Feature stories
On Tuesday of this week, Todd Milewski wrote in the Wisconsin State Journal that the Big Ten will likely be moving up the start date of the playoff tournament to Sunday, March 14. That is something that Wisconsin coach Tony Granato let slip, apparently, before anything official had been announced by the league.
Three weeks ago, Boston University freshman goalie Vinny Duplessis wasn’t sure he’d see much — if any — action this season.
Then he was in net against Boston College, the top team in Hockey East, and he shut them down in one of BU’s best wins all season, a 3-1 victory on Feb. 6.
It certainly is a strange year in college hockey and thus this year’s Bracketology column regarding the selection and seeding of the men’s NCAA Division I ice hockey tournament will be a little bit different than in the past.
The preseason media call is always an exercise in routine.
Coaches talk about their excitement for the upcoming season and touch upon the optimism of their team’s hard work and commitment, and everyone stresses the need to get better as the season advances.
The goal, everyone says, is the same every year: to be playing “your best hockey” when the March postseason rolls around.
The WCHA schedule has done nobody any favors this season.
Or maybe, the better way to put it: The COVID-19 pandemic has done the WCHA schedule absolutely no favors this season.
Each week during the season, we look at the big events and big games around Division I men’s college hockey in Tuesday Morning Quarterback.
Each week, USCHO.com will pick the top 10 moments from the past weekend in our Monday 10 feature.
Luke Tuch (r.) scored 44 seconds into overtime as No. 11 Boston University rallied from an early two-goal deficit to beat Connecticut, 3-2 (Photo: Stephen Slade/UConn Athletics)
UMass Lowell co-captain Charlie Levesque (l.) celebrate his second goal of the game as the River Hawks, upset No. 16 Northeastern, 4-1 (photo: Jim Pierce/Northeastern Athletics)
In a very challenging year, one thing was clear to first-year commissioner Steve Metcalf early in the 2020-21 Hockey East campaign
It took just a couple of weekends of canceled games and teams and the league working to change opponents to make Metcalf realize come season’s end, there would be a significant imbalance in both number of games played as well as the strength of opponents each team faces.
Thus, Metcalf turned to a somewhat familiar formula to help determine the Hockey East standings: the PairWise.
Despite the challenges of COVID-19, the NCHC is on the verge of accomplishing what it set out to do when the conference announced the regular season plans of the Omaha pod and then weekend series: have each team play a 24-game regular season.
What makes a line combination does not always make sense when coaches put a trio together on paper.
No. 18-ranked Michigan Tech coach Joe Shawhan seems to have found a trio that has quickly developed chemistry in captain Alec Broetzman, freshman Arvid Caderoth, and sophomore Jake Crespi.
At 6-2-0, Canisius is currently in second place in the Atlantic Hockey standings, which are kept this season based on points percentage. The Griffs have captured 18 out of a possible 24 points so far.
The magic formula has been special teams and goaltending.
With Wisconsin coming into town, Michigan didn’t exactly get to ease back into things after a COVID-19-related pause forced it to take 22 days off.
It took a while for St. Lawrence to get started its season underway, but the Saints have shown a marked improvement from last year as ECAC Hockey enters its final two weekends of the regular season.
The romantic image of hockey centers around the notion of the sport as an engine.
Teams can’t win unless they harness the selfless power of individuals, and victory only comes when they work together to control the flow of the game. An unmatched intensity creates this willingness to do whatever it takes to win.
It fosters a bottomless toughness capable of enhancing teamwork, friendship and lifelong bonds. That attitude spills over into the community and helps the sport shine through its brightest moments. This off-ice gentleness can welcome anyone into the inner circle by appreciating what it takes to sacrifice daily for a team.
At its best, hockey permeates that mentality, but the truth is that more sinister aspects exist in the shadows of the game. The same culture and attitude that makes hockey the greatest sport in the world is also capable of excluding others with hostile language, and players, fans, coaches and personnel can feel unwanted or afraid to speak up.
Each week during the season, we look at the big events and big games around Division I men’s college hockey in Tuesday Morning Quarterback.
Each week, USCHO.com will pick the top 10 moments from the past weekend in our Monday 10 feature.
No. 8 Michigan used a four-goal second period to take control of the game against No. 7 Wisconsin, earning a 5-1 victory (photo: Daryl Marshke!/Michigan Athletics)
No. 1 Boston College had plenty of reasons to celebrate as the Eagles got back to the win column with a 7-1 victory over UMass Lowell (Photo: John Quackenbos/BC Athletics)