Jim ConnellyThe Boston College Eagles were seconds away from heading to the holiday break winless in their last four games. Then David Spina stepped in. Spina, on and end-to-end rush that looked almost Bobby Orr-esque, scored the game-winning goal with 22.6 seconds remaining in overtime as the Eagles sneaked past crosstown rivals Northeastern, 2-1, to end … Read more
Canisius College athletic director Tim Dillon shocked the college hockey world Friday when he announced that he has fired head hockey coach Brian Cavanaugh, who was in his 24th season behind the bench for the Griffs. It was not immediately known why Cavanaugh was fired, but the school cited “irreconcilable differences” in a release issued … Read more
Mercyhurst is finally back home, and a sweet home it is after a grueling 10-game road trip; Sacred Heart meets its initial goals with a fast start; and Atlantic Hockey looks poised to make expansion official. Jim Connelly reports.
According to Atlantic Hockey commissioner Bob DeGregorio, the league’s athletic directors will have a conference call Friday morning. DeGregorio could not confirm the agenda, but the question of RIT’s potential membership is a possible topic of discussion after DeGregorio and Canisius AD Tim Dillon made an official visit to the school last weekend. “They’re great … Read more
Opponents take note: if you want to have any success against Boston College, your best bet is to allow plenty of shots. For the third time this season, the No. 2 Eagles eclipsed the 50-shot plateau. And for the third time, BC walked away without a victory. Saturday night that was due to the outstanding … Read more
Q: When is third place almost like a championship? A: When, like Holy Cross, your offense has been struggling and you’ve upset the pre-tournament favorite. Also, the AHA gets serious about expansion, and Quinnipiac hits the road. Jim Connelly reports.
It’s not often that the consolation game of any tournament, let alone a holiday tourney, would elicit a celebration worthy of singing and dancing. Not, of course, unless you’re Holy Cross. The Crusaders, who entered Sunday at the Dunkin’ Donuts Coffee Pot as a heavy underdog against ECACHL-leading Union, let choruses of “O-Lay, O-Lay, O-Lay, … Read more
Perhaps it wasn’t as easy a path as Providence hoped for, but with a 3-1 victory over Holy Cross Saturday night, the Friars advanced to the championship game of the second annual Dunkin’ Donuts Coffee Pot tournament. “We know [Holy Cross is] going to give us a good game,” said Providence coach Paul Pooley, whose … Read more
Continuing an annual tradition, USCHO.com’s Jim Connelly takes a partly tongue-in-cheek look at holiday thankfulness around Atlantic Hockey.
Holy Cross head coach Paul Pearl knew that there was a formula to follow if his club were to upset No. 4 Boston College Monday night. Nowhere in that formula, though, was it planned to give the Eagles 10 chances on the power play. Behind an effort that Pearl called “undisciplined” his Crusaders fell, 5-0, … Read more
Paced by a five-goal second period and the play of rookies Chris Bourque and Peter MacArthur, No. 15 Boston University downed Massachusetts-Lowell, scoring the game’s final six goals in a 7-2 road victory. MacArthur and Bourque combined for three goals and three assists and dominated on the ice, connecting twice on power-play tallies in a … Read more
American International’s improvement hasn’t shown in the standings — yet; Holy Cross and Boston College renew a decades-old rivalry; and Bryan Worosz reaches a milestone in net for Canisius, according to Jim Connelly.
If the Massachusetts Minutemen hoped to rebound after a stinging 5-2 loss to Merrimack last Saturday night, head coach Don “Toot” Cahoon knew that there was one player who needed to step up to be successful against No. 1 Boston College. His wishes were answered as that player, goaltender Gabe Winer, turned in a career … Read more
Mercyhurst’s Rick Gotkin hits a milestone as head coach of the Lakers, and Holy Cross finds out just how tough it is to repeat. Jim Connelly rounds up the happenings in Atlantic Hockey.
Going into Friday’s game between Connecticut and Northeastern, everyone knew that the Huskies would come out winners. Northeastern, though, kept things according to script, outplaying and outscoring its brethren Huskies from UConn, 5-2, to earn its first home victory of the season in front of an announced crowd of 1,740 at Matthews Arena. The offensive … Read more
Atlantic Hockey has picked up some big wins in the early going, but Jim Connelly wonders when victories over the “Big Four” will cease to be news. Also, Holy Cross starts its title defense, and injured Army sees new faces start to contribute.
It’s happened only two times before and never in Boston. And for once this week, we’re not talking about anything to do with the Boston Red Sox. Jerry York became just the third coach in college history, joining coaching legends Ron Mason and Bob Peters, to reach 700 career wins Friday when his No. 2 … Read more
Connecticut pulls off the nonconference upset and then looks ahead, while Sacred Heart builds momentum in league play and Mercyhurst gets off the schneid. And were there a couple of baseball games this week? Jim Connelly sounds off.
Take Me Away! Maybe that was the cry of Canisius before boarding a plane from Buffalo (with connections through Atlanta and Salt Lake City) to Anchorage for last weekend’s Nye Frontier Classic. The Griffs traveled a total of 17 hours including layovers but when they arrived on the ground in Anchorage, were without the necessary … Read more
Amid hopes of following in the footsteps of fellow WCHA member Minnesota and repeating as national champion, the 2004-05 campaign for defending titleist Denver has gotten off to a rocky start. Returning to the beloved city of Boston where the Pioneers captured their national title last April, 1-0 over Maine, No. 11 Denver fell 6-2 … Read more