Season previews for teams
The Tigers surprised everyone last year, possibly including themselves. “We knew we could compete; we didn’t know if we could win right away, and I guess that was answered,” said coach Wayne Wilson. “Not just Atlantic Hockey. We knew we could compete with anybody.” After a 6-22-2 season as an independent when they lost ten … Read more
This isn’t a rebuilding year or a transition year or even a year Wayne State is favored to win the College Hockey America championship. It is, however, the Warriors’ final year as the university announced in late September that financing the team is a losing effort and the team will fold effective the end of … Read more
The Crusaders came crashing back to earth after a storybook 20005-06 season, dropping from 27 wins and an epic NCAA victory over Minnesota to just 10 victories and an early playoff exit last season. Picked to finish sixth this season, after a sixth-place season last year, on paper the Crusaders may be hard-pressed to finish … Read more
The Falcons had a wild ride last season, their first in Atlantic Hockey. Coach Frank Serratore’s squad was never able to string together more than two wins in a row until February, playing musical goaltenders to try to the shore up a defense to support the high flying line of Mike Phillipich, Andrew Ramsey and … Read more
Things are headed in the right direction for AIC, but not fast enough for coach Gary Wright. The team got off to a horrendous 2-14 start before finishing the season 6-11-1 and taking points in all but two of its last eight league series. The Yellow Jackets won a first-round playoff game at Canisius before … Read more
After making it to the league championship game in 2005-06, a seventh-place finish was a disappointment for Bentley coach Ryan Soderquist and crew. The Falcons won just 12 games last season and their longest winning streak was a pair of games. Bentley was last in the league in team defense — rarely getting blown out … Read more
There are more questions than answers for College Hockey America as the conference’s ninth season is about to get under way. The majority of the questions center around Wayne State’s departure after this season and what that means for the future of the CHA. There don’t seem to be any answers — and if there … Read more
It may be a trying season for Bemidji State, as the Beavers may struggle to score goals. If they had a weak defense coming back, that would be a recipe for catastrophe, but BSU has a stellar back end returning and three goalies who present a good problem for head coach Tom Serratore. Senior Matt … Read more
As far as Robert Morris is concerned, last year is in the rear-view mirror and the focus is on the upcoming season. The Colonials lost the College Hockey America title game to Alabama-Huntsville after going into the contest as the favorite. “We’re not bringing that up,” said senior forward Ryan Cruthers. “We have 14 seniors … Read more
Alabama-Huntsville had a Cinderella run last season in winning its first College Hockey America championship. But the new-look Chargers will be hard-pressed to retain their title this year and have a new head coach with a tall order ahead. Danton Cole takes over for Doug Ross, who retired at the end of last season. He … Read more
There are two ways to define the 2007-08 Northern Michigan Wildcats: 1. Young. This is a roster that includes 17 sophomores and freshmen. 2. Really young. Not only will the Wildcats play as many as 15 underclassmen per game, but the average age of the NMU team is just over 20 years. Five of the … Read more
What can anyone say about the Miami RedHawks? Two things, for sure: 1. They’re loaded and experienced in every position. In 2006-07, Miami finished second in the CCHA with an offense that scored more than three per game, two of the most consistent goaltenders in the league, and name-brand players everywhere on the ice — … Read more
What can you say about a team that emerged from relative obscurity to capture both the regular and postseason 2006-07 CCHA championships? Two things: 1. How can Notre Dame survive without goaltender David Brown? Brown had the best goals-against average (1.58),second-best save percentage (.931) and top win percentage (.808) in the nation last year. 2. … Read more
What is the measure of a good program? The Mavericks have two answers to that question. 1. You produce coaches that other people want. Nebraska-Omaha said goodbye to assistant Doc DelCastillo, who is the new head coach for Alaska. Also, UNO welcomes back Nick Fohr, whom the Mavericks had already sent out into the world … Read more
If statistics can be trusted, two things are true of last year’s Alaska Nanooks: 1. The Nanooks didn’t shoot the puck enough. Alaska’s shot percentage was just .089 last season, the Nanooks were tied for eighth in goals per game in league play, and their power play was eighth in conversions. 2. The Nanooks didn’t … Read more
When you think of the 2006-07 Bowling Green Falcons, two things come to mind immediately: 1. Jonathan Matsumoto was a superstar. With 11 goals and 22 assists, the Falcons junior led the team in scoring. He also had six power-play goals. 2. In every possible way, BGSU was a last-place team. Last year’s Falcons were … Read more
There are two hard-fast rules when it comes to Michigan hockey: 1. Don’t get too comfortable with your favorite player. Andrew Cogliano and Jack Johnson are gone, fleeing for the greener pastures of professional hockey rather than sticking around to graduate. 2. Never underestimate Red Berenson. Even as Notre Dame ran away with the CCHA … Read more
In 2006-07, there were two words to describe the Ohio State Buckeyes: 1. Average. The Buckeyes finished seventh in the CCHA with a record of 12-12-4, were a hair below .500 overall, had team stats that ranged anywhere from third to eighth in conference play, and scored as many goals as they allowed overall (120). … Read more
What two things immediately come to mind when you think of the Ferris State Bulldogs? 1. They play a rather, um, tough brand of hockey. Ferris State was the third most-penalized team in CCHA play last season with 18.71 minutes per game, and the 13th most-penalized team in the NCAA. 2. The Bulldogs don’t really … Read more
If the 2006-07 Lake Superior State Lakers could be defined by just two things, they would be these: 1. Jeff Jakaitis. The senior goaltender finished the season with the 19th-best goals-against average in the NCAA (2.31), but the second-best save percentage (.931). 2. Injuries. The Lakers were so beaten up by the end of the … Read more