Merrimack erased a 2-0 deficit and defeated second-ranked Boston College 5-2 Friday night in Chestnut Hill, Mass. (photo: Merrimack Athletics).
After No. 2-ranked Boston College scored the game’s first two goals to take a 2-0 lead over Merrimack at the 7:51 mark of the second period, the Warriors roared to life, scoring five unanswered goals to down the Eagles 5-2 Friday night at Conte Forum in Chestnut Hill, Mass.
Zach Bookman buries the rebound to double our lead!!!
In an offensive affair, Michigan State beat Penn State 6-4 at Pegula Ice Arena in University Park, Pa.
Dorwart wins the faceoff, the D trade passes, and then Dorwart backhands a little chip shot over the glove hadnd of Sergeev for a 5-3 Spartan lead. pic.twitter.com/zhKgEcrPov
Isaac Howard scored four goals and added an assist for the Spartans, while Karsen Dorwart had a goal and two assists and Matt Basgall a goal to back Luca Di Pasquo’s 29 saves between the pipes.
Aiden Fink, Dylan Lugris, Charlie Cerrato and Dane Dowiak netted the Nittany Lions’ goals and Arsenii Sergeev made 39 stops in goal.
No. 6 Denver 4, Miami 1
Aidan Thompson, Eric Pohlkamp, Jack Devine and Zeev Buium led Denver to a 4-1 win over Miami at Magness Arena in Denver.
Between the pipes, DU’s Matt Davis made 18 saves and the RedHawks’ Bruno Bruveris 32.
No. 7 Maine 3, No. 8 UMass Lowell 1
After UMass Lowell took a 1-0 lead on a Lee Parks goal early in the second period, Maine came back with the next three to down the River Hawks 3-1 at Tsongas Center in Lowell, Mass.
Harrison Scott scored twice and David Breazeale added a solo goal.
Mark Estapa, Phillippe Lapointe and Ethan Edwards added goals for the Wolverines, while Logan Stein finished with 28 saves in net.
For the Irish, Cole Knuble, Blake Biondi and Axel Kumlin found the net and Nicholas Kempf stopped 28 shots between the pipes.
Minnesota Duluth 2, No. 10 St. Cloud State 0
Max Plante scored late in the second period and Owen Gallatin added an empty-net goal as Minnesota Duluth upset St. Cloud State 2-0 at AMSOIL Arena in Duluth, Minn.
Max Montes, Jake Rozzi, Gunnarwolfe Fontaine, Nathan McBrayer and Davis Burnside tallied for the Buckeyes and Kristoffer Eberly stopped 29 shots in goal.
Sam Rinzel registered the lone goal for the Gophers and goalies Nathan Airey and Liam Souliere combined on a 25-save effort.
Northern Michigan 3, No. 12 Minnesota State 2
Ryan Duguay notched all three goals as Northern Michigan edged Minnesota State 3-2 at the Berry Events Center in Marquette, Mich.
Ryan Greene, Jack Harvey, Devin Kaplan and Jack Hughes added goals for the Terriers.
Jax Wismer got the Catamounts on the board at 7:49 of the third period and goalies Axel Mangbo and Connor MacKenzie combined to stop 22 shots.
No. 16 Arizona State 2, No. 14 North Dakota 1 (in progress)
Cullen Potter and Brasen Boser have scored for Arizona State and Dylan James for North Dakota as the Sun Devils lead North Dakota 2-1 at the end of the second period from Mullett Arena in Tempe, Ariz.
John Jaworski scored in the first period for Sacred Heart and Ondrej Psenicka answered late in the period for Cornell, but the game featured no more goals and the teams tied 1-1 at the Martire Family Arena in Fairfield, Conn.
Ondrej Psenicka ties the game, 1-1, for No. 18-ranked @CornellMHockey with 2:34 left in the first period with a shot from the far half-wall that evaded traffic in front of the Pioneers net.
Big Red goalie Ian Shane made 17 saves, while Pioneers netminder Ajeet Gundarah posted a 40-save effort.
No. 19 Clarkson 5, Union 3
Ayrton Martino netted a pair of goals to lead Clarkson past Union 5-3 at Cheel Arena in Potsdam, N.Y.
🚨MANGAN🚨
Golden Knight power play goal scored by Jared Mangan to put the Clarkson up here in the third period! #letsgotech#CGK 4 – 3 UGC | 3RD | 10:35 pic.twitter.com/XWKsUN8rsp
The first edition of the PodKaz, USCHO.com’s look at NCAA women’s hockey, for 2025 has Nicole Haase in Finland covering the IIHF Under-18 Women’s World Championship and Todd Milewski back from Chicago, where No. 1 Wisconsin and No. 2 Ohio State played at Wrigley Field.
Nicole offers insight into what she has seen at the tournament, which features more than 40 players who are committed to NCAA schools and more that will be college players in a few years. Check out Nicole’s list of commitments here.
The series between the top two teams in the rankings was a highlight of the first weekend of 2025 but there was more movement among national contenders to talk about.
The PodKaz is a production of USCHO.com. Have a question for our mailbag? Reach out to Nicole (@NicoleHaase) or Todd (@ToddMilewski) on social media or email [email protected].
Senior goaltender Charlie Archer helped the Continentals to the NSB Tournament championship and now is focused on NESCAC success (Photo by Joshua D. McGee)
After winning the Northfield Savings Bank Tournament hosted by Norwich with wins over Plymouth State and the host school just after the New Year, the Hamilton Continentals are nationally ranked in the top ten and are looking to make a strong run for a NESCAC title with only conference games remaining on their schedule.
“We have everything working well right now,” said head coach Rob Haberbusch. “We have a really deep team – the deepest certainly since I have been here, and it is a very talented group offensively. Our puck possession numbers are high, and this group is highly creative with the puck on their stick. We have given the group a lot of freedom offensively but not without their accountability for the defensive side of the game. Every game there are different guys stepping up on the scoresheet and that depth has been a big part of our success.”
Anchoring the Continentals on the back end has been senior goaltender Charlie Archer. In seven starts this season, Archer has a 1.30 goals-against average; .943 save percentage; a 6-1-0 record and two shutouts. During the NSB Tournament at Norwich Archer backstopped both wins surrendering just a single goal and stopping 36 of 37 shots in the two games that earned him tournament MVP honors.
“Charlie is not what you see in a lot of goaltenders in terms of being on the small or lean and light side,” stated Haberbusch. “He is the most physically strong netminder I think we have had during my time at Hamilton. He is in the weight room with the big boys and is in the top five for all lifts on the team. He takes great care and pride in his physical capabilities and as a psych major, is very comfortable in his own skin. He is a very self-assured kid and ready for the grind which we have coming up for the remainder of the season and our league schedule.”
One of the quirks of this year’s season starting a week later than usual is that the number of games played in conference in the first half of the season is a bit lighter than past years. To date the Continentals are just 4-1-0 in five league contests and face playing six of their next seven games on the road with their longest road trip on tap for the upcoming weekend against Bowdoin and Colby.
”It is not a cliché that anyone in our league can beat any other team as it happens quite frequently,” said Haberbusch. “We are not taking anyone for granted. Colby had a big win against UNE last night, but we are just focused on Friday and Bowdoin. Six of our next seven games are on the road which I kind of like. It is good to be away when the students are not on campus, and we are not playing in a mostly empty rink. When classes resume later this month we are back home, and it gives our players the opportunity to get settled into the academics and the hockey without the travel. It may be different next year, but I am liking this year’s schedule as it lays out.”
While everything has been clicking pretty well for Hamilton, one area of focus in the remainder of the season is going to be improved penalty kill efficiency. The power play has been very strong with a lot of different players chipping in with goals, but the penalty kill is an area of focus.
“We have two strong groups on the power play,” said Haberbusch. “We have been focusing on the penalty kill and think we will be better there for our upcoming schedule. There were some things we wanted to clean up before the tournament at Norwich and I thought the team did an excellent job on those things. It will be the same on the penalty kill and maybe including some players that have definitely proven themselves in the first half like two of our shutdown defensemen, Sebastien Hamming and John Wociechowski. They have developed quite well on the defensive end and certainly could be a factor on the penalty kill.”
The Continentals will see several teams for the first time this season in NESCAC action starting with the Maine trip this weekend and followed by games against Connecticut College and Tufts. They return home for a single game against travel partner Amherst before closing out the month on the road against Wesleyan and defending champions Trinity.
“You don’t get any trophies for being ranked,” stated Haberbusch. “There are not any NCAA bids that come with being in the poll. We will stay focused each day and look to build on what has helped us be successful so far this season with a lot of hockey yet to play.”
Adrian takes on Trine this weekend in a battle of nationally ranked teams. (Photo provided by Adrian Athletics)
January is flying by and the action on the ice is heating up. We have several big games on tap this weekend, including a key matchup in the MIAC featuring Gustavus and Saint Mary’s.
The biggest matchup of the weekend, though, pits Trine against Adrian in a battle of nationally ranked NCHA opponents.
Without further delay, let’s get rolling with the picks.
Gustavus (8-5, 5-1) vs. Saint Mary’s (7-3-1, 3-0-1)
This is a big time MIAC matchup early in the month as the top two teams in the conference square off. Both have won two in a row going into the home and home series. The Gusties have a four-point lead in the standings.
The Cardinals have come through with 27 goals on the year behind two of the top scorers in the league in Colin Tushie and Gabe Potyk. The Gusties have tallied 22 and are led by Jack Wineman and Hunter Newhouse. It will be a bit of a surprise if one of these teams sweeps. Saint Mary’s 4-2; Gutavus, 5-4
Bethel (6-5-1) at UW-River Falls (8-5)
The Royals feature the top goal scoring threat in the MIAC in Tyler Braccini and hit the road for a big game against a team that has spent time in the USCHO.com Top 15 poll. Bethel has won its last three and hasn’t been bad on the road, going 3-3-1 so far this season.
The Falcons are hoping their depth pays off. They have seven players with at least three goals, including Dylan Smith, who leads the team with eight. River Falls has been tough to top at home, too, sporting a 5-2 mark there. UW-River Falls, 4-3
Augsburg (5-8) at UW-Stevens Point (7-4-1)
The Auggies have quietly won two in a row and are looking like they could be poised for a big second half of the season. They refuse to ever go down without a fight, and nothing highlights that more than their comeback win over Marian on Thursday. Once behind 3-0, they rallied for a 4-3 win in overtime.
The Pointers are unbeaten at home, though, and defeated then No. 2 St. Norbert last weekend to open 2025 on a high note. Offensively, they have scored 46 goals, averaging nearly four a game. This game is slated for Saturday night. Stevens Point, 5-3
Saint John’s (5-6) at UW-Superior (10-3-1)
The Johnnies are struggling as they head into a Saturday game against the red-hot Yellowjackets, who are riding the momentum of a championship in the Codfish Bowl last weekend. The good news is Saint John’s has won four of the last six in the series.
Superior has rattled off six consecutive wins and has been getting great play out of Reed Stark, who leads the team offensively with eight goals. Spencer Rudrud leads the Johnnies with five goals. UW-Superior, 5-2
St. Scholastica (8-4-1) at UW-River Falls (8-5)
The Saints have won their last two and face a Falcons team looking to get back to their winning ways. They have been a solid team away from home, winning four of five and are led offensively by Hunter Hanson, who has come through with six goals.
The Falcons will be tested defensively but have a tough netminder in Brennan Boynton, who has settled in nicely in his first season on the ice for River Falls. St. Scholastica, 3-2
Trine (12-1-1) at Adrian (11-3, 6-2)
The fifth-ranked Thunder lead the NCHA while No. 7 Adrian comes in sitting in fourth in the league standings.
Trine has won three in a row but hasn’t played since Dec. 14 when it beat Buffalo State 6-1. Their offense has been rolling lately, with the Thunder scoring four or more goals in their last three games.
Few teams are hotter than the Bulldogs, though, as they have won eight in a row. They have scored four or more goals in seven of those eight wins.
This one should be fun to watch. Adrian, 5-4; Trine, 4-3
MSOE (5-8) at UW-Eau Claire (5-6-1)
The Raiders roll in on a two-game winning streak after opening 2025 with a pair of wins.
Now they take on an in-state foe on the road, where life hasn’t been easy as MSOE has won only once away from home. It’s the Raiders’ first time playing a WIAC opponent this year and they hope to make a statement.
The Blugolds are hoping to shake off the rust as they play their first game in nearly a month. They did end 2024 on a high, beating UW-Stevens Point 5-2, and look to keep the momentum going. MSOE, 4-2; Eau Claire, 3-2
Jon Coleman returns to the Babson bench as an assistant coach (photo: Babson Athletics).
Babson has announced the hiring of Jon Coleman as an assistant coach for the men’s hockey team.
Coleman returns to Babson for his second stint as an assistant coach after working with the Beavers from 2015 to 2018. During his three previous seasons, Babson won more than 66 percent of its games (49-24-9) and reached the 2016 NEHC final. Additionally, Coleman helped develop 11 players that earned all-conference honors over his three seasons on staff.
“We are excited to have Jon rejoin our program,” said Babson coach Jamie Rice in a statement. “He is a great coach who will provide an immediate and positive impact to this year’s team. Jon is an elite tactical and developmental coach, and his prior experience as a member of Babson hockey will ensure his transition is smooth arriving mid-year. This is a huge addition for our current team and players as we prepare for the second half of our season. It is a great day for our program.”
In addition to his time at Babson, Coleman spent four seasons as an assistant coach at nearby Bentley from 2018 to 2022. The Falcons, who won 17 games in both 2018-19 and 2019-20, reached the quarterfinals of the Atlantic Hockey playoffs three times during his tenure.
A four-year standout and two-time All-American selection at Boston University from 1993 to 1997, Coleman tallied 114 points in 118 games. The Terriers won 121 games, made four consecutive Frozen Four appearances, and captured the program’s fourth national title in 1995.
Coleman, who was selected by the Detroit Red Wings with the 48th pick of the 1993 NHL Draft, completed a 13-year professional career in 2010. He played five seasons in the AHL between 1997 and 2004 and spent eight seasons playing in Europe.
Additionally, Coleman’s father Dave served as the head men’s hockey coach at Babson from 1966 to 1968.
Brennan Boynton is thankful for the chance to play after sitting out last year. (Photo provided by UW-River Falls Athletics)
Brennan Boynton didn’t get a chance to play at UW-River Falls last season after transferring in from Division I American International.
But this year is he back on the ice, holding down the role as starting goalie for the Falcons.
“It’s been awesome. I haven’t played a full season since my second year of juniors in Fargo,” Boynton said.
Last year’s transfer marked the second time he changed schools as he played his freshman season at Minnesota.
And while he didn’t get to see ice time in a game last year, Boynton treated practice as if were one. He said that has allowed him to have success this season as he’s appeared in 13 games while fashioning a 2.05 goals against average.
“Treating practice like games really helped,” Boynton said. “That’s made a difference for me.”
Playing goalie is kind of a family thing for Boynton. His grandfather was a netminder at Gustavus and his dad played goalie in high school.
“My dad tried to get me to be a player, but I kept wanting to be goalie,” Boynton said.
So he stuck with it when he was younger and hasn’t looked back. He talked about the appeal of the position.
“When I was younger, it was the pads. I loved the gear and being on the ice all the time,” Boynton said. “And knowing my grandpa and dad were both goalies really motivated me to want to play the position.”
(Photo provided by River Falls Athletics)
A native of Minnesota, Boynton said when it came time to look for a school to transfer to, one of his former goalie coaches helped steer him in the direction of River Falls.
“He had a similar route as me with college where he played at New Hampshire and then transferred to River Falls. He had a good pro career, too,” Boynton said. “He reached out and said River Falls needed a goalie, and it was close to home. After I visited, it felt like home.”
He loves that the Falcons have had success this season, going 8-5 in their first 13 games. They have also spent time in the USCHO.com poll.
“We have a really good team and everyone fully believes we can make a run,” Boynton said. “We are all bought in.”
Boynton is locked in on doing what he can to keep the team skating in the right direction.
“Right now, the focus is on doing what I can to help keep the team in games and give us a chance to win,” Boynton said. “I want to be there when my team needs me to make a big save.”
He loves being in the position to do it.
“It’s one of the reasons I love goalie,” Boynton said. “Everyone is watching and the pressure builds. I love having that pressure.”
Boynton is no doubt glad to be where is loves that he gets a chance to put his goalie skills on display after waiting for his opportunity.
“I’ve waited a long time for this,” Boynton said. “Getting to play makes showing up every day a lot easier. And I have great teammates around me.”
Felix Trudeau collected a goal and two assists to lead Sacred Heart to a 4-1 win at AIC in December (photo: Kallie Shanahan).
I hope everyone had a safe and happy Holiday season. As we head into the second half of the college hockey season, let’s look back at the first half.
Here are our midterm awards. Will things change before the league names the actual winners in March? Probably. But these are our picks for the first half:
First Team
F Tyler Fukakusa, RIT
F Ethan Leyh, Bentley
F Felix Trudeau, Sacred Heart
D Mikey Adamson, Sacred Heart
D Michael Craig, Robert Morris
G Ajeet Gundarah, Sacred Heart
Second Team
F Liam McLinskey, Holy Cross
F Shane Ott, Niagara
F Matthew Wilde, RIT
D Mac Gadowsky, Army West Point
D Dustin Geregach, Mercyhurst
G Thomas Gale, Holy Cross
Third Team
F Jay Ahearn, Niagara
F Matteo Giampa, Canisius
F Walter Zacher, Robert Morris
D Nick Bochen, Bentley
D Chris Hedden, Air Force
G Pierce Charleson, Niagara
All-Rookie Team
F Oskar Bakkevig, Bentley
F Michael Felsing, Robert Morris
F Trevor Hoskin, Niagara
D Tristan Allen, RIT
D Dominic Elliott, Robert Morris
G JJ Cataldo, Army West Point
Player of the first half: Felix Trudeau, Sacred Heart
Trudeau, a junior transfer from Maine, currently leads the league in goals (11, tied with two other players) and points (23). He’s also third in the league in penalty minutes (38), something to keep an eye on.
Goalie of the first half: Ajeet Gundarah, Sacred Heart
As usual, there are several excellent goalies to choose from including Thomas Gale (Holy Cross), Connor Hasley (Bentley), and Pierce Charleson (Niagara). Two rookies have stood out: JJ Cataldo from Army West Point and our pick, Sacred Heart’s Ajeet Gundarah. Gundarah leads the league in goals allowed per game (2.00) and saves percentage (.926). He’s 9-3-1 with two shutouts for the first-place Pioneers.
Rookie of the first half:Trevor Hoskin, Niagara
Hoskin is one of three NHL draft picks in Atlantic Hockey America, a fourth-round choice by the Calgary Flames. He currently leads all rookies in AHA in points (16) and is ninth nationally in that category.
Coach of the first half: Andy Jones, Bentley
Jones was our pick for Coach of the Year last season, and his team is looking even better this year. Bentley is currently 11-7-2 overall and 9-4-1 in league play. The Falcons are in second place, trailing Sacred Heart by five points, but with four games in hand.
Last season, Jones’ first, the Falcons were picked to finish last and ended up tied for sixth, one point away from a first-round bye. This season, Bentley was picked to finish fifth and currently is in second, but with four games in hand on points leader Sacred Heart.
We have questions
Some burning questions to be answered in the second half:
Will we have a race to the wire?
RIT ran away with the regular season title the past two seasons, but the Tigers are currently in tenth place. Things are shaping up to be a three-team race to the finish between Sacred Heart, Bentley, and Niagara. Those teams are separated by six points in the standings.
Air Force is a dark horse, currently eight points behind third-place Niagara, but has at least two games in hand on all three teams ahead of it in the standings.
What will we see in farewells to AIC and Army coach Brian Riley?
While change is constant in college sports these days, there are two monumental changes ahead in Atlantic Hockey America. AIC will leave the conference at the end of the season and drop down to Division II. I’ve previously shared my thoughts on this sad and tragic turn of events for a program that has come into its own the past few years, going from a cellar-dweller to winning four consecutive regular season titles and three straight playoff titles, only interrupted by the 2020 pandemic.
It will be easy to root for the Yellow Jackets to win it all in “Major League” style.
The same can be said for Army West Point, which next season will have a new coach not named Riley for the first time in 75 years. Brian Riley is stepping down after 21 years at the helm. He was preceded by his brother Rob (1986-2004) and his father Jack (1950-1986).
Riley currently has a 242-359-92 record, with a regular season title in 2008.
While Zack McKelvie is an excellent choice for head coach moving forward, it will be a little strange to not have a Riley behind the Army bench. It would be awesome to see Brian lift the Riley Cup this season, but the Black Knights have a lot to achieve to make that happen.
Will we have a first-time regular season champion?
There are currently two AHA schools that have never won a regular season title: Sacred Heart and Bentley. They currently sit at first and second, respectively, in the standings with a combined 52% chance of a first-place finish, according to Playoffstatus.com.
But while the odds currently favor a first-time champion, there’s a lot of hockey left to be played.
Oswego has kicked off the 2025 campaign in grand style winning their own tournament and outscoring their opponents by a 13-0 margin – can the Lakers make a run in the second half? (Photo by Taylor Streiff)
The action is heating up in the New Year and each team in every conference is about to launch the big push for points and results and maybe, a little scoreboard watching too! Lots to play for and not a whole lot of weekends to make moves in conference races and that makes all the games matter everywhere!
My weekly picks finished last week at 10-6-2 (.611) on a super-sized slate to open the 2025 portion of the schedule. Probably reached on a couple of picks not really knowing how each roster was going to come back from the semester break. To date, my season numbers are now 62-32-6 (.650) through my first 100 games which is pretty good overall considering the number of upsets and parity out there in the D-II/III universe of teams – hoping to keep things trending upward so here are this week’s picks for the east:
Thursday, January 9, 2024
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts v. Anna Maria
The AmCats have not been getting the results they want recently and a good start against the Trailblazers is the key to recording a much needed “W” in the MASCAC race. Home team likes to make things tough for visitors and do just that to ease to a victory – AMC, 5-2
Plymouth State v. Rivier
The Panthers should not look past the Raiders nor goaltender Luke Newell who has the capability of stealing a game for his team. Think there is just too much offense for home team to fend off as Redick & Co. pick up the road win – PSU, 4-1
Friday, January 10, 2024
Neumann v. Stevenson
The MAC is all looking up at Wilkes and these two contenders need to make up some ground with a regulation win. Home ice matters here a lot for the Mustangs who find some late magic on the power play to eke out a one-goal win over the Knights – Stevenson, 3-2
Trinity v. Middlebury
The Bantams lost back-to-back games coming out of the break, so you know they are motivated to forge ahead where conference points are at stake. The Panthers may be stinging from their loss in the BLI championship game but being back home helps as the Panthers look to extend their current unbeaten streak at “The Chip.” Score early and hang on gets it done – Middlebury, 3-2
(1) Hobart v. Skidmore
This Statesmen have been a machine so far this season and this game may be their biggest challenge playing on a big sheet away from home. Depth and special teams are key with stellar goaltending just an assumed in a win for the visitors – Hobart, 5-2
Nazareth v. (13) Cortland
The Red Dragons need to get things going on home ice and a quality road win against a very strong Wilkes team is a strong way of building some needed momentum. It won’t be easy but the home team gets some power play help and an ENG to seal the deal – Cortland, 5-3
(2) Geneseo v. Elmira
The Knights are coming off the break on the heels of a great series at home against Utica. That is last year’s news so the best way to get the momentum ramped up is to beat another quality opponent on the road, especially after they won in your barn last season. Motivation applied for a win – Geneseo, 3-2
Oswego v. (3) Utica
The re-tooled Pioneers take the ice for the first time this weekend after the break while the Lakers come in on a high having won their tournament in convincing fashion. This could be one of the most exciting games of the weekend and earns my UPSET PICK for the weekend showing the Lakers could be a factor beyond the SUNYAC race – Oswego, 5-4
Saturday, January 11, 2024
St. Michael’s v. Assumption
This game could be a preview of the playoffs and maybe even the championship game much further down the road but neither team will be thinking about anything more than points and the NE-10 standings. Visitors find help from the back-end and David Ciancio to eke out a big road win – St. Michael’s, 5-4
Plattsburgh Winter Classic
(10) Wilkes v. (15) University of New England
This in-season tournament features a couple of teams that are clear contenders in their leagues and potentially on the national stage in the spring. Game feels like a playoff game and overtime winner for the Nor’easters gets celebrated like a playoff winner – UNE, 3-2
Wentworth v. Plattsburgh
The Cardinals have re-tooled the lineup a little bit with Vlad Pshenichnikov coming over from Utica for the second semester and has already contributed on the score sheet. Added depth helps home team take a close win against the Leopards – Plattsburgh, 3-1
Southern Maine v. Albertus Magnus
The Huskies are never out of a game and teams that don’t battle for the full 60 or 65 minutes are not going to earn the win over them. The Falcons like to play things tight and this game certainly goes that way with the home team taking a one-goal win and needed NEHC points – Albertus Magnus, 4-3
Western New England v. Morrisville
The Mustangs will be less than gracious hosts to the Golden Bears as they start the game hard and fast and make a lead stand up for a nice non-conference win. Home ice makes a difference for the SUNYAC hosts – Morrisville, 4-1
The season really is going to be more exciting now if that is even possible. Should be a very fun 2025 portion of the schedule – “Drop the Puck!”
Michigan State players celebrate a goal last weekend at Wrigley Field (photo: Michigan State Athletics).
By every metric, the Frozen Confines was a huge success for the Big Ten.
The event featured six Big Ten teams plus two WCHA women’s teams from B1G schools and was played in Wrigley Field Jan. 3-4, just days after the NHL’s annual Winter Classic.
The Big Ten Network did a fantastic job with coveriage, from in-game announcing to between-game conversations. All of the staging and camera work was great. And kudos to Wrigley Field for its promotion of the event. Attendance the first day was over 25,000 for each game and attendance for the Saturday women’s game was nearly 25,000.
Michigan forward T.J. Hughes called the atmosphere “unbelievable.”
Wisconsin coach Mike Hastings thanked the Chicago Cubs and said of the event, “It’s just special. It’s really special.”
Penn State coach Guy Gadowsky said, “We’re grateful to participate in something that’s this cool.”
Each of those gents was quoted after their teams had come up short in Wrigley Field. That’s how good the weekend was.
All four games were decided by a goal or less. In the opening contest, Ohio State came from behind to beat Michigan 4-3, the game-winning goal scored by Riley Thompson on the power play with 38 seconds left in regulation.
The late Friday game saw Notre Dame and Penn State – two teams with huge name brand recognition who also happen to be the two teams at the bottom of the conference standings – played a game at dizzying pace, exchanging goals throughout with Carter Slaggert’s marker at 11:02 in the third tying it for Notre Dame 3-3, which is how the game ended. Shots in the game were 46-42 in favor of the Irish. Penn State’s Arsenii Sergeev (.938 SV%) and Notre Dame’s Nicholas Kempf (.923 SV%) understood their assignments on the big stage.
Saturday’s early game between Wisconsin and Ohio State featured the country’s top two women’s teams and also ended in a 3-3 tie after Wisconsin’s Kelly Gorbatenko evened the score late in the third period.
In the final game of the weekend, Michigan State beat Wisconsin 4-3 when Daniel Russell pocketed his sixth game-winning goal of the season with little more than a single second remaining in overtime.
Said Michigan State’s Adam Nightingale, “It’s a memory our guys will always have, and I think our fans, too, for all of them that turned out and showed up at the game.”
Nightingale said that the event was “really well run” and that the game against the Badgers could have gone either way. “They’re a tough team to play against, really well coached.”
An argument can be made that the Spartans were the biggest winners of the weekend. Michigan State and Wisconsin were tied for second place in the Big Ten standings going into the weekend. The Spartans beat the Badgers 4-3 in Munn Ice Arena two days prior to their dramatic Wrigley Field victory gave them a sweep.
The No. 1 Spartans are now four points ahead of the unranked Badgers in B1G standings and tied with Minnesota for first place in the conference. Michigan State sits at No. 2 in the PairWise Rankings, where losing to Wisconsin – now sitting at No. 24 – would have been costly.
Nightingale seems pretty comfortable to be coaching a team with a target on its collective back, and the Spartans seem to have a pretty good bead on how to handle the second half. As Michigan State prepares to play last-place Penn State on the road this weekend, Nightingale said that the records of individual teams really don’t matter in the Big Ten come game time.
“The reality is that all the games are tight,” said Nightingale. “For our guys, too, we don’t talk about being ranked [No.] 1, but for their development it’s really critical, because you have to play your best if you want to win a hockey game. It doesn’t mean it’s always going to be perfect.
“I think our guys have done a good job of maintaining a level head about it. We’ve got to make sure we keep doing that, but yeah, we’re going to see everyone’s best. On the flip side, when we play we’ve got to make sure that everyone sees our best, too.”
Michigan State takes a seven-game (6-0-1) unbeaten streak into Hockey Valley this weekend, and two of those wins came in OT. In their final series of the first half, the Spartans took five of six points from Minnesota on the road, tying the Golden Gophers 3-3 and earning the extra shootout point Dec. 13 before winning 5-3 the following night.
The Spartans returned to action in the Great Lakes Invitational, beating Northern Michigan 2-0 Dec. 29 before defeating No. 4 Western Michigan 3-1 the next night.
“I think that really tested our guys,” said Nightingale. “We told them when we left after Minnesota that the expectation is that we’re going to play like we did out in Minnesota.” Nightingale said that the team enjoyed their time off with their families but that players clearly heard the coaching staff’s pre-holiday message. “I was happy about the guys doing that. You could tell when they got back. They were recharged but they were pretty sharp.”
Heading out on the road this weekend, Michigan State will be faced with a choice that any coaching staff would love to have. Starting goaltender Trey Augustine has returned from the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship with the gold medal he won with Team USA, but in his absence, Luca Di Pasquo won four games in seven days, improving to six wins on the year with an impressive 1.32 goals-against average and .945 save percentage. Di Pasquo was named MVP of the Great Lakes tourney.
“We’ll sort all that out,” said Nightingale. “We’ll make a decision on Friday that we think gives us the best chance to win a hockey game.”
The Spartans (17-2-1, 8-1-1 B1G) and Nittany Lions (8-9-1, 1-81 B1G) meet Friday and Saturday in Pegula Ice Arena. Penn State is coming off its first conference win of the season. After tying Notre Dame in Wrigley Field, the Nittany Lions beat the Fighting Irish 3-0 in South Bend Jan. 5.
Michigan State was 3-0-1 against Penn State last season and are unbeaten against the Nittany Lions in their last seven meetings. The last PSU win over MSU was in Pegula Arena Nov. 18, 2022.
“Really tough team to play against in their barn especially,” said Nightingale. “I think they’re a hungry hockey team. They obviously just had a big win on Sunday and they’ll be ready to go.”
UMass has struggled this season, but the Minutemen look to turn it around starting this weekend (photo: UMass Athletics).
I think we can all agree it’s time for a breather, right?
Hockey East just came off a Saturday when it went a perfect 7-0 against nonconference opponents. Four schools scored season highs in goals — Massachusetts and Vermont each put up eight, Connecticut scored seven and Northeastern tied its season high with five goals in a 5-1 win over Quinnipiac.
No. 7 Maine beat No. 6 Denver 2-1 before a packed house at Alfond Arena, splitting a weekend series where the defending NCAA champion won by the same score the night prior. And now the Black Bears are set to face another top-10 opponent in No. 8 UMass Lowell this weekend.
Time to call off the dogs, right? This is just too much for Hockey East fans, coaches and players to endure, is it not?
Fat chance of that.
“It’s awesome — we love this,” said Maine senior defenseman David Breazeale. “For myself, I’ve come a long way since my freshman year, and for us to be able to play back-to-back top-10 teams, with us being in the top 10 as well, that’s a dream come true. That’s what college hockey’s all about.”
As of this writing, Hockey East is crowding the top of the PairWise rankings with a whopping five teams among the top 11 (Boston College, Providence, Maine, Lowell and New Hampshire). And how about this for a quirk? UNH is in last place in the league standings.
That’s right — the Wildcats, at 2-3-2 in the league, would be in the NCAA tournament if it began today (which would be a little weird because it’s only January).
And in inter-conference play, Hockey East boasts a 68-26-3 overall record (.716 winning percentage), second only to BIG’s 47-15-4 (.742).
Of course, Hockey East’s dominance of the PairWise is due to a number of factors, not the least of which is the quirkiness of the PairWise itself, and things will certainly even out over the next couple of months, beginning in earnest this weekend as every team but Providence is in action — all against each other.
With only a smattering of non-conference games remaining, it’s about to be all Hockey East all the time. And the time is now for teams to solidify their standing in order to face less pressure during conference tournament season.
“I don’t know if I remember a time when any league has had this many teams (this high in the PairWise),” Massachusetts coach Greg Carvel said. “That’s quite a statement for our league. PairWise, for the first half of the year, is determined by your nonconference schedule. Now it’s going to be determined by what you do in the league. And that’s a positive for us, because we’ve got about 10 games against teams in the top 10 in the country. (The) opportunity’s there for us.”
The league’s supremacy comes as no surprise to fourth-year Maine coach Ben Barr, who has coached in Hockey East for 12 seasons including stints as an assistant at Providence and UMass.
“Whether the rankings show it or not, all these teams are really good,” Barr said. “The PairWise is the PairWise, (but) as you go into the second half of the season, every game is a tossup in Hockey East, regardless of whether you’re the first-place team or the 10th-place team. It doesn’t matter.”
Oh, and in a related note that has nothing to do with the league standings or the PairWise, but is a nod to Hockey East’s dominance and worth mentioning — the association had 10 players on Team USA’s gold medal squad at World Juniors, and 36 of 37 goals the United States scored had a BC or Boston University player registering a point, as reported by Andrew Mahoney of the Boston Globe.
“Hockey East is a really awesome conference to be a part of,” Breazeale said. “We’re playing great teams every night. And that’s what you want. You want to play great teams so that when the championships come around, you’re prepared. You know what you’re up against. We love it. We love the challenge. We look forward to it.”
FloHockey content manager and veteran prospects and NHL analyst Chris Peters joins hosts Jim Connelly and Ed Trefzger to recap USA’s gold at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship and to look at international hockey in general.
Cameron Rowe has compiled solid numbers between the pipes for Western Michigan (photo: Ashley Huss).
Much of fourth-ranked Western Michigan’s success through the first half of the season had to do with a changed operating dynamic between the pipes.
Over the past two seasons, current WMU graduate student Cameron Rowe was the Broncos’ unquestioned starting goaltender. After playing his first two years of college hockey at Wisconsin, he played 38 games for WMU in both the 2022-23 and 2023-24 campaigns.
After 11 starts so far this season, he remains one of the best goaltenders in the country. Rowe’s .931 save percentage is good for 10th among NCAA Division I goalies who have played at least 33 percent of their teams’ games, and his 1.82 goals-against average is good for ninth.
One of the handful of college netminders rivaling Rowe’s numbers so far this season wears a matching uniform. Freshman goalie Hampton Slukynsky’s 1.84 GAA is 10th in the country, and his save percentage (.941) is third.
Slukynsky and Rowe have made for quite the combo through 18 games, and even since before the first one.
“(Their playing time has) certainly been broken up evenly and they both challenge each other, probably more so than we ever would’ve expected, and we appreciate everything they’ve done to this point,” WMU assistant coach J.J. Crew said. “They’ve been the backbone to our success, and it’s been great.
“It started from Day 1. Cam, recognizing that we were recruiting Hampton and committed him to come in this year, he was the first person to call Hampton and welcome him to our program. That’s something you don’t see every day, and it’s something we appreciated.
“It’s certainly not an easy situation for Cam, knowing he’s been the guy for the last two years and having a really good guy coming in to challenge for that spot, for him to be mature about the situation and pick up the phone and call him and welcome him to our Bronco family, that was awesome by him,” Crew continued. “It’s been a healthy relationship in that they’re rooting for each other, while competing with each other.”
Slukynsky is fresh off helping Team USA win its second consecutive World Junior Championship gold medal, a feat the American program had never accomplished in its history. He and Rowe maintained close contact while the former was off in Ottawa with the U20 national team.
“Hampton has been a sponge,” Crew said. “He’s certainly been asking Cam plenty of questions, and (Rowe) obviously has four years under his belt, so he respects the fact that Cam has been through this conference, through multiple conferences and just has had a ton of college experience.
“Cam has been right there helping him in any way he can, and at the same time, Hampton has helped elevate Cam’s game just by his everyday habits in practice and things he’s accustomed to doing.”
And while it might be hard to get comfortable in such roles, when there’s always the possibility for one goaltender to win out in terms of postseason playing time, Slukynsky and Rowe’s partnership has been a shining example of what WMU’s staff wants from the Bronco players.
“I think Cam knew, whether Hampton was here or not, it was going to be a challenging season to continue earning that spot he has been in the last two years, but I think the message has been clear across the board to any one of our players, regardless of position, is that the guys who work the hardest, and are trying to get better every day and who are good people with good attitudes, will be the guys who end up in the lineup and have success that way,” Crew said.
“I don’t want to say this was a different role for Cam. I think it was business as usual for him, with the notion that we had an ultra-competitive, highly-successful goalie coming from juniors who is a U.S. gold medalist now, and Cam knew that he had to continue to keep working and keep earning his position, just like he has the last two years.
“Having that healthy competition is only beneficial for both of them,” Crew continued. “It has elevated Rowe’s game from last year to this year, having that guy pushing him every day, and equally, Hampton’s been pushed just as much by Cam with how he has performed. I see that continuing, and I know the conversation is pretty fluid among the two of them, and in practice every day, it’s smiles and stick taps, things like that when one’s going into the net and one’s going out. It’s all positive.”
The holiday break is a strange time for college hockey.
Some CCHA teams have played four official games since this column was last published about three weeks ago. Michigan Tech, for example, played in not one but two separate tournaments (the Huskies finished third in both the Great Lakes Invitational and the Coachella Valley Cactus Cup).
Other teams–like Bemidji State, who hosted Minnesota Duluth on New Years’ Eve–played just one official game.
Still others–like Minnesota State–haven’t played any resolution games. (The Mavericks did, however, play two exhibition games in that span.)
The good thing to know, however, is that following this weekend’s slate of CCHA matchups, all nine of the conference’s teams will have officially reached past the halfway point in their league schedules. That means every team aside from Augustana will be at game 14 of their 26. (The Vikings are already there and have played eight of their 16.)
Because we’re essentially at the halfway point now, and because from here on out every CCHA team (aside from Augustana, but we’ll get to that later) is only going to be playing conference series at this point, I thought it would be a good idea to handicap where I think the league is at as the second half of the season kicks off. Because of the league’s points-percentage standings this season, it’s a little more complicated than usual!
But here’s one person’s analysis of where each team is headed as we enter the final three months of the season. The playoffs will be here before we know it!
The odds-on favorite
Minnesota State (14-4-2, 9-1-2 CCHA, 28 pts., 0.778 pts%)
Remaining games: 7 HOME (2 vs. Tech, 1 vs. UST, 2 vs. Augie, 2 vs. BSU); 7 AWAY (2 at NMU, 2 at FSU, 1 at UST, 2 AT LSSU)
Nothing has changed since last month: The Mavericks are currently in the drivers’ seat to win the MacNaughton Cup. The last time they played an official regulation game, they swept Lake Superior State, 3-2 and 6-1 in Mankato. They also played a pair of exhibition games, getting some good workouts in wins over Canadian Manitoba and Division III St. Norbert. They haven’t lost in regulation since early November. It must be said that the Mavericks aren’t an offensive juggernaut, but they’ve been the best defensive team in the country, allowing just 1.5 goals a game thanks to goaltender Alex Tracy and a robust, experienced defensive corps. Their remaining schedule is favorable, too: The travel to Michigan for three series will be tough, but those are all against bottom-half teams. They have the luxury of hosting two of their main contenders (Augustana and Michigan Tech) at home, plus the traditional season-ending series with Bemidji State.
Remaining games: 8 HOME (2 vs. LSSU, 2 vs. Tech; also 2 vs. Lindenwood (NC) and 2 vs. Alaska (NC)); 4 AWAY (2 at BGSU, 2 at MSU)
The only team in the conference with any nonconference games to play, I point those out because the Vikings are in good position for something other than just the MacNaughton Cup: An at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. Augustana really turned some heads last weekend with their road sweep of Colorado College, and they’ve played well enough outside of the conference that they are going to be considered a bubble team if they keep on winning. That’s easier said than done, of course, but their schedule is also quite favorable, travel-wise–the Vikings only league Sioux Falls twice more this season. One of those is for a series at Bowling Green–never an easy place to play–before what could be the series that decides the MacNaughton Cup on Feb. 7-8 at Minnesota State in Mankato. The margin for error for both an at-large bid and the MacNaughton is small but doable, but the Vikings are in a great position to at the very least have home ice advantage in the playoffs in their first season as full league members.
Remaining games: 7 HOME (2 vs. LSSU, 1 vs. NMU, 2 vs. BSU, 2 vs. FSU); 7 AWAY (2 at MSU, 1 at NMU, 2 at Augie, 2 at UST)
Michigan Tech ended 2024 with plenty of momentum when scored six times in the third period against Bemidji State to win 9-5. That momentum didn’t quite carry over into the two tournaments they played in (the GLI and the Cactus Cup). The Huskies took third place in both tournaments, falling to a pair of top-ten Pairwise teams in the first round of both competitions (Western Michigan and Massachusetts-Lowell, respectively). However, both of those were one-goal games, and the Huskies are well-positioned for the home stretch of CCHA after seeing three teams from three different conferences in said tournament. Tech’s top line–which features Stiven Sardarian, Isaac Gordon and Logan Morrell–is among the best in the league, with a combined 55 points.
Bowling Green (10-7-2, 6-4-2 CCHA, 23 pts, 0.639 pts%)
Remaining games: 8 HOME (2 vs. BSU, 2 vs. Augie, 2 vs. UST, 2 vs. LSSU); 6 AWAY (2 at FSU, 2 at NMU, 2 at BSU)
I wouldn’t have had Bowling Green on the Dark Horse candidates list last month. But all of a sudden, the Falcons are riding a five-game winning streak–that included two sweeps, which means two consecutive Diamond Cutters. It’s enough to vault them back into contention for home ice. They’re tied with Michigan Tech on points percentage. They don’t have to play the Huskies again. They also are all done with Minnesota State for the regular season, too. The only team BG has to play who is currently ahead of them in the standings is Augustana.
Searching for home ice
Lake Superior State (8-11-1, 6-6-0 CCHA, 19 pts, 0.528 pts%)
Remaining games: 6 HOME (2 vs. UST, 2 vs. NMU, 2 vs. MSU); 8 AWAY (2 at Tech, 2 at Augie, 2 at FSU, 2 at BGSU)
At the beginning of the month, the Lakers were fighting Minnesota State for first place in the standings. But since then they’ve lost five of six, including sweeps at the hands of Minnesota State and Bowling Green. There’s still plenty of time for the Lakers to right the ship, though. Their special teams (a 22.4% power play and an 84.1% penalty kill) are among the best in the conference, and their scoring offense (54 goals in 20 games) has been solid. They just need to figure out how to put some more wins together in conference play. They’ve notched sweeps against Northern Michigan and St. Thomas, and have a series against both of those teams in the season’s second half. Last season, LSSU was a dangerous team down the stretch and this edition of the Lakers look to be no different.
Bemidji State (8-9-3, 5-5-2 CCHA, 18 pts, 0.500 pts%)
Remaining games: 6 HOME (2 vs. NMU, 2 vs. FSU, 2 vs. BGSU); 8 AWAY (2 at BGSU, 2 at UST, 2 at Tech, 2 at MSU)
Last season, the defending MacNaughton Cup champs were in first place at the holiday break. They wound up going 9-3-2 in the second half of the season to win the league title. This time around, the Beavers are looking up at the top of the league ladder. The MacNaughton is a longer shot, but home ice in the playoffs is still doable. The Beavers, like the Lakers, simply need more consistency. They’re 8-9-3 overall and 5-5-2 in league play but have yet to sweep any team outright this season. This despite some great single-game results against Minnesota, North Dakota and Minnesota State. The Beavers have six home games remaining but all are series against favorable opponents; if they can get a sweep or two at home and at least earn positive points in two of their four road series they could be staying in Bemidji for the playoffs.
Fighting for a good seed
Ferris State (6-12-2, 5-7-0 CCHA, 15 pts, 0.417 pts%)
Remaining games: 8 HOME (2 vs. BGSU, 2 vs. MSU, 2 vs. LSSU, 2 vs. NMU); 6 AWAY (2 at UST, 2 at BSU, 2 at Tech)
Ferris State finished last in the conference a season ago, with just 19 points. They’re already just four points away from surpassing that total this season. Because of the way things are playing out this season, it seems unlikely that the Bulldogs will finish in last place again this season, but it’s hard to say if they’re going to be able to pick up enough points to compete for home ice. Certainly they’re going to need to pick up a few more wins at home–they’ve only won twice in Big Rapids.
St. Thomas (6-10-4, 3-6-3 CCHA, 12 pts, 0.333 pts%)
Remaining games: 7 HOME (2 vs. FSU, 2 vs. BSU, 1 vs. MSU, 2 vs. Tech); 7 AWAY (2 at LSSU, 1 at MSU, 2 at BGSU, 2 at MSU)
After their second-place finish last season, many had the Tommies finishing at or around first place this season. It’s been something of a struggle for them in the first half, however. It isn’t due to lack of offense–Liam Malmquist is second in the conference in scoring with 23 points, while Cooper Gay’s nine goals is tied for the CCHA lead. The Tommies had home ice in the playoffs last season; getting there this year might be tough but they do play all three of the teams ahead of them head-to-head in their first three series of 2025.
Remaining games: 7 HOME (2 vs. MSU, 1 vs. Tech, 2 vs. BGSU, 2 vs. UST); 7 AWAY (2 at BSU, 1 at MSU, 2 at LSSU, 2 at FSU)
It’s been rough going for Northern Michigan in Dave Shyiak’s first season behind the bench. Due to the nature of their roster–just two players who had any experience returned to Marquette at the start of this season–the Wildcats have had plenty of issues finding anything approaching consistency. This is especially true on offense, which has seen NMU score just 25 goals in 20 games. They’ve been shut out six times. Goaltender Ryan Ouelette and the NMU defense has done an admirable job attempting to keep the puck out of the net and keeping them in a few games, but for the most part there’s not been much for Wildcat fans to cheer for this year. So far the only points they’ve managed were a shootout win against Minnesota State in November. Unless the Wildcats figure out a way to get a lot of points quickly in the first few series, they’re going to find themselves in the cellar of the CCHA standings and will be on the outside looking into the playoffs this year.
Mason Kucenski has been solid between the pipes over the first half of the 2024-25 season for St. Lawrence (photo: C A Hill Photo).
The college hockey season doesn’t typically shift into overdrive until the calendar shifts into the new year.
The “first half,” loaded to the gills with its high-profile nonconference matchups, holiday tournaments and pleasant surprises, doesn’t truly yield its heat until league play and trophy season crests over the horizon. Early-season rivalries aside, coaches and players are acutely aware how seasons can be lost in the first half, but championships are won after New Year’s Day.
Slumbering giants from the first half of the year aren’t immune to thunderous awakenings after they return from Christmas break, and in the outer reaches of New York’s North Country, there are plenty of reasons to believe in St. Lawrence’s opportunity for a second half run. Mired in last place at the end of the first half, a four-point weekend against Dartmouth and Harvard sprung the Saints from a doldrums that not even this past weekend’s 8-1 loss to Vermont can overshadow as the real season – the real run to Lake Placid – begins in earnest.
“We had a really good start,” said Saints coach Brent Brekke. “And we were scoring goals. During part of that stretch, we played Ferris State and went 6-for-8 on the power play, which obviously if you can go 6-for-8 on the power play, that’s a rarity but it leaves you feeling like there’s a sign of great things to come. After that, though, we went dormant on the power play, and after those first six games, when we’re all of a sudden not scoring, [guys] started to squeeze the stick and look for the extra pass, which got us away from the things that we needed to do to have success. Sitting down and watching a lot of the video, we needed to simplify things and be confident that we could make those kinds of plays when, at times, less was more.”
Plenty of reasons exist for anyone choosing to believe in St. Lawrence’s second half run. One of last year’s best defensive teams in the league, the Saints have actually cut and sliced their goals against average by a half-goal per game in their first six ECAC games. At an overall level, SLU is still one of the middle-tier teams in the league, and removing the eight goals allowed against the Catamounts lowers the number by nearly a quarter-goal against the team’s overall average on the 2024-25 season.
Further considering that game’s outlier status, the Saints align closer to the nation’s 25 best defenses and are pushed closer to Wisconsin, Cornell and Quinnipiac, which entered the second half in first place after its own early-season struggles.
Problems existed on the offensive side for a team that barely nudged its way north of one goal per game in its league games through its first six games, but the get-right weekend against Dartmouth and Harvard enabled the Saints to push goals across the Big Green’s goal mouth after losing one-goal leads on two separate occasions.
“Our penalty kill has been great all year,” Brekke said. “[Assistant coach] Tommy Hill runs our penalty kill and does a phenomenal job at it, and that’s always been, for us, strengthening. Combine that with Mason Kucenski in goal, where he’s been dynamite for us and so sound, and we feel that good to play in a tight game, even if we haven’t been producing the offense. We feel that we can give ourselves a good position if we hold a team to two goals or under three goals because we’ll start putting some pucks in the net.
“It’s not going to be a one-line change for us. It’s going to take four lines. We’re going to need our power play to click, but defensively, knowing that we can minimize an opponent’s quality opportunities in front of Mason, who is a stalwart, that’s the confidence that we know we can use to give [the defense] its support.”
It won’t hurt that every single team has to visit the North Country over the next two months. Even with a 5-12-1 overall record, St. Lawrence is defending home ice to the tune of four wins, and last year’s team went 10-5-2 at Appleton Arena during a season in which it went 3-13-4 away from its home building. There hasn’t been a sub-.500 year at home since the COVID-19 pandemic ended, and the Saints haven’t played poorly as a home team since the building reopened from its renovation in 2019-20.
And like last year, St. Lawrence has a built-in advantage in the winter months where the Saints don’t travel on consecutive weekends, a fact underscored by their 4-1-1 ECAC record on home Saturdays last season. One of those wins was against travel partner Clarkson, but the loss to Princeton still went to overtime and followed a Friday night overtime win over Quinnipiac, which was ranked No. 5 in the nation at the time.
“We want it to be a tough building to play in,” Brekke said. “It’s a sense of pride for us that it doesn’t matter who we play. Things happen fast here. It’s a great old rink, and it has a couple of interesting [facets]. It’s a little bit darker, and when you come here, if there’s bad weather, when you step into a darker building, it all [combines] against a team playing an aggressive style and physical style. This is a challenging trip [for teams], and we want it to stay challenging. But at the same time, it’s on us to make it a tough place to play. We have to make it so [players] just want this game to be over, that they don’t want to be here.
“We have to go after them like a tidal wave, where we’re relentless with and without the puck.”
St. Lawrence returns to the ice for its home series with Rensselaer and Union this weekend with both games scheduled for 7 p.m. before the Saints head east to play Brown and Yale on Jan. 17-18. A home-and-home with Clarkson follows on Jan. 24-25 with Friday night in Canton before turning the clock to Potsdam for a Saturday night matchup.
The Kwik Trip Holiday Face-Off returns to Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee with Wisconsin, Boston College, Western Michigan, and Lake Superior State comprising the fifth annual event Dec. 28-29, 2025.
The semifinal play will take place on Sunday, Dec. 28 with the championship game and third-place game on Monday, Dec. 29.
Matchups and times will be announced at a later date.
Tickets will be on sale at a later date as well.
Wisconsin won the inaugural event in 2021, advanced to the title game of the 2022 tournament, and won again in 2023 and 2024.
Lake Superior State returns for its second Kwik Trip Holiday Face-Off after competing in the 2022 event.
In the 2024 Kwik Trip Holiday Face-Off, Wisconsin edged out UConn, winning 4-3 to capture after shutting out Ferris State 8-0 in the semifinal matchup.
Michigan freshman Christian Humphreys takes a faceoff against St. Cloud State early in the 2024-25 season (photo: Michigan Photography).
The OHL’s Kitchener Rangers announced Tuesday the signing of forward Christian Humphreys to an OHL scholarship and development agreement.
Humphreys, a Pittsburgh native, had played the first half of the 2024-25 season at Michigan, registering one assist in 10 games with the Wolverines.
“We are excited to add Christian to our team,” said Kitchener GM Mike McKenzie in a statement. “He is a very skilled and offensive player that should thrive in the OHL. We look forward to welcoming him to Kitchener and seeing him on the ice at The Aud.”
Humphreys was an 11th round draft selection (212th overall) by the Rangers in the 2022 OHL draft and was also selected in the 7th round (215th overall) of the 2024 NHL Draft by the Colorado Avalanche.
Big Ten officials Pat Richardson, Barry Pochmara, Colin Kronforst and John “JP” Waleski worked the first of four college games at Wrigley Field (photo: Ryan Kuttler/Big Ten Conference).
CHICAGO — Like thousands have before, Barry Pochmara walked down the tunnel from the umpires’ room at Wrigley Field, climbed up the visiting dugout steps and saw his jersey number in white numbers atop the antique scoreboard in center field.
It’s not something that a hockey referee gets to experience often.
“That was phenomenal to have our numbers up there on a probably 100-year-old scoreboard,” Pochmara said. “You get excited for all that kind of stuff and it makes you really not take for granted working these games.”
Players and coaches get amped for outdoor games that bring back memories of skating on frozen ponds. It was no different for the officials who worked at the Big Ten’s Frozen Confines series of games.
“Everybody wants to be part of these outdoor games,” referee Colin Kronforst said. “They typically involve rivalries, which makes it an even bigger event. It’s just as fun for us as it is for them.”
Pochmara and Kronforst worked the first of four college games at Wrigley, Friday’s 4-3 Ohio State victory against Michigan, along with linesmen John “JP” Waleski and Pat Richardson. Afterward, they beamed about what they saw, what they felt and what they heard.
The goose bumps that Waleski described weren’t even because the temperature was 24 at opening faceoff and a wind from left field to right field knocked the wind chill into the single digits at times.
“It’s not like looking up into the crowd at a regular game,” Waleski said. “You look up, A, it’s Wrigley. And it’s dark, and you can tell there’s a ton of people up there and you just hear the noise.
“It’s a feeling that I don’t really know how to describe. NHL guys say it’s like being a kid on the pond again, and it definitely has that feel. It takes you back to this is a game, this is fun.”
The officials wore balaclavas under their helmets to try to keep their heads warm but they left their hands uncovered.
By the game’s end, Pochmara said his toes were getting cold.
“You don’t fully warm up in between” periods, he said. “So every time you went back out, I was a little bit colder.”
Pochmara and Kronforst each said they had officiated four outdoor games before Friday. Pochmara did two at the Great Lakes Invitational when it was Detroit’s Comerica Park in 2013 and one earlier that year at Chicago’s Soldier Field.
Kronforst and Pochmara also worked a 2015 game between Michigan and Michigan State at Soldier Field.
“This was a bigger event,” Pochmara said. “To me, a much more prestigious venue. Because the NHL put this one on, the other four were not NHL-ran as far as the ice surface and the boards and the lights and everything else. This was, by far, the most well-operated machine out of my five that I’ve done.”
Kronforst was a referee for the 2019 game at Notre Dame Stadium between the Fighting Irish and Michigan, which also followed an NHL Winter Classic.
“The branding there wasn’t even close to what this was,” Kronforst said. “The perception from TV, the perception from the officials, the perception from the coaches and the players, it was a much bigger event, in my opinion.”
The officials called eight penalties Friday and had three reviews, none of which led to a change in the original call.
Kronforst said there was a welcome relationship between the quality of ice deteriorating and him getting fatigued as the game went on. The game got more deliberate as the energy level decreased.
“Sometimes it’s a more violent game because it’s not very well organized and it’s throw it at the net and see what happens type of hockey, which is fun too,” Kronforst said.
Adding weather to hockey creates new challenges.
“It’s a different mindset for the players and the officials when you have the elements that we did,” Pochmara said. “It’s not super crisp. It’s not super fast. Nobody’s dangling for a backhand one-timer.”
There weren’t those kind of memories from Wrigley Field but there were a lot of other positive takeaways for the officials.
Team USA celebrates its OT win Sunday night over Finland to win back-to-back World Junior Championship gold medals (photo: USA Hockey).
Each week during the season, we look at the big events and big games around Division I men’s college hockey in Tuesday Morning Quarterback.
Dan: A hearty and happy 2025 to all of you and specifically welcome back to my cohort in crime, Paula Weston, as we get started here on the second half of the season. For what it’s worth, I wasn’t sure how to start this week, but I figured it was easy enough to do it with three easy letters.
U! S! A!
USA! USA! USA! USA!
The United States indeed won gold at the World Junior Championship this weekend, and for the second straight year, we were treated to a bunch of college kids performing their now customary red, white and blue celebration with gold medals wrapped around their necks. I’ve spoken with coaches and players in the past, and few things top the emotion surrounding a championship for your country. Heaven knows we have some issues – lest we set off a giant stick of dynamite to this column – so maybe a little bit of pride can go a long way here.
More specifically, the gold medal established continued dominance for an NCAA-led team. Now that we’re through the tournament, was there anything that stuck out to you, and does this open or shut the door to the conversation that college hockey is superior in the new era?
Paula: Oh, Dan, I’m so glad you started with Team USA’s performance in the tournament because it was fun to watch from start to finish. Sunday’s gold medal game was surprising in a few ways, not the least of which was how dominant the USA was from midway through the second period until the end of OT. When the Finns went up 3-1 early in the second, it was as though a switch had flipped on the American bench.
Team USA outshot Finland 40-24 in the game, including a 6-2 differential in overtime. If it hadn’t been for the brilliant play of Finnish goaltender Petteri Rimpinen, that game may not have gone to OT.
You ask about the superiority of college hockey (as opposed to major junior, I’m assuming) and I’m not sure how to answer that question. I do know that in the decades that I’ve been with USCHO, NCAA hockey has worked collectively and diligently to improve player development, and we’ve seen that come to fruition in this tournament.
There were the same number of NCAA players (22) on the 2024 and 2025 gold-medal rosters, but the proportion of players from individual leagues changed significantly from last year to this. Nearly half of this year’s team was from Hockey East, with Boston College placing six players on the roster – and what impressive players they were, with team captain Ryan Leonard (5-5-10) tied for top points in the tourney, Gabe Perreault (3-7-10) being everywhere when necessary, and Teddy Stiga’s first goal of the tourney winning the gold medal game in OT. Then there’s Boston University defenseman Cole Hutson, with his three goals and eight assists to lead all skaters in scoring.
That Team USA, with a roster of collegians, becomes one of five programs in the history of the tournament to win back-to-back gold medals certainly makes an argument that we are seeing an elevation in collegiate play and perhaps an NCAA dominance among this specific age group on the world stage. Only Canada, Czechia (as the Czech Republic), the Soviet Union and Russia had captured consecutive gold medals in the tournament prior to this year.
And the NCAA participation isn’t limited to Team USA. Last year, 44 collegians or future collegians played for nine total tournament teams. This year, there were 37 NCAA players and commitments across eight rosters. UMass goaltender Michael Hrabal had an outstanding tournament (.918 SV%, 2.45 GAA) and won a bronze medal with Team Czechia Sunday.
So much credit goes to the way that NCAA coaches are developing talent now, and not the least of that credit goes to Team USA’s coaching staff of David Carle (Denver), Brett Larson (St. Cloud), Steve Miller (Minnesota) and Garrett Raboin (Augustana), the same foursome behind the 2024 bench. Carle and Larson head programs known for developing talent, Raboin has done very impressive things in his short tenure with Augustana and Steve Miller is Bob Motzko’s righthand man in Minnesota.
I am a huge fan of the way talent is being developed now in NCAA hockey and – as you and I have discussed before – I’m eager to see if and how that changes with new rules regarding major junior player eligibility. I’m also really excited for what these consecutive medals for the USA program may mean to strengthen the NCAA’s recruiting power.
Does all of this establish NCAA superiority on the world stage? Maybe. Does it establish that everything happening in USA amateur hockey – including the NCAA – is headed in the right direction to establish a dominant hockey culture? Absolutely.
Dan: To me, all of this leads back to the ongoing conversation surrounding name, image and likeness. As we’re all aware, NIL isn’t going anywhere, but the most pertinent influence in hockey is more on what happens with the Canadian major junior players and their potential decision to matriculate south to play college hockey. Team Canada faced a number of issues in this tournament surrounding its composition, but I often wonder what would happen if the national team opted to send its best Canadian players south of its border to compete with the older NCAA roster.
It’s a nonlineal argument, of course, and it’s impossible to determine if age-eligible Canadian players in college hockey are simply better or the “best” available players. Last year’s Canadian team had two NCAA players in Macklin Celebrini and Matthew Wood and an NHL prospect in Matthew Poitras (and since he was in Boston, that automatically qualifies him for best player on the team. I’m not here for the negativity about the Bruins’ record). But the fact that Michigan’s Michael Hage, a first-round pick by Montreal, was passed over for this year’s team despite having 20-plus points in 17 games in the Big Ten pointed towards a desire to feature CHL players on the home roster in the home country…along with a few other factors that contributed to the team’s early exit.
That type of thinking might’ve worked on the international stage during the earlier years of the tournament, but the last two years indicated the strength of the college game while Team Canada is regressing. If I’m a CHL player, the combination of NIL opportunities along with the removal of the barrier to playing college hockey represents an existential crisis for the junior leagues that once competed next to college hockey.
Last point, and this is really where I’m heading with this – if we’re able to think about how to truly impact some nationalistic and jingoistic hockey for a second, what would a possible NCAA showcase of international players look like? The Four Nations tournament in the NHL really piqued my interest in something like this, but I’d be interested in putting Team USA in a tournament featuring 530 Canadian college hockey players and the 165 internationals. Even removing the 58 Swedes into their own country, a United States, a Canada, a Sweden and a “rest of the world” would sure look fun, wouldn’t it?
Paula: Oh, please don’t get me started on Team Sweden. In the early going, I thought they were the team to beat – and I love their aggressive, elegant style of play. I wasn’t rooting against Czechia in the bronze medal game, but I may have been pulling for Sweden a little.
But I think what we just witnessed in the World Juniors is what you propose, Dan, except that “the rest of the world” – like Czechia and Latvia, especially – had something to say about participating for their individual countries.
I get your point about the talent pool and numbers, though. I also wonder if we’re just longing for the old pre-pro Olympic days in this discussion (even though I concede that you are too young to remember those days, really).
I take your points, too, about the NIL, Canadian major juniors and the direction in which Team Canada seems determined to go. After such an incredibly disappointing finish in this year’s tournament, I wonder if Hockey Canada may reconsider excluding NCAA players. This year’s exclusion of young Canadian talent among the NCAA ranks – especially Hage’s exclusion – seems to have been done to make a point about the quality of major junior vs. NCAA talent.
And I have to hand it to Hockey Canada: point made.
Given the sexual misconduct and other scandals impacting Hockey Canada in recent years and that body’s entrenchment about addressing any and all of it, I have to wonder Canadian amateur hockey doesn’t have quite a little bit of work to do to regain the dominance it once had on the world stage.
Okay, I’m going to shift here because in addition to the World Juniors, there was some really excellent college hockey played, especially the three games at Wrigley Field, where six Big Ten and two WCHA women’s teams were able to take advantage of the outdoor ice set up for the NHL’s Winter Classic.
The Frozen Confines, as it was called, was an enormous success by every measure. As a product, it was perfectly packaged. The Big Ten Network’s coverage was outstanding, from play-by-play and commentary, to booth work – kudos to Rick Pizzo and Paul Caponigri for a weekend of great hockey talk – to camera work for the event.
The weather was semi-cooperative – very cold, which presents its own issues, but the ice was good – and several teams embraced playing in a baseball stadium, with the Ohio State men and Penn State especially playing up that angle. The OSU’s women’s team walked into the stadium wearing Johnny Gaudreau jerseys, a touching tribute to someone who mattered so much to Columbus.
But the games, Dan, were fantastic. In the opening game, Ohio State scored with 38 seconds remaining in regulation to beat Michigan 4-3. In the second game, Penn State and Notre Dame played ping-pong, back-and-forth hockey that resulted in a 3-3 tie.
The second day, the Ohio State and Wisconsin women – Big Ten schools who play in the WCHA because there is no B1G women’s hockey – skated to a 3-3 tie, and Michigan State beat Wisconsin 4-3 in the final game of the weekend.
Each game was competitive. Each team came to play. Three of the B1G teams – No. 1 Michigan State, No. 9 Michigan and No. 11 Ohio State – showed that they are among the best teams in men’s hockey, and literally the two best teams in women’s hockey put on a fantastic show.
The Frozen Confines couldn’t have been a bigger success. Over 25,000 fans attended Friday and nearly 7,000 Saturday. I don’t know what the Big Ten Network’s viewership numbers were, but anyone who happened upon the televised games was treated to great hockey by schools with name recognition – good for the Big Ten, good for the WCHA, good for NCAA hockey.
The performance of one player, in particular, is something that should be noted. While Trey Augustine was winning a gold medal in Team USA’s net, Luca Di Pasquo was earning four consecutive wins in the Michigan State net. Di Pasquo was the MVP of the Great Lakes Invitational tournament (Dec. 29-30) as the Spartans downed Northern Michigan and No. 4 Western Michigan to earn that tourney title, and in Michigan State’s sweep of Wisconsin last weekend, Di Pasquo made 61 saves.
So we learned last weekend through two televised events that the No. 1 team in men’s hockey has a frighteningly good goaltending duo.
As excited as I am for the implications of Team USA’s gold medal, watching Big Ten hockey perform so well on such a big stage last weekend was really gratifying.
Dan: Oh, the Frozen Confines… how you stuck it in my ear. Jimmy, Ed and I all but said that outdoor games jumped the shark when it came to discussing the outdoor hockey games in Chicago, and then the numbers told me that nobody really cared about the on-ice product if Wrigley Field could do that. I’m still where I stand on being ambivalent towards outdoor games, but the fans proved that what I said about, “hey if I can go, sure, I’ll enjoy it.” They turned out in droves.
I’ll take it a step further and point out that Dec. 29 was a bad day for Hockey East. It wasn’t really tournament-based, but Yale’s 7-5 win over Boston University scored a major win for Keith Allain’s group after it had been swept by Long Island during its two final games around Thanksgiving. Up at Maine, meanwhile, the No. 4-ranked Black Bears took a loss from Bentley that ranked as my Falcons’ best-ever win over a ranked opponent and one of the biggest individual regular-season wins for Atlantic Hockey America. It certainly echoed Sacred Heart’s win over No. 1 UMass from the start of the 2013-2014 season, but it showed how a hot goalie can win a game – it certainly wasn’t the first time Connor Hasley did it, and it’s not the first time I’ve mentioned him in these parts (Bentley affiliation aside, his numbers didn’t lie in those wins).
The loss dropped Maine to No. 7 in the PairWise Rankings at the time, but the split with Denver this past weekend turned that one individual defeat into a footnote after a fantastic weekend of hockey. The dueling 2-1 wins for either side handed us phenomenal hockey on either end, and I personally blurred my eyes to imagine both teams advancing to play one another in St. Louis.
(Also quick aside — I noted this on last week’s USCHO Edge podcast, but can we pump the brakes on Denver “losing” to UNLV in an exhibition game? It was an exhibition game shootout. By nature, it didn’t count and Denver probably skated its entire lineup. Sure, it’s great to give UNLV flowers because we want to pump club hockey and maybe, just maybe, gain a foothold on one of these teams coming into Division I, but I’m throwing cold water on this game playing out as some massive upset. The 1992 Dream Team lost to the college select team, too.)
I suppose this is a good point to pivot into the next portion of the schedule and what’s upcoming because the second half gained traction. We’re approaching trophy season and the arrival of the Beanpot for both the men and women in New England. Teams around the pairwise bubble are floating into some key matchups. North Dakota, for example, is heading to Arizona State this weekend and Augustana gained some eyeballs by beating Colorado College. CC is now heading to Omaha in need of some bounce-back mojo after last sweeping a weekend in early November.
Paula: Before turning to things upcoming, I want to chime in with my ambivalence toward outdoor games. What really helped in Chicago, imo, was that the Winter Classic had just been played on the same sheet days before, and the college hockey games were played during the unofficial last weekend of the holiday season.
I didn’t watch the Winter Classic, so I don’t know if the NHL promoted the Frozen Confines, but I know that Wrigley Field did its best to promote the event.
So there’s that.
Down the stretch, I’m looking forward to the photo finish that’s coming in the Big Ten, and it’s something I’ve been looking forward to for a long, long time. We discuss the nature of parity in this space sometimes, and I’m quick to point out that the term doesn’t necessarily mean that everybody’s equally good.
This season, however, Big Ten hockey has two teams at the top of the standings that are legitimate national contenders, and several others that can push for season titles. With their sweep of Wisconsin, the Spartans placed themselves in a two-way tie with for first with Minnesota, and Ohio State’s split with Michigan has the Buckeyes four out of first place. Each of those teams has played an equal number of games and has four games in hand on Wisconsin, the team tied with OSU.
Outside of the Big Ten, Hockey East is playing stunning hockey, especially in conference. The four-way tie for second place has UMass Lowell, Boston College, Providence and Boston University each one point behind first-place Maine. I can’t imagine a better way to begin the second half in that conference.
And speaking of the PairWise and Hockey East, it’s impossible to Connecticut right behind that second-place pack, with wins over BC and Lowell and sitting currently at No. 15 in the PWR.
That bubble is home to several good teams. Along with Connecticut, Arizona State, Quinnipiac and Augustana are hovering there, and the teams at No. 12 through No. 14 – Michigan, Boston University, Minnesota State – are by no means safe.
This weekend, Minnesota State can’t afford to lose to Northern Michigan, one of two teams that still hasn’t earned a conference win this season. The only CCHA team currently in PWR consideration, the Mavericks can’t afford to lose, period – and their series in early February against Augustana now looks a lot more interesting.
Bubble teams in the Big Ten, Hockey East, and the NCHC have scheduling advantages that teams in Atlantic Hockey, the CCHA and the ECAC don’t have, that strength of schedule. It’s quite possible that the bottom three seeds in this year’s NCAA tournament will be in only because they won those conference playoff championships.
And that will make every conference playoff tournament that much more interesting this season.
Michigan State players and staff pose together after the Spartans downed Wisconsin 4-3 in overtime at Wrigley Field last Saturday night (photo: Michigan State Athletics).
Michigan State is again the top-ranked team in the USCHO.com Division I Men’s Hockey Poll, garnering 43 first-place votes this week.
Boston College stays No. 2 with six first-place votes, while Minnesota remains No. 3 with the final first-place vote. Western Michigan and Providence stay fourth and fifth, respectively.
Denver is still No. 6, Maine remains seventh, UMass Lowell is up two to No. 8, Michigan holds steady at No. 9, and St. Cloud State moves up one to No. 10 in this week’s rankings.
Colorado College falls out of the top 10 this week, dropping from No. 8 to No. 13. Previously unranked New Hampshire enters the poll this week at No. 17.
In addition to the top 20 teams, 15 others received votes this week.
The USCHO.com Division I Men’s Hockey Poll is compiled weekly and consists of 50 voters, including coaches and media professionals from across the country. Media outlets may republish this poll as long as USCHO.com is credited.