Season previews for leagues
R.J. Tolan’s been through it all before. As the Wentworth coach set out on his seventh season at the helm of the Leopards last month, another cloud full of expectations hovered over him. Such is life when you run the ECAC Northeast’s marquee program, one that has a culture and an identity synonymous with … Read more
With hope and prayers that everyone in the Northeast has safely come through the effects of Hurricane Sandy, I now turn to what is sure to be turbulence and shifting winds throughout the ECAC East season set to begin on Friday night. While the picture at the top seems quite clear in what Norwich and … Read more
For six out of the seven teams in the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association, the goal is clear: try to somehow weaken St. Norbert’s grip on the NCHA title. The Green Knights have won the last three regular season and playoff championships, along with at least a share of the regular season title 10 of the … Read more
The Plymouth State Panthers pulled off one of their most exciting wins in program history last season with a double-overtime victory over the Salem State Vikings to not only capture the MASCAC title, but head to the NCAA D-III Tournament. For the rest of the teams, the extra two periods of play should serve as … Read more
It was a tale of two seasons in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference last year. St. Thomas was the most dominant team in the league during the regular season, winning the title, but it fell short in its bid to win the conference tournament. The Tommies lost, 4-3, to St. Olaf in the semifinal round, … Read more
Competion. That’s the SUNYAC calling card. Or at least that is the feeling held throughout the league at dawning of the new season. While it’s true that Oswego and Plattsburgh — who between them have won every SUNYAC regular season title since 1998 — remain the teams to be in the nine-team loop, there are … Read more
There are a few shared themes throughout the MCHA when looking at the 2012-13 season: Youth, change, and excitement can be felt collectively throughout the conference. The always-successful Adrian Bulldogs have 18 underclassmen on their roster. They will look to pull on the experience of the 14-member sophomore class as they strive to take back … Read more
The ECAC West will have a slightly new look this season. The conference still doesn’t have an automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Tournament, but it has a sixth school again in nascent program Nazareth. It’s the first time the league will be at at a half-dozen teams since Lebanon Valley College downgraded to … Read more
The 2012-13 season will be bittersweet for the teams leaving the WCHA, especially for Colorado College coach and alumnus Scott Owens. “For me, it is,” Owens said. “I have been connected to the WCHA as a player and coach for 22 years. I will miss being part of the WCHA. On the other hand, I … Read more
A year ago, Boston boasted itself as the City of Champions. With titles in all four major professional sports in a mere 10-year span — an unprecedented achievement — the proverbial shoe fit. Hockey East partisans may similarly be ready to call themselves part of the League of Champions. Over the past five years, Hockey … Read more
So, Union is the new powerhouse in the conference. But wasn’t Yale hoisting the Whitelaw chalice just a couple of days ago? Or Clarkson, or St. Lawrence? Or was it Cornell? Or Harvard? The short answer: Yes. Welcome to ECAC Hockey. The tightest top-to-bottom conference in the country kicks off another season on Nov. 2, … Read more
What do you say about a league that has sent five different teams in the past six years to the NCAA championship game? What do you say about a league whose last representative in that group is a school that plays in Division II in all of its other sports? And what do you say … Read more
The 2012-13 season will be an unprecedented one for Atlantic Hockey, because for the first time in the league’s 10-year history, the same teams will use the same scheduling scheme and postseason plan two years in a row. Things will be different again in two years with the planned departure of Connecticut for Hockey East, … Read more
The ECAC season title has been Cornell’s to lose over the last couple of years. Now, the pack at the top figures to be more closely bunched. Cornell, while still formidable, graduated Olympian Rebecca Johnston among others, and may be a smidgen below its apogee. The teams that finished second through sixth all show … Read more
In college hockey, we are accustomed to some amount of roster turnover each season. Over the past couple of seasons, the CHA has taken that flux to a new level as teams, not just players, are coming and going. The Niagara Purple Eagles followed the path of the Wayne State Warriors a season before and … Read more
Picking the winner of the WCHA this season is a bit like shuffling a deck of cards and then trying to anticipate the order the various suits will appear. Obviously, there are eight teams in the league, not four, but to date, all of the circuit’s championship banners have been hung in Duluth, Minn., Madison, … Read more
Arlan picks Boston College to come out on top in Hockey East this season.
Expect Williams to take first in the ever-competitive NESCAC this season.
Thought the competition will be fiercer as a result of an increase in league games, the Norwich Cadets should rule the ECAC East once more.
St. Norbert will probably once again claim the NCHA title.