John Doyle

One could look at the Hockey East semifinals and assume there’s little at stake. Only Northeastern, the No. 9 seed, is fighting for its survival beyond this weekend — the Huskies need to win the Lamoriello Trophy for a bid to the NCAA tournament. The other three schools — Connecticut, Boston University and Maine — … Read more

Hockey East is the only one of college hockey’s six conferences to stage an entirely single-elimination tournament. That’s just fine with Massachusetts coach Greg Carvel. “Love it,” Carvel said. “I think the three-game series are stupid.” A best-two-of-three quarterfinal round was a mainstay of the Hockey East tournament until 2021, the first year post-pandemic when … Read more

By any account, Taylor Makar had a solid three-year stint as a forward for Massachusetts. In three seasons with Minutemen, Makar played in 85 games, including all 36 in 2023-24, putting up nine points in four goals and five assists with one game-winning goal. The previous year, Makar led the Minutemen with 10 goals. But … Read more

Checking in on a few trends around the league as “Senior Night” season heats up: —Senior forward Nolan Renwick was blunt in his assessment of where the Maine hockey program stood during his freshman season of 2021-22. “We weren’t very good,” Renwick said. “And our record reflected that.” Indeed. Maine finished dead last in Hockey … Read more

A year and a month after having the interim tag removed, Vermont coach Steve Wiedler is obviously focused on results, but it’s safe to say he’s not as obsessed as he might have been at this point in 2024. “At the end of the day, you go home to your wife and kids and you … Read more

The latest edition of the New Hampshire-Maine rivalry features two programs going in different directions, but in a somewhat unusual way. Maine, No. 5 in the USCHO men’s D-I poll and No. 4 in the PairWise, is unbeaten in eight of its last 10 games since the beginning of 2025, but two of those results … Read more

Should Boston University be fortunate enough to win the Beanpot for the 31st time on Monday, freshman forward Cole Hutson knows exactly what he’s going to do with the iconic trophy — figuratively, if probably not literally. “Super excited, obviously,” said Hutson, who is the younger brother of former BU standout Lane Hutson, who currently … Read more

All three Hockey East teams participating in this year’s Beanpot tournament have a reason to believe the target is on their back. Northeastern, long the Beanpot’s doormat, is looking for its second three-peat in seven years. Boston College is the No. 1 team in the USCHO men’s D-I poll. And Boston University is the only … Read more

Checking in on a few trends around the league on the eve of CT Ice and a big series between a couple of prominent programs: — New Hampshire has a big problem: It can’t score. The Wildcats have lost four straight by a combined score of 15-7 and were held to just one goal on … Read more

Connecticut gave Hudson Schandor an opportunity, but he’s given plenty back. Schandor, Connecticut’s 5-foot-9, 175-pound graduate student forward from North Vancouver, B.C., recently surpassed 100 career points with a goal and two assists in a 4-1 win at New Hampshire last Friday, becoming the second-highest scorer in program history since it joined Hockey East in … Read more

I think we can all agree it’s time for a breather, right? Hockey East just came off a Saturday when it went a perfect 7-0 against nonconference opponents. Four schools scored season highs in goals — Massachusetts and Vermont each put up eight, Connecticut scored seven and Northeastern tied its season high with five goals … Read more

When a team wins a lot, it’s common for players to speak highly of team chemistry. It’s not a popular topic when a team struggles. That’s not the case with Merrimack. Despite wrapping up the first semester with just five wins, the Warriors are feeling nothing but positive vibes entering the winter break. “The biggest … Read more

If ever there was a team that needed a spark plug, it was UMass Lowell at the end of last season. The River Hawks got it with a 2024-25 roster full of young players that have turned the River Hawks into not just a great comeback story, but a bona fide contender. After an 8-24-4 … Read more

Checking in on a few trends around the league as the calendar flips to December. —When Boston College assembled the non-conference portion of its schedule well before this season started, it could bank on some serious competition against traditional power programs like Michigan State (B1G) and St. Cloud State (NCHC). But Western Michigan (NCHC) and … Read more

When people think of Northern Ireland’s association with sport, their minds usually go to competitions such as hurling, Gaelic Football and rugby. Rarely do they think of ice hockey. Boston University and Merrimack are trying to change that, at least for one weekend, as the two Hockey East schools will participate in the seventh Friendship … Read more

If the well-worn phrase is true — that the best defense is a good offense — then the Massachusetts Minutemen might be onto something this season. The No. 20 Minutemen (5-5-2 overall, 1-3-2 Hockey East) overcame a sluggish effort in a 2-1 loss at home to Providence last Thursday to rebound with a 5-1 win … Read more

Sometimes, the reason a team struggles is obvious. Through his team’s first six games, all New Hampshire sophomore forward Ryan Conmy had to do was look up. “You can look at the scoreboard and think, you can’t win games without scoring,” Conmy said. “(I) think everyone kind of knows that. You want to score goals … Read more