It’s now down to the final four weeks of the regular season, and in both leagues there is a lot to play for. This past weekend saw some teams starting to assert themselves, while others are still searching for the formula to get their game going and start posting some wins and all important points. … Read more
It appears the usual suspects are beginning to take control of their respective conferences after another weekend of intense hockey action. A coaching milestone was also achieved during the weekend. St. Norbert coach Tim Coghlin joined an elite group as he won his 400th career game. In a 4-1 victory against Wisconsin-Stout Friday, he became … Read more
Nichols has seemed to have snapped itself out of a funk, and the Bison did it in a big way Saturday night at home against Johnson and Wales. To beat the team with one of the nation’s top offenses, Nichols simply had to score more goals. Louie Educate’s second goal of the game — scored … Read more
Manhattanville jumped all over Neumann this weekend, earning its first season sweep of the Knights since 2004-2005, and vaulting into second place in the league. The Valiants shutout Neumann, 3-0, on Friday, notching two goals in the first 10 minutes of the game and then riding goaltender Pierre-Olivier Lemieux to his third shutout of the … Read more
Lose a lead day The hockey stat which favors the team scoring first meant squat on Friday in the SUNYAC. Three of the four games saw the team which grabbed the early lead lose. The most extreme of all was Geneseo. The Ice Knights opened up a 3-0 lead on first period goals by Jimmy … Read more
Another weekend of important conference games is on the schedule for the Midwest this weekend. The top teams in the MCHA face each other again, as conference leader Adrian travels to Marian, which is just one point back in the standings. St. Olaf and Bethel face off in the MIAC, as both teams try to … Read more
The ECAC Northeast finally has resumed its conference schedule, yet one of the most intriguing matchups will come in the MASCAC, when Plymouth State hosts Worcester State on Saturday, a game that will pair two of the conference’s top goalies: Plymouth State’s Jack Astedt and Worcester State’s Bryan Kalczynski. Last week I finished 5-1 (.833) … Read more
Game of the Week No doubt, the biggest matchup this weekend is Geneseo at Buffalo State. Buffalo State sits in third place with nine points. Geneseo and Potsdam have eight points. Fredonia has seven points. So, not only are the two points ultra important versus each other, they are also ultra important to the teams … Read more
This weekend is the transition between nonconference play and league games. Neumann has already finished its out of league schedule, while Elmira, Hobart, and Utica wrap things up this weekend. Three key league games this week will set the tone for the race to the end. Neumann is at Manhattanville for a pair of games … Read more
Last week, I finished a very solid week of picks with a 5-1-1 record. It was a dominant weekend for the road teams. For the season, my overall record now sits at 33-13-6 (.692) — creeping up toward the 70 percent success number, but not quite there yet. Points are coming at a premium now … Read more
In the first weekend of conference play for the New Year, two teams earned a little breathing room at the top of the standings in the MCHA and MIAC, while the NCHA conference race tightened up. Adrian and St. Thomas each earned weekend sweeps in which all games were decided by a goal. St. Norbert … Read more
In two MASCAC games on Thursday and Saturday, Westfield State faced 66 shots on goal; simple math tells you that’s an average of 33 shots a game. However, it’s a sharp deviation from what was becoming the norm for the Owls. In a 4-0 loss Thursday at home to Plymouth State, Westfield State goalies Eddie … Read more
Bendel Backs Beacons The last of the unbeaten teams has gone by the wayside as of Saturday night. Call it what you want, a trap game, a Fenway Park hangover or what it was, a good hockey game with great goaltending for the Massachusetts-Boston team that held on to a 2-1 win on Saturday against … Read more
It was a busy week in the ECAC West, as teams played in 12 games total. Neumann, Elmira, and Manhattanville each played three games. Elmira is the only team that swept its trio of games. The Soaring Eagles started the winning week with a barnburner 2-1 win at Fredonia on Tuesday. Brendan Sanders scored a … Read more
Oswego sweeps; avenges Utica loss The Utica at Oswego game was an interesting one. It wasn’t a dirty game. It wasn’t a chippy game. In fact, it was, relatively speaking, a clean game. However, due to the officials calling a very tight game, it was filled with penalties. Quite honestly, with the way the game … Read more
Last week, I finished on the plus side in picks, but not by much with a 5-3-1 record. For the season, my overall record now sits at 28-12-5 (.674) — not bad with the overall competitiveness seen year-to-date. This week, I am going off the board a bit in picking some games with some clear … Read more
Last week’s picks were perfection, which certainly surprised me as much as anyone else. In an unusual bit of scheduling for Division III, the ECAC West plays in three weekend series with nonconference foes this week. Neumann travels to Fredonia and Manhattanville hosts Potsdam each for a pair of games. And Elmira plays a home-and-home … Read more
Yet again, it’s another weekend of nonconference games for the ECAC Northeast, save for Friday’s Wentworth-Becker game. One would think the endless road trips and the unfamiliar teams would produce some monotony, but it’s actually the opposite. Many of the conference’s schools are still on winter break, so this is the time when each team … Read more
It is the first weekend of conference play since winter break. Teams in the MCHA, MIAC and NCHA will be battling for positioning in the league standings before conference tournaments begin at the end of February. I went 5-3 in last week’s picks, which makes my record 22-14 for the season, a .636 winning percentage. … Read more
Game of the Week This is the second consecutive weekend of all nonconference games for SUNYAC teams, with another 14 taking place, plus one more on Tuesday. Like last week, there are plenty of good games to choose from. I’m going with two, one on Friday and one on Saturday. Plattsburgh travels to Middlebury for … Read more