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15 things on my mind

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Forget resolutions. Chronicling what a team should resolve to do or not to do is a popular thing for writers to present at this time of year, but I just don’t care. We’ve watched the CCHA and college hockey for half a season, and by now every fan’s an expert in what needs to be done or not done, right?
In this first week of 2011, I’d rather vent a little. Venting seems more useful than resolving, at least at this moment. I’m also going to proclaim and note. In doing so, I’ll clear up some much-needed space in my brain. Here are 15 things on my mind.
Venting
Every year at this time, dictionary.com releases its words of the year for the previous 365 days. These are words voted on by readers who either love or loathe said words. Well, there are three specific words that I hear used increasingly by coaches and media types, to the point where the word themselves caricaturize the users. The first in this list is the worst.

  • Adversity. This is a noun that is synonymous with misfortune, but beyond that, it means a sustained or continued state of misfortune. So, Mr. Head Coach, when your team takes a couple of stupid penalties in the second period, your team does not have to battle through adversity. Real adversity? Poverty. Loss of benefits. Serious illness. A contact-to-the-head penalty that your veteran player knew better about and the ensuing five minutes? Not adversity.
  • Jam. Last August, I went to the Flint Farmers Market and bought several quarts of locally grown blueberries. I cooked them up with honey, cinnamon, and the kind of pectin one finds to use with sugar-free jam and jelly recipes. Now, in my freezer, I have several half-pint jars of blueberry jam to last me through the winter. The jam is a gorgeous purply color and has just the right mixture of sweet and tart – and I wouldn’t want any team in the CCHA playing with it.
  • Saucer. I have these in my cupboards, too. Occasionally, I see them on the ice, beautiful passes that actually levitate from one player to another. More often, however, I hear announcers label ordinary, puck-on-the-ice passes as “saucer.” When it happens every other shift, I begin to question an announcer’s grasp of the English language.
  • Controlling one’s own destiny. Okay, so this is a whole phrase and not a single word, and my mentioning it is more or less preemptive, as we usually hear this closer to the playoffs. I’ve been guilty of using this myself in the past, but I hear it earlier and earlier in the season and in the oddest ways. You didn’t control your own destiny in that game, Mr. Goal Scorer. I realize that you’re probably too young to know that no one controls his or her own destiny; I also realize that you’ve picked up this phrase from your coaches and the media. Makes me wish someone would take you aside a la Bull Durham.

Turning from vocabulary to CCHA hockey, here are a few recent annoyances.

  • The outcome of the Shillelagh Tournament. Notre Dame and Boston University fighting for third place? I don’t think that Notre Dame’s loss to Minnesota State has anything to do with parity; after watching Colorado College and Michigan Tech at the Great Lakes Invitational, I think ND’s first-round loss has everything to do with the WCHA. I can’t speak for BU’s 6-1 loss to Brown. Ouch.
  • Hardware in a two midseason tournaments, one of which that is very difficult to lose. Given the odds, it’s not surprising that a CCHA team emerged the winner of the Great Lakes Invitational, but I was disappointed in Ferris State’s lackluster performance against Bemidji State in the opening round of the Mariucci Classic. Again, I can’t speak to Minnesota’s loss to Union. I am glad for the Buckeyes, though, for their Catamount Cup win – gladder still for the CCHA that at least one other team came through.
  • Speaking of the Wolverines (and I was), every time I see Jack Campbell play for Team USA, I get irked that he’s not taking a leave of absence from UM to do so. There’s no reason for this Port Huron, Mich., native to play in the OHL rather than the CCHA. His .887 save percentage with the Windsor Spitfires is certainly something.
  • Speaking of goaltending in the CCHA (and I was), it’s an interesting and down year between the pipes for a league that is usually littered with fine netminders. FSU’s Pat Nagle is the only goalie who has played the majority of his team’s games who is among the top 10 goaltenders nationally for save percentage (.929), and he’s 10th. Last season, five CCHA goalies ended the year among the top 10 nationally (including Nagle) and Alaska’s Scott Greenham was No. 11.

And it’s not just CCHA-related hockey issues that make me want to vent.

  • Speaking of the World Juniors (and I was a couple of notes ago), I’m disappointed that Dean Blais chose not to repeat as head coach this year. I understand why, of course – it’s difficult to be away from family during the holidays – but I do think that Team USA would have been better prepared for its semifinal game against Team Canada Monday night had Blais been in the coaching mix this year.
  • Outdoor games. I don’t know what annoys me more: the gimmick or the fact that such games are billed as unique. They’re played relatively often now and hyped as though they’re going to save the game of hockey. To recap, they’re not unique (please, people, stop calling them once-in-a-lifetime experiences, especially as many Wolverines have played on outdoor surfaces twice in their collegiate careers) and they will not save hockey. In the college ranks, at least, they also illustrate the differences between the haves and have nots. Without an NHL team to piggyback, only big programs can host them.

On to proclamations

  • I have learned to love the Great Lakes Invitational Tournament. For the longest time, I dreaded covering it for purely selfish reasons; I travel for the holiday the moment my semester is done and arrive home in time to cover the GLI – feeling like I’ve received no real break in the process. While I still find the schedule tiring, I enjoy the GLI more and more every year. This midseason tournament doesn’t bring out the hockey media hangers-on who often simply take up space in the cramped Joe Louis Arena press box for the CCHA tournament. During the GLI, it’s usually just the diehard local college hockey press corps that covers, and I like the fellas (and few gals) in that fraternity. It’s a tournament for Michiganders. I get that now.
  • Speaking of the GLI (and I was), attendance this year was great. The announced attendance for the first day was 13,418, and for the second day was 14,718. Last year, the attendance for the first day was 11,211 and was 13,814 for the second day. You may not think that such a slight increase would be noticeable, but it was – and the atmosphere was terrific the whole time. Even attendance for the afternoon games was up.
  • Speaking of the World Juniors (oh, you know what I mean), I was heartened to see the one goal Team USA scored Monday night was scored by Wolverine Chris Brown. He and teammate Jon Merrill have had a great tournament.

And on to notes

  • The Spartans finally scored. MSU ended a scoring dry spell of 151 minutes, 42 seconds, spanning four hockey games that included two shutouts – one shutout in OT. It was Lee Reimer who broke the drought at 15:04 in a GLI game against Colorado College Dec. 29. It was Reimer’s first collegiate goal.
  • This year, the GLI continued its tradition of firsts. Reimer wasn’t the only one to net his first career goal. Others include Spartan Kevin Walrod and Tigers Dakota Eveland and Jeff Collett. Wolverines Lindsay Sparaks and Jeff Rohrkemper scored their first goals of the season in the tourney and MSU freshman goalie Will Yanakeff recorded his first career win. MTU’s Aaron Pietila had his first two-goal career game, and brothers Dean and Jake Chelios connected for their first collegiate goal when Jake set up Dean in MSU’s win over MTU.

Nichol to step down from UWSP at season’s end

USCHO Staff Report
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Wisconsin-Stevens Point head coach Wil Nichol has announced that he will step down from his position as head coach on June 1 to take an NHL front office position.

“It is a once in a lifetime opportunity and one that I and my family are extremely excited about,” Nichol said in a statement released by UWSP. “It has been an incredible privilege to lead this program for the past four years.  I’m proud of our 100 percent graduation rate during my tenure, how our players have conducted themselves on and off the ice, including their heavy involvement in community service, and how they have represented the school.  I am confident that this culture will continue in the future.”

Nichol has guided the Pointers to a 46-44-7 overall record and a 20-32-4 record in the NCHA.

The Pointers have qualified for the league’s postseason tournament each of the last three seasons and last season defeated Wisconsin-Stout in the quarterfinal round to advance to the team’s first NCHA tournament semifinal appearance since 2004, snapping a 12-game losing streak in the postseason.

“We are grateful for the four years Wil has been our head coach,” said UW-Stevens Point athletic director Frank O’Brien.  “He has been a part of our hockey family as a player, assistant and head coach and we are thankful for his efforts.  We wish him the best in his new endeavor.”

Nichol was a defenseman for the Pointers from 1994-98 and captained UW-Stevens Point’s NCAA Division III runner-up team in 1998.  Nichol played in 121 career games with the Pointers, totaling five goals and 20 assists.

A day after loss, U.S. looking forward to bronze-medal game, not back

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The wounds from Monday night’s 4-1 loss to Canada in the semifinals of the World Junior Championship may still be fresh for the United States, but less than 24 hours later, it was a team focused on the future, not the past.

Team USA had what coach Keith Allain described as a “solid” practice on Tuesday to prepare for Wednesday’s bronze-medal game against Sweden.

2010 IIHF World U20 Championship - #3 Charlie Coyle scored the first USA goal over the right shoulder of #1 Philipp Grubauer. Note the puck at the post; Copyright 2010 Angelo Lisuzzo (Angelo Lisuzzo)
Boston University's Charlie Coyle, the leading scorer for the United States at the World Junior Championship, says the Americans are now focused on bronze (photo: Angelo Lisuzzo).

“I think we’re better now than we were before practice,” Allain said. “That’s the beauty of having a practice on a day like today. I think the guys were disappointed, obviously. We didn’t play the way we wanted to play last night. As a result, we didn’t get the outcome we wanted last night.

“We had a talk with them before practice and I think by the end of practice their spirits were pretty good.”

Boston University freshman Charlie Coyle, who enters the final day of the tournament leading the U.S. in scoring with six points, said the team simply has stopped focusing on changing what they cannot and are worried only about what they now can control, which is its medal destiny.

“There’s nothing we can do about [the Canada game] now. We’re focused on Sweden right now,” Coyle said. “It’s still a big game for us. The bronze medal is up for grabs, so we’re looking forward to that.”

Coyle said he hopes the team can play the “USA game,” which he describes as using its speed and attacking, creating opportunities by getting into traffic areas and taking away the eyes of Swedish goaltender Robin Lehner.

U.S. forward Nick Bjugstad said that in addition, the U.S. team will need to find the energy level it had earlier in the tournament, particularly after being severely outworked by Canada in the semis.

“Mentally, it is tough to get [the Canada game] out of your mind, but you have to do it as a team,” Bjugstad said. “We were having a good time this morning and trying to get our minds off of [Canada]. So [bringing energy] is key going into tomorrow’s game.”

Wednesday’s opponent, Sweden, is a team that Allain considers the best in the tournament. He said it’s strong on the puck and a tremendous puck-possession team. That will require the U.S. to be smart when it possesses the puck and limit turnovers that proved so costly against Canada on Monday.

“This version of Sweden is much more aggressive than teams in the past,” Allain said. “They forecheck much harder than they have in the past and they’re stronger in the puck battles than older Swedish teams were.”

One underlying story of Wednesday’s game will be U.S. goaltender Jack Campbell. One of the most successful netminders to put on a USA sweater in amateur competition, Campbell will be playing his final game representing his country in an international junior competition.

Allain spoke wonders about Campbell on Tuesday and portrayed him not just as a great goaltender but as a great teammate.

“His record speaks for itself,” Allain said of Campbell. “The championships he’s won and the games he’s won in international competition have been just amazing.

“I think just as important is that he’s a fantastic kid. What he said to me this morning was that he really wanted to get a gold medal for the guys who were new to the team this year. That’s how he approaches it. He’s just a great kid.”

Now Allain, Campbell and the rest of Team USA have less than 24 hours to make sure that this U.S. team can get ready to face Sweden. Beyond the X’s and O’s, though, Allain is confident he won’t need much to motivate his team.

“We’re competitive people,” Allain said. “Every time you put on that sweater you want to win. The fact that we have the chance to play for a medal makes it even better.”

Hepp leaves St. Cloud State, signs with ECHL team

USCHO Staff Report
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St. Cloud State senior defenseman Chris Hepp has left the Huskies and signed a contract with the Idaho Steelheads of the ECHL.

The 23-year-old Hepp was an assistant captain for the Huskies and had a goal and two assists in 20 games this season.

“Chris was a big part of our success in 2009-10 with his physical and demanding defensive play,” SCSU coach Bob Motzko said in a statement released by the school. “We thank him for his contributions to the program and we wish him all the best as he begins his professional career.”

For his St. Cloud State career, Hepp played 100 games and had three goals and 10 assists. His 224 penalty minutes are good for fifth on the school’s all-time list.

Individual honors abound in Atlantic Hockey

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Before the holiday break, I looked at what would happen from a playoffs standpoint  if season ended today. And while the playoff picture is still up in the air, some candidates for individual honors have begun to emerge.

Here are my picks for the Atlantic Hockey All-Star teams at the midway point of the season. (Stats are overall numbers since the number of conference games each team has played are different.)

First Team:
F – Tyler Brenner, jr., RIT: 15 goals and 22 points
F – Nathan Lonpre, sr., Robert Morris: 27 points
F – Paul Zanette, sr., Niagara:  16 goals and 24 points so far
D – Scott Mathis, jr., Air Force: 14 points
D – Denny Urban, sr., Robert Morris,  25 points
G – Shane Madolora, so., RIT:  2.11 GAA, .925 save percentage

Second Team:
F – Cory Conacher, sr., Canisius: 9 goals and 18 points
F – Andrew Favot, sr., RIT:  26 points
F – Bryan Haczyk, sr., Niagara 16 goals and  24 points
D – Ryan Annseley, sr.., Niagara: 14 points
D – Chris Haltigin, jr., RIT:  9 points
G – Brooks Ostagard, jr., Robert Morris: 2.32 GAA,  .921 save percentage

Third Team:
F – Giancarlo Iuorio so., Niagara: 21 points
F – Cody Omilusik sr., Army:  8 goals and 15 points
F – Everett Sheen, sr., Holy Cross: 16 points
D – Marcel Alvarez, jr., Army: 10 points
D – Jeff Terminesi, sr., Mercyhurst:  9 points
G – Joe Calvi, sr., Bentley 2.62 GAA,  .921 save percentage

All-Rookie:
F – Scott Arnold, Niagara:  12 goals
F – Adam Mitchell, RIT:  8 goals
F – Cole Schneider, Connecticut:  16 points
D – Ben Danford, Canisius: 11 points
D – Adam McKenzie, Air Force: 8 points
G – Jason Torf, Air Force:  2.81 GAA, .914 save percentage

USCHO.com AHA Player of the Week:

Jason Torf, Air Force – The freshman goaltender stopped 68 of 72 shots, including a career high 39 saves on Saturday, to help the Cadets to a pair of 3-2 wins at Bentley.

Honorables:

Tyler Brenner, RIT – Brenner had three goals last week, including a pair in the Tigers’ 3-2 win over Robert Morris.

Garrett Bartus, Connecticut – The sophomore made 68 saves to help the Huskies to a second-place finish in the Toyota UConn Holiday Classic.

And hot off the press from the league office:

AHA Players of the Month for December:

Player of the Month:
Nathan Longpre, Robert Morris – Had 11 points to help the Colonials to a 5-1-1 record in December.
Other players nominated:  Derrick Burnett, Air Force; Phil Ginand, Mercyhurst; Tyler Brenner, RIT.

Goalie of the Month:
Shane Madolora, RIT – Was 5-0 in December with a 1.60 GAA and a .943 save percentage.
Other goalies nominated: Jason Torf, Air Force; Garrett Bartus, Connecticut; Eric Levine, Robert Morris; Brooks Ostergard, Robert Morris.

Rookie of the Month:
Billy Latta, Connecticut – Had two goals and six assists including a point in four straight games.
Other rookies nominated: Cole Schneider, Connecticut.

Getting My Vote

My USCHO.com Men’s D-I Poll ballot this week:
1. Yale
2. North Dakota
3. New Hampshire
4. BC
5. Duluth
6. Denver
7. Michigan
8. Miami
9. Maine
10. RPI
11. UNO
12. Wisconsin
13. Union
14. Notre Dame
15. Merrimack
16. Colorado College
17. BU
18. Princeton
19. Clarkson
20. Ferris State

The weeks that were: Week(s) 13

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Welcome back, everybody. Lots and lots and lots of results to sort through (maybe I should’ve been more proactive over the holidays?) so let’s get to it.

Players of the… um… Weeks

Player of the Weeks: Matt Reber, Dartmouth

Yet another icer out of hockey-mad Edina, Minn., senior Reber scored twice and added four assists against Mercyhurst and Colgate last weekend to bring his season scoring line to 3-10-13 in a dozen games. His current pace will break last year’s career-high for points (26) and points-per-game (0.90), and last week’s outburst popped him into the nation’s top 50 in production-per-game. A strong two-way player as well, Reber is tied for the team lead in +/- and has taken only one penalty (a two-minute minor) all season.

Honorable mention: Harry Zolnierczyk, Brown (1-3-4 vs. BU and Minnesota State); Loren Barron, Quinnipiac (1-5-6 vs. UNO and Princeton); Scott Fleming, Dartmouth (2-3-5); Adam Estoclet, Dartmouth (2-2-4); Kevin Lohry, Princeton (3-1-4, +4 vs. Bowling Green, at UConn, at QU); Jeremy Langlois, Quinnipiac (2-2-4); Aaron Bogosian, St. Lawrence (3-0-3, +1, 16 SOG at UNH and Sacred Heart); Broc Little, Yale (3-1-4, +2 vs. HC); Josh Balch, Yale (1-2-3, +3); Denny Kearney, Yale (1-2-3, +2)

Rookie of the Weeks: Kenny Agostino, Yale

With Jesse Root, Agostino is one of two freshmen to earn significant playing time on the nation’s No. 1 team, and he showed why last weekend. A top-five scorer among D-I rookies, Agostino got there with a hat trick and five points in Yale’s 10-3 annihilation of Holy Cross. The Pittsburgh prospect out of Flanders, N.J. was also a +4 that day, upping his overall season-to-date +/- to +13.

Honorable mention: Josh Jooris, Union (2-0-2, +2 at Minnesota)

Goalie of the Weeks: Eric Hartzell, Quinnipiac

Hartzell is the man of the hour in Hamden, surrendering only six goals on 137 shots (.956 save percentage) in two games against elite Nebraska-Omaha and one league game against Princeton. The results shrunk his overall goals-against average to 2.38 (24th in the nation among qualifying goalies), and inflated his save rate to .930 (seventh in the country). The sophomore’s 53 and 44 saves in the two games against UNO were the first- and second-most of his blossoming career.

Honorable mention: Mike Condon, Princeton (3 goals, 55 shots vs. Bowling Green and at QU); Sean Bonar, Princeton (1 goal, 25 shots at UConn); Allen York, Rensselaer (2 goals, 36 shots at UAH); Matt Weninger, St. Lawrence (1 goal, 33 shots at UNH)

My Top 20

1. Yale
2. North Dakota
3. Boston College
4. Minnesota-Duluth
5. New Hampshire
6. Nebraska-Omaha
7. Denver
8. Miami
9. Union
10. Notre Dame
11. Wisconsin
12. Maine
13. Michigan
14. Rensselaer
15. Alaska
16. Merrimack
17. Clarkson
18. Colorado College
19. Boston University
20. Princeton

BU’s Coyle finding experience, success at World Juniors

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Monday night’s loss to Team Canada in the semifinals of the World Junior Championship might have been disappointing for Team USA but Boston University’s Charlie Coyle, playing in his first WJC, is ready to put it behind him.

He said on Tuesday that there is simply nothing that the US can do about the past and that all of their focus now is on taking home the bronze medal, which he and his teammates will have the chance to do on Wednesday.

For Coyle, though, regardless of the outcome on Wednesday, the World Juniors will be a success. With two goals and four assists, Coyle enters Wednesday’s Bronze Medal game as the team’s leader in points, that despite being among the youngest players on the American team.

“This has been a great experience for me,” said Coyle, whose return to BU can’t come quick enough after the Terriers lost and tied last weekend at the Shillelagh Tournament. “I remember watching this last year sitting at home. It’s exciting and being here is an unbelievable experience. I’m just excited to be a part of it.

“I’m playing with a couple of good linemates in [former Notre Dame forward Kyle] Palmieri and [current BC forward Chris] Kreider. That has made [scoring] a little bit easier. We’ve been clicking pretty well.”

Speaking of Kreider, Coyle may hope he is following in the footsteps of the BC sophomore. A year ago at World Juniors, Kreider had a breakout tournament, tying for the USA’s team lead in goal scoring with six. Kreider then returned to BC and had a fantastic second half of the season, helping lead the Eagles to the national title.

Coyle won’t have to consider World Juniors a breakout event as he’s already recorded 14 points for the Terriers before the holiday break. Still, a national title would be something Coyle would love.

For today, at least, Coyle and his team is focused on just one thing: taking home a medal.

“We’re focused on Sweden right now,” said Coyle. “It’s still a big game for us. The Bronze Medal is still on the line so we’re looking forward to that.”

Tuesday Morning Quarterback: Recapping the tournaments

By Jim Connelly and Todd D. Milewski
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Todd: Well, Jim, the holiday tournament season is over and it’s now full steam ahead toward the end of the regular season. The question is, which teams will have the most steam coming out of the return from break? There were some unexpected tournament champions — the state of Minnesota produced three of them in St. Cloud State, Bemidji State and Minnesota State — but are there any teams that look like they’re on a fast track as we head into the second half?

Jim: Well, I’d say that Yale, despite playing just one official game, looked like it didn’t have any rust after a 10-3 win over Holy Cross on Sunday. And Boston College was able to pull out two victories at the Dartmouth tournament despite being without a plethora of players due to World Juniors and injury. So I feel like the Eagles are ready for a big second half. North Dakota’s 5-0 shellacking of No. 4 Minnesota-Duluth also says a lot about where that team is headed. So I think there are a handful of clubs in the top of the poll that are definitely ready for a second-half run. Then there are teams that might not be so ready. One that sticks out is one-time No. 1 Boston University. The Terriers continually eked out wins in the first half and that caught up with them last weekend when Brown spanked them 6-1. All I can say to that is ouch.

Todd: With that loss and a tie against Notre Dame, the Terriers slipped to 19th in the RPI, and that has to be of some concern to BU fans. Granted, there’s a long way to go, but you don’t want to start the second half in a hole.

Minnesota State won the Shillelagh Tournament that also featured BU and Notre Dame. St. Cloud State came out on top of the Florida College Classic field that had ranked teams Miami and Maine. Bemidji State was the only unranked team in the Mariucci Classic, yet it came out with two wins. Should we read much into the stumbles by the ranked teams, or just chalk it up to returning from the break?

Jim: I do believe that is can be difficult for teams coming off of breaks. For some teams there were struggles with players returning from the holiday breaks due to winter storms throughout the country. That can make it difficult to have any sort of cohesive practices prior to the first post-break game. All that said, you have to think that the WCHA teams (Minnesota aside) came out looking pretty good in the holiday tournaments. Maybe that’s a positive sign for your western conference?

Todd: I’d be hesitant to read too much into it, but all three of those teams I already mentioned needed exactly what happened to build some momentum into January. Everything gets a little more difficult over the next couple of months because of the toll of the long season, but a tourney win has to be seen as a shot in the arm for those teams.

St. Cloud State, in particular, had failed to live up to expectations before the break. I just wonder whether the deficit it racked up was too much to overcome in the second half.

On the topic of holiday tournaments, I got to thinking the other day how they seemed to be either more spread out or fewer in number, and it turns out the latter is true. The Badger Hockey Showdown is gone and the Denver Cup moved to Thanksgiving, leaving us with seven tournaments this holiday season. It seems more manageable to have that many, doesn’t it?

Jim: I agree that it does seem like the less tournaments around New Year’s makes it easier for fans (and journalists) to follow. There were story lines like the ones we discussed that people could connect with and not just a bunch of results and trophies.

And while we’re on the topic, I want your take on a topic that I go back and forth on: the pre-determined holiday tournament field. Vermont was the only tournament to use this format last week. It certainly makes for a strange situation in that a trophy can be awarded in a tournament where all four teams finish with a 1-1 record. (Vermont was fortunate that Ohio State won both games to take the title.) But it does guarantee that the hosts play the late game both nights, which is beneficial to their fans. So what are your thoughts? Take this format or leave it?

Todd: I say dump it. If you put together a tournament, let it play out like a tournament. If you want the home team to play the late games, that’s easy enough to do, even if it creates the odd situation where the championship is decided before the third-place game, like in Minnesota and in Notre Dame’s tournament in Illinois.

But here’s a related question taken out of what happened in Minnesota last weekend: Should the third-place game go to a shootout? Minnesota and Ferris State obviously thought not, because they scrapped the decider after playing to a tie after 65 minutes.

Jim: I don’t see any reason that the third-place game needs a shootout, unless the tournament is a little overboard and has a third-place trophy. I do recall in my days back at Lowell that the Syracuse Invitational awarded trophies for all FOUR places. When Lowell played there in the 1994-95 season, they forced the consolation game to play multiple overtimes. Talk about overkill. Not sure whatever happened to Lowell’s fourth-place trophy from that event.

Anyway, looking forward … what has your eye this week?

Todd: Well, there’s a Michigan-Michigan State home-and-home series, so there’s the potential for drama there, even if the teams appear to be heading in opposite directions. Ohio State hosts Miami, and I’ll be interested in seeing whether the Buckeyes can become a factor in the national picture. What games stand out to you?

Jim: Well, first, hats off to Ohio State (and Yale as well) for posting wins last weekend while their coaches are away coaching the U.S. World Junior team.

As for this week, Yale will be challenged by an upstart Dartmouth team on Friday night. And in Hockey East, the league’s two eye-openers — Merrimack and Providence — will face stiff challenges in Boston College and Maine, respectively. Both should be interesting as BC plays home and home and Merrimack hosts the Black Bears for a single game.

Until next week …

ECAC East/NESCAC Holiday Wrap-up – 1/03/2011

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Happy New Year!
That’s definitely the case for a couple of teams coming out of some fun holiday hockey over the past several days.
At 8-2-0 overall, the Castleton Spartans are starting to get noticed. Ranked in the USCHO D-III poll, Alex Todd’s team continues to take care of business following a strong first half.
“These guys are really just having fun this season,” stated head coach Alex Todd.  “Last year was not a great mix nor a lot of fun so we have a relatively new group and the dynamic is very different.  We are identifying the flow of the game and learning the style and consistency of the refs early in games so we don’t make the same mistakes, get called for the same penalties or continue to get waved out of face-offs.  These kids have learned from observing the tendencies of what is being called and don’t repeat thoise events.  that has definitely helped us this year.”
Led by senior Stuart Stefan (6-14-20) and sophomore Josh Harris (6-14-20) the Spartans handily defeated Morrisville and Johnson & Wales to win the St. Michael’s Tournament.  In the two games, Stefan recorded one goal and seven assists for eight points while Harris scored twice and added three helpers for five points.  Sophomore Justin Alonzo benefited from both their play scoring four goals in the 9-2 win over Morrisville and finishing with seven points after the 5-0 win against J&W.
“Last season for the last half, Josh and Stuart really connected so we knew we had a good thing going with them,” said head coach Alex Todd.  We tried a number of people at that third spot without a real connection before putting Justin with them.  Justin really doesn’t appear to be the style to match with those two but something just clicks.  I don’t know if Justin has ever scored four goals in a game and I am 99% sure it has never happened here at Castleton – that’s a pretty special event.”
Averaging 4.5 goals per game on offense, the Spartans have been deadly on the power play, scoring on a third of their chances.  They have even turned their very aggressive and successful (90%) PK unit into opportunistic scorers as they already have three shorthanded goals this season. 
The Spartans will want to carry that momentum into January as five of the next seven games are on the road including Wesleyan, Trinity and Potsdam coming up this weekend and early next week.
“We have our only two losses at home,” noted Todd. “We feel like we play pretty well away from home but we definitely want to make sure we take the time in warm-up and early in the game to identify those key areas in the rinks that can impact a game with bad bounces or other things with the puck so they don’t come back and hurt us late in a game.  The freshmen here have done real well so far and we will continue to look to our upper classmen to give them that fundamental knowledge and help them past the learning curve in the new rinks as we play in them.”
UMass-Boston comes into the New Year at 7-3-0 but feels like it should have been 8-2-0 just like Castleton.  Playing Fitchburg State in the final of their own Codfish Bowl Tournament, the Beacons had the lights turned out by goalie Bobby Leiser who made 58 saves in FSU’s 4-1 championship win.
“It would have been nice to win this thing,” noted head coach Peter Belisle.  “That’s two years in a row we have had a goalie stand on his head and beat us – it must be the Curse of the Cod for us. He (Leiser) made the first stop on everything and I felt we didn’t go hard enough for second chances – it was a frustrating day.
The title game saw a lot of penalty calls and a Beacon power play that went 0-9 largely due to some aggressive penalty killing and Leiser’s efforts. 
“I thought we got off to a good start in the first period,” said Belisle.  “Then they tied it in the second and with all of the special teams it was really hard to get any rhythm going.  i was rotating my top two lines on the power play and third and fourth lines on the PK to keep the guys fresh but we just couldn’t put the puck by their goalie.”
The Beacons are in a stretch of playing seven of nine games at home so they would like to get some key league points starting this weekend with NESCAC foes Tufts and Conn College.
“The silver lining in losing to Fitchburg is that it closes the book on 2010,” said Belisle.  “We can put this one behind us in the first half and now focus on a new slate for 2011.  It’s nice that we stay local and hopefully we can get it going again the next time out.”
For Brad Holt’s University of New England team, the holidays showed promise for what could be a much better second half in 2011.  Playing in the Plymouth State University Invitational, the Nor’easters won their opening round game by a 4-1 score over Becker from the ECAC Northeast.  That set up a match-up with the host school in the final on New Year’s Eve and a chance to ring in the New Year with some new hardware.
The final started out all PSU’s way as they quickly built a 4-1 lead just six minutes into the second period but then UNE got it going and tied the game at 4-4 to close out the second period.  Junior Jack Nolin scored the first goal of the comeback which UNE had trouble sustaining in the third period.  PSU scored twice to take a 6-5 lead but Nolin again scored to close the gap to 6-5 with an extra attacker on the ice.  that goal came with just 11 seconds left and UNE ran out of time but not effort.
Overall, the Nor’easters scored nine goals in the tournament which nearly doubled their output for the season.  If the scoring touch sticks around in 2011, Holt’s squad may just surprise some teams that take the second year varsity program lightly.
Finally, how about those Hamilton Continentals?  Norm Bazin’s squad went into Oswego’s back yard and in their own tournament dismissed the hosts in the opening round game by a score of 5-1.  Hamilton outshot the Lakers and killed off all off Oswego’s power play opportunities in building a 3-0  at the end of two periods.  Oswego closed it to 3-1 early in the third but two goals in 28 seconds sealed the deal for Hamilton.
In the final, Hamilton once again outshot a tough opponent in Hobart by a 36-24 margin but a goal with seven minutes remaining ended title aspirations with a 2-1 loss to the Statesmen.
Bazin’s team has quietly been getting better every year since he arrived three seasons ago and this year a balanced top five in points includes 1 senior, 1 junior, 2 sophomores and a freshman.  That bodes well for improving the offense in the second half where they open with always difficult opponents in Middlebury and Williams.
So we are back to league play this weekend and the run for the playoffs truly begins in earnest.  Should continue to be a very fun roller coaster ride.
It’s 2011, drop the puck!

Yale maintains top spot in men’s poll

USCHO Staff Report
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Yale is once again the top team in the USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll, having received 45 of 50 first place votes.

No. 2 North Dakota (two) and No. 3 Boston College (three) had the other first place selections from the voters.

New Hampshire is down two spots to No. 4 and Minnesota-Duluth falls to No. 5 from No. 4.

Denver jumps a spot to No. 6, trading places with Miami, while Michigan is up three spots to No. 8.

Maine stays at No. 9 and Rensselaer, rising four places to No. 10, round out the top 10 this week.

The bottom half of the top 20 has Notre Dame up a spot to No. 11, Nebraska-Omaha down four to No. 12, Wisconsin up two to No. 13, Boston University down four to No. 14 and Union down three to No. 15.

Alaska (No. 16) and Merrimack (No. 17) maintain their rankings from the last poll, while Colorado College jumps two to No. 18, Princeton enters the poll this week at No. 19 and Ferris State sits at No. 20.

Wisconsin the new No. 1 in women’s poll

USCHO Staff Report
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Wisconsin received 10 of 15 first place votes and is the new top team in the country in the USCHO.com Division I Women’s Poll.

Former No. 1 Cornell falls to No. 2, while Boston University keeps a firm grip on the third spot.

Minnesota-Duluth jumps one notch to No. 4, flip-flopping with Mercyhurst to round out the top five.

Boston College (No. 6), Minnesota (No. 7) and North Dakota (No. 8) stay the same as they were in the last poll.

Providence drops to No. 9 and Ohio State is the new No. 10-ranked team this week.

SUNYAC Roundup: 01/03/11

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Plattsburgh wins their own tournament
Plattsburgh didn’t allow a trio of their former players showing up at Curry in the first round of the Cardinal Classic to bother them. The Cardinals rolled over the Colonels, 7-1, as Patrick Jobb got a hat trick along with an assist.
Jobb scored the first two goals of the game, late in the first and early in the second, to get the rout going. Kyle Kudroch (26 seconds after Jobb’s second goal), Nick Jensen, Kyle VanDermale, and Dylan Clarke scored before Curry finally got on the board. Jobb completed his hat trick and the scoring for the game late in the second. Josh Leis made 24 saves for the win.
Plattsburgh had a much tougher time the next night to win the championship, 2-1, over Neumann. Clarke gave the home team the lead midway through the first period. Neumann tied it on a power-play goal late in the second. Vick Schlueter scored the game-winner at 3:42 of the final period. Leis made 28 saves.
“Neumann is big and quick, and they forced us into a lot of turnovers,” Emery told the Press-Republican. “Especially in the second period. They were winning a lot of the 50-50 battles. I thought we played a great third period. We played smart, especially once we took the lead.”
Leis was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. Schlueter and Jobb were named to the All Tournament team.
Oswego settles for third in their tourney
Oswego didn’t make it to the championship game of the PathFinder Bank Oswego Hockey Classic, losing to Hamilton, 5-1. New transfer from D-I Niagara University, Andrew Hare, got the start in net, but it didn’t turn out so well. He was pulled after letting in the fifth goal, 28 seconds after Hamilton scored their fourth goal. Ian Boots scored the lone Lakers’ goal to make it 3-1 at the time.
Oswego rebounded to defeat Wisc.-Stevens Point, 6-1. After a scoreless first period, Boots scored twice sandwiched around the lone Pointers goal. Then, Oswego put the game away with three goals in 55 seconds at the end of the second by Jon Whitelaw, Luke Moodie, and Chris Laganiere. Laganiere got his second of the night late in the third to finish the scoring. Dan Jones made 26 saves for the win.
Boots was the only Oswego player named to the All Tournament team.
Morrisville Splits
The Mustangs did exactly what I predicted in the St. Michael’s Tournament — lost the first game against Castleton, 9-2, then came back to beat the host, 4-2.
Morrisville scored the first (Alex Tillaart) and last goal (Tom Longland) in the loss. In the win, Morrisville fell behind 2-0 before a short-handed goal by Geoff Matzel late in the first started to turn the tide. Matzell scored again 47 seconds into the second and Tyler Swan gave them the lead on the power play midway through the game. Jonathan Cristini got the insurance goal at 7:45 of the third. Colin Breen got the win with 31 saves.
A few games early this week
There are a trio of nonconference games early this week which I did not mention in last week’s column. They all take place on Tuesday, and are all hosted by the SUNYAC participant.
I expect Oswego to overcome their two losses in the last three games and beat Skidmore. Technical difficulties at the Campus Center Arena have been resolved, and this game will take place as scheduled. Fans who bring used cell phones and chargers to the game will receive a complimentary ticket to the contest. Donated phones and chargers will be given to area victims of domestic abuse.
I see Brockport falling to Hobart.
In a big matchup, Plattsburgh hosts Norwich. Plattsburgh already defeated Norwich earlier in the season, and the Cardinals are playing a bit better lately. I’ll take Plattsburgh to win this game, but no matter what happens, it should be a good one.
“We knew this was going to be a big week for us,” Emery said.
SUNYAC Players of the Week (selected by the conference)
Player of the Week: Patrick Jobb, Plattsburgh (F, So., Oshawa, Ontario) tallied a hat trick and an assist to lead the Cardinals to a 7-1 win over Curry. Jobb was also named to 2011 Cardinal Classic All-Tournament Team.
Rookie of the Week: None.
Goaltender of the Week: Josh Leis, Plattsburgh (So., Kitchener, Ontario) led Plattsburgh to the Cardinal Classic Championship with a strong performance between the pipes. Following a 24-saves night against Curry, Leis only allowed one goal against Neumann and earned Tournament MVP honors.

Video: U.S., Canada react to World Junior semifinal

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Here are videos from the media sessions following Canada’s 4-1 victory over the United States in the World Junior Championship semifinals on Monday:

U.S. coach Keith Allain and Canada coach Dave Cameron:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xO5g8yTFgGg

U.S. forward Chris Brown:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHkGf8GxTWI

U.S. forward Jeremy Morin:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZzHcC_23No

U.S. defenseman John Ramage:

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZM9ZBitMneg

Commentary: U.S. needed more than experience, talent

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This year’s American entry in the World Junior Championship may have been better than your parent’s Team USA, but when Canada is the opponent, it seems once again that doesn’t matter.

Despite putting out one of the more experienced and talented entries ever by an American team, it was Canada that earned a victory on Monday in the semifinals to earn it a date with Russia in Wednesday’s title game. Canada will be in search of gold medal 16, more than any other country has or will have total after this year’s tournament is over. The U.S. is once again relegated to consolation play.

When you think of the promise and hope for this year’s Team USA, one that was loaded with college hockey talent and future NHL greats, that’s more like being sent to relegation play.

This wasn’t supposed to be the outcome for an experienced U.S. team that entered as defending champions and earned four victories in the preliminary round. The American roster was stacked with returning players like Kyle Palmieri and Chris Kreider, as well as Jack Campbell in net, who until Monday looked like a brick wall (though all were quick to say Monday’s loss was hardly Campbell’s fault). Add to that newcomers like Boston University’s Charlie Coyle, who entered the semis with the team lead in points, you’d think this should be the year that Canada is hoping for bronze, not gold.

On the other side of the coin, the Canadian team was one that many felt wasn’t as good as last year’s runners-up. Sure, the offense continued to be potent in qualification play but the defense and goaltending for O Canada seemed suspect throughout. This team, as most know by now, finished in second place in pool play and needed to beat Switzerland on Sunday to even survive until Monday.

But that may be why on Monday Canada beat the U.S. with an approach many wouldn’t have expected. Early in the game, Canada was intent and content with playing the game in the neutral zone and waiting for the U.S. to make mistakes. This wasn’t the all-out attack most might expect from the high octane neighbors to the north, more a style of wearing them down with physical play and taking advantage of errors.

“One of the things you do as a coach is that there are different systems and you have to adapt that system to your team,” Canada coach Dave Cameron said. “It happens that the best hockey players in Canada right now are big, strong power forwards. That’s what we devised our game plan around.”

The U.S. obliged with mistakes, particularly in the neutral and defensive zones. A missed cover early left Curtis Hamilton alone for the opening goal less than three minutes into the game. Late in the frame, the U.S. got caught on a line change when Canada transitioned the puck quickly and bingo, bango, bongo, it was 2-0.

The Americans couldn’t even rely on home ice advantage to aid a comeback in the second. Much of the capacity crowd at HSBC Arena was clad in Canadian sweaters, probably the inherent danger in hosting a tournament within a Mike Weir drive of the Canadian border.

Even the U.S. power play, which had been successful throughout the tournament, went to sleep. Center a pass? A Canadian was waiting in the slot. Find your points? That’s a whole lot of pressure from Canada.

The man advantage got a great look in the third when the U.S. was already down, 3-0, as Brian Dumoulin redirected a pass over an empty net. Of course, 37 seconds later, Canada’s Zack Kassian was in back of the USA defense for a breakaway goal and a 4-0 advantage.

By the time the buzzer sounded and the final score read 4-1 in favor of the hosts … er, um, I mean visitors, the Americans found themselves in a coin-flip situation at best whether they will even medal in a tournament most thought they could win.

“It’s disappointing,” said USA and Yale coach Keith Allain. “Individually, our guys were working hard but collectively our team game wasn’t where it needed to be.”

So now the question as to what happened is one that may need asking. Some may say that Canada simply was a more battle-tested team and, judging by the four teams that faced off on Monday, that might just be the case. The U.S. didn’t exactly cruise through a bracket that many considered easier than Canada’s, while the Canadians were a shootout goal away against Sweden from winning what most are calling the bracket of death. Three of the five teams from Canada’s bracket were left standing come Monday, while the U.S. was the only team from its bracket, and it got there via a bye.

Now the U.S. attention must turn to a bronze medal. After Russia upset a Sweden team that is arguably faster than Canada in Monday’s opening semifinal, the U.S. must set its sights on a Swede team that won that bracket of death.

“One of the things I said to the team [after the game] is as bad as we feel right now, the beauty of it is we do have an opportunity to play another game and let people see how good we are,” Allain said. “We’ll appeal to their pride. We’ll let them mourn tonight’s game tonight and try to have an upbeat practice tomorrow and move forward as a hockey team.”

Week(end) of Dec. 29-Jan. 2

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I know we still have UMD/Clarkson to cover; I’ll do a quick post on that later this week. Other than that … here we go.

GLI
– Michigan Tech fell to Michigan 4-2, but from the sounds of things, the game was a lot closer than the score indicated.
“If you talk to people in the WCHA, they hang around, and they hang around, and they have all year in a lot of close games,” Michigan associate coach Mel Pearson told USCHO’s Bob Miller. “Obviously, they got a big goal when they needed one and it sort of opened things up both ways. They had nothing to lose, and I thought they came after us more aggressively in the third period than they did in the first two.”

– No Jaden Schwartz, no problem apparently, as CC edged Michigan State to move on to the title game. However, Tyler Johnson continuing to score helps out quite a bit.

– This is also good news, given that Schwartz injured his ankle while playing for Canada at the World Juniors and will probably be out about two months.

– Unfortunately, the Tigers couldn’t hold on for the title, as they fell in the third period in a close one to Michigan the next night, 6-5. Still, Owens was happy with the way the team played, which hopefully brings optimism for the team going into the second half.

– The Huskies, unfortunately, saw their losing streak extend to unlucky 13 as they fell to Michigan State in the third-place game, 5-3.

Florida College Classic
– Well SCSU, I’m happy for you. Look at you guys with two wins and the FCC championship.

– Freshman Cam Reid scored two goals, including the overtime game-winner, to lift the Huskies over Cornell 4-3.

– Then, four different players (including Garrett Roe – always nice to see him on the score sheet) score in their 4-3 win over Miami.

– Interesting to note that Mike Lee got both starts.

U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame game
– North Dakota played spoiler again, crushing Minnesota-Duluth 5-0 in the Bulldogs’ first game in the new Amsoil Arena.

– Mike Connolly christened the new building with an attempted check that shattered a pane of glass with 6:25 left in the first, causing the period to end early and the second to be a bit extended.

– Brad Malone scored two for the Sioux and Aaron Dell, strong once again, with the shut-out.

Nebraska-Omaha at Quinnipiac
– Rough weekend for the Mavericks, suffering a non-conference sweep at the hands of the Bobcats.

– Both games were close – Quinnipiac held off a Maverick rally on Thursday – but UNO couldn’t get it done.

- UNO has to hope the start of 2011 goes more like the start of the season – the team is 1-3 in its last four.

Wisconsin vs. Massachusetts
– Unsurprisingly, the Badgers pull off the non-conference sweep of the Minutemen in convincing fashion, winning 5-1 and 4-2.

– Podge Turnbull scored one-third of his team’s goals in the series, now with five goals in his last four games.

Denver vs. Northern Michigan
– The Pioneers took three points from Northern Michigan … not bad, considering DU’s best players are at the World Juniors.

– That being said, the team had to come from behind both nights. Denver exploded for five goals in the third period on Friday for a 5-2 win and came down from another 2-0 deficit to tie on Saturday.
“When they get those guys back from World Juniors, they’re going to be a threat nationally for sure,” said NMU coach Walt Kyle after Saturday’s game.

Mariucci Classic
– Big props to the “underdog” Bemidji State for going 2-0 and winning the Classic.

– Fun fact from the Bemidji/Ferris State game – of the five goals scored, each had the full allottment of assists, making 15 total points. Each point was scored by a different player … something that I’m betting doesn’t happen all that often.

– Then, Matt Read scored two to lift the Beavers over Union on New Year’s Day to clinch their championship.
“We start the second half 2-0, our kids won a championship which is important, and you want to see how your kids are going to respond in a championship situation,” BSU’s Tom Serratore told USCHO’s Brian Halverson. “I’m happy with the way we responded and now hopefully this will carry over into next weekend.”

– The Gophers, however, didn’t have quite as much fortune in their tournament. They fell 3-2, in overtime, to Union and then tied Ferris State 2-2.

– Interesting to note was the boos that rained down after the UM/FSU game. From Brian Halverson’s game story:
Tournament rules provided for a shootout to determine the outcome of games not decided after five minutes of overtime. Even as the P.A. announcer was briefing fans about the format, the perpetrator was in the midst of robbing those who had remained of an event which has become a crowd favorite in arenas nationwide. Fans initially weren’t sure what to make of what they thought to be two teams lining up to shake hands prior to a shootout, but quickly figured it out and began voicing their displeasure.

Upon intense post-game scrutiny, the guilty party confessed to his crime.

“There was no point,” said Minnesota coach Don Lucia referring to the shootout. “The championship game had been decided. In the past we had done the shootout just to advance to the championship game.” 

Shillelagh Tournament
– Go Minnesota State for winning this one. The Mavericks beat Notre Dame, 4-3, on Saturday and then crushed Brown, 7-3, on Sunday.

– Notable: Junior Michael Dorr had three goals for the Mavericks on the weekend.

Canada outskates U.S. for chance at World Junior gold

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One of the advantages Team USA had entering the 2011 World Junior Championship was speed. That was most evident with Boston College’s Chris Kreider. His speed was a key reason why his line with Boston University’s Charlie Coyle at center and former Notre Dame player Kyle Palmieri at right wing has been the most successful American line.

Kreider’s speed either allowed him to get into scoring position (he has two goals and two assists) or opened space up for his linemates. His teammates appreciated what they had at left wing.

“He’s been playing great,” Palmieri said. “He’s one of the fastest guys I’ve ever played with and that says a lot. Coming into the pre-tournament camp, coaches kind of looked at me and him as possibly being linemates.”

“He’s great to play with,” Coyle said. “He’s one of the fastest skaters I’ve ever played with. You give it to him, and he’s gone. I’m just lucky to play with guys like him and Palmieri.”

“It’s a lot of fun [playing with Coyle and Palmieri],” Kreider said. “Both players are extremely skilled. It’s fun to be learning a little something from each of them. It’s fun coming down to the rink and get an opportunity to play with them.”

That line was expected to play a key role in the medal round. Instead, Team Canada found a way to neutralize the U.S. speed in their semifinal clash. To add insult to injury, it was Canada’s speed that enabled it to get behind the American defense for most of its goals, providing Canada a 4-1 victory on Monday at HSBC Arena.

“They outskated us,” said U.S. captain John Ramage of Wisconsin. “They outworked us. We were supposed to use our speed, and they skated right over us.”

[photoshelter-gallery g_id=’G0000ZAAHYiWd9eA’ g_name=’20110103-United-States-Canada-Angelo-Lisuzzo’ f_show_caption=’t’ f_show_slidenum=’t’ img_title=’casc’ pho_credit=’iptc’ f_link=’t’ f_bbar=’t’ fsvis=’f’ width=’500′ height=’375′ bgcolor=’#AAAAAA’ bgtrans=’t’ btype=’old’ bcolor=’#CCCCCC’ crop=’f’ trans=’xfade’ tbs=’4000′ f_ap=’t’ linkdest=’c’ f_fullscreen=’f’ f_constrain=’f’ twoup=’f’ f_topbar=’f’ f_bbarbig=” f_htmllinks=’f’ f_enable_embed_btn=’f’ f_show_watermark=’f’ f_send_to_friend_btn=’f’ f_smooth=’f’ f_mtrx=’f’ f_up=’f’ target=’_self’ wmds=’llQ6QNgpeC.p1Ucz7U.Z92XjmcMdlV02R4zV._hXACYa9aI4bcrsburKrcJH0s9rx0BHdQ–‘ ]On Canada’s first goal, their forwards got behind the defense, leaving Cody Eakin alone against Jack Campbell. Despite an excellent move, Campbell was even better. However, Campbell was unable to snare the rebound, and in the ensuing scramble, Curtis Hamilton knocked it in.

The second goal saw Canada use its speed on a rush. Brett Connolly raced down the right side, and when he got to the dot, he centered it for a streaking Quinton Howden. Without slowing down, Howden got his stick on the pass to redirect it past Campbell on the near side to make it 2-0 after one.

Canada made it 3-0 in the second period during a five-on-three power play. Ryan Johansen simply poked in a rebound with the initial shot coming from the point.

The team from the Great White North made it 4-0 early in the third on a virtual two-on-none breakaway. Once again, Canada got behind the Team USA defense. Zack Kassian kept it for himself, went straight in and beat Campbell over his glove.

All the while, Canada kept Team USA from ever exploiting its own speed.

“They played a huge defensive game,” Palmieri said. “They were really solid pinning everybody in the corners. We were trying to use our speed. Ultimately, they shut us down pretty well.”

Team USA avoided the shutout midway through the third when Chris Brown banged in a rebound from the slot after a shot from the left point.

“Quite frankly, I don’t think the way we played tonight we deserved to win,” said U.S. coach Keith Allain, who also coaches Yale. “One thing about hockey is you usually get what you deserve.”

Trying to settle for a bronze

Team USA’s dream of trying to be the first American team to repeat as gold medalist is over. Now, it must regroup to try to come away with some sort of medal. The Americans will go up against Team Sweden, which was surprised by Team Russia 4-3 in a shootout.

“One of the things I said to them is as bad as we feel right now, the beauty of this is we do have an opportunity to play another game and to show people how good a team we actually are,” Allain said. “We’ll deal with it with pride and move forward as a hockey team.”

Kreider, a first-round draft pick of the New York Rangers, will have to find a way to use his speed to allow his line to have a strong game if Team USA wants to walk away from the tournament with a bronze medal.

Weekend work-up: holiday tournament edition, Jan. 3

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Happy 2011! If you had a break from work, I hope it was restful. If you celebrated anything, I hope that was enjoyable.
Two teams in the CCHA are entering the first week of 2011 and the second half of the season with something to celebrate, and one of them blows my little mind. Congratulations to the Michigan Wolverines, this year’s Great Lakes Invitational champions. Congratulations to the Ohio State Buckeyes, this year’s Catamount Cup victors.
Really. I’m not making that second one up.
GLI
I covered the GLI, and it was a wild one. In every game, goals were scored rapidly in batches. Momentum turned quickly and often. Yet…I never thought Michigan would lose. I was mightily impressed with both Colorado College and Michigan Tech – it was a highly entertaining tourney – but as good as CC is, UM was better. CCHA fans should find some relief in that, as the WCHA looks mighty good to me this year.
It was the 13th GLI title for the Wolverines, who last won the tournament in 2008-09. Said head coach Red Berenson, “It’s good for your confidence to get back to the Joe, which our goal is to get back to the Joe in the CCHA playoffs. To play in a venue like this and have success, it’s good for our young players to get a feel for what it’s like to play in these games and a little history.”
The Wolverines beat Michigan Tech 4-2 in their opening round before beating Colorado College 6-5 in the title game.
Wolverines Luke Glendening, Carl Hagelin and Shawn Hunwick were named to the all-tournament team. With three goals, Glendening was the MVP.
The Spartans lost 5-4 to CC before beating the Huskies 5-3 in the third-place game. Spartan Torey Krug was named to the all-tournament team, but I’m not sure why. I like Krug, but I didn’t think he was one of the two best defenseman for the weekend.
Catamount Cup
I covered the Buckeyes for many years, so I couldn’t be more delighted that OSU won a midseason tournament, even if it was at the expense of the best-looking coaching staff in Division I. OSU hasn’t had the same mid-season success as UM has experienced, in for a program rebuilding, this couldn’t come at a better time. The last time OSU took a midseason tournament was the last Ohio Hockey Classic, in January 2009.
The Buckeyes beat Vermont 3-1 and Army 5-3 to take the Catamount Cup. Danny Dries and Peter Boyd were named to the all-tournament team, and with his three goals, Dries was the tournament MVP. Dries is also this week’s CCHA Offensive Player of the Week.
Connecticut Hockey Classic
Bowling Green lost to Princeton, 4-2, before beating Holy Cross, 3-2. Marc Rodriguez had a goal in each game.
Florida College Classic
Miami beat Maine, 4-1, before losing to St. Cloud State in the title game, 4-3. With his goal and three assists, Reilly Smith was named to the all-tournament team. Cameron Schilling is this week’s CCHA Defenseman of the Week.
Dodge Holiday Classic
Ferris State lost to Bemidji State, 3-2, before tying Minnesota in overtime, 2-2. With two goals, Brett Wysopal was named to the all-tournament team.
Shillelagh Tournament
Notre Dame lost to Minnesota State, 4-3, before playing Boston University to a 3-3 overtime tie, after which the Irish won the shootout. Six different players scored for Notre Dame. Calle Ridderwall had the only shootout goal in three rounds between the Irish and the Terriers.

Nonconference, non-tournament play
Before their disappointing showing in their own tournament, the Irish warmed up on Canisius with a 10-2 win Dec. 29. Ryan Guentzel had a hat trick in that contest, and T.J. Tynan had two goals, contributing to his having been named CCHA Rookie of the Week.
Northern Michigan traveled to Denver for a two-game set, losing to the pioneers 5-2 before tying them, 2-2. Wildcat Justin Florek factored in all four of NMU’s goals, with a marker and three helpers. Goaltender Jared Coreau stopped 44-of-46 in the tie, earning him CCHA Goaltender of the Week honors.
And in exhibition
Lake Superior State is keeping busy with a tour through Ontario. The Lakers swept Nipissing, 7-3 and 7-1, Dec. 31-Jan. 1. As I write this, the Lakers are taking on the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees (again, something I am not making up) and as of the posting of this blog, I don’t have the score. I’ll have more on LSSU’s Ontario tour later in the week.
How did I do?
For the weekend of Dec. 10-12, the last weekend I picked before the holiday tournaments, I went 4-5-0. For the tournaments, I went 10-6-3.
Overall this season: 68-38-18.

Weekend wrap-up 1/3/11

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Tournaments, conference games and some non-con matchups were on the bill for a busy Holiday week.

Air Force was the only team to pick up four league points over the break, sweeping Bentley in a pair of close contests. The Falcons from Colorado defeated the Falcons from Massachusetts  3-2 in overtime last Thursday and then hung on for another 3-2 win on Friday. The wins moved Air Force into a tie for third place in the Atlantic Hockey standings.

Another team to pick up two  conference points  was Connecticut, which bested Holy Cross in the first round of the UConn Holiday classic. The game also counted in the AHA standings. The Huskies would go on to lose in the title game to Princeton, 4-1, while Holy Cross dropped the consolation game 3-2 to Bowling Green.

Rochester Institute of Technology  got a late goal from Tyler Brenner to defeat Robert Morris 3-2 at Pittsburgh’s Consol Energy Center. The game was part of the NHL’s Winter Classic festivities. RIT solidified its claim on first place and now leads second-place Robert Morris by three points in the standings.

Army and Mercyhurst also participated in tournaments last week, with the Lakers finishing second in the Ledyard Bank Classic. Mercyhurst tied host Dartmouth 4-4 and then won a shootout 2-0 to advance. The Lakers fell 4-1 to No. 5 Boston College in the title game.

Army dropped three games last week, a tough 2-1 overtime loss to No. 17 Merrimack and then a pair of defeats in the Vermont Catamount Cup. The Black Knights fell to Harvard 4-2 and then 5-3 to Ohio State

In straight up nonconference games, the AHA went 0-4, including Army’s loss to Merrimack, who also beat RIT 5-3. Holy Cross and Cansius were blown out on the road, with the Griffs falling to Notre Dame 10-2 and Holy Cross losing at No. 1 Yale 10-3.

How’d I do?

I picked solo this week – guest analysts will return next week. I went 8-3-1 going into tonight’s game between Saint Lawrence and Sacred Heart.

Hamline gains edge in battle of second-place teams

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No. 12 Hamline’s 4-1 victory over No. 9 Milwaukee School of Engineering was the marquee matchup over the New Year’s weekend, pitting two teams who are at similar stations in their respective leagues.
The Minnesota Intercollegiate Hockey Association Pipers are (3-0-1) are in second place with 7 points, which one point behind No. 15 St. Thomas (4-2). The Raiders (6-0) also sit in second in the Midwest Collegiate Hockey Association behind No. 7 Adrian (7-1).
Brian Arrigoni scored twice, bagging one of two Piper empty-netters, while Beau Christian stopped 32 of 33 shots for Hamline (7-3-1). Jordan Van Gilder and Austun Tavis also had goals for the home side, which led 2-1 going into the third period.
Carl Lindblad scored MSOE’s lone goal, which came on a delayed penalty with the goalie pulled for an extra attacker at 13:32 in the first period.
For MSOE (9-0), the nonconference loss was the second in its last three games after a torrid 8-0 start.
The setback also marked the second time this season Raiders’ talisman Jordan Keizer (14 goals and 5 assists for 19 points) was held scoreless. The sophomore sniper also went pointless in the team’s 2-1 loss to No. 15 St. Thomas Dec. 10.
“They’re not going to go in every night,” said MSOE Coach Mark Ostapina, who commended Keizer’s “outstanding” play. “I didn’t think he would score 50 goals. Opportunities were there and saves were being made. That’s the game of hockey.”
Keizer’s 1.27 goals-per-game average continues to lead the nation while his 1.73 points per game ranks 12th.
The Pipers kept Keizer and junior Todd Krupa (9-6-15) in their sights, Hamline Coach Scott Bell said.
“With 14 goals in (11 games), you better know where he’s at on the ice,” Bell added.
In goal, Christian withstood a Raiders onslaught by turning away 15 of 16 shots in the opening 20 minutes. The junior netminder, who underwent offseason hip surgery, raised his record to 5-1-1.
Goaltending is one plus as the Pipers enter the second half.
“I think we’re in a nice spot right now,” Bell said.
Despite the setback, MSOE Coach Mark Ostapina remained bullish on his youthful squad. The Raiders delve into the meat of the MCHA schedule with a home-and-home series with Lake Forest (2-9, 2-4) Friday and Saturday.
“It’s a bunch of young men who love playing the game and there is passion there for going out and competing very hard,” Ostapina said. “There are guys who want to be out there, who want to play hard and bleed Raider red.”
Cobbers roll
Concordia (MN) extended its six-game unbeaten with a resounding sweep over visiting Northland, 6-3 and 7-4, Dec. 30-31. The pair of victories gave the Cobblers a strong head wind heading into the new year, which includes a rare Monday home contest with Finlandia.
Concordia (4-5-3, 1-2-3) faces Wisconsin-Stevens Point Friday and No. 3 St. Norbert on the road before returning to MIAC play at St. Thomas Jan. 14-15. Though 3-3 in nonconference affairs, the Cobbers have to spiff up their MIAC mark to have a shot at the playoffs.
Special-teams play has been at the forefront of the recent surge.
In the 6-3 win over Northland, Jaren Collen scored twice – including on one of two Cobber short-handed efforts – while Aaron Wheeler, Brian Kang, Pat Dietz and Ben Payne also banged in goals. Wheeler’s first-period tally also came while Concordia was a man down.
The Cobbers’ power play accounted for four goals, including two by Caleb Suderman, in the 7-4 victory the following day. Payne scored two even-strength goals with Kang adding another. Nick Thielen and Marc Harrie netted the other power-play tallies while Erick Gault finished with three assists.
Freshmen goalie Kelly Andrew picked up both victories to raise his record to 4-1-3.
Net future
Adrian’s 6-2 loss to Manhattanville featured the inauspicious debut of freshman Mike Morissette, who played the last 8:20 in the Northfield Field Bank Tournament first-round contest Dec. 31. The LaSalle, Ontario native gave up a goal but made three saves after taking over for starter Brad Fogal, who surrendered three goals.
Morissette is expected to be the heir apparent to Fogal, who is one of 17 seniors on the Bulldogs’ roster.
Morissette helped backstop the Ontario Junior Hockey League Oakville Blades to a Central Canadian title last season, going 25-7 in the regular campaign with six shutouts and a 2.48 goals-against average. He also appeared in 8 playoff games.

Wrenn bolts Denver for WHL’s Winterhawks

USCHO Staff Report
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Denver sophomore defenseman William Wrenn has left the team and signed a contract with the Portland Winterhawks of the major junior Western Hockey League.

The 19-year-old Wrenn tallied one assist and a minus-7 plus/minus rating in 18 games this year for the Pioneers and finishes his DU career with eight assists in 41 games.

“William has decided to leave our varsity hockey program and concentrate full-time on his hockey career,” DU head coach George Gwozdecky said in a statement. “William feels he will have a better opportunity to play on a regular basis and contribute in a more important role at the junior hockey level. He was a good teammate and was well liked in our locker room. William will be missed by our program.”

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