Columns, excluding “This Week” columns
Finally, the Gang’s All Here For some patient fans, the Division III hockey season starts this weekend, a full six weeks after teams from other conferences began play. The last 20 of the 74 Division II and Division III teams kick things off as the NESCAC, ECAC East and St. John’s from the MIAC finally … Read more
Is It February Already? It just seems that way. One of the major grudge matches in Division III hockey, traditionally reserved for the final showdown of the regular season, happens Friday night when Elmira invades RIT’s Ritter Arena for the 65th meeting between the two schools. The Tigers lead the series 31-29-4. Elmira is coming … Read more
The highs and lows from this weekend: Ayers, Minnesota, the Sioux and more.
Starting on a High Note The D-III season got off to a lively start last weekend with a pair of marquee matchups. Elmira, ranked 10th in the USCHO.com preseason poll, played a home and away series with second ranked Oswego. Number three St. Norbert traveled to RIT for a pair of games. In each case, … Read more
Not that anyone would bet on Division III hockey, but if they did, then the USCHO.com Preseason Poll has been more accurate than many of those 800-number betting lines. The first edition of the poll has correctly picked the national champion in three of the past five seasons. It was incorrect in 1999 (RIT was … Read more
Will Yost fans say c-ya to ‘c-ya’? … That and other musings.
It might be the coolest game on Earth, but it takes a little extra to be truly cool. Joe Bertagna is back for another season’s worth of profound prose.
The pair of North Dakota-Boston College games was by far the highlight matchup of the weekend, but there was plenty else of note too.
A personal reflection on the loss of two hockey friends.
What programs are leading the way in recruiting and accolades?
The NCAA has released the final set of approved rules changes for Division I men and women, with the aforementioned chang to the fast faceoff rule prominently mentioned. That change will now increase the total time between faceoffs to 18 seconds instead of 15. The points of emphasis include a new rule that automatically grants … Read more
We’d all like to know, as D-III schools plot a course that will send a shot to the gut of D-I hockey.
And it’s best for everyone, including Morris.
This past year’s MAAC Hockey championship tournament at West Point, N.Y., was the league’s most successful. If your ear was to the ground, though, that tournament weekend, you might have left with a strong impression that it would be the league’s last. In confirmation of the rumblings that existed three months earlier, the league’s nine … Read more
Assuming the reports are true, Kevin Sneddon will become the new coach at Vermont on Wednesday, coming in with a new athletic director, a new president, and a new commitment to hockey in Burlington. It was a highly-coveted job, and it could turn out to be great for Sneddon, Vermont and the ECAC as a … Read more
You can look through every Central Scouting Service (CSS) ranking. You can study for weeks, even months. But the reality in hockey is that the NHL Entry Draft could be one of the toughest events in sports to handicap. The NHL is absent of names like LeBron James. The league takes players before and during … Read more
It all comes down this week. Where will 15,000-plus college hockey fans be trekking to at the beginning of April in the years of 2007 and 2008? It’s down to five cities: Denver (Pepsi Center) Detroit (Joe Louis Arena) Philadelphia (First Union Center) St. Louis (Savvis Center) St. Paul (Xcel Energy Center) (Make sure to … Read more
Johnson and Wales has named Erik Noack its new coach. He replaces Lou Izzi, who resigned to devote himself further to his full-time job as the school’s compliance officer. A member of three NCAA Division III finalists while playing at RIT, Noack played in 200 professional games in the East Coast Hockey League and the … Read more
Already in hockey withdrawal? Let’s give ’em all something to talk about.
There was tumult and triumph in 2002-03. Who’s ready for 2003-04? And just who is Adam Wodon’s favorite player?