There’s a school of thought in some sports that star players are not effective as coaches. That certainly doesn’t seem to be an issue in women’s hockey, where the top two teams in the rankings are coached by people who earned Olympic gold medals as players. Boston College coach Katie Crowley won gold with the … Read more
After two weeks of the second half, Candace and Arlan ponder all the standings races, whether BC showed vulnerability in its win over BU, and what the possible return of Amanda Kessel could mean to Minnesota’s fortunes.
After a few weeks of play, Candace and Arlan take a look at which teams are looking good and which have some work to do in their first Wednesday Women of the year.
Minnesota State Mavericks USCHO prediction: Eighth Coaches’ prediction: Eighth Last season: Eighth (3-32-1, 1-26-1-0 WCHA) The names That Minnesota State landed with a thud in the WCHA’s basement wasn’t that difficult to predict; the Mavericks were just too young to compete in the rough and tumble league. They’ll have new direction as they start the … Read more
Though Wisconsin will mount a stiff challenge, the WCHA still looks to belong to the Minnesota Golden Gophers.
The first weekend of play brings excitement and uncertainty for the coaches and teams. Arlan Marttila takes a look.
He again will work with John Harrington; they earlier coached together with the St. John’s men’s team.
John Harrington has been named head coach of the Minnesota State women’s hockey program. “We are thrilled to attract someone of John’s caliber to our program,” said Minnesota State director of athletics Kevin Buisman in a news release. “The depth of playing and coaching experience that he brings will be a major asset. John’s name … Read more
The quarterfinals turned out to be routs for the home teams; do the semis promise more drama? Candace and Arlan look at that, plus coaching vacancies and more in their final Wednesday Women column of the year.
The WCHA women’s conference this week announced its year-end awards, All-WCHA Teams and All-Rookie Team. Minnesota junior forward Hannah Brandt was named Player of the Year after a 21-goal, 29-assist campaign for the Gophers. Brandt is also one of three finalists for the 2015 Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award. Senior Rachel Ramsey, a teammate of Brandt’s … Read more
Minnesota State announced Wednesday that women’s coach Eric Means will step down at the end of his current contract at the end of May. “I would like to thank Minnesota State for allowing me to serve as head coach of the Maverick women’s hockey program the last six years,” said Means in a sattement. “It … Read more
The WCHA is as competitive as its ever been, but Minnesota is still the team to beat. Arlan Marttila previews the WCHA tournament.
The regular season is over, and the road to a national championship begins. Candace and Arlan take a look at results from the final weekend in the regular season, and ponder what said results mean for the first round of the conference tournaments.
Harvard held first place for a night, North Dakota is moving on up in the WCHA, several teams, including Colgate and Penn State, have great freshmen, and Minnesota and Boston College have looked a little vulnerable.
It is a season of change in the WCHA. For the first time since the league’s inaugural season of 1999-2000, it doesn’t have the defending national champion. That doesn’t necessarily indicate that its days as the country’s top league are over, however, as half of the WCHA is ranked in USCHO’s preseason poll, including the … Read more
Minnesota has been chosen to finish atop the WCHA women’s standings with six first-place votes in the league’s preseason coaches’ poll. The Gophers have advanced to the NCAA championship game the past three seasons, winning twice. Wisconsin, which finished second in the poll, garnered the other two first-place votes from the league’s head coaches. In … Read more
Bemidji State has announced the four finalists for the head coach of the Beavers’ women’s program. The candidates are Minnesota State assistant women’s coach Brett Bruininks, current BSU women’s assistant Amber Fryklund, Nebraska-Omaha men’s assistant Troy Jutting and East Grand Forks (N.D.) High School head coach James Scanlan. All four candidates have been invited to … Read more
According to the Mankato Free Press, state funding for upgrades to the Verizon Wireless Center may be happening sooner than later. Already passed by both houses of the Minnesota legislature, the borrowing and spending bills for construction projects include $14.5 million for a Mankato civic center project – overall, about a $30 million project. Part … Read more
Minnesota State kicked off its season by hosting Mercyhurst in a nonconference series, taking the first contest, 4-2, before falling by a 3-2 score in the second game. While that split should be encouraging, the Mavericks also split with the Lakers two years ago in the season’s second weekend, and then went on to finish … Read more
This promises to be a transitional year in the WCHA, as players like Brianna Decker, Jocelyne and Monique Lamoureux, and Noora Räty that have formed the identity of the conference have completed their eligibility. Their former schools all bring in strong recruiting classes, so while the personnel losses leave the door open a crack for … Read more