Paula C. Weston

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Minnesota State junior Brett Stern’s first goal of the season became perhaps the biggest of his career. Scored at 13:50 in the first period, the goal that put the Mavericks ahead 2-0 over Ferris State held up to be the game winner as the Mavericks defeated the Bulldogs 4-1 on Saturday … Read more

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — After jumping out 2-0 early in the first period, Ferris State watched as Alaska-Anchorage scored four unanswered to take a 4-2 lead by the middle of the second period. But goals by Garrett Thompson and Andy Huff evened the game before the second was over, and after a scoreless third period, … Read more

And we do come down to it. Drew Claussen, that upstart, edged ahead of me admirably in the final weekend of regular-season play. Last week Drew: 4-2-0 (.667) Paula: 2-4-0 (.333) That wrong-way split in East Lansing hurts my heart. Season Drew: 85-43-14 (.679) Paula: 86-41-16 (.657) This week This inaugural Big Ten Tournament will … Read more

EAST LANSING, Mich. — When a game begins and ends the way this 4-3 Wisconsin win over Michigan State did, it’s difficult to point to any one factor to define its outcome. Instead, it may be best to quote the winning coach, Mike Eaves. “It was an interesting night for sure,” said Eaves A four-goal … Read more

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — For a guy who had just scored the game-winning overtime goal to secure his team’s place in Big Ten hockey history, Minnesota junior Kyle Rau was pretty subdued after the fact. “It’s pretty cool, but when you come here, you don’t come here to win conference championships,” said Rau. “You come … Read more

It’s the final weekend of regular-season play. Here’s how Drew Claussen and I have done with our picks so far. Last week Drew: 3-2-1 (.583) Paula: 4-1-1 (.750) Season Drew: 81-41-14 (.647) Paula: 84-37-16 (.672) This week All series this weekend are Friday-Saturday. Minnesota at Michigan Drew: Minnesota needs two points to put a bow … Read more

In the penultimate weekend of regular-season Big Ten play, we had more evidence that the upcoming Big Ten tournament has the potential for a surprise or two. 1. Exhibit A: Michigan State. After losing 7-1 to No. 12 Michigan in Ann Arbor Friday night, Michigan State came from behind to defeat the Wolverines 4-3 at … Read more

EAST LANSING, Mich. — Down a goal before the game was two minutes old and trailing 3-1 after the first period, Michigan State came from behind to beat Michigan, 4-3, giving goaltender Will Yanakeff his second win of the year — and an emotional one at that. “It was really emotional,” said Yanakeff, a senior … Read more

Here’s how Drew Claussen and I are doing with two weeks to go. Last week Drew: 2-1-1 (.625) Paula: 2-1-1 (.625) Season Drew: 78-39-13 (.650) Paula: 80-36-15 (.668) This week In the final two weeks of Big Ten conference play, there are three Friday-Saturday series with each team playing. Michigan State vs. Michigan Drew: Like … Read more

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — With two goals from Alex Guptill, Michigan came back against Ohio State to tie the Buckeyes 2-2, but OSU prevailed in the shootout when Alex Szczechura was the only scorer to find the net, giving the Buckeyes the extra point in the game. Given that Ohio State led 2-1 with five … Read more

As most of North American continues to experience the Big Freeze of 2014, we can at least take comfort that this first season of Big Ten play has been entertaining. This is how my partner-in-writing, Drew Claussen, and I have called it so far. Last week Drew: 3-1-0 (.750) Paula: 3-1-0 (.750) Season Drew: 76-38-12 … Read more