Men’s D-II/III: MIAC

Big things will be happening in the MCHA when teams resume action January 13. For starters, the Stanley Cup will be making an appearance at the Ozaukee Ice Center as Concordia (Wis.) hosts Finlandia. Then, the top four teams in the conference will be in action against each other in the first two weekends of … Read more

When the puck drops on the 2012 portion of the schedule, Bethel will try to keep its recent success rolling. Every college team wants positive energy going into the winter break, and Bethel has it. Consider Bethel the surprise team in the MIAC this season. It is locked into a tight race in the conference … Read more

Now that the first half of the 2011-2012 hockey season has been hung by the chimney with care, let’s take a look at how the competition is shaping up in the MCHA/MIAC/NCHA conferences. Also, I will guess as to what the coaches would want from Santa Claus for the start of 2012. MCHA Adrian and … Read more

Looking back at the Thanksgiving tournament games has led me to believe that the NCHA is the strongest conference in the Midwest, from Wis.-Eau Claire’s run to the Adrian Thanksgiving Tournament title to St. Scholastica winning its two games at the MCHA/NCHA Showcase. St. Norbert fared well at the Showcase as well, with a victory … Read more

Sometimes those warm summer days just appear to fly by. That can be especially true in the life of a newly-hired hockey coach, professional and collegiate alike. Hired this past July 15, Chris Brooks had to have a quick introduction to Division III hockey at Wis.-Stevens Point after coaching professionally for the past three years. … Read more

Here is a quick look at this weekend’s respective playoff championships in the Midwest, Minnesota and Northern collegiate hockey conferences. The winners in all three will get a ticket to the NCAA Division III Tournament, which starts March 9 with the first round. The Final Four takes place March 25-26 at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis, … Read more

I was 6-2 in predicting the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association’s first-round playoff outcomes last weekend. Good, right? Well, this is where the old saying about statistics never lying but liars using statistics comes into play. Yes, I perfectly forecasted results in six regulation playoff games, but missed the mark entirely on two mini-games that eventually … Read more

Suddenly, coaches have started speaking in code, player body parts are now only referred to as upper and lower hemispheres, and if someone is clutching so much as a rabbit’s foot for a measure of good luck, not even Wikileaks is going to find out about it. Yes, the playoffs are here. This weekend, the … Read more

British author Oscar Wilde once noted that we are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars. When looking above, Finlandia first-year coach John McCabe only sees a brighter future for his Lions in the constellations. At 2-18, skeptics would suggest the former Alabama-Huntsville assistant is looking through the lens … Read more

While the regular season winds down, the D-III West region playoff picture gets clearer with every weekly coat of Windex in the form of pivotal games down the stretch. At stake in each of the three conferences is an automatic bid to the NCAA D-III tournament. Here is a brief synopsis of how playoff and … Read more

The respective Division III West conference races have turned into a sprint for the finish where standout goaltending will remain at a premium. Here is a quick look at those the star performers between the pipes who will have a large say in how their respective teams perform down the stretch as the battle for … Read more