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This Week in the CCHA: March 17, 2010

March 17, 2010

The Name of the Game

Quick, what’s the bigger surprise? Michigan sweeping Michigan State in Munn last weekend, or ABBA being inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame before Patsy Cline? Before KISS? Before Heart, for the love of all that’s holy?

Let me make this clear: I am not anti-ABBA. In fact, I am very pro-ABBA. I just like to see the deserving get their due.

You know what, CCHA fans? Last weekend, the Wolverines were very, very deserving.

MSU coach Rick Comley knew. After UM completed the road sweep of the Spartans to advance to the CCHA championship tournament, Comley said, “We could have been at our best and maybe played our absolute best, and it may not have mattered, because Michigan played that well.”

The Wolverines looked invincible in Friday’s 5-1 win. “We were ready, we were focused, and we got rewarded,” said UM coach Red Berenson.

Saturday’s 5-3 game was a better contest, but the score is misleading. The Wolverines may have squandered an early two-goal lead in the first, but from the second period on, they were simply not going to lose. After that one, Berenson said that his team is peaking at the right time.

“Whether it’s a commitment to backcheck or a commitment to playing in your own zone without the puck, then we’re doing a better job of it now than we were at Christmas,” said Berenson, who likened his players to spoiled brats in the first half of the season. “The team,” he said, “has bought into doing what we have to do to win.”

With injuries to captain Chris Summers and starting goaltender Bryan Hogan, it’s possible that the Wolverines have finally found their rallying point very late in the season. The team I saw in Munn Arena is the team that I thought Michigan would be all season. They were incredibly fast, overwhelmingly physical, totally polished.

They were, in short, Michigan hockey.

Said Comley, “The only other team that we’ve seen that even comes close to that caliber — if they’re going to play like that — is Wisconsin. Even Miami, I don’t think, is as good as that team is playing right now.”

What remains to be seen is whether last weekend was the culmination of the Wolverines’ season or just one scary, excellent series that will extend their season even further than they expected.

Even though the UM coaches knew that their 19-year NCAA tournament appearance streak was on the line going into East Lansing last weekend — that probably their only shot to make the tourney is to win the Mason Cup — the coaching staff was completely focused on the CCHA tournament for its own sake.

“We never talked about getting in the [NCAA] tournament,” said Berenson. “All we talked about was [that] this weekend, we have to find a way to get to Joe Louis. That’s our season. That was it. There was no PairWise, there was no, ‘We’ve got to win one or two,’ or somebody else has to lose. I haven’t looked at any of that and I didn’t talk about it.

“This was not in our sights a month ago. We were fighting for seventh place.”

And now they’re fighting for more.

The Winner Takes It All

The CCHA tournament is becoming something of a predictable phenomenon. Sure, a few weeks ago it looked unlikely that Michigan would be playing in Detroit this weekend, but there couldn’t have been any doubt about Northern Michigan.

Berenson may be made of something magical, but NMU coach Walt Kyle is Rasputin Jr.; the Wildcats have made an appearance in Detroit in all but one year (2007) since Kyle became coach in 2002-03.

Miami should be in Detroit every year — not that missing the CCHA championship tournament last year hurt it in postseason. It’s quite something to lose your best-of-three home league playoff series, make the tournament, and play for a national championship. Given that they beat OSU in three games at home last weekend, I can think of only one possible outcome for the RedHawks in Detroit … in April.

This year, the only semi-familiar face is Ferris State. This is the fourth CCHA championship tournament appearance for the Bulldogs, who last made an appearance at the end of the 2002-03 season, a campaign that culminated in their first-ever NCAA playoff berth.

There are exciting times ahead this weekend.

No. 1 Miami

The top-seeded RedHawks won their passage to Detroit by beating Ohio State in three games last weekend, the only second-round series that went beyond two contests. This is Miami’s eighth attempt to capture a Mason Cup, a piece of hardware that has eluded the RedHawks in every one of their previous CCHA championship tournament appearances.

• Record: 26-6-7 (21-2-5-2 CCHA)
• Last 11 games: 9-2-1
• Goals scored per game: 3.51/9th nationally
• Goals allowed per game: 1.79/first
• Power play percentage: 18.4/33rd
• Penalty kill percentage: 87.3/4th
• Top scorer: Jarod Palmer (17-27–44)
• Top goal scorer: Palmer
• Top goaltender: Cody Reichard (.930 SV%, 1.64 GAA)

The RedHawks face a goaltending decision going into this weekend. While Reichard was their main guy for most of the season with an 18-3-3 record, Connor Knapp (8-3-4, .920 SV%, 1.96 GAA) won the deciding match against OSU Sunday to bring the RedHawks to Detroit.

Coach Enrico Blasi told the Dayton Daily News this week that he’s unsure of who will play heading into the weekend. “Sometimes the good Lord works in mysterious ways, because now he’s making us think again about what we’re going to have to do going down the stretch,” he said.

Having to reconsider who’s in net because both are so good is an enviable position. Miami has much else to make other teams jealous: five double-digit goalscorers, the top defensive corps in the country, a significant amount of passion.

There are two things that can hurt the RedHawks in Detroit, and each is tied to Miami’s embarrassment of riches. First may be a bit of overconfidence. This isn’t a criticism. The RedHawks had a relatively easy time taking the regular season, and even though they had to play three games against OSU, the players may chalk that up in their minds to the teams’ intense rivalry and the end-of-season desperation with which the Buckeyes played.

The second potential pitfall is that on-ice passion. Miami takes too many penalties. Period. Frankly, this may not be a problem in league play — but could be an issue in the NCAA tournament.

Otherwise, the RedHawks have all the ingredients.

No. 2 Ferris State

The Bulldogs became the No. 2 seed in this field after Michigan State lost two games to Michigan last weekend. That is not to say that the Bulldogs don’t deserve to be No. 2; MSU finished one win ahead of FSU, and the two teams volleyed for position all season long.

To get to Detroit, Ferris State swept Nebraska-Omaha in two games in Big Rapids last weekend. FSU led 3-0 in the first game until UNO’s John Kemp scored a late third-period goal to make it a 3-1 contest. Then the Bulldogs needed overtime Saturday to defeat the Mavericks. Casey Haines scored 23 seconds into OT to send FSU to JLA.

• Record: 21-11-6 (13-9-6-4 CCHA)
• Last 10 games: 4-3-3
• Goals scored per game: 2.97/27th nationally
• Goals allowed per game: 2.24/5th
• Power play percentage: 19.4/22nd
• Penalty kill percentage: 87.7/3rd
• Top scorer: Blair Riley (18-19–37)
• Top goal scorer: Riley
• Top goaltender: Pat Nagle (.927 SV%, 2.01 GAA)

Like the RedHawks, the Bulldogs have the luxury of two very good goaltenders. Nagle (12-8-3) had both wins last weekend, but Taylor Nelson (9-3-3, .915 SV%, 2.49 GAA) is equally capable.

Like the RedHawks, the Bulldogs have yet to win a CCHA playoff championship.

And, like the RedHawks, the Bulldogs have talent in every position … but perhaps FSU lacks Miami’s depth. The Bulldogs have three players who have netted more than 10 goals: Riley, Casey Haines (11-18–29) and Aaron Lewicki (12-11–23). FSU’s top five scorers — including Cody Chupp and Zach Redmond — have accounted for nearly half (48.7 percent) of the Bulldogs’ goals this season.

One more RedHawks comparison: the Bulldogs are scrappers, too. Like Miami, FSU takes penalties. This can be a drawback in Detroit when Ferris plays Northern, as the Wildcats have one of the best power plays in the nation.

FSU’s secret superpower going into the tournament is its defense, which has flown mostly under the radar this season. I’ve made no secret of my admiration of defenseman Matt Case, whose play this season portends a successful NHL career. A pair of sophomores, Brett Wysopal and Chad Billins, could become household names if FSU is successful in Detroit.

There are two things that may deride the Bulldogs in Detroit, other than penalties. First is the second-half slump that FSU is experiencing. Of the four teams in this field, the Bulldogs are the ones with the least momentum; their sweep of UNO last weekend ended a three-game winless streak.

Second is FSU’s play on the road. Fifteen of the Bulldogs’ 21 wins this season came in Ewigleben Arena.

No. 3 Northern Michigan

There’s something almost surreal about the Wildcats under the direction of Walt Kyle. They seem sleepy in the first half of the season and are just about to be counted out … and then they climb progressively through the second half, until they reach a peak at playoff time.

Now all they have to do is keep peaking. That’s been the hardest part.

Of the teams in this field, Northern Michigan is the hottest going into Detroit. Twelve of the Wildcats’ 19 overall wins have come since Jan. 1, and they’ve lost one game in their last 10.

Why? I don’t know. Some things — like Cheap Trick’s absence from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and goaltender Brian Stewart’s emergence from hibernation in the second half of each of his last three seasons — remain a complete mystery to me.

• Record: 21-11-6 (13-9-6-3 CCHA)
• Last 10 games: 8-1-1
• Goals scored per game: 3.03/t23rd nationally
• Goals allowed per game: 2.47/12th
• Power play percentage: 20.8/9th
• Penalty kill percentage: 84.2/16th
• Top scorer: Mark Olver (19-28–47)
• Top goal scorer: Olver
• Top goaltender: Brian Stewart (.927 SV%, 2.37 GAA)

Northern Michigan swept Alaska last weekend to advance to Detroit in a series that was only in question for a little bit in the first game. NMU went up 4-0 in that contest before UAF scored three to make it interesting, but Stewart had 32 saves in the game and 62 total on the weekend as the Wildcats outscored the Nanooks 9-4 while being outshot 66-44.

While NMU placed two players — forward Mark Olver and defenseman Erik Gustafsson — on the CCHA’s first team this season, the Wildcats are more than the sum of a few players. Seven different ‘Cats registered goals last weekend against Alaska with Gregor Hanson and Tyler Gron each netting two.

This is the third straight trip to the CCHA championship tournament for the Wildcats, and in each of their last two outings, the ‘Cats lost their semifinal contest and won the consolation game. Last year, they lost a tight 2-1 contest to Notre Dame. In 2007-08, they were up 3-2 over Michigan heading into the third but lost the game 6-4.

The one thing that NMU hasn’t been able to do in Detroit — obviously — is seal the deal. Each of those last two semifinal games was very different, but each betrayed an inability to push past a certain, intangible plateau; you could feel it as the games progressed.

This year, this Wildcats team is battle-tested. These juniors and seniors have been here twice before. That’s a real asset going into Friday’s match against Ferris State.

No. 4 Michigan

Last weekend, the Wolverines played like a team with nothing to lose, and they may have gained a second season by doing so. In UM’s two-game sweep of MSU, Michigan looked like the team with the better record, the better season — the better everything. The last part, certainly, was true enough.

If Kyle’s ability to take his team to Joe Louis Arena on the strength of second halves of seasons is surreal, then what about Berenson’s refusal to sit out this league dance? Berenson has some powerful mojo, and somehow he managed to convey it to his team just in the nick of time this season.

• Record: 23-17-1 (14-13-1-0 CCHA)
• Last 10 games: 6-4-0
• Goals scored per game: 3.27/15th nationally
• Goals allowed per game: 2.32/8th
• Power play percentage: 19.2/24th
• Penalty kill percentage: 86.3/7th
• Top scorer: Carl Hagelin (17-26–43)
• Top goal scorer: Louie Caporusso (18)
• Top goaltender: Shawn Hunwick (.908 SV%, 1.97 GAA)

I’ve already said quite a bit about the Wolverines elsewhere in this column. There are a few more things that need to be said going into Detroit, however.

Hunwick, a junior, took over in net when Bryan Hogan (18-15-1, 2.33, .901) was injured in the first period of UM’s 4-0 win over Notre Dame Feb. 25. Since then, he’s 4-1-0 (5-2-0 overall this season). His two wins last weekend were his fourth and fifth career starts.

With Hunwick in net — including the remainder of that first game against the Irish — the Wolverines have scored 27 goals in six contests. To put this in better perspective, UM scored 25 goals in the month of February, in nine games; the Wolverines have netted 21 in four games in March.

“I think once I got in there against Notre Dame, maybe they thought they had to make up for me a little bit because I didn’t have experience,” said Hunwick. “The guys started working hard — back-checking, blocking shots. It was quick for them to realize that, you know, you play D, you’re going to probably score more goals. The offensive output from our team in the last five or six games that I’ve been in has been great.”

Another thing that cannot be overstated about Michigan is how the team is playing as a team. If they continue to do so, the Wolverines may just play themselves into the NCAA tournament this weekend.

The Loser Standing Small

After the Spartans lost their home series against the Wolverines last weekend, Comley said, “I like this team and I think everybody likes the future.”

I think that’s a fair assessment. The Spartans were rebuilding from the dismal 2008-09 season and were loaded with underclassmen achievers in 2009-10. MSU had a good first half of the season — full of the youthful enthusiasm that made them so much fun to watch — and then struggled since the start of the calendar year, with just five wins since Jan. 1.

“What I want to go back and analyze is that we were 14-6-2 at one point, and then went 5-7 and something,” said Comley. “Was it difficulty of schedule, or what stopped? We scored more early than we did late. Those are things I need to answer.

“I think in the end, we’re still missing a couple of pieces, especially offensively. We spent the first two weeks after Christmas and everything before Christmas just kind of playing, and then all of a sudden you’re playing with a purpose and for a reason and with a consequence, and that’s where I think young kids start to tighten up a little bit.”

As tough as it was to lose two to end their season at home against the Wolverines, the Spartans — much like Captain Kirk — need their pain.

“You have to suffer losing,” said Comley. “You have to have the pain of losing, but you also have to understand that there’s always something to build on.”

A Sense of Expectation Hanging in the Air …

So, how many CCHA teams will head to the NCAA tournament? According to this week’s Bracketology, four: Miami, Ferris State, Northern Michigan and Alaska.

Alaska, you say? Why, yes. The Nanooks — who lost their second-round playoff series on the road to Northern Michigan last weekend — are still in the NCAA mix at No. 13 in the PairWise. I don’t pretend to understand all the permutations that can keep them or knock them out, but I do know that UAF stands a good chance of making the tournament if there isn’t much movement ahead of them.

I think.

There is still a long-shot hope for the Spartans to make the tournament. Jayson Moy, my pal and USCHO Bracketology guru, provided the entire scenario semi-privately for a mutual friend who has something of a vested interest in MSU making the NCAA tourney, but such an eventuality would require more than a few twists.

Possible? Yes. Likely? Um, no.

Memories … Good Days … Bad Days …

For those who follow Buckeyes hockey, living through the first 30 hours after Miami beat Ohio State Sunday night were a little like waiting for the other shoe to drop. Tuesday — after what was literally years for some, days for others — it did.

On Tuesday, Ohio State announced that it would not be renewing the contract of coach John Markell, who had been at the helm in Columbus since he took over for Jerry Welsh toward the end of the 1994-95 season before being named head coach in 1995-96. Markell’s record at OSU was 280-267-56.

Markell called the news “an obvious disappointment.” That’s more than just an understatement. In the more than 15 years that I have known John Markell, I have known him to be absolutely devoted to OSU’s hockey program.

For years, fans have been calling for his departure because the hockey program hasn’t been consistently successful. I have to agree that OSU — a big school with a proud and very public athletic tradition — needs a strong hockey program. College hockey also needs OSU to be strong to help raise the profile of the sport. Markell was not able to deliver that consistency, and so I understand the decision to let him go.

But I lived in Columbus for Markell’s first 13 full seasons, so I got to know him a little better than many people did. Markell endured much unearned and mean-spirited criticism from people who didn’t know how much he cared about his student-athletes. He was as devoted to their progress as he was to the progress of the program — even to those players who openly disliked him. John Markell and I had many frank, off-the-record talks about many players he coached. He was often criticized for appearing cavalier or capricious about his players, but he sincerely cared more about those young men than most people would believe.

He’s a smart, caring man and a good coach. Was he the right coach for OSU? Not anymore, sadly. No.

OSU associate athletic director Chris Schneider said Tuesday, “What we were looking for in our men’s hockey program is one that is consistently successful, consistently competing for collegiate championships, and ultimately competing in the NCAA tournament.”

Schneider went on to praise Markell for doing “very good things” with Ohio State’s student athletes. “He has done some good things with our program in the past. Again, this goes back to being a consistently successful program. One that is consistently competing for conference championships.”

OSU assistant captain Sergio Somma said that the team has mixed feelings about Markell’s departure. “We have had a good relationship with John and it has been good for me and a lot of other guys. It is kind of bittersweet. At the same time, it can be a new positive. You have to take the positive out of it is, it will be a new, fresh start for guys and with that it brings a lot of energy. It is a good parting.”

Somma expressed the same concern that I have, that for assistant coaches Steve Brent and JB Bittner.

“We don’t know if Bits or Brenner will be back with the new head coach,” said Somma. “With the youth and energy and obviously, both coach Brent and Bits played here, so they bring that passion to the program that is authentic. You can’t really fake that. So that is something that you are going to really miss if they go there separate ways.”

Bittner and Brent were both captains of the team. They’re fine men and excellent coaches. Brent’s wife gave birth to their second child in December.

For fans, college hockey is a passion, to be sure. For coaches and other staff, it’s a passion — and a job, and a way of life, and the lives of many, many people.

First Jim Culhane and now John Markell. And now three CCHA teams, including BGSU, conducting national searches for new head coaches. Already, the 2010-11 season looks very different.

Breaking Up Is Never Easy, I Know

True, but given what he told Ohio State before he became a Buckeye, this shouldn’t surprise anyone.

As I finish this column, there’s word on the virtual street that OSU forward Zac Dalpe will forgo his final two seasons in Columbus to play for the Albany River Rats of the AHL.

Before he came to OSU, there was speculation that Dalpe would go pro. He told the program that he’d be a Buckeyes player only if Markell remained as coach.

Markell’s gone. That’s some easy math.

Dalpe, a finalist for CCHA player of the year, will be missed. The Paris, Ontario, native was chosen by the Carolina Hurricanes as the 45th pick overall in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft.

Dalpe will be missed for more than his on-ice talent. Sure, it’s easy to like his 21 goals this season and his 70 career points (34-36–70) in his first two years at OSU. It is also just plain easy to like Dalpe. He’s the kind of kid who has enormous talent, a sense of humor, and an easy manner.

But I Think You Know That I Can’t Let Go

Well, I can certainly let a thing ago, but sometimes it requires a little clarification.

Last week, I questioned the logic of some of the picks for all-league teams, especially when those picks seemed at odds with the nominees for year-end individual awards. When I did so, I was remiss in telling fans why these things happen.

Let me make this clear: I wasn’t indicting the CCHA for the picks. I was taking issue with the guys in the league I love the most. Well, the guys I love as much as the on-ice officials — the coaches.

The coaches do all the voting for the all-league teams and season-end honors. After 15 years of covering college hockey, I’m still not sure I know how coaches think. All season long, nearly every coach I spoke with said that MSU defenseman Jeff Petry was a dominant player on the ice. “A factor,” was a phrase used after many games. Arguably “the best defenseman,” was another I heard often.

Petry was a CCHA second-team honoree this season, but is one of the three finalists for best defensive defenseman.

OK.

So for those of you playing along at home, it’s not the league itself who makes these choices; it’s the coaches.

And it’s one more thing I don’t pretend to understand.

You Can Dance, You Can Jive

It’s amazing what winning can do for the mood of a team.

After Michigan beat Michigan State in the first game last weekend, UM captain Chris Summers clowned it up with the media, who were interviewing Louie Caporusso. Summers took out his cell phone and thrust it into the mix of recorders in front of Caporusso and conducted an interview of his own. This is how it went:

Summers: What’s the team mentality right now in the locker room?

Caporusso: It’s good. We’re pretty confident right now, and that’s always a good place to be. We’re just going to work it from here … (trails off into laughter).

Legitimate Reporter: Do you think you played a little bit better without your captain?

Caporusso: No, we miss our captain. We love our captain.

Caporusso, a pro, didn’t miss a beat.

Then when I talked with Shawn Hunwick about his newfound fame, he said, “I’d like to say that I don’t like it, but it’s not that bad.”

As for Hunwick’s stature (and what is the fascination with goalie height, anyway?), I can absolutely report that Hunwick is taller than 5-foot-5 — unless he was wearing lifts, and I saw no evidence of that.

Yes, I looked.

Bye Bye Doesn’t Mean Forever

We’ll see you along the road, Mavericks. The CCHA will miss you.

Thanks for helping to elevate the game of college hockey, and good luck in the WCHA.

USCHO Arena Reporter J. Justin Boggs and Buckeye Sports Bulletin writer Jeff Svoboda contributed quotes to this week’s column.

Minnesota’s Schroeder Signs with Vancouver

USCHO Staff Report

March 17, 2010

Minnesota forward Jordan Schroeder has signed a contract with the Vancouver Canucks, ending his college career after two seasons.

A three-time member of the U.S. World Junior team, Schroeder had nine goals and 28 points in 37 games for the Gophers this season.

Those numbers were down from a freshman season in which he was the WCHA’s rookie of the year with 13 goals and 45 points in 35 games.

Schroeder was Vancouver’s first-round pick, 22nd overall, in the 2009 NHL entry draft.

This Week in the CHA: March 17, 2010

By Matt Mackinder

March 17, 2010

The night of March 13, 2010, is one of those situations where you’ll always remember where you were and what you were doing.

The date ranks up there with Nov. 22, 1963, and Sept. 11, 2001.

March 13, 2010 — the day the CHA died.

OK, in all fairness, the death of a college hockey league has no business being mentioned with the assassination of JFK or the terrorist attacks on our great country.

To be brutally honest, I’m not even really sure many people care that the CHA is no more.

And it’s a shame nothing more could be done to not only salvage the league, but to expand the league.

What might be the saddest and most frustrating aspect of all is that in last Saturday night’s CHA title game between Niagara and Alabama-Huntsville, the score sheet doesn’t reflect the true No. 1 star of the game — the referees.

Now, granted, I was not at Dwyer Arena, but in watching the game at home, the Niagara disallowed goal was clearly a goal. Not sure what replay the refs were reviewing, but when Giancarlo Iuorio chopped down the puck past UAH goalie Cameron Talbot, his blade was about a foot below the crossbar.

Then, in overtime, a slashing call? There’s an unwritten rule that the whistles get discarded in OT — especially in a title game. But again, let the refs dictate the game.

What’s even worse is BOTH refs made the call. An obvious call? Borderline. In OT, I don’t think you make that call. That call led to a Huntsville power play and the eventual game winner.

The Chargers also had a goal disallowed, but NU’s was a game-changer and should have been overturned.

I also hear that as soon as the game ended and Keenan Desmet etched his name in the history books 1:34 into overtime, the final score was never tacked up on the scoreboard. Why? Because the scoreboard was turned off.

You stay classy, Niagara scoreboard operator. Go chew on some sour grapes and sit in the box to serve your unsportsmanlike penalty.

UAH goalie Cameron Talbot, the tournament MVP, blanked Robert Morris in the semifinals and then made 40-plus saves in the title game. Money, I say.

Now, I understand that it would have been a fairy tale if Niagara won on its home ice and went back to the NCAA tournament. The fact of the matter is that Alabama-Huntsville is going as one of two CHA teams to the NCAAs with Bemidji State, which won 23 games during the regular season, but none last weekend.

Alabama-Huntsville’s Keenan Desmet scores the last goal in CHA history (photo: Doug Eagan).

A cool little side note is that the first CHA tournament 10 years ago featured NU and UAH in the finals — Niagara won that one and then upset New Hampshire in the first round of the dance.

Some people may claim that the CHA isn’t a “real” conference and maybe those people are right. But the four teams that made up the CHA the past two years played their hearts out, pulled some non-conference upsets along the way, all the while playing Division I hockey — the main underlying factor.

No CHA player I have ever talked to saw the CHA as a throwaway league or a pseudo-league. They all said it’s D-I hockey and that’s all that matters.

The league always had its critics, and that’s fine. I was probably one of them. I just wish there was a non-shortsighted commissioner out there that would take Huntsville into his conference. That still may happen, but next year, UAH will be an independent and basically play a season full of meaningless games. No playoffs. No championship. No NCAA tourney.

Good thing UAH made this season count, eh?

In all the years that the CHA was around, no team’s success was ever a fluke. Non-conference teams that looked past the CHA usually came away with a loss or two.

But stability is what the league lacked from day one. Army came and left. Findlay came and folded. Wayne State came, won three straight CHA titles and then shut ‘er down. Air Force came and flew away to Atlantic Hockey. Robert Morris came and though the Colonials don’t have any championships to show for their efforts (two finals losses in OT), played extremely well and should be a middle-of-the-pack team in Atlantic Hockey with Niagara.

Bemidji State will fit in nicely in the WCHA and probably should have been there years ago.

All that’s left for Bemidji State and Alabama-Huntsville is the round of 16, where all teams are on level footing — 16 of the country’s best. No CCHA vs. CHA or whatever. It’s like playoffs in any sport — all back at square one — zip-zip.

Do us proud, BSU and UAH. Because those precious few that read this column are all that truly care what happens.

R.I.P., CHA.

Godspeed.

Win For UAH Helps With Healing

After the senseless and gutless on-campus shooting at Alabama-Huntsville a few weeks back that rocked the university, UAH bringing some positive news to the school last weekend is most definitely a good thing.

“We’re obviously really excited,” Chargers coach Danton Cole said. “Our university’s been through some tough stuff lately and it’s a good win for the university and the people there.”

Beavers On The Bubble?

The PairWise may show the Beavers qualifying for the NCAA tournament and BSU coach Tom Serratore is assuming his team will be playing in a regional next weekend.

“Right now we are taking the approach that we are in,” said Serratore. “I think that is what you have to do. I just told the guys in the locker room that we are going to come back Thursday and get prepared for a regional. We just have to watch and wait right now, but we are ranked high enough now that we feel good about it.”

A return to the Frozen Four would surprise no one this spring. No one.

Burkholder Emotional After Finals Loss

After going on the record and saying he felt Iuorio’s goal was a good goal and Jim Burichin’s OT penalty was a bad call, NU coach Dave Burkholder put it all into perspective.

“This was not the way I wanted our senior class to go out,” Burkholder said. “For everything our senior class did for our program, we deserved better.”

Right on, Burky. Right on.

RMU Happy to be Done with CHA

Robert Morris coach Derek Schooley, in an interview with the Niagara Gazette, said he’s glad to be getting a change of scenery next year.

Schooley noted that last Friday’s game between Robert Morris and Huntsville was the seventh between the two due to the league’s 18-game unbalanced regular season schedule.

“That’s unhealthy,” Schooley said. “It helps Niagara and Robert Morris going into a very good hockey league to be able to play numerous teams. Who wants to see Robert Morris play Niagara seven times, or four times here? That’s the difference.

“Our guys are sick of seeing the same teams.”

On A Personal Note …

Not sure what role USCHO will find for me next season, but I can honestly say that being the CHA Correspondent since the 2005-06 season has been very rewarding.

I recapped Wayne State games from 2000 until 2008 and am also a 2001 WSU graduate.

I’m also a big believer in superstitions and jinxes.

Last Saturday night, I was, for some unknown reason, wearing a Lansing Lugnuts minor league baseball hat. My brother is a 2005 Niagara grad. My point here? It would have been nice to see NU win and my brother happy, but the Lugnuts lid said otherwise. Why? Cole played college hockey for Michigan State — in East Lansing.

Just how it was meant to be, I guess.

This Week in Atlantic Hockey: March 17, 2010

By Chris Lerch

March 17, 2010

All or Nothing

The Atlantic Hockey Championship will be settled this weekend in Rochester, N.Y., and this year’s final quartet features a pair of regulars, as well as two teams that haven’t gotten this far in a while.

Air Force is making its fourth trip to the Blue Cross Arena, and the Falcons have enjoyed their home away from home, with a 6-0 record and three titles. Falcons coach Frank Serratore’s team is 12-1 overall in AHA postseason play. But Serratore says that while this year’s version of the Falcons may not have the offensive prowess of past squads, it’s a hardworking group.

“This isn’t the mighty Falcons of last year that beat Michigan,” he said. “This is the scrappin’, fightin’ Falcons and these kids have so much heart and character. I’m really happy this team gets the chance to go to Rochester. We are not a deep or old team, but we have guys who are making contributions who haven’t played. The fighting and scrapping Falcons is what we are.”

RIT is making its third trip to the semifinals, and has a de facto home ice advantage. A sea of orange hasn’t helped the past two seasons, with the Tigers losing 5-0 to Air Force in 2008 and 5-4 in overtime to Mercyhurst last season.

“Two years ago, we weren’t ready to play a single-elimination game,” said Wilson. “We hadn’t played a meaningful game like that in three years. Last season, we made some mistakes and it cost us. Hopefully, we can learn from that.”

Sacred Heart makes its return to the BCA after a three-year hiatus, giving its talented senior class one more shot at a title.

Canisius has never been to Blue Cross, last making the AHA semifinals back in 2004. This is the first time under Dave Smith that the Griffs have gone this deep into the playoffs.

“This is awesome for the program,” said Canisius forward Josh Heidinger. “This puts us in the right direction for future years and it’s great for the present.”

Weekly Awards

Player of the Week for March 15:
Josh Heidinger — Canisius

The senior had a six-point weekend (two goals, four assists) to lead the Griffs to a quarterfinal sweep of Mercyhurst. He’s the program’s all-time leader in points (132).

Goalie of the Week for March 15:
Andrew Volkening — Air Force

Volkening is in postseason form, allowing just two goals in a sweep of Army. He stopped 60 of 62 shots on the weekend to improve his record in AHA tournament games to 11-1.

Rookie of the Week for March 15:
Adam Hartley — RIT

Hartley had a goal and three assists to help the Tigers to a quarterfinal sweep of Connecticut. He has eight goals on the season; three have been game-winners.

The Early Bird

RIT drew over 7,400 fans to a game at Blue Cross Arena earlier this season, but don’t expect that many people in the building for the Tigers’ 4:05 p.m. semifinal against Canisius on Friday. As the top seed, RIT is slated for the early game. Air Force and Sacred Heart are scheduled to square off in prime time with a 7:35 start.

“It’s a league mandate, but if it were up to me, we would play the early game anyway,” Wilson said. “Besides the additional rest, you don’t have to sit around and watch a game and instead focus just on your game.”

Honor Roll

The league’s all-star teams will be announced on Thursday, but here are my picks. Feel free to argue with me in the comments section.

First Team
F Cory Conacher, jr., Canisius
F Nick Johnson, sr., Sacred Heart
F Jacques Lamoureux, jr., Air Force
D Tim Kirby, so., Air Force
D Dan Ringwald, sr., RIT
G Jared DeMichiel, sr., RIT

Second Team
F Cameron Burt, so., RIT
F Matt Fairchild, jr., Air Force
F Dave Jarman, sr., Sacred Heart
D Carl Hudson, sr., Canisius
D Bobby Preece, sr., Bentley
G Andrew Volkening, sr., Air Force

Third Team
F Andrew Favot, jr., RIT
F Marc Menzione, sr., Bentley
F Owen Meyer, sr., Army
D Paul Ferraro, sr., Sacred Heart
D Al Mazur, sr., RIT
G Ryan Zapolski, jr., Mercyhurst

Honorable Mention: Marcel Alvarez (Army), Eric Sefchik (Army), Josh Heidinger (Canisius), Dave Kostuch (Canisius), Andrew Leowen (Canisius), Vincent Scarsella (Canisius), Andrew Olson (Connecticut), Jordon Cyr (Holy Cross), Steve Cameron (Mercyhurst), Mike Gurtler (Mercyhurst), Chris Haltigan (RIT), Patrick Knowlton (Sacred Heart).

All-Rookie
F Joe Campanelli, Bentley
F Eric Delong, Sacred Heart
F Adam Pleskach, American International
D Alex Gerke, Connecticut
D Chris Tanev, RIT
G Thomas Tysowski, Holy Cross

Honorable Mention: Preston Shupe (Canisius), Sean Ambrosie (Connecticut), Garrett Bartus (Connecticut), Grant Blakey (Mercyhurst), Paul Chiasson (Mercyhurst), Adam Hartley (RIT), Steven Legatto (Sacred Heart), Alex Stuart (Sacred Heart).

Player of the Year: Cory Conacher, Canisius

Rookie of the Year: Chris Tanev, RIT

Coach of the Year: C.J. Marottolo, Sacred Heart

Another Season in the Books

This has been my fourth season covering Atlantic Hockey for USCHO.com, which means I was a rookie along with this senior class back in 2006-07. Good luck to all those players whose college career has ended, or will in the coming days and (maybe) weeks.

My son Matthew played his last game a couple of weeks ago, like his brother Jon had four years before him. Between the two, it’s been 17 years of early morning rides to the rink, donuts after, and loads of memories, including a State Title, an 80-point season, a dozen or so tournament championships, a 150-foot goal, and a game-winner with four seconds to play. I thank them, as well as my youngest son Tim (who isn’t into hockey but was dragged along) and my wife Kathleen, who had to shoulder a lot of the load over the years with dad on the road covering college hockey.

Thanks as always to the talented broadcasters I have worked with this year: Ed Trefzger, Scott Biggar, Taylor Osmonson and Greg Keyzer-Andre. They filled in many times for me this season so I wouldn’t have to miss a game of Matt’s final season. Thanks also to Gene Battaglia, who taught me that doing TV was harder than it looks (and that I have a face for radio).

Thanks to the many coaches, players and sports information directors who gave me their valuable time, especially Dave Rourke at Atlantic Hockey.

And finally, thanks to you, dear reader. See you next season.

D-III National Semifinal: Norwich vs. Plattsburgh

By Tim Costello and Russell Jaslow

March 17, 2010

Norwich Cadets (24-1-4 overall, 16-1-2 in the ECAC East)

The road to Lake Placid is never an easy one, even if you are the top ranked team in the country.

The Norwich Cadets were just 48 seconds from the end of their season but dug deep for a goal by freshman Steven Schroeder in the final minute of play to tie the visitors from Elmira and scored early in overtime to send the hard working Soaring Eagles home with a 2-1 loss. The winning goal came off the stick of yet another freshman, Pier-Oliver Cotnoir, who like many of his young teammates have made significant contributions to this yearâ€™s edition of the Cadets.

Cotnoir and Schroeder along with freshmen Kyle Thomas and Blake Forkey are all among the top 10 in scoring for the Cadets and have combined for 58 of the teamâ€™s 142 goals this season.

â€œWe have had a lot of injuries along the way this season, so the freshmen have had the opportunity to play and contribute,â€ said head coach Mike McShane. â€œAt this point of the season they arenâ€™t really first year players anymore having played almost 30 games this season.

â€œOverall we have a fairly young team so they need to chip in for us to be successful. I was confident that we would be good this year but their quick adjustment to this level and strong contributions on the score sheet have helped us get where we are. Of the final four teams, Plattsburgh was the early season No. 1 and we were ranked 15th — I think we are the surprise team here.â€

Senior Eric Tallent is no stranger to action in front of either goal for the Cadets, who are looking for their third NCAA title since 2000 (photo: Frank Vanacek).

Over the course of the last 10 games, including the NCAA quarterfinal round and ECAC East conference playoffs, the Cadets have won eight in a row and nine of 10 since the beginning of February. In that span the Cadets have outscored their opponents by a 45-14 margin and limited opponents to just one goal in seven of the 10 games.

Over the course of the entire season, Norwich has held opponents to two goals or less 18 times in 29 games, including seven shutouts. The solid defense and great goaltending — along with balanced scoring — is why Norwich has been successful this year. And it all starts on the back end.

â€œThe kids are really excited,â€ said McShane. â€œWe have already had a practice on a big sheet to get used to difference in width and overall size. A lot of European teams that play on that size rink all the team are passive forechecking teams focused more on neutral zone trapping.

“We are all about aggressive play on the forecheck and applying pressure to force turnovers which can be a challenge in trying to take away angles and forcing people to run out of room in the corners or behind the goal.â€

Norwichâ€™s semifinal opponent is a familiar one: the Plattsburgh Cardinals from the SUNYAC conference. The two teams have faced each other twice this season with Norwich taking both games on home ice. The first game actually is recorded as a tie but needed to be decided in a shootout after an overtime period to settle the Primelink tournament in November. Norwich won the shootout and the tournament.

In early January, Plattsburgh again traveled to Northfield and this time fell to the Cadets by a 4-1 score. Norwich was led by Thomas, who had a hat trick and Schroeder who had three assists. In Lake Placid, Plattsburgh by virtue of their proximity to the Olympic village, will undoubtedly have the feel of home ice advantage but these two teams always play tough, close hockey games any time they play and you can count it with a national championship on the line.

â€œThey are very good,â€ said McShane. â€œThey probably are a little bigger than us so I expect the physical part of the game to be there. We have already seen them twice but those games donâ€™t mean much at this time of the year. We are excited about the opportunity to play in Lake Placid and certainly the kids are ready to go.â€

The â€œkidsâ€ have been ready to go from the first drop of the puck and young and inexperienced or not, they have held up well in the pressure that is conference tournament play and the NCAA tournament. If defense and goaltending win championships, then the Cadets have the right armament to hold off the best competition the Division III Final Four has to offer.

Cadets: move out!

Plattsburgh Cardinals (19-5-4 overall, 13-2-1 in SUNYAC)

Sports can be funny at times. It has been stated often how last year’s Plattsburgh team was the one that was supposed to make it to Lake Placid. This year’s team was … well … probably not a contender. You won’t get any arguments from Plattsburgh’s head coach Bob Emery. In fact, even heading into the Division III national championship weekend, you still won’t get any arguments from Emery.

Plattsburgh netminder Ryan Williams may split duties with teammate Josh Leis (photo: Angelo Lisuzzo.)

“I said all along, we’re a work in progress,” he said. “We lost a lot of quality hockey players last year. I will continue to say we’re a work in progress all through the weekend no matter what happens.”

So far, what has happened is Plattsburgh has extended their record for NCAA playoff appearances (20) and final four appearances (11). For Emery, this is his 14th appearance and 10th championship weekend. He has won the only two national championships for Plattsburgh that counted (1992 and 2001; 1987’s title was vacated by the NCAA infractions committee).

One of the reasons Plattsburgh is at this point is their tough schedule. They may have lost a number of those tough games — they played seven games against NCAA playoff teams, going 2-5-2, with only one of those games at home — but it got Plattsburgh into the playoffs and have prepared them for exactly this situation.

They beat Middlebury in the quarterfinal round, 3-2, in overtime, after taking a 2-0 lead. This came after splitting with the Panthers during the regular season (a 3-1 win and 5-3 loss).

“We probably saved our best game of the year this past weekend,” Emery said. “We had some great quality chances in that game. If we could have put in one or two more, we would have had much more of a cushion at the end.”

Their next opponent is also a team from Vermont, a Primelink Shootout team, and a team Plattsburgh has played twice this year. However, in this case, Plattsburgh did not beat Norwich in those two games, tying them 1-1 and losing, 4-1.

“We know Norwich. They know us. It’s going to come down to goaltending and execution,” Emery said. “They’re like Middlebury who we practiced for all week, and hopefully, we can continue to do the same for what we practice for this week.”

Who will play goal will be a key question. Don’t be surprised if you see both goaltenders if Plattsburgh can make it to Saturday. Against Middlebury, Josh Leis got the nod and made 21 saves. The question isn’t who Emery will select; the question is will his selection be hot that day. Both are quite capable of stealing a game. Both are also capable of allowing a game to slip away.

Emery continually bemoans the fact that his team has trouble scoring. They are certainly not the high powered offense of the last two years. It will be a tough road on Friday, as Norwich has the stingiest defense in the country, letting up just 1.38 goals per game with seven shutouts. The Cadets allowed just one goal in each of their last six games.

Norwich’s Greg Eskedjian leverages his size and speed to be a strong offensive contributor for the Cadets (photo: by Frank Vanacek).

Also, when you combine that with goaltending that needs more support, the team cannot take as many chances as they used to, thus cutting down on the scoring opportunities.

Will the larger ice surface enable Plattsburgh to get more things going?

“I’m not so concerned about the ice surface,” Emery said. “I think we’re fortunate to have played at Middlebury last week which is pretty close to Olympic size, and handled it well in that rink. No matter what size the rink is, small or large, you always have to protect the prime scoring area.”

One of the reasons Plattsburgh is always a contender is because they are so disciplined on the ice. The minuscule number of penalties they take is a prime example of this.

Emery has been able to figure out a game plan to beat teams with better skills and more firepower in the past. In 2001, Plattsburgh beat an undefeated RIT — at RIT — in the national championship game.

The Cardinals may be coming into this national championship tournament as the underdog in a rebuilding year. However, the other better skilled and more firepower teams on paper better not take them lightly.

This Week in Hockey East: March 17, 2010

By Jim Connelly

March 17, 2010

On to Boston

After one of the most dramatic quarterfinal rounds in league history, four teams will make the march to Boston this weekend to crown a league champion.

For two teams, it will be a short bus ride as stalwarts Boston College and Boston University make their respective rides down Commonwealth Avenue, over Beacon Hill and down to the TD Garden. Their opponents, Vermont and Maine, respectively, have considerably longer jaunts.

Regardless, all four teams are excited to be there.

How they got there, though, is a story in itself. This was the closest league quarterfinal round in the 26-year history of Hockey East. Three series went three games for only the second time and, similarly, two of the three series saw teams lose the opening game and rally to win the series. Before this year, only five teams had lost the opening game of a best-of-three Hockey East series and still advanced. In 1990, similarly, three series went three games and two teams won the series after losing the opening game. That year, though, the fourth series was a blowout as Maine ousted Massachusetts-Lowell, 7-3 and 16-0.

So saying that last weekend’s hockey was full of drama would be an understatement. Look at these story lines:

â€¢ No. 2 Boston College had possibly the “easiest” road to the Garden, yet squeaked out a 6-5 win in Friday’s opener before breaking open a 2-2 game in the third period.

â€¢ No. 6 Merrimack squandered a lead in the opening game against No. 3 BU, losing 3-2, but then responded with a brilliant overtime victory in Game 2 to force a third and deciding game. BU eventually pulled out the series with a top-notch special teams performance.

â€¢ No. 8 Vermont went to No. 1 New Hampshire and blew a two-goal lead in the opening game to lose, 7-4. Coach Kevin Sneddon called out his goaltender, Rob Madore after the game and Madore responded with back-to-back 1-0 shutouts, the latter one in overtime no less, to oust the top seed for just the fourth time in league history.

â€¢ No. 4 Maine announced before the playoffs that top goaltender Scott Darling was suspended, thrusting Dave Wilson, a senior who had just five career wins entering last weekend and who hadn’t won a game this year, into the spotlight. After a difficult 2-1 loss in Friday’s opener, the Black Bears rode Wilson’s 2-0 shutout in Game 2 and then came from behind late in Game 3 to force overtime and eventually win the game.

Given all of the dramatic action from last weekend, one has to believe that this weekend will be nothing short of action-packed. So enough talk about the past, let’s talk about what lies ahead.

BC-Vermont: Is Cinderella NCAA Bound?

Among college coaches, few are as aware and savvy as Boston College coach Jerry York when it comes to understanding the NCAA tournament selection process. Thus, he knows that if his Eagles win the Hockey East Championship, they may be dancing alone.

Should BC eliminate Vermont, currently Hockey East’s best bet for a second NCAA berth when the field is announced this Sunday, it’s a strong possibility that the Eagles will be the only representative from the league.

“It never leaves my mind, in terms of the national picture. We are always conscious of where we are in the PairWise and the RPI,” said York. “I think that by being aware of it, we know how volatile it still is and there could be some unbelievable teams here as we go through this weekend.

“I’m still hoping to get three teams from Hockey East into the NCAA tournament. We are certainly very proud of our league and I’d like to see three of us get in and I think we are deserving of it. I think the way the PairWise goes, there is still a chance for that. Whoever we put in that tournament is going to have a really good chance to win the whole thing. We might not have as many as four or five teams as we have had in the past years, but whoever plays there is going to have a chance to win this thing.”

Don’t, though, go kidding yourself that York’s team will roll over and play dead to keep Vermont’s NCAA hopes alive. BC is hoping to better its league-best eight titles and add another Lamoriello Cup to the mantle. Certainly the Eagles seem to be playing the best hockey of the four teams in the field.

That said, Vermont won the season series against the Eagles (though the one BC victory was a lopsided 7-1 game). While York can be confident of his team’s play of late, there’s still some trepidation given its opponent.

“We played three times and twice we lost, so certainly we’ve had a battle with Vermont this year,” said York. “For Vermont to go into Durham and win those back-to-back games shows a lot of momentum and it is certainly at the top of its game. We’ve got a team that has beaten us two of three times and that catches our attention.”

The positives for BC, though, include the fact that the team is scoring goals and playing pretty decent defense. The Eagles had some early season woes in both but much of that was due to young players that are now playing like veterans.

“We are playing four freshmen defensemen on a pretty regular basis of our six defensemen, and Tommy Cross is a veteran back there as a sophomore,” said York. “I think they have shown terrific improvement. They were good players when they came but they are adjusting to a strength and quickness factor as you move into it. I feel very good about their play and I think they will be fine this weekend.”

BC isn’t the only one playing solid defense. As mentioned earlier, Vermont hasn’t allowed a goal since Game 1 of the best-of-three series against New Hampshire. Though before that, netminder Rob Madore allowed six in the first two-plus periods of the opener against the Wildcats and sparked Sneddon’s ire.

“I think he [Madore] was a little bit shocked and had a ton of different emotions going on after Game 1 and what was said in the locker room,” said Sneddon. “There was no yelling or screaming, I was just very matter of fact about the way I thought he played.”

Madore, as some remember, led the Catamounts to the Frozen Four last season but his play has been up and down much of this year. Sneddon admitted that as much as challenging Madore to step up his game was to light a fire under the sophomore, it also was a way in which he hoped to spark the team.

“The team played pretty hard [on Friday]. I thought we had every chance to win that game, but unfortunately some goals went in that just aren’t typical for [Madore] and I guess I looked at it and said, ‘Hey, I’ve got to spark something in this team,'” Sneddon said. “We were pretty down in the locker room and knew it was going to be a long series, obviously if we were going to stay alive it was going to go three games and you have to take some calculated risks.

“We all obviously know that Rob’s probably the most mentally tough student-athlete we have on our team, so as much as it was about trying to spark Rob, it was to spark our team to play better defensively in front of him and I think the team kind of rallied around him.”

Now with his No. 1 goaltender back focused, the challenge will be containing a high-power BC offense.

“BC’s got such a great blend of having tremendous talent and the ability to score goals, but I also think they have a great ability to play team defense,” said Sneddon. “They use their speed in a very good way on back pressure, they’re very good on transition and their layers of defense are very solid.”

But beating BC is likely the only way for the Catamounts to keep their season alive. Despite being 14th in the current PairWise, the Catamounts face slipping out of contention with a loss on Friday. Though given the fact that we’re talking about the No. 8 seed in this tournament, it almost seems crazy that an at-large NCAA bid is even being mentioned in the same sentence.

“Our non-league conference record was impressive,” said Sneddon. “But it doesn’t make a lot of sense when you’re an eighth seed and still have hopes for an at-large.”

BU-Maine: The Rivalry Renewed

Any fans old enough to remember back to the early ’90s know that there was likely no better a non-traditional rivalry than Maine and Boston University. The clubs met in numerous Hockey East championship game and even squared off in the 1995 national title game with the Terriers walking away with the crown.

Slumps, scandals and just plain old bad timing have kept these two heated rivals from meeting on a grand stage. And usually it’s those big games that really keep major rivalries alive.

Another thing that dissolves rivalries is one team’s dominance over the other. That certainly has been the case between these two teams.

“BU has had our number this year and for several years,” said Maine coach Tim Whitehead. “We were able to beat them at home this season but [BU has] one of the best winning percentages in Hockey East in the second half of the season.”

The fact that Maine even has a shot at BU is a miracle in some people’s book. Few gave the Black Bears a chance when it was revealed that Darling had been suspended before the playoffs began. But Wilson did his best to seize an opportunity and win the final two games of the best-of-three series against Lowell.

“I am really proud of David,” said Whitehead. “He persevered, not just this season, but during his career.”

Darling’s suspension for violating team rules has no length attached to it, so the sensible question is whether or not the top netminder will return this weekend. At this point, the answer is no.

“I am going to meet with him and we’ll keep moving forward,” said Whitehead. “But he won’t be in the net this weekend for sure.”

BU coach Jack Parker, like many others that witnessed Wilson’s play last weekend, doesn’t feel like a Maine club sans Darling is any less dangerous.

“Certainly Darling is having a great season, but I remember Wilson played once against us and he was great,” said Parker.

In that game, played on Valentine’s Day of 2009 when BU was on its way to the NCAA title, Wilson stopped 34 shots in a 2-2 tie.

“I’m not surprised that he stepped up [last weekend] and became the man for them in a crucial series, because some guys are just waiting for their chance,” Parker said. “Just because he’s the backup goaltender doesn’t mean he’s not a good goalie.”

Thus Parker knows that his team, which has acted out the Jekyll-and-Hyde routine a bit lately, will need to bring its best game if it’s going to advance.

“We know we can’t afford to be Mr. Hyde,” said Parker. “If we have a no-show type of game, our season is over. I know we have enough competitors and leadership to make sure that we are focused and ready instead of wondering, ‘I wonder how this game is going to go tonight?'”

Merrimack’s Da Costa Unanimous Hockey East All-Rookie Pick

USCHO Staff Report

March 17, 2010

Merrimack forward Stephane Da Costa was a unanimous pick to Hockey East’s All-Rookie Team, announced Wednesday.

Da Costa was third in league scoring with 36 points (nine goals, 27 assists) in 26 Hockey East games.

He’s joined on the all-rookie team by Boston College forward Chris Kreider, Vermont forward Sebastian Stalberg, Boston College defenseman Brian Dumoulin, Northeastern defenseman Jake Newton, Boston University defenseman Max Nicastro and Northeastern goaltender Chris Rawlings.

The league also announced other award winners:

Three Stars Award: Bobby Butler, New Hampshire
Best Defensive Defenseman: Justin Braun, Massachusetts
Len Ceglarski Sportsmanship Award: Ben Smith, Boston College
Scoring Champions: Butler, New Hampshire/Gustav Nyquist, Maine, 41 points
Goaltending Champion: Carter Hutton, Massachusetts-Lowell (2.35 goals-against average, .920 save percentage)
Best Defensive Forward: Ben Holmstrom, Massachusetts-Lowell
Charlie Holt Team Sportsmanship Award: New Hampshire

Bracketology: March 17, 2010

USCHO Staff Report

March 17, 2010

It’s time once again to do what we like to call Bracketology — college hockey style. It’s our weekly look at how I believe the NCAA Ice Hockey Championship Committee will use the PairWise to determine the NCAA tournament bracket.

Just remember that this is not a prediction. This is a possible look into what the Committee might be thinking.

If you’re new to Bracketology, click here for the background.

Here is the top 16 of the current PairWise Rankings (PWR), the CHA Champion Alabama-Huntsville, and the Atlantic Hockey Champion (through all games of Mar. 16):

1 Denver
2 Miami
3 Wisconsin
4t Boston College
4t North Dakota
4t St. Cloud State
7 Bemidji State
8t Ferris State
8t Cornell
10 Yale
11t Minn.-Duluth
11t Northern Michigan
13 Alaska
14 Vermont
15 New Hampshire
16 Michigan
— Atlantic Hockey Champion
— Alabama-Huntsville

Step One

From the committee’s report, choose the 16 teams in the tournament.

We break ties in the PWR by looking at the individual comparisons among the tied teams, and add in any autobids or current league leaders that are not currently in the top 16. The teams that are not are Alabama-Huntsville and the Atlantic Hockey Champion. Of course, there might be other league champions not in the Top 16, but we know these are definite.

Looking at the head-to-head PairWise comparisons and the RPI we break all of our ties.

Alabama-Huntsville’s RPI will be lower than that of the AHA champion, therefore, it will be ranked 16th.

Therefore the 16 teams in the tournament, in rank order, are:

1 Denver
2 Miami
3 Wisconsin
4 Boston College
5 North Dakota
6 St. Cloud State
7 Bemidji State
8 Ferris State
9 Cornell
10 Yale
11 Minn.-Duluth
12 Northern Michigan
13 Alaska
14 Vermont
15 AHA Champion
16 Alabama-Huntsville

Step Two

Now it’s time to assign the seeds.

No. 1 Seeds — Denver, Miami, Wisconsin, Boston College
No. 2 Seeds — North Dakota, St. Cloud State, Bemidji State, Ferris State
No. 3 Seeds — Cornell, Yale, Minnesota-Duluth, Northern Michigan
No. 4 Seeds — Alaska, Vermont, AHA Champion, Alabama-Huntsville

Step Three

Place the No. 1 seeds in regionals. Following the guidelines, there are no host teams in this grouping, so that rule does not need to be enforced.

We now place the other No. 1 seeds based on proximity to the regional sites.

No. 1 Denver is placed in the West Regional in St. Paul, Minn.
No. 2 Miami is placed in the Midwest Regional in Fort Wayne, Ind.
No. 3 Wisconsin is placed in the East Regional in Albany, N.Y.
No. 4 Boston College is placed in the Northeast Regional in Worcester, Mass.

Step Four

Now we place the other 12 teams so as to avoid intra-conference matchups if possible.

Begin by filling in each bracket by banding groups. Remember that teams are not assigned to the regional closest to their campus sites by ranking order within the banding (unless you are a host school, in which case you must be assigned to your home regional).

If this is the case, as it was last year, then the committee should seed so that the quarterfinals are seeded such that the four regional championships are played by No. 1 vs. No. 8, No. 2 vs. No. 7, No. 3 vs. No. 6 and No. 4 vs. No. 5.

So therefore:

No. 2 Seeds

No. 8 Ferris State is placed in No. 1 Denver’s Regional, the West Regional.
No. 7 Bemidji State is placed in No. 2 Miami’s Regional, the Midwest Regional.
No. 6 St. Cloud State is placed in No. 3 Wisconsin’s Regional, the East Regional.
No. 5 North Dakota is placed in No. 4 Boston College’s Regional, the Northeast Regional.

No. 3 Seeds

Our bracketing system has one Regional containing seeds 1, 8, 9, and 16, another with 2, 7, 10, 15, another with 3, 6, 11, 14 and another with 4, 5, 12 and 13.

Therefore:

No. 9 Cornell is placed in No. 8 Ferris State’s Regional, the West Regional.
No. 10 Yale is placed in No. 7 Bemidji State’s Regional, the Midwest Regional.
No. 11 Minnesota-Duluth is placed in No. 6 St. Cloud State’s Regional, the East Regional.
No. 12 Northern Michigan is placed in No. 5 North Dakota’s Regional, the Northeast Regional.

No. 4 Seeds

One more time, taking No. 16 vs. No. 1, No. 15 vs. No. 2, etc.

No. 16 Alabama-Huntsville is sent to No. 1 Denver’s Regional, the West Regional.
No. 15 AHA Champion is sent to No. 2 Miami’s Regional, the Midwest Regional.
No. 14 Vermont is sent to No. 3 Wisconsin’s Regional, the East Regional.
No. 13 Alaska is sent to No. 4 Boston College’s Regional, the Northeast Regional.

The brackets as we have set them up:

Northeast Regional:

Alaska vs. Boston College
Northern Michigan vs. North Dakota

Midwest Regional:

AHA Champion vs. Miami
Yale vs. Bemidji State

East Regional:

Vermont vs. Wisconsin
Minnesota-Duluth vs. St. Cloud State

West Regional:

Alabama-Huntsville vs. Denver
Cornell vs. Ferris State

Our first concern is avoiding intra-conference matchups. We have Minnesota-Duluth vs. St. Cloud. So we have to switch Minnesota-Duluth with Yale.

Our bracket now becomes:

Northeast Regional:

Alaska vs. Boston College
Northern Michigan vs. North Dakota

Midwest Regional:

AHA Champion vs. Miami
Minnesota-Duluth vs. Bemidji State

East Regional:

Vermont vs. Wisconsin
Yale vs. St. Cloud State

West Regional:

Alabama-Huntsville vs. Denver
Cornell vs. Ferris State

Do we like the way this looks?

It is brutal for attendance in St. Paul. The only logical sense to make of this is to switch the entire St. Paul bracket with the Albany bracket.

In essence, you’re trading no attendance in St. Paul vs. some attendance in Albany due to Vermont, for two WCHA teams in St. Paul vs. Cornell in Albany.

I think that’s a reasonable trade to make.

So our new brackets:

Northeast Regional:

Alaska vs. Boston College
Northern Michigan vs. North Dakota

Midwest Regional:

AHA Champion vs. Miami
Minnesota-Duluth vs. Bemidji State

West Regional:

Vermont vs. Wisconsin
Yale vs. St. Cloud State

East Regional:

Alabama-Huntsville vs. Denver
Cornell vs. Ferris State

Anything else that we can do?

I am going to make one more switch, it’s sort of a minor one, but I think it makes sense.

I am going to swap Alabama-Huntsville and the AHA Champion.

UAH will fly anyway. The AHA Champion might be able to bus to Albany.

So our new brackets:

Northeast Regional:

Alaska vs. Boston College
Northern Michigan vs. North Dakota

Midwest Regional:

Alabama-Huntsville vs. Miami
Minnesota-Duluth vs. Bemidji State

West Regional:

Vermont vs. Wisconsin
Yale vs. St. Cloud State

East Regional:

AHA Champion vs. Denver
Cornell vs. Ferris State

The other potential change that I would consider making is swapping Yale with Northern Michigan.

Yes, I can give Yale a bus ride now, so that helps out.

But I am reasoning that I can do this because Yale is switching with Minnesota-Duluth already to avoid an intraconference matchup. At the same time, NMU and UMD are tied in comparison wins. They are also in the same band.

And Yale in Worcester is a better draw than in St. Paul. And NMU might be a better draw in St. Paul. So I will make that switch.

Northeast Regional:

Alaska vs. Boston College
Yale vs. North Dakota

Midwest Regional:

Alabama-Huntsville vs. Miami
Minnesota-Duluth vs. Bemidji State

West Regional:

Vermont vs. Wisconsin
Northern Michigan vs. St. Cloud State

East Regional:

AHA Champion vs. Denver
Cornell vs. Ferris State

And that’s about as good as it’s going to get.

Check the Bracketology Blog for other items and we’ll see you here next week for the next Bracketology.

2010 Conference Championship Weekend

USCHO Staff Report

March 17, 2010

A rundown of USCHO’s coverage from 2010 conference championship weekend:

THURSDAY, MARCH 18

SATURDAY, MARCH 20

WCHA

Live Blog: WCHA Final Five

Wisconsin 6, Denver 3: Geoffrion Scores Twice for Wisconsin, Sending Denver to 2nd Straight Loss

Another Slow Starts Dooms Pioneers

North Dakota 5, St. Cloud State 3: MVP Trupp, North Dakota Battle Back for WCHA Title

Eidsness Rebounds from Rough Start for North Dakota

WCHA Pictorial

CCHA

Live Blog: CCHA Championship

Miami 2, Ferris State 1: Palmer’s Goal Gives Miami Third in CCHA

Miami, Ferris State Find Little Consolation in CCHA Third-Place Game

Michigan 2, Northern Michigan 1: Caporusso Scores 2, Michigan Earns Spot in NCAA with CCHA Final Victory

The Streak Survives: Michigan Passes its Toughest Test

ECAC Hockey

Live Blog: ECAC Hockey Championship

Brown 3, St. Lawrence 0: Brown Out: Rosen, Bears Blank St. Lawrence

Brown’s Volpatti Gets in Some Stats-‘Patt’ing

Cornell 3, Union 0: Scrivens Puts On a Show to Give Cornell ECAC Title with Third Consecutive Shutout

Scrivens, Power Play Both Deserve Attention

Atlantic Hockey

Live Blog: Atlantic Hockey Championship

RIT 6, Sacred Heart 1: Burt Leads Way as RIT Gains First D-I NCAA Berth, Beating Sacred Heart

Hockey East

Live Blog: Hockey East Championship

Boston College 7, Maine 6 (OT): Unlikely Hero Lombardi Gives Boston College OT Win, Hockey East Crown

Maine Gets Counted Out … Finally

Making the Call

By Elliot Olshansky

March 16, 2010

As your humble Hobey predictor, this is the biggest moment of the year for me.

Yes, I know, there’s also the announcement of the Hobey Hat Trick and the winner to think about, but to me, this is the biggest challenge: pick all 10 finalists for college hockey’s top individual honor. It’s something I’ve been doing better than anyone else for the last couple of years, and now it’s time for me to do it again.

This seemed like one of the more open years in recent memory, which made my job much harder. Now, though, I think I’ve got a top 10 that should pretty much match Thursday’s announcement.

Here it is.

Brendan Smith, junior, defenseman, Wisconsin – I’ve said before that you could legitimately have four Hobey finalists from the Badgers, but if you go to Wisconsin’s official athletic website, there is only one candidate for college hockey’s highest individual honor, and that’s Smith. Personally, I think that UW will have more than one player honored (see below), but there’s no doubt who’s got the best shot at coming home with the hardware. As the nation’s top-scoring defenseman, a top-20 scorer overall, and a clutch player whose presence on the goals that count the most exceeds that of any of Wisconsin’s forwards, Smith remains the favorite (in my eyes) to win the award, and it’s hardly a surprise that he’s my first finalist pick.

Gustav Nyquist, ~~junior~~ sophomore, forward, Maine – For the second year in a row, a Swede will be among the 10 finalists, as Nyquist has led the Black Bears back to the championship weekend with a chance to make it to the NCAA tournament. And did I mention he happens to be the nation’s points-per-game leader? My feeling is that Nyquist needs a superb weekend and an NCAA tournament appearance to truly contend for the award, but at the moment, in good shape to be a finalist (Edited to put in the correct class year.).

Bobby Butler, senior, forward, New Hampshire – A commenter on my last post asked why Butler didn’t make my players-to-watch list last weekend. My feeling at the time was that Butler was a lock to be among the finalists, and – as opposed to Nyquist – his status wasn’t going to be impacted by the conference quarterfinals (UNH’s problems tend to start a bit later, after all). That said, I wasn’t counting on a pair of UVM shutouts putting the Wildcats on the tournament bubble. I said that Butler was a lock as a finalist – as a senior and a big-time goal-scorer, he has two qualities that Hobey voters tend to look very kindly on – and I’m standing by that now. If he’s played his last college game, though, then he’ll have gotten his last Hobey honor when he’s named a finalist. If he’s in the tournament, he’ll have a chance to move up.

Marc Cheverie, junior, goaltender, Denver – The Pioneers’ goaltender was as good as he needed to be numbers-wise against Michigan Tech, and I’ll be very surprised if he’s not in the Hobey Hat Trick. He’s been strong all season, his injury showed how badly Denver needs him in order to be the top team in the country, and he’s had some truly brilliant performances in net (including some where the numbers don’t fully tell the story. I don’t think his numbers will be good enough to win – don’t blame me, blame Ryan Miller (although his .937 save percentage isn’t THAT far from Miller’s .950) – but he’s a certain finalist, and likely for the Hat Trick.

Rhett Rakhshani, senior, forward, Denver – Rakhshani has gotten stronger over the course of the season, entering the Final Five as one of the nation’s top 10 scorers and a senior leader on a team that’s considered a favorite to go to the Frozen Four. He’ll take a backseat to his goaltender when the final votes are tallied, but he’s had a season worthy of a Hobey finalist nod, and I think he’ll get it.

Mark Olver, junior, forward, Northern Michigan – Two things worried me about Olver as a Hobey finalist: the fact that he plays for a school that’s been “off the beaten path” as of late, and NMU’s tendency to come up short on its big late-season runs. The fact that Olver was the top vote-getter in All-CCHA balloting assuaged one concern, and the fact that the Wildcats are going to the Joe took care of the other (for now). How much further can he go? If he can lead NMU to a Mason Cup and/or an NCAA berth, a Hat Trick honor could be in his future.

Ben Scrivens, senior, goaltender, Cornell – Scrivens made a great “closing statement” in the Big Red’s ECAC quarterfinal series against Harvard, stopping 42 of 43 shots in a two-game sweep of Harvard. That leaves him No. 2 in the country in both goals-against average (1.89) and save percentage (.933), and that should be enough to make him a finalist, regardless of whatever doubts exist about goalies who thrive in Cornell’s system.

Chase Polacek, junior, forward, Rensselaer – When I sized up the contenders a couple of weeks ago, I listed two ECAC Hockey players as “On Solid Ground.” One was Polacek, the other was Yale’s Broc Little. Well, a couple of things happened since I wrote that. One, Both Polacek and Little saw their teams eliminated from the ECAC Hockey playoffs by Brown. Two, Ben Scrivens solidified his hold on a spot. I don’t think there will be three finalists from ECAC Hockey, so somebody’s got to go, and I think it’s Little. Yale’s quarterfinal loss to Brown made a strong case that the absent Sean Backman, not Little, is the key player for Yale, and given that Backman was injured under circumstances that can be charitably described as “ill-advised,” it’s not like he’ll be picking up the votes. On top of that, Little is one reasonably equal part of a very balanced Yale attack, where Polacek was clearly “the man” for RPI, both in terms of overall scoring and in terms of his clutch performance. You will recall that when I calculated “Campellnomics” averages for the nation’s top skaters last month, Polacek led the field with a 1.10 CPPG average. Essentially, that means he could be counted on for one go-ahead goal per game. Little was also among the leaders, but if only one is going in, I’m thinking it’s Polacek.

Blake Geoffrion, senior, forward, Wisconsin – This is the toughest call for me to make, because could easily be one of three different Wisconsin forwards: Geoffrion, classmate Michael Davies or sophomore Derek Stepan. However, I think it’s going to be Geoffrion, and this is why. First, I’d take Stepan out of the mix. He’s a sophomore, and most of his points are assists. That doesn’t stand up well next to his two senior teammates. That leaves it between the two seniors, Geoffrion and Davies. You can make the case for Davies – he’s the Badgers’ top scorer with 1.37 points per game, and that leaves him as the nation’s No. 5 scorer. Still, I’m sticking with Geoffrion for two reasons. First, he has six more goals, and is No. 6 in the country in goals per game. Goal-scoring is a skill that has been highly valued, and I think that will play a role. Also, Geoffrion has been part of the national conversation longer. While Davies deserves tremendous credit for going from a mid-20s point man to a 48-point man with a shot at 50, Geoffrion has been growing his reputation as a goal-scorer consistently over the course of his Wisconsin career (and it doesn’t hurt when you have one of the most famous last names in the sport). It’s the pick I feel shakiest about, but I’m going with Geoffrion.

Cory Conacher, junior, forward, Canisius – I’m a believer now. Conacher heads to Rochester for the Atlantic Hockey championship as the No. 2 scorer in the country, playing for a team that is enjoying its best season since 2000-01. He assisted on the overtime goal that guaranteed the Golden Griffins a spot in Rochester. Add that to the fact he’s doing it with diabetes, and it’s not hard to give Conacher the nod here over Matt Read, Nick Johnson, or anyone else from the CHA and Atlantic Hockey. Top scorers from Atlantic Hockey may have been ignored in the past, but that was before Holy Cross beat Minnesota and Air Force beat Michigan.

There you have it, folks. Those are my 10 picks. Will I go 10 for 10? Will I lead the media field in correct picks (again)? The possibilities are out there.

Markell: End of Tenure with Ohio State ‘Obvious Disappointment’

By J. Justin Boggs

March 16, 2010

The Ohio State athletics department confirmed Tuesday that 15-year head coach John Markell will not return to the Buckeyes’ men’s hockey program in 2010-11.

Markell’s contract was allowed to expire following the Buckeyes’ 2-1 loss to the Miami RedHawks on Sunday evening in the quarterfinals of the CCHA tournament. Markell said following the game he had coached the team for a long time and hopes to continue coaching for a long time. That hope will not come true.

“It is an obvious disappointment; I have been here a long time,” Markell said in a phone interview Tuesday. “I wanted to continue to be a part of it. But, obviously, they wanted to take a new direction and this would be a good time to not renew my contract.”

Said Ohio State associate athletics director Chris Schneider, “This was John’s last year of his current contract, and what we’re looking for out of our men’s hockey program is one that is consistently successful, consistently competing for collegiate championships, and ultimately performing in the NCAA tournament.”

Markell’s career at Ohio State ends with a 280-267-56 record in 15 full seasons behind the Buckeyes’ bench. He has led the squad to six NCAA tournaments and a Mason Cup championship as CCHA playoff winners.

It was Ohio State’s recent performance that led to his dismissal. The squad has had only one NCAA appearance in the last five seasons and has not been one of the final four teams in the CCHA tournament in Detroit. During that time, the attendance has dropped dramatically in Value City Arena. In 2004-05, the team averaged 6,556 fans per game. In 2009-10, Ohio State averaged 3,096 fans per game.

“You can point the finger at lots of different people for lots of different reasons why it didn’t work out the way it did but, like I said, we have to adjust and move on and move forward from this and try to take the positives out of it,” said Ohio State alternate captain Sergio Somma, a junior.

In the 2009-10 season, Ohio State was picked to finish in fourth place in the CCHA by the coaches and media. The Buckeyes came well short of its expectations, finishing in eighth place.

“I love the character of the team,” Markell said. “I liked the way we bounced back. We were resilient. I really liked our second half. I thought we really matured as a team and were finally reaping the benefits of having a mature goaltender, solid goaltending, scoring goals. We were good on specialty teams. We were competing very, very hard. We always reacted the right way.”

Markell has had a good history of recruiting, bringing in current NHL talent R.J. Umberger, Ryan Kesler, Rod Pelley and Dave Steckel. Ohio State has six NHL draft picks on its roster; all six have eligibility remaining next season.

Ohio State joins Bowling Green and Western Michigan on the list of CCHA teams looking for new head coaches. Markell, a Bowling Green alum, said he would be interested but added that he needed something that would be a good fit for him and his wife Kim, who is a teacher in the Columbus area.

“Obviously, if there is another university that has ties to me emotionally, that would be it,” Markell said. “I would think maybe I might be a good fit, but it might not. Hopefully, if I did decide to go in that direction and apply, I’d be under consideration. It is kind of a program that needs some rebuilding. They’re well on their way financially.”

Ohio State is beginning a national search for its next head coach. Schneider indicated that the department will begin accepting applications this week through the Frozen Four. Following the Frozen Four, Ohio State will narrow the list to three to five candidates for interviews and will announce Markell’s replacement in early May.

“There is no reason why a team here at Ohio State shouldn’t have a chance to win [a CCHA title] every year,” Somma said. “The facilities, the opportunities you have at this school — it is bar none.”

Tuesday Morning Quarterback: March 16, 2010

By Jim Connelly and Todd D. Milewski

March 16, 2010

Jim: Well, Todd, I hardly know where to begin this week. We’re two weeks into the postseason and two regular-season conference champions have been bounced in Yale and New Hampshire; Alabama-Huntsville guaranteed that College Hockey America will have two of its four teams in the NCAA tournament; and the current PairWise makes it seem extremely possible that only one team from Hockey East will make the NCAA field. Is this a college hockey apocalypse?

Todd: It might be as close as we get. When the last game ended Sunday night, I had to sit back and take it all in for a minute. What an incredible weekend of great games and unexpected results. You have the longest game in Division I college hockey history, the upsets you mentioned, nine Game 3s and the first NCAA automatic bid awarded. I still have a hard time weighing which one was the standout event, but I lean toward the Quinnipiac-Union five-overtime epic from Friday.

Jim: You mentioned the longest game, which occurred in Game 1 of the Quinnipiac-Union series. For those fans living in a bubble, Quinnipiac won, 3-2, in five overtimes. One of the interesting notes from that game that will likely be the answer to a trivia question someday is that Quinnipiac goaltender Dan Clarke finished the game with a shutout streak of more than 140 minutes — or seven straight periods. He’ll go down as the goalie to have the longest shutout streak without the benefit of recording a shutout. Shifting back to the remainder of the games, all of the craziness created some strange NCAA bubble scenarios. Some immediate oddities that come to mind include both New Hampshire and Michigan State are more likely than not to miss the NCAA tournament. Michigan, despite upsetting the Spartans in a sweep, is also on the outside looking in right now. You also have teams like Ferris State, Northern Michigan and Cornell who have either emerged for or are close to locking up an NCAA berth. Seriously, my head is spinning.

Todd: Not to get your head spinning a little more, but in addition to all that, you’ve got teams that might make the tournament without playing in their conference championship weekends — Yale in the ECAC, Alaska in the CCHA. Miami, North Dakota, St. Cloud State, Minnesota-Duluth and Vermont all had to win Game 3s to get to this weekend’s games. The NCAA tournament picture could look a whole lot different with just a few difference bounces of the puck last weekend. But the idea of New Hampshire being on the outside looking in is odd, considering how well it played in the middle of the season to get into a good spot.

Jim: Well, if anything can be gleaned from this year’s PairWise, it’s the importance of playing well in a strong non-league schedule. New Hampshire and Vermont are exhibits A and B. New Hampshire plays Wisconsin twice, Miami twice, Rensselaer, Yale and Dartmouth and goes 1-5-1 out of its league. Vermont plays an equally as challenging non-league schedule, playing Denver twice, Yale, St. Lawrence, Dartmouth, Alabama-Huntsville and Minnesota-Duluth but posts an impressive 6-1-0 record in those seven games. New Hampshire finishes first in Hockey East while Vermont finishes eighth, but Vermont now has the better chance at making the NCAA tournament. Moral of the story: It’s great to play a difficult non-league schedule, but make sure if you do, you win.

Todd: In 1994, Colorado College went from worst to first and won the WCHA regular season title with a 22-9-5 overall record, but it lost the best-of-three first-round playoff series to Michigan Tech in three games and didn’t make the NCAA’s 12-team field. Not long after, the NCAA started awarding two automatic bids — one for the regular season champion, one for the playoff champion — to each of the four conferences that were in play at the time. I happen to like the way things are decided now, but in theory, the NCAA could do this again — with five conferences next season, there would be 10 automatic bids and six at-large spots. I wonder if an idea like that would get any traction whatsoever … at least outside of New Hampshire right now.

Jim: I’ve certainly pondered that over time. In the old tournament, I personally didn’t like as many as eight of the then 12 seeds being determined by automatic bid. But it is difficult to imagine winning a regular-season title and not making the NCAA tournament. Personally, if there is any adjustment to the selection process, I’d like to see the committee return to factoring in record in the last 16 games. I know that when they eliminated that a number of years ago it was because not every team played the same strength of schedule over the final 16 games. But I think there’s something to be said for a team that catches fire down the stretch of the season. Those teams deserve credit for that. Michigan and Boston University are examples this year. Both teams have finished extremely well while teams like Ferris State, Alaska, Bemidji State and even Yale, a little bit, had stumbled to the end and seemingly locked up their bids by December. I know I may be in the minority when I say it, but I really love the “Last 16” criteria.

Todd: I’m on the other side of the “Last 16” argument. I never understood why it was 16 games, not 12 or 10. Did someone just pick 16 out of a hat as the closest you could get to half of the 34-game regular season without making it an odd number? It seems awfully subjective to say that the second half of the season means more than the first half, when everything else in the process is objective in terms of measuring a team’s play over the entire season. It’s not good to see a team back into the tournament down the stretch, but if it had a dynamite first half and a less-than-stellar second half and still had the qualifications, I say they deserve to get in. Teams that catch fire down the stretch already have the automatic bids from conference tournaments as their ways of getting in the NCAAs.

Jim: Well, we’ll have to agree to disagree here. So who do you like this weekend? I’m going with Boston College in Hockey East, Cornell in the ECAC, Air Force in Atlantic Hockey (how can you go against them in March, right?), Michigan as the stunning victor in the CCHA and Denver taking home the WCHA title. You?

Todd: I’m going to agree with you on Cornell and Denver, but I’m going to take Boston University in Hockey East, Miami in the CCHA and RIT in Atlantic Hockey. Then again, that’s a lot of top seeds I picked, and this doesn’t look like the year of the top seed in conference tournaments. Oh well. It should be fun to watch it play out regardless. Stay with USCHO this week for wall-to-wall coverage of the tournaments, with live blogs during games and full coverage after them. Add in the PairWise Predictor and Bracketology leading up to the selection show Sunday morning (11:30 a.m. Eastern, ESPN2) — we’ll have a live blog there, too — and it’s going to be a great weekend. Until next week …

WCHA Suspends North Dakota’s Frattin for Hit

USCHO Staff Report

March 15, 2010

The WCHA suspended North Dakota’s Matt Frattin late Monday for the forward’s hit on Minnesota’s Kevin Wehrs on Sunday.

Frattin, a junior, was called for a major contact-to-the-head penalty in the second period of Sunday’s WCHA playoff series-clinching victory.

He will be out of the lineup for the Fighting Sioux’s WCHA Final Five play-in game against Minnesota-Duluth on Thursday.

Frattin, who was suspended by the team last offseason after two arrests but was reinstated after the holiday break, had four goals in the three-game series against the Gophers.

He has nine goals and 15 points in 21 games this season.

The WCHA said the suspension was determined after a review of the incident under the WCHA Supplementary Discipline Policy and Procedures.

Union’s Leaman is ECAC Hockey Coach of the Year

USCHO Staff Report

March 15, 2010

After leading Union to the highest conference and overall win totals in program history, coach Nate Leaman was named the ECAC Hockey coach of the year.

The Dutchmen have 20 overall wins and earned 12 in conference play after being picked to finish sixth in the standings. They are the third seed in the postseason.

The other finalists for the award were Yale’s Keith Allain, St. Lawrence’s Joe Marsh and Colgate’s Don Vaughan.

Leaman led the Dutchmen to a program-best-tying 10-game unbeaten stream from Nov. 6 to Dec. 9. Union opened the conference schedule 7-0-3, the best start and longest ECAC unbeaten streak in team history.

Conference Finals on TV

March 15, 2010

Here’s the TV information for this weekend’s conference tournaments. Also, watch for our live blogs for each tournament:

ECAC

This schedule comes from a league release. All times Eastern.

FRIDAY, MARCH 19 (SEMIFINALS)

NHL Network (Live in the U.S. and taped delayed in Canada) Semifinal #1 – Cornell vs. Brown at 4 p.m. and Semifinal

#2 – Union vs. St. Lawrence at 7 p.m.

SATURDAY, MARCH 20 (CHAMPIONSHIP GAME)

Fox College Sports (Live) 7 p.m.

NHL Network (Encore Presentation of Semifinals – Cornell vs. Brown at 12 p.m. and Union vs. St. Lawrence at 4 p.m. in U.S.)

NHL Network (Encore Presentation of Semifinals – Cornell vs. Brown at 2 p.m. and Union vs. St. Lawrence at 4 p.m. in Canada)

SUNDAY, MARCH 21 (CHAMPIONSHIP GAME)

NHL Network (Encore Presentation of Championship Game at 11 a.m. in U.S.)

NHL Network (Encore Presentation of Championship Game at 4 p.m. in Canada)

HOCKEY EAST

All games will be shown live on NESN.

WCHA

All games will be shown live on Fox Sports North and Fox College Sports Central.

CCHA

Friday’s first semifinal (Ferris State vs. Northern Michigan) live on Fox Sports Detroit and Fox College Sports Atlantic. The second semifinal (Miami vs. Michigan) live on Big Ten Network.

Saturday’s championship game on Fox Sports Detroit and Fox College Sports Atlantic.

ATLANTIC HOCKEY

Games on pay-per-view Internet broadcast at www.b2tv.com.

Ferris State Surges in Rankings

USCHO Staff Report

March 15, 2010

After going through a nine-game stretch of the second half with only one win, Ferris State was slipping out of the national picture.

Well, the Bulldogs are back. And they’re back in the top 10.

Ferris State, which enters the CCHA Championship with just one loss in its last seven games, is eighth in this week’s USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll, up five spots from last week.

Related link: USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll: March 15

The top five of the rankings are unchanged, with Denver, Miami, Wisconsin, Boston College and North Dakota holding those spots heading into the final weekend before the NCAA tournament field is announced (11:30 a.m. Sunday, ESPN2).

Vermont also moved up five spots to 14th after a three-game series victory over Hockey East regular season champion New Hampshire.

Ferris State plays Northern Michigan in the CCHA semifinals on Friday in Detroit. The Bulldogs are tied for eighth in the PairWise Rankings with a 21-11-6 record.

But they fell to 17-10-4 after losing the first game of a series at Lake Superior State on Feb. 12. They’re 4-1-2 since, including a sweep of Nebraska-Omaha in the CCHA quarterfinals last weekend.

Michigan (17th), Maine (19th) and Boston University (20th) reappeared in the rankings Monday, replacing Colorado College, Nebraska-Omaha and Massachusetts-Lowell.

Seven games between ranked teams are scheduled for the play-in or semifinal rounds this weekend. In the WCHA, No. 5 North Dakota plays No. 11 Minnesota-Duluth in Thursday’s play-in game. The winner gets No. 1 Denver on Friday, while No. 3 Wisconsin plays No. 6 St. Cloud State in the semifinals.

In the CCHA semifinals, No. 2 Miami plays No. 17 Michigan and No. 8 Ferris State plays No. 12 Northern Michigan.

In Hockey East, No. 4 Boston College plays No. 14 Vermont and No. 19 Maine faces off against No. 20 Boston University.

What I Think: Week 23

By Todd D. Milewski

March 14, 2010

I’ll write more as we go through this week, but I wanted to use this space to go through some of what we saw on what had to be one of the most insane weekends of the college hockey season. We’re (finally) done with the 23rd week of the season — of course, it fittingly took overtime in the last game going, where St. Cloud State knocked out Minnesota State — and think of what we witnessed, either in person or through our computers:

* Two No. 1 seeds going down in a third game Sunday, and what a set of circumstances in each.

Hockey East champion New Hampshire had Vermont down one game, but the Catamounts, who barely got in the league playoffs, came back with a pair of 1-0 shutout victories to win the series. Rob Madore stopped 17 shots on Saturday and 34 more on Sunday after being pulled in a six-goal outing on Friday.

Brown, the 11th seed in ECAC Hockey, took out another high seed when it shocked Yale in three games. A team that won eight games in the regular season now has two straight three-game victories under its belt.

* Bemidji State defying all expectations and leaving the final CHA tournament without a victory.

Host Niagara stunned the Beavers on Friday, and Bemidji had to scrap for a 3-3 tie with Robert Morris in the third-place game. The Beavers are going to make the NCAA tournament, but that’s no way to enter the dance.

* Alabama-Huntsville getting the first official NCAA bid with the CHA title, won in overtime at Niagara.

More took place behind the scenes than most will ever discover to leave the Chargers without a conference home for next season, but you could argue that this is some karma coming back to the program.

* Michigan suck the life out of Munn Ice Arena, and end its biggest rival’s season, with a pair of emphatic victories over Michigan State.

The Wolverines may still need to win the Mason Cup to get into the NCAA tournament, but is there any reason to believe they can’t do it?

* Plenty of free hockey.

We saw 12 single-overtime games, one double-OT contest and the item we’ll get to in a moment. There’s not much better than playoff overtime hockey.

* The WCHA get its top five seeds through to the Final Five, but some of them with some duress.

St. Cloud State needed overtime in Game 3 to oust Minnesota State. North Dakota blasted Minnesota 6-0 in Game 1, only to have to play Sunday to eliminate the Gophers. Minnesota-Duluth also needed a third game to take care of Colorado College.

It all set up what should be a terrific Final Five next weekend.

* All of those were good, but I think there’s one item that will be remembered longer than the rest, most likely because it took way longer than the rest.

Quinnipiac and Union played the longest game in Division I college hockey history Friday, with the Bobcats winning 3-2 after 150 minutes, 22 seconds. That bested the 141:35 set in the same Messa Rink just over four years before when Union lost to Yale.

Here’s the most interesting part to me: After that Game 1 setback Friday, Union rallied to win Games 2 and 3 to win the series. A lot of credit is due to the Dutchmen players and coaches for being able to let go of the epic loss and focus on winning the next one.

* After the dust settled, here’s how I voted in this week’s poll:

1. Denver

2. Miami

3. Wisconsin

4. Boston College

5. North Dakota

6. St. Cloud State

7. Ferris State

8. Cornell

9. Minnesota-Duluth

10. Bemidji State

11. Yale

12. Northern Michigan

13. Vermont

14. New Hampshire

15. Alaska

16. Michigan

17. Maine

18. Michigan State

19. Boston University

20. Union

* One last note: If you haven’t already checked, our PairWise Predictor is now live. Enter what you think will happen (or what you’d like to see happen) and find out what the PairWise would look like.

Also, USCHO bracketologist Jayson Moy is working the scenarios and updating things on the Bracketology Blog.

Who Is In, Who Is Out? Early Possibilities, or What I Believe May Be The Case.

By Jayson Moy

March 14, 2010

It’s onto the tournament championship rounds. So with the help of our Pairwise Predictor, we can look at a couple of things and take some early looks at what some possibilities are.

This is more commonly known as “What I Believe May Be The Case”.

Because the Pairwise is a moving target with numbers, there are a lot of scenarios out there. Therefore I encourage you to feedback with scenarios.

I am going to list some things that are early, tentative and they are “What I Believe May Be The Case”.

So I say it with this caveat, if you can find a way to make me not “Believe” it, please comment with the scenario. Thanks!

– I Believe that the Top 7 are in. Denver, Miami, Wisconsin, Boston College, North Dakota, St. Cloud, Bemidji.

– I have been able to get Ferris State out of the tournament.

– I have not been able to get Cornell and Yale out of the tournament as of yet, but I think that there are scenarios that can leave either team out, I just have not found them. It may or may not be the case.

– I have been able to get Minn.-Duluth into the tournament, even if it loses the Quarterfinal game on Thursday.

– Northern Michigan, Alaska, Vermont and New Hampshire are in or out depending on results. All stand decent chances of making it.

– I Believe that Michigan, Maine, BU, Union, St. Lawrence, Brown, Canisius, Air Force, Sacred Heart and RIT must win its tournament to get in.

– I’ve tried to get Michigan State in, but I can’t seem to do so. I’m close, but haven’t been able to quite get there.

– I Believe that Colorado College, Minnesota, UNO and Mass.-Lowell can not make the tournament.

– I Believe that the TUCs will be what we see presently, except for 3 cases. RIT can be replaced by either Massachusetts or St. Lawrence. Massachusetts if RIT does not win the semifinal game, and St. Lawrence only if SLU wins the ECAC and RIT does not win the AHA crown. Northeastern can also be a TUC in situations where RIT does not win the semifinal.

If you can find scenarios that make me not believe the above statements, please let me know.

Enjoy playing with the Pairwise Predictor.

–

Merrimack’s Season a Significant Step for Program

By Jim Connelly

March 14, 2010

After Sunday’s 3-0 loss to Boston University in the deciding game of the best-of-three Hockey East quarterfinals series, Merrimack coach Mark Dennehy wasn’t shy when talking about the expectations for his Warriors this season.

“I don’t know that anybody believed in this team except this team,” said Dennehy. “Any advancement we made as a program is because of them.

“I’ve got a room full of disappointed players.”

Truth is, few did give Merrimack a chance to do anything this season, even after it proved itself a force with a stellar 12-3-1 home record. Pundits picked BU in a sweep. Even once the Warriors controlled most of the series — Merrimack was tied or in the lead for all but the final 15:49 of Friday series opener — not many in BU’s Agganis Arena on Sunday wanted to believe.

Right or wrong, it’s difficult to say that it was Merrimack’s play that caused people to think this team still isn’t ready for prime time. For on Sunday, it was really the performance of the Terriers and goaltender Kieran Millan, who posted a 34-save shutout, that won the game.

That, though, was likely a hard message to deliver to the Warriors. Merrimack fought right down to the very end and its frustration was never more apparent than when Stephane Da Costa (seemingly a lock for rookie of the year) was tagged with a major and game misconduct with 1:14 remaining when the outcome was in the bag.

“It’s too early [to put things into perspective],” said Dennehy. “This team believed it was good enough to get to the Garden.”

But baby steps in growth and development can also be critical. This season, in all truth, has to be considered more than just a small step forward. Merrimack returned to the playoffs for the first time since 2004, posted the most wins since 1993-94, and built a loyal fan base that was apparent among the 3,433 in attendance at Agganis Arena on Sunday.

“This program was in trouble a couple of years ago,” said Dennehy. “It took a special group of kids to bring it back to relevance, starting with the senior class.

“We feel like we’re on some stable ground right now and if [BU] is a team under consideration for the NCAA [tournament], we’ve made up a lot of ground.”

Bemidji State Left to Wait for NCAA Fate

By Thomas Baldwin

March 13, 2010

In the postseason, things don’t always turn out the way they are supposed to.

Bemidji State is the latest classic example of this.

The Beavers came into the final CHA tournament riding high as the eighth-ranked team in the nation — and deservedly so. They dominated and bullied the rest of the CHA and were one of the top teams in the country.

Until this weekend.

With somewhat of a surprising loss to Niagara and a tie with Robert Morris in Dwyer Arena, it could be a whole new ballgame for the Beavers in regards to the NCAA tournament. The Beavers finished a strong 23-9-4, which is the good news. This just in — obviously they have an exceedingly good club.

The bad news — they were a pedestrian 1-2-2 in their last five games. Three days ago many considered them a shoo-in for the NCAA’s, but not now.

Throw in the fact that the PairWise Rankings will have a say, combined with potential upsets in league tournaments, nothing can be taken for granted.

“I don’t know,” Bemidji coach Tom Serratore said when asked if his club was safely in the NCAAs. “We have talked about it and talked about it. With the PairWise, it is very volatile. I don’t know. Right now we are taking the approach that we are in. That’s what we have to do.

“I just told the guys we are going to come back on Thursday and get ready for a regional. It is the mind-set we have and the approach we have to take.”

The Beavers came in ranked high nationally and could drop a notch after this weekend. But in their favor — and the NCAA committee will look at this — is the fact Bemidji was highly ranked all season, back when there were still leaves in the trees.

“I hope they get in,” Robert Morris coach Derek Schooley said. “They are a good hockey team. It would be great, if in the last year of the CHA, two teams got in.”

So for now, all the Beavers can do is rest up from this arduous weekend, then wait and hope.

“I think we are safe, but again, there are so many other games that have to be played … not only tonight and tomorrow but next week,” Serratore said. “It is going to have a lot of say about who is going to be in. We have to just watch and just wait. Hopefully, we are high enough. We feel good about it.”

Bemidji senior captain Chris McKelvie said his club deserves to be in — unequivocally.

“Definitely,” he said. “If you look at our record, it is right up there were the best ones in the country. Our win total is really high. We have been a very consistent team all year. So, I think that is good for us.”