Men’s D-I in general
The annual exodus of underclassmen to the professional ranks continued to hit Minnesota hard over the weekend, as sophomore Kris Chucko became the latest Golden Gopher to hang up his college jersey for an NHL contract. Chucko, a first-round draft pick (24th overall) by Calgary in 2004, signed a contract with the NHL’s Flames and … Read more
With Rensselaer and Yale filling coaching vacancies, Dave Starman weighs in with his take. Also: could NHL jobs be in the offing for the college game’s best?
Wisconsin’s dual titles give America’s Dairyland a claim to be the nation’s new “State of Hockey,” Dave Starman says, while scratching his head at criticism of Maine head coach Tim Whitehead.
Add Robert Morris to the list of schools hanging onto their head coaches, as RMU director of athletics Dr. Craig Coleman announced Thursday that Derek Schooley has signed a contract extension through 2011. “We are thrilled to have Coach Schooley committed to us for the next five years,” Coleman said. “He’s running a first-class program … Read more
The Rensselaer Engineers have reached out west in naming their new head coach. On Wednesday, Rensselaer named Seth Appert, a former Ferris State goaltender and assistant at Denver, as the 12th head man in Engineer history. Appert takes over for Dan Fridgen, who resigned on March 21, 2006. Fridgen had been the winningest coach in … Read more
Michigan head coach Red Berenson has signed a three-year extension, athletic director Bill Martin announced Saturday during the Wolverines’ year-end banquet. “I didn’t want to lose him. It’s pretty simple,” Martin was quoted in the Ann Arbor (Mich.) News. “Great coach. Great team. Great assistant coaches. Red’s still got that fire, discipline and passion for … Read more
Holy Cross head coach Paul Pearl has agreed to a three-year extension, running through the 2008-09 season, Director of Athletics Richard M. Regan, Jr., announced Friday. “This has been a priority for us and something we have been working on since the end of the season,” said Regan. “When you have a successful program, the … Read more
Keith Allain, the goaltending coach for the NHL’s St. Louis Blues, will be Tim Taylor’s successor as Yale head coach. The 47-year-old Allain, a 1980 Yale graduate, ranks third all-time among Bulldog goaltenders in victories and saves. He began his coaching career as an assistant at Yale under Taylor, who was removed as head coach … Read more
One week ago, he was the Frozen Four’s Most Outstanding Player. Friday, Wisconsin junior Robbie Earl became the latest high-profile underclassman to leave school early for the pro ranks. Earl, a native of Los Angeles, announced at a news conference at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wis., that he has signed a contract with the … Read more
Though the celebration is still continuing for the Wisconsin men’s hockey team, it is never too early to look into the future. And gazing into that crystal ball, the future of UW hockey looks good. When questioned whether or not he thought that the Badgers could repeat as champions without him during Sunday’s Championship Rally … Read more
Wisconsin bench boss Mike Eaves has been named head coach of the U.S. Men’s National Team, USA Hockey announced. “Mike is one of the outstanding young coaches in our game today,” said Paul Holmgren, general manager of Team USA and assistant general manager of the National Hockey League’s Philadelphia Flyers. “He’s an excellent teacher of … Read more
One week after playing in its second consecutive Frozen Four, North Dakota is down two players for an attempt at a repeat performance in 2006-07. Junior defenseman Matt Smaby — UND’s captain in 2005-06 — and sophomore forward Travis Zajac have decided to forego their remaining college eligibility and sign professional contracts, the school announced … Read more
For his efforts in leading Miami to the CCHA regular-season title, Enrico Blasi has been chosen winner of the 2006 Spencer Penrose Award as Division I Men’s Coach of the Year. The RedHawks went 26-9-4, capturing the school’s second regular season championship and, for the first time, being ranked No. 1 in the USCHO.com/CSTV Networks … Read more
At the end of every season, college hockey fans across the country say goodbye to seniors they’ve known for four years, young men whose careers and lives they’ve followed into the early stages of adulthood. Among college hockey fans, there is a certain snobbery regarding “our” players, the arguable assertion that guys who play hockey … Read more
It was Oct. 11, 2002, and Rensselaer had just beaten Wisconsin, 5-1, in the opening game of that year’s Ice Breaker Invitational, hosted by the Badgers in Madison. “They capitalized on every opportunity,” UW head coach Mike Eaves told USCHO’s Jayson Moy after the game. “Every chance they had, they took advantage.” That was what … Read more
With three goals and an assist on the weekend, everybody in the state of Wisconsin knew that junior forward Robbie Earl would be the Frozen Four’s Most Outstanding Player. Everyone, it seems, except Earl. “I didn’t even know until we got the locker room when coach told me. It’s a great honor. But there’s so … Read more
On the road, scoring the first goal can often make or break the evening’s performance. Home teams usually have an adrenaline surge off the opening face-off with the crowd buoying their efforts. Getting that initial tally accomplishes the dual purposes of taking the lead and deflating those energies. Since 1999, the team that has scored … Read more
This marks USCHO’s tenth year at Frozen Fours, beginning in Milwaukee and coming back full circle. Since yours truly has been part of all of them, here are some favorite memories with a few notable downers mixed in. Bear in mind that it comes from a point of view in which the other five leagues … Read more
At times we forget about an important principle in sports: sportsmanship. Mike Volonnino tells us about the great displays this weekend at the Frozen Four.
“LET’S GO RED! LET’S GO RED!” The crowd, a sea of Wisconsin red with only tiny islands of Boston College gold, was determined to be the potentially decisive seventh man. “LET’S GO BADGERS!” The Wisconsin band blared. The students jumped up and down in unison. The electric atmosphere pulsed with excitement and throbbing decibel levels. … Read more