Columns, excluding “This Week” columns
3, 2, 1, … blast-off! The final weeks of the regular season are ticking down and there are still 12 valuable points up for grabs as teams make their final push for playoff eligibility and positioning in the league standings. If you want to be playing hockey in March, now is the time to start … Read more
The Red Dragon Is Breathing Fire If the SUNYAC season were to end now, Cortland would be hosting a playoff game. Not just in the playoffs, but hosting the first round. This from a team that hasn’t had a winning season (which they currently do at 11-9-2) since 2001-2, the same year they last hosted … Read more
Battle at the top Last weekend saw a crucial series of play in the MIAC with the two teams tied at the top of the standings playing a home-and-home series. Last year’s conference champions, the Bethel Royals, were facing the upstart Hamline Pipers, who have already set a program record with their 10 wins this … Read more
A Special Senior Night As the season hits the final stretch in February, the usual litany of end-of-season events starts to be held. One of those is Senior Night, where each school celebrates its graduating class, saying a tearful farewell to the student-athletes they have gotten to know so well. Neumann started off the tradition … Read more
The Beanpot provides eye-opening moments, the fur flies in Minneapolis and the ECAC’s national hopes are pondered as Jim Connelly and Scott Brown warm up for this weekend’s clash of No. 1 and No. 2 in the nation.
It’s time once again to do what we like to call Bracketology — College Hockey Style. It’s our weekly look at how the NCAA tournament would look if the season ended today. It’s a look into what are the possible thought processes behind selecting and seeding the NCAA tournament teams. This is the next installment … Read more
St. Norbert and Elmira could easily be confused for D-III’s version of yin and yang. The Green Knights (12 first place votes) held the top spot for six weeks before the then-undefeated Soaring Falcons (eight) swooped in to perch atop the rankings. After a split with new-No. 14 Neumann — and a win and tie … Read more
When Vermont’s season looked ready to fall apart, the Catamounts fought back. And with a key matchup looming in New Hampshire, Dave Starman says UVM must keep its fires burning.
Hard to believe that the calendar rolls into February this weekend and that we are heading down the stretch run in the season where both leagues are very competitive for all of the playoff spots. Fondly referencing a ‘Badger Bob’ Johnson quote, Bowdoin coach Terry Meagher noted that “we are right in that hockey tunnel … Read more
Saving A Season Buffalo State entered the weekend of December 7-8 with what appeared to be a lost season. They were 2-8-2 overall with a four game losing streak and winless in seven straight. Worse, they were only 1-4-2 in the SUNYAC just 10 months after hosting their first playoff game in school history. This … Read more
As the newcomer to the ECAC NE, Becker College is having a respectable campaign, currently sitting in the middle of the pack, four points out from second place but in a four way tie for fourth place. “This is our second year of existence,†coach Steve Hoar stated. “I think the ECAC NE is a … Read more
To Have A Humanitarian Over the years, I have highlighted the community outreach in the ECAC West in this column. Every team has programs to get the players out of the rinks and into the communities helping on numerous community service projects. Now, three programs have been recognized on a national level for the efforts … Read more
Providence becomes the Hockey East team du jour, while Michigan State makes a statement against its archrival and more. Jim Connelly and Scott Brown present another week of back-and-forth.
With attendance problems and matchup integrity issues to face, Jayson Moy cuts Miami and Michigan a break in this week’s edition of Bracketology.
Since a well-documented loss in Denver, the Wisconsin Badgers have regrouped around a common theme. Dave Starman finds Mike Eaves’ team making a charge as the playoff race heats up.
With the weeks counting down to the all important conference playoffs at the end of February, some teams are starting to get on the roll that many predicted would carry them to the top of the league standings at the beginning of the year. Middlebury and Norwich are prime examples. Still others are finding their … Read more
Finally, the month we have all been waiting for. It’s nothing but conference action from here on out for both the NCHA and MCHA, and both are figuring not to have much of anything figured out until the final weekend of the season. The NCHA finished up with the MIAC Interlock portion of its schedule … Read more
Ending Early Every year, my colleague Chris Lerch has a running count of the teams that complete their season as we wind down to the final game. This count always starts in mid-February as teams begin to be eliminated from their league playoffs. This year, Lerch can begin his count right now. The first team … Read more
“We’re right in the thick of things,†coach Rob Davies said of his conference-leading Curry College Colonels. “We had a tough game against Becker the other night. They played very well and gave us all we can handle. We were fortunate to get the win. Now we’ve got Wentworth and Nichols coming up. Right now, … Read more
Getting Your Money’s Worth Hobart and Neumann played a pair of wild games last weekend in Aston, PA that provide a glimpse of the kind of hockey that fans can expect in the ECAC West down the stretch. Friday’s contest saw Neumann start out on a tear, scoring four goals in the first 6:11 of … Read more