Oh hey, look at that — playoffs start this week. For a season that seemed to drag at times, the last month sure has flown by … Red Baron WCHA Players of the Week Red Baron WCHA Offensive Player of the Week: Kevin Clark, UAA. Why: Scored four goals (two in each game) to help … Read more
The patented North Dakota second-half surge might look a little different this year, but the Sioux are definitely peaking toward the end of the season again. After five weeks outside the top five of the USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll, North Dakota is back in, checking in Monday at No. 5 and with a seven-game … Read more
Look at that date. March. We’re finally nearing spring, which means warmer weather and more sun. The cold, dreary days of winter are finally coming to a close. More importantly, we’re now in the last week of the regular season and just one month away from the end of college hockey. So, let’s do this … Read more
Wisconsin has halted planning on a project that would give its women’s hockey team a new home rink that would double as a practice rink for the school’s men’s team. The proposed facility was to be built adjacent to the Kohl Center and include new locker rooms for both teams. “This project has been very … Read more
The WCHA has suspended St. Cloud State forward Aaron Marvin for three games, intimating in a statement that the junior was careless in safe play at Wisconsin on Feb. 20. Marvin delivered an open-ice check to Wisconsin captain Blake Geoffrion in that game, and Marvin’s shoulder appeared to make contact with Geoffrion’s head. Geoffrion reportedly … Read more
Alaska-Anchorage has reprimanded coach Dave Shyiak for throwing a water bottle from the bench while arguing with officials last Saturday, an action that led to his ejection. Shyiak was given an unsportsmanlike conduct minor and a game misconduct after an argument, the Fairbanks News Miner reported. The newspaper also reported that Shyiak stepped onto the … Read more
I hate February. February is, in many ways, the Monday of months. The one good thing about February is that it’s a short month and thankfully, it has flown by this year. I took a look at the schedule and realized we only have two weekends left in the regular season and there’s only a … Read more
From all outward appearances, it looks as though things are becoming clearer in terms of the league picture. However, one has to keep in mind that four teams were off last week, kind of screwing with the numbers. In any case, things have started to spread out as much as they’ve bunched up. The gap … Read more
Thanks to some late-season bye weeks and non-conference match-ups, we saw a bit of a shake-up in the league standings last weekend. The gap has grown significantly between first and last (21 points) and even between first and sixth (10 points). Still, things remain close in some ways. Minnesota-Duluth and St. Cloud State now share … Read more
Wisconsin has suspended sophomore forward Matt Thurber indefinitely for a violation of the athletic department’s Student-Athlete Discipline Policy. The school did not disclose the nature of the violation. Thurber has three assists in nine games played this season for third-ranked Wisconsin. He is suspended from both games and practices but can receive student-athlete and weight-training … Read more
Fans at Camp Randall Stadium say the atmosphere for outdoor hockey was much like you’d find on a Wisconsin football Saturday. Todd D. Milewski reports.
North Dakota forward Matt Frattin has been acquitted on drunk driving charges, the Grand Forks Herald reported. A jury of six Grand Forks County (N.D.) residents delivered a not guilty verdict after less than 30 minutes of deliberation on Tuesday, the newspaper reported. Frattin, a junior, was dismissed from the team in August for what … Read more
Like last week, the playoff picture is getting a little clearer. We’ve probably got our five teams that will get home ice, though the order is still anyone’s guess as we still have three points separating everyone. Which, of course, is a point better than last week, but still. Spots six through eight are the … Read more
With just over a month left in the season, the gap between first place and fifth place is two points. You read that right. Two. League-leading Minnesota-Duluth has 25 points, followed by St. Cloud State and Denver with 24 and Wisconsin and Colorado College with 23. North Dakota isn’t quite out of the hunt for … Read more
The gap is expanding. 21 points separate first (Minnesota-Duluth, 25 points, by virtue of Denver’s bye week) and last (still Michigan Tech, still with four points). The gap is still close. Six points separate first from sixth place. Eighth place is six points down from that (for clarity’s sake, eighth-place Alaska-Anchorage is 10 points behind … Read more
The WCHA Final Five moniker may hang around, even as the league expands to 12 teams next season, but a handful of changes to the WCHA’s tournament format appear to be in the making. League officials did not come up with any final decisions when they discussed the future of the two-week postseason last Thursday … Read more
The league race is getting clearer at the same time it’s getting even more muddled. The gap between first and last (Denver, 23 points and Michigan Tech, four points) is as large as ever. However, the race for home ice is as tight as ever. Behold: Denver, 23 points Minnesota-Duluth, 21 points St. Cloud State, … Read more
USCHO senior writers Jim Connelly and Todd D. Milewski are back to talk about Miami’s off weekend, Union’s emergence and other issues in another edition of Tuesday Morning Quarterback.
Amo Bessone, who coached Michigan State to the 1966 national championship as part of 28 years leading the Spartans, has died in New Mexico. He was 93. He coached 814 games behind the Michigan State bench, second only to Ron Mason’s 974. He started in 1951 and retired in 1979 with a 367-427-20 record at … Read more
Welcome back after the break to the second half of the WCHA season. We’ve got a mere two and a half months until we convene in St. Paul, Minn., for the Final Five with a lot of hockey left to be played. However, the league standings are starting to become marginally clearer. We now have … Read more