Men’s D-II/III in general
Turnaround As the saying goes, “Who’d of thunk it?” If Las Vegas took bets on college hockey, how many people would have plunked down their hard-earned money to wager that Neumann would be 8-4 at the mid-season break? Or have conference wins over Utica at home and Elmira on the road? Or have non-conference sweeps of … Read more
Midway Madness It’s the holiday season once again and the teams in the West have wrapped up an exciting first half of hockey. After a bumpy start to the season, things have started to smooth out and the perennial powers are sitting on their lofty perch atop the NCHA, MIAC and MCHA. But none of … Read more
As the holiday break approaches, Chris Lerch hands out his midterm grades to leagues all across Division III-from the expected powerhouse performance of Middlebury to the sudden downfall of Minnesota-Crookston.
Just about a month into the season and already some interesting races are starting to heat up in each of the three divisions. Finishing the first half of the season on a high note will be important as teams look to build up positive momentum prior to breaking for the holidays. Let’s take a look … Read more
The Western Jinx Only one thing is relatively certain in Division III West Region hockey; if I write about a team in one of my columns, odds are they are going to have a terrible weekend. This theory does not apply to the conference previews, but to my first two columns. In the first column, … Read more
First, the bad news. Two teams in DIII are under fire for discipline and eligibility issues. However, some struggling programs are starting to put the pieces together. Chris Lerch will tell you who’s up and who’s down in this edition of This Week in DIII.
Break Up The Bengals! It is extremely difficult for any team–no matter how good they are–to take the trip all the way up to the North Country, walk into always tough Stafford Arena and difficult Maxcy Hall and beat both Plattsburgh and Potsdam in the same weekend, no matter how good or bad those teams’ … Read more
Tossing Teddys Utica head coach Gary Heenan believes that an essential ingredient to a successful hockey program is building ties with its surrounding community. Last season, while on the road recruiting, he watched as local fans threw teddy bears and other stuffed animals onto the ice following the team’s first goal, all meant to benefit a … Read more
The Unwanted Shootout Three SUNYAC teams participated in two tournaments over the holidays, and it was Brockport that came away with the best result. Though technically the Golden Eagles “lost” in the PAL Cup championship game in a shootout, their official record shows they didn’t lose a game. “Mixed feelings,” Brockport coach James Eccles said … Read more
Castleton State 3 St. Anselm’s 3 Wesleyan 6 Trinity 3 Fitchburg State 5 UMass-Dartmouth 4 Castleton State 2 Plymouth State 1 Colby 5 Nichols 4 Plymouth State 5 St. Anselm’s 4 Salem State 1 Norwich 1 Curry 4 Fitchburg State 3 For many scoreboard watchers, the beginning of the season has provided some major WOWs … Read more
Chris Lerch takes a look at everything that happened over Thanksgiving weekend, including disappointments and surprises in the NCHA, officiating and the latest kick in the guts, courtesy of (who else?) the Boston Bruins management.
Hats Galore There is something special about a hat trick in college hockey. First of all, they aren’t all that common in Division III, unless the game is a blowout where one team puts up a double digit score. Second, the diffusion of talent across all of Division III has also resulted in scoring being … Read more
Unrest in the West It can arguably be called the most exciting region in Division III college hockey. For the past few weeks, the teams in the West have proven the old adage true-anybody can beat anybody on any given night. In the annual NCHA/MIAC battle, Wisconsin-Superior was upset by Bethel, St. Norbert lost to … Read more
Chris Lerch previews all the tournament action in This Week in Division III.
A League Up and Coming When is a preview not really a preview? In this case it is when we take a look at the nation’s largest conference comprised of teams playing at both the D-II and D-III levels. Sixteen teams in all who have officially dropped the puck on the season but are very … Read more
Ryan3 Two games away from the midway point of the season, Oswego is in first place with a perfect 5-0 conference record thanks to the Ryan show-Ryan Ellis, Ryan Woodward, and Ryan Scott. First, Oswego scored a 4-2 victory over the Cardinals in front of a huge crowd at Stafford Arena. Woodward led off the … Read more
Surprised? Join the Crowd The first few weeks of hockey in the West can be summed up with two words: what happened? The MIAC and the NCHA have been battling for supremacy in the West for years, with the NCHA sitting atop the mountain. But the past few years have seen the MIAC climb further … Read more
Chris Lerch looks at the start of the ECAC East and NESCAC seasons, while looking ahead to the Thanksgiving tournaments ahead. Plus, you’ll get an exclusive look at the advent of the Division III College Hockey Showcase.
A Different Team Since joining the ECAC West four seasons ago, it is no secret that Neumann has struggled. Over that time span, the Knights have a combined total of 10 wins and haven’t been competitive in many of the other games. However, with an infusion of new blood, this year might represent the tipping … Read more
Chris Lerch looks at the rise of the MIAC in This Week in Division III for November 11, 2005.