Columns, excluding “This Week” columns
A lot has changed in the landscape of the women’s NCAA ice hockey tournament over the past 18 or so months and it seemed prudent to try to have an explanation of everything all in one place. In December 2021, it was announced that the field would expand from eight teams to 11 for the … Read more
It’s the final weekend of the regular season and while some things have been secured, there’s still a lot on the line with this weekend’s games. Penn State has won the CHA, Northeastern has wrapped up Hockey East and LIU took their first NEWHA regular season title. Each has already secured the top seed in … Read more
We’re getting closer and closer to playoff time! This weekend marks the start of various conference tournaments while some begin next weekend, but we’ve made it. It seems once the first semester break ends, the regular season goes extremely quick and before you know it, it’s over. We look back at this past weekend where … Read more
It is officially playoff season as the NEHC quarterfinals take place on Saturday while elsewhere the battles for first place and home-ice seeding continue in the final week of the regular season across the CCC, NE-10, SUNYAC and NESCAC conferences. Last week’s super-sized picks rebounded nicely at 10-2-1 (.808) which now brings my season total … Read more
We were treated to another good weekend of women’s hockey out west. We saw St. Olaf clinch a MIAC playoff spot for the first time since 2012, another Gustie made a mark in the record books, notching her 100th career point, a game-winning-goal scored with just 0.1 seconds left in the 3rd period, and we … Read more
While Hobart added their name to the list of regular season winning teams with a big win over Norwich on Friday night and Endicott and Plymouth State also secured the top seeding for the upcoming CCC and MASCAC tournaments respectively, SUNYAC, NESCAC and the NE-10 are all going to see the races and final positions … Read more
Sometimes it is not the player with the biggest stature that makes the largest impact on a team’s performance on the ice. Case in point, Timmy Kent at Curry College is only 5’6” tall but plays like a much larger player in driving his own performance and that of his teammates. So far this season, … Read more
Arkhip and Filimon Ledenkov had to adapt to a new language culture when they came to the United States from Belarus, but the one thing that has been forever universal for them is hockey. Two of the top players in NCAA Division III, the twin brothers are playing a huge role in St. Scholastica’s pursuit … Read more
This week in D-III women’s hockey out east we saw a team clinch the regular-season conference title to earn them home-ice for the playoffs. The #3 ranked team (USCHO poll) fell after a nine-goal affair. Meanwhile, we look at each conference to see how the teams may fare in regard to NCAA tournament bids. Plattsburgh … Read more
It is the last week of the regular season in the NEHC with a critical matchup finding Norwich traveling to Hobart for the top spot. Elsewhere there are two weeks left and still a lot of movement possible including very tight races in the SUNYAC and NESCAC. Last week’s picks rebounded nicely at 9-3-0 (.750) … Read more
Another week, another career milestone reached. We also look ahead at some intriguing matchups that can play huge roles in the pairwise and conference tournaments. Speaking of the pairwise, we also discuss that briefly and the effect these upcoming games can have on it. Gustavus’ Katie McCoy Gustavus has yet another player breaking records, this … Read more
While Utica has clinched the UCHC regular season title and Plymouth State (MASCAC) and Endicott (CCC) seem very close to doing so, races in SUNYAC, NESCAC and NEHC only got tighter as the gaps are just a couple of points leaving little margin for error in the upcoming weekends in the regular season. Things are … Read more
(1) Ohio State at (3) Minnesota After feeling each other out for the better part of the opening period, Peyton Hemp put Minnesota up 1-0. In the second, Abigail Boreen scored 49 seconds in and Abbey Murphy added a power play goal to put the Gophers up 3-0. Gabby Rosenthal got one back for the … Read more
In October and November, Trinity was not playing particularly good hockey despite the return of an experienced roster and great expectations for their success on the ice. Since returning to the ice after the semester break and the calendar turning to the New Year, the Bantams have found their game going unbeaten in their last … Read more
Conor Witherspoon didn’t need much time to settle in as a key player for the UW-Stevens Point hockey team. Transferring in from Alabama-Huntsville two years ago, the talented forward made an immediate impact for the Pointers. In 20 games a year ago, he scored 20 goals, the second-most on the team, and he currently leads … Read more
There are three weeks left of the regular season, but many teams will either take a bye week or play non-conference opponents in that time, meaning for some teams, they have just four games in which to make their final play for seeding in postseason tournaments. There are tight races in every conference, even if … Read more
It is February and that means there are precious few weeks to earn wins and points to improve your standing, seeding and otherwise build momentum heading into the most crucial part of the season. There continues to be a lot of movement in most of the conferences but not so much at the very top … Read more
Coming off another weekend of women’s hockey out east we saw an upset occur ending a huge streak in the UCHC. Also, we see another relatively newly established team eying their first ever conference title in the CCC. Meanwhile, Cortland has been busy winning games after some wrote them off. Manhattanville pulls off a Valiant … Read more
This week in the wild west, we saw another player join the 100-point club and a massive upset in the NCHA occur. Meanwhile, a team I highlighted earlier this season is in the process of having a program-best season with their 3rd year head coach at the helm. We also take a deep dive into … Read more
There is no doubt things are heating up in all the conferences in the east. Plattsburgh now sits atop the SUNYAC while Trinity has taken over the top spot in NESCAC. Utica, Endicott and Plymouth State continue as unbeatens in conference play but the battles up and down the standings are even more contested in … Read more