It was almost unfair how the start of the college hockey season saddled this year’s Quinnipiac team with the expectations and overarching shadow cast from last season. In a way, it was ironic because it built requisite pomp around a situation that this iteration never experienced. For the first time in program history, the Bobcats … Read more
Last year presented me with an opportunity to reintroduce a slightly different format to our weekly column. It was a take on former colleague Dave Hendrickson’s list of 20 things that made him thankful for covering Hockey East, and it gave me a real chance to sit back and talk about the things that made … Read more
Ron Fogarty didn’t mind waiting another few days to start his season. It was the first weekend in November, but the appearance of Fogarty’s Princeton Tigers on Harvard’s Bright-Landry Hockey Center ice sheet marked the team’s first appearance of the 2023-24 season. The previous weekend, before Halloween, had been the first games for five of … Read more
One of Boston’s most hallowed traditions, the Beanpot, returns to TD Garden this year with more prestige than ever – and with double the impact. The annual men’s college hockey tournament returns on the first two Mondays in February for the Dunkin’ Beanpot. And this year, for the first time ever, the women’s Dunkin’ Beanpot … Read more
It’s impossible to win a college hockey championship in November. A hot start doesn’t translate to the March postseason, and plenty of gelling rosters don’t reveal their true potential or greatness until league schedules buckle down for the post-New Year’s Eve second semester schedule. Ask any coach or player throughout college hockey about when they … Read more
The Odyssey Trust has announced the continuation of the Friendship Four men’s college hockey tournament into 2024, in conjunction with the official launch of ‘Ring the Bell!’ – a new book centered around the history and legacy of the event. Held annually in Belfast since 2015, the Friendship Four is designed to promote education, social … Read more
Jack Bar assumed his night was over. The junior defenseman was seated on the Harvard bench next to Kyle Aucoin, and the duo had every reason to believe their night was over. For the past three hours, they’d skated their season opener in a conference game against Dartmouth, and a third period goal by the … Read more
College hockey spent the last three weeks raging its way through a number of different storylines. Top-ranked teams came and went as early season wins and losses piled up. A couple surprising outcomes raised eyebrows and drew eyeballs to potential risers and fallers. Hotshot prospects and seasoned veterans battled into corners and along the walls … Read more
Anthony Romano never realized how loud Cheel Arena’s goal horn really got. The Clarkson senior heard the steam whistle’s piercing blast for three-plus years, but it felt different in the stands. He appreciated how the crowd contributed to the overall volume and vibration rattling his bones after the Golden Knights scored, and he felt how … Read more
The NHL has announced that Joe Bertagna has been named the recipient of the 2023 Lester Patrick Trophy for outstanding service to hockey in the United States. The annual award, one of the most prestigious in hockey, was presented to the NHL by the New York Rangers in 1966. It honors the memory of Lester … Read more
Last year was a perfect capstone for the ECAC Hockey’s previous era. The league, once taunted, for its inability to win a national championship since 1989, dominated the national headlines and tied the Big Ten for most teams sent to the NCAA tournament. Four teams in total qualified, of which two won their first-round matchups, … Read more
Dartmouth has announced the addition of Brian Fahey to the men’s hockey staff as an assistant coach for the 2023-24 season. Fahey comes to Hanover after spending the 2022-23 season as an assistant coach with UMass Boston. “We are excited to add Brian Fahey to our staff,” said Dartmouth head coach Reid Cashman in a … Read more
When Joe Bertagna stepped down after 23 years as Hockey East commissioner at the end of the 2019-20 season, he had no idea that he was setting a trend. Two years after Bertagna’s departure, Josh Fenton left the NCHC after serving as that league’s only commissioner since its inception in 2013. At the end of … Read more
College hockey’s tides are changing. The emergence of new programs and their alignment into new conferences are inserting new conversation pieces into the overall landscape, and the rising profiles of Arizona State and Augustana are two examples in a world that looks nothing like its historical decades. The transformation is sometimes hard to swallow, but … Read more
Realignment is on everyone’s mind in college sports these days. Things are changing, and the majority of sports won’t resemble anything like their present state by this time next year. The ACC, the Big Ten, the Big 12, the SEC – they’re all going to be different, and the dominant news in the sports cycle … Read more
Rensselaer has added Karlis Zirnis as an assistant coach for the men’s hockey team. “We are excited to welcome Karlis to our coaching staff,” said RPI head coach Dave Smith. “He has excellent experience coming from the skill development perspective, as well as stops at Alaska and Alabama Huntsville. His ties with the Latvian National … Read more
In partnership with the four Division I men’s hockey teams – Connecticut, Quinnipiac, Sacred Heart and Yale, the CT Ice tournament will return for the fourth season in 2023-24 and continue through the 2025-26 season. The fourth edition of the annual tournament runs Jan. 26-27, 2024 at the XL Center in Hartford and will be … Read more
St. Lawrence has announced the hiring of assistant coach Cam Doomany to complete the Skating Saints coaching staff for the 2023-24 season. Doomany joins the team after spending two seasons as the goaltending coach at Bentley. “We are extremely excited to have Cam joining our staff,” said SLU head coach Brent Brekke in a statement. … Read more
Providence has announced the addition of Joe Palmer to the men’s hockey staff as an assistant coach. Palmer spent the previous four seasons (2019-23) as a goaltending and video coach with the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch. Prior to Syracuse, Palmer spent 2015-19 as the director of hockey operations for the Cornell men’s hockey program and also … Read more
After nearly 10 months of exploration and discussions with stakeholders across the Union College community, the school’s mascot has been changed from Dutchmen/Dutchwomen to Garnet Chargers. Garnet Chargers rose to the top of a field of 400-plus unique names offered by more than 1,100 Union students, alumni, faculty, and staff members. “I am thrilled to … Read more