Game picks by USCHO writers
Minnesota State (2-2-2, 0-2 WCHA) vs. No. 2 Minnesota (4-1, 1-1) Joe: Minnesota’s power play (15 percent) should find its footing against Minnesota State’s last-place penalty kill (71.4 percent) which would allow the Gophers, even though they are still trying to jell, to use their superior offensive talent to sweep this home and home series. … Read more
These are Nate’s picks for the weekend; check back for my own as soon as I can post them! -Brian Friday, Nov. 2 Alabama-Huntsville at St. Lawrence There’s a lot going on for the Saints in their home-opening weekend. St. Lawrence is ranked No. 16 in the latest USCHO poll, their first appearance in the … Read more
Last week: 9-4-3 On the season: 22-15-8 (.577) League play gets under way in earnest this weekend with five conference series. This Week’s Picks: Friday, Nov. 2 and Saturday, Nov. 3 Holy Cross at Air Force – The home team has taken three points in this series over the past two seasons, but … Read more
I’m grateful that league play has begun. Too many games to pick these past two weeks — and too little sleep. Last week: 11-6-4 Season to date: 23-13-8 (.614) This is the first full weekend CCHA-on-CCHA action. Every series is Friday-Saturday, every series is single-site and games start at 7:05 p.m. local time, unless otherwise … Read more
Hockey East had a tough weekend and many of those losses extended to Jim and me. We both believed a little too much in the league. We’ll be hoping for better results this week for all concerned. Dave last week: 5-5-1 Jim last week: 4-6-1 Dave’s record-to-date: 13-8-2 Jim’s record-to-date: 9-12-2 Here are this week’s picks: Friday, October 26 … Read more
Alaska-Anchorage (2-1-1) at No. 4 North Dakota (1-1) Joe: There is only one number you need to know: 27. That is the number of games dating back to Dec. 9, 2011, since UND had a healthy scratch. They have a full complement of 18 skaters available this weekend which should be more than enough to … Read more
Last week: 3-4-2 Overall: 8-13-3 Seems hard to believe it’s already week four of the season, doesn’t it? With all the Ivy teams starting play, this weekend marks the largest slate of games thus far, with only RPI and St. Lawrence out of action. Here’s a quick trivia question in honor of the Ivy teams … Read more
Last week: 4-4-3 On the season: 13-11-5 (.534) This Week’s Picks: Thursday, Oct. 25 Robert Morris at Rochester Institute of Technology – The Colonials were off last week while the Tigers suffered a stinging loss to Penn State. The teams have played at RIT three times in the past and each one ended in regulation … Read more
Last Week: 9-6-2 On the Season: 9-7-3 (.553) As usual, I picked a split correctly (American International and Penn State) but in the wrong order. This week features of a host of games against ranked teams. This Week’s Picks: Friday, Oct. 19 No. 19 Colorado College at Air Force – The Tigers lead the … Read more
Well, this has been one very ugly start for me and I find myself in a hole to the old man (aka Dave) early. Hopefully I can stop the bleeding here in week 3. Jim last week: 5-3-1 Dave last week: 7-1-1 Jim’s record-to-date: 5-6-1 Dave’s record-to-date: 8-3-1 This week’s picks: Friday, Oct. 19 Boston College … Read more
No. 1 Minnesota (2-0) at Michigan Tech (1-1) Joe: The Huskies will not score eight goals at home like they did against Lake Superior State on Saturday. That is too bad because they might need to against a powerful UM offense. Gophers sweep despite a more challenging series. Tyler: The big Olympic sheet played into … Read more
It isn’t good … but it isn’t wretched. Yet. Last week: 12-7-3 Season to date: 12-7-4 (.609) This does not include Thursday night’s Notre Dame loss. I’ll include the whole ND series in next week’s picks percentage. We have another full schedule this week, with every CCHA team playing in nonconference action. I picked the … Read more
Still a few weeks off from intra-conference conflicts, but an encouraging nine-game docket awaits ECAC Hockey this weekend, including a couple of intriguing road deuces with St. Lawrence at Maine, and RPI at Minnesota State. Friday, Oct. 19 Bowling Green at Colgate 7:00 pm ET Brian: The Falcons and Raiders already have an opponent in … Read more
No. 13 Minnesota Duluth (1-1) at No. 9 Notre Dame (2-0), Thursday-Friday Joe: The Bulldogs were called out by coach Scott Sandelin. They will respond. Senior Mike Seidel started off at the pace (three goals) UMD needs. The Irish looked pretty good at the Icebreaker, but the Bulldogs should garner a split. Tyler: Forced to … Read more
Hey! There’s a game tonight! This is a quick pick for the series between Minnesota-Duluth and Notre Dame, played tonight and tomorrow at the Compton Center in South Bend. The puck drops at 7:35 p.m. each night. I’ll have picks for the rest of the weekend — and my record for last weekend (hint: it … Read more
I suppose I should be hanging my head in shame at starting the year 1-2. I should be asking who would have expected Merrimack to knock off fifth-ranked Union? And who would have expected Maine to fall to Quinnipiac? The sad rationalizations should be flying. Instead, I’m giddy with delight. Why? Because I may be … Read more
No. 16 Michigan State at No. 2 Minnesota Joe: Mariucci should be a loud place for the MSU rookies (12 on the roster) to handle with Gopher fans excited about this UM squad. Goalie Will Yanakeff (.922 save percentage) gives the Spartans a chance against Minnesota’s offensive firepower, led by Nick Bjugstad, the media and coaches’ … Read more
I picked up right where I left off last year in terms of my picking (in)ability. Regardless, here’s a look at this weekend as everyone except for the Ivy schools are in action. Last week: 1-2 Overall: 1-2 No. 11 Ferris State at RPI The Engineers paid a visit to head coach Seth Appert’s alma … Read more
Last Week: 0-1-1 On the Season: 0-1-1 This Week’s Picks: Thursday, Oct. 11 and Friday Oct. 12 Rochester Institute of Technology at No. 3 Michigan – This is the first meeting between the two teams. Michigan will return the favor with a trip to Rochester next season. Both won preseason exhibitions handily. Michigan is the … Read more
There was one D-I game played last week, the one in which Bowling Green’s senior goaltender, Andrew Hammond, stopped 28-of-30 shots in a 2-2 road tie against Niagara. Nice work, Falcons. I called the Falcons to win that one. Last week: 0-0-1 Season to date: .500 I will take that, absolutely. This week It is … Read more