Here’s the text of the Big Ten’s statement in reaction to Penn State’s announcement that it’s adding men’s and women’s hockey: The Big Ten Conference is excited about Penn State’s recent announcement regarding the establishment of NCAA Division I men’s and women’s ice hockey programs set to begin competition in the 2012-13 academic year. Our … Read more
You may have heard lately that the NCAA is considering a Division I proposal that would prevent schools from officially offering scholarships until July 1 of the year between their junior and senior years of high school. And, yes, it has college hockey implications. The proposal wasn’t making the rounds at the time of the … Read more
The NCAA’s news release — and the story I wrote for the USCHO news section — highlighted the head contact crackdown from the proposed rules changes, but it’s clear from the Twitterverse and on the story’s comments what the real talker is out of the list unveiled today. It’s what I’m going to call always-on … Read more
To get your name on the Stanley Cup as a player on the winning team, you have to have played at least 41 regular-season games or at least one game in the Stanley Cup Final. If we have this right, that means six former college players will get their names on the Cup this season … Read more
It’s no secret that those involved with College Hockey Inc. covet the California market. Yes, we’ve seen executive director Paul Kelly talk about the potential for Division I programs in the state, but the more immediate challenge is getting the increasingly fertile ground for players to become even more of a recruiting target for current … Read more
There has to be a better way, right? When you look at the attendance numbers from this year’s NCAA regionals and consider the less-than-impressive atmosphere at some of the venues, it’s natural to try to come up with a tweak — an improvement that will make things right. One such proposal emerged at last week’s … Read more
Think about all Chris Kreider has seen this season, and then put the situation the Boston College freshman will be in today in context. Kreider scored a goal in the gold-medal game, helping the United States win the World Junior Championship, then two days later returned to Boston to play in front of 38,472 at … Read more
We probably shouldn’t be surprised that Chay Genoway is coming back to North Dakota, like he announced Thursday afternoon. He said at a news conference that he hasn’t yet been cleared to play competitively after his bout with post-concussion syndrome, an injury that cost him all but nine games of last season. Genoway is a … Read more
Just a quick note here that the annual American Hockey Coaches Association Convention begins Thursday in Naples, Fla. The interesting bit to me is that it’s the first one that will be attended by the newly formed College Hockey Inc. So this is where we might to see some lines being drawn. The mission of … Read more
There are two reasons why I bring you the Detroit weather forecast for the rest of the week. One, because it’s always good to plan ahead. You may expect Anaheim weather and get Wisconsin weather, like I did in 1999. Two, because I’ve heard people wondering whether warm weather would negatively impact the ice at … Read more
In the end — after quite a while Sunday night in Fort Wayne — we have three No. 1 seeds in the Frozen Four. Regional leaders Miami, Wisconsin and Boston College join No. 4 seed RIT in heading to Detroit’s Ford Field next week. It’s the first time since 2005 that three top seeds are … Read more
Here’s what we’ve compiled for live television plans for NCAA regional games this weekend, including which local and regional stations are picking up the games not broadcast live on ESPNU (all times Eastern): FRIDAY Denver vs. RIT, 3 p.m. (ESPNU HD) St. Cloud State vs. Northern Michigan, 5:30 p.m. (WBUP-TV, Marquette, Mich.; MASN) Cornell vs. … Read more
Honestly, what I think this week is that there aren’t enough hours in the day. Sorry for not posting until now. NCAA time gets a little crazy around here. I’m going to go through how I filled out my bracket, but I have to say right away that I don’t feel good about it. One … Read more
Here’s the TV information for this weekend’s conference tournaments. Also, watch for our live blogs for each tournament: ECAC This schedule comes from a league release. All times Eastern. FRIDAY, MARCH 19 (SEMIFINALS) NHL Network (Live in the U.S. and taped delayed in Canada) Semifinal #1 – Cornell vs. Brown at 4 p.m. and Semifinal … Read more
I’ll write more as we go through this week, but I wanted to use this space to go through some of what we saw on what had to be one of the most insane weekends of the college hockey season. We’re (finally) done with the 23rd week of the season — of course, it fittingly … Read more
A few random (and not-so-random) thoughts after the 22nd week of the season: * I’m guessing there’s going to be a little bit of fire in two series next weekend. North Dakota hosts Minnesota in a WCHA first-round series, and Michigan State hosts Michigan in a CCHA quarterfinal series. You don’t really need to say … Read more
You can’t help but being a little bit heartbroken if you’re an American hockey fan, but I’ll preface this week by saying this: The two best teams were in the gold-medal game, and I don’t think it was coincidence that it needed overtime to separate them. With that done, here’s this week’s edition: * I’m … Read more
I do not know Aaron Marvin. I can’t speak to his personality, nor to his intent when he takes the ice for St. Cloud State. What I do know, however, is that he’s getting quite a reputation around the WCHA, and it’s not something to be proud of. I heard one longtime WCHA observer use … Read more
This is why I don’t get emotionally involved in sports any more. When I do, I end up dinged up. A fist pump with Ryan Kesler’s incredible empty-net goal for the United States against Canada on Sunday night, and my head swings enough to push the glasses from my face and across my eye. Yeah, … Read more
Some random (and not-so-random) thoughts after the 19th week of the college hockey season: * I didn’t think I’d ever have to invest this much thought into Minnesota’s future; it always seemed fairly solid. But when the Gophers’ present is as muddy as it is now, you can’t help but think about what’s ahead. After … Read more