Final Piece In The Puzzle

No. 4 Michigan’s seniors class of 10 has now won three CCHA Super Six championships to go with their three regular-season CCHA titles and two Frozen Four appearances. But there is one thing missing from their collective mantle: a national championship. “[The NCAA championship] has been elusive to us,” senior captain Eric Nystrom said. “We’ve … Read more

Bracketology: Final

This is the final Bracketology of the season — the one that you’ve been waiting for, in which all the weeks of reading culminates in our projected brackets for the NCAA Division I men’s tournament. Before we get to the picks, we remind you of the NCAA’s guidelines on the matter, per a meeting of … Read more

‘Cats Pounce

Boston University surrendered three goals in a span of less than three minutes during the second period Friday, losing to New Hampshire in Hockey East’s late semifinal, 5-2. Such is life when you’re playing the Wildcats these days — particularly when you’re offering a “sad” effort, as BU coach Jack Parker felt his Terriers had. … Read more

Championship Notebook: Middlebury 5, St. Thomas 0

Freshman Phenom With Middlebury freshman Mickey Gilchrist scoring his twenty-first goal of the season in the first period tonight, he has exceeded all-rookie goal scorers at Middlebury going back to records kept from the 64-65 season. The twenty-one goals beats the previous mark of twenty held by Marc Alcindor in 1989 in his rookie campaign … Read more

Trail Of The Pioneers

In a score that should have been familiar to those who watched Denver’s NCAA title-game win over Maine in April, the Pioneers rolled into the 2005 national tournament on a crest of good feeling in the form of a 1-0 win over Colorado College in the WCHA championship Saturday. “The first two periods were kind … Read more

Back On The Big Stage

It’s easy to get overlooked on a team that has eight 10-goal scorers, but there is one place Michigan’s Brandon Kaleniecki seems to score big goals to distinguish himself: Joe Louis Arena. “Growing up, I always wanted to play here,” Kaleniecki said of the Joe. “I’m from [nearby] Livonia, so I know I’ve watched so … Read more

Big Red Seniors Lead The Way

Mike Knoepfli, Mike Iggulden, Paul Varteressian, Charlie Cook, and Jeremy Downs — not exactly college hockey household names. However, these five Cornell seniors have kept their teammates focused and determined all season long and have led the way to the Big Red’s 11th ECACHL championship. In the title game, the seniors were responsible for all … Read more

The Battle Of The Goalies

It was one of the most anticipated match-ups of the ECAHL year and what a disappointment. Not the contest for the Cleary Cup. The game between Harvard and Cornell looked like a real David versus Goliath — except this time the oddsmakers got it right. Another trophy may have hinged on last night’s game, the … Read more

The Voice of the Panthers

For fifteen years he has been the voice of Middlebury hockey, first in the old Duke Nelson Arena and now in the spacious confines of the Chip Kenyon ’85 Arena. Yet for many, who have enjoyed the smooth delivery and timely information delivered over the PA system to excite the partisan home crowd, the voice … Read more

Championship Game: Middlebury 5, St. Thomas 0

Middlebury won its second straight national title and seventh in 11 seasons with a 5-0 victory over St. Thomas in the 2005 Division III national championship game. In a penalty-filled first stanza, the Panthers got their first goal at 9:25. After a scramble behind the Tommie net, Eric LaFreniere won a battle for the loose … Read more

ECACHL Friday Notebook

The Goalie Call it the Martin Brodeur syndrome. When a goaltender plays for as good a defensive team as Cornell, it is easy to dismiss his statistics as merely a product of the team’s system, not his own play. Big Red goaltender David McKee set yet another record at Friday afternoon with his ninth conference … Read more

First Time For Everything

With victories Friday, Denver and Colorado College not only set up a clash of the two top-ranked teams in the nation Saturday in the WCHA championship game, they arranged an historic clash: the first time the Rocky Mountain rivals have met for the Broadmoor Trophy. That fact is especially poignant for the Tigers, who have … Read more

The Heart Of The Raiders

After struggling with a vast assortment of injuries during his junior year, Colgate senior defenseman Joey Mormina has rebounded this season, both as a player and as a team leader, on and off the ice. “He wasn’t able to do a whole lot last summer,” recalled Colgate head coach Don Vaughan. “He was dealing with … Read more

The Vet And The Rook

When Boston College coach Jerry York announced that freshman goaltender Cory Schneider would be starting the most important game of the season, it raised some eyebrows. Since injuring his knee in the Beanpot on Feb. 14, Schneider hadn’t played until last Saturday’s Hockey East quarterfinal clincher against Massachusetts. The alternative was senior Matti Kaltiainen, a … Read more

Semifinal Notebook: Middlebury 5, New England College 2

Coming Up Short New England College had staged some big comebacks in their Cinderella-esque post season run, but this one came up short. The Pilgrims never gave up, though. “We battled right to the end,” said coach Tom Carroll. “Because of all the comebacks we’ve had, there was no doubt on the bench that we … Read more

Middlebury 5, New England College 2

Middlebury will defend its title Saturday night, after a 5-2 win over New England College at home. Middlebury took its first lead of the night, 3-2, at 10:15 of the third period. Tim Graham fed the puck to defenseman Brett Shirreffs at the blue line. Shirreffs walked in to the high slot and wristed a … Read more

Just Down the Road A Piece

Central [nl]Vermont may seem like an unlikely source for proven hockey players, but that is certainly not the case considering Middlebury has two such members leading them into championship weekend. Captain Brian Phinney and alternate captain Levi Doria both hail from nearby Ripton, Vt., just over eight miles southeast of Middlebury. Phinney and Doria have … Read more

Motown Youth

Ah, to be young in the springtime — in Detroit! Half of this year’s Super Six field is comprised of the three CCHA teams with the largest freshman classes. Two of those teams, Nebraska-Omaha and Ohio State, hosted a first-round playoff series, while Alaska-Fairbanks traveled to Joe Louis Arena by way of Bowling Green, Ohio. … Read more

Going The Distance

So how far would you go to see your son play for the national championship? For senior defenseman Skylar Kangas, his parents are typical of the efforts made by the parents and friends travel to see St. Thomas compete in this weekend’s D-III Frozen Four. Due to the high price of airline tickets that would … Read more

D-III Goes Digital

For D-I programs looking to find the extra edge in their team’s performance, an investment in today’s high-tech digital video system is a must-have item in looking for ways to improve positioning and game analysis. For D-III programs, the needs are the same but the technology is new to many and now affordable for most. … Read more