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WCHA CHAMPIONSHIP: Lake Superior State leads from start to finish, beats Northern Michigan to earn first-ever league crown

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For Lake Superior State, a team that had never won a WCHA playoff title in its history, just getting a chance to play for one meant a lot to the Lakers.

Just 80 seconds in, LSSU jumped on Northern Michigan, getting a lead they would not relinquish the rest of the night en route to a 6-3 victory at the Verizon Center Saturday night.

HOCKEY EAST CHAMPIONSHIP: Gaudet nets lone goal to lift UMass over UMass Lowell to claim first-ever conference championship

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The most unique of seasons and most unique of circumstances might as well have set the stage for the most unique of champions.

At their home Mullins Arena, UMass took its first ever Hockey East championship, a 1-0 victory over upstart UMass Lowell. It was the fourth time ever a team took the title by a 1-0 score.

ECAC HOCKEY CHAMPIONSHIP: Jankowski’s OT winner sends St. Lawrence to NCAA tournament, gives Saints first league title in 20 years

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One of the oddest seasons in ECAC Hockey history ended with one of the most unlikely league champions.

Third-seeded St. Lawrence beat No. 1 Quinnipiac 3-2 in overtime Saturday at the Frank Perrotti Jr. Arena to win the ECAC Hockey championship and advance to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2007.

Atlantic Hockey Picks: March 19-20

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At A Glance: Last week’s record: 3-6 Overall Record: 73-41-2   This Week’s Picks*: *All games are subject to change. Atlantic Hockey Tournament Semifinal Round Friday, March 19 Canisius vs. Army West Point Dan: It would take a crazy person to pick against the Black Knights given how they’ve played over the past couple of … Read more

Bracketology: With Selection Sunday around the corner, taking one last stab at how the NCAA hockey tournament field will look

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We’re inching ever so close to Selection Sunday so let’s take another look at Bracketology.

Right now, there are just nine college hockey games remaining after the NCHC (North Dakota) and Big Ten (Minnesota) crowned their champions. Hockey East has whittled their field to two teams, ECAC is down to three and WCHA and AHA still have their final four to be played.

Previewing ECAC Hockey, Atlantic Hockey, WCHA, Hockey East championships: Game of the Week college hockey podcast Season 3 Episode 16

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No. 8 UMass home-and-home vs. No. 14 UMass Lowell preview with Minutemen head coach Greg Carvel: Game of the Week college hockey podcast Season 2 Episode 20

Wisconsin State Journal writer and USCHO editor emeritus Todd D. Milewski joins hosts Jim Connelly and Ed Trefzger to preview the semifinal and championship rounds in ECAC Hockey, Atlantic Hockey, and the WCHA and the Hockey East finals between UMass Lowell and No. 6 UMass.

They also consider NCAA implications of the four series, including what “eye test” criteria might be used by the committee.

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This Week in NCHC Hockey: Applause for conference in getting through ’20-21 season safely, with exciting games to boot

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Now that the Frozen Faceoff has ended, it seems fitting to look back on the NCHC season.

It’s likely that three teams from the conference may make the NCAA tournament, possibly four, but with so much up in the air with selection, it’s also possible only two teams, North Dakota and St. Cloud State, will be chosen.

This Week in Big Ten Hockey: As pandemic lingers, commissioner Warren hopeful Big Ten ‘did all that we could for our conference’ in ’20-21

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Another sign of how much things have changed, as if one was needed, was evident in Sunday’s conversation with Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren.

When Warren took over at the helm of the conference in January 2020, a college hockey reporter opening an interview with a line of questions about an infectious disease wouldn’t have been normal.

Such is life for the Big Ten, and sports in general, these days.

This Week in WCHA Hockey: Lake Superior State wants to ‘get back to that level’ of playing for league, national championships

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Shortly after dropping his son off for hockey practice, Lake Superior State coach Damon Whitten looks out from his office window at the Taffy Abel Arena.

A collection of banners stares back at him. This is his office view every day, a reminder of the proud tradition of Lakers hockey that includes an era that stretches from 1987-96. They made the NCAA tournament eight straight times during that run, winning three national titles and finishing runner-up once.

Since the 1995-96 season, the Lakers have topped the 20-win plateau just twice, most recently in 2018-19.

It is something that weighs on Whitten, especially given the position of the banners in respect to his office.

Big Ten, NCHC tournament wrap up and more NCAA prognostication: Weekend Review college hockey podcast Season 3 Episode 18

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Hockey East selects Metcalf, conference races stay hot, PairWise odds: Weekend Review college hockey podcast Season 2 Episode 19

Hosts Jim Connelly and Ed Trefzger wrap up the exciting semifinal and championship rounds of the Big Ten and NCHC in this special midweek edition of Weekend Review.

They also look at a projected NCAA field with 12 or 13 teams that are locks – or nearly so – for the tournament and consider which teams on the bubble might get in depending on this weekend’s four playoffs. Plus, who will be the top four seeds and where might they go?

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This Week in ECAC Hockey: Unusual conference season wraps this week with playoffs, NCAA bid at stake for three teams

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For the most part, the four ECAC Hockey teams playing this year made it through the season unscathed.

But news that Clarkson was cancelling its season last week after some team members violated the school’s COVID-19 policies brought back flashbacks to last March, when teams started to drop out of the league tournament before the entire hockey season was eventually canceled.

However, that wasn’t the case this season, as the three remaining teams are set to compete in the abbreviated ECAC Hockey playoffs starting Thursday.