Slow News Week…

It really is true that news is cyclical. Well, at least that’s how I feel. One week after we had everything from Magness-gate to a pact between the WCHA and Bemidji State, we have little in the form of news to report. I even dug into the NCAA’s Website to see if there was anything … Read more

The First Save of Many?

The CHA’s demise seems all but a foregone conclusion. After Air Force departed in 2006, leaving the league with five teams, and Wayne State’s announcment that it will drop hockey at the end of this season bringing the enrollment down to four, it seems impossible for college hockey’s sixth conference to remain. The pending question … Read more

Upon Further Review…

I guess if I’m going to write about how instant replay is used in college hockey, I best do my home work. In my blog posting earlier today, I wrote about how the Denver-Wisconsin game used instant replay to determine that Wisconsin’s tying goal came after the buzzer. After a fellow USCHO staffer wrote me … Read more

How Sweep it is!

It seems this past weekend that the sweep was the preferred method of dealing with opposition, at least for some of the nation’s top teams. Michigan, Miami, Colorado College, New Hampshire and North Dakota all posted back-to-back Ws on the weekend that with either maintain or improve the poll positioning. The sweep that probably had … Read more

Disappointing End for the U.S.

I’m sure that I’m not the only college hockey fan who was totally bummed to see the US drop their semifinal game against Canada and their bronze medal tilt versus Russia last week. Maybe I was fooled by the U.S.’s solid 4-0-0 record in pool play, but for some reason I really thought this might … Read more

New Year and SO much to talk about…

It’s been a while since I’ve had things to write about here, but after a wild week of holiday tournament action, some incredible play by the U.S. at the World Junior Championships and even some off-ice mischief, I return well armed with fodder. Holiday Tournament Madness The annual scrum of holiday tournaments certainly brought out … Read more

Doesn’t anyone want to win???

No, my headline isn’t referring to the revolving door that was the number one spot in the national poll, as Miami seems to have done a very nice job solidfying itself at the top. Rather, I’m befuddled by the fact that there have been so many ties in college hockey this season. To date, 41 … Read more

Should there be a new No. 1?

The headline on USCHO.com’s front page on Friday night was simple: “No. 1 No More.” That, of course, was referring to the fact that Miami, the nation’s number one team entering the week, had dropped a 2-1 decision to No. 12 Notre Dame, the first loss of the year for the RedHawks. Miami rebounded a … Read more

It’s always sunny in Miami

Things are certainly looking bright and sunny for Miami these days. Having started the year 8-0-0, the RedHawks were one vote away from a unanimous No. 1 in Monday’s USCHO.com poll (who was the idiot who still insists on giving Michigan State one first-place vote?) What’s astounding, though, is not the perfect start for Miami, … Read more

And away we go…

It’s officially four weeks into the college hockey season, which seems like enough time to begin forming some opinions. The first that seems to come to mind is that the West is once again very strong. That’s not to suggest that the East doesn’t have teams that pack a punch, but early results from non-league … Read more

The Frozen Four… in retrospect

Looking back on this year’s Frozen Four, I have to say it was one of the more interesting ones that I can remember in terms of competitive games and an excellent crowd.

Both semifinal games gave fans their money’s worth. Michigan State’s comeback against Maine kept things interesting throughout the entire game. And it’s hard to put into words just how great a game the BC-North Dakota semi was.

The second semifinal might have been one of the fastest, hardest-hitting Frozen Four games I can remember. The talent on the ice shined as bright as possible. All of the big names had excellent games. The last seven minutes of that game had me writing and re-writing my post-game story (we file one story the minute the game ends) time and again.

Saturday night’s title game matched Thursday’s BC-North Dakota game in terms of excitement but still couldn’t reach the frantic pace of play as the semifinal.

It’s hard not to feel good for Michigan State. Even as a writer who follows BC every week of the season, it was great to see Rick Comley win a national title. He is one of college hockey’s ultimate good guys.

Read more

College Hockey NIT?

It’s probably going back about five or six years ago (maybe as far back as 2000), but the creative posters to the USCHO.com Fan Forum once developed a fictional post-season tournament named the “College Hockey NIT.” It certainly was enjoyable to pass some time reading the dramatic posts for each game that mimiced what now … Read more

On to St. Louis!

Three days worth of some great games has yielded a very familiar Frozen Four of Boston College, Maine, North Dakota and Michigan State. The Spartans, who upset Notre Dame in Saturday’s Midwest Regional final, are the only newcomers from last year’s field (Michigan State, of course, takes the place of defending champion Wisconsin). I guess … Read more

The veterans vs. the rookies

Saturday’s second regional semifinal in Manchester is an interesting battle of two totally opposite clubs. Boston College features a senior class that has been to three straight NCAA tournaments and two Frozen Fours. St. Lawrence, having not been in the tournament since 2001, doesn’t have a single game of experience among its players, though head … Read more

Reunion time in New Hampshire…

New Hampshire coach Dick Umile is not only happy to have his Wildcats team in this year’s NCAA tournament, but he’s also excited by the personalities that surround him. In addition to the BC coaching staff that Umile knows well, he also has long-time friend Joe Marsh, head coach of St. Lawrence, in the Manchester … Read more

Live from Manchester

As much as I’d love to be able to provide in-depth blog coverage from all of the regional tournaments this weekend, unfortunately cloning has made the advances I’d hoped at this point and thus you’ll have to settle on getting the inside scoop from the Manchester regional. I’ll be up here all weekend, providing you … Read more

So who do you root for?

I’ve really enjoyed all of the dialogue that’s been going around this blog all week. Nothing like stirring the pot to get the masses of college hockey fans talking. Because there’s been such active participation, particularly from the WCHA and Hockey East fans, I have a question to pose: In regions where your league has … Read more