No. 4 Michigan’s seniors class of 10 has now won three CCHA Super Six championships to go with their three regular-season CCHA titles and two Frozen Four appearances. But there is one thing missing from their collective mantle: a national championship. “[The NCAA championship] has been elusive to us,” senior captain Eric Nystrom said. “We’ve … Read more
This is the final Bracketology of the season — the one that you’ve been waiting for, in which all the weeks of reading culminates in our projected brackets for the NCAA Division I men’s tournament. Before we get to the picks, we remind you of the NCAA’s guidelines on the matter, per a meeting of … Read more
The selections are out and they differed from the brackets that we had projected on Saturday evening. We had all 16 teams picked correctly, but had some of them in the wrong spots. So what happened? Here was our bracket projected on Saturday evening with a .003-.002-.001 bonus: West Regional: 13 Maine vs. 4 Minnesota … Read more
Boston University surrendered three goals in a span of less than three minutes during the second period Friday, losing to New Hampshire in Hockey East’s late semifinal, 5-2. Such is life when you’re playing the Wildcats these days — particularly when you’re offering a “sad” effort, as BU coach Jack Parker felt his Terriers had. … Read more
In a score that should have been familiar to those who watched Denver’s NCAA title-game win over Maine in April, the Pioneers rolled into the 2005 national tournament on a crest of good feeling in the form of a 1-0 win over Colorado College in the WCHA championship Saturday. “The first two periods were kind … Read more
It’s easy to get overlooked on a team that has eight 10-goal scorers, but there is one place Michigan’s Brandon Kaleniecki seems to score big goals to distinguish himself: Joe Louis Arena. “Growing up, I always wanted to play here,” Kaleniecki said of the Joe. “I’m from [nearby] Livonia, so I know I’ve watched so … Read more
Mike Knoepfli, Mike Iggulden, Paul Varteressian, Charlie Cook, and Jeremy Downs — not exactly college hockey household names. However, these five Cornell seniors have kept their teammates focused and determined all season long and have led the way to the Big Red’s 11th ECACHL championship. In the title game, the seniors were responsible for all … Read more
It was one of the most anticipated match-ups of the ECAHL year and what a disappointment. Not the contest for the Cleary Cup. The game between Harvard and Cornell looked like a real David versus Goliath — except this time the oddsmakers got it right. Another trophy may have hinged on last night’s game, the … Read more
The Goalie Call it the Martin Brodeur syndrome. When a goaltender plays for as good a defensive team as Cornell, it is easy to dismiss his statistics as merely a product of the team’s system, not his own play. Big Red goaltender David McKee set yet another record at Friday afternoon with his ninth conference … Read more
With victories Friday, Denver and Colorado College not only set up a clash of the two top-ranked teams in the nation Saturday in the WCHA championship game, they arranged an historic clash: the first time the Rocky Mountain rivals have met for the Broadmoor Trophy. That fact is especially poignant for the Tigers, who have … Read more
After struggling with a vast assortment of injuries during his junior year, Colgate senior defenseman Joey Mormina has rebounded this season, both as a player and as a team leader, on and off the ice. “He wasn’t able to do a whole lot last summer,” recalled Colgate head coach Don Vaughan. “He was dealing with … Read more
When Boston College coach Jerry York announced that freshman goaltender Cory Schneider would be starting the most important game of the season, it raised some eyebrows. Since injuring his knee in the Beanpot on Feb. 14, Schneider hadn’t played until last Saturday’s Hockey East quarterfinal clincher against Massachusetts. The alternative was senior Matti Kaltiainen, a … Read more
Ah, to be young in the springtime — in Detroit! Half of this year’s Super Six field is comprised of the three CCHA teams with the largest freshman classes. Two of those teams, Nebraska-Omaha and Ohio State, hosted a first-round playoff series, while Alaska-Fairbanks traveled to Joe Louis Arena by way of Bowling Green, Ohio. … Read more
This time of year, intense focus is turned towards the PairWise Rankings, that mystic, sometimes incomprehensible, source of wisdom daring us to guess the NCAA tournament field in advance. Ofttimes, the results work out like a game of craps. Sometimes, you’re better off letting others roll the dice, while at other times, you want to … Read more
Having to play three games in three days isn’t exactly a recipe for success. That’s the task that faces one WCHA team every year, once the No. 4 and No. 5 seeds meet in Thursday’s play-in game at the Final Five. For the winner, a semifinal matchup follows the next day, and then a game … Read more
For two years, Northern Michigan netminder Tuomas Tarkki was stuck behind a wall. More specifically, he was stuck behind a K-Wall. Craig Kowalski — K-Wall, for short — the four-year starting goalie for the Wildcats, was unflappable in net from 2000-2004. During his run in Marquette, Kowalski rewrote the NMU record book for goaltending stats. … Read more
Wisconsin provides us with a perfect case study for why a more pure ranking system is needed right now.
One year removed from an All-American performance that earned Jim Slater a spot as a Hobey Baker Finalist, Michigan State’s senior sniper couldn’t even crack the All-CCHA team. For many around the league, the numbers just don’t add up. Blame it on unrealistic expectations or strong competition, but Slater’s 16-28–44 line is only four points … Read more
The Division I men’s ice hockey committee can avoid some common sense pitfalls in creating the NCAA tournament bracket if it decides to give itself room to maneuver.
In the days following the University of Denver’s 2004 NCAA Championship victory over Maine, writers and pundits attributed the success of Denver’s hockey program to a variety of factors. Words like “goaltending,” “grit,” a “loosey-goosey attitude” and “senior leadership” were tossed around in abundance. Some even called it a “Cinderella story” after the lowest-seeded team … Read more