Columns, excluding “This Week” columns
The St. Cloud State women’s hockey team is off to one of the best starts in program history. Under new coach Brian Idalski, the Huskies have started the season 11-8, their best start in 15 years. The team entered the national rankings at #14 this week – just the seventh time in program history they’ve … Read more
It is the final weekend of the first half of the season and there are a lot of teams seeking victory to send their players into finals and home for the break feeling very good about where they are at this point of the season. I am seeking the same validation on my weekly picks … Read more
The calendar may have changed to December but the never ending feast of surprise scores continued this weekend with ranked teams like Oswego, Babson, Plattsburgh and Trinity all finding themselves on the losing end of the scoreboard at least one time this weekend. On celebratory note Amherst coach Jack Arena picked up his 500th career … Read more
It has been a while since the Bowdoin program has seen success on the ice. The Polar Bears last won the NESCAC title in the 2013-14 season and have not seen a winning record in the past five seasons. This year Bowdoin brought in new head coach Ben Guite to guide the program and early … Read more
Garrett Hallford had one last year of hockey eligibility left and he chose to use it. Already one of Trine’s best players in program history, the fifth-year senior knew coming back for one final season was a no-brainer. “We’ve built a great culture here and being a part of it has been great,” Hallford said. … Read more
The World University Games are the second-largest multi-sport winter event in the world, after the Winter Olympics and are put on every two years by the International University Sports Federation (FISU) as “a celebration of international university sports and culture.” While the competition is a large and competitive event for countries all around the world, … Read more
Last week, despite all the surprising and exciting outcomes over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, I finished a solid 7-4-1 (.625) to move to 35-17-4 (.661) on the season which is solid if not spectacular week. The schedule has some great matchups including some head-to-head affairs between the few remaining unbeatens as well as marquee games … Read more
UW-Eau Claire jumped into the top 15 of the DCU/USCHO.com NCAA Division III men’s hockey poll this week after a pair of wins over nationally ranked St. Norbert. The Blugolds, ranked 11th this week, stretched their win streak to four games over the weekend, beating the Green Knights 3-2 and 4-2 on the road. Trailing … Read more
Oh, I think I said earlier this year that surprise results aren’t really upsets anymore and this weekend really showcased that as many of the ranked team dropped at least one contest over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. Skidmore’s Tate Brandon said on Twitter “I don’t think they are really upsets” as he and the Thoroughbreds … Read more
Nearly a month into the season, we’ve learned quite a bit about the West region of NCAA Division III hockey. Some things haven’t changed haven’t changed when it comes to teams to keep an eye on, but there have also been a few surprises. As you settle in for the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, sit back … Read more
Happy Thanksgiving! The Thanksgiving Holiday weekend always brings great tournament action and some intriguing non-conference matchups to delight the D-III hockey fan in all of us. Hardware is on the line so look for teams to put it all on the line to claim tournament glory and bragging rights. Last week my picks were solid … Read more
The 31st edition of the FISU World University Games (WUG) is scheduled to take place in Lake Placid, NY in January 2023. The winter games have not been contested since 2019 in Krasnoyarsk, Russia as the 2021 edition scheduled for Lucerne, Switzerland were canceled due to COVID-19. This year for the first time, the USA … Read more
Ok, let’s officially declare the world of D-III hockey wide open in the east as we continue to see upsets and still just a few teams able to connect on the 2-0 weekend results. The big stories saw Oswego winning at Geneseo for the first time since 2018 and the Knights suffering back-to-back losses for … Read more
(1) Minnesota at (3) Wisconsin The two teams battled to a 3-3 tie with the Gophers taking an extra point in the WCHA standings with their shootout win courtesy of Abbey Murphy. Vivian Jungels had the Badgers up 1-0 midway through the first and it looked like they’d double that, but the goal was overturned … Read more
While new coach Ben Guite takes over the helm at Bowdoin College this season, he and the rest of the coaches in the conference are all wondering how to beat Trinity for the conference title. The Bantams have appeared in the last six contested title games, winning four including last season. Nothing can be taken … Read more
It’s straight up conference play this coming weekend throughout the west region of NCAA Division III hockey. In the MIAC, one of the highlights is St. Scholastica’s series with Saint John’s. Both teams are unbeaten in WIAC play. UW-Stout is off to a hot start and faces two tough tests while Adrian hits the road … Read more
Justin Kelley is back in the MIAC, where he spent the first two seasons of his collegiate career when St. Thomas was still a member of it before the program transitioned to Division I. Now, he’s playing for the Bethel Royals and having success. Kelley is glad to to back. “It’s been really cool,” Kelley … Read more
Take a look at Providence’s last seven games and you’ll see something of a microcosm of the state of the game of women’s college hockey. After losing 4-1 to then #6 Northeastern, they came back to tie the Huskies the next day before losing the shootout. The next weekend Providence needed overtime to defeat Boston … Read more
Finally, a few things to check the box on this season! NESCAC opening their season, check. Picking a Thursday slate of games correctly, check. Beating a 70% success rate on picks, check. It is after all, only week number four of the season but based on the regular upsets, weekend splits in series with no … Read more
The number of unbeaten teams continues to fall and it took a Herculean effort in the final minute of play and overtime for Hobart to stay that way on Friday against a determined Buffalo State squad. The University of New England and Norwich both suffered their first losses and overall, the level of play … Read more