Coaches have been telling me all season that Atlantic Hockey is wide open this year, with any team capable of beating any other. This weekend proved that out: Niagara looked very impressive in a 4-1 win over RIT, continuing their dominance over the Tigers. But the next night, Air Force jumped out to a 5-0 … Read more
Last Week: 7-3-2 On the Season: 27-20-4 (.569) This Week’s Picks: It’s a bizarre weekend with plenty of action, but all single games. No two game series. Friday, November 19 AIC at Army – AIC stays in conference (no non-league games yet) while Army starts a homestand that will see them at Tate rink for … Read more
A pair of Atlantic Hockey teams are off to great starts. Holy Cross is 4-1-1 in league play, its best opening in conference play since 2003. The Crusaders 5-4-1 overall start is their best since 2005. Holy Cross has been able to win on the road (4-1-1) and in close games (4-0 in one-goal contests). … Read more
The last game of the week in Atlantic Hockey was the undoubtably the best. Air Force trailed No. 3 Yale 3-0 early in the third period but scored four times in the final 15 minutes to skate away with a 4-3 upset. “This is one for the ages,” head coach Frank Serratore said after the … Read more
Last Week: 3-5-1 (.389) On the Season: 20-17-2 (.583) This Week’s Picks: Friday November 12 and Saturday, November 13 Army at Mercyhurst- The Lakers are 23-9-2 all-time against the Black Knights and looking for their first home win, and I think they’ll sweep this weekend. Mercyhust 3, Army 1; Mercyhurst 4, Army 2. Connecticut at … Read more
Atlantic Hockey has released its player, rookie, and goalie of the month for October and it was a clean sweep for the Canisius Golden Griffins. AHA Player of the Month: Cory Conacher, Canisius – The reigning Player of the Year picked up where he left off last season with ten points in October, helping the … Read more
It was another good weekend for Atlantic Hockey teams in non-league play, with Niagara continuing the AHA string of three wins in three games over Northeastern, and Army also picking up its first non-conference win of the season with a 5-2 win at Massachusetts. AHA teams are now 5-1-1 in their last seven non-conference games. In … Read more
Last Week: 4-5 (.444) On the Season: 17-12-1 (.583) This Week’s Picks: Friday November 5 and Saturday, November 6 Robert Morris at Holy Cross – Both teams are playing well right now, so I’m going with a split. Holy Cross 4, Robert Morris 3; Robert Morris 5, Holy Cross 3. Canisius at Connecticut – This … Read more
Atlantic Hockey has had its share of nationally recognized goaltenders in recent years, from Josh Kassel at Army (all-american in 2008) to Andrew Volkening at Air Force (twice named to the all-tournament team in the NCAA East Regional) and Jared Demichiel (last season’s NCAA East Regional MVP). Who’s waiting in the wings? Last week was … Read more
Just about every Atlantic Hockey team came out of the weekend with something to feel good about: Connecticut came back from a 3-0 deficit to earn a 3-3 tie at No. 16 Union. Canisius and Army split, with the Griffs posting a 4-0 win on Friday, but the Black Knights coming back on Saturday with … Read more
Last Week: 7-4-1 (.625) On the Season: 13-7-1 (.643) This Week’s Picks Friday October 29 and Saturday, October 30 Army at Canisius – The Griffs are off to a good start and Army typically better at home, so I’m picking Canisius to sweep. Canisius 3, Army 1; Canisius 5, Army 3. Friday, October 29 Robert … Read more
Two streaks ended for Air Force last weekend, when the Falcons hosted the American International Yellow Jackets. On Friday, AIC game back from a two-goal deficit to win 5-3. It was the first time in 21 attempts that the Yellow Jackets had defeated the Falcons. Whatever adjustments made by Air Force Frank Serratore and his … Read more
Other than couple of conference matchups (with some surprising results), this was a weekend for Atlantic Hockey teams to travel to ECAC barns. AHA teams did not fair well, going 0-6-1. Bentley earned a come-from-behind 3-3 tie at Clarkson on Saturday, scoring three times in the final period. Niagara also erased a 3 goal deficit … Read more
Last Week: 6-3-2 (.636) On the Season: 6-3-2 (.636) This Week’s Picks: Friday October 22 and Saturday, October 23 Bentley at Clarkson – The Falcons head to the North Country in search of their first win. I don’t think they’ll get it, but the games should be close. Clarkson 4, Bentley 3; Clarkson 3, Bentley … Read more
It’s been an emotion week in the hockey community in Rochester, NY. On Saturday, the RIT Tigers played in front of their largest crowd ever on home ice, a sellout crowd of 10,556. RIT and Massachusetts-Lowell skated to a 4-4 with the Riverhawks’ Scott Campbell getting the tying goal with just 1.3 seconds to play. … Read more
Last week, we had some observations about how ties can feel like wins. Rochester Institute of Technology 4-4 tie with Massachusetts-Lowell on Saturday had to feel like like a loss. In front of a school and AHA record sellout crowd of 10, 556 at Rochester’s Blue Cross Arena, Mass-Lowell’s Scott Campbell scored an extra attacker … Read more
Look for picks in this space every Friday and check back to see how I did on Monday. Last season, I picked just under two out of three (.641) results correctly. Think you can do better? Email me your picks at ahawriter@uscho.com. and I’ll feature a sampling each week. This Week’s Picks Friday October 15 … Read more
Last season, Atlantic Hockey teams struggled out of the gate in non-conference matchups, going 1-9 on opening weekend, with Canisius getting the sole win. Turn the calendar ahead and it was more of the same. AHA teams were 1-9-3 to open the 2010-2011 season with the Golden Griffins again getting the only victory, a 5-3 … Read more