Entering last season, the Massachusetts-Lowell River Hawks had the highest expectations. Coming off a heartbreaking loss in the 2009 Hockey East title game to the eventual national champion, Boston University, the River Hawks seemed poised to finally climb to the top of the league, boasting an experienced lineup and two senior goaltenders. That season of … Read more
Last year was marked by extreme highs and lows for the New Hampshire Wildcats. They led Hockey East for 16 straight weeks and won their third regular season title in the last four years. On the other hand, they got bounced in the league quarterfinals for the second straight year. In their ninth consecutive NCAA … Read more
Boston University seemingly suffered through a season-long national championship hangover last year, finishing just a game over .500 with a postseason that lasted through only the Hockey East semifinals. “It was like pulling teeth,” BU coach Jack Parker says. “There wasn’t the attitude you wanted. They were satisfied with the year before and the national … Read more
Attention Maine fans: You may remove the paper bags from your heads. The team that you’re used to seeing has returned. Sure, maybe that’s a bold statement, but for a school that expects its team to compete for a national championship year in and year out, the well-document struggles of Maine hockey in the 2007-08 … Read more
So close and yet so far. Northeastern finished four points out of third place in Hockey East last season but also a point out of the playoffs, a single point behind a Vermont team that went on to the NCAA tournament. Just brutal. With a healthy percentage of that so-close group coming back, however, the … Read more
Can Hockey East go 4-for-4? The league has earned three straight national championships, starting with Boston College in 2008, followed by Boston University and then the Eagles again. Hobey Baker Award finalist Gustav Nyquist’s return makes Maine a more formidable foe this season (photo: Melissa Wade). It wouldn’t be a shock to see Hockey … Read more
Massachusetts finished only two points out of third place in Hockey East last year, but as the seventh-place team it drew eventual national champion Boston College in the quarterfinals. It was two-and-out for the Minutemen and their season was over. The offseason was worse as their biggest guns — James Marcou, Casey Wellman and Matt … Read more
Last year, Vermont had the prototypical half-empty, half-full season. The Catamounts finished in eighth place, but then upset New Hampshire to advance to the Garden and, thanks to strong non-conference performances, returned to the NCAA tournament. This year, strong defense and goaltending will be counted on to carry the team. Goaltender Rob Madore went through … Read more
Providence enters the 2010-11 season as the perceived doormat. The once-powerhouse program that twice has won Hockey East tournament titles (though none since 1996) has inconceivably missed the playoffs for two straight seasons. This year, the Friars were picked for 10th in the preseason coaches’ poll. Though this might seem like a tailspin to the … Read more
Rarely has a team won a national championship in recent years only to return the next season nearly entirely intact. In the case of Boston College, that is the ultimate luxury heading into the 2010-11 campaign. After BC’s dominant postseason run culminated with the national title last April in Detroit, many wondered if the Eagles … Read more
Last season was a difficult one for Connecticut. The Huskies endured injury and personnel problems en route to a 7-27-3 season. Freshman goaltender Jeff Larson was forced into a starting role early in the season thanks to an injury to Brad McInnis, and he won just two games before quitting school in December. Coach Bruce … Read more
Almost six months later, Boston College is still No. 1. The Eagles, who won the 2010 NCAA championship in April, are the top team in the first USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll of the 2010-11 season. They received 45 first-place votes from the panel of 50 coaches and media members to lead the way. Related … Read more
Vermont has dismissed sophomore forward David Pacan after what coach Kevin Sneddon said was a violation of the school’s student-athlete code of conduct, the Burlington Free Press reported. “We have a clearly defined set of expectations as a hockey program here that the players are very well aware of,” Sneddon told the newspaper. “On top … Read more
Defending national champion Boston College is as unanimous a favorite as possible in the Hockey East preseason poll. The Eagles got nine first-place votes to finish atop the balloting. Coaches are not able to vote for their own school, and Maine received the first-place vote from BC coach Jerry York. Maine finished second, followed by … Read more
Former Providence All-American Devin Rask will join his alma mater as an assistant coach. Rask replaces Stan Moore, who resigned earlier this month. “Devin will be a terrific addition to our coaching staff,” Providence coach Tim Army said in a statement. “He had a wonderful career at Providence College and he embodies all that we … Read more
Defending champion and national semifinalist Rochester Institute of Technology has been picked to repeat as champions in the Atlantic Hockey coaches poll, announced Tuesday at the league’s media day, held at Blue Cross Arena, site of the 2011 league championships. Mercyhurst, which finished fourth last season, was picked to finish second and Air Force third. … Read more
Defending champion Boston University is the favorite for the 2010-11 Hockey East women’s regular-season title, according to league coaches. The Terriers received six of the eight first-place votes in the preseason balloting, with second-place Boston College taking the other two. Providence, New Hampshire, Northeastern, Connecticut, Vermont and Maine were picked to finish third through eighth, … Read more
USCHO writers share their thoughts on the anticipated announcement that Penn State will add a Division I men’s program, and its ramifications on the college hockey landscape.
Seventeen teams have won a Division I men’s national championship, but there hasn’t been a name added to that list since 1993. The USCHO staff picks five teams that could be newcomers to the champions club in 2010-11.
National champion Boston College will visit the White House along with other collegiate champions on Monday. Eagles players and staff members will visit Walter Reed Army Medical Center as part of the daylong visit. They also will participate in an alumni reception near the Capitol. At the White House, President Barack Obama will congratulate the … Read more