Jim Connelly

Jim Connelly is the USCHO Executive Editor. He has been with USCHO since 1999 and previously covered Atlantic Hockey and Hockey East. He also serves as a color analyst for Hockey East on NESN.

No. 6 Denver at No. 1 North Dakota preview with Fighting Hawks TV voice Alex Heinert: Game of the Week college hockey podcast Season 2 Episode 19

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No. 6 Denver visits No. 1 North Dakota in a weekend NCHC series. Hosts Jim Connelly and Ed Trefzger are joined by Midco Sports Network TV play-by-play broadcaster Alex Heinert for a preview.

A number of other key matchups are on the schedule this weekend. In the Big Ten, Michigan and Michigan State have a Friday game in East Lansing and a Monday tilt at Little Caesar’s Arena in Detroit. Minnesota is at Notre Dame for a weekend series in which each needs to maintain momentum, while No. 9 Penn State could extend its lead in the standings at Wisconsin.

In the WCHA, No. 16 Bemidji State is at No. 19 Northern Michigan in a battle for position in the top half of the standings, while Alaska looks to defend fourth place against visiting Bowling Green.

Hockey East features a home-and-home matchup between No. 11 UMass Lowell and No. 12 Northeastern, while No. 17 Maine looks to stay unbeaten at home with a weekend series against UConn.

ECAC Hockey’s prime contest is on Friday as No. 5 Clarkson visits No. 15 Quinnipiac, while in Atlantic Hockey, the battle for home ice includes Bentley at Rochester Institute of Technology for a pair.

And in non-conference play, Alaska Anchorage visits No. 10 Arizona State for two.

This episode is sponsored by the 2020 NCAA Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Detroit. Visit ncaa.com/frozenfour for tickets.

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Bracketology: Figuring out problems on how to best seed the 2020 NCAA hockey national tournament

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We’re down to five and a half weeks until selection Sunday, and as things begin to shape up in terms of what teams are getting closer to punching their NCAA tickets, we are also running into some problems on how to best seed the tournament (photo: Jim Rosvold/University of Minnesota).

Michigan’s Mel Pearson on this season’s Wolverines, the Big Ten race toward the playoffs: USCHO Spotlight college hockey podcast season 2 episode 19

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One of the hottest teams in college hockey – and just two games out of first place in the Big Ten – is Michigan. Wolverines head coach Mel Pearson joins hosts Jim Connelly and Ed Trefzger to talk about this year’s team, its senior leadership, overtime rules (and the Big Ten coaches’ preference for NHL-style OT), the difficulty of getting back to the Frozen Four, and what makes Yost Ice Arena special. Plus a look ahead at this weekend’s upcoming games with rival Michigan State.

This episode of USCHO Spotlight is sponsored by the 2020 NCAA Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Detroit. Visit ncaa.com/frozenfour for tickets.

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Penn State alone in first in Big Ten, Maine continues to surprise Hockey East, PairWise Update: Weekend Review college hockey podcast Season 2 Episode 18

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Hosts Jim Connelly and Ed Trefzger look back at the D-I college hockey weekend of February 7-9, 2020.

No. 9 Penn State moved into sole possession of first place in the Big Ten by picking up four of six points against No. 13 Ohio State, while Michigan stayed hot with a sweep of Wisconsin.

No. 6 Minnesota Duluth moved to within two points of No. 1 North Dakota in the NCHC race with a sweep of Omaha, and jumped to No. 4 in the PairWise.

In the WCHA, No. 3 Minnesota State kept its winning ways going with a sweep of No. 15 Northern Michigan.

Hockey East continues to be tight with the weekend highlighted by Maine’s home win over No. 12 Northeastern, moving the Black Bears to No. 13 in the PairWise, along with No. 8 UMass’s home-and-home sweep of No. 10 Providence, and wins for No. 14 UMass Lowell over No. 4 Boston College and Merrimack.

Clarkson and Cornell are tied atop the ECAC Hockey standings with the Golden Knights’ win over rival St. Lawrence and the Big Red’s home-and-home sweep of Colgate.

Atlantic Hockey’s standings remain tight with Bentley’s win over Army, RIT’s four points at Robert Morris, and Canisius holding Air Force to one point on the road.

Arizona State swept its weekend, but dropped two spots in the PairWise.

We also look at where things stand now in the PairWise Rankings, and pay tribute to Vermont coach Kevin Sneddon, who announced he’s stepping down at the end of the season.

This episode is sponsored by the NCAA Frozen Four, April 9-11 in Detroit. Visit ncaa.com/frozenfour to get your tickets today.

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Hockey East picks: Feb. 7-10

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In the words if the immortal Jim Carrey: “So you’re sayin’ there’s a chance?” Sure, I entered last weekend with an eight-game deficit to Dave, but an 8-2-0 mark was good enough to gain two games and slowly chip away at the lead. Realistically, though, I have about as much chance as Jim Carrey’s character … Read more

No. 9 Penn State at No. 11 Ohio State preview with Nittany Lions voice Brian Tripp: Game of the Week college hockey podcast Season 2 Episode 18

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There’s a log jam atop the Big Ten standings, with the two teams tied for first facing off this weekend. Penn State Sports Network radio play-by-play broadcaster Brian Tripp joins hosts Jim Connelly and Ed Trefzger to preview No. 9 Penn State at No. 11 Ohio State. We also look at two other Big Ten series, No. 19 Michigan State at Minnesota and Wisconsin at Michigan.

Elsewhere: In the NCHC, No. 6 Minnesota Duluth can close the gap with success over visiting Omaha and WCHA action includes No. 15 Northern Michigan at No. 3 Minnesota State, with PairWise implications for NMU.

In Hockey East, No. 14 UMass Lowell is at No. 4 Boston College and Maine hosts No. 12 Northeastern in single Friday games, while No. 10 Providence and No. 8 UMass have a home-and-home series.

ECAC Hockey has a rivalry matchup as No. 5 Clarkson heads to St. Lawrence and a renovated Appleton Arena, while Atlantic Hockey’s top tilt is Tuesday when No. 20 Sacred Heart visits American International, with other AHA games over the weekend having playoff implications.

In non-conference play, No. 11 Arizona State travels to Holy Cross and Bentley in nearly must-win games for the Sun Devils.

And Monday is the Beanpot, with No. 17 Harvard taking on Boston College in the consolation while Northeastern hopes to three-peat for the championship against Boston University.

This episode is sponsored by the 2020 NCAA Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Detroit. Visit ncaa.com/frozenfour for tickets.

Subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, in your favorite podcast app, or on Spreaker.

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2020 Men’s D-I Hockey Frozen Four update with Detroit Sports Commission’s Dave Beachnau: USCHO Spotlight podcast season 2 episode 18

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Hosts Jim Connelly and Ed Trefzger are joined in this episode by Dave Beachnau, senior vice president of sales, marketing and sports for the Detroit Sports Commission to talk about Detroit’s preparation for the 2020 NCAA Men’s Division I Frozen Four and what college hockey fans can expect from the Motor City this April.

This episode of USCHO Spotlight is sponsored by the 2020 NCAA Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Detroit. Visit ncaa.com/frozenfour for tickets.

Subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, in your favorite podcast app, or on Spreaker.

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Minnesota Duluth sweeps Denver, Notre Dame gets five road points, Hockey East race tightens: College Hockey Weekend Review podcast Season 2 Episode 17

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Hosts Jim Connelly and Ed Trefzger look at the games of January 31 and February 1 in college hockey.

In the NCHC, Minnesota Duluth swept Denver to keep pace with North Dakota. Notre Dame picked up a big five points on the road against Penn State as only one point separates the top five in the Big Ten. Bemidji State stays on a roll sweeping Bowling Green.

In Hockey East, Maine’s sweep of Merrimack puts the Black Bears in the hunt for the league’s regular season title, with only three points separating first from eighth in the standings. Quinnipiac made a statement by downing then-No. 1 Cornell 5-0 in ECAC Hockey. And in Atlantic Hockey, Sacred Heart and AIC opened up more room while several teams vie for home ice in the playoffs.

Arizona State solidified its position in the PairWise with a weekend sweep.

We also look at Jim’s report from last week on Hockey East considering affiliation with an all-sport conference.

This episode is sponsored by the NCAA Frozen Four, April 9-11 in Detroit. Visit ncaa.com/frozenfour to get your tickets today.

Subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, in your favorite podcast app, or on Spreaker.

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Hockey East picks – Jan. 31-Feb. 3

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Now that Dave has an eight-game lead in the standings, he decides to make the same picks as I. Well, last week that meant he was equally as craptastic! Jim last week: 1-6-3 Jim to date: 94-63-23 Dave last week: 1-6-3 Dave to date: 102-55-23 Friday, January 31 Providence at Northeastern While it might be … Read more

2020 Beanpot preview with Boston sports writer John Powers: Game of the Week Podcast Season 2 Episode 17

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The first Monday in February means it’s time for the semifinal round of the Beanpot Tournament. Retired Boston Globe writer John Powers joins hosts Jim Connelly and Ed Trefzger to preview the two games, Northeastern vs. Harvard and Boston College vs. Boston University. The games will be televised in the U.S. on the NHL Network and on TSN in Canada.

We also look at other key games around the country, including No. 9 Providence at No. 13 Northeastern and No. 5 Boston College at No. 7 UMass on Friday in Hockey East, No. 1 Cornell at No. 18 Quinnipiac in the ECAC on Friday, and a trio of series in Atlantic Hockey including No. 20 Sacred Heart at Air Force.

Also on tap, an NCHC weekend featuring No. 10 Minnesota Duluth at No. 4 Denver, an important weekend in Big Ten hockey in all three series, and a premier WCHA pair with Bowling Green visiting No. 19 Bemidji.

No. 12 Arizona State looks to keep its PairWise perch well above the bubble with a pair of non-conference games against visiting Robert Morris.

This episode is sponsored by the 2020 NCAA Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Detroit. Visit ncaa.com/frozenfour for tickets.

Subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, in your favorite podcast app, or on Spreaker.

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As search for a new Hockey East commissioner pushes forward, might the future of Hockey East be in peril?

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USCHO has learned that 11 candidates for the Hockey East commissioner job were interviewed this week, led by an executive search firm and a panel of both coaches and athletic directors. From the original group of 11, four have become finalists and will interview again in the second week of February before someone is finally chosen (photo: Rich Gagnon).

Bracketology: Taking a look at how the NCAA tournament would be seeded if ’19-20 season ended today

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For years, you have read as Jayson Moy has provided you with breakdowns on the PairWise Rankings and how, from week-to-week, that might impact how the NCAA tournament is seeded. His bracketology has become famous, often duplicated, though rarely ever matched. Jayson and Jim Connelly have decided that this season, we’re taking it to a new level (photo: Rich Gagnon).

Maine’s Red Gendron on this year’s Black Bears, Hockey East race: USCHO Spotlight Season 2 Episode 17

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A weekend overtime road sweep of Boston College has put Maine not only in a good position for a Hockey East playoff spot, but in striking distance of first-round home ice. Black Bears head coach Red Gendron joins hosts Jim Connelly and Ed Trefzger for a lively discussion about this season’s team, a remaining schedule that has eight of nine games at Maine’s Alfond Arena, a possible new member for Hockey East, what Gendron enjoys most about coaching, and more.

This episode of USCHO Spotlight is sponsored by the 2020 NCAA Frozen Four, April 9 and 11 in Detroit. Visit ncaa.com/frozenfour for tickets.

Subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, in your favorite podcast app, or on Spreaker.

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