Men’s D-II/III in general
Groundhog Day! Pretty sure that most teams are hoping to see their shadow today and extend winter for another six weeks! More winter should mean some more hockey and great hockey at that coming into the playoffs. Hard to believe there are only three weeks left in the regular season but if you are going … Read more
The Perfect Combination Last week in my On The Periphery section, I complained about how the All-Star game is missing a key component of what makes hockey so exciting. This past Saturday, I watched a game that was everything hockey is supposed to be. It was a prime example of speed and force in just … Read more
Rollin’, Rollin’, Rollin’ The Neumann Knights keep rolling through league play. Tied for first with Manhattanville, Neumann is currently riding a three game winning streak after losing its only league contest to Utica four weeks ago. WILLIAMS “It’s definitely not easy,” said Neumann coach Dennis Williams. “At any point, if you lose two you are … Read more
With another week in the books, the NCHA still looks to be in good shape when it comes to positioning for the NCAA tournament, as four NCHA teams still reside in the top eight of the PairWise Rankings (PWR). The week did see one big change as a NCHA team now claims the top spot … Read more
Races Tightening For the first time in over two months, Gustavus Adolphus lost a hockey game. The Gusties’ last loss came on Nov. 26 to Wisconsin-Stout in the Milwaukee School of Engineering Thanksgiving Tournament. Gustavus dropped a pair of games to Bethel last weekend and is now just four points ahead of the Royals for … Read more
Wesleyan’s whistle-stop tour of Europe was more than just a few hockey games — it was a cultural experience not to be missed. Dave Hendrickson tells of travels — and travails — in the Continent.
A Runaway Winner? Gustavus Adolphus is cleaning house in the MIAC thus far, winning eight straight games, including a pair of one-goal victories last weekend against St. Olaf, and has an eight-point cushion on the two second-place teams. The Gusties have a brutal schedule remaining, with series against Bethel, St. Thomas, Augsburg and St. John’s, … Read more
Three weeks ago, this column focused on the crowd of five teams at the top of the ECAC NE, and the fact that only three points separated the first from the fifth. This week, only four points separate the eighth place team from the first place team. Earlier this month, Curry College was tied for … Read more
No Wheels? Entering last weekend, things seemed to be rolling along for the Hobart. The Statesmen had ripped off twelve straight undefeated games, and while mired in the lower half of the league standings, they were still within easy striking distance of the top. Friday’s game at Manhattanville wasn’t particularly good hockey by either team, … Read more
“Boy is this great!” A line made famous by Flounder during the climactic homecoming parade scene in Animal House pretty much sums up how most coaches, players and fans feel about the level of play and moves in the standings seen in the two conferences this season. Hard to believe there is only a month’s … Read more
Rev It Up From here on out, with the exception of this Tuesday’s game, every contest is a conference game. It’s that time of year when the excitement and intensity gets cranked up. And, with the amazingly close cluster in the standings, there is not a game that is not going to make a difference … Read more
I normally use my introduction to recap the movement of NCHA and MCHA teams in the USCHO.com Division III poll. From now on I’ll do the same, though I’ll be using the PairWise Rankings (PWR), the first edition of which just came out this week. The PWR seek to mimic the NCAA selection criteria so … Read more
The formation of a ninth Division III men’s hockey league will take eight MASCAC and Little East programs from two ECAC leagues. ECAC Interim Commissioner Steve Bamford gives USCHO an exclusive take on what that will mean.
Northeast-10 News Sitting alone at the top of the Northeast-10 is Southern New Hampshire University, but these are not happy times for the Penman, who have lost six in a row, and have UMass Dartmouth to contend with this weekend. “In the first half of the season, we were pretty good, but not great.” said … Read more
Stepping Up Last week, I mentioned some of the new players who were making a mark on this season. This week I am going to mention some of the veterans who stepped up to help replace some key players who left their team after last season. When Fredonia’s Matt Zeman decided not to return for … Read more
Oh MIAC, How We’ve Missed You… I’ll try not to beat a dead horse by going into details about the MIAC suffering through its contests against its NCHA foes. At least it was closer this time around. “The NCHA is having a great year,” St. Olaf coach Sean Goldsworthy said. “I think if you look … Read more
Shaken and Stirred I’ve toyed with the notion of a fancifully-written opening that would make the intro to any James Bond film pale in comparison but alas, my own words do fail in evoking any comparison that reflects appropriately on the level of competition seen this year in collegiate hockey in New England. The Bond-derived … Read more
Another week is in the books, and once again not much has changed in terms of the national scene. All four nationally-ranked NCHA teams went a perfect 2-0 against MIAC competition last weekend. All four also held their spots in the USCHO.com Division III poll. St. Norbert remains the third ranked team in the nation, … Read more
Crack the Goose Egg Lebanon Valley finally ended its 28-game winless streak last Friday when it beat Becker 6-1. Prior to Friday, the Flying Dutchmen hadn’t won a game since Dec. 10, 2005, going winless throughout all of 2006. “Friday was our first sixty minute game of the year,” said Lebanon Valley coach Howard Hutton. … Read more
Potsdam hockey coach Glenn Thomaris announced today that he will step down as the Bears’ head coach at the close of the current season. Thomaris has coached at Potsdam for the past five seasons following a 14-year stint as head coach of the Elmira Soaring Eagles. “At this time I would like to thank Athletic … Read more