Rebirths in the Merrimack Valley
Two teams that were recently down on their luck, Merrimack and Massachusetts-Lowell, have put together good starts to the 2009-10 season, senior writer Jim Connelly reports.
Organization: NCAA
This Week in the CHA: Oct. 29, 2009
Pop quiz: Who’s the hottest college hockey team in Minnesota right now? Sorry, Gophers, but you need to score goals to even be considered. Duluth? Nah. Minnesota State? Try again. St. Cloud State? Nupe. Ladies and gentlemen, Bemidji State is the hottest college hockey team in Minnesota right now after getting a hard-fought tie and … Read more
Tuesday Morning Quarterback: Oct. 27, 2009
USCHO.com senior writers Jim Connelly and Todd D. Milewski give their takes on the topics du jour, including the number of losses for top-10 teams last week, how things shake out in the polls and some of the key games this weekend.
Lowell Jumps Into Top 10; Miami Maintains Lead
Massachusetts-Lowell vaulted into the top 10 of the USCHO.com/CBS College Sports Division I Men’s Poll on Monday, checking in at No. 9 after home wins last weekend over Colgate and Northeastern. That moved the River Hawks up four spots. Related: The full poll Miami kept the top spot in the poll despite a Saturday night … Read more
Broadcasts Aren’t Perfect, but It’s All About Airtime
Sure, local and national broadcasts of college hockey may not be everything to everyone, but the exposure the game gets is the important part, USCHO national columnist Dave Starman writes.
This Week in the CCHA: October 22, 2009
Youth in a Young Season This season is a scant two full weeks old, and already some interesting tidbits — too early to call them patterns — have emerged. Last season, the CCHA seemed to have had a particularly promising freshman class. Notre Dame’s Billy Maday, Michigan’s David Wohlberg, Ohio State’s Ian Boots and Zac … Read more
NCAA Shrinks Capacity for Ford Field Frozen Four
Capacity at the 2010 Frozen Four at Detroit’s Ford Field is shrinking to just over 36,000 from over 70,000, the NCAA announced Thursday. The rink originally was to be placed in the middle of what normally is the football field in the stadium, but that location has been moved to the West end zone. Risers … Read more
Coaches, Media Agree in CCHA: Michigan the Favorite
The CCHA’s coaches and media both picked Michigan to win the league championship this season, but both polls had Notre Dame and Miami nipping at the Wolverines’ heels. Michigan got five of the 12 first-place votes in the coaches poll. Second-place Notre Dame had four, third-place Miami had two and fifth-place Northern Michigan got one. … Read more
Defending Champ Boston University Favored to Win Hockey East
Defending league and national champion Boston University is the favorite in this year’s race for the Hockey East championship, a vote of league coaches shows. The Terriers, coming off a school-record 36-win season that ended with an overtime win over Miami in the national championship game, earned six of the 10 first-place votes. UMass-Lowell and … Read more
Nearly Unanimously, Denver the Pick in WCHA
Denver is the runaway favorite to win the WCHA this season according to both the league’s coaches and media. The Pioneers took eight of the 10 first-place votes in the Grand Forks Herald coaches poll, while 23 of the 25 voters in the madison.com media poll put Denver first. North Dakota, Wisconsin, Minnesota and St. … Read more
ECAC Hockey Tournament Moves to Atlantic City in 2011
The ECAC Hockey Tournament is moving from Albany, N.Y., to Atlantic City, N.J., starting in 2011. The league has agreed to a three-year contract with the Atlantic City Convention & Visitors Authority and SMG Management Group to hold the playoff championship at Boardwalk Hall, a 10,300-seat venue. The 2010 tournament will be the last held … Read more
CCHA Alters Points Structure, Offers 3 Points for Regulation or OT Win
The CCHA is changing its standings point structure to allot the same number of points for each conference game. That means regulation and overtime victories will be worth three points. If a game goes to a shootout after the NCAA-mandated five-minute overtime, the winning team will get two points in the standings and the losing … Read more
Yale a Consensus Favorite in ECAC Hockey
The coaches and media agree: Yale is the team to beat in ECAC Hockey this season. The Bulldogs, who won the league’s regular season and playoff titles last season, picked up seven of 12 first-place votes from the coaches and 15 of 25 top spots in balloting by the ECAC Hockey Writers and Broadcasters Association. … Read more
Bemidji State Picked to Repeat in CHA
The first-place votes were split between Bemidji State and Niagara in the final CHA preseason coaches poll, but the Beavers earned more points to take the top spot. Bemidji State and Niagara each earned two first-place votes, but the Beavers had eight overall points while the Purple Eagles had seven. Robert Morris came in third, … Read more
NCAA President Brand Dies of Pancreatic Cancer
NCAA President Myles Brand died Wednesday at his Indianapolis home following a nine-month battle with pancreatic cancer, the national body announced. He was 67. After serving as president at Indiana and Oregon, Brand took his position atop the NCAA in January 2003. Last December, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and later said the long-term … Read more
Coaches Tab Air Force as Atlantic Hockey Favorite
Three-time defending champion Air Force has been picked to again 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 2010 league championships. Mercyhurst, which lost to Air Force in the AHA finals last season, is picked to finish second. RIT, … Read more
Incoming Clarkson Freshmen, Recruit Face Charges
Two incoming Clarkson freshman and a recruit face charges of sexual misconduct and child endangerment, both misdemeanors, the Watertown Daily Times reported. Jordan Ciccarello, 18, entered a not guilty plea Wednesday in Potsdam, N.Y., to the charge of having sexual contact with a 16-year-old girl without her consent during the school’s summer hockey camp in … Read more
Smith Gets Contract Extension at Canisius
Canisius coach Dave Smith has received a contract extension that will keep him with the school through the 2012-13 season. Smith, entering his fifth season leading the Golden Griffins, had his best season last year. Canisius earned its first victories against a nationally ranked team, a CCHA team and an ECAC team en route to … Read more
Sacred Heart Coach Hannah Resigns
Shaun Hannah has resigned at Sacred Heart, leaving the Pioneers without a head coach in the month leading up to the season. School athletic director Don Cook made the announcement Wednesday, saying the program owed Hannah a debt of gratitude for leading the program for 13 seasons. “If there ever was someone who understood the … Read more
Former UMass Coach Canniff Dies
Longtime Massachusetts coach Jack Canniff, who led the school to its only conference championship, died last Saturday after a long battle with several health issues, the school announced. Canniff, who led UMass from 1967 to 1979, guided the team then known as the Redmen to the 1972 ECAC Division II title. He was UMass’ all-time … Read more