The regular season winds up this weekend. While every team is still playing for something, clarity has come to the regular season standings and the upcoming playoff picture. It has been a wild ride again this season. With only five teams in the league, each team’s schedules have been composed of a 50/50 mix of … Read more
Utica travels to Neumann this weekend to take on the Knights in a pair of games, but the teams have been headed in opposite directions lately. Utica is riding a four-game winning streak, including sweeps of Hobart and Manhattanville. Meanwhile, Neumann has gone 1-2-1 in its last four games against the same competition. One potential … Read more
Elmira made a statement last weekend by sweeping Manhattanville on the road. The pair of wins moved the Soaring Eagles into sole possession of first place, but they didn’t come easy. Manhattanville is always tough to play at home. “It was a little unexpected by a lot of people, but our guys are playing great … Read more
Two weeks ago, Manhattanville won its 200th game as a program against Curry. The Valiants accomplished that feat in only 305 total games. Winning two-thirds of their games after starting from nothing 12 years ago is quite an accomplishment. “We have had a lot of really good people around here,” said Manhattanville’s only head coach, … Read more
Over the course of the last six weeks, Neumann has experienced the ups and downs that are college hockey. The Knights have been caught in the rut of inconsistency and their record shows it. The last eight games show a repeating pattern: loss/win/tie, loss/win/tie, loss/win. Neumann started out the season 6-2-1, but hasn’t been able … Read more
Junior Kevin Willer has improved each season of his college career, and he has continued that this season, leading Elmira in goals with 12 and is third in assists with 11. This compares to the 15 goals and 19 assists he tallied all of last season. Willer scored both goals in Elmira’s 2-2 tie last … Read more
Hobart hit the road on December 30, straight up Route 14 to the Pathfinder Bank Oswego Hockey Classic tournament. The Statesmen opened the tournament against Wisconsin-Stevens Point, giving them a rare opportunity to measure themselves against a respected Western team. Despite being outshot 18-7 in the first period, Stevens Point built a 2-1 lead in … Read more
The last time Utica defeated Manhattanville in league play was February 2, 2008. The Valiants have won seven straight since then but the streak was broken last Friday in a game dominated by special teams. The Pioneers won 5-3 by scoring three power-play goals, a four-on-four goal, and an empty-netter at the end. “It’s been … Read more
The five teams left in the league have cloudy futures, and one has applied elsewhere. Scott Biggar reports.
Most teams have played the first third of their season already and certain things are now becoming very clear. First is that the teams in the ECAC West are very evenly matched from top to bottom. So little separates the skill of the players and the preparation of the coaching staffs that the old proverb … Read more
Chris Lerch saw a lot in 28 years of covering Division III hockey. As he says good-bye, he takes a look back at the highlights.
Mixing It Up With five strong teams in the conference, an easy prediction before the season was that the teams would beat each other up in the standings. The early results are reinforcing that feeling. Elmira holds a slim lead as the only team to rack up two wins. The other four teams are all … Read more
Welcome to the 10th year of full coverage of Division III men’s hockey on USCHO. The ECAC West traces its history back nearly three times that number of years, but the league’s future is seriously threatened. With the demise of Lebanon Valley’s team, the league now only counts five teams among its ranks. While all … Read more
Coach: Gary Heenan, tenth season overall and at Utica (112-96-25) 2009-10 record: 8-14-4 overall, 4-9-2 ECAC West (fifth) 2009-10 team offense: 3.46 goals/game (fifth) 2009-10 team defense : 4.04 goals/game (fifth) 2009-10 power play: 20.9 percent (fifth) 2009-10 penalty kill: 75.2 percent (fifth) Key losses: Matt Fitzgibbons (8g, 12a), Brian Gibbons (5g, 13a), Vincent Nucci … Read more
Coach: Dominick Dawes, third season overall and at Neumann (36-18-5) 2009-10 record: 15-9-3 overall, 7-5-3 ECAC West (fourth) 2009-10 team offense: 3.78 goals/game (second) 2009-10 team defense : 2.78 goals/game (fourth) 2009-10 power play: 24.1 percent (first) 2009-10 penalty kill: 78.2 percent (fourth) Key losses: Matt Ward (10g, 17a) Key returners: Marlon Gardner (12g, 13a), … Read more
Coach: Keith Levinthal, twelfth season overall and at Manhattanville (187-74-27) 2009-10 record: 20-6-1 overall, 10-4-1 ECAC West (Second) 2009-10 team offense: 4.22 goals/game (first) 2009-10 team defense : 2.33 goals/game (second) 2009-10 power play: 24.0 percent (second) 2009-10 penalty kill: 82.8 percent (second) Key losses: Arlen Marshall (9g, 26a), AJ Mikkelsen (9g, 20a), Niklas Bernstsson … Read more
Cammi Granato, three-time ECAC Player of the Year, two-time Olympian and 15-year member of the U.S. Women’s National Team, was today announced as one of the first two female members in the 65-year history of the Hockey Hall of Fame. Granato will be formally inducted into the Hall on Nov. 8 as part of the … Read more
With the proposed change to the icing rule in mind, Dave Starman writes that too much tinkering with college hockey’s rules might alienate people more than it alleviates problems.
The rule proposal was released, the coaches were repulsed and that’s it, right? Wrong. Nothing is finished in the case of the controversial proposed change to the icing rule. Brian Sullivan reports on how we got to this point and what comes next.
The NCAA is getting tough on contact-to-the-head penalties and getting creative in an effort to promote scoring when it comes to other rules changes. Contact to the head will result in a major penalty and either a game misconduct or game disqualification under proposals by the NCAA Ice Hockey Rules Committee unveiled Friday. The proposals … Read more