Game picks by USCHO writers
Here comes another jam-packed weekend of action that finds some interesting and critical league contests and series on tap for everyone’s delight across the country. The conference slate of games sees some ranked opponents facing off as well as some matchups that the favorites might not want to be too complacent with in their … Read more
It is the second weekend in the New Year and while there are still non-conference games in abundance, the serious conference schedules are beginning everywhere as teams ramp up their game in the second half. Every point matters more from here to the end of the regular season so if you did make a … Read more
Happy New Year everyone! Hoping that your Thursday will be full of family, good food and better friends… While some teams are taking a break over the opening holiday weekend to start out 2026, there are some terrific holiday tournaments, a Florida college hockey jamboree and some terrific non-conference action to take in across … Read more
Just one week remains on the calendar and teams aren’t “going through the motions” just to wrap up the semester. Nobody wants to stew on a loss for a couple of weeks over the holidays without remedy so the effort will be there from opening puck drop until the final horn. Not a lot … Read more
Well, last weekend saw a number of teams fall from the ranks of the unbeaten while several other teams earned hard fought holiday tournament titles to further validate their play and build positive momentum. The first half is rapidly coming to a close with some teams already having completed the early portion of their … Read more
Happy Thanksgiving everyone and hoping that your Thursday will be full of family, good food and better friends… While some teams are taking a break over the holiday weekend to close out November, there are some interesting holiday tournaments and non-conference action to delight all “puckheads” out there looking for something other than football … Read more
And the hits, as in great matchups, just keep coming across the D-II/III landscape… The NCHA features a second battle in as many weekends as the No. 2 (Aurora) and No. 3 (St Norbert) play a two-game series just a week removed from a thrilling Aurora v. Adrian series. Elsewhere the league battles are … Read more
Just when you think you can’t get better than last week’s matchups, the new week comes along and all you can say is WOW! Lots of marque matchups in and out of conference and finally all the leagues are playing with NESCAC games on the schedule this weekend. Here are this week’s picks for … Read more
There is no question the season is off to a resounding start after the great action in week one. Week two promises more of the same with great rivalry games and battles among ranked teams as some conference play begins in earnest. Here are this week’s picks for the ten conferences playing this weekend … Read more
After a scintillating Saturday of first-round action, we now move to the quarterfinals where three of the four games are an east vs. west affair that will determine not only the participants for the Frozen Four to close out the season at the end of March but also the location for the semifinal and championship … Read more
Here we are at the final three weeks of game action that will determine the 2024-25 national champions. Fourteen teams have made the cut for this year’s tournament and not without some surprises in the mix. Kudos to the NCAA (don’t say that often) for opening up the checkbook and spending some money to set … Read more
Here we are at the final weekend with everything on the line for conference titles and berths in the NCAA tournament. While some top seeds survived last week’s playoff carnage, no team can possibly be looking past any opponent regardless of their seeding. At this point the stakes are too high not to bring your … Read more
Here is Part II of this week’s two-part game predictions with a smorgasbord of quarterfinals (NEHC & NESCAC); semifinal action (CNE, MAC, MASCAC, SUNYAC & UCHC) and one title game in the NE-10. The upset bug hit big with MCLA’s win as an No. 8 seed on Thursday and now the remaining teams are all … Read more
Here is Part I of this week’s two-part game prognostications with several conferences playing quarterfinal round action before semis on the weekend. Playoff hockey is here and surely there will be some upsets along the way as teams battle for conference glory and an opportunity to play on a national stage in March. Not much … Read more
So here we are at the end of the 2024-25 regular season and still so much yet to be decided by the competition on the ice. While some teams have already established their position entering the post-season, including this weekend’s semifinal action in the NE-10 conference, lots of teams have opportunities to solidify playoff eligibility, … Read more
The conference battles are so tight this year with virtually every game and all-important points on the line to determine playoff eligibility, final seeding, home-ice advantage, opening round byes and, of course, the regular season champion to name but a few. Not a lot of games left on the schedule but definitely an opportunity for … Read more
When the calendar turns to February, it is go time for college hockey! There are less than a handful of weekends remaining in the regular season and that means that playoff eligibility, seeding and home-ice berths are all on the line across conferences where there isn’t much of a gap between a lot of teams … Read more
“Punxsutawney Phil” may be telling us of an early spring or six more weeks of winter come Sunday, but he won’t be telling any teams how much time is left in their season as the calendar month turns to February. The only way to ensure longevity and more meaningful hockey games is to win. Pivotal … Read more
The battles for conference supremacy begin in earnest this week as virtually every game has implications in the standings up and down the conference slates. While some of the leaders might have a false sense of security based on the current point spreads, no team is taking anything for granted with the number of … Read more
Other than some mid-week games and the odd non-conference matchup to be found sporadically for the balance of the schedule, the action now turns to conference play and all-important wins and points. It is mid-January so if your team is going to make a run it would be best to bring maximum effort and execution … Read more