This Week in … columns; weekly columns on a league, region or gender-division
Western New England coach Greg Heffernan looks at the final week of the regular season in one way: This is the best time for his team — or for any team — to create consistency, with the playoffs approaching. “This season has been about emotional highs and lows for us,” Heffernan said. “We had some … Read more
On the week leading up to a pair of crucial showdowns pairing the current second to fifth place teams in the standings altogether, the four Division III women’s Wisconsin state schools dropped the bombshell that they’ll be leaving the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association (NCHA), effective starting in 2014-15. Wisconsin-Superior, Wisconsin-River Falls, Wisconsin-Eau Claire, and Wisconsin-Stevens … Read more
As the MCHA concludes its 14th regular season this weekend, the league can no longer be considered an upstart in Division III hockey. Two teams have been ranked for most of the season, and there are many players who will finish the season near the top of the Division III stat columns. Since joining the … Read more
You might wonder why this week’s column is looking at the Skidmore Thoroughbreds, who enter the final weekend of the regular season with a 10-11-2 record overall, 9-7-0 in the conference. The fact is that coach Neil Sinclair’s team may be the best example of getting it done right at the right time of the … Read more
Cornell is celebrating its third ECAC regular season title in as many seasons, and in two weeks, it hopes to add a third straight conference tournament championship as well. What makes such achievements more remarkable is that prior to its run, Cornell had experienced nothing but losing seasons, both overall and in conference, throughout the … Read more
Air Force leads the way, but seven other teams are in the running for a first-round bye. Chris Lerch has This Week in Atlantic Hockey.
Minnesota’s Kyle Rau was suspended for one game after his hit on Denver’s Jason Zucker, and here’s how the decision came about. Tyler Buckentine and Brian Halverson have This Week in the WCHA.
The River Hawks are atop the Hockey East standings at this point in the season for the first time. Jim Connelly has This Week in Hockey East.
The Raiders became the first 12th seed to make it to ECAC Hockey’s championship weekend last season, and it has seemed to carry over this year. Nate Owen has This Week in ECAC Hockey.
The day after Valentine’s Day is a little tawdry. This is especially fitting for this year, this season of the CCHA unrequited, this sustained campaign of very-close-to. Paula C. Weston has This Week in the CCHA.
Three weeks ago, RIT rolled into Plattsburgh for a two-game series as the top-ranked team in the country with a perfect 14-0-0 record. Plattsburgh, on the other hand, was battling through a tough first half where it lost to Middlebury, Amherst and Norwich. The Cardinals also lacked a signature win. However, over the course of … Read more
Goaltenders are a fickle bunch. This leads to coaches pulling their hair out making decisions concerning their goaltenders. No one should know this better from both sides than Potsdam coach Chris Bernard, a goalie himself at Clarkson. Last season, the Bears starting goaltender was Trevor O’Neill for the third year in a row. Kevin McFarland … Read more
Consider what the world was like when Bill O’Neill took over as head coach of the Salem State hockey team in 1981. There was no such thing as Facebook or Twitter. There were only 21 NHL teams. In 1981, O’Neill was three years removed from winning a national championship at Boston University in 1978. And … Read more
It was the tale of two games for Manhattanville last weekend, as the Valiants played Utica in a home-and-home series. Friday’s game was very even through two periods before Manhattanville exploded for three goals in a 3:20 span to open the third. “As the game went along we got better and better and better,” said … Read more
It would be an understatement to say that St. Thomas has been on a bit of a roll lately. For example, the team jumped two more spots in the USCHO.com poll this week. Previously ranked No. 7, St. Thomas is now No. 5, the highest-ranked team in the West Region. St. Thomas is 11-0-1 in … Read more
In September 2010, as Maria Lewis was set to start her first season in charge of the Maine Black Bears, the Hockey East coaches picked her team to finish last in the eight-team league. That was understandable — the Bears occupied the cellar each of the previous three campaigns. Senior defenseman Ashley Norum and junior … Read more
For goaltender Jonathan La Rose, this season must represent some unfinished business for the Amherst College senior. Four years ago, La Rose was half of the nation’s best goaltending duo at Amherst that saw he and Cole Anderson lead the Lord Jeffs to the top of the NESCAC standings. In what would have been his … Read more
Just when you think you have the Eagles pegged, they turn another corner. Dave Hendrickson has that, a segment on Vermont and more in This Week in Hockey East.
In last Saturday’s 4-2 win over Rochester Institute of Technology, the first three goals scored by the Falcons were by defensemen. Chris Lerch has This Week in Atlantic Hockey.
The Bulldogs are 3-3-1 since a 17-game unbeaten streak, and this week they host North Dakota. Tyler Buckentine and Brian Halverson have This Week in the WCHA.