This Week in … columns; weekly columns on a league, region or gender-division
Omaha announced bad news Tuesday, as COVID-19 protocols forced the Mavericks to postpone a home series scheduled for this weekend against Denver. When the Mavericks return to action, though — as of now, Jan. 14-15 at North Dakota — they’ll expect to have a strong-playing goaltender starting between the pipes. Omaha junior Isaiah Saville is … Read more
The game it didn’t play to end the year garnered most of the attention for Michigan last week, but with the defending national champion coming to town this weekend, it’ll be important for the Wolverines to turn the page into the new year quickly. Michigan and the Minutemen will play a Saturday-Sunday series at Yost … Read more
Ah, the New Year. A time to make resolutions that you may or may not keep. For most of us, these resolutions are merely suggestions at self-betterment that might not even have any outwardly tangible signs of change. Luckily for a college hockey coach who decides to make some resolutions for their team, there should … Read more
It’s only January, but one can be forgiven for thinking it might feel a little like March when the Massachusetts men’s hockey team visits Michigan for a highly anticipated two-game set on Saturday (5 p.m., Big Ten Network) and Sunday (4 p.m., ESPNU). The Minutemen (10-4-2, 7-2-2 Hockey East) are ranked No. 10 in the … Read more
The start of the New Year means that the games are starting to get more amplified in the college hockey season. That’s especially the case in ECAC Hockey, where the margin of error for making the NCAA tournament is tight for several of the league’s contenders. While there’s still plenty of time left, Quinnipiac would … Read more
As the first season of the new-look CCHA hits its halfway point, I can’t help but notice that things in the league are, so far, going about as expected. Sure, maybe there have been a few surprises – I don’t think anyone had Northern Michigan sweeping Minnesota Duluth on their bingo card – but for … Read more
By any measure, the Massachusetts men’s hockey team has turned in a successful defense (so far) of its NCAA championship season from last year. The Minutemen are 9-4-2 overall, ranked No. 12 in the most recent DCU/USCHO.com Division I poll, are second in Hockey East with a 7-2-2 record and — perhaps most importantly — … Read more
The first half the ECAC Hockey season concludes on Friday when Dartmouth travels to take on Hockey East’s Merrimack. While the results on the ice haven’t been there for many of the league’s teams – eight schools enter the break with an overall record of .500 of worse – the fact all 12 conference members … Read more
It hasn’t quite been a return to normal in college hockey this season, because “normal” has been difficult to define. But Atlantic Hockey has managed to play every league game scheduled, in front of fans, so that’s something to be grateful for. Let’s take a look at where things stand at roughly the halfway point … Read more
Chances are, you have gone to the Internet for tips on all sorts of activities. Social media platforms, in particular, are chock-full with videos that provide inspiration. In that way, at least, hockey players are just like the rest of us. Western Michigan fifth-year forward Ethen Frank had a remarkable first half of the season … Read more
It may not get the coverage of similar matchups in Minnesota, Michigan or Massachusetts, but Ohio State coach Steve Rohlik is excited to renew the in-state rivalry between Ohio State and Bowling Green this weekend. In one of the few contests across the country this weekend, the Buckeyes and Falcons will play a home-and-home series … Read more
For the past few weeks, the top-ranked team in the country has lost at least once. There’s no telling if this is because there’s extra pressure on the team at the top, or if teams playing No. 1 are especially excited at the chance to earn a marquee win, but one thing is certain: Those … Read more
Yes, it’s a battle of longtime cross-town rivals. But a lot more than just a share of intra-city bragging rights will be on the line Friday when Boston College (7-5-2, 5-3-1 Hockey East) takes the short trip down Comm. Ave to Boston University (6-9-2, 5-5-2) for the first of three meetings between the two schools … Read more
While every Ivy League team entered this season with a lot of uncertainty, Yale likely had the most questions of any of the six teams who were resuming play after a year-long layoff. The Bulldogs entered the season with 24 players on their roster, yet only nine of those players had played in a college … Read more
NCHC commissioner Josh Fenton is always busy at this time of year, with the college hockey season nearing its halfway point. Now, though, he has even more on his plate as he transitions from leading a conference with one sport to another with 19. Fenton was announced Friday as the next commissioner of the Summit … Read more
Air Force coach Frank Serratore knows his team is a work in progress. He pointed out at the beginning of his season that the Falcons were one of, if not the youngest team in Division I, with 17 underclassmen on the roster and just one senior. And that’s in a year where most teams are … Read more
Michigan State had improved slightly each season since Danton Cole was hired as head coach in 2017. Until last year, that is. Like many other teams, the 2020-21 season was not kind to the Spartans. There just aren’t many ways to polish a 7-18-2 overall record into anything positive, but with one series remaining in … Read more
When the season started, Northern Michigan had something of a defensive crisis. The Wildcats barely had enough healthy bodies to field a full defensive unit. At one point, they had just four regular blueliners. Adding to that, the team’s No. 1 goalie, Rico DiMatteo, wasn’t 100 percent after recovering from surgery. “We played a series … Read more
A lot has gone right for the men’s hockey programs at Providence and Northeastern in the last month. No. 13 Providence (12-5-0, 6-3-0 Hockey East) has won six straight games and 16th-ranked Northeastern (11-4-1, 5-3-1) ran through the November portion of its schedule without a regulation loss. Something has to give this weekend as the … Read more
Offense has been hard to come by for Colgate for several seasons. While the Raiders usually had solid defense and goaltending, their struggle to score put them at a disadvantage. But it’s been a different story so far this year. Colgate enters its final weekend of the first half 25th in Division I in goals … Read more