Frozen Four jitters affect both goalies
Playing in their first Frozen Four and first NCAA tournament, both Notre Dame’s Mike Johnson and Minnesota-Duluth’s Kenny Reiter were shaky in the first period before settling in. Paula Weston reports.
Men’s D-I: WCHA
Power play firing on all cylinders for Minnesota-Duluth
Minnesota-Duluth rode a hot power play to its first national championship game since 1984. Theresa Spisak reports.
Special teams keys Wolverines back to Frozen Four
Michigan killed six of seven penalties in earning a trip to the Frozen Four.
WCHA set to debut new, ‘tougher’ Final Five format
Well, we’re about to start the “Just got tougher” version of the WCHA Final Five … which has five games and six teams. But hey, no pointless third-place game, right? Also: Remember how Denver’s George Gwozdecky said a year or two back that the Final Five might be the best tournament in college hockey? Bemidji … Read more
Frattin honored as WCHA’s top player
Two seniors from North Dakota – forward Matt Frattin and defensemen Chay Genoway – were named WCHA Player of the Year and WCHA Outstanding Student-Athlete of the Year, respectively, on Thursday. The All-WCHA teams were also named Thursday. WCHA AWARD WINNERS Player of the Year – Matt Frattin, Sr, F, North Dakota Outstanding Student-Athlete of … Read more
Looking back, WCHA coaches saw much of this coming
Well, it’s that time of year, once again, when we’ve finished the grind of the regular season and are ready for the playoffs. Before we go in depth, let’s see how we all did, shall we? (Here’s how the standings actually turned out.) My picks 1. North Dakota 2. St. Cloud State 3. Minnesota-Duluth 4. … Read more
Valuable home playoff spot on the line for Colorado College, Wisconsin
It’s not that this weekend’s games between Wisconsin and Colorado College never had anything on the line, but the series has taken on a whole new meaning since the end of January. At that point, Wisconsin was amid a five-game winning streak and sitting in fourth place in the WCHA standings, four points behind first-place … Read more
WCHA newcomers Nebraska-Omaha, Bemidji State take different roads
Dean Blais’ exact quote was “It’s like jumping from the frying pan into the fire. … With 11 freshman in the lineup, we could be in for a real tough start.” That was before the season. Before Nebraska-Omaha went 9-1-1 to begin the year and catapulted the Mavericks into the center of regional and national … Read more
Border Battle comes with playoff implications for Minnesota, Wisconsin
This weekend, Minnesota and Wisconsin face off for the second go around this season in the Border Battle. When the two teams played at Mariucci Arena back in early November, Wisconsin came out on top, taking three points from the Gophers, winning on Friday and tying on Saturday. The teams take to the ice at … Read more
Hard-luck Michigan Tech looking to avoid dubious WCHA record
It’s been one setback after another for Michigan Tech this season. Jamie Russell talks of a timeline started in October, stained with injury and adversity. There’s been “no continuity” in the Huskies’ lines, the power play “changes daily” and the penalty kill has been “a revolving door.” “A couple weeks ago, we get one guy … Read more
Consistency helping Alaska-Anchorage persevere
Many times this season, I’ve used this space to talk about a team’s journey, whether it be Colorado College’s roller coaster ride, St. Cloud State’s consistent inconsistency or Denver’s resiliency, to name a few examples. This week, I’m using this space to talk about Alaska-Anchorage’s journey (a story I feel has been a bit overdue). … Read more
Victories help St. Cloud State put focus back on the ice
“What’s happening up there in St. Cloud?” was a commonly asked question in the wake of one of St. Cloud State’s more forgettable halves of a season in recent history. The voting media rated SCSU fourth in the preseason poll but the Huskies quickly descended down the rankings with each loss until they were completely … Read more
Resiliency keeping Denver near the top of WCHA
We all knew Denver would be pretty good coming into this season, despite all of its offseason losses in important roster chunks and goaltending. If you had given the Pioneers the benefit of the doubt by looking at their history, their second-place spot in the league makes sense. What’s been surprising, however, is how they’ve … Read more
Moments, memories come back when it’s Minnesota-North Dakota week
Jake Marto of North Dakota and Minnesota’s Aaron Ness both grew up in the Upper Midwest following the WCHA, so they understand the significance of the schools’ rivalry. Marto, a Grand Forks, N.D., native, went to high school across town from Ralph Engelstad Arena and Ness grew up in Northwest Minnesota, where there’s a mix … Read more
World Junior reality: Even when it’s in U.S., it’s Canada’s party
Those who tuned into any of the United States’ preliminary games at the World Junior Championship saw a half-full HSBC Arena in Buffalo, N.Y., with an upper deck that was mostly vacant. The seats were full in America’s semifinal game Tuesday — full of people wearing cardinal red and cheering for Canada. It’s easy to … Read more
Olsen leaves Minnesota-Duluth for Blackhawks
According to the Duluth News Tribune, Minnesota-Duluth sophomore defenseman Dylan Olsen has signed a three-year contract with the Chicago Blackhawks and will join their AHL affiliate in Rockford, Ill., immediately following the World Junior Championship. Olsen is currently playing for Canada at the World Junior tournament in Buffalo, N.Y. “Dylan was having a good year … Read more
Schwartz to miss rest of World Junior tournament
According to a report on TSN.ca, Colorado College forward Jaden Schwartz will miss the rest of the World Junior Championship with Team Canada after suffering a fractured ankle in Tuesday night’s win over the Czech Republic. Schwartz left the game in the first period, but returned and later scored a goal in the 7-2 victory. … Read more
Pair of collegians named to Canada’s World Junior squad
Hockey Canada announced its roster today for the upcoming IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship and a pair of WCHA stars were named to the team. Minnesota-Duluth defenseman Dylan Olsen and Colorado College forward Jaden Schwartz impressed at this week’s selection camp and will play for the Canadians when the tournament opens Dec. 26 in Buffalo. … Read more
WCHA grind one of the biggest challenges for Bemidji State
I started writing this week’s column with the following: Last week we talked about two teams that have been exceeding preseason expectations. This week, let’s sit down and discuss a team that hasn’t been doing quite as well as we all thought it would be, but perhaps we should have known better — the Bemidji … Read more