Jack Hittinger
The Mason Cup is back. After a nine-year absence, the CCHA will award the championship trophy once again to the winner of its conference tournament, which begins with quarterfinal action this week. The trophy, named after famed Bowling Green, Lake Superior State and Michigan State coaching legend Ron Mason, was created in 2001. “We were … Read more
The battle for the MacNaughton Cup is no longer in play, and both teams have solidified their positions for the CCHA playoffs, but both Minnesota State and Michigan Tech still have plenty to play for this weekend. This weekend’s series in Houghton had the potential to be the ultimate title-decider, but that didn’t happen. The … Read more
It’s safe to say this season hasn’t gone the way Damon Whitten might have hoped. After finishing a surprise second place in the WCHA last season, winning the conference tournament and making their first NCAA tournament appearance since 1996, the Lake Superior State head coach was hoping this would be the season the Lakers could … Read more
This weekend, Michigan Tech can accomplish something most CCHA teams haven’t able to do much of this season — gain on Minnesota State. In fairness, it’s only because the top-ranked Mavericks are idle this weekend. But the Huskies (17-8-2) have a huge home series with Bowling Green this weekend, and thanks to their big 8-1 … Read more
Each week during the season, USCHO.com will pick the top 10 moments from the past weekend in our Monday 10 feature. 1. Milestones for Bobcats Quinnipiac set a record in a milestone game. The second-ranked Bobcats (23-2-3) beat Union 1-0 behind 16 saves by Yaniv Perets to earn a shutout victory. That shutout was Quinnipiac’s … Read more
It’s already February, which I understand seems strange to everyone (if there’s anything the pandemic has taught us, it’s that time is essentially meaningless). But it’s true. It’s February, which means there’s just one month of CCHA regular season left until the playoffs. And because it’s almost the postseason, it’s about time that we start … Read more
Don’t sleep on Ferris State. Following a disastrous one-win 2020-21 season and a shaky start to this one, the Bulldogs are finally finding their stride. They’ve won five of their last 10 games and, aside from a rough weekend on the road at Minnesota State in which they gave up 14 goals, have managed to … Read more
There’s been a lot of talk about the “curse” of the top-ranked team this college hockey season, but after this past weekend, I’m thinking we should amend this “curse” to something else: If you’re the No. 1 team in the country, you might not want to play Northern Michigan. The Wildcats, who beat Minnesota State … Read more
In the midst of one of their most dominant seasons in recent memory, the Minnesota State Mavericks last week found out they were going to be without their head coach for a fortnight in February. Under the circumstances, though, the Mavericks are just fine with this. MSU’s Mike Hastings was recently named an assistant coach … Read more
Ah, the New Year. A time to make resolutions that you may or may not keep. For most of us, these resolutions are merely suggestions at self-betterment that might not even have any outwardly tangible signs of change. Luckily for a college hockey coach who decides to make some resolutions for their team, there should … Read more
As the first season of the new-look CCHA hits its halfway point, I can’t help but notice that things in the league are, so far, going about as expected. Sure, maybe there have been a few surprises – I don’t think anyone had Northern Michigan sweeping Minnesota Duluth on their bingo card – but for … Read more
For the past few weeks, the top-ranked team in the country has lost at least once. There’s no telling if this is because there’s extra pressure on the team at the top, or if teams playing No. 1 are especially excited at the chance to earn a marquee win, but one thing is certain: Those … Read more
When the season started, Northern Michigan had something of a defensive crisis. The Wildcats barely had enough healthy bodies to field a full defensive unit. At one point, they had just four regular blueliners. Adding to that, the team’s No. 1 goalie, Rico DiMatteo, wasn’t 100 percent after recovering from surgery. “We played a series … Read more
Before the season started, outsiders weren’t quite sure what to make of Bowling Green. After all, the Falcons had lost 11 players to either graduation or the transfer portal. It would have understandably been hard to predict how losing so many key contributors would affect a program that has won 20-plus games for seven straight … Read more
Each week, USCHO.com will pick the top 10 moments from the past weekend in our Monday 10 feature. 1. No. 14 Notre Dame knocks off No. 1 Michigan twice in OT Top-ranked Michigan came close both nights, but the Wolverines weren’t able to keep their hot streak going this weekend. Notre Dame beat Michigan 3-2 … Read more
A quick look up and down Bemidji State’s roster would reveal a lot of familiar names: Ethan Somoza. Owen Sillinger. Alex Ierullo. Tyler Kirkup. All have been contributing to the BSU program consistently since their freshmen seasons, and their presence in the lineup this year — a few back for an extra year of eligibility … Read more
Losing isn’t usually the norm for a Bob Daniels-coached team. The Ferris State head coach has been behind the bench for 29 seasons. He’s guided his Bulldogs teams to three conference titles, four NCAA tournament appearances and one Frozen Four in that time frame. The usual expectation for the Bulldogs is to be competitive at … Read more
When members of the media were looking at the teams in the newly-reconstituted CCHA this fall as we started to do our preseason picks and previews, one team made it easiest on everybody. And maybe it wasn’t the team you think. Have your guesses in? It might shock you to know that it was Michigan … Read more
It might have been reasonable to assume at the start of the 2021-22 season that Lake Superior State might have some issues scoring goals this year. After all, the Lakers lost four of their top five scorers (Ashton Calder, Pete Veillette, Hampus Eriksson and Will Reidell) either to graduation or the NCAA transfer portal (in … Read more
After some time away, there’s one thing Rico Blasi noticed about the familiar rinks of the CCHA. “The smell is still the same,” the first-year St. Thomas coach joked in a phone interview Tuesday, reflecting on his team’s recent road trips to Northern Michigan and Lake Superior State. Blasi, who played at Miami in the … Read more