Each week during the season, we look at the big events and big games around Division I men’s college hockey in Tuesday Morning Quarterback.
Ed: Before we jump into some of what’s happening on the ice, Paula, this season is marking sort of a change in eras for the D-I men’s hockey conferences as Bob DeGregorio retires from Atlantic Hockey and Steve Hagwell does likewise at ECAC Hockey. That will leave Hockey East’s Steve Metcalf and CCHA’s Don Lucia as the longest-tenured D-I hockey single-sport commissioners in only their third season.
The next commissioner of Atlantic Hockey – and women’s College Hockey America – was announced last week, John Carroll University senior athletic director Michelle Morgan. Her selection is being characterized as “outside the box” around the sport, but for Atlantic Hockey, this seems like just the right choice. It reminds me of Josh Fenton’s 2013 selection as the second commissioner of the NCHC. Like Fenton, someone who was maybe not on everyone’s radar, but who has a resume of broad experience and a background in hockey along the way – in Morgan’s case working with two NHL teams and playing college hockey at St. Thomas.
In 20 seasons, DeGregorio has taken Atlantic Hockey from eight scholarships to a full 18, has seen the growth of the conference, and has led as league members have improved their programs and facilities. Morgan seems to me to be poised to continue this progress and in areas that are especially important today. I hear nothing but glowing reports and am looking forward to recording an interview with her later this week for USCHO Spotlight. What’s your reaction to the choice of Morgan?
Paula: Ed, for many reasons, I’m delighted that Michelle Morgan is the new AHA and CHA pick. I’ll get the obvious one out of the way first: it’s nice to see yet another crack in the glass ceiling of sports management.
When Cammi Granato became the assistant GM for the Vancouver Canucks last year, there was a big sense of ‘well, duh’ from many in the hockey world because she obviously has a resume that should make her hire a no-brainer, and yet there was still talk – infuriating talk – of her being some sort of token. The idea that a competent, qualified woman is any kind of token hire in any field whatsoever is mind-boggling, and yet there will be pushback against women candidates in management and coaching of men’s sports until even more organizations begin to realize the talent they’re ignoring.
That the reaction to Morgan’s hire is so overwhelmingly positive is very encouraging and another reason to be happy to hire. And as you say, her resume shows that she’s an excellent choice for the next chapter of both AHA and CHA. The hiring committee thinks she’s the person for the job, which is enough for me and should be enough for anyone in the hockey world. Bob DeGregorio was perfect for his tenure. I’m looking forward to Morgan making her mark on Atlantic Hockey, College Hockey America and college hockey in general.
This brings to mind something that’s been sitting with me a lot recently, the kinds of positive cultural changes that are happening in college hockey that will (imo) positively impact the game itself. The Big Ten hired two coaches this year that come from the player development side of the game, and both – Michigan State’s Adam Nightingale and Michigan’s Brandon Naurato – appear to have approaches that have helped their teams weather off-ice storms while translating into on-ice success.
That leads me to jump back into the discussion of on-ice happenings, Ed. I know I am a broken record this season, but holy cow what’s happening in B1G Hockey is wild.
Ed: Let me follow up on your first point, Paula, player development. A recurring theme among head coaches I’ve talked to over the last few years is a change toward a more one-on-one, personal interaction with players. Some of that comes from a generational change among student-athletes who want to know why they are being asked to do something, and then give a full-hearted buy-in when they get the full picture. Some of it comes from getting to know individuals as young men and women and not just as hockey players. All of that is augmented by technology that allows players to see video of their shifts and analytics that allow a coaching staff to break things down into more individual detail.
So there is a shift, not just at the college level, but in the pro ranks, too. As a western New York guy, I’m delighted to see the progress of the Buffalo Sabres, and it’s in large part because of Don Granato’s approach to the team.
Now to the Big Ten. A four-way tie for second? Are you kidding me (a hackneyed sports talk or screaming play-by-play guy would say)? Michigan is putting on a late-season surge and scoring like crazy, but it wouldn’t surprise me to see any of those teams challenge Minnesota for the league title. And even the thought of a Gophers-Wolverines championship game at Mariucci sounds amazing and – unlike a few years back – sold out. But again, I’m not counting anybody out. That conference – before Monday night’s Beanpot results are included – has five teams in at-large range in the PairWise, with Notre Dame knocking at the door.
A lot of eyeballs have been on Naurato this season. He’s still got the interim tag on him and it would surprise me not to see him have that removed after this campaign. Nightingale’s Spartans have been a pleasant surprise. While they had a tough stretch after the semester break, last weekend’s sweep of Notre Dame has them right in the mix.
We usually like to touch upon every league when space permits, so I’d like your thoughts about the CCHA. It’s very close to a two-horse race for that conference right now, with Michigan Tech just a point behind Minnesota State. But the Huskies are sitting at No. 10 in the PairWise, a position that by the end of regular-season play in a couple weeks usually portends almost a lock for the post-season. We’ve told people in print and on our podcasts since the fall not to sleep on MTU and coaches tell me they are seriously legit.
Paula: Michigan Tech is consistent as well as legit – and it’s that consistency this season that has me watching the Huskies and their post-season chances. While the Huskies haven’t been the most prolific scoring team this season, in their last four games they’ve outscored opponents 12-3. After showing all season their ability to win close games, being able to pick up some offensive steam heading into the final weeks of the regular season will give Michigan Tech confidence.
And it is their consistency that has impressed me the most and has positioned the Huskies higher than the Mavericks in the PWR. There was that six-game stretch from Nov. 18 to Dec. 3 when Minnesota State went 1-4-1 that had me wondering about whether the Mavericks were poised to have a down year. Minnesota State recovered with an impressive 9-1-0 run since then, but with the exception of an early season loss to Ferris State followed by an exhibition loss to the National Development Team, Michigan Tech hasn’t lost two in a row this entire campaign.
There’s one point between Minnesota State and Michigan Tech, and the Huskies play the Mavericks in Mankato the last weekend of the regular season. That certainly makes things interesting. The two teams behind the Mavericks and Huskies – Bowling Green and Bemidji State – can, in theory, finish in first place, but all it takes is one loss for either the Falcons or Beavers to be out of contention, even with the Beavers having two games in hand on all three teams ahead of them.
I love a good horse race, and because I do, I can’t take my eyes off of Hockey East and the NCHC. As good as Boston University is, the Terriers are only three points ahead of Northeastern in the standings and only seven points separate fourth-place Connecticut from first-place BU. There are five points between first-place Denver and fourth-place Omaha in the NCHC.
Any predictions, Ed? What are you watching closely as the regular season winds down?
Ed: Paula, I absolutely love close races at the end, especially if things are still up for grabs on the final night of the season. I’ll tell you what I’m watching in the last three leagues you mentioned, but I’m admittedly too chicken to predict anything.
Hockey East is going to really be a scramble, as only two teams are inside the PairWise bubble, and that means an even greater incentive to win, or at least go very deep, in the conference playoffs. I guess two teams that I’m watching in that league are UMass Lowell and Maine. The RiverHawks have two or three games in hand against most of the league, and could be in a battle for the top. Meanwhile the Black Bears have shown steady improvement as the season has gone on under second-year head coach Ben Barr, going 6-4 in 2023 and 10-5-1 since Thanksgiving. Maine travels to Lowell on February 12.
Things are tight at the top in the NCHC, but only Miami has been eliminated from home ice in the quarterfinal round. Denver is the only team controlling its destiny for the top of the league, with two games in hand vs. Western Michigan and St. Cloud State. It’s looking like the top three are pretty well set, but North Dakota still can win its way into the top four, with the final series at home against Omaha with that last home ice position on the line. Meanwhile, up-and-down Minnesota Duluth and an improving Colorado College need help to host the NCHC quarterfinals.
ECAC Hockey has multiple races going on at once. The top four teams get a first-round bye, and the next four get home ice in a one-game playoff. So you have teams trying to get into the top four and teams trying to avoid the bottom four. Plus the top four will be gunning for the highest seed.
Right now Quinnipiac, Cornell, and Harvard have a little room at the top. The Big Red are red hot and are going to contend for No. 1. They’re the team I’m watching most closely in that conference. But Harvard is within a weekend of falling out of the top four, with Colgate and St. Lawrence not far behind. Home ice in round one is looking the same way, with everyone still mathematically in the hunt, though it’s going to need near perfect play from Yale and Dartmouth.
The final night of the regular season is going to be great.
We forgot to mention Alaska. The Nanooks are still in the hunt for an NCAA berth, but will need some help to get there. Still, if they can run the table, or very nearly do so, they’ll be watching ten-thousandths of RPI points and hoping for no upsets on conference championship night.
Paula: I’m really looking forward to conference playoff hockey. While I love the NCAA tournament and every Frozen Four is exciting in its own way, the conference playoffs are just the best hockey all season.
In addition to the automatic NCAA berth that’s at stake, the amount of pride on the line in each conference is something that can’t be described. Every team dreams of winning a national championship, but the conference title is personal. Some league championships see long-standing rivals face off while some may see new, unexpected contenders – and everyone has a grudge of some kind. Okay, so that may be a bit overdramatic, but in my decades of covering college hockey, some of the best, most exciting games I’ve covered have come during conference playoffs.
This year, too, there are so many programs in several conferences that are good yet currently outside of the PWR or on the bubble that we may see some significant upsets in the playoffs.
You mention Alaska, but I’m also thinking of RIT – who may be a bubble team that misses the NCAA tournament after an outstanding season if the Tigers fail to capture the AHA playoff title – and teams like Michigan State, Notre Dame, and Omaha, all so good and yet so close to being out. Even Minnesota State’s fate isn’t sealed.
I’m not too chicken to make one prediction, but it’s a pretty easy one unless there’s a momentary glitch in the alignments of the hockey planets: Minnesota will take the regular-season Big Ten title. Beyond that, though, I’ve got nothing. These next few weeks will be a lot of fun for fans of the game.
