This Week in Atlantic Hockey: American International benefiting from tough early schedule at start of ’21-22 season

When discussing American International, his opponent last weekend, Rochester Institute of Technology coach Wayne Wilson referred to the Yellow Jackets as “battle tested.” AIC is just nine games into the 2021-22 campaign but has already squared off with No. 12 Providence, No. 9 Massachusetts (twice), No. 5 Quinnipiac (twice) as well as series against Army … Read more

This Week in Atlantic Hockey: RIT seeing marked improvement early in 2021-22 season, but ‘still evolving’

At 4-2-2, Rochester Institute of Technology is off to a strong start. The only Atlantic Hockey team currently over .500 overall, the Tigers sit atop the Atlantic Hockey standings, three points ahead of Mercyhurst. RIT took five of six points from the Lakers at home last weekend. While head coach Wayne Wilson isn’t completely satisfied … Read more

This Week in Atlantic Hockey: Holy Cross notches first win of the season, first for new coach Riga

New Holy Cross coach Bill Riga is a rookie in a league known for coaching longevity. The average tenure for an Atlantic Hockey coach is currently 15 seasons, and the last change was the addition of Canisius’ Trevor Large and Niagara’s Jason Lammers five years ago. It’s the first collegiate head coaching stint for Riga, … Read more

This Week in Atlantic Hockey: Transfers already making a difference for conference teams in early going of ’21-22 season

The new NCAA rule allowing transferring players a one-time exemption from having to sit out a year has had a sweeping impact on college hockey this season. When combined with an extra year of eligibility due to COVID-19, we saw an unprecedented number of players changing teams this past offseason. At one time, there were … Read more

Atlantic Hockey 2021-22 Season Preview: Conference parity a strong suit as teams look to get back to normal in ’21-22

At the Atlantic Hockey media day last week, the word “normal” kept coming up in conversations with the league’s coaches. We’re not there yet, but hopefully moving in the right direction as the 2021-22 season gets underway. Teams are back to most of their pre-pandemic routines, but this offseason, while not as bizarre as the … Read more

Zapolski returns to Mercyhurst men’s hockey team as Lakers’ new volunteer assistant coach

The Mercyhurst men’s hockey team announced Tuesday the addition of former Lakers goalie Ryan Zapolski to the coaching staff as an volunteer assistant coach. “We are all very excited to have Ryan Zapolski join our coaching staff as a volunteer assistant coach,” Mercyhurst coach Rick Gotkin said in a statement. “He is one of our … Read more

Nicholson continues journey as Atlantic Hockey assistant, hired by Mercyhurst ahead of ’21-22 season

Mercyhurst announced Friday the addition of Matt Nicholson to the Lakers’ men’s hockey coaching staff. “We are all very excited to have Matt join our Mercyhurst hockey family,” Mercyhurst head coach Rick Gotkin said in a statement. “He brings a tremendous amount of experience, working knowledge, and above all professionalism to our team. Having head … Read more

Mercyhurst announces extensions for men’s hockey coach Gotkin, women’s hockey coach Sisti

Mercyhurst announced this week contract extensions for men’s hockey head coach Rick Gotkin and women’s hockey head coach Michael Sisti. “It is an exciting time for Mercyhurst Athletics as we prepare to resume normal operations this fall, while two opening two facilities that will rank among the best in our region,” said Mercyhurst director of … Read more

Positive COVID-19 test at Canisius forces postponement of home-and-home with Mercyhurst

Canisius has paused all hockey team activities following a positive coronavirus test result among the program’s Tier 1 personnel, the school announced Tuesday. Tier 1 individuals include student-athletes, coaches, managers and selected support staff. The results were detected during regular coronavirus testing, which is being conducted three times a week in accordance with NCAA guidelines. … Read more

Behind 28 saves by Hank Johnson, Mercyhurst earns a 2-1 road upset of No. 18 Bowling Green, 2-1; St. Cloud State upsets No. 4 Denver in NCHC bubble, 4-3

Grad transfer Hank Johnson made 38 saves as Mercyhurst and junior forward Stephen Ipri (pictured), a team that finished last season last of 60 clubs in the PairWise last season, opened the 2020-21 campaign with a 2-1 upset of No. 18 Bowling Green (File photo)

Atlantic Hockey 2020-21 Season Preview: AIC, Bentley, Sacred Heart the early favorites

Do you remember where we left off? It’s painful to think about where things stood on March 12, when Atlantic Hockey players, coaches and fans were looking forward to the league’s quarterfinal round. The 2019-20 season had already ended for Mercyhurst, Holy Cross and Canisius, all falling in the preliminary round of The Atlantic Hockey … Read more