekend in our Monday 10 feature. 1. Minnesota blanks Michigan twice The sentence “Michigan was shut out on back-to-back nights” isn’t very common in the English language. In fact, the last time that happened in a series was way, WAY back in January … Read more

This Week in CCHA Hockey: Mullahy finding groove in Michigan Tech crease, just wants to be ‘reliable rock back there in the net’ after replacing Pietila in junior, college

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When Derek Mullahy arrived in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for his first year of USHL junior hockey in 2019, he knew the Roughriders were going to be looking for a goaltender. Their previous netminder had just been a workhorse for them in the previous, playing in 47 games and leading them to a Clark Cup playoff … Read more

This Week in CCHA Hockey: Finding the need ‘to play a certain way’ has made Bemidji State’s Irey a go-to forward for Beavers

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Up until two weeks ago, Kirklan Irey would have described his season as inconsistent. The Bemidji State junior winger had only scored one goal in nine games coming into BSU’s nonconference series against third-ranked Minnesota. In game one of that series, Irey found himself playing as the extra skater instead. That was something of a … Read more

This Week in CCHA Hockey: Ferris State coach Daniels earns 500th win after 33 years behind Bulldogs bench, but says ‘ it’s not that big of a deal’

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The fraternity of college hockey coaches is small. And the sub-fraternity of men’s college hockey coaches with 500 career victories is even smaller (17, to be exact). Even smaller yet? The number of active coaches with at least 500 career wins. Coming into the season just four active coaches were in the 500 club — … Read more

This Week in CCHA Hockey: As Lake Superior State ‘excited about where we can get to,’ Lakers pumped for game vs. Ferris State this weekend in Traverse City

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Two weeks ago, Lake Superior State came back from their trip to Columbus, Ohio, in something of a daze. The Lakers were swept by Ohio State and took both games on the chin, losing 9-3 and 6-2. That caused a little soul searching for everyone involved with the program. “We talked about it that Ohio … Read more

This Week in CCHA Hockey: Minnesota State-St. Thomas weekend series part of ‘iron sharpens iron piece every week’ in conference play

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Nobody can accuse Minnesota State of taking the easy way out to start the 2024-25 season. In their first five weeks of play, the Mavericks have skated every weekend without a bye, and their opponents have included: two top-10-ranked nonconference opponents (Michigan and North Dakota), one team that was ranked before the series (Omaha), one … Read more

This Week in CCHA Hockey: Young Northern Michigan squad stumbling early, but ‘we’re holding our heads high right now’

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For Northern Michigan, this season is about the process, not results. Maybe that sounds like a tired sports cliche, but considering this team had to refresh basically its entire coaching staff and roster in the span of five months, it’s a reasonable expectation. Last weekend’s series against Arizona State is a case in point: The … Read more

This Week in CCHA Hockey: Augustana off to hot start as Vikings’ youthful players bring ‘appreciation for the opportunity’ on daily basis

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It’s hard to get too excited about exhibition results, but when Augustana knocked off North Dakota in one earlier this month it certainly got the college hockey world talking. “Wait, AUGUSTANA? The second-year team? Beat NORTH DAKOTA? In HOCKEY?” The Vikings’ 4-1 win over the Fighting Hawks ultimately doesn’t count for either team’s record or … Read more

Monday 10: Boston College, Michigan State split top-five series, Lindenwood upsets No. 9 Wisconsin, Michigan Tech sweeps Alaska, Omaha wins IceBreaker

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Each week, USCHO.com will pick the top 10 moments from the past weekend in our Monday 10 feature. 1. BC, MSU split top five showdown The most anticipated matchup of the weekend featured a big-time top-five battle in East Lansing between No. 2 Boston College and No. 2 Michigan State. The Eagles beat the Spartans … Read more

This Week in CCHA Hockey: Minnesota State prepping for league schedule with nonconference slate that ‘goes a long way to get us started’

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During the CCHA’s annual preseason video conference, Minnesota State head coach Luke Strand had stressed how important it would be for the Mavericks to go and challenge themselves in their nonconference schedule this season. “Our out of conference play, it’s a tough schedule. It’s supposed to be that way. I made it that way for … Read more

CCHA 2024-25 Men’s Hockey Season Preview: New-look conference looking at big picture with Augustana joining, St. Thomas leaving in 2026

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A true season of transition for the CCHA is set to begin this month. The league has been active in the transfer portal in more ways than one this offseason. The league’s individual programs added players and coaches, yes, but the league itself is also set to have some big roster changes starting this year. … Read more

NCAA Hockey Tournament Providence Regional Preview: Boston College, Wisconsin, Quinnipiac, Michigan Tech

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Providence Regional, March 29-31 Amica Mutual Pavilion, Providence, R.I. Friday, March 29, 2:00 p.m., ET, ESPNU No. 1 Boston College (31-5-1) vs. No. 4 Michigan Tech (19-14-6) Friday, March 29, 5:30 p.m. ET, ESPNews No. 2 Wisconsin (26-11-2) vs. No. 3 Quinnipiac (26-9-2) Sunday, March 31, 4:00 p.m. ET, ESPN2 Providence Regional Championship BOSTON COLLEGE … Read more

This Week in CCHA Hockey: Mason Cup, NCAA tournament bid at stake this weekend as Michigan Tech travels to play Bemidji State

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Since the CCHA reformed in 2021, fans outside the greater Mankato metro area have not had much of a chance to see the Mason Cup in person. That’s because, up until now, the road to the league’s playoff trophy has gone through Minnesota State. The Mavericks won the trophy, and the associated NCAA at-large bid, … Read more

This Week in CCHA Hockey: After getting by St. Thomas to open conference playoffs, Lake Superior State ‘really pleased with the result’

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Much has been made about how close the CCHA was this year. If someone asked you to take a look around and assess the state of the league, you’d be well aware that the second-place team in the standings was separated by just five points from the seventh-place finisher. So when the CCHA’s Mason Cup … Read more