This Week in … columns; weekly columns on a league, region or gender-division
Another great week of Women’s D-III hockey out east as more teams began their regular season play, leaving only the NESCAC teams who begin their season Friday November 18 featuring the current #1 defending champions Middlebury who host Trinity for a pair of home games. Next weekend, the eastern half of D-III Hockey will finally … Read more
I had the chance recently to talk to Pierre-Luc O’Brien, who starred for Sacred Heart from 2004 to 2008. O’Brien was a three-time Atlantic Hockey all-star as well as a Hobey Baker finalist. He holds the school’s record for career points (156). When asked about his favorite college hockey memory, O’Brien related the “Miracle at … Read more
There are always a few scheduling quirks to a college hockey season. Teams can wind up on an extended road trip somewhere along the line, or they might play a few extra games at home. Some other team’s scheduling requirements might necessitate a single game in the middle of the week, and the ever-present butterfly … Read more
When fans think of Big Ten rivalries, the classic that comes to mind is Michigan vs. Ohio State. It’s easy to forget that the mutual disdain between these two bordering states extends well beyond the Wolverines and Buckeyes. While it may not be as well known, the Michigan State-Ohio State rivalry is intense, especially when … Read more
Ryan Tverberg has, so far this season, done everything in his power to get Connecticut to its highest national ranking ever — seventh in the latest edition of the DCU/USCHO.com D-I men’s poll. The scary thing for the rest of Hockey East? The junior forward might still have his best hockey in front of him. … Read more
We had another exciting week of Women’s D-III hockey out west, with another top 5 team falling and some teams making a move in the rankings. Weeks such as this one just show how the skill levels are becoming more and more comparable in terms of competitiveness across all conferences, more than we’ve seen in … Read more
After dropping both games to Penn State two weeks ago, St. Thomas coach Rico Blasi said he wasn’t much for “moral victories.” The Tommies had lost to the Nittany Lions 6-2 in their series opener before rallying in Friday’s finale and losing 3-2 in overtime. Clearly, Blasi is attempting to build the newly-promoted St. Thomas … Read more
Many things come to mind when North Dakota fans think about their hockey team’s unique selling points. There are the eight national championships, but more recently, the Fighting Hawks have also become known for their destination games. The U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Game, exempt from teams’ 34-game regular-season limit, is a tradition that has … Read more
Week one out east featured two coaches winning their first games as Division III head coaches. Kalie Grant, head coach of SUNY Canton and Jake Bobrowski, head coach of Elmira, both got the job done in their first games at the helm of their respective teams. There weren’t a ton of games played this weekend … Read more
Rochester Institute of Technology has opened the 2022-23 season 6-2-0, its best start in four years. While there are several reasons for the strong start, one number sticks out. The Tiger power play is clicking at 33.3 percent, tied for third nationally and double the 16.2 percent rate for RIT last season. And while Wayne … Read more
It’s no secret that the Massachusetts hockey team plays close games against intra-state rival Merrimack. UMass won all four meetings last season by a single goal, including twice in overtime. Over the weekend, the teams split a pair of overtime contests during a home-and-home series, with the Minutemen winning 3-2 on their home sheet on … Read more
Michigan interim head coach Brandon Naurato is a teacher by nature, and that teaching approach to coaching is already bearing fruit for a Michigan team with a 12-member rookie class. “I feel like I’m so blessed to have really good people from the freshmen to the other kids around that they want to be the … Read more
The banners at Harvard’s Bright-Landry Hockey Center tell stories of tribute to the champions of years past. They form a road of sorts along the ice sheet, and each flag links generations of hockey players who once wore the fabled crimson and white uniforms by listing the individual years’ glory next to one another. It’s … Read more
Week 1 has concluded and we had many shakeups occur including the upset of #5 [now #7] UW-River Falls at the hands of Augsburg [now #13] who’s had a promising start to their season. #12 [now #10] Adrian headed out east to Oswego and got the weekend sweep, whilst #6 [now #5] UW-Eau Claire survived … Read more
It was mostly splitsville in Atlantic Hockey last week, with both conference series (Rochester Institute of Technology at Air Force and Sacred Heart at Niagara) ending in splits. In each case, the home team won the first game, with the visitors coming back the next day to get their three points. Mercyhurst and Clarkson also … Read more
As he recalls it, on the day he learned current St. Cloud State forward Grant Cruikshank entered the transfer portal ahead of his fifth season of eligibility, Huskies coach Brett Larson met Cruikshank for lunch. Larson had been close to securing Cruikshank’s commitment before, but SCSU came up second to Minnesota after Cruikshank finished a … Read more
Few teams lost quite as many impact players over the offseason as Bemidji State. Aside from the Sillinger brothers (Owen and Lukas) – the team’s joint leading goal scorers with 17 apiece – the Beavers also lost a big chunk of their leadership group. Fifth-year senior captain Ethan Somoza – an older, hard-working veteran who … Read more
The college hockey season is a six-month-long debate, but Penn State has already crafted an impressive opening statement. Averaging 5.17 goals per game through their first three series – six games, all wins – with all but three goals coming at even strength, the Nittany Lions are playing hockey that looks a lot more Penn … Read more
Kyle Hallbauer knows all of the jokes. He’s old enough to remember when the members of One Direction weren’t heading in different directions. He was around when the Titanic sank, but at least THAT was the movie and not real life. His nickname in the locker room is “Grandpa” and the “Godfather.” This past weekend, … Read more
When he transferred to Connecticut over the summer, Andrew Lucas knew he was joining a hungry men’s hockey team. The Huskies were coming off a season where they missed an NCAA tournament appearance by one overtime goal. Lucas, meanwhile, was at Vermont, playing well but for a struggling team. The junior forward has been pretty … Read more